They had sat down to dinner so often already as a group, but today it felt very, very different. He kept throwing little glances at Brett as he ate his stir fry and rice, and every time he did, Brett was looking at him too.
Was Brett feeling the same?
His mind kept flowing back to what they had done, that afternoon in the practice room, and he knew, just knew that his eyes must be shiny, his cheeks must be rosy. And for the first time he found himself wishing they had an apartment, just for the two of them.
It would be different then, right? He could just pounce on Brett now and practise after. Eat after. Instead he had to sit here and be sociable, when really all he wanted was to have Brett alone.
But as soon as he thought that he felt like a right wanker, for not appreciating his friends enough.
"You good there, Eddy?" Todd said quietly as if on cue. "Your mind at Lily's?"
Eddy could feel his cheeks colouring.
"I'm good." he lied smoothly. "I spoke to her just now. She's okay-ish, I think. Still sick, but her parents haven't blown up or anything."
Todd nodded pensively.
"Cool. And how's it going on practising for the competition for you guys? I know I'm starting to freak out royally."
Eddy tried his best to focus, talking about the Dvorak that Todd would be playing, the first movement Tchaik that Brett would be playing.
But was he really fooling anyone?
It was a relief when dinner was over and he made his way to their studio with Brett on his heel.
"It's a wild life we're leading, right?" Todd commented as he walked past into his own room, and to his cello. "Party all night, and shit."
Eddy grinned.
"I know, right?"
"You good?" Brett said as he closed the studio door behind him. "Was it really Lily you were being absent-minded about?"
He blinked at his boyfriend.
"Sorry I was like that. Yeah, um, no. I was... I was thinking about you, about us. About... what it would be like if we had a place of our own."
Now it was Brett's turn to have colouring cheeks, and all at once Eddy knew he had been thinking about them too. He was just a lot better at hiding it. Brett stepped over to him, so he was almost pinned between him and the wall beside the bed Lily had slept in a night ago.
"That sounds so nice. Maybe, in a while..." he breathed. He looked around him and seemed to deliberate. Glanced at the closed door, seemed to make up his mind.
"You know I want you too, right?"
Oh.
The comment flew through his system, lighting every synapse as it went. Eddy shivered slightly, stared at his love with wide eyes.
"Yeah?" he managed.
"Yeah. But I guess we have to practise first?"
"Um. Yeah."
Brett nodded and pushed himself away, started towards his violin case.
"Practise. Focus. Right. Easy."
Eddy was grinning as he, too, disconnected himself from the wall and went to fetch his violin. A surge of bravery pulled through him, and on the way to his stand he brushed his hand past Brett's bum. Then slapped it once, with his flat hand. Brett's sharp intake of breath almost made him groan.
"Focus, Brett." he teased. "See? I'm focusing."
The sound of a cello and a viola were already coming through the door, and Eddy gave himself a swift mental kick up the backside.
Come on, you idiot. You got shit to do.
He sighed, put the violin on his shoulder and tuned quickly.