Max rolled out of bed, shook himself awake like a dog, and threw on whatever items of clothing were closest. According to Aiden, Oliver was leaving with his mom for the city at 9 a.m. sharp. If Max broke every traffic law in the state of New York, he’d barely make it to his house in time.
He’d do it, though. He’d do whatever it took to get there. That was what big brothers were for, and there were things he needed to say to Oliver. Apologies he needed to make.
When he opened his bedroom door, Aiden was waiting for him outside. Impatience radiated from him in waves.
“Finally!” He grabbed Max’s shoulder and steered him toward the front door. “Go, go, go!”
Mom and Dad were busy in the kitchen, as per usual. They glanced over as Aiden drove Max by like a plow.
“Where are you boys off to?” Dad asked.
“Nowhere,” Aiden said without slowing down. “Max has somewhere he needs to be.”
Max focused on not falling on his face. If he did, he suspected Aiden might pick him up and carry him bridal-style to the car.
When they got outside, Aiden pressed the keys into his hand. “Do you have any idea what you’re going to say?”
“None whatsoever, and we don’t have time to come up with a plan. I’m gonna have to wing it. Good thing that’s my specialty.” He unlocked the car, started to get in, but then turned back long enough to pull Aiden into a fierce hug. “I’ll stop him, okay? I won’t let you down.”
“You won’t,” Aiden whispered, squeezing him back. “No matter what happens, you won’t.”
Max didn’t want to let go, but he imagined he could hear a clock ticking in his head. He got into the car and sped off toward Oliver’s. It felt like he was moving through Jell-O. Every red light made him grind his teeth, and the way he rolled through stop signs suggested he was actually in California.
After a gut-wrenching eternity, he pulled onto the correct street and raced up to Oliver’s dad’s house. He parked on the street and was about to jump out when he noticed something that pushed all the air from his lungs.
There were no cars in the driveway. Oliver’s mom should have been here by now. Was he too late?
Please don’t let him be gone already. Aiden will be crushed.
He stared at the dingy house, wondering what he should do. Before he could decide on anything, however, a black car appeared on the street. As he watched, it pulled into Oliver’s driveway, and a woman with dark hair exactly like Oliver’s got out. It’d been a hot minute, but Max recognized her from the handful of times she’d picked Oliver up when they were kids. That was his mom all right.
Max didn’t know how the hell he’d beaten her there, but he wasn’t about to start questioning miracles. As he watched, she stood next to her car, looking at the house like she was debating going in. After a moment, she pulled a phone out of her pocket and held it to her ear. She had a brief conversation with whoever answered and then hit a button on her keys, popping the trunk. The front door to the house opened a second later, and Oliver appeared, hauling a suitcase.
Seeing him jolted Max into action. He hopped out of the car and jogged over to them.
Oliver’s mom spotted him first. “Don’t even think about it, Aiden. Oliver said you might try to stop him, but we’re leaving whether you like it or not.”
“I’m not—”
“It’s okay, Mom.” Oliver eyed him warily. “It’s not Aiden. It’s Max.” He tossed his suitcase into the trunk and shut it. When he turned back around, he was frowning. “What are you doing here?”
“Uh, well.” So much for winging it. “I came to convince you to stay.”
Oliver’s mom bristled. “Absolutely not. He’s coming home with me.”
“She’s right. I’m leaving. It’s for the best.” Oliver glanced at Max. “Though I gotta admit, I’m surprised to see you. I would think you’d be helping me pack.”
Max looked down at his shoes. “Listen, I owe you an apology. I didn’t mean to act like I don’t want you around. You’re my bro, and it wasn’t fair of me to blame you for my issues. I hope you can forgive me.” He peeked up.
Oliver gave him several once-overs, and with each pass, his expression grew more uncertain. “That’s . . . shockingly mature of you, Max. Of course I forgive you. I know you didn’t mean what you said. But that doesn’t change anything. I still have to leave so you and Aiden can sort things out.”
“That’s why I’m here, though. We have sorted things out. Aiden and I are cool again.”
Oliver shook his head. “You’re only saying that because you want me to stay.”
“Buddy, I love you and all, but if you think I’d drag my ass out of bed at this hour for you, then you’ve underestimated my laziness.”
“Okay, so Aiden talked you into it.”
“Exactly. If I were still angry at him, would I be doing him any favors? Would I risk getting my throat ripped out by your mom?”
He glanced at her, and she nodded as if to say Damn straight.
Oliver’s frown deepened. “I guess not . . . but there’s no way you guys fixed everything already. I stand by what I said. As long as things aren’t right between you two, I can’t be here. It’ll be better if I leave.”
“Oliver, seriously, I appreciate your willingness to martyr yourself in the name of brotherly love, but this isn’t necessary. Aiden and I—”
“We don’t have to listen to this,” his mom butted in. “Oliver, tell your friend we’re leaving. We have a long drive ahead of us, and I took time off work to come get you.”
“Right, sorry.” Oliver started toward the passenger side of the car, but then he stopped. When he looked at Max, his face flickered with uncertainty.
Max stared back at him, pouring every ounce of sincerity he had into his expression. “I have one thing I need to say. Hear me out, or you might regret it for the rest of your life.”
Oliver hesitated for a moment longer before sighing. “Mom, this won’t take long. I promise.”
She grumbled but didn’t object, folding her arms across her chest and leaning against the car.
Oliver nodded at Max. “You have one minute.”
Showtime. Don’t fuck this up.
Max took a breath. “You’re right. Things aren’t perfect between me and Aiden. But you know what? They weren’t perfect before. Not before we reunited with you. Not before we left for college. Never. And no matter how many heart-to-hearts we have, they won’t be. You know why?”
Oliver shook his head.
“Because family isn’t perfect. You know that better than anyone. This isn’t the last fight Aiden and I will ever have. We’re going to need more than a summer to work through our shit. It’s gonna take a whole lifetime. You’re not the reason we fought, but you are the reason we realized we’d been stuck in our weird twin box for far too long. So for that, thank you.”
Oliver didn’t react, so Max continued. “I get why you think you need to leave—and I get that it’s stressful for you to be around conflict—but Aiden and I are all right now, I promise. If you’re leaving because you don’t want to be around our problems anymore, fine. I’ll wish you well after I’ve done the big-brother thing and berated you for breaking Aiden’s heart. But if you think you’re the problem, I’m telling you that you’re not. My mom called you a good influence recently, and I think she was right.”
Oliver looked conflicted.
Max held his breath. He didn’t want to say too much and ruin his argument.
To his surprise, Oliver’s mom broke the silence. “I have to say, he makes some good points.”
That seemed to snap Oliver out of whatever moral limbo he’d been caught in. “Yeah, he does.” He glanced at the trunk, where his suitcase was stowed. “Can I really stay though? I was so dead set on going. I told myself a hundred times that nothing would stop me.”
Max shrugged. “Going made sense before. It doesn’t now. There’s nothing wrong with that. You accomplished your goal: getting me and Aiden to talk. And Ollie, dude, you should have seen him. You know what a stubborn ass my brother can be. He apologized and admitted he was wrong and everything. I probably could’ve gotten him to cluck like a chicken if I’d wanted.”
Oliver laughed. “But you didn’t, right?”
“Of course not. I didn’t think of it in time.” He winked. “But seriously, when Aiden thought he was going to lose you, I saw a different side of him. I think you’ve played a big role in helping him figure out who he is, and you’ve done the same for me. I owe you thanks for that too.”
“I don’t deserve any thanks. It was all of us.”
“So, you believe me? You’ll stay?”
“Well . . .” Oliver scratched his head. “I have to ask. You’re definitely Max, right?”
Max blinked. “Huh?”
“I got you two mixed up the last time I saw you. What if you’re Aiden doing an admittedly perfect Max impersonation to get me to stay? How do I know for sure?”
“Search your feelings, Ollie. You know it to be true.”
“I’m gonna need a little more than a Star Wars reference to go on.”
Max thought back on the past fourteen years, searching for something that only he and Oliver knew. There wasn’t much. He could hardly think of a time when the three of them weren’t all together.
A much more recent event popped into his head. “When you crawled through Aiden’s window, before the whole kiss fiasco, you said you did it because it was ‘your thing.’ I have no idea what that means.”
Oliver laughed. “Aiden does. And since he wasn’t in the room to hear me say that, I guess that means you’re really Max.”
“Of course.” Max grinned. “I’m the handsome twin, remember?”
Oliver’s mom cleared her throat, bringing their attention to her. “‘Kiss fiasco’?”
Oliver turned red. “Oh, um. That was . . .”
“Nothing,” Max finished. “Nothing that we ever need to talk about again. Oliver, if you’re ready, I’d like to take you back with me. There’s someone who’s dying to see you.”
The last of the hesitation melted off Oliver’s face. “Aiden. I want to see him too.” He turned to his mom. “Will you murder me if I change my mind?”
She spent a long moment studying her son’s face before shrugging. “No. I mean, I did drive two hours in rush hour to come get you, so I expect one hell of a Mother’s Day card. But you’re an adult, and it seems like you’re in good hands.”
“I’m sorry I made you come all this way.”
She patted him on the cheek and then popped the trunk again. “It’s okay. I was in labor with you for twenty-eight hours. This is nothing in comparison. Although, every time I trek out here to the ’burbs, I feel like I’m in The Stepford Wives. You and your boyfriend had better live in the city when you grow up.”
“Deal. I guess I’d better take my suitcase inside.” He pulled it out and turned to Max. “You wanna give me a hand?”
“Hell yeah!” Max threw a fist in the air and whooped. “The Three Musketeers are back together! Now our ultimate party summer can resume.”
Oliver kissed his mom on the cheek. “Ignore him. He doesn’t get out enough.”
“Will do.” She gave him a quick hug. “Call me if you change your mind. I’m not looking forward to telling your father you decided to stay. I can hear the crowing now.”
“You’re the best mom ever. Drive safe.”
They waited until she’d driven away before Max took Oliver’s suitcase. “Come on. Let’s throw this inside, and then I’ll drive you to our place. Aiden is going to flip.”
A few minutes later, they piled into the car. The drive back home seemed to go at double the speed of the drive there. Max swore it was only seconds later that he pulled into the driveway—which was now devoid of Mom and Dad’s cars—and killed the engine.
He glanced over at Oliver. “You eager to see Aiden?”
Oliver answered by flinging the passenger door open and scrambling out of the car.
Laughing, Max chased after him. They jogged up to the front door. Right as Oliver grabbed the doorknob, Max caught him by the shoulder. “Wait.”
Oliver glanced at him. “If you’re going to give me a pep talk, I don’t need it.”
“No, it’s not that. How many opportunities like this do you get in your life?”
“What do you mean?”
“You’re about to be reunited with your childhood sweetheart for the second time. Don’t you want to make a spectacle out of it?”
“Um. I guess? What did you have in mind?”
“I’ll go in first and talk to Aiden. I’ll act like I didn’t make it in time, and you were already gone when I got there. Then, when the time is right, you can walk in and surprise him. Imagine the look on his face! He’ll be even more thrilled to see you.”
Oliver stared at him with wide, incredulous eyes. “You want me to toy with Aiden’s emotions? That’s deceitful. And cruel. And morally dubious.” His face warped into a grin. “I love it. Let’s do it. How will I know when to make my entrance?”
“If I know Aiden, he’s watching the front door, waiting for us. When I go in, I’ll leave it cracked so you can hear what we’re saying. Then all you gotta do is choose your moment. Okay?”
“Okay.” Oliver stood off to the side near some potted plants, out of view of the door. When he was in position, he gave Max a thumbs-up.
Max screwed up his best disappointed expression and walked inside. As he’d predicted, Aiden was sitting on the sofa in the living room beyond the entryway.
As soon as he saw Max, he sprang to his feet and bounded over to him. “Well? What happened?”
Max closed the door behind him, leaving an inch of space. Then, summoning up all the hammy overacting he’d learned from that one theater class he’d taken, he looked at his brother. “Aiden . . . I’m so sorry.”
Aiden breathed out, making the smallest, most broken sound. “He wouldn’t listen to you?”
“I never even got to talk to him. I was too late. By the time I got there, the house was empty. There weren’t any cars in the driveway or anything.” That last part wasn’t a lie. Max paused for effect. “I knocked on the door and called his name, but he’d already left.” He sucked in a breath and hung his head. “I’m so sorry, Aiden. I let you down.”
His speech was followed by thunderous silence. It took everything he had not to peek up and ruin the illusion. Just as he started to get antsy, he heard a noise that sounded suspiciously like a sob.
He broke character and raised his head. “Aiden?” To Max’s complete and utter shock, tears were rolling down Aiden’s cheeks. Max dropped the act and took him by the shoulders. “Oh my God, Aiden. Are you okay?” Now, Oliver. Now’s your chance.
Aiden sniffed. “I’m fine. But I’m also . . . sad and angry and heartbroken.”
Max couldn’t help but ask, “You’re not angry with me, are you?”
“No, you tried your best. I’m angry at myself. This is all my fault.”
“It’s not, Aiden. We all played a part in—”
Aiden shook his head. “I drove him away. If I’d been smarter, or more mature, I could’ve fixed this. But I let my own pettiness get in the way, and now, I may never see Oliver again. I might never get the chance to tell him I love him.”
Max’s heart skipped a beat. Oh shit.
Right on cue, the front door burst open, and Oliver strode in. His green eyes were huge, and his mouth was slack as if someone had slapped him. “You love me?”
Aiden gasped and clapped both hands over his mouth. “Oliver?”
Max managed a clumsy smile. “Surprise.”
But Aiden wasn’t looking at him. He was staring at Oliver as if all his dreams had come true. They moved together like magnets, like planets that had abandoned the sun so they could orbit each other instead.
“Did you mean what you said?” Oliver reached out and touched Aiden’s chin. “Do you love me?”
Aiden still had tears in his eyes. He swallowed. “I do. I love you, Oliver.”
Oliver exhaled sharply before grabbing the back of Aiden’s neck and kissing him. Against his lips, he mumbled, “I love you too, Aiden. I love you so much.”
Max looked up at the ceiling. Well, this is awkward.
It occurred to him that he was officially intruding on a private moment, and he should probably leave. An odd emotion kept him frozen in place, however. He’d gotten very familiar with jealousy in the past week, but now he was encountering a new facet of it: no one had ever looked at him the way Aiden was looking at Oliver right now. And vice versa. It was like they could see something written on the other’s face that no one else could read.
For the first time in his life, Max realized he wanted that. Really realized it. He wanted to love someone the way these two loved each other: in ways that were healing. Max thought that might be the truest expression of love he’d ever seen. If his unmovable brother and quiet best friend could find someone that made them want to grow, there was hope for them all.
Max almost said something to that affect, but he doubted they would hear him. They were too busy making out, and the kissing was getting . . . intense.
I think that’s my cue.
“I’ll, um, go hang out with some friends,” he announced to no one in particular. “Leave you two lovebirds alone.”
Keys in hand, he exited the house, shutting the door tightly behind him. He did not want to hear any stray sounds from inside.
What now? You’re on your own, Max Kingsman. What’s going to be your first official act without Aiden by your side?
Now that he thought about it, he’d never reached that girl from the arcade. What was her name? Danielle?
He pulled his phone out of his pocket. “If you want true love, you have to start somewhere.” He found her name in his contacts and hit the Call button as he made his way to his car.
She answered on the third ring. “Hello?”
“Hey, Danielle? It’s Max, from the arcade. Remember me?” He paused, listening to her response. “Yup, the guy with the gay twin. That’s my baby brother all right. You wouldn’t happen to be free for lunch would you?”