brooks & hale - Chapter 22: Chapter 22

"GOOD MORNING," BROOKS SAID cheerfully as he stepped into his kitchen.
"Good morning, Brooks," Inkeri replied with her usual crinkly-eyed smile, flipping pancakes at the hob. His already good mood was improved at the prospect of her deliciously buttery pancakes to start the day off. "Did you sleep well?"
"Great, actually," he smiled. "Did you?"
She slid a plate of steaming pancakes across the counter towards him. "I did, thank you."
Adam was seated at the island as he tapped away on his phone, and as expected, he didn't even bother looking at Brooks to acknowledge his presence. Well, no surprise there. He'd taken a break from acting like Brooks didn't exist to actually pick him up from Bellamy's house last night, but that was apparently the extent of his kindness. Not even Adam's permanent cold shoulder could bring his mood down.
He wasn't sure what exactly he was so happy about. It was a Monday, and if the prospect of an entire week of school wasn't bad enough, it was way too early in the morning for anyone to be awake. Monday mornings were usually groggy and filled with pity for himself, but he was actually looking forward to going to school. Maybe it was because the sun had made an appearance for the first time in months, a promise of Spring to come soon.
Yeah, right. He couldn't care less about sunshine. Brooks knew the real reason he was feeling so giddy was because he was going to see Hale at school.
"Okay, this is freaking me out." Adam lowered his phone and swivelled in his chair to face Brooks, a frown on his lips. "What the hell is wrong with you?"
"Me? Nothing's wrong," Brooks said, genuinely confused. "Why would something be wrong?"
"Because you haven't stopped smiling once since walking in here," Adam replied, narrowing his eyes in accusation. "And that isn't normal. Didn't you break up with your girlfriend last night?"
Inkeri gasped. "Ah, no! You had a break in your relationship, Brooks?"
"Oh, it wasn't that big of a deal," Brooks shrugged, more to reassure Inkeri than anything. Her blue eyes had gone wide and sympathetic, the same expression she'd worn when she had comforted seven-year-old Brooks about the death of his goldfish. "I mean, we weren't even that serious. More on and off than anything." More like not even a possibility. "Guess we're officially off now."
"Oh, Brooks, I am so sorry!" Inkeri abandoned her spatula in favour of rushing around the counter, and pulled him into a tight hug. She smelt like pancake batter and cocoa, and the hug felt more motherly than anything his own mother had given him. "That sounds difficult. You must be very distraught."
"Honestly, I'm really not - "
"I'll make you extra pancakes to make up for it," Inkeri assured him, ruffling his hair fondly before bustling back to the pancakes. "And lots of sugar just the way you like it, yes?"
Brooks grinned. "Yeah, please. You're the best, Inkeri." Brooks could have continued to point out that this nonexistent heartbreak really didn't require food to fill the void, but he would never turn down pancakes.
Adam was still regarding him suspiciously, clearly not convinced. "So, you're really the one who broke up with her?" Adam said sceptically. Brooks nodded, although he wasn't sure if what happened with Bellamy could be classified as a break up. More of an awkward revelation/coming out. "Well. I didn't think you had the guts."
"Er...thanks?"
Adam turned back to his phone. "Maybe you're not a complete lost cause." Brooks didn't get the chance to ponder what exactly he meant by that, or whether it was some kind of weird big brother approval, when Adam added, "And I'm cashing in the favour you owe me."
"Already?" Brooks was immediately wary. "What is it?"
"I'm having a party here this Saturday. You have to be at home so I can send you to get food and drinks when we run out."
"Alright," Brooks said slowly. That didn't sound too bad, which was exactly why he knew it was too good to be true. "And how's that going to work? I can't even drive."
Adam shrugged. "You're supposed to be smart. You can figure it out."
Brooks frowned, but he was distracted when his phone chimed with a new text. Brooks looked down at the screen and couldn't stop the wide smile that spread across his lips, all thoughts of acting as Adam's errand boy pushed to the back of his mind.
hale :
are you missing an electron? cause i've got my ion you ;)
brooks :
hale ryves, did you just try to woo me using a science pick up line
hale :
yep
hale :
but the real question: did it work?
brooks :
consider me officially charmed
hale :
:)
brooks :
don't you hate science though
hale :
oh yeah it fucking sucks
hale :
but you like it for some reason so i thought i'd give it a shot
Brooks was grinning like an idiot, but he couldn't help it. Just the fact that Hale had gone to the effort of searching up a chemistry related line, just because Brooks liked science, left a warm fuzzy feeling in his chest that he doubted had anything to do with the pancakes.
brooks :
i have to give it to you, you're a real romeo
hale :
thank you thank you
hale :
when i commit i make sure to deliver ;)
"You seem very smiley today, Brooks," Inkeri said thoughtfully, setting down a fresh batch of pancakes in front of Brooks. "You are getting back with this girl you lost?"
"Uh, no," Brooks said, his thoughts filled a different pair of dark brown eyes. "Not exactly."
Adam stood up and downed the last few drops of his orange juice. "Alright, loser, we're going."
It took a couple of seconds for Brooks to realise he was talking to him, and Adam had reached the door by then. "Wait, what?" Brooks said quizzically. "Me?"
"I'm certainly not asking Inkeri to join me at school," he replied, shooting him an irritated look as if he was being particularly dense. "Well? I'm not waiting around for you to turn your brain on. Come now if you want a lift."
"But..." Brooks' mouth was watering just looking at the sugary pancakes he would have to abandon. It was such a waste that the thought was painful. "My breakfast - "
"Does it look like I care?" Adam's unimpressed expression was answer enough. "If you're in the car in five, I'm leaving. Don't come crying to me about it later."
He disappeared before Brooks could make anymore appeals about the importance of pancakes, and consuming them. Brooks had a decision to make here. Eat the pancakes and suffer through public transport, or take up Adam's inexplicable show of humanity while he still had the chance. With a sigh, he cast his breakfast one last look of longing and slid the plate back towards Inkeri, who glanced at him in surprise.
"They are not good?"
"No, of course not! They're delicious," Brooks assured her. "And thank you for making them. But I don't have time to eat them, so consider it an extra big breakfast."
Inkeri smiled affectionately. "Well, if you insist."
Brooks grabbed his phone off the counter and was almost out of the door when Inkeri said his name. "Yeah?" he said, glancing over his shoulder.
"Do not let this girl get you down. She is the one who is missing out."
Brooks didn't know what to say to her sympathy towards this fake dilemma he'd spun, and settled for a smile. "Don't worry," he said, feeling a little guilty. He couldn't back out of the lie now but Inkeri's genuine kindness made him feel bad about it. "I'm already over it."
Adam hadn't been kidding about the five minute deadline. The engine was already running when Brooks skidded across the gravel driveway and yanked the passenger door open, sliding into the seat before Adam could take off without him. "Took you long enough," Adam muttered, putting the car into gear. "Seatbelt."
Brooks obediently buckled himself in. He gazed out of the window at the blurring scenery and wondered whether to question Adam's sudden willingness to let Brooks in his car. He'd learnt the hard way that it was better to stay silent when it came to anything Adam did, especially if it could be perceived as nice, but that didn't mean he wasn't curious. It couldn't hurt to ask even if Adam just ignored him.
But when Brooks opened his mouth to ask, Adam reached out and turned up the radio. "Really?" Brooks said, appalled. "You don't even know what I was going to say."
Adam flicked him a look. "I can't be bothered to talk."
Brooks rolled his eyes but didn't get the chance to pursue the conversation further, because Adam was pulling up to the curb. Brooks knew they could have possibly reached Lexus that quickly, and a glance outside confirmed they were parked outside a row of houses. Brooks was puzzled only for a second before he recognised the street, and the blonde-haired satan's spawn leaving the house.
Brooks turned in his seat to look incredulously at Adam. "What the hell are we doing here?"
"What do you think?"
"No one told me he was coming," Brooks said indignantly, well aware that Reed was coming closer to the car with every passing second. "Did you not think that was important information to mention, that I was sacrificing good pancakes only to get bullied by Reed?"
"Stop being so dramatic."
"No, these are called survival instincts. I don't - "
The passenger door was yanked open, and Reed was standing on the other side, looking momentarily surprised at Brooks' unexpected presence. It was quickly replaced by an infuriatingly arrogant expression, the one where he looked at Brooks like he was something unpleasant he'd found on the bottom of his shoe.
"Look what the cat dragged in," he smirked, and it was nothing like Hale's smirk, which was always teasing and never malicious. "And it's sitting in my seat, too."
"It's not your seat and I'm not moving," Brooks said, before the order could come. "So you can forget about that."
Reed raised a mocking eyebrow. "My, oh my, when did you grow a spine? I thought you couldn't do anything more than blush and stammer."
Much to Brooks' horror, his cheeks seemed to think that was a good time to turn hot, but he was saved from having to think up a response by a distinctly feminine voice from the backseat. "Come on, Reed, just get in the back. It's not a big deal."
Brooks twisted in his seat to stare. "Elsie?"
"Hey, Brooks," she beamed, blonde hair swinging over her shoulder as she settled in the backseat. "You must be Adam's brother, right?"
Brooks blinked at her, too confused to comprehend the question. He was certain she hadn't been anywhere in the vicinity ten seconds ago. "Er, where did you even come from?"
"She's my sister, you dumb twat," Reed scoffed. "And how the hell do you know her?"
Well, that was the last thing Brooks had expected. Although the physical similarities between them were obvious now, the same white-blonde hair - although Reed's was tinged a little green from pool water - and icy blue eyes, they were about as different as two people could get. Elsie was the school sweetheart, with her mild manner and kind smiles, and Reed was...well, he wasn't, to put it lightly. He was a complete jackass.
"We're in the same year at school," Elsie answered, frowning at Reed. "Can you get in now, Reed? We're going to be late to school."
Brooks expected him to put up more of a fight, maybe grace Brooks with a couple more derogatory terms and insults, but Reed settled for scowling at him before joining his sister in the back. Brooks looked at Adam, who didn't look surprised by Elsie's appearance. She must have gotten a lift from him before, all those times Adam had deigned to give his own brother a ride.
Brooks glanced in the rearview mirror and instantly regretted it. Reed, who was apparently not pleased in the slightest at being relegated to the backseat, narrowed his eyes to slits and mouthed something Brooks didn't quite catch. He saw enough to know it included a few choice words that would get him grounded for a month if his mother ever heard him say them.
"Isn't this a strange coincidence?" Elsie mused, seemingly oblivious to the awkward tension in the car. "Reed and Adam are in the same year at the same school, and me and Brooks are in the same year at a different school. But we all know each other!"
Reed gave a derisive snort. "And you're seriously friends with this prick, Elsie?"
"I could say the same to Adam," Brooks said.
"Reed, that's mean," Elsie chastised, offering Brooks a smile in the mirror. "Ignore him. I don't know what his problem is."
"Neither do I," Brooks shrugged. "But I gave up wondering a long time ago."
Reed flipped him the finger. "Your face is the problem."
"That's mature."
"Unlike you," Reed said with a sneer. "Is it true you're actually seventeen now? It's a shame that some of us just hit puberty so late. You have to wonder what wrong with them."
"Reed!" Elsie looked genuinely astonished and Brooks had to admit, it was a little gratifying to have someone react. Adam didn't look even remotely bothered as he stared straight ahead at the road, clearly still not in the mood to talk. "Why are you being so horrible? Leave him alone."
Reed looked a little conflicted at his sister's admonishment, and settled for a huffed, "Whatever." Much to Brooks' surprise, he actually dropped the subject of let's-bully-Brooks to put his headphones in and drown out the world with music. To finish off the moody look, he gazed angrily out of the window like a tragic hero in a music video.
"Wow," Brooks said, impressed. "You have to teach me that trick, Elsie."
She tipped her head in confusion. "Which one?"
"The one where you get him to shut up. It seems like invaluable information."
Elsie smiled serenely. "It all comes with practise and patience." Brooks chuckled and considered installing Elsie's presence as a permanent thing whenever he had to put up with Reed.
"Oh, Brooks," Elsie said, leaning forward between the seats to look curiously at Brooks. ""You're friends with Hale. Maybe you know."
The words were entirely innocent, but his heart sped up as if she'd point blank accused him of being gay.  "W-what?" he stammered. Calm the hell down, he reminded himself, before he said something he might regret. "Know what?"
"About the new girl in Hale's life."
"Girl?" Brooks stared at her. "What girl?"
"No one knows," Elsie said conspiratorially. "But he's been sneaking off to meet up with her a lot, apparently. He didn't even come to Hudson's party last Friday because he was with her."
It took less than a second for Brooks to figure out what was going on, relaxing slightly. He had no idea what Hale been telling people whenever he'd been meeting up with Brooks, but obviously he wasn't going to tell his friends he'd been hanging around a gay bar instead of at their party. Considering Hale's adverse reaction to the idea, he doubted it would go down well with the others he hung out with.
"Oh," Brooks said, unsure what to say. "I have no idea. Not a clue who she could be."
Fictional would be a good place to start, but he decided to keep that to himself.
"That's a shame." Elsie looked disappointed. "I really want to see the girl who's finally managed to tame his wild heart. I mean, he's never even had a girlfriend before, just a lot of girls he's kissed. This one must mean a lot," she said with a dreamy smile. "It's romantic, isn't it? That he won't even say her name to keep it a mystery?"
"Uh, sure," Brooks mumbled, avoiding her gaze. Romantic wasn't the first word that came to mind when he thought about the whole messy situation, filled with lies and cover ups and having pretend it was nothing more than a friendship whenever they were in public. "Very romantic."
Thankfully, they reached Lexus before Elsie could really get into the topic he'd much rather not discuss altogether. "You can tell Reed that he can stop sulking, Elsie, and move to the passenger seat," Adam said, with a roll of his eyes.
Brooks quickly got out of the car before he had to interact with Reed anymore than he'd already been forced to. Elsie joined him shortly after dealing with her brother, the two of them joining the rush of students as Adam's car disappeared down the road. "I still can't believe Reed is your brother," Brooks admitted. "Is it possible you're not actually related?"
"Reed's not a bad person, I promise," Elsie said. "I don't know why he was so mean to you. It wasn't like him."
Brooks found that hard to believe. "Really?"
"Yeah," Elsie smiled, not seeming to notice his scepticism. "He's a great brother."
Brooks bit his lip, unable to bring himself to disagree with her when she looked so earnest. Maybe he was a great brother, but it was difficult to believe he was a great person when he'd spend the past seven years tormenting and terrorising Brooks for no apparent reason beyond his own amusement. Reed seemed to have made it his life mission to insult Brooks at every available opportunity.
"How come you guys go to different schools?" Brooks asked, in an attempt to change the subject.
"Reed got a swimming scholarship to attend Woodway," Elsie said, with a proud look. "There's no way our parents would have been able to afford it otherwise. As long as he's part of the swim team and takes part in competitions, they'd let him stay for free."
"Huh," Brooks said, impressed despite his best intentions. He knew Woodway took sports pretty seriously, far more than his school, so to be offered a scholarship on it had to be quite a big deal. "He must be pretty good, then."
"He's amazing," Elsie agreed, raising a hand in greeting when she spotted Coralie and Kara. "It was nice talking to you, Brooks. I need to find out about Kara's date with Elliot now. I'll see you later!"
She flashed him a smile before joining her friends, the three of them giggling and chattering immediately about whatever it was girls managed to find so much to talk about. Brooks shook his head and continued down the hallway, figuring he better drop unnecessary books off at his locker before chemistry. He was surprised his shoulders were still in one piece from how heavy his bag always was.
He was passing the cleaners cupboard when a hand darted out and caught his scarf, yanking him out of the hallway. Brooks couldn't help his yelp of surprise and felt himself flush, horrified at the fact he'd actually yelped. Hale, the owner of the hand, closed the door behind him in one fluid motion and leant back against it. His dark eyes were sparkling with amusement as he regarded Brooks.
"I won't lie, I'm tempted to push you out and do that whole thing again," he smirked. "Just so I can hear you make that sound again."
"Shut up," Brooks grumbled, experiencing a strange sense of deja vu. It was the same cleaners cupboard from last time - he was a little worried that this was becoming a recurring event - and he was wearing the same scarf, which Hale was clutching again. "Was there a reason you nearly put me into cardiac arrest so early in the day?"
Hale's smirk widened. "Just to do this."
He tugged Brooks closer by the scarf and Brooks gladly let himself be pulled closer. "Wait," he murmured against Hale's lips, before he got too distracted to think rationally."What if an actual cleaner tries to come in?"
Hale pulled back just enough to grin at him. "That," he said, reaching behind him to flick the lock in place without looking away from Brooks, "is why humans invented locks."
Brooks grinned back. "Smart."
It was too easy for Brooks to forget that they were in school, crammed into a tiny space that barely fit both their bodies, with mops and brooms poking him in the back. It wouldn't have made any difference where they were kissing, in a king size bed or in a pigsty, because all that mattered was Hale's hands, in his hair and on his skin, leaving blazing trails of heat in their wake.
Brooks was startled from their blissful little bubble by the shrill ring of the school bell. He began to move back, but Hale pulled him back before he could get far. "Ignore it," he murmured huskily, his pupils blown wide open as he looked at Brooks.
"But..." Brooks struggled to shake the daze from his muddled thoughts, a virtually impossible task with Hale absently drawing patterns into his skin with his thumb. "Hale...we have chemistry now."
"Yeah?" Hale's smile was devious and did dangerous things to Brooks heart. "I think I prefer the chemistry here."
Brooks gave a breathless laugh. "You really are a terrible influence."
"One step away from a bad boy, remember?" He released his hold on Brooks and gave him a light shove back, not even slightly hard enough to move him. "Alright, brainiac boy. To the less exciting chemistry it is. I'd hate to deprive you of the education you love so much."
Brooks ran a hand over his hair, trying to pat down the unruly curls that Hale had messed up by running his fingers through it. The last thing he needed was to look as flustered as he felt, in case someone suspected what he'd been up to. "You should be thanking me," Brooks said, once he was satisfied his hair was as tamed as he could manage. "How are you ever going to get your grades up if you ditch?"
"Well, Brooks, that's why you're my tutor. Get the smartest nerd in school to do your homework and you're sorted."
"Hmm, I don't know." Brooks readjusted his scarf, which had received so much rough handling he was surprised it was still in one piece. "I think my professionalism as a tutor has been compromised here. We might have to reconsider the situation."
"Professionalism," Hale scoffed, unlocking the door and risking a glance outside. Once he had confirmed the hallway was clear, he stepped outside and Brooks followed him, carefully closing the door behind him. "Last chance," he warned, glancing at Brooks. "Sure you want to waste the next hour listening to Mrs Mulligan drone on and on about covalent bonds?"
"Knowledge is power," Brooks reminded him with a grin.
"Oh my god," Hale drawled. "I really am hooking up with the biggest nerd in the whole school."
"And I'm hooking up with a delinquent," Brooks sighed with mock dismay, dragging Hale after him down the corridor to ensure he was actually following. They weren't late yet, but it was only a matter of time if Brooks didn't get them moving. "You know, you should really start wearing the leather jacket. So no one misunderstands as to what you really are."
"But then I'd just be far too fearsome, y'know?"
"Dogs are scary," Brooks said, amused. "Horror movies are scary. Not going to lie, thunderstorms are pretty scary. But you, Hale, are not scary."
And it was true. It was undeniable that Brooks had originally been a little intimidated by the cool and collected facade he presented to the world, always confident and never at a loss for words and smooth in a way Brooks never would be. And while all of that was still true, Brooks had also seen the side of Hale who loved his baby sister and had been embarrassed about his dyslexia, the softer more personal side he usually kept hidden.
It was impossible to feel anything but comfortable around Hale now.
"Yeah," Brooks said absently, at Hale's comically affronted expression. "You're not scary in the slightest."