80It's been forever since I've written anything here. This incredibly fluffy and clichéd little story popped into my head and for some reason hasn't left me alone, so I thought I'd write it and post it. I hope you enjoy it!
Rumors About You and Me
By: Mizzlizdiz
xxxxxx
"Damnit," Brandon muttered under his breath as he vigorously erased the math problem, leaving a grey smudge on his paper. They were doing some practice problems in trigonometry, and he only had about a minute until the teacher began to ask for answers. He hadn't finished one question.
"So who has an answer for number 1?" The teacher, Mrs. Hanson, asked the class.
Brandon ducked his head, his hair draping in his face, an attempt equivalent to that of a three year old, 'you can't see me, if I can't see you.'
"Brandon? What about you?"
Figures.
"Ummm….42?" Brandon's reply was weak.
"Sorry, that's not the answer," Mrs. Hanson then turned her attention away from Brandon, calling on a student who knew the answer.
With the focus away from him, Brandon slouched down in his chair, feeling dumb as everyone else in the class all answered correctly when they were called on. Luckily, the torture that was math class was close to the end. Mrs. Hanson assigned the homework, reminded them that there was a week until the unit test, and dismissed the class as the bell rang for the end of the day.
"Brandon," her voice stopped him. "Could I speak with you a minute?"
He approached her desk.
"It seems as if you are having some trouble with this unit. I think it would be a good idea for you to find a tutor," Mrs. Hanson studied him as she made the suggestion.
"Yeah. Maybe."
"If you fail this unit, you'll be in danger of failing the class, and as much as I like you, I don't want to have to see you in summer school."
It was so lamely funny when teachers tried to be humorous.
"Then I guess I'll get a tutor," Brandon agreed.
Mrs. Hanson said some more reassuring comments, but Brandon wasn't really paying attention. He just wanted to get out of the classroom and get out of the school. So he nodded in all the right places until she seemed satisfied and said goodbye.
Jesus. Took long enough.
"Hey man, where the hell have you been?" Brandon's best friend, Tyler, punched him playfully in the arm.
"Mrs. Hanson was bugging me about math."
"Lame dude."
"She wants me to get a tutor. Where do I get a tutor?"
"Dude, I know who to ask man. This guy Matt Johnson, he's in my class. He's like a total genius or something. I'll totally hook you up."
Brandon raised an eyebrow with a smile. "He's gay?"
Tyler laughed. "Who knows dude, but not your type."
Brandon was openly gay at his school. Tyler was the first person he told and was totally cool about it. He even encouraged Brandon to come out to his mom and to some of their other friends. Brandon was glad for Tyler's amazing support, hell, Tyler was so supportive he even scoped out guys and tried to set Brandon up. Sometimes he wondered if Tyler was completely straight himself, he had pretty good taste.
"What's my type?"
Tyler gave him a look that clearly said: 'are you kidding me?' "Well, Matt's a real good guy, like smart and nice."
"So smart and nice guys aren't my type?"
"Ummmm….Seriously dude? You only date assholes. Your last boyfriend, perfect example."
Yeah, Brandon's last boyfriend…his name was Dylan and he was exactly everything Brandon thought he was looking for. Dylan was a notorious rebel, tall, dark, scruffily handsome, and a rocker. He played guitar and sang in a band. He was cool and seemed unconcerned by other people, unfortunately 'people' included Brandon. Dylan was so unconcerned, he didn't think it was an issue that he slept with numerous people during their five month relationship.
Even with the cheating, Brandon found it almost impossible to leave Dylan. He had just hoped that maybe Dylan would realize how much he loved him and would become monogamous. It didn't help that Dylan was very charming when he wanted something. He had known just what to say to keep Brandon strung along and wanting more, when all Dylan really wanted was someone to fuck.
Now, three months after the relationship ended, Brandon still felt ashamed of being so naïve and disillusioned.
"Thanks for bringing that up man."
"Yep. You know, you can count on me for that," Tyler grinned, then tugged on Brandon's arm. "Hey, I see Matt over there. Wanna talk to him now?" Tyler gestured towards the window of the library.
"Uh, I guess so."
Tyler led Brandon through the library doors and over to a guy who was reading at one of the tables. He seemed average height and weight, with light brown hair and glasses. As they moved closer, Brandon could see freckles on the guy's nose and cheeks, but he didn't seem that remarkable, or anyone that Brandon would normally notice in a crowd.
"Hey Matt, what's up?" Tyler greeted.
The guy, Matt, looked up and Brandon was met with a pair of pretty green eyes, framed by long, eyelashes. Okay, maybe he wasn't completely unremarkable. Those eyes were damn stunning.
But Tyler was right, first impression was that this guy wasn't really Brandon's type. He was real clean cut looking, clean shaven, polo wearing, with not enough of an edge.
"Hey Tyler," Matt greeted with a small smile.
"My friend Brandon here," He clapped a hand on Brandon's back, "needs some help in math. Since you're good at math, I figured it was a match made in heaven."
Matt's smile widened. He had dimples. "Sure. I'm on the list of tutors for honor society, but I have time for one more. Good to meet you," he held out his hand for Brandon to shake.
"Hey thanks. Mrs. Hanson was kinda' getting up my ass about my grades," Brandon let go of Matt's hand.
"So where and when did you want to meet?" Matt asked him.
"I dunno, like six-ish? My place or yours?" Brandon offered.
Tyler snorted, but covered it up with a cough.
Brandon shot him a hard look.
"Six is good. If you wanted to write down your address, I could come to yours." Matt flipped open a notebook and handed Brandon a pen.
After exchanging information, Brandon and Tyler went on their way to the parking lot to get into Brandon's car.
"So I guess, you were into him man, all 'my place or yours,'" Tyler teased.
"Fuck you man, you didn't need to snort like a little girl. You were right though, he isn't really my type."
"Yeah I figured," Tyler stretched out his legs, resting his feet on the dashboard. "He's kinda' cute though, in a puppy-ish way."
"Are you sure you're straight?"
"You only wish I wasn't," Tyler laughed.
"You're not good enough for me!" Brandon retorted.
Actually, Tyler was really attractive, but in an understated way, like he wasn't ever even trying. He kind of resembled Kurt Cobain, but less brooding. His blonde hair was long, almost to his shoulders, he was blue-eyed, and tall. He only wore worn jeans and t-shirts. Also, he was really laid back, easygoing, and an all around approachable guy. Brandon didn't know of anyone who would say anything negative about Tyler.
While Tyler was good-looking, Brandon wasn't interested in him that way. They had known each other for so long, Tyler was more like a brother than just a friend. And Brandon wasn't into incest.
Brandon pulled up to Tyler's driveway. "I'll see you later. You're driving tomorrow right?"
"Yeah, yeah. Have fun on your date tonight. You gonna put out?" Tyler teased, his eyes twinkling.
Brandon rolled his eyes. "You know me, I can't resist a little action on the first date."
Tyler chuckled. "Use a condom," was his parting shot.
xxxxxx
Six o'clock came around faster than Brandon expected. The doorbell rang right on the hour. Matt was really punctual.
Brandon answered the door. "Hey, come in."
Matt was looking around at the house. "I like your place. It's nice."
"Thanks."
Brandon had lived in the same house his whole life. It was a smaller ranch style house, but it was just him and his mom so it worked just fine. His mom was an interior decorator, so it was pretty decked out with furniture, drapes, knick-knacks accenting and complimenting each other.
"Um, my room is this way." He led Matt to his private domain.
As he did with the rest of the house, Matt seemed to take everything in. It made Brandon a little uncomfortable, as if Matt could somehow learn all his secrets by looking at his room.
Brandon realized this was half-true when he noticed Matt staring at a poster of a half-naked guy he had hanging on his closet door.
"Is that going to be a problem?" Brandon asked.
"Huh?" Matt turned to him, looking confused.
"Me, being gay."
"Oh, no it's cool. I um, actually, I already knew that. I-I mean, people talked a lot when you and Dylan were together."
It was true. He and Dylan hadn't hid there relationship. They were very open about it. Extremely open about it. He winced as he thought of all the times he and Dylan had been making out in the hallway in front of people. He kind of hoped that Matt hadn't been a witness to it.
"So did you want to, um, get started?" Matt asked.
Brandon nodded, and led Matt over to a pair of beanbag chairs he and Tyler usually occupied when playing video games or watching movies.
Matt was a very good teacher. Instead of telling Brandon what to do, he asked Brandon to show him how he would approach the problem. For each step, Matt would ask "why did you do that?" and after Brandon's answer, either said why it was right or why it was wrong. Brandon felt like it was helping, he was starting to understand a lot better, but was still struggling to find the right answer without Matt's help, and they were over halfway through the homework. He would never admit it, but he was feeling frustrated, despite Matt's seemingly endless patience.
Matt paused for a minute, examining Brandon. "Hey, do you want to take a break? Get something to drink maybe?"
Brandon nodded and led Matt to the kitchen. His mother was there, reading the paper. He hadn't even heard her come home. She looked up and grinned at them.
"Hey sweetie, who's your friend?"
"This is Matt, he's helping me with math."
Matt was smiling a full dimpled smile at his mother as he shook her hand. "It's good to meet you Mrs…."
She cut him off, "Just call me Anna honey. No need to be so formal here," she examined him for a minute before asking, "were you boys hungry? I can make you something?"
"It's okay mom, I'll just do mac and cheese or something," Brandon looked to Matt for approval of food.
Matt nodded. "Sounds good to me."
As Brandon dug around the kitchen for what he'd need, his mother began to ask Matt questions.
"So Matt, tell me about yourself. What are your plans for life? Your dreams? Do you have a girlfriend? Boyfriend?" She paused with a smile.
"Mom," Brandon was a little embarrassed. She was like this with anyone he brought to the house. She would ask them a lot of questions, barely giving them time to answer, as if she was looking for a certain answer.
Matt just laughed and seemed to just take it in stride. "I want to be a journalism major after high school. I would like to travel and you know, see the world. I'm not dating anyone."
"How did you and Brandon meet?"
"Tyler. He um told me Brandon needed help with math."
She seemed to be appraising Matt silently, for once. It appeared that he had passed whatever the criterion was for her approval. Then she stood, "I have a meeting to go to, but I should be back by nine. If I don't see you before you leave, it was wonderful to meet you. I wish my son had more friends like you."
"Thanks Mrs….um Anna," Matt smiled.
"See you later sweetie," She gave Brandon a kiss on the cheek.
"Bye mom."
Once she left, Matt stated, "She is really nice."
"You don't have to live with her," Brandon muttered back.
Matt smiled at that. Those dimples were pretty charming. Brandon was thinking he was beginning to have a dimple fetish.
Brandon got out plates and soon was serving up mac and cheese.
"I like you all domesticated," Matt's voice was teasing, his dimples full blown.
"Hey! Fuck you! Just because I'm gay doesn't mean I'm going to be a wife!"
Matt just laughed and began to eat the food given to him. When they finished they went back to work on homework.
"Thanks for helping me out man. I think I get it better," Brandon said just before Matt was leaving.
"No problem! Thanks for feeding me." Dimples, again. "Did you want me to come by tomorrow?"
"Sure man. There's a test coming up and I need all the help I can get."
They agreed to meet at the same time and said their goodbyes.
xxxxxx
Brandon was lounging on the couch watching a movie when his mom came in.
"Hey sweetie. Movie any good?"
Brandon shrugged. "I'm not that into it, but couldn't not finish it. How was your meeting?"
"Good." She paused. "I really like Matt. He seems like a real sweetheart."
Brandon's attention snapped away from the tv to his mother's hopeful face. "He's just helping me with math."
"I know sweetie. I just wanted you to know that I think he's a good one. I can tell he'd be a very good boyfriend."
"How could you tell? You asked him like, three questions instead of your normal three hundred."
"I just know."
"Mom, I'm pretty sure he's just doing this for his college applications or resume or whatever. I'm pretty sure he's straight and that he's not doing it to get a date out of me. "
She gave him one of her analyzing looks. "Sweetie, you know you're not exactly repulsive."
"Mom…"
"Okay, I'll leave it alone." She kissed his cheek. "I'm going to bed early. Have a good night."
After she left, Brandon thought about what she said. He was still thinking about it as he brushed his teeth.
He stared at his reflection in the mirror. He ran a hand through his hair. It was dark brown and kind of fell across his forehead. When it got longer it would curl a little at the ends. His eyes were hazel and a slightly slanted almond shape. He had a narrow, straight nose. His lips were fuller, Dylan always described them as cock-sucking lips. His skin was olive-toned. In the summer, he tanned easily and the color usually stayed well into the winter. He knew he wasn't ugly, but he had never felt quite comfortable with his appearance.
He sighed angrily to himself. Why was he even thinking about this shit? He wasn't interested in Matt that way anyway. He would probably make a really good friend though. He seemed like the dependable type. And even though he just met him, Brandon couldn't help but feel at ease around him. It was a good, comfortable feeling.
Shaking his head, Brandon made for his bed.
xxxxxx
The next morning, Tyler arrived surprisingly early to pick Brandon up for school.
"Hey dude, how'd last night go?" He grinned mischievously, "You're walking pretty steady today. Did you actually top for once?"
"Fuck you. You know I'd only top for you," they had joked about this before.
Tyler laughed hard and drove them to school.
School was school. Not that eventful.
Brandon saw Matt in the halfway a couple times and waved at him. Matt returned the wave and smiled each time, no matter who he was with. That made Brandon feel surprisingly good. That Matt would act as if they were friends, that he wouldn't care who knew that they were friends.
The day was like any other except for one big change. That change was that Brandon actually felt like he knew what he was doing in math class. He actually answered a question right and received a happy smile from Mrs. Hanson.
She called him to her desk after class. "So you got a tutor?"
"Um…yeah, Matt Johnson."
She smiled approvingly, "He's a very good tutor. That was an excellent choice."
"Thanks. Um, I'll see you tomorrow," Brandon made his exit.
He met Tyler in the lobby, waiting with his arms crossed over his chest.
"Now I know you weren't with your new boyfriend, what held you up?"
"Mrs. Hanson wanted to talk to me again."
"To congratulate you on your boyfriend?" When Tyler got on something, sometimes it was hard to get him off it, especially if he knew he was bugging Brandon.
"Of course. She wants to videotape me and Matt going at it and then make a website where she'll post it and sell it for a hefty profit."
Tyler snickered. "Do I get some of that profit, considering I set you two up?"
"10% finders fee. Unless you want to join in, then you get 25%."
Tyler outright burst into laughter. "Nice." He clapped a hand on Brandon's shoulder. "Let's get out of here. That is, unless you want to say goodbye to your boyfriend first." He gestured towards the library.
"Is he always in there?" Brandon asked.
Tyler scratched his head. "Well he does tutor a lot dude. I think he meets someone after school there everyday." He shot Brandon a teasing look, "he only makes house calls for you."
Brandon punched Tyler in the arm and ignored his laughter as they got in his car and drove.
xxxxxxx
Just as he had the night before, Matt arrived at exactly six o'clock.
"Hey dude, come on in," Brandon greeted. "Did you want anything to drink or something?"
"No thanks," Matt answered.
He followed Brandon to his room as they had before. One difference was that Brandon's tortoiseshell colored cat was curled up on one of the beanbag chairs.
"Hey, I didn't know you had a cat!" Matt went over to her and began to pet her. She blinked her green eyes at him and purred. He picked her up and placed her on his lap.
"Yeah, she kind of hides from strangers at first, but once she gets to know you she's crazy."
"What's her name?"
"Lemon."
"Lemon?" Matt grinned, "I couldn't see this cute little girl as a sour lemon."
Matt spoke too soon. Right after he finished that sentence, she stretched the distance to bite Matt on his chin. "Ow!"
Brandon practically doubled over laughing. "Oh man, I'm sorry but that was too funny. She loves chins and noses."
"I can tell," Matt rubbed his chin. "That actually really hurt!"
Lemon just curled further in his lap, seemingly content. Matt continued to pet her, a bewildered smile on his face. Brandon felt almost guilty for interrupting him to ask for help on a problem, but Matt just smiled and leaned over to see what Brandon was doing.
The whole time they worked, Lemon remained in Matt's lap, her eyes closed and purring loudly as Matt's hands steadily ran over her fur. Brandon had never seen her so attached to someone other than him before.
After awhile, Brandon offered to make Matt some dinner.
"Cooking for me again? I think I like this," Matt teased.
Brandon just laughed. "Come on, before I change my mind."
They went to the kitchen. Brandon turned to Matt. "Do you like bagels, cream cheese, salsa, and mozzarella?"
"Ummm….sure?" Matt answered looking puzzled.
Brandon flashed a smile at him, "Mexican bagels. It's something my mom and I make. Do you want to try it?"
"Sure."
Brandon pulled out the ingredients and began to assemble what he'd need.
Matt was sitting at the counter watching him. "Do you like to cook?"
"Yeah, I guess. It's not that bad. Why?"
Matt shrugged. "It seemed like you do it a lot. I mean, you know how to make actual food and not stuff from a box."
"This is nothing really," Brandon felt self-conscious by the compliment. "Here." He passed a plate to Matt.
"This looks good. Mmmm," Matt moaned as he took a bite. "This is amazing." He was licking his fingers.
Brandon couldn't help smiling at him. "Thanks."
Matt's eyes met his. "No, thank you for making these. Seriously."
Brandon's mom came in. "Awww, Mexican bagels without me?"
"Sorry mom."
She glanced at Matt. "Well, I forgive you since you made some for Matt too."
"Hi Anna. These are fantastic," Matt greeted giving her a dimpled smile.
"I'm glad you like them honey," she grinned. She walked over and gave Brandon a hug and a kiss on the cheek. She gave Matt a hug too. "It's good to see you again so soon. Brandon didn't scare you off?"
"Mom," Brandon groaned his embarrassment.
Matt just laughed. "I think I'm pretty hard to scare off."
"That's good to hear. I'll see you boys later," she grabbed a soda before heading out of the kitchen.
"Sorry about her."
"Why do you keep apologizing? She's cool man."
Brandon didn't answer. If Matt didn't think that his mother was implying that they should be a couple, then he wasn't going to be the one to bring it up.
"Ready to get back to work?"
xxxxxx
The next day was another day, similar to the one before. The only difference was that math was a whole lot easier. When Mrs. Hanson had them work on problems in class, Brandon knew how to answer each one. He actually finished them before she started calling on people to answer.
"Does anyone know the answer to number ten?"
No one in the class raised their hand.
Her eyes fell on him. "Brandon, what about you?"
He took a deep breath and told her his answer.
She beamed at him. "That's right! Could you come up here and show the class how you found that on the board?"
Brandon held back a grin as he went to the front and did so.
He kept his excitement down until after class. He saw Matt in the lobby talking to the members of student council. Matt was secretary for their graduating class, which fit him in how organized he was. Despite the small crowd of people, Brandon bounded over to Matt and touched his arm to get his attention.
"Hey man, thanks for last night. You're totally awesome," Brandon blurted out the compliment, excitement causing the words to come out before he realized what they could imply.
Apparently, everyone who was listening picked up on potential implications, judging by the way the conversations around them dwindled to silence.
There was an awkward pause in which Brandon almost clarified, but then Matt surprised him.
Matt gave him a full dimple smile, winked, and said, "We should do it again sometime."
Brandon's jaw almost dropped at the flirtatiousness of that one sentence. It was kind of unexpected to be coming from Matt. He hadn't known Matt for long, but from what he did know, Matt was usually more reserved and never had joked with him like that.
"Um…definitely." He awkwardly kept the joke going.
Matt touched his arm gently, running his fingers along his bicep, from the edge of his t-shirt to skin. "Cool. I'll see you later then?" It was half a question, half a statement.
"Yeah, sure. Later."
Brandon made his exit.
xxxxxx
Soon after the lobby incident, Brandon saw Matt alone, he cornered him in the library.
"Dude, what were you thinking? People are going to think we're dating or something!"
Matt just laughed. "Brandon, I don't think anyone would think that you're dating me. I mean, your last boyfriend was Dylan. I would be a serious down-grade."
Brandon felt a stab of, well something, in his gut at Matt's words. "Matt, you are like a hundred times better of a person than Dylan is."
Matt laughed, a bitter sound that Brandon had never heard from him before. He looked Brandon in the eyes. "I know what I am, and I know what I'm not."
"Matt…"
Matt interrupted him. "It doesn't matter. Let's drop this okay?"
Brandon nodded, but he still had a weird feeling in his chest. "Did you want to come over tonight?"
Matt appeared slightly puzzled. "Did you still need help with math?"
"Oh." It had never occurred to Brandon that Matt was just tutoring him, that he might not want to be friends too. "Never mind." He began to walk away.
"Hey Brandon, wait!" Matt followed him tugging on his arm to get him to stop.
Brandon slowly turned and looked up into Matt's eyes. "Yeah?" His voice came out smaller than he meant it.
"Want me to bring a movie or something?" Matt asked.
"Sure."
Matt smiled his full-dimpled smile. "Great. I'll see you later." He released Brandon's arm.
xxxxxx
When Matt rang the doorbell at six, Brandon was ready to open the door.
"Hey, um…how's it going?" He suddenly felt a bit awkward.
Matt just smiled, with dimples, and came in. "Good. I brought some movies."
"Awesome. Do you want popcorn or something?"
"Sure."
Once the popcorn was popped and they snatched a few sodas from the kitchen, they got situated in Brandon's room. Almost as soon as they sat down, Lemon snuck out of her hiding place and immediately went to Matt's lap.
"Hey beautiful," he cooed, scratching her ear. She purred, nuzzling against his hand before attempting to stretch up to his face. "Hey, I'm onto you," He grinned as he put a hand between her and his face.
If Brandon didn't know better, he would have thought that Lemon was sulking as she shifted into a comfortable position in Matt's lap.
They watched the movie, commenting to each other during. Brandon felt himself relaxing, feeling that comfortable feeling that he had previously experienced in Matt's presence.
The movie ended sooner than Brandon was ready for. He had been having fun. He turned to find Matt's attention focused on him.
"I…Thanks for coming over."
Matt grinned. "It's fun hanging out with you." He paused, appearing a bit nervous. "I thought you only wanted help with math. I didn't think you'd want to hang out with me."
"Hey man, I like hanging out with you. You're really awesome!"
With that comment, Brandon was treated to a combination of cuteness, which was blushing and dimples from Matt.
"Really? I mean, I always thought that you and Tyler seemed so cool and…" He looked down. "Wow, I sound like a girl."
Brandon chuckled. "Yeah, you're my number one fan right?" He gently shoved his shoulder against Matt's.
"You're calling me a fan girl now?"
"Well, if the description fits."
"Hey!" Matt pushed Brandon off his beanbag chair.
"After that move, see if I ever cook for you again!"
"In that case…" Matt offered a hand to help Brandon up.
Naturally, given an opening like that, Brandon just had to pull Matt down with him.
Matt fell with a small grunt. "I can't believe I fell for that."
"Literally." Brandon couldn't help but crack up.
Both of them were laughing hysterically, lying next to each other on the floor when Brandon's mom popped her head in the doorway.
"I'm not sure if I should ask or if I should spare myself," she teased with a grin. "Hello again Matt. Third night in a row, impressive."
"What can I say? I have masochistic tendencies," Matt joked.
"Oh come, admit it. I'm totally charming and adorable. You just had to come back for more!" Brandon replied.
His mom laughed. "You keep on telling yourself that sweetie."
"Oh, a mom burn! That's rough!"
They continued to joke around for the rest of the night.
xxxxxx
The next day was normal, until lunch. Lunch was when things got weird. As Brandon got his food and walked across the cafeteria, he got the feeling that people were staring at him, and whispering. He shrugged it off to his own paranoia, and made his way to his usual seat.
Tyler rushed up to him. "Dude, why are people saying that you and Matt are boyfriends?"
Brandon laughed and told him what had happened in the lobby.
"Um…That's it? 'Cause there's a lot more rumors."
"What?"
Tyler didn't meet his eyes and shifted his weight back and forth nervously. "They're saying you blew him in the library yesterday after school and that he's been secretly fucking you. Ummm…Kinkily."
"Who's saying that?"
"Ummmm…Basically everyone." The amount of glances shifting his way made Brandon believe it.
"Really?" His eyebrows threatened to reach his hairline. "That's awkward." He immediately felt bad for Matt. Really, what straight boy would appreciate homosexual rumors about him?
Just then, Matt approached. "Hey sweetheart." He slung an arm around Brandon's shoulder and kissed his cheek. "Have you heard the news?" His tone was sarcastic, but had an edge of amusement to it.
"Wow…Ummm…" Brandon was shocked speechless for a minute. "You're taking this well."
"I guess. I just don't know how that one comment turned into half the stuff everyone's saying about us."
"That's high school," Tyler replied. "You didn't exactly help yourself with that move just there."
Matt shrugged. "They all believe it anyway. My best friend Amanda asked me if I was ashamed to come out to her. She congratulated me on finding such a cute boyfriend and then asked if I wanted to go shopping with her."
Brandon and Tyler chuckled at that.
"It'll be okay," Matt reassured them.
Brandon just hoped that was true.
xxxxxx
So that's chapter 1. Tell me what you think!