"Hey, Red. Come on over. Help yourself." The man who had saved Ian on the bridge called him over at the BBQ.
"Thanks." Ian smiled back, happy to be there.
"See those two kids right there playing football? Those are mine. That's Charlie and Wes." He pointed to the kids playing in the field.
"Where you been?" Caleb wondered, walking over to join them.
"Oh, I got held up." Ian said, not wanting to tell them he had just been kicked out of his home.
"You ever pitch?" Caleb asked.
"Usually, but I'm open, depending on what you're into. Where we doing this?" Ian asked trying to be seductive and clearly having gotten the wrong message.
"Follow me." Caleb led him off.
"Wait, we're actually playing softball?" Ian asked confused as they reached the softball field.
"Yeah, what'd you think?" Caleb laughed. "Zach usually starts on the mound, but if he's had too many Coronas, his stuff is shit. You cover second." Caleb handed him a firefighter team shirt and a glove.
"What? You play, right?" Caleb asked seeing Ian's amused face watching the players getting ready.
"Oh, sure, I play." Ian claimed still shocked by the turn of events.
"We'll need all the help we can get. If we lose to the boys in blue, we'll never hear the end of it."
"Who?"
"The gay cops." Caleb looked over as two police officers walked over.
"You have the right to remain silent while we run the score up on your sorry asses." Tony called out as he approached them.
"Tony?" Ian asked in shock at seeing one of his sisters ex boyfriends. "Wh--" Ian started with a laugh as Tony hugged him in greeting. "When did you come out?"
"Oh, your sister turned me gay." Tony said casually.
"Oh, wow." Ian nodded, surprise written all over his face.
Soon enough the game began and everyone was in it to win it. "One out." Caleb called out as people on the sides clapped and cheered for the teams. "One out. Look alive, boys! Look alive!" He called out again. "Look alive, baby!"
"One, two, and three!" The ball was thrown from man to man, making its way around the field.
"Two! Two!" Caleb called as Ian caught it next.
"You're blocking the baseline." A police officer scolded as he stood to face Ian after sliding at his feet. He gave Ian a shove back which caused Ian to scoff in response.
"Go fuck your father." Ian told him, ripping off his glove and punching the police officer. A large yet playful and drunken fight broke out between the teams of cops and firefighters.
"Hey, how about another shot for the Hands of Steel?" One of the firefighters asked, the team sitting around the picnic tables now that the game had ended.
"That one's for you, slugger." He told Ian as they all clinked shot glasses and drank.
"So when you gonna take the test?" He asked Ian next with curiosity.
"Test?" Ian asked, confused as to what he was talking about.
"To become a firefighter, man! Whoa!" He sat on the table but fell back, laughing while his husband caught him and pulled him away from Ian and Caleb, the others dispersing as well.
"Oh, man." Calebs laughter died down.
"Okay, those guys are wasted." Ian shook his head, laughing himself.
"You should." Caleb suggested.
"You really think I could be a firefighter?" Ian looked up at him.
"Isn't that why you've been hanging around? 'Cause you want to go on runs, save lives?"
"Yeah, that, and I was hoping to get my hands on your hose." Ian said with a small laugh.
"Is that what this is to you? A fuck?" Caleb asked back with sudden disgust.
"You say it like it's a bad thing. Come on, let's get out of here." Ian moved his hand onto Calebs knee.
"You know, I knew you were younger than me, but I thought you were a grownup." Caleb said, pushing Ian's hand away and moving to walk away.
"Oh, fuck." Ian sighed knowing he had messed up yet again. "Okay, okay. Hey. I'm into you, all right? I thought you were into me." Ian ran to stop him.
"I am." Caleb replied.
"Then what's the problem?" Ian asked back, still confused.
"I don't stick my dick in just any guy." Caleb explained.
"What do you want then?"
"Seriously? Do I have to spell it out for you?"
"Yeah." Ian nodded.
"A date." Caleb stated.
"With, like, flowers and chocolate and shit?" Ian laughed with amusement, never having had a proper relationship before.
"No, we can skip the flowers." Caleb replied.
"Okay. You're on."
"All right. Let's get some fucking brews." Caleb threw his arm over Ian's shoulder and walked back to the others.
Liam, Riley and I were walking through the park on my way to work for the evening, coming across a rowdy gathering. Liam dropped my hand suddenly and ran over towards a group of people having a BBQ.
"Liam, wait up!" I called, chasing after him and pushing Riley's stroller ahead of me. Liam crashed into a red haired man who laughed at the sight of his little brother.
"Liam, what are you doing here?" Ian asked with a smile towards him.
"Oh" I finally caught up to Liam and found he had ran to Ian.
"Do you two know each other?" Caleb asked, seeing how Ian and I stared at each other for a moment, neither one saying anything.
"Uh, yeah, this is Megan" Ian shook out of his thoughts.
"I'm Caleb, it's nice to meet you, can I get you a drink?" He offered politely.
"I don't drink"
"She doesn't drink"
"Okay, cool" Caleb nodded, feeling like the odd one out with Ian and I, not knowing what had happened between us.
"What happened to you?" I turned my attention back to Ian, seeing a cut on his face. I carefully reach forward before pulling back knowing that it was not my place.
"Ian here started a fight with the cops" Caleb explained with a chuckle.i smiled back, remembering his south side roots of getting into fights and running from the cops.
~~~
We sat in silence the entire ride until sirens sounded from behind us.
"Great" I sighed with exhaustion as Lip moved to pull into an empty parking lot. Three cop cars pulled into the lot behind us and the officers got out and walked over to our car.
"I'm gonna need you three to step out of the vehicle" The officer stated, police officers standing outside of each of our doors, handcuffing us as soon as we stepped out.
"She didn't do anything" Ian tried to explain as they handcuffed me and sat me beside the Gallagher brothers in the snow.
"Shut up, Gallagher. I'm with you until the end" I said.
"Well, Steve, possession of a stolen car is a fel—" Tony started as he walked over to where cops surrounded us and we were sat in the snow coldly.
We had spent the rest of that night, the three of us sitting in the police station waiting to be released. So much has changed since then, we used to be inseparable, willing to do anything for the other and now we barely recognized each other in passing.
~~~
"Ah, shoot, I've got to get to work" I suddenly realized the time. "Uh, it was nice meeting you" I rushed, Ian handing Liam back to me and letting me hurry off to work.
"Say bye to Ian" I told Liam.
"Bye, buddy" Ian patted his brothers head. Riley reached out from her stroller, waving at the red head she barely remembered.
"Bye!" I called with a wave.
~~~
"Fuck." Lip grumbled, waking up to Ian throwing a pillow at him.
"Hey. Get up." Ian said, sitting on the bed while Lip slept on the floor of his dorm room.
"What time is it?" Lip asked tiredly.
"Like 10:00, so get up." Ian checked his watch simply. "Uh, I need to ask you advice. I'm going on a date." Ian sat up, Lip standing and grabbing a cigarette.
"Yeah, with Megan?" Lip asked with hope that his brother and I would fix our relationship.
"No, uh, the fireman" Ian said. "You know, Megan and I never went out on dates, we never even really dated each other. Ned never took me out. Kash and I fucked in the back of a convenience store, and I don't think jerking off strangers in a nightclub counts, so..." Ian listed his dating experience.
"Well, how hard can it be? You know, you eat, you drink, and you bang till your balls fall off, right?" Lip shrugged.
"What about clothes?" Ian wondered.
"I'd definitely wear some." Lip nodded, amused by his brothers experience.
"Yeah, asshole, I mean, like, what kind? Like fancy?" Ian questioned, really worried for this date.
"Shit, I don't know, man. I've never really been on a real date, either. You know, not like an official one." Lip replied in thought before someone knocked harshly on his door. "One sec." Lip called back moving to get the door.
"Yo." He greeted Joaquin who stood on the other side.
"Holy shit, dude. Been online yet?" He asked back holding his laptop in his hands.
"No, I just woke up." Lip shook his head.
"That picture of your lady professor showed up on Gawker this morning."
"What?" Lip asked, his friend turning the computer to show him.
"It's labeled 'not safe for work'." He replied, Lip rushing to his own computer to check on there.
"I've got 106 new emails. The provost wrote me?" He clicked through it.
"What's a provost?" Ian stood over his shoulder.
"Being asked to appear before a Faculty Disciplinary Committee." Lip read the email.
"Damn." Ian winced.
~~~
"Usually I get a bunch of apps to share. You good with that?" Caleb asked, sitting across the table from Ian who sat very awkwardly and avoided talking.
"Mm." Ian nodded. "Appetizers." Ian realized. "Sure, yeah. Yeah. Big-- big fan of apps." He continued nervously.
"Hi. We'll take a bottle of the 2005 Boulay Sancerre, some crab cakes, the roasted Brussels, the spiced almonds, and a prosciutto plate." Caleb listed to the waiter before he took both menus from them.
"Yeah."
"You seem like a very pensive kind of guy. You an only child?" Caleb wondered, taking a sip of his water and trying to learn more about the man he was on a date with.
"Uh, no." Ian shook his head slightly, confused at why Caleb would think that.
"Brothers and sisters?"
"A bunch, yeah."
"Older or younger?"
"Both."
"What about your parents? Both still alive?"
"Yeah." Ian said completely confused and awkward, not knowing why Caleb was asking so many questions.
"Fantastic. I'm learning so much." Caleb commented sarcastically as the silence grew more awkward.
"Look-- look, I-- I have no idea what I'm doing." Ian leaned forward trying to explain himself from the mess this date has been. "My last partner practically grew up with me, she knew me better than I know myself. Her idea of a conversation was to just stare and observe and occasionally punch me in the arm."
"You're a victim of domestic abuse?" Caleb worried slightly.
"Where I'm from, people communicate with their fists." Ian explained.
"And where is that?"
"South Side." Ian deadpanned, watching his reaction.
"Mm." He nodded in understanding, not showing much. "'Hands of steel.' Okay, so you're a street rat. A brawler." Caleb teased.
"Is that a problem?" Ian asked as though the was afraid it would be a problem.
"Only if you make it one." Caleb replied before his phone buzzed in his pocket. "I got to get to the firehouse." Caleb stood after checking his phone breifly.
"Thought you were off-duty." Ian looked up at him.
"I know this sounds like an excuse considering how well this is going, but Hank's kid is sick. He needs me to cover." Caleb explained himself.
"Let me come with you." Ian suggested eagerly.
"To the firehouse?"
"Yeah, I want to go for a run." Ian said with determination.
"All right. Lay low." Caleb told him before guiding him out of the fancy restaurant.
~~~
Question of the day: What do you think of Caleb?