It was finally Friday, the day before the Halloween party and Brandi could not stop talking about how excited she was during our shift today at work.
"Hayden and I are going to be Princess Peach and Mario...." she trailed off, talking about the decorations her and her roommate were going to put up tonight.
The chime of the café door sounded and I looked up to see a grinning Jace.
"Mattsy!" He yelled and ran around the counter to give me a bear hug.
"Ya know, I just saw you less than a week ago"I laughed, squeezing him tightly. I love my best friend so much. I don't know what I would do without him.
"A week is too long" he cried dramatically. The sound of Brandi's giggles makes Jace look over.
"Hey, you're Brandi! Seen you the first day he moved in" he beamed and gave her a hug. Her face was of surprise and confusion but she ended up wrapping her arms around him.
"And you're Jace" she laughed "Nice to formally meet you"
"Where's your hunk of a rommate?" Jace asked me after their embrace ended. A growl came from the door and I finally noticed Dakota leaning against the wall next to the door.
"He should be here shortly, actually" I said looking at the clock. Our shift was ending soon and Hayden usually comes by to walk Brandi to her car. It's adorable.
As if he knew we were talking about him, Hayden strolled into the café.
"Speaking of the devil" Brandi smirked as he walked over to her and greeted her with a kiss.
"Awww he's taken!" Jace exclaimed with a pout.
"So are you" Dakota grumbled and rolled his eyes I laughed.
"Is there a reason why you're purposefully pissing him off?" I asked Jace in a whisper.
"First off" he started while glowering at Dakota "He kept skipping the songs I wanted to sing to then he refused to stop at the one place with the extravagant milkshakes for me" he pouted.
"I said to wait to go with Matt" Dakota retorted with a groan.
"I'll have to side with Dakota on that one, I've been wanting to go there" I admitted and Jace pouted.
"They sound soooooo good, can we go now and get one???" He begged.
"Go on, I can close up" Brandi told me as my eyes went to her.
"You're an angel" I told her while ripping the apron off.
A wolf whistle sounded and my head snapped to Ryder who just walked in as well.
"I'd prefer a strip show to be private though" he smirked at me and I grinned.
"Maybe later" I winked and he gasped in surprise.
"My, my Matthew. Since when did you become dirty?" He wiggled his eyebrows and I just chuckled in response.
"Gonna come with us for a milkshake Ryder?" Jace asked him.
"Well I came for my boyfriend, it kind of would be redundant if I just left" Ry drawled and Jace rolled his eyes.
"A simple 'Yes' would've sufficed, broski"
"Alright, let's go then" I shooed the three men out of the door so we could leave. We walked to Dakota's Jeep that was parked a couple spaces up from the café. Jace hopped into the passenger seat and I opened the back door for Ry to slide in first but before he ducked to go in, I spun him to face me and caged him against the side of the Jeep with my hands on each side of his head.
"Oh" he softly gasped "Well hello" I leaned in, capturing his lips. He hummed in appreciation while his hands fell on to my hips, pulling me closer to him.
"Come on love birds!" Dakota's voice yelled from inside the car. With a light graze of my teeth on his bottom lip, I pulled away with a smirk and gestured for him to proceed into the car.
"God you're so hot" he stated, his pupils wide. He then pecked my lips quickly before ducking into the Jeep. I smiled to myself and followed in after him.
"Dakota, I swear you were born to be my personal cockblock"I muttered. Dakota looked in the rear view mirror and winked at me, making me roll my eyes.
After buckling, he draped his leg over mine and wrapped his arms around my arm while leaning his head against my shoulder.
"Jace, you're on GPS duty, Google the name of the place" Dakota said before moving the car.
"Aye aye cap'n" he mock saluted. Jace tapped on his phone then began to tell Dakota where to go.
Ryder and I just cuddled up in the back, making out the whole ride to the restaurant. We were lost in our own little world that we both forgot we were passengers in the car as our hands traveled and groped each other's body.
"Ahem" Jace said and we pulled apart. "We're here" he giggled.
Everyone got out and entered the building. After being seated we looked at the menu.
"Are we eating too?"I asked when my stomach grumbled. A waitress went by with one of the milkshakes and my eyes popped open.
"Probably best we share some appetizers to eat one of those" Ryder chuckled and we nodded in agreement.
We picked out a couple appetizers and ate those before ordering our shakes. Dakota got a cookies n' creme shake, Jace got the Brooklyn blackout, Ryder got the churro choco taco shake and I got the bam bam shake. They were all delicious looking.
"Want to try a bite?" Ry asked as he held out his spoon to me. I wrapped my lips around the spoon and hummed at the cinnamon chocolate taste of his dessert.
"That's pretty good, try mine" I offered a spoonful of my fruity pebble ice cream. He happily accepted and smiled and said it was delicious as well. We shared each other's shakes, taking a bite of mine then taking a bite of his. Best of both worlds. When we were finished, Ryder excused himself to the bathroom.
"You're happier than I've ever seen you" Jace mentioned while we played with our empty cups.
"I am really happy. He makes me happy" I admitted.
"Awwwww, you two are so cute" he gushed.
"Alright, Peyton and Landon are about a half hour away" Ryders voice announced out of the blue.
"Okay, we will pay then head to your place" I told him.
"Already taken care of" he grinned.
"Ry, you didn't have to do that" I muttered with a frown. He grasped my chin with his pointer finger and thumb.
"I wanted to mon cheri, think of it as a double date and I treated everyone" he winked and I huffed in response.
"Thank you Ryder" both Dakota and Jace said as we slid out of the booth.
Once we got back to Ry's apartment, he told the brothers that they could choose which ever futon to sleep on.
"Do not f**k Jace on my furniture Ryder squinted his eyes with a pointed finger at Dakota.
"Oh sure, jerk each other off on our couches but can't do anything to yours" Dakota scoffed.
"We promise" Jace nudged Dakotas side, making him grunt.
"Ow, uncalled for" he grumbled.
The door buzzer went off indicating that Landon and Peyton have arrived. Ryder buzzed them in and we patiently waited for them to knock at the door.
"Come in" Ryder said after opening the door. Landon walked in first and then a short brunette, with his head down, followed in behind him.
"Guys, you know Landon and this is Peyton" Ryder introduced and Peyton lifted his head and gave a small wave. He had beautiful seafoam colored eyes. Landon wrapped an arm around his shoulders.
"He's a little shy at first" Landon said softly looking down at his boyfriend fondly. "He will open up once he gets comfortable with you're beamed looking back up at us.
"Hi Peyton, I'm Matt" I held out my hand. A small smile graced his lips.
"I've heard a lot about you" he said, taking my hand and giving a shake. I blushed at what he could've heard about me from Landon. Probably how I acted like a jealous brat. "Don't worry, all good things....Mostly" he ended, making the group chuckle.
I cleared my throat "Oh, Ry, when are we going to get our costumes from my dorm?" I turned to ask him.
"We can now if you want. You guys don't mind a little stroll do you?" He asked, eyes scanning everyone.
"Oh that'd be awesome, I need to stretch my legs anyway. Three hours in a car is excruciating" Peyton said shaking out each leg.
So, we ended up walking to my dorm and running into Hayden who was packing a small bag. He told us that he would be staying with Brandi this weekend so if we needed the dorm for anything, it was all clear. Ryder gave Landon a look then gave me a look and I nodded, understanding him saying if they wanted to stay there they could for some privacy. After that we made our way back to his apartment, in which everyone looked dead tired. With bids goodnight everyone went to sleep, awaiting the Halloween party tomorrow.
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The next day we went out for breakfast and hung around the city until it was time to get dressed up for the party.
After my finishing touches, I walked into the bathroom where Dakota and Jace were getting ready. Their costumes were the fox and the hound. Dakota the fox and Jace as the hound.
"Awww Mattsy, you look like my plushie that Damon got me on our first group date" he said looking at me and then his eyes started to pool with tears. I pulled him into a hug quickly and sent Dakota a questioning look.
"With school and Damon and Seb's work schedule, we haven't seen them much and haven't been able to spend too much time with him" he softly said as Ryder entered the room. I nodded in understanding, rubbing my hand up and down Jace's back as he sniffled. Ryder gave Jace a sympathetic look while rubbing his shoulder.
"Landon and Peyton are almost done getting ready" he informed us. Jace pulled back and wiped his eyes.
"Want me to get you some water?" I asked him and he nodded with a small 'yes'. I excused myself from the bathroom, Dakota taking over, wrapping his arms around Jace.
"You look cute" Ryder said as I slid by him.
"Not so bad yourself" I replied doing a once over on his costume. My eyes landed on his lips and I gave him a peck before proceeding with my mission.
I made it into the kitchen and opened the fridge grabbing out a few water bottles. I closed the fridge and jumped in fright when I was met with Peyton, dressed in his Robin costume. Landon was Batman.
"Sorry, didn't mean to scare you" he said quietly. He reminded me of Jace.
"It's fine, what's up?" I asked while getting my heart rate back to normal.
"I had a question..."
"Shoot" I answered, waiting patiently while he fiddled with his costumes mask in his hands.
"Are Jace and Dakota like together together?" He asked and my eyes widened.
"Pey!" Landon whisper shouted from the futon.
"What? It's just a question...so?" He looked at me expectantly.
"Uhhh..why do you ask that?"
"Well we woke up and they were cuddling super close for brothers"
"Brothers cuddle sometimes" I answered in defense.
"They were kissing last night, I heard them...unless they were chewing bubble gum at bedtime" he deadpanned
"They might've been" I answered weakly and he looked at me dumbfounded. I facepalmed with a loud smack and sighed. Welp, I tried. Can't really defend that.
"What, are you going to shun them now?" I asked.
"No, actually quite the opposite. I find it fascinating" he said happily with bright eyes "I read stories online and I have a reading list dedicated to incestuous stories" he gushed
"Interesting" I said uncertainly while eyeing Landon.
"It's true, and I don't mind either. In case you were wondering" he said as the three from the bathroom emerged from the hallway.
"Mind what?" Ry asked with a quirked eyebrow.
"That we found out Jace and Dakota are in a relationship" Peyton beamed. Jace's mouth dropped and Dakota sent a glare my way. I put my hands up in surrender, dropping the water bottles. I mumbled a curse.
"I didn't say s**t. You two couldn't keep your hands off each other last night" I said before bending to grab the bottles that dropped. Peyton bent down to help pick them up as well.
"Sorry Kota, I thought they were sleeping" I heard Jace whisper.
"It's fine. You aren't going to tell anyone are you?" He directed the question to Peyton and Landon.
"All good here" Landon said quickly
"Cross my heart" Peyton smiled sweetly.
"Alright, now that's all covered. Let's drink our waters and then head out" I announced handing water bottles to everyone.