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“You wanna know if we’re gay? Is that it?”
TK leaned over to Hayes and whispered, “You don’t have to answer that, baby.”
“Nah, it’s all good. Let’s get it out. So, like, if you’ve been payin’ any attention to me at all, it’s not a secret, nor has it ever been. The Pride Tape all over my stick every night? It’s not some political statement or virtue signal. No, I’m not in a relationship with Travis. We’re just friends. But I have been in a relationship with a former teammate of mine for over a year now. We, uh, actually just got engaged,” he said, lifting his right hand and showing the ring to the room.
He waited a few moments for the chatter and murmuring to die down before continuing. “And he’s the most supportive, selfless, wonderful human being I’ll ever have the pleasure of meeting. He’s the reason I’m alive to talk to you today, and I love him more than I can even begin to put into words. So yeah, if you feel you need to put a label on it, I’m gay and I’m in a gay relationship. And I’m also happier than I’ve ever been. Next question.”
Ryan shifted in his chair and exhaled.
I am going to fuck that man’s hips right through the bedframe tonight, he thought, watching in amazement as hisfiancé handled the situation like the absolute boss he was.
The rest of the presser went well, with all of the reporters on their best behavior and keeping their questions respectful. At the conclusion, the boys received a standing ovation, and between Osi, Ryan, Hayes, and TK, it’s a miracle the entire press room didn’t fill up with tears.
As Hayes left the stage, there were several people who tried to stop him and talk to him, but he pushed past all of them, his eyes laser focused on where he needed to be. He quickly approached Ryan, grabbed either side of his face with both hands, and pulled him in for a long, slow kiss. Ryan’s hands made their way to Hayes’s waist, as several Awww’s and camera flashes filled the room around them. He pulled away from Ryan, grabbed one of Ryan’s hands, and yanked his arm up over his head. “This is my fuckin’...sorry, this is my fiance!” he yelled, causing several cheers to erupt, mostly from the Isles along the back wall.
“We always knew it!” Dalesy yelled.
“Yeah, we did!” Kasic added, as he fist bumped Dalesy.
Hayes let their arms drop but kept a hold of Ryan’s hand as he turned to see what TK was doing. He was talking to a couple reporters, with Joss hanging back a few feet from him. His eyes drifted and met up with Hayes’s, and the two offered each other a bittersweet smile.
“It’s looking like the Sens.”
Hayes knew it was necessary, but that didn’t make it suck any less.
Travis Kadin and Tyler Hayes had been thrust into each other’s lives at the exact moment they’d needed to be in order to help save each other from themselves. In the midst of all the chaos, all the hardship, they’d fostered a friendship that had led them both to a place where, though the ride there had been a rough one, they could become their authentic selves. They could let go of the trauma, let go of the heartbreak, leave the past behind, and focus on the road that lay ahead of them.
Unfortunately, their friendship was part of the past that needed to be left behind.
Detachment was necessary for them, as much as they both hated to admit it. Maybe somewhere in the future there could be a healthy friendship with strong, established boundaries, one where they could focus primarily on their own needs instead of taking on each other’s, but in all honesty, it was an unlikely outcome for two codependent addicts. The odds were stacked against them big time.
He thought back to the quote by Graham R. White that his new therapist had shared with him regarding codependent relationships the other day, and it’d really resonated with him.
“Codependency is using a relationship to fill a bottomless void due to not feeling whole and loved as an individual.”
Hayes had met TK at a time when he didn’t feel whole or loved, but as he looked down at the ring on his right hand, he realized that wasn’t who he was anymore.
Yes, he was broken, but he damn sure was loved. And not only by Ryan, but now by himself. And yeah, Ryan and Hayes had their own codependent tendencies that they needed to work on as well, but they were tackling it together as an engaged couple with the help of both their therapists.
Hayes glanced back over at TK one more time, who was now standing right next to Joss and laughing with him; he couldn’t explain how, but he knew right then and there that Travis Kadin was going to be alright.
This trade, as much as it hurt, was the best possible thing that TK could’ve done for them both.
“Hey,” Ryan said softly, grabbing Hayes’s hand. The room had begun to clear out. “Why don’t you go shower so we can get outta here?”
“Big plans?” Hayes asked, bringing Ryan’s hand to his face and kissing it.
“You? Up on that mic, taking control in front of all these people the way you did?” He leaned into Hayes’s ear. “You’re lucky I didn’t whip it out and crank one off right here. That was so fucking hot.”
“Is that right?” Hayes asked, snaking a hand around his waist.
“Yeah, that’s right. And you? Are gonna have to beg me to stop making you cum when we get back to the apartment.”
Hayes smirked, squeezing Ryan’s hip. “Sounds like a plan. Except, uh, we’re not stayin’ at the apartment tonight.”
“No?”
“Nah. I kinda…planned somethin’ special. Valentine’s Day, you know?”
