**Devin's POV**
"Devin, are you sure these shirts will fit them?" My mom asked me as she put the three matching shirts in separate boxes.
"Yes, Mom." I sighed for the hundredth time. Mom insisted the boys have a first birthday party. And, since Matt and I didn't know anyone, she invited every toddler and parent from the day care center in town. What fun!? Note the sarcasm.
"Are you sure we have to do this, Mrs. Peters?" Matthias asked from his spot on the floor where he was wrapping a pack of Matchbox cars.
"Why are you two so unenthusiastic!? Look at the boys! They're ecstatic! You should be, too." She insisted.
We all looked at the boys. Miserable is a good way to describe how their faces looked. They sdt on their blanket, dressed in the ridiculous sailor suits Mom wanted them to wear. They were all the same in design, but different in color. Drew's green, Ben's blue, and Cayd's yellow.
I felt bad for them. "That's enthusiasm?" I asked.
She shruged as Ben pulled on the collar of the itchy looking shirt and Cayd started crying from his discomfort. Matt laughed as I leaned over and shoved a pacifier into the squealing child's mouth.
"Devin, did you call and order in the cake?" My mom asked me as she got up and walked over to Matt. She bent down and snatched the toy cars out of his hands. She ripped the poorly wrapped paper off of the box and threw it at him. He stared up at her, mouth open in shock. "You suck at this." She said matter-of-factly.
Oh, Mom! I laugh to myself. "Yes, ma'am, I ordered the cake. Matt was just going to pick it up. Isn't that right, Matt?"
He growled at me, but reluctantly got up. He walked out the front door, but not before childishly sticking his tongue out at me.
Cute.
"Devin! Stop staring at nothing and take these gifts to my car. I told everyone at the day care center to be at the park by three. It's 1:30!" My mother's voice cut into my thoughts. Good thing, too 'cause there's no way those thoughts were going anywhere good.
I got up and picked up all the boxes of clothes she'd decorated. I still couldn't believe she was making us do this. We didn't even know more than three of the people coming to this toddler party! I was just ready to get it over with.
I took all the presents downstairs to her Chevy Tahoe, and made my way upstairs. The minute I walked into the living room I was hit with this annoying noise that was the voice of my mother. I would never understand how I was able to live in the same house as that woman for eighteen years. Oh, well. I wouldn't trade her for the world.
She might be better if she could stop talking for more than seven second intervals, I'd admit, but amazing nonetheless!
After ten more minutes of nagging about how we needed to leave, we loaded the boys into the car and began the noisy trip to the park. I sent a text to Matt telling him to meet us there before putting the car in reverse and backing out of the parking lot.
Six minutes of Mom's backseat-driving and I was ready to kill her.
We finally arrived at our destination. May I stress the word finally!?
Once the boys were settled onto a blanket in the grass, I put the paper table clothes on the public picnic tables, sat down, and waited for Matt to get here.
When Mom realized he was late, she rained questions on me until he finally pulled into the park's small parking lot. Can I just say, I've never wanted to choke an old woman more in my life?
Matt got out of the car and as Adam stepped out of the passenger's seat, I could see why he was so late. Could this day get any better?
As much as I hated it, I put on my winning smile and greeted the boy I consider my worst enemy. Walking to him, I held my hand out to him politely. "Hey, Adam."
Adam smiled at me and held his hand out to shake mine. We were almost touching when he realized Matt was walking ahead of him. He pushed past me. "Yeah, hey, Devin." He greeted distractedly. How, rude!
I caught up with them as Mom opened the white cardboard box that contained the birthday cake. The collective gasp was enough to let me know something was wrong before I even saw the cake.
The Transformers cake in the box was definitely not the Cookie Monster cake we'd ordered. And I don't know who Davie is but he's apparently turning six.
"Dammit, Devin!" My mother complained automatically.
My mouth fell open in shock. "Me? Wha-what?"
"Ms. Peters, this was my fault. I must've picked up the wrong cake off the counter. There were two and I was in a hurry to pick up Adam and get back to the party. It's not Dev's fault." Matt explained sweetly. He's so sweet...
Mom's shoulders sagged and I could see she understood. "How could this have possible been my fault in the first place!?" I asked in exasperation.
She looked at me for a moment, shrugged, and got angry again. "You two go fix this now!" She shoved Matt and me in the direction of the parking lot. "Adam can stay here with me and get the grill started. People will be arriving in about ten minutes, so no lagging!!!" She fussed.
Matt and I made our way to the car and got in. There was a slight awkwardness in the vehicle just like what had been between us since the night with the cool whip incident. It wasn't a horrible awkwardness. We drowned it out with the radio, but neither of us knew what to say.
I knew what I wanted to say, but I couldn't and he wouldn't say what was one his mind either, so we were just silent. Had been silent for weeks. It was killing me really, but I just focused on other things to take my mind off of our problems. Easier said then done.
"Think the bakery will give us our cake free for our troubles?" I asked distractedly.
"They may make us pay extra for our stupidity." He laughed.
That was the end of our conversation. And, it hurt knowing he wouldn't say more than that.
The rest of the ride to the bakery was filled with music and more awkwardness. We finally arrived and Matt leaned into the backseat and picked up Davie's cake. He took it inside the small building quickly as I followed behind him. I'm sure we were both anticipating a call from my mother. Scary thought.
We walked into the bakery and saw a distressed looking woman and a grumpy child standing at the counter. The clerk looked irritated as he apologized to the woman.
When he spotted Matt holding the box he sighed and looked back at the woman. "See, ma'am. It was a simple mistake. We apologize for the inconvenience, here is your cake." He waved his had in our direction. The woman turned and Matt handed her the box and smiled warmly.
The boy was staring at me as he passed. "Happy birthday, Davie!" I whispered to him and he gave me a weird look before walking out.
Humph! Matt walked to the counter and picked up the box the clerk pushed onto the counter. He lifted the top first, checking to make sure it was the right one.
"Could've saved us all a lot of trouble by doing that the first time." The boy behind the desk stated rudely.
Matt glared and gave him the finger before walking out. I followed him and we made our way back to the car. It seemed like forever before we made it back to the park, but the trip wasn't awkward. Matt and I laughed most of the time about how the little bitch at the bakery thought he was something. We arrived at the park and found the small parking lot filled with people we didn't know. The playground was packed with random toddlers I'd never seen. I got the cake and walked to the pavilion where my mom was talking to a group of old ladies. When she saw me she jumped up to look at the cake in my hands.
"Mom, who are all these people?" I whispered for her ears only.
"Friends!" She answered and took the cake from me.
I let her take the cake and I made my way over to the triplets that were sitting exactly where they had been when we left. Looking as miserable as ever in their itchy suits. They just watched me as I approached. I sat down and lay on my side facing them, propped on my elbow as they continued to stare at me. They soon became bored with this and all at once leaned forward and landed on me. Cayden's head landed on my stomach and my groans of pain must have been humorous to Drew, who giggled until he turned red.
After tickling the boys for a while, I was called over to help with the food. Everyone ate hamburgers and cake and before long, all the older kids were screaming 'pinata'. Of course, Mom put me in charge of that. So, I tied the paper Cookie Monster head up to a nearby tree and tied a blind-fold around the closest girl's head. I told the other children to spin her around a couple times before I handed her the wooded baseball bat Mom'd given me.
Her first swing barely missed, and the fact that she hadn't hit it frustrated her, giving her next swing a lot more vigor. It missed completely and her lose grip caused the end of the bat to bounce off the ground and connect solidly with my groin.
The pain was sudden and took the air right out of my lungs. I felt myself losing balance and toppling over. Mentally hoping I didn't land on a kid, I let myself fall. I waited for the impact of the ground, but it never came. Instead, I felt arms wrap around me and put me back on my feet, holding me steady. I couldn't tell who it is, nor did I care as I squeezed my eyes shut and endured the pain emitting from my family jewels.
I heard light laughter from beside me as I groaned. Matt! He's the one that caught me. The one holding me up. The one with his arm around my shoulder.
I stepped away from him before I could savor the feeling of his touch. That wouldn't be a good thing right now.
The pain had begun to subside, and I looked at Matt to see him laughing at me. "You okay, Dev?" He smiled.
I smiled sarcastically, "Never been better," I wheezed, then sent him a glare.
"If looks could kill," He continued chuckling, "I'd be six feet under."
"Dude, that looked painful!" Adam remarked, running up beside Matt.
"No shit, Sherlock." I snapped at him, finally catching my breath.
"Watch it, Adam, he may bite."
Adam laughed at Matt's joke. Too bad he was probably being serious. Ol' boy knows me better than I thought.
"Hey, Matt, can you help me with a cooler. One of the ladies told me to grab it out of her truck down the hill. She said I'd probably need help." Adam asked Matt a little too eagerly. I don't think he noticed but I did. I held back a growl.
"Sure thing." Matt nodded. He looked at me, "You gonna be alright, Dev?"
"Yeah, yeah, terrific. Go on ahead." I told him and took the bat away from the dangerous tyke.
Matt laughed at me and runs off with Adam. I sighed as I watched him walk away from me. Handing the bat to the next kid, I didn't bother with the blindfold. Definitely didn't want a repeat of last time.
Three children later, the pinata finally got busted. I stepped back as it fell and watched the kids jump on it like they'd never get candy again. I kept an eye on them to make sure there wasn't too much violence and soon the ground was clear as if there never had been a pile of sweets there. I chuckled to myself as I saw one little girl who had only two packs of Smarties. She seemed utterly heart-broken as she saw the other children stuffing their pockets with the goodies she couldn't get her hands on. I walked up to her and pulled a piece of Juicy Fruit gum out of my back pocket. She smiled up at me as if I'd saved her life, took the stick of gum, and ran off.
I heard my mom calling me from the pavilion where all the ladies were cleaning up children, food, and wrapping paper. I rolled my eyes, but walked to her.
When I got close enough to her, I see she looks worried. "What is it, Ma?" I asked with concern.
"I haven't seen Matt or Adam around since Olma sent them for her ice chest. Can you go find them for me?"
I sighed with relief when I realized it was nothing serious. Just Mom overreacting like she did best. Obviously I was the one that should be upset. Not her. Matt's been off with Adam, alone, for more than ten minutes.
I quickly walked to the edge of the mound, where I could look down into the parking lot of the boat landing located beside the park. I glanced around before I see them standing beside a red Ford talking. Just as I was about to start my trek down the steep slope, I saw Adam step closer to Matt.
I felt like the life was being sucked out of me as the younger boy tilted his head up and places his filthy lips on Matt's. On instinct, I squeezed my eyes closed, turned, and ran. I couldn't stand to think about him locking lips with my Matthias, much less watch.
So, I ran. I ran past the kids, the pavilion, stopping only briefly to tell my mom to give the message to Matt that I might be back later, for him to just go home and don't wait up. She seemed a little distressed that I wouldn't tell her where I was going, but I didn't care. I have to escape.
**Matt's POV**
I stood still as Adam stepped closer to me. I didn't really know what to think of his confession. He'd just told me that he loved me. That he had for years, but had just finally gathered the courage to tell me. I stood completely shocked as he rose up and kissed me.
I didn't really know what to do, but a second later I gathered my wits and stepped away from him abruptly.
He looked hurt, but I wasn't giving in to him.
"Adam, you're my brother!" I breathed.
"No, I'm not! Not really."
"Yes, you are! In every way that counts! We grew up together, and you've always been my brother! You always will be." I insisted.
His shoulders sagged in defeat. "I knew you wouldn't feel the same way." He whispered.
"I'm sorry, Adam. I just don't feel that way about you..."
"Whatever, dude. I shouldn't have gotten my hopes up." He said as he opens the tail gate of the truck and pulled the cooler to the edge.
I walked over to the other side of the chest and grabbed the other handle before helping him pull it down. "I don't want you to be upset, Adam. I do love you-"
"Not enough." He cut me off with a finality in his voice that told me the conversation was over.
I sighed and we carried the cooler up the hill to the pavilion. I looked around for Dev. I could really use a friend right now. But, I didn't see him anywhere. I walked over to Mrs. Peters, "Hey, Mrs. P, have you seen Devin around?"
She nodded, "Yes, he left. He told me to tell you that he'll be home later and you don't need to wait for him."
I nodded in understanding, not understanding at all. Looking in the direction of the parking lot, I stopped and turned back around. "He didn't take the car?" I asked her.
She shook her head casually, "He ran."
"Ran?"
"Yup," she popped her P at the end. "Told me to tell you that and just took off. Acted a bit strange, but I wouldn't think nothing of it. That boy's nutty as they come." She laughed good-naturedly.
I forced a smile before I walked over and sit by my boys. They all looked so tired. Good, because I was ready to go home. Maybe Devin will be there.
I put the boys in their special triplet stroller and walked over to Devin's mom. "Mrs. P, I'm gonna take the boys home. We're all tired. Do you mind giving Adam a ride home?"
"No problem, dear. You go get some rest." She turned back to her friends and I took the boys to the car. I put them all in their car seats and loaded the stroller into the trunk. As I got into the car, I see Adam leaning against a tree not to far away watching me. I drove off and gave him one last glance in the rear view mirror. I could only hope our relationship didn't change too much.
I drove to the apartment, keeping an eye out for Dev in case I were to pass him. I couldn't think of a reason he would've just left. Something must have been wrong with him. I couldn't think he was sick. Why would he run away if he were sick? He'd have at least taken the car then. I was tired of worrying myself with it. I'd find out soon enough, so I blocked it out of my mind by turning up the radio.
I looked back to see all of the boys are asleep. Long day in those uncomfortable little suits. That was the first thing to do when we get home. Burn those horrible sailor outfits. I could tell Mrs. P that a goat ate them... Yeah, she'd believe something like that!
I pulled into the parking lot and slowly and quietly put the boys in the stroller. I wheeled the thing up the stairs trying not to jar it too much. This was so much easier with two people!
Finally, I made it up to my door. Only waking Benjamin in the process. He was such a light sleeper. I thought babies could sleep through anything! I knew Cayden could! Why not Ben?
I took them inside, and got them out of the monstrous clothes before laying them down for their nap. Ben had gone back to sleep and I knew they'd sleep for at least an hour, so I laid down on the couch and decided to rest a little myself.
I thought about Devin for a good ten minutes before I finally drifted into a deep sleep.
I woke up to a banging on the door. I jumped up with a start and rushed to the window.
I looked out and saw Dev slumped up against the door. Quickly, I tried to unlock the door, only to find that it wasn't locked. Idiot could've come straight in.
Yanking the door open to yell at him, I was shocked to see him falling towards me. I didn't have enough time to catch him before we were both crashing to the floor. I tried to push him off, but it was too much dead wait.
I groaned and he stirred. He picked his head up and looked at me. His bloodshot eyes seemed to have trouble focusing, and I could smell alcohol on his breath. "Get off me, ass!" I growled.
"Matt?" He stated quizzically, "What are you doing on the floor?"
I rolled my eyes and gave him a great shove. He fell off of me, landing on his side next to me. I stood up and kicked him out of the way, so I could shut the door. I closed it and see that he was trying to stand up. He finally did and started walking. He only made it as far as the couch before he fell.
I looked at my watch. 8:45! Damn, I'd slept longer than planned.
"Go to bed, Devin." I said sternly.
He looked up at me pathetically and raised his arms up. "Carry me." He whimpered.
I groaned, but I knew we'd be up all night if he tried to walk himself. I bent down and picked him up bridal style. He wasn't so heavy when he was conscious.
He wrapped his arms around my neck and sighed as I made my way to his bedroom. I opened the door and tossed him onto the bed before I pulled his shoes off, then his blue jeans. I tossed them to the side and pulled the blanket up over him. I turned the lamp off and headed for the door.
"Matt?" I heard him call as I reached for the door handle.
I turned to him, "Yeah?" He didn't say anything, so I walked over to the side of his bed. He groggily moved his lips but I couldn't make out what he was saying. I leaned closer and put my ear right above his mouth. "What is it, Dev?"
"I love you..." He said. It was barely a whisper. I would've never heard it had I not been so close. A chill went down my back. I didn't really know if it was from his words or his breath on my ear.
I looked down at him to see his eyes closed and hear him snoring lightly. I couldn't help but wonder what he meant. Of course, he loved me. I was his best friend. But, maybe he meant something more.
If my brother could fall in love with me, surely my best friend could. I vaguely wondered why it wouldn't bother me if he did in fact love me as something more than just his best friend.