Page 13 of Brad & Finn
Again, Finn wasn’t even sure why he wanted to touch Brad at all. This was so unlike him and any interaction he’d had in a long time. After a series of lackluster relationships, Finn had all but given up on dating. It seemed like the queer community in Indy all knew each other, and he was tired of playing six degrees of separation and opening himself up to disappointment over and over again. He had a quiet life, with his own place and an easy, well-paying job that supported him and his goldendoodle.
Hell, his and Chloe’s dogs got along so well, they were staying in the same doggy boarding room this weekend. He was also excited for Chloe’s mom to move up north. He wouldn’t say she was like a second mother to him, more like a doting aunt. She’d rolled with his new name and pronouns as if it were no bigger a deal than Chloe changing majors three times in college. She’d made sure he knew he was always welcome in her home.
All in all, he was at peace, and if that meant avoiding dating or even hooking up to maintain that peace, that was fine with him.
Really, it was.
Out of the corner of his eyes, Finn saw the old-fashioned digital clock numbers flip one after another from 1:59 to 2:00 a.m.
Brad, who had been staring intently at Finn, followed his gaze and let out a soft huff. “Please believe me when I say I really don’t want to cut this reunion short, but I’m meeting my mom for breakfast in the morning.”
As if a switch had been flipped, Finn’s telltale signs of sleep deprivation began to surface. The knot that perpetually lived at the base of his left shoulder blade from a nasty cheerleading tumble tightened, and the moisture seemed to leech from his eyes. They’d taken a late flight the night before and got up atthe crack of dawn to inventory Chloe’s mom’s house, which had taken them all day and into the evening. They’d only stopped when Chloe demanded they come into town for a late dinner. She hadn’t given Finn a start time for tomorrow, but if he knew his best friend, it would probably be before 8.
“You’re right, I probably have an early morning with Chloe as well.”
Silence fell, and, not for the first time, Finn felt a crackle of something in the air between them. He should probably be the one to stand up and lead Brad over to his shoes, and then to the door…but what were they going to do at the door?
Had they reached the hugging phase of their slowly rekindling friendship? Finn had exchanged dozens, if not hundreds, of hugs with Brad in high school. His warm, solid, sometimes sweaty body had pulled Finn off his feet a few times after a big win or at the end of an exuberant party. Would things be different now? Would they have to exchange a bro-y side hug with one of those awful back slaps at the end?
Even worse, what if Brad tried to shake his hand, and Finn had to reckon with the fact that no matter how many times he’d subconsciously wiped his hands on his slacks, they were still noticeably clammy.
Utterly unaware of Finn’s internal panic, Brad slapped his hands on his thighs in the best approximation of a midwestern goodbye Finn had ever seen. “Well…I’ll see you at registration tomorrow, right?”
Finn let Brad pass in front of him to retrieve his shoes, and then he slowly followed after him. He stood halfway between the door and Brad, rubbing his hands on his pant legs one last time.
“Yeah, we’ll be there. I think the schedule says there’s some icebreaker shenaniganry going on? While the thought of that sort of makes me want to die—” Finn stuttered as Brad finished sliding on his shoes and took a step directly into Finn’s space.“Uhm…Chloe, uh, loves that sort of thing. So…while I’d probably prefer not to, we will almost definitely be there.”
Brad gazed down at him, nearly half a foot in height difference still between them. T had given Finn an extra inch in his early twenties, but it seemed like Brad had also grown since high school. The distance between them wasn’t so vast that Finn would have to stand on his tiptoes to kiss him. He’d just have to shift some weight to the balls of his feet and maybe tip his head back a bit and?—
Wait, what?
Finn rocked back on his heels and took an incredibly awkward shuffle step towards the door. “Okay, well, uh, I’ll see you tomorrow then.”
Brad’s long stride ate up the distance Finn had just put between them, and he stopped right in front of Finn again. “Do you still hug?” he asked.
The skin on Finn’s face exploded into prickling heat. “Yes?” he squeaked, cursing his voice’s continuing tendency to crack when he was surprised, overwhelmed, horny—or any intense emotion whatsoever.
Finn remembered reading once that it took approximately 17 muscles to smile. Each one of those muscles seemed to flare to life, curling Brad’s lips into a slow, soft grin. Back when he was the captain of the football team, his grins had been huge and showboat-y, always reading as a bit fake, at least to Finn. There was nothing fake about this one, though. It was like being handed Brad’s private diary, getting a glimpse into the way his heart worked.
“I remember really liking your hugs,” Brad whispered before he stepped forward and enveloped Finn in his arms.
Thank god Finn was able to hold in his gasp of surprise. His arms came up on instinct and wrapped around the meat of Brad’s back. Brad had always been what Finn liked to call a “fullfrontal” hugger. Back in the day, he didn’t curve his chest away from boobs or try to tip his pelvis back out of the hug. He simply enveloped whoever he was hugging, so their entire bodies fit together like they were formed from the same piece of clay.
Finn was hyper aware of the way his packer pressed against Brad’s thigh, and even though it had been years, it still made his heart stutter when his tiny pecs met Brad’s solid chest.
“Nice to see that not much has changed,” Brad rumbled close to Finn’s ear.
Brad’s hands were solid on Finn’s lower back, similar to how they’d been in the hallway. It was hard to explain, and if Chloe asked about it later, he probably wouldn’t be able to find the right words, but it felt like what Finn imagined coming home should feel like.
“Back at ya,” Finn whispered, giving Brad one more squeeze before releasing him.
Brad’s left hand dragged across Finn’s lower back as he let go and turned towards the door. Finn experienced another full-body shiver, which he wasn’t able to hide as well.
Brad hesitated with his hand still on the door. “I know this hotel can be sort of all over the place temperature wise. If you need extra blankets—” Brad stopped and cast a glance at the extra bed. Neither of them said anything for a beat, and then Brad gave one of his more awkward smiles. “Well…I’m just across the hall if you need anything.”
Finn could never deny him when he smiled, even like that. It had caused him to skip more than a few boring seminars and climb a few too many trees down by the creek. Kendall would laugh at Brad’s antics, but Finn and Chloe had always been more likely to join in than sit on the sidelines and watch.
Brad stared into Finn’s eyes as if maybe he was remembering, too.
