Page 18 of Brody
The barbecue stand ended up being a pop-up food truck near a park. We got a couple of pulled pork sandwiches—meaning Brody bought them because I had no money—and we took the food over to a park bench where we could eat while watching the ducks.
“Sorry it’s not a real restaurant,” Brody said as he handed me one of the sandwiches. “I figured we didn’t want to waste that much time. I’ll owe you a proper meal later.”
The sandwich was wrapped in greasy, wax-lined paper, which I had to carefully peel apart. “No. This is better, actually. There’s more room outside. Is it just me or are all the places around here really small? I was constantly bumping into things at the shops we visited, and the restaurants didn’t seem any better. Just looking through the windows, I could tell the booths would be narrow and uncomfortable. At least out here there’s elbow room.”
I waved my elbows around to show off the space around me, but realized the flapping gesture just made me look like a drunk duck, so I quickly stopped.
Brody laughed so hard he snorted. “This town isn’t small. You’re just too big.”
I looked down at myself.
Too big?
Brody and I were similar in size, so I hadn’t paid much attention to it, but thinking about it now, he was significantly taller than most of the people we passed.
Did that mean I was as well?
I didn’t feel large. If anything, I felt too small, like there wasn’t enough inside me to fill up a whole person.
“I didn’t feel too big when I was at your place.”
Huffing one last laugh, Brody took a bite of his sandwich before replying. “That’s because Magnus and I are both on the large side as well. We built our homes from the ground up and designed everything to the scale that we wanted. It sucks, feeling like you don’t fit into the world, so we wanted one place where we could always be comfortable.”
Copying him, I took a bite of my own sandwich. Logically, I knew it was good. A heavy scent of spices reached my nose, but the food just tasted like ash on my tongue.
“So, you and Magnus are close?”
I hadn’t asked about his relationship with the other man before. When I’d first arrived at Brody’s home, I’d been too tired to pay attention to the other people around me. It was only now, with more energy and a clearer head, that I realized how unusual it was for two men to build a home together. It seemed like Magnus had his own house, and might even have a partner, but that didn’t rule out the possibility of their relationship being romantic in nature.
It shouldn’t matter to me. Brody was free to date or marry whoever he wanted, but for some reason I couldn’t get the thought out of my head.
For the first time since we’d met, Brody wasn’t immediately aware of my discomfort as he kept talking.
“Oh, yeah. Known him for years. We met in the early days of our service, and just clicked, you know.”
“Service?”
I hated how small my voice sounded.
Too large?
Bullshit.
I was nothing but a scared mouse walking around in the body of a bear.
The old, weathered wood of the bench creaked when Brody leaned back.
“Oh, right. I haven’t told you about that. Magnus and I are both retired from the military. Risking your lives together certainly forms a bond, let me tell you. Actually, the fact that we’re both on the large size is how we initially met. Due to the alphabetical line up, we were forced to share a bunk. That rickety old thing wasn’t made to hold so much weight. It didn’t last two nights before it collapsed on us. Magnus sprained his wrist and some of the broken metal gave me a good cut on my arm.”
He held up his forearm to show off the jagged scar that reached from his elbow halfway to his wrist. What he classified as a “good cut” was probably what most people would consider a sizable wound.
Yet, he just laughed as he rolled his sleeve back down over his arm and carried on as if it were nothing. “That was an embarrassing report to write. I don’t think our commanding officer would have believed us if the rest of the unit hadn’t backed us up. They managed to find a couple spare cots, which they shoved in a corner for us. I think the cots were meant to be an emergency backup option, but they were actually more comfortable than the bunk beds.”
“Uh huh.” The sandwich in my hand was only half finished. I wasn’t hungry anymore, but Brody had paid for it, so I forced myself to take another bite. My throat was dry, and I nearly choked while swallowing. “And, um, what made you decide to build a home together?”
“Oh, that was Creed’s idea.”
“Creed?”
