brooks & hale - Chapter 18: Chapter 18
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"THEY HAVE PIZZA, GUYS!" Calla yelled, almost hitting Hassan in the face with her bag as she swung into her seat. "They actually have pizza!"
"You can thank me for that," Brooks said, chuckling at her enthusiasm. "I told you being part of school council has it's perks."
"No way," Calla gaped. "They actually listened to you?"
"I'm a very influential person in school council," Brooks said seriously, ignoring the sceptical look Hassan shot him. "Okay, only because I'm the only one who actually bothers suggesting improvements. The others are only there to put it on their UCAS application."
Lexus had a reputation for quite a few things, none of them good, but one of the worst was the food. Brooks had no idea what those dinner ladies were doing in the kitchen, but the food on the menu rarely consisted of more than questionable mush and questionable soup with questionable lumps that might have been meat, or might have been something else. Basically, everything was questionable and nothing was edible.
Brooks had taken matters into his own hands and suggested more variety through the school council, using Calla's constant complaining as "the students wanting to see a difference". The pizza was burnt and too hard to chew without breaking a couple of teeth, but hey, it was pizza. It was all about baby steps. Maybe one day they'd enjoy a lunch they could fully digest.
"Mhmm, thish ish sho gwood," Calla said, closing her eyes in bliss as she chomped down on the rock pizza. Hassan and Brooks exchanged a disbelieving look.
"Good?" Hassan echoed. "Calla, you're going to need dentures at the rate you're trying to eat that."
"It's pizza, Has! I don't care what the texture is. I'm eating it."
"Are you actually tasting anything other than bread and dried out tomato sauce?" Hassan poked his own shrivelled slice of pizza with a disgusted expression. A sliver of hardened cheese flaked off. "I don't think this is allowed to be classified as pizza. It's offensive to real pizza everywhere."
Calla swallowed her mouthful. "You know what your problem is? You're way too picky. Maybe if you just appreciated the food - "
"I can't possibly appreciate this garbage."
"C'mon, that's just harsh. It's not that bad."
Brooks tuned out their debate on whether Lexus pizza was allowed to be called pizza, more interested in the crowded table across the cafeteria. Hale was with his usual crowd of friends, laughing and joking like nothing was wrong, like they hadn't discussed his conflicted sexuality just a few days ago. Even though he acted like he was fine, you could tell something was bothering him if you looked closely enough, that his smile didn't quite reach his eyes.
Brooks had been mulling over his dilemma, because it was the same one he'd dealt with when he was eleven. Maybe it was a little different, considering Brooks had never kissed a girl then and Hale had kissed more than his fair share, but it was the same am-I-gay conflict. Brooks was beyond tempted to suggest they keep making out until Hale had made up his mind, but there were a few problems with that.
For starters, what if Hale decided he was straight after all? They'd have to cut off the whole friends with benefits game, and not only would that make things awkward, but Brooks would be left with unreciprocated feelings. There was also the fact that he didn't know to broach that topic, and if Hale turned it down, he'd be too mortified to ever face him again after the rejection.
Brooks needed a second opinion, and there was only one person he could think of who could be objective and helpful in this situation. He pulled his phone out and scrolled down to Luke's number, wondering how to phrase his query.
brooks :
hey can i ask for some advice, gay to gay?
He regretted it the moment he pressed send. That just sounded weird.
brooks :
uhh i didn't mean anything weird by that
brooks :
just regular advice
brooks :
regarding homosexuality
Brooks groaned inaudibly and sank lower in his chair, as if he could hide from his terrible texts. He was saved from embarrassing himself further when Luke replied.
luke :
lmao okay sure, how can i help regarding homosexuality?
brooks :
basically i have a friend and he doesn't know whether he's gay or not
brooks :
how would you advise he figure it out?
luke :
ah i see
luke :
so he's in denial
brooks :
well, if he's even gay
luke :
trust me he's gay
brooks :
how do you know???
luke :
there's no way anyone would want to be gay by choice, as sad as that is
luke :
so the fact he has to even consider it means he'll at least be bisexual
brooks :
huh i never thought about it that way
luke :
yep i've seen more than my fair share of gays in denial
brooks :
you make a fair point
brooks :
but i don't think that'll be enough to convince him
luke :
yeah that's always the tricky part :/
luke :
oh hey i have an idea
Calla suddenly looked over his shoulder, and he flipped his phone around so quickly it was a miracle he didn't shatter the screen against the table. "Ooh, you sure moved that quickly," she said, her brown eyes gleaming with curiosity. "Who're you texting?"
"No one," Brooks lied.
Hassan raised an eyebrow. "So you're texting yourself?"
"Well, no - "
"Brooksie has a girlfriend!" Calla suddenly crowed, loudly enough that people sitting at nearby tables glanced over at them. "That's so cute!"
"Calla, shut up," Brooks hissed, "I don't have a girlfriend!"
"What's her name? Does she go here? Can I see a picture? Oh, I bet you guys will have the cutest little babies - "
Brooks clamped a hand over her mouth in an attempt to cut off her rambling. "I don't have a girlfriend, okay? I just - ew!" He quickly retracted his hand back and stared at it, then at Calla. "What the hell? Did you just lick me?"
"That's gross," Hassan said in a bored tone.
"It was the only way to gain my freedom of speech back," Calla said dramatically, as if she'd just stood protest for hours rather than slobbering all over his hand. "It had to be done, Brooks. Now you'll know better than to ever try and silence me."
Brooks wiped his hand on Calla's shoulder to clean it, seeing as it was her spit. "Alright, Emmeline Pankhurst, tone it down there," Brooks said. "Will you stop going on about me having a girlfriend now?"
Clearly, that was bad wording.
"So you do have one!" Calla shrieked. "Then what - wait. Please, for the love of god, tell me it's not Bellamy. Tell me you're not dating that she-devil."
"No, I'm not dating Bellamy," Brooks said firmly. Talking about Bellamy was simply an unwelcome reminder that he'd signed himself up for dinner at her house this weekend, something he was still trying to figure out how to wiggle out of. "I'm not dating anyone. Definitely not. Just to make that clear, I'm not in a relationship."
Calla pouted. "Way to kill the mood. But even if you're not dating...do you have a crush on anyone?"
"I, uh, what?" Brooks panicked and quickly stood up, snatching up his phone before he accidentally left it here. Judging from the sly gleam in her eyes and Hassan's suspicious look, they were onto him, and Calla would find a way to worm the truth out of him if he stayed. "Nope, not in the slightest. Would you look at that? Time sure flies."
"We still have twenty minutes of lunch left," Hassan pointed out.
"Right," Brooks said slowly, "but I need to go speak to, um, Mr Bradbury. About my English essay. Very important stuff. Wouldn't want to keep him waiting. Okay, bye!"
He fled from the cafeteria before either Hassan or Calla could get another word in edgeways. He was fully aware that was probably the least auspicious thing he could have done in that situation, and he'd dug a hole for himself from which he'd have to tolerate Calla's grilling questions about his love life. But he hadn't just left to get away from the prying attention; he'd never gotten the chance to reply to Luke, and he was curious.
However, Luke didn't reply by the end of lunch, and Brooks didn't get a chance to speak to him again until he'd gotten home. He also didn't see Hale for the rest of that day, seeing as the afternoon was a double biology lesson they didn't share. Brooks wanted to tell him about the possible breakthrough, or at least Luke's opinion on the matter, but not enough to approach him while all his friends were around.
Brooks unlocked the front door - he'd actually remembered his keys for once! - and stepped into the marbled entryway, which was as silent as ever. He couldn't help comparing it to Hale's house, considerably smaller but definitely more of a home than this place ever would be. Even Maxy, the terrifying wild dog, added a homely touch that the Montgomery household certainly lacked. Brooks popped his head into the kitchen to say hi to Inkeri before continuing up to his room.
Adam and Brooks shared the entire second floor just between them, complete with their own en-suites. The first floor comprised of the other "facilities" such as the library, gym, a random drawing room no one even ventured into, the music room, etc. Brooks didn't know why they had half the rooms on that floor, seeing as no one wasted their time in them and the only reason they didn't sit collecting dust was because Inkeri regularly aired them out. His parents got the third floor to themselves, and the fourth was just a spacious attic.
Brooks and Adam's bedroom were on opposites sides of the landing, and Brooks glanced into his brother's room as he passed. Adam was still in his school uniform sprawled across his bed, talking to someone on the phone. He glanced over at Brooks and kicked his bedroom door shut without another word, essentially slamming it in Brooks' face.
Metaphorically and literally.
"Thanks for the lift, by the way." Brooks scowled at the door. "It's so nice that you took five minutes out of your busy schedule to save me a thirty minute journey home."
Brooks hadn't always had such a rocky relationship with Adam. When he was younger, Adam had adored his little brother and Brooks had looked up to his older brother like he could do no wrong. Brooks followed him wherever he went, and Adam looked after him, even letting him tag along with him and his friends. It'd been a nice reprieve from the distant treatment his parents addressed him with.
Then Adam started high school, and suddenly, Brooks wasn't cool enough for him. He'd ignore Brooks whenever he could, and snap at him to stop being such a pest when ignorance didn't work. Brooks wanted to blame his friendship with Reed on the breakdown, but he knew it started way before that. Whatever it was, he didn't think he'd ever be able to fix whatever it was that made Adam hate him.
Brooks tossed his bag onto his bed and checked his phone to see a new text from Luke, in response to the one asking what the idea was. He read over the suggestion Luke had proposed and couldn't help but laugh. This would either be a complete success, or a complete flop, but he'd be damned if they didn't give it a shot. He also couldn't deny the fact that he was a teeny bit curious himself and this gave him the perfect excuse.
Brooks found Hale's number and typed a new text.
brooks :
i think i've figured out how to find out whether you're gay or not
Less than a minute later, his phone started blaring with the obnoxious default ringtone. His eyes widened in alarm when he saw it was Hale calling him and he just about avoided chucking his phone across the room. He didn't even know why his heart had suddenly started pounding, or his mouth had gone dry. He had an aversion to phone calls in general, much preferring texting or simple face-to-face communication, but it was suddenly so much more terrifying when it was Hale.
"Get your shit together, Brooks," he whispered to himself, wiping sweaty palms on his pants.
He finally mustered up the courage to answer on the seventh ring. "Hello?" he answered, a little shakily.
"Hey," Hale replied, as casually as if this was just a normal conversation. Which it was. That's all it was - a normal conversation in which he was unfortunately deprived of Hale's face. "So, you claim to have found the holy grail for the sexuality confused among us?"
Brooks laughed, already relaxing. "Well, I don't know about holy grail," he admitted, "but it's a possibility, which is as good as I can get for now."
"Alright, not as good as the holy grail, but it's better than nothing. Let's hear it, brainiac. What's the plan?"
"Actually, I think it'll be more effective if I keep it a surprise," Brooks said with a grin. "All you need to do is keep your evening free this Friday."
There was brief pause on the other end as Hale mulled over the terms Brooks had laid out. "Alright," he finally said, albeit a little slowly. "I have to admit I do like surprises, so this could work. As long as you're not bringing me along to some weird gay orgy. Because that's just throwing me in the deep end, don't you think?"
Brooks was suddenly immensely grateful that Hale couldn't see him, because his face was so hot he could have probably fried a full English breakfast on it. "No! No gay...orgys! What the hell do you think I get up to in my free time, Hale?" Brooks demanded, horrified.
"Hey, I'm not here to judge whatever kinky fetishes you're into." Brooks could hear the smirk in his voice. "Although I'm guessing from your scandalised tone you're not accustomed to the kinky side of this world. Do you always get this easily flustered?"
"I'm not flustered," Brooks bluffed, which was the biggest lie he'd ever said. Talking about sex was one thing. Talking about it with Hale, who'd he'd had his fair share of inappropriate thoughts about, was out of the question. "Look, just tell me if you're up for Friday. Yes or no?"
"Yes. Oh, and also, am I allowed to bring chains and handcuffs? It's always good to be prepared."
"I'll hang up on you," Brooks warned him.
"Okay, okay, I'll stop traumatising your ridiculously innocent mind," Hale chuckled, in a mischievous tone that didn't bode well for Brooks' peace of mind. "But one last question: it won't leave marks in openly visible areas, will it? I have children in the house and I can't be dealing with questions. The concealed areas are all good, though. I'm down for the concealed areas."
Brooks ended the call to Hale's laughter on the other end, and he was blushing for an entirely different reason. He definitely wouldn't be getting any homework done now.
*
Brooks had been standing at the gate leading to Hale's house for ten minutes now, trying to kill off the butterflies fluttering around his stomach. Fitzgerald the snowman had completely died, and the only evidence remaining that he had ever existed was a soggy carrot lying on the grass. The snow had pretty much melted away over the past couple of weeks and everything was just wet with the reminder.
School had finished for the week hours ago, but Brooks had returned to his own house to change out of his uniform and kill time before they headed out for their "figure out if Hale is gay" evening in Manchester. Brooks had proposed they just go straight back to Hale's after school to do some chemistry, and then go from there, but Hale had vehemently opposed the suggestion.
"No one voluntarily does chemistry on a Friday afternoon," he had replied. "It's against the law."
So here Brooks was, dithering around Hale's garden like an idiot at seven, as nervous as if this was a first date. In fact, he was more nervous for this than he'd been for his first date with Bellamy, if you could even call it that. He'd only been there to cover his tracks and she'd only been there to get an A in chemistry. Not exactly romantic. Brooks didn't even know why he was nervous; Luke would be there with them, and he'd mentioned he might be bringing someone along. They wouldn't even be alone.
Okay, Brooks really needed to do something other than lingering outside the house like a creep. Hale's neighbour was watering her roses and kept shooting him shifty looks, as if contemplating whether to call the police on the weird teenage boy. Brooks got his phone out and sent him a text.
brooks :
hey i'm outside
hale :
cool come on in
Brooks eyed the front door warily, which he knew Maxy the crazed retriever would be waiting behind. He also knew Hale would probably not be in the nearby vicinity, and no one would hear his screams until his arm was hanging from the dog's mouth in a bloody trail. Maybe that was a bit of an exaggeration, but he wasn't taking any chances. He liked his arm attached to his shoulder, thank you very much.
brooks :
nah it's fine i'll just wait outside
hale :
why?
Well, shit.
brooks :
the cold air is soothing
hale :
it's because of maxy isn't it?
brooks :
no!
hale :
just come inside you pussy
brooks :
no!
hale :
are you really going to let izzy down like that? she wants to see you
brooks :
liar i bet she doesn't even remember me
hale :
sure she does!
hale :
two year olds have great memory :)
Brooks groaned and looked back at the front door. It really was cold outside, and he'd abandoned a scarf and gloves seeing as they'd be inside the majority of the night. And he did want to see Izzy. While he was positive she didn't remember him, she was adorable and hadn't cried once while he was there, which was always a relief. She had returned his faith in babies.
Then there was the fact Hale's neighbour had called her daughter out, and they were whispering among each other as they shot him furtive looks. Did he really look that dodgy?
brooks :
fine you win i'll come inside
brooks :
but only for izzy
hale :
there you go, facing your fears of cute dogs
brooks :
shut up
hale :
:)
He walked past the melted puddle of
Fitzgerald and pulled on the door handle, disappointed when it actually gave way. He cracked it open slightly and peered inside, scanning the area for Maxy. He was nowhere to be seen. Still not entirely convinced of his safety, Brooks pulled the door open just enough to slip inside and slowly closed it behind him, careful to make as little sound as possible. It was only when he'd finished the entire ridiculous act did he notice Hale leaning against the wall at top of the staircase.
"What?" Brooks said defensively, at Hale's wild grin. "I don't know if Maxy gets set off by loud sounds such as doors slamming shut. Better safe than sorry."
Hale cracked up laughing as he slid down the banister, joining Brooks at the bottom. "You are something else, Brooks Montgomery," he said, still chuckling as he shook his head. Brooks probably should have been annoyed that he was being laughed at, but it was impossible to feel anything but warm and fuzzy at the sound of Hale's laugh.
"I hate you," Brooks grumbled, which they both knew was a blatant lie.
"Sure you do." He placed a hand on Brooks' elbow and steered him towards the living room. "Come on, my mum wants to meet you."
"W-what?" Brooks stammered, rooting his feet in place. Hale realised after a couple of tugs that he wasn't going anywhere. "Why would she want to do that?"
"I told her you're my boyfriend," Hale said seriously. "She needs to make sure you're good enough for me."
Brooks gaped at him. "What?"
"Chill out, I'm just kidding! You should have seen your face," Hale snickered, ignoring the unimpressed look Brooks shot him. "I just told her you're my chemistry tutor and she wants to see you herself as proof before she believes it."
"Why would she need proof?" Brooks asked, puzzled.
Hale grinned wickedly. "Let's just say all the others tutors she stuck me with, I scared them off in less than a week."
"Huh." Maybe Brooks was supposed to be intimidated by that, but he failed to see how anything could be more terrifying than surviving an encounter with the dog. Besides, spending time with Hale would never be something he didn't look forward to. "Um, what if she doesn't like me?"
Hale frowned. "Why wouldn't she?"
"I don't know. What if she thinks I'm annoying? Or weird? Okay, I kind of am, but still - "
"You'll be fine, Brooks," Hale assured him, with a breathtaking smile that did strange things to Brooks' heart. "She's just like me, so she'll love you. Now let's go."
He disappeared into the living room and Brooks stared after him, wondering if he'd misheard. She's just like me, so she'll love you. Did that mean...? No, he was clearly reading into it too much. He obviously meant it in a platonic way. He'd said it in such a conversational way he can't have meant it like that. Brooks shook his head to clear it and followed after Hale.
It seemed that the whole Ryves family was gathered in the living room, watching TV together. There were the twins, sitting on the smaller sofa and reading a comic together, looking strikingly similar with their heads ducked over the pages. Izzy was sitting was sitting with the two who must be her parents on the larger sofa, chewing her teddy bear's ears happily. She gurgled something that made no sense when she saw Brooks, and he decided to take it as baby equivalent for hi.
Maxy was curled up on the floor at the foot of the sofa, but beyond a loud thumping of his tail against the floor, he didn't leap up and attack Brooks. That was a relief, at least. He didn't have to worry about embarrassing himself in front of Hale's family.
Hale's mother was younger than Brooks had expected, and really pretty, in a friendly and warm way. Her resemblance to her son was unmistakeable; they had the same inky black hair and warm brown eyes, which they shared with Izzy. The man who must have been Hale's father, on the other hand, looked nothing like him. It was more than a different complexion; their facial features didn't have much similarity.
"Hi, Brooks," Tessa chirped.
Brooks smiled. "Hey."
TJ leapt to his feet and shoved his comic in Brooks' face with an eager look. "Do you like Marvel? Hale tells me to shut up when I talk about it, but if you - "
"Shut up," Hale said promptly, pushing his brother and the comic in his hand away. "Go bug someone else about your comics, TJ. We're not sticking around and don't have time to waste on it."
TJ stuck his tongue out at Hale but obediently slunk back to his sister, who held an imperious hand out for the comic. Hale turned back to Brooks and his parents when the twins broke out into an argument over who was allowed to hold the comic, which was apparently so commonplace everyone else simply ignored it.
"This is Brooks," Hale declared, as if showing off a shiny new toy at show-and-tell. "The one I was telling you about. The really smart one."
Brooks looked at him, appalled, and Hale just grinned in response. "Er, I'm not that smart," he said, with a bashful smile. "Hale is just exaggerating."
"Well, you must be pretty smart if you can get my son to learn anything," Hale's mum chuckled, holding her hand out. "It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Brooks."
Brooks shook her hand. "You too, ma'am."
"Wow, intelligent and polite," she grinned, and it was the exact same grin as Hale's. Brooks could bet she was popular with the guys when she was in high school, and it explained where Hale's charm came from. "Just call me Maria, Brooks. I feel far too formal being called ma'am."
"Nice to meet you, Maria. And, um, you must be Hale's dad," he added, feeling the need to address him to make a proper good impression.
"Step-dad," he corrected, with a good natured smile.
"Oh! I'm sorry," Brooks said hastily, shooting Hale a sideways look. He didn't look particularly bothered and just shrugged at the silent question. "I didn't realise - "
"That's not a problem," he replied, looking more amused than anything at Brooks' frantic apologies. Apparently, he was doomed to be a source of amusement for the entire Ryves' family. "The name's Daniel. Nice to meet you, son."
"Well, that's introductions done." Hale clapped his hands and snagged Brooks by the sleeve, tugging him out of the living room after him. "We'll be out pretty late, although I can't give you a specific time because I don't even know what we're doing yet."
"You don't?" Maria asked.
"It's okay, Brooks knows. You can blame him if it's outrageously inappropriate."
"It's not," Brooks said quickly, although he wasn't sure how true that was. It shouldn't be, but now that he thought about it, he was almost as clueless about the situation as Hale. "It won't be outrageous or inappropriate, I promise."
"You seem like a responsible and respectable boy, Brooks," Maria said, with a satisfied nod. "I trust you."
"Oh, thanks a lot, mum," Hale said with a scoff. "It's not like you should trust me or anything because, you know, I'm your son."
Maria rolled her eyes, but her expression was fond. "Go on, get out of here and have some fun. It'll be a relief to have a peaceful evening without you, Hale." She added something in Spanish with a raised eyebrow, and Hale didn't seem so pleased when he replied, a brief conversation Brooks couldn't follow.
Brooks barely managed to say goodbye to the twins and Izzy before he was ushered out of the living room by Hale, straight to the front door. "And don't do drugs!" Daniel called after them.
"Whatever!" Hale yelled back.
"They seem nice," Brooks said, a little wistfully. "You have a cool family."
"Do I?" Hale shrugged as if he'd never really considered it. "Alright, let's hit the road. Feel free to lead the way."
Brooks thought about his family, filled with awkward silences and forced conversation. The cracks in his own family were more glaringly obvious, more impossible to ignore, when he saw the easy harmony among the Ryves'. Brooks tried not to feel jealous and made himself forget about it, because he was going to enjoy this night with Hale regardless of how broken his family was.
"You can thank me for that," Brooks said, chuckling at her enthusiasm. "I told you being part of school council has it's perks."
"No way," Calla gaped. "They actually listened to you?"
"I'm a very influential person in school council," Brooks said seriously, ignoring the sceptical look Hassan shot him. "Okay, only because I'm the only one who actually bothers suggesting improvements. The others are only there to put it on their UCAS application."
Lexus had a reputation for quite a few things, none of them good, but one of the worst was the food. Brooks had no idea what those dinner ladies were doing in the kitchen, but the food on the menu rarely consisted of more than questionable mush and questionable soup with questionable lumps that might have been meat, or might have been something else. Basically, everything was questionable and nothing was edible.
Brooks had taken matters into his own hands and suggested more variety through the school council, using Calla's constant complaining as "the students wanting to see a difference". The pizza was burnt and too hard to chew without breaking a couple of teeth, but hey, it was pizza. It was all about baby steps. Maybe one day they'd enjoy a lunch they could fully digest.
"Mhmm, thish ish sho gwood," Calla said, closing her eyes in bliss as she chomped down on the rock pizza. Hassan and Brooks exchanged a disbelieving look.
"Good?" Hassan echoed. "Calla, you're going to need dentures at the rate you're trying to eat that."
"It's pizza, Has! I don't care what the texture is. I'm eating it."
"Are you actually tasting anything other than bread and dried out tomato sauce?" Hassan poked his own shrivelled slice of pizza with a disgusted expression. A sliver of hardened cheese flaked off. "I don't think this is allowed to be classified as pizza. It's offensive to real pizza everywhere."
Calla swallowed her mouthful. "You know what your problem is? You're way too picky. Maybe if you just appreciated the food - "
"I can't possibly appreciate this garbage."
"C'mon, that's just harsh. It's not that bad."
Brooks tuned out their debate on whether Lexus pizza was allowed to be called pizza, more interested in the crowded table across the cafeteria. Hale was with his usual crowd of friends, laughing and joking like nothing was wrong, like they hadn't discussed his conflicted sexuality just a few days ago. Even though he acted like he was fine, you could tell something was bothering him if you looked closely enough, that his smile didn't quite reach his eyes.
Brooks had been mulling over his dilemma, because it was the same one he'd dealt with when he was eleven. Maybe it was a little different, considering Brooks had never kissed a girl then and Hale had kissed more than his fair share, but it was the same am-I-gay conflict. Brooks was beyond tempted to suggest they keep making out until Hale had made up his mind, but there were a few problems with that.
For starters, what if Hale decided he was straight after all? They'd have to cut off the whole friends with benefits game, and not only would that make things awkward, but Brooks would be left with unreciprocated feelings. There was also the fact that he didn't know to broach that topic, and if Hale turned it down, he'd be too mortified to ever face him again after the rejection.
Brooks needed a second opinion, and there was only one person he could think of who could be objective and helpful in this situation. He pulled his phone out and scrolled down to Luke's number, wondering how to phrase his query.
brooks :
hey can i ask for some advice, gay to gay?
He regretted it the moment he pressed send. That just sounded weird.
brooks :
uhh i didn't mean anything weird by that
brooks :
just regular advice
brooks :
regarding homosexuality
Brooks groaned inaudibly and sank lower in his chair, as if he could hide from his terrible texts. He was saved from embarrassing himself further when Luke replied.
luke :
lmao okay sure, how can i help regarding homosexuality?
brooks :
basically i have a friend and he doesn't know whether he's gay or not
brooks :
how would you advise he figure it out?
luke :
ah i see
luke :
so he's in denial
brooks :
well, if he's even gay
luke :
trust me he's gay
brooks :
how do you know???
luke :
there's no way anyone would want to be gay by choice, as sad as that is
luke :
so the fact he has to even consider it means he'll at least be bisexual
brooks :
huh i never thought about it that way
luke :
yep i've seen more than my fair share of gays in denial
brooks :
you make a fair point
brooks :
but i don't think that'll be enough to convince him
luke :
yeah that's always the tricky part :/
luke :
oh hey i have an idea
Calla suddenly looked over his shoulder, and he flipped his phone around so quickly it was a miracle he didn't shatter the screen against the table. "Ooh, you sure moved that quickly," she said, her brown eyes gleaming with curiosity. "Who're you texting?"
"No one," Brooks lied.
Hassan raised an eyebrow. "So you're texting yourself?"
"Well, no - "
"Brooksie has a girlfriend!" Calla suddenly crowed, loudly enough that people sitting at nearby tables glanced over at them. "That's so cute!"
"Calla, shut up," Brooks hissed, "I don't have a girlfriend!"
"What's her name? Does she go here? Can I see a picture? Oh, I bet you guys will have the cutest little babies - "
Brooks clamped a hand over her mouth in an attempt to cut off her rambling. "I don't have a girlfriend, okay? I just - ew!" He quickly retracted his hand back and stared at it, then at Calla. "What the hell? Did you just lick me?"
"That's gross," Hassan said in a bored tone.
"It was the only way to gain my freedom of speech back," Calla said dramatically, as if she'd just stood protest for hours rather than slobbering all over his hand. "It had to be done, Brooks. Now you'll know better than to ever try and silence me."
Brooks wiped his hand on Calla's shoulder to clean it, seeing as it was her spit. "Alright, Emmeline Pankhurst, tone it down there," Brooks said. "Will you stop going on about me having a girlfriend now?"
Clearly, that was bad wording.
"So you do have one!" Calla shrieked. "Then what - wait. Please, for the love of god, tell me it's not Bellamy. Tell me you're not dating that she-devil."
"No, I'm not dating Bellamy," Brooks said firmly. Talking about Bellamy was simply an unwelcome reminder that he'd signed himself up for dinner at her house this weekend, something he was still trying to figure out how to wiggle out of. "I'm not dating anyone. Definitely not. Just to make that clear, I'm not in a relationship."
Calla pouted. "Way to kill the mood. But even if you're not dating...do you have a crush on anyone?"
"I, uh, what?" Brooks panicked and quickly stood up, snatching up his phone before he accidentally left it here. Judging from the sly gleam in her eyes and Hassan's suspicious look, they were onto him, and Calla would find a way to worm the truth out of him if he stayed. "Nope, not in the slightest. Would you look at that? Time sure flies."
"We still have twenty minutes of lunch left," Hassan pointed out.
"Right," Brooks said slowly, "but I need to go speak to, um, Mr Bradbury. About my English essay. Very important stuff. Wouldn't want to keep him waiting. Okay, bye!"
He fled from the cafeteria before either Hassan or Calla could get another word in edgeways. He was fully aware that was probably the least auspicious thing he could have done in that situation, and he'd dug a hole for himself from which he'd have to tolerate Calla's grilling questions about his love life. But he hadn't just left to get away from the prying attention; he'd never gotten the chance to reply to Luke, and he was curious.
However, Luke didn't reply by the end of lunch, and Brooks didn't get a chance to speak to him again until he'd gotten home. He also didn't see Hale for the rest of that day, seeing as the afternoon was a double biology lesson they didn't share. Brooks wanted to tell him about the possible breakthrough, or at least Luke's opinion on the matter, but not enough to approach him while all his friends were around.
Brooks unlocked the front door - he'd actually remembered his keys for once! - and stepped into the marbled entryway, which was as silent as ever. He couldn't help comparing it to Hale's house, considerably smaller but definitely more of a home than this place ever would be. Even Maxy, the terrifying wild dog, added a homely touch that the Montgomery household certainly lacked. Brooks popped his head into the kitchen to say hi to Inkeri before continuing up to his room.
Adam and Brooks shared the entire second floor just between them, complete with their own en-suites. The first floor comprised of the other "facilities" such as the library, gym, a random drawing room no one even ventured into, the music room, etc. Brooks didn't know why they had half the rooms on that floor, seeing as no one wasted their time in them and the only reason they didn't sit collecting dust was because Inkeri regularly aired them out. His parents got the third floor to themselves, and the fourth was just a spacious attic.
Brooks and Adam's bedroom were on opposites sides of the landing, and Brooks glanced into his brother's room as he passed. Adam was still in his school uniform sprawled across his bed, talking to someone on the phone. He glanced over at Brooks and kicked his bedroom door shut without another word, essentially slamming it in Brooks' face.
Metaphorically and literally.
"Thanks for the lift, by the way." Brooks scowled at the door. "It's so nice that you took five minutes out of your busy schedule to save me a thirty minute journey home."
Brooks hadn't always had such a rocky relationship with Adam. When he was younger, Adam had adored his little brother and Brooks had looked up to his older brother like he could do no wrong. Brooks followed him wherever he went, and Adam looked after him, even letting him tag along with him and his friends. It'd been a nice reprieve from the distant treatment his parents addressed him with.
Then Adam started high school, and suddenly, Brooks wasn't cool enough for him. He'd ignore Brooks whenever he could, and snap at him to stop being such a pest when ignorance didn't work. Brooks wanted to blame his friendship with Reed on the breakdown, but he knew it started way before that. Whatever it was, he didn't think he'd ever be able to fix whatever it was that made Adam hate him.
Brooks tossed his bag onto his bed and checked his phone to see a new text from Luke, in response to the one asking what the idea was. He read over the suggestion Luke had proposed and couldn't help but laugh. This would either be a complete success, or a complete flop, but he'd be damned if they didn't give it a shot. He also couldn't deny the fact that he was a teeny bit curious himself and this gave him the perfect excuse.
Brooks found Hale's number and typed a new text.
brooks :
i think i've figured out how to find out whether you're gay or not
Less than a minute later, his phone started blaring with the obnoxious default ringtone. His eyes widened in alarm when he saw it was Hale calling him and he just about avoided chucking his phone across the room. He didn't even know why his heart had suddenly started pounding, or his mouth had gone dry. He had an aversion to phone calls in general, much preferring texting or simple face-to-face communication, but it was suddenly so much more terrifying when it was Hale.
"Get your shit together, Brooks," he whispered to himself, wiping sweaty palms on his pants.
He finally mustered up the courage to answer on the seventh ring. "Hello?" he answered, a little shakily.
"Hey," Hale replied, as casually as if this was just a normal conversation. Which it was. That's all it was - a normal conversation in which he was unfortunately deprived of Hale's face. "So, you claim to have found the holy grail for the sexuality confused among us?"
Brooks laughed, already relaxing. "Well, I don't know about holy grail," he admitted, "but it's a possibility, which is as good as I can get for now."
"Alright, not as good as the holy grail, but it's better than nothing. Let's hear it, brainiac. What's the plan?"
"Actually, I think it'll be more effective if I keep it a surprise," Brooks said with a grin. "All you need to do is keep your evening free this Friday."
There was brief pause on the other end as Hale mulled over the terms Brooks had laid out. "Alright," he finally said, albeit a little slowly. "I have to admit I do like surprises, so this could work. As long as you're not bringing me along to some weird gay orgy. Because that's just throwing me in the deep end, don't you think?"
Brooks was suddenly immensely grateful that Hale couldn't see him, because his face was so hot he could have probably fried a full English breakfast on it. "No! No gay...orgys! What the hell do you think I get up to in my free time, Hale?" Brooks demanded, horrified.
"Hey, I'm not here to judge whatever kinky fetishes you're into." Brooks could hear the smirk in his voice. "Although I'm guessing from your scandalised tone you're not accustomed to the kinky side of this world. Do you always get this easily flustered?"
"I'm not flustered," Brooks bluffed, which was the biggest lie he'd ever said. Talking about sex was one thing. Talking about it with Hale, who'd he'd had his fair share of inappropriate thoughts about, was out of the question. "Look, just tell me if you're up for Friday. Yes or no?"
"Yes. Oh, and also, am I allowed to bring chains and handcuffs? It's always good to be prepared."
"I'll hang up on you," Brooks warned him.
"Okay, okay, I'll stop traumatising your ridiculously innocent mind," Hale chuckled, in a mischievous tone that didn't bode well for Brooks' peace of mind. "But one last question: it won't leave marks in openly visible areas, will it? I have children in the house and I can't be dealing with questions. The concealed areas are all good, though. I'm down for the concealed areas."
Brooks ended the call to Hale's laughter on the other end, and he was blushing for an entirely different reason. He definitely wouldn't be getting any homework done now.
*
Brooks had been standing at the gate leading to Hale's house for ten minutes now, trying to kill off the butterflies fluttering around his stomach. Fitzgerald the snowman had completely died, and the only evidence remaining that he had ever existed was a soggy carrot lying on the grass. The snow had pretty much melted away over the past couple of weeks and everything was just wet with the reminder.
School had finished for the week hours ago, but Brooks had returned to his own house to change out of his uniform and kill time before they headed out for their "figure out if Hale is gay" evening in Manchester. Brooks had proposed they just go straight back to Hale's after school to do some chemistry, and then go from there, but Hale had vehemently opposed the suggestion.
"No one voluntarily does chemistry on a Friday afternoon," he had replied. "It's against the law."
So here Brooks was, dithering around Hale's garden like an idiot at seven, as nervous as if this was a first date. In fact, he was more nervous for this than he'd been for his first date with Bellamy, if you could even call it that. He'd only been there to cover his tracks and she'd only been there to get an A in chemistry. Not exactly romantic. Brooks didn't even know why he was nervous; Luke would be there with them, and he'd mentioned he might be bringing someone along. They wouldn't even be alone.
Okay, Brooks really needed to do something other than lingering outside the house like a creep. Hale's neighbour was watering her roses and kept shooting him shifty looks, as if contemplating whether to call the police on the weird teenage boy. Brooks got his phone out and sent him a text.
brooks :
hey i'm outside
hale :
cool come on in
Brooks eyed the front door warily, which he knew Maxy the crazed retriever would be waiting behind. He also knew Hale would probably not be in the nearby vicinity, and no one would hear his screams until his arm was hanging from the dog's mouth in a bloody trail. Maybe that was a bit of an exaggeration, but he wasn't taking any chances. He liked his arm attached to his shoulder, thank you very much.
brooks :
nah it's fine i'll just wait outside
hale :
why?
Well, shit.
brooks :
the cold air is soothing
hale :
it's because of maxy isn't it?
brooks :
no!
hale :
just come inside you pussy
brooks :
no!
hale :
are you really going to let izzy down like that? she wants to see you
brooks :
liar i bet she doesn't even remember me
hale :
sure she does!
hale :
two year olds have great memory :)
Brooks groaned and looked back at the front door. It really was cold outside, and he'd abandoned a scarf and gloves seeing as they'd be inside the majority of the night. And he did want to see Izzy. While he was positive she didn't remember him, she was adorable and hadn't cried once while he was there, which was always a relief. She had returned his faith in babies.
Then there was the fact Hale's neighbour had called her daughter out, and they were whispering among each other as they shot him furtive looks. Did he really look that dodgy?
brooks :
fine you win i'll come inside
brooks :
but only for izzy
hale :
there you go, facing your fears of cute dogs
brooks :
shut up
hale :
:)
He walked past the melted puddle of
Fitzgerald and pulled on the door handle, disappointed when it actually gave way. He cracked it open slightly and peered inside, scanning the area for Maxy. He was nowhere to be seen. Still not entirely convinced of his safety, Brooks pulled the door open just enough to slip inside and slowly closed it behind him, careful to make as little sound as possible. It was only when he'd finished the entire ridiculous act did he notice Hale leaning against the wall at top of the staircase.
"What?" Brooks said defensively, at Hale's wild grin. "I don't know if Maxy gets set off by loud sounds such as doors slamming shut. Better safe than sorry."
Hale cracked up laughing as he slid down the banister, joining Brooks at the bottom. "You are something else, Brooks Montgomery," he said, still chuckling as he shook his head. Brooks probably should have been annoyed that he was being laughed at, but it was impossible to feel anything but warm and fuzzy at the sound of Hale's laugh.
"I hate you," Brooks grumbled, which they both knew was a blatant lie.
"Sure you do." He placed a hand on Brooks' elbow and steered him towards the living room. "Come on, my mum wants to meet you."
"W-what?" Brooks stammered, rooting his feet in place. Hale realised after a couple of tugs that he wasn't going anywhere. "Why would she want to do that?"
"I told her you're my boyfriend," Hale said seriously. "She needs to make sure you're good enough for me."
Brooks gaped at him. "What?"
"Chill out, I'm just kidding! You should have seen your face," Hale snickered, ignoring the unimpressed look Brooks shot him. "I just told her you're my chemistry tutor and she wants to see you herself as proof before she believes it."
"Why would she need proof?" Brooks asked, puzzled.
Hale grinned wickedly. "Let's just say all the others tutors she stuck me with, I scared them off in less than a week."
"Huh." Maybe Brooks was supposed to be intimidated by that, but he failed to see how anything could be more terrifying than surviving an encounter with the dog. Besides, spending time with Hale would never be something he didn't look forward to. "Um, what if she doesn't like me?"
Hale frowned. "Why wouldn't she?"
"I don't know. What if she thinks I'm annoying? Or weird? Okay, I kind of am, but still - "
"You'll be fine, Brooks," Hale assured him, with a breathtaking smile that did strange things to Brooks' heart. "She's just like me, so she'll love you. Now let's go."
He disappeared into the living room and Brooks stared after him, wondering if he'd misheard. She's just like me, so she'll love you. Did that mean...? No, he was clearly reading into it too much. He obviously meant it in a platonic way. He'd said it in such a conversational way he can't have meant it like that. Brooks shook his head to clear it and followed after Hale.
It seemed that the whole Ryves family was gathered in the living room, watching TV together. There were the twins, sitting on the smaller sofa and reading a comic together, looking strikingly similar with their heads ducked over the pages. Izzy was sitting was sitting with the two who must be her parents on the larger sofa, chewing her teddy bear's ears happily. She gurgled something that made no sense when she saw Brooks, and he decided to take it as baby equivalent for hi.
Maxy was curled up on the floor at the foot of the sofa, but beyond a loud thumping of his tail against the floor, he didn't leap up and attack Brooks. That was a relief, at least. He didn't have to worry about embarrassing himself in front of Hale's family.
Hale's mother was younger than Brooks had expected, and really pretty, in a friendly and warm way. Her resemblance to her son was unmistakeable; they had the same inky black hair and warm brown eyes, which they shared with Izzy. The man who must have been Hale's father, on the other hand, looked nothing like him. It was more than a different complexion; their facial features didn't have much similarity.
"Hi, Brooks," Tessa chirped.
Brooks smiled. "Hey."
TJ leapt to his feet and shoved his comic in Brooks' face with an eager look. "Do you like Marvel? Hale tells me to shut up when I talk about it, but if you - "
"Shut up," Hale said promptly, pushing his brother and the comic in his hand away. "Go bug someone else about your comics, TJ. We're not sticking around and don't have time to waste on it."
TJ stuck his tongue out at Hale but obediently slunk back to his sister, who held an imperious hand out for the comic. Hale turned back to Brooks and his parents when the twins broke out into an argument over who was allowed to hold the comic, which was apparently so commonplace everyone else simply ignored it.
"This is Brooks," Hale declared, as if showing off a shiny new toy at show-and-tell. "The one I was telling you about. The really smart one."
Brooks looked at him, appalled, and Hale just grinned in response. "Er, I'm not that smart," he said, with a bashful smile. "Hale is just exaggerating."
"Well, you must be pretty smart if you can get my son to learn anything," Hale's mum chuckled, holding her hand out. "It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Brooks."
Brooks shook her hand. "You too, ma'am."
"Wow, intelligent and polite," she grinned, and it was the exact same grin as Hale's. Brooks could bet she was popular with the guys when she was in high school, and it explained where Hale's charm came from. "Just call me Maria, Brooks. I feel far too formal being called ma'am."
"Nice to meet you, Maria. And, um, you must be Hale's dad," he added, feeling the need to address him to make a proper good impression.
"Step-dad," he corrected, with a good natured smile.
"Oh! I'm sorry," Brooks said hastily, shooting Hale a sideways look. He didn't look particularly bothered and just shrugged at the silent question. "I didn't realise - "
"That's not a problem," he replied, looking more amused than anything at Brooks' frantic apologies. Apparently, he was doomed to be a source of amusement for the entire Ryves' family. "The name's Daniel. Nice to meet you, son."
"Well, that's introductions done." Hale clapped his hands and snagged Brooks by the sleeve, tugging him out of the living room after him. "We'll be out pretty late, although I can't give you a specific time because I don't even know what we're doing yet."
"You don't?" Maria asked.
"It's okay, Brooks knows. You can blame him if it's outrageously inappropriate."
"It's not," Brooks said quickly, although he wasn't sure how true that was. It shouldn't be, but now that he thought about it, he was almost as clueless about the situation as Hale. "It won't be outrageous or inappropriate, I promise."
"You seem like a responsible and respectable boy, Brooks," Maria said, with a satisfied nod. "I trust you."
"Oh, thanks a lot, mum," Hale said with a scoff. "It's not like you should trust me or anything because, you know, I'm your son."
Maria rolled her eyes, but her expression was fond. "Go on, get out of here and have some fun. It'll be a relief to have a peaceful evening without you, Hale." She added something in Spanish with a raised eyebrow, and Hale didn't seem so pleased when he replied, a brief conversation Brooks couldn't follow.
Brooks barely managed to say goodbye to the twins and Izzy before he was ushered out of the living room by Hale, straight to the front door. "And don't do drugs!" Daniel called after them.
"Whatever!" Hale yelled back.
"They seem nice," Brooks said, a little wistfully. "You have a cool family."
"Do I?" Hale shrugged as if he'd never really considered it. "Alright, let's hit the road. Feel free to lead the way."
Brooks thought about his family, filled with awkward silences and forced conversation. The cracks in his own family were more glaringly obvious, more impossible to ignore, when he saw the easy harmony among the Ryves'. Brooks tried not to feel jealous and made himself forget about it, because he was going to enjoy this night with Hale regardless of how broken his family was.
End of brooks & hale Chapter 18. Continue reading Chapter 19 or return to brooks & hale book page.