Page 74 of Brody

It washours before we finished. After the water in the bath grew cold, we moved to the bedroom and continued there. By the time we collapsed onto the mattress, spent and exhausted, it was late into the night. We didn’t say anything as we lay shoulder to shoulder and Brody intertwined his fingers with mine. In that moment, it felt like we were the only two people in the world, and I was content to stay in that very spot forever.

The moment was broken by the sound of a fist banging on the bedroom door.

“Are you two done, yet?” Creed’s voice shouted through the door. “I can hear you from the guest room, and some of us want to sleep tonight.”

I froze, mortification pouring through me as I realized that Creed had heard everything we’d done. I’d gotten so used to the idea of Brody’s house being our own sanctuary that I’d completely forgotten that Creed was now staying in the guest bedroom, which wasn’t far away.

Beside me, Brody groaned and threw an arm over his eyes like he was trying to block out the rest of the world. “This is my house,” he shouted back at Creed. “You’re just a guest here. We can do whatever we want, for as long as we want. If you’ve got a problem with it, then Magnus has a guest bedroom as well.”

Even through the door I could hear the sound of Creed’s scoff. “Magnus? Please. He’s even louder than you.”

Grabbing one of the pillows off the bed, Brody threw it at the door where it made a surprisingly loud thump against the wood. “Then count your blessings and keep your complaints to yourself.”

“All right, all right,” Creed grumbled. “And here I thought you were the more sensible one.”

“You’re just jealous you’re the only one not getting laid.”

The comment was harsh, but there was an undertone of affection in it.

On the other side of the door, Creed started laughing.

“Whatever you need to tell yourself to sleep at night. Although, it seems like you won’t be doing much of that.”

Brody threw another pillow at the door, which just made Creed laugh harder before we heard his footsteps as he walked away.

Flopping back onto the bed, Brody buried his face into the last remaining pillow.

“Fuuuuuck.”

I tentatively placed a hand on his shoulder. “I’m sure it’s not that bad. I mean, he was laughing, so I don’t think he was upset.”

Not lifting his face from the pillow, Brody shook his head. “No. It’s not that. This is hardly the first time one of us has overheard the other. Hell, there has been a few times where we’ve walked in on each other with a partner. At least this time the door was locked.”

“Then what’s the problem?”

Finally, Brody lifted his face from the pillow, and I could see that his blue-green eyes were sparkling with his own laughter.

“I’m going to have to start building Creed’s house right away. He’s not staying here any longer than necessary.”

Then Brody started laughing for real.

I joined him in his laughter, promising to help however I could with the construction. We continued to lie there for a while longer, keeping our voices down to a whisper as we made more plans for the future. The best part of the whole night was the assumption that I’d be moving in with Brody. There wasn’t even a discussion. I was already so established in Brody’s home that living anywhere else was unthinkable.

It felt good, finally having a home. I couldn’t remember the last time I was so accepted somewhere. Even before my brother got sick, it always felt like I was just floating from place to place, waiting for the next gust of wind to send me on my way like a dandelion seed drifting through the air.

Now, finally, I’d landed somewhere comfortable, and for the first time in my life, I could start putting down my own roots.