Colten sighs before taking the pills, swallowing them with the sports drink, his face all grim determination.
Then he reaches for the greasy paper bag and stares inside. “Breakfast sandwiches?”
“I got your favorite from Mama T’s, extra bacon,” I tell him.
“You’re bribing me,” he accuses, even as he grabs one and unwraps it.
“Depends. Is it working?” I ask.
He takes a bite and closes his eyes. For a second, he looks like he’s experiencing spiritual enlightenment.
“No,” he mumbles before taking another large bite.
“I am sorry about missing our PT session yesterday,” I say, looking over all of Julian’s weird scribbles on the wall. Looks like he had fun, good for him. “I didn’t mean to blow you off for the party, it was a mistake.”
Colten grunts in acknowledgement, which I take as ‘apology accepted.’
I grin, taking a seat on the bed as I say, “Also, I figured out what causes the glow.”
Colten chokes, coughing and sputtering hard enough that I hit his back.
After draining the Greatorade, he looks at me, wheezing, and asks, “What do you mean?”
“Come on, don’t act like that,” I say, raising an eyebrow at him as I hand him the other drink. He takes it without looking, his gaze locked on me. “I know it’s why you’ve been avoiding me.”
He goes pale, which seems overly dramatic. Must be a bad hangover. “I—what?”
“Yeah,” I say, smug. “You might have figured it out first, but guess what? I had the whole apartment to myself last night and did my own little detective work.”
He stares at me like he’s watching a train approach at high speed.
“...And?” he prompts, stiff and still pale.
“And now you’re not the only one who knows how the magic works.” I lightly punch his shoulder. “Next time maybe don’t keep secrets, dude.”
He blinks, looking from his half-eaten breakfast sandwich to me. “Patrick—”
“So what if it’s a bit awkward?” I tell him, wanting to make sure he knows how stupid this whole last week has been now that I know why he’s been AWOL. “Don’t avoid me for a week over something that dumb. We’re in this together, glowing horniness magic and all.”
Colten’s mouth opens, then closes, before he exhales in a long, slow breath.
The tension drains out of him like someone pulled a plug.
“…Oh,” he says quietly. Then he laughs. It’s small but genuine.
“No more secrets, right?” I ask, watching him to make sure he understands just how serious I am.
“You’re right,” he says, nodding. His voice shakes a little, likely from the hangover. “No more secrets.”
“Good,” I say, before adding with a stern look, “And no more avoiding me.”
“I can do that,” he replies before sighing. “I wanted to get rid of it before you figured it out.” He looks away. “I was just… embarrassed.”
I snort. “Embarrassed? There’s nothing embarrassing about magic.”
“Nothing?” He looks back at me and raises an eyebrow.
I snort before admitting, “Okay, yeah, figuring out how to control it might be a little awkward.”
