Even though the offer had been made out of pity, Brendan took it to heart.

He started coming over to their apartment nearly every day, and sleeping there more often than not. But he had the sense to realise that there was no chance they were going to spend every day outdoors, and since it was cold anyway, he was content to spend at least half the time indoors with them, watching Netflix, or scrolling his phone while they read, or worked on holiday assignments.

It was a jarring experience for Christian. It wasn’t just that they weren’t friends before; they hadn’t been anything before. Not friends, not enemies, acquaintances only just. It wasn’t that Brendan was difficult company, it was more like a completely unexpected addition to his life.

Brendan wanted to do things. He wanted to cook, so he went grocery shopping with Christian and bought ingredients for Thai Green curry. There was a trampoline park on the other side of the city he wanted to visit. Instead of streaming movies, he wanted to go to the cinema. After a few days of this, Laurel quietly told Christian that if Brendan didn’t turn down the enthusiasm, she was going to taze him.

Christian had snickered sympathetically, but it didn’t bother him as much, which was as surprising to him as it would have been unlikely to her. Having Brendan around was a bit like having a well-trained bear; a bear that was big, friendly, playful and ate a lot.

He also suspected her irritation stemmed from the fact that with her brother around so much, she had to keep her secret relationship with Jordan even more secret, because it turned out she had been right. Brendan was nothing if not nosy.

“You just have to last another four weeks.” He told her. Laurel gave him a look that showed that by the end of week four, Brendan might be lying in a twitchy mess on the living room floor.

“You’re the one who said he was lonely.” He pointed out.

“You’re the one who told him to come over anytime.” She retorted, making air quotes.

Christian had to concede the point. So he took the brunt of it, often letting Brendan drag him along so that Laurel could ignore the world in peace. And possibly have Jordan over. He missed his leisure time, but the loss was tempered by Brendan’s selected entertainments.

Like the night markets.

Christian had never been to a market before, never mind one at night. It had its own domestic kind of magic.

Brendan would get them both out into the freezing cold evenings, (Laurel flatly refused to leave the building after sunset) driving them to whichever one he had just read about. Sometimes they were in church halls, but mostly they were outdoors, where a street would be cordoned off so the stalls could set up between buildings.

Because of the time of year, there were a lot of small, hand- crafted items, the kinds of things that made good Christmas gifts. Christian had no one other than Brendan and Laurel to gift, but he loved the feeling of the market. He wore at least six layers of clothes, breath fogging in front of his face and holding a coffee or hot chocolate or whatever other warm drink they found - Brendan found his habit of choosing an alternative beverage each time amusing - they wandered through the cheerful crowded stalls.

“What’s that one?” Brendan asked when Christian came back from the drinks stall, carrying two Styrofoam cups.

“This one is mulled wine. It’s a winter thing. I’ve had it before, but it’s good enough to have twice.” Christian explained.

Brendan sniffed the cup appreciatively. “Hmm, did you get me some?”

Christian shook his head. Brendan always asked, but his tastes stayed with hot chocolate or coffee. “Buying you one would have been a waste of money.”

Brendan took the cup. “What can I say, I’m predictable.”

They turned to stroll through the rest of the market. The halogen lights used to light up the street made people’s breath stand out like silver smoke, and there was a smell of cinnamon and something roasting in the air. People’s voices rose and fell in a great mashup of wordless babble. 

“Is there a specific reason why you do that? The different drink every time I mean.” Brendan said while his eyes roamed the wares of the stalls.

“It was your sister actually. She thinks I’m too boring, so she has challenged me to try something new every day.”

Brendan turned to look at him, eyes wide. He did that a lot, like he was seeing Christian for the first time every time Christian revealed a characteristic of himself. “She did?”

“Yeah. I don’t do it every day though, but if there’s something new on the menu, I try it out. It’s easiest with drinks. Food is a bit risky.” He shrugged.

“No kidding. I tried this apricot and onion smoothie, once.” He shuddered.

Christian laughed. “Why on earth would you drink that?”

Brendan shrugged, “It was a dare.”

Christian only shook his head, but Brendan carried on. “Why did she think you were too boring?”

Christian stalled by taking a sip of his drink. It was barely alcoholic, the process turning it into merely a pleasant warm drink, which was why he’d allowed himself to buy it in the first place. But Brendan was still waiting for an answer, and Christian sighed.

“Um, I suppose ‘cos I am? He answered lamely.

Brendan was still staring at him, but uncharacteristically seemed to realise that Christian wasn’t feeling comfortable about the topic.

“Well, I guess we were all someone else in high school.” He said into the void Christian had created.

Christian looked at him, face twisting in confusion. “Were you?” he asked. Brendan looked away then, suddenly seeming like he also wanted to avoid the conversation, and Christian realised that he had been kind of insulting. But Bren was a kinder soul and went on as if it hadn’t been.

“I like to think so. It’s easier now, you know? Away from home, in a place where no one knows you.”

Christian met his eyes. “I know.”

He did know. The longer he was at college, away from his hometown, away from his aunt, away from… well things just kept looking different. It was like seeing color for the first time. Or a picture of the duck and suddenly seeing that it was also a rabbit. His only saw in retrospect how narrow his view of life had been. The mental headspace he had now was equal parts exhilarating and intimidating. So he moved cautiously, tasting the air and trying new things.

He glanced at Brendan, who was now walking quietly beside him. He still looked the same, except since coming to college he had started growing his hair and ended up tying it back, most of the time in a messy knot, but it wasn’t quite long enough to fit. So, in essence, he was now sporting a sort of man-bun, except that a lot of it keeping falling out around his face. Christian wondered if he realized how attractive that was.

Then he instantly veered off that train of thought, letting it crash and burn. Straighter-as-a-pencil Brendan was so far off-limits he wasn’t even of the map.

He would never admit it aloud, but thinking about Brendan was a bit like driving on a road full of detours: things would be fine and within the realm of normal and suddenly he would find something to avoid. To stay within safety.

Instead, he focussed on the words. Brendan was clearly trying to be companionable, and his just now admission made Christian think it as more than just boredom. And he made it clear how excluded he felt from his and Laurel’s relationship. It was all still mildly perplexing, but Brendan was becoming good company, and he wanted to return the sentiment.

“Brendan, don’t you have a girlfriend?” he asked. His friend's head snapped up and Christian tried to backtrack, realizing what a personal question that was.

“I just meant, uh. You know, is she gone home for holidays?” he tried, but the words just tumbled senselessly from his mouth.

Brendan's face thawed slightly and he replied. “Uh, no. I don’t have a girlfriend.”

Christian tried again. “Weren’t you dating that girl…Delilah?”

“Denise. Yeah, but it was more like a one-time thing.” Brendan was loosening up a bit now, but he wouldn’t meet Christian’s eyes.

“Sorry Bren. I wasn’t trying to pry. I just thought...” he sighed loudly then took a sip of his drink. “I don’t know anything about you. Other than that you play football.”

Brendan choked on his drink and sputtered, even spilling some down his front. Christian watched him in alarm, but he was laughing and holding his nose.

“What?” Christian said.

Smiling widely now, he replied. “Christian, I don’t play football. I play soccer.”

Mortification. Christian covered his eyes with his hand. “Oh god, I’m sorry Bren.”

“It’s ok.”

“No it’s not.” Christian shook his head. “It really isn’t. I didn’t realise but I really don’t know you at all. And that isn’t fair, because I’ve been acting like…” he paused, feeling ashamed but forced himself to carry on. “Like you weren’t worth knowing. I’m really sorry about that.”

Brendan had stopped now, and was staring at him. Christian shrugged, unable to offer more.

“It’s ok.” Brendan said eventually. “I think I probably thought the same way about you.”

He and Christian gazed at each other for a moment then Christian had to look away, readjusting his hoodie.

“Well, that seems to be changing anyway.”

“Only because I keep forcing you out of the apartment.” Brendan joked, and Christian was glad he had skated over their awkward moment.

“You’re not forcing me! Ok, you are a bit, because Bren, it’s really fucking cold!” He replied, laughing. Brendan joined in, and they shared an easy smile.

“I’m gonna go clean this off.” Brendan said, gesturing to the hot chocolate he had spilled down his front. Christian nodded and carried on meandering, feeling relieved that Brendan hadn’t been more offended and realising he sorely needed to work on his social skills. But he had only walked a few steps before he was stopped in his tracks.

TBC