5. Chapter Five
Chapter Five
Drew
Drew watched in amusement as Zach answered the phone with a quick “hello” and then immediately had to hold the phone away from his ear because the scream coming out of it was so loud.
“OH MY GOD, ZACH. I thought you’d died of a panic attack or something. Jesus, I was worried. I saw about the storm on the news.”
Drew could hear Jen clearly for a moment, until Zach stood and walked a short distance from where Drew was still sitting. Zach gave him a sort of cringing smile, as though he was apologizing, but Drew waved his hand, hopefully letting Zach know it wasn’t a big deal.
It was sweet, really sweet actually, that Zach had a friend who cared about him that much, and Drew felt a pang of jealousy that he... didn’t. Not really. There were his Discord friends, sure, but it wasn’t quite the same. Maybe that was because he traveled all the time for work, and other than it being tiring and draining mentally, traveling wasn’t really a noteworthy event for him. Still, it would be nice to have someone in his life who cared about him as much as Jen seemed to care about Zach.
Drew tried to bring his attention back to his phone, to focus on picking a place for them to have dinner, he really did, but he was much, much too distracted stealing glances at Zach without trying to come off as weird or creepy. His mind reeling with... he didn’t even know what. All the thoughts. All the thoughts about everything.
All he knew was that looking at Zach and seeing his nervous smiles as he talked to his best friend—hell, just looking at the man was distracting enough. Gorgeous and adorable and so many more things he didn’t even understand yet but was inexplicably desperate to learn.
God, what was happening to him? All his life...
He lifted his head again to look at Zach. Attraction, dating, relationships—those things were just not a part of his life, not even remotely. But now...
Was he foolish to even be contemplating... whatever this was? It was just dinner, a thank you simply for holding Zach’s hand, right? Okay, it had been more than just hand-holding—he’d been supporting him and helping him not have a panic attack on the airplane.
But this seemed an awful lot like a date, and Drew had never dated. It just wasn’t a thing that he did. No dating, no hookups. And he made an active effort not to ever make a scene or draw attention to himself. It was safer that way.
Besides, while he found men attractive, he’d never really had any desire to date. Every man who’d ever propositioned him hadn’t been his type, he supposed, and Drew had just never been interested.
His eyes drifted over to Zach again, his breaths quickening along with his pulse. Now? Now Drew was suddenly interested. Very interested.
Shit, though, what did it even mean? What could it mean? They didn’t live in the same state, and Drew still had no desire to be any sort of public with his sexuality .
Maybe . . . maybe it was just . . .
He shook himself mentally. It was what it was. It didn’t have to be more than dinner and a plane ride. Maybe if he was lucky, he’d have a friend he could text. Given everything, it probably shouldn’t be more than that.
Drew’s eyes found Zach’s again just as he’d hung up the phone, and Drew felt almost entranced. He was sure the grin he felt spreading wide across his face must match the one on Zach’s face. Zach came back to the bench and sat facing Drew, and just his nearness and that smile set Drew’s heart racing faster again.
“Everything okay?” Drew asked, his eyes still on Zach as he wondered how just looking at the man could make him feel this way—lightheaded and almost giddy.
“Yeah. Yep. I’ll just have to remember to text her later when I finally have flight information. She’s my ride from the airport,” Zach said, putting his phone away and then glancing at Drew’s phone, which he still held in his hand. “Uh, anyway... find anything good?”
Drew’s heart leapt, and his breath caught. “Yeah. Yeah, I think I did,” he said hoarsely, unable to tear his eyes away from Zach’s.
There was a beat of silence filled with some sort of excited restlessness, and just as Drew was about to let out a much-too-happy sigh, the meaning of Zach’s words finally registered. Shit, he was supposed to have found a place for them to have dinner. He blinked and shook himself. “I mean, uh, there... isn’t anywhere that takes a reservation, but... it looks like there are a few nice lounges that serve a light menu we could try to find a seat at. If you’re ready to, um, brave the crowd down there again.”
Zach smiled, maybe a bit nervously, and nodded, and Drew couldn’t help but wonder if Zach’s anxiousness was about the crowds or if... it was about this inexplicable connection they seemed to share. Did Zach feel it too ?
Drew stood and grabbed his messenger bag, then slung it back over his head and shoulder and put his coat over his arm. He motioned in the direction of the escalator. “Ready?”
Zach nodded again, picked up his duffle bag, and then stood, and they both turned to head back downstairs. Maybe it was because of the intensity of the moments they’d shared on the plane, or maybe it was something else entirely, but Drew felt like he was somehow attuned to Zach’s physical reactions. And as they made it downstairs and further into the crowd, Drew noticed Zach’s tension growing.
Before he quite realized what he was doing, Drew reached for Zach’s hand and held it tightly, trying not to react too strongly to the wild fluttering starting in his stomach. Or the tingling he felt where their hands were joined. Or the slight hum and warmth of arousal that was spreading pleasantly throughout his entire body.
God, he was just holding Zach’s hand.
Drew tried to focus on walking without bumping into too many people. They passed a few different options—fast-casual, upscale, and in between—but everything was packed. So they continued weaving their way through the concourse and into the next, despite it being much farther from their gate. They still had plenty of time before they’d even need to check for updated flight information.
They spied yet another small restaurant with both tables and bar seating, and, miraculously, just as they were walking by, two patrons who had been sitting at the bar got up to leave. Wordlessly, they hurried up to the bar, set their bags and coats down, and each claimed a barstool.
The seats were crammed together, and Drew felt another strong flush of warmth as Zach settled into the seat next to him, their shoulders pressing together gently. With a nervous smile, Drew looked over to try and see if Zach was feeling it too. The flush of Zach’s cheeks and the way he ducked his head ever so slightly, a tentative smile edging onto his lips... not only told Drew what he’d wanted to know but also made his mouth go dry and his pulse start skittering everywhere.
“What’ll it be?” the woman behind the bar asked as she set a cocktail napkin that read Penn Brewery in front of each of them. She looked expectantly at Zach and then Drew.
“Jack and Coke,” Zach said.
“Old Fashioned with Four Roses,” Drew said. “And... menus, please.”
The bartender handed them each a menu with a warning that the kitchen was slammed, and then she turned away to make their drinks.
Zach tilted his head to look at Drew. “Fancy drink, eh?”
Drew crinkled his nose. “Not that fancy.”
“Sounds fancy.” Zach pushed into Drew’s shoulder just a bit and winked at him. “Roses, and all.”
The wink and the contact made Drew’s heart skip a beat, or at least it felt like it. “I just... um...”
“It’s fine, man. I’m just giving you a hard time,” Zach said playfully, and Drew smiled as he realized that this was likely closer to the real Zach, sans debilitating anxiety while flying and in large crowds.
That only made Drew like him more, want to know him more. Though, god, what he really needed to know was that he wasn’t alone in this feeling, this out of control, wildly wonderful and terrifying... whatever it was. Butterflies and blushing and desire and... something more.
The look Drew had seen in Zach’s eyes only minutes ago had assured him then, briefly. But now, a tickle of doubt seemed to be creeping in. Maybe he’d been wrong after all. Maybe he’d been imagining it, seeing what he wanted to instead of what was really there. This type of thing didn’t really happen to him anyway, did it? He tried catching Zach’s eye again, but the bartender came back with their drinks then, and Zach leaned away to grab his wallet from his back pocket.
“Did you decide what you want yet?” the bartender asked as she took Zach’s credit card from him to start a tab. Drew shook his head, as did Zach, and the bartender let them know to take their time before she moved away to help other customers.
Had he decided what he wanted? God, yes. Inexplicably, unfathomably, perplexingly... he wanted the man sitting next to him. And that admission set his heart racing in an entirely different way. He swallowed hard as he glanced down at the menu in front of him.
Drew had never wanted like this before, and he wasn’t sure what to do. He had no frame of reference for this and no safety net. Did it mean he wanted... some sort of hookup or one-night stand? Did it mean he wanted a relationship with Zach? Was there something in between that?
And could he even risk taking that chance?
Not for the first time today, he wondered if it even mattered. They were only here for a few hours, then there would be the flight to Dallas, and then he’d probably never see Zach again. Sure, they could exchange numbers and promise to text. But he’d done that before, and any sort of friendship that might have resulted had just fizzled out before it had even started. And those hadn’t even had this... attraction component.
This was more. More everything. And although he was entirely unsure whether he was ready to step outside of the safety of the life he’d built for himself, he couldn’t really deny that this—whatever seemed to be between him and Zach—was so different.
“Hey.” Zach’s soft voice and his hand on Drew’s thigh startled him out of his thoughts. “You okay? Things seem kinda serious... up there.” Zach pointed to Drew’s temple.
“Uh, yeah...” Damn, he couldn’t think with Zach’s blue eyes looking so intensely at him, so kind and full of concern. Nor with Zach’s hand on his thigh. “Um, I was just—just thinking.”
Zach leveled a gentle look at him, raising his eyebrows slightly. “That part was a bit obvious,” he whispered mock-conspiratorially, leaning just a little closer to Drew.
God, he—he had a really strong urge to kiss Zach right then and there in the middle of the airport in a sea of people. The intensity was all-consuming. His eyes flitted down to Zach’s lips and then back up to his eyes, and he swallowed thickly. Drew had never wanted to kiss anyone before in his life. He hadn’t even been sure it—this physical urge to kiss someone—was a feeling that actually existed outside of fiction.
The slight teasing that had been in Zach’s eyes seemed to turn into a smolder right in front of him the longer Zach searched his face. Drew’s heart started thudding in his chest, and then, suddenly, Drew felt a sharp rush of panic thread down his spine, making him sit straight up and busy his hands with his menu.
He felt Zach’s hand slide slowly off his thigh, and the loss of its warmth and weight sent an abrupt pang through him that took him by surprise. “I-I’m... sorry?” Zach said, his voice careful, tentative.
Guilt flooded Drew, and he turned his head to face Zach again. “No—no, I’m sorry. I just... I, um, we should probably order our food. Ah, especially if the kitchen is backed up.”
Zach nodded and made some hmm of agreement, picking up his menu and seeming to study it closely.
But Drew could sense the tension in him. Hell, he could feel it because their shoulders were still touching. “I’m sorry,” Drew whispered without taking his eyes off his menu. “I... I’ve never done this before.”
Zach was silent for the longest second of Drew’s life so far. “Done... what?” Zach asked, so quietly Drew could barely hear him over the frenzied chaos of the airport bleeding in around the half walls of the restaurant space.
Drew turned his gaze back to Zach and searched his expression, trying to figure out exactly what Zach was feeling or what he himself was feeling, because he wasn’t sure of anything right now. “I-I’m not sure what this is, whatever we’re doing...” Drew admitted.
The slight but warm smile on Zach’s face was reassuring, and he almost got the sense that Zach understood what Drew was trying to say... even though Drew didn’t have a clue himself. “It... it can just be dinner right now,” Zach offered softly.
“Dinner... with a friend? Or...” Drew couldn’t bring himself to say the words, as though saying it would somehow ruin it or jinx it or... make it come true.
“. . . as a date?”
Drew nodded, his breath caught in his lungs.
Zach looked anxious, though more apprehensive or nervous than scared. “D-do you... want... it to be?”
Emotion flooded Drew’s chest as he nodded again, exhaling with a huff. “Y-yeah. I—yeah, I do.”
“Okay,” Zach said on a breath, his warm grin sending a tingle of something through Drew’s chest. And there was some part of him that wanted to commit this moment to memory, to remember every single detail because when he let himself push away all those other feelings—all the anxiety and uncertainty—what was left was this pure joy, pure happiness. He still felt scared... but in a good way, filled with some sort of giddy apprehension. Zach’s grin broadened, and the feeling inside Drew only grew more, blooming with hope.
Drew watched with eager anticipation as Zach lifted his hand and started moving it toward Drew, and then he felt a vibration in his pocket. Then another. And all around him, he could hear phones buzzing and trilling and chirping. Reaching into his pocket and grabbing his phone, he unlocked it quickly to read the message—the message that his flight had been canceled.
Next to him, Zach had his phone out and was frowning at it. “My—our—flight is canceled.”
The sound in the airport increased almost in a wave, cresting and then crashing into a louder din. Through all the ruckus, Drew could hear snippets of conversation around them as everyone started talking about what to do now that the severe winter storm outside had effectively grounded all flights into and out of Pittsburgh International Airport.
Drew knew all too well what to do, and unlike three years ago in Chicago, he was not going to get stuck sleeping on the airport floor. He stood quickly and signaled the bartender for the check. Then he picked up his messenger bag and slung it over his shoulder and across his body.
Zach looked at him quizzically as Drew draped his coat over his arm. “Apparently, we’re going to be here in the airport for the foreseeable future...” Zach said, his eyebrows raised. “So, why are you giving up your seat? Our seats? Are we going somewhere?”
Even as Zach was asking, Drew was urging him to stand, grab his bag, and sign for the check. For good measure, Drew grabbed his glass and swallowed down the last third of the Old Fashioned he’d had left. “Trust me,” he told Zach. “I’ll explain in a minute.” He nodded his head toward Zach’s glass. “Drink up if you wanna.”
Drew waited patiently while Zach finished off his drink and grabbed his duffle bag and coat, then Zach looked at him expectantly. Drew tilted his head toward the concourse, smiling and filled with a strange and sudden adrenaline.
“What’s going on?” Zach asked as he followed Drew out of the restaurant.
When Drew paused and turned to face Zach, he saw Zach’s brow furrowed in confusion and another look of anxiety clouding his expression.
“This happened to me before in Chicago. All the flights were canceled during a huge blizzard, nothing coming in or going out for at least a day. Pretty soon, if not already, the roads here will be too dangerous to get anywhere. There’s a hotel inside the airport here. If you don’t want to sleep on the floor by the gate, we need to make a run for it.”
He watched Zach’s eyes go wide with understanding, and then they darted around nervously as Zach seemed to take in the sea of people surrounding them. “Can’t we just call?”
Drew shook his head. “That was my mistake in Chicago. I tried calling the airport hotel, but all the lines were busy, and by the time I got through, all the rooms were gone.” He raised his eyebrows at Zach, whose expression flickered with that same tension Drew had seen earlier, and Drew hoped this hint of urgency and adventure would be enough to distract Zach and keep his anxiety at bay. “Ready?” he asked, holding out his hand for Zach to grab.
Zach stared at Drew’s hand for just a second, then took it and gave it a squeeze. Tingling and a flash of warmth and affection rushed through Drew, dancing with all the adrenaline in his system. Zach let out a short huff and lifted his gaze to Drew’s. His grin grew, and his eyes sparkled with adventure. He nodded once and said, “Let’s go.”