Dave

Zayn had told me to friend request Thomas from school, but fear held me. What if he didn’t accept the request? We’d just finished cleaning up the glass in mom’s room and the cake was cooling. I was sitting at the kitchen table.

“Just friend him,” Zayn said.

I turned, surprised to see him there. “You’re a quiet one.”

He laughed and then moved to sit beside me. “You know, if you friend him and he accepts, you’ll know he may want to talk to you.”

The phone was off now, and I moved my thumb to open it again. Zayn leaned in and shook his head. “He’s cute. You should do it. You’re going to kick yourself if you don’t.”

Fear filled me. What was I doing? This guy was totally okay with who he was, and I’d hidden who I was for most of my life. I wasn’t prepared to be the man who was ‘out’ at school. Zayn reached over and clicked the button to friend Thomas.

“Wait,” I screamed, but it was too late. The friend request was out there. I couldn’t take it back, not now. “You little shit.”

Zayn jumped back before I could take a swipe at him. But there was no force behind the flick of my wrist.

“You know I wasn’t really going to hit you, right?” Dave asked.

“Yeah, I know. How’s your eye?”

“I’m okay.”

“So, Dave, you need to connect with that guy.”

“God, I’m so…” I stared at my phone, seeing the notification pop up.

“What?” Zayn asked as he stepped closer.

“He accepted.”

Zayn moved closer, his eyes bright with delight. He patted me on the shoulder. I was so glad I’d stopped being such a douche around him. He was a good brother which was amazing. I’d wanted a sibling when I’d been younger, but my parents had said no. I didn’t get it at the time, now I did. But having Zayn in our house, being a part of our lives, was really cool.

“That’s awesome. Now you need to send him a message.”

“Oh God, he messaged me.” I wasn’t sure what I was going to do. He’d messaged me. Thomas had sent a private message. I clicked on the messaging application to read it. Hey, you go to my school. What’s up?

Zayn was smiling huge. “Oh my God, you have to ask him for coffee.”

“I can’t.” I wanted to, but I feared rejection.

“Do it.”

I met Zayn’s gaze. Fear twisted through me, and I worried that maybe I was making a huge mistake, but Zayn gave me courage.

“Okay. What do I say?”

“That you were wondering if he wanted to get coffee when you got back on Sunday.”

“Okay. I guess I could.”

My fingers hovered over the pop-up keyboard, and Zayn reached for my phone, but I moved faster than he could. I got up and moved to the den, plopping down on the couch before I started typing. I was wondering if you wanted to grab a coffee or something when we get back on Sunday? I hit send, afraid I’d made a huge mistake.

“What did he say?” Zayn asked.

I stared at my phone, wondering why Thomas wasn’t replying. A minute passed, then another. I couldn’t watch, so I hopped up and moved to the kitchen. The cakes had cooled enough to remove them from the pan. I pulled out the ingredients for frosting and Zayn stepped in.

“What are you doing?”

“Making frosting.”

“Can I help?”

“Sure. Come help. I need to get the sugar measured. I’ll slice the butter.”

We worked together in the kitchen. He asked about school, and I told him about my classes and the people. I wondered if Thomas had sent me a message and feared he hadn’t. Mom came in when we were almost finished frosting the cake. She looked tired. When she saw what we were doing, she burst into tears. Her hug was tight, and then she kissed me and Zayn.

“I guess I need to clean up that glass,” she said as she washed her hands.

“We did already. I mean, I wouldn’t walk around barefoot for a while until you vacuum a few more times, but we got it,” Zayn said.

“You did?” More tears filled her eyes, and she shook her head. “I can’t believe you two. You’re the best.”

“Mom, we couldn’t leave that mess for you to clean up.” I regretted every shitty thing I’d done. She’d been a good mom, and I’d treated her like shit for too many years.

“The cake is almost done,” Zayn said.

“I love chocolate cake,” she said.

“How about we eat dinner then watch a movie while we destroy this cake?” I knew she was hurting, but I also knew their relationship had been strained before. They’d had arguments when I’d been younger that had woken me. Maybe I should have let them know I’d been listening, but it had been easier to stay asleep.

“I’ll go change, and then we can eat.”

She left the room, and Zayn met my gaze. “She’s sad,” Zayn said.

I nodded. “She is.”

“What can we do?”

“I think just being here for her will help. They’ve fought hard in the past. I think she needs a break from him.”

The sound of mom’s door closing brought us both up short. Zayn turned to the cabinet and got out three bowls. We ate chili and cornbread, no one really talking much. Dad had walked out today, which I guessed it was better than walking out on Thanksgiving Day. Still, my dad was gone, and I knew we’d be living with the repercussions for a while. After we finished, we headed to the den and turned on an action movie, waiting until the movie was half-finished before we cut the cake, each having a hefty slice.

By the time the movie finished, Mom seemed a little better. I hugged her and gave Zayn a fist bump before I headed to my room. I checked my phone, seeing I had a private message from Thomas. I opened the message and read the note from him.

Sorry for not replying. My mom and dad made me leave the phone in the car while we ate dinner. But now I’m back. So coffee? Are you interested in coffee because you want to talk about class or do you want to talk to me?

My fingers shook as I typed. I was afraid you’d not even accept my request. I’m not so good at this. I’ve never been out before, and I really thought you would delete my request. I hit send and waited. I wasn’t sure he would reply, but then I saw he was typing.

I caught you staring at me during class.

I laughed and typed my reply. Yeah, I guess I wasn’t that subtle. I think you’re very good looking.

I got up and moved to the bathroom and brushed my teeth. My phone buzzed. I glanced down and saw I had a reply from him. You made me smile.

I was grinning from ear to ear. So are you okay going to coffee with me then?

I prayed he didn’t say no. I wouldn’t be able to face him if he didn’t want to at least go grab a cup.

Coffee is a yes. How about we meet close to four? Then if we want to spend more time together, we can grab dinner.

I pumped my fist and danced around. I had a date for Sunday. I was on top of the world. I knew it may not work out but having him agree to go out was some of the best news I’d ever received.

I’ll meet you at the coffee shop on campus, and we can figure it out from there?

He’d agreed to a date. Now I was really nervous. He didn’t reply, but I figured it was because his parents were having him do something. We were going out on Sunday. Excitement washed over me. I could make it through the weekend. We would be spending time together. That’s what mattered.