I wake up the next morning to an empty bed. I shower and get dressed before walking into the kitchen to see Dan eating cereal with Johnny and Olivia. Dan's coming to work with me today so we get ready and take Olivia and Johnny to school before going to the library.
"Dan, long time no see." Laura says as we enter the library and Dan smiles and starts talking to her while I get to work. I'm on the counter today, checking out books for people or checking in ones that are being returned.
"Hey Gav." I hear and I look up from the computer to see Michael. I bite my lip.
"Hey, what's up?" I ask nervously and I can tell he's nervous too.
"Do you, er, would you want-" Michael is cut off by Dan walking out of the office.
"Yo, B, it's time for your lunch break." He calls and I nod but really want to hear what Michael was gonna say.
"One sec B." I call back before turning back to Michael.
"What was that boi?" I ask and he shakes his head.
"Don't worry about it boi." He says, but he sounds sad and his 'boi' isn't as enthusiastic as it usually is.
"You sure?" I ask and he nods so I walk over to Dan, who wraps his arm around my shoulders, and we leave the library.
"What's wrong, B?" Dan asks and I sigh.
"Nothing." I mumble even though it's a lie.
Michael's POV
I finally build up the courage to ask Gavin out and fucking Dan interrupts us. I sigh as Gavin walks over to Dan and when Dan wraps his arm around Gavin and smirks at me I get so confused. Did Dan interrupt on purpose? I sigh and go to the cafe, needing to talk to Meg.
"Michael! What can I do you for?" Meg asks as I walk in and I lean against the counter.
"I need help deciding if I'm going crazy or not." I say and she nods, making me a cup of coffee before sitting opposite me at our usual table.
"So why are you maybe crazy?" She asks and I bite my lip.
"Well earlier I went to the library and I was going to ask Gavin if he wanted to go out some time but Dan interrupted half way through to tell Gav it was lunch and as they were leaving Dan wrapped his arm around Gavin and I swear he smirked at me but..." I trail off and Meg frowns.
"Well I don't think you're going crazy." She says and I frown.
"Then what is happening?" I ask.
"My guess is, Gav told Dan that he likes you and Dan got jealous cause Gavin hasn't been with anyone or shown any interest in anyone since he was with Dan 3 years ago." Meg explains and my eyes widen slightly.
"Wait, they were together?" I ask.
"Yeah, well they've been friends since they were toddlers and when they were 17 they figured they would try dating since they were so close and they wanted to see if they had any deeper feelings. Turns out Dan did and Gavin didn't, so Gav decided it would be best for them to just be friends. Dan gets jealous though cause he still loves Gavin." Meg explains and I frown.
"So Dan did interrupt on purpose?" I ask and Meg nods.
"Looks like it." She says before her phone buzzes in her pocket. She gets it out and looks at the screen before replying.
"Gavin and Dan are on their way here." She says and I sigh.
"I really don't wanna be here when they get here." I say standing up and Meg stands up too.
"Better hurry then, they were round the corner." She says and I sigh.
"Thanks Meg." I say, pulling her into a hug and she smiles.
"No problem dude." She says and as I leave the cafe I see Gavins car pull up. Fuck. Gavin definitely saw me. I hear him call me but I just continue walking, pretending I didn't hear. I walk home and collapse onto the sofa, immediately grabbing a controller and putting on crash bandicoot. I hear my phone go off multiple times but I just ignore it and have dinner before going to bed, deciding for once to go to sleep before 4am. Maybe now I wont be late for work tomorrow.
I wake up the next morning to a few missed calls and a few texts from Gavin but I decide to ignore them and get ready for work. My boss Mark rolls his eyes when he sees me walk in and gives me a sympathetic smile.
"You alright kid?" He asks and I nod, resting my head in my arms on the counter.
"Is this about that boy from the library?" He asks and I look up, frowning.
"How'd you know about him?" I ask and he doesn't need to say anything for me to know the answer.
"Lindsay." I say so he can confirm my suspicions. Mark is Lindsay's older brother and they're very close so this is no surprise. Lindsay is the one to get me this job. He nods and I roll my eyes.
"Of course she did." I say, smiling slightly.
After work I go to the cafe and see Meg chatting to Lindsay, who I assume is on her break.
"Hey Michael." Meg says as I sit down next to Lindsay.
"Gav seemed down yesterday. Said he saw you outside but you didn't hear him or something." She adds and I shrug.
"Bet Dan enjoyed having him mad at me though, huh?" I say and Meg sighs.
"Yeah, cause he knows he's getting to you. Honestly I think you should act normal with Gavin and enjoy watching Dan get more and more annoyed." She says and I smile slightly.
"You don't seem to like Dan much." I say and she shrugs.
"I don't. He hated me when we first met cause he thought I liked Gav, he still doesn't like me much. I just don't like the fact that he's so manipulative and controlling over Gavin. Also he can be an absolute dick." She says as the door opens.
Gavins POV
I get off work early so I go and pick up Johnny and Olivia from school and decide to get out of the car and go and meet them at their class.
"Gavvy!" Olivia calls as she sees me waiting outside her class.
"Hey kiddo, come on, we've gotta get Johnny." I say, picking her up. When we get outside Johnny's class I see him waiting with his teacher.
"Hey Gavin." She says and I smile.
"Afternoon, what's he done now?" I ask, standing next to Johnny and putting my free hand on his shoulder.
"Actually, nothing this time. I just wanted to let you know there's a parents evening on Wednesday after school and I'd love if you could come so we can discuss Johnny's progress." She says and I smile.
"Of course, yeah." I say and we say bye before walking back to the car.
"Are we going cafe today?" Johnny asks and I nod, "Yeah we just have to go and pick Dan up from home first."
When we arrive at the cafe I see Michael, Meg and Lindsay sitting at the usual table in the back.
"Michael!" Olivia says happily, running over to the table while Michael smiles at her and pulls her into his lap. We walk over to the table and I sit next to Michael, meaning Dan and Johnny have to sit on Megs sofa as there's no space next to me.
"I'll go get you some cake." Meg says to the kids and Michael turns to me.
"Hey, sorry I didn't answer my phone boi, I had a lot of work to do for my boss." He says and I smile.
"It's alright Micool. You feeling okay?" I ask as he looks a bit weird.
"I am now, my boi." He says and I grin, sitting closer to him and leaning against his side.
Michaels POV
I notice Dan glare at me when Gav sits next to me and his glare only intensifies when Gavin leans against me. I smile at Olivia, who is still sat on my lap, just as Meg comes back over to the table, holding 2 slices of cake and 2 cups of tea on a tray.
"Here you are." She says as she puts the tray on the table.
"Thanks love." Gavin says as he picks up one of the cups of tea. Meg and Lindsay exchange knowing smiles when Dan glares at Meg and I catch their eye and raise an eyebrow.
"Oh, Michael I forgot to mention earlier, since none of us are working next week my uncle said I could have his lake house for the week. Gavin you can obviously come too and bring these two." Meg says before adding, "Although there are only 3 bedrooms so the kids can share, me and Lindsay can share and you two are gonna have to share." Meg says smiling and I nod.
"Yeah sure, sounds fun." Gavin looks very happy about the idea.
"I can drive us all down there if you want. My car wont be big enough for all of us and our bags but I can borrow Geoffs truck, he never really uses it." He says and Meg grins.
"Brilliant! We can meet here Friday after work and go straight there, although we're gonna need to go shopping on the way to get food and stuff for while we're there. Oh and bring swimwear cause there's a pool and a hot tub. Or we can go swimming in the lake." She says and we spend the next hour talking about what we can do there and stuff, which I notice annoys Dan immensely.
"Oh I forgot to mention guys, two of the bedrooms only have a double bed, so the kids can have the room with the single beds but you're gonna have to share a bed." Meg says and I notice Dan is not at all happy with this. I smile and wrap my arm around Gavins shoulders.
"I don't mind sharing with my boi." I say and Gavin grins.
"You my boi, Micoo!" He says and I giggle at him as he wraps his arm around my back. I notice Dan is basically fuming when we all have to leave the cafe and when he has left with Gavin and the kids he turns to Gavin and starts talking to him angrily and I notice Gavin shrinks into himself slightly.
"Oh here we go. I hate it when Dan does this." Meg says frowning and I turn to her.
"Does he do that often?" I ask and she nods.
"He knows Gavin won't shout back and, as Gavin loves him so much and never sees him, he feels like whatever Dan says is right. Dan's probably telling him that he shouldn't go to the lake house or share a room with you or something, but he has a way of getting inside Gavins head and making him think that whatever Dan says is gospel. He's just mad that he won't be there to 'supervise' you an Gavin. I know he scares Gavin sometimes but the way Gav sees it, he's lost his family and his home, Dan is the only thing apart from his siblings that he's always had and always will have. It's alright though, Dan should be leaving tomorrow morning." Meg finishes and I frown.
"Well next time I see him shouting at my boi I'll give him something to shout about." I mutter, watching as Dan puts his hand on Gavins back and leads him over to the car and Lindsay smiles at me while Meg rolls her eyes.
Gavins POV
Dan went to England this morning and I've felt kind of sad all day but I'm finally finished with work and now I'm going home with my two favourite people. Once we get home Olivia runs of to play and I go to the kitchen to make her and Johnny a snack.
"Gavin?" Johnny asks quietly from the doorway of the kitchen and I turn from the sandwich I was making to look at him.
"Yeah buddy?" I ask and he bites his lip.
"I want to tell you something." He says and I frown, gesturing for him to jump up on the counter while I stand in front of him.
"What's up bud?" I ask nervously.
"I er, I heard you and Dan talking the other night. I want to tell you, Dan was wrong about how we'd feel if you go out with Michael. Dan said we'd feel left out or abandoned or whatever if you go out with Michael but we won't. We want you to be happy Gavvy, and we know you're always going to be there for us, but if you want to go out with Michael then we shouldn't stop you getting on with your life." Johnny says and I feel ready to burst into tears.
"Johnny, I need you to know that I will never leave you. And I would never do something without making sure it wouldn't negatively affect you or Olivia. I would never abandon either of you just to go out with someone, and I wouldn't go out with someone unless you two approved of them. You will always come first Johnny." I say, pulling him into a hug.
"I like Michael, Gav. And I want you to be with him if it will make you happy." He says and I grin just as Olivia runs into the room wearing one of my tops.
"What are you doing, little one?" I ask and she grins, puffing out her chest proudly.
"I was going to dress up as superman but he's not my favourite superhero so I dressed as you because you are." She says and I can't help the tears well in my eyes. I grab Olivia in a hug and lift her up, hugging her tightly.
"You're my superhero too. Thank you sweetheart, that's a lovely thing to say, that means a lot to me." I say, kissing her forehead before sitting her next to Johnny.
"Livvy I need to ask you something." I say and she nods.
"What do you think of Michael?" I ask and she smiles.
"He's wonderful! He's funny and has soft hair and he makes you smile a lot and he looks at you the same way Geoff looks at Griffon or Johnny looks at chocolate cake." She says and I chuckle.
"So you wouldn't mind if I started to go out with him?" I ask and she shakes her head.
"That means he can come round here more often. He never comes here. Also then he can make you happy more." She says and I smile again, pulling both Olivia and Johnny into a hug.
"I love you guys so much." I say and they both say I love you back.