Best Friend's Brother

MARCH-- junior year

Brynna Hart had just started her AP US history homework. It was long, boring and hard to understand. She absolutely hated it. 

She had her iPod on, blaring out music; it helped her think. It somehow calmed her down.

Hayes Maleeny, her best friend and long tine crush called a few minutes after she started the homework.

"Hey, Hayes," She breathed. An online mag that she had read, Her Campus, had a section called Real Live College Guys (although she wasn't in college, she still liked to read this stuff). In the section, there so happened to be a q and a section, where this girl was in love with a guy (sounds familiar, right?), and the answerer said to just call the guy/speak to him, and tell him how she felt.

Right when she read that, Brynna had sworn to herself that the next time that Hayes called, she'd tell him.

So, she was opening her mouth to say it, when the person on the other end said, "Um. This isn't Hayes. It's his brother. Tyler."

Brynna was absolutely embarrassed and was unrepentantly angry at what she was about to out loud and to Tyler Maleeny, Hayes' absolute opposite. Not to mention that they really didn't like each other.

"I know who you are." Brynna said, annoyed. "Why are you calling me? From Hayes' phone, nonetheless."

There was a pause. "I, uh, wanted to ask about the AP US history homework." He said.

There was an awkward pause.

Now, Brynna cleared her throat. "Um, well we're supposed to read page six thirty to six forty-nine." Brynna felt extremely embarrassed now. Here she was accusing him of bothering her, but he had just wanted to know the homework assignment.

"Okay. Well, thank you." He breathed. "Bye." He hung up.

Brynna put down her phone, and sat there, looking at it, and forgetting all about the homework. She had been unwittingly rude to him. She'd have to apologize to him tomorrow.

And she's also going to finally tell Hayes her feelings.

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The next day, Brynna was late. She had forgotten about finishing her homework after talking to Tyler, so she has had to get up early this morning to finish it, then she lost track of time, and therefore became late for school.

When she rushed into the school, from the parking lot, she saw that she had made good time, because there was ten minutes until the bell rang.

As she was shutting her locker, she turned and slammed into a wall. Well a living, breathing wall. She looked up and up and up, and saw Tyler. He grabbed her elbows to help steady her, but not before all of her books feel out of her arms.

"Crap!" She said at the same time that Tyler said, "Here, let me help you."

Instead of refusing or looking up at him, she went down on her knees and started gathering her things.

Tyler got down on his knees beside her, and they gathered all of her stuff in seconds.

"Sorry 'bout that." Tyler said, after he stood up and gave her a hand up, too.

"No, no. It was my fault. I should've watched where I was going." Brynna said, nervously wringing her hands. She had to apologize about last night. "Look, Tyler, I'm sorry about how rude I was last night. It's just that... I thought you were Hayes, and I was about to say something irreversible, so having you answer with me almost blurting out the thing made me mad and frustrated." She finally looked up at Tyler, into his eyes, and saw a soft look in them that she's never saw before.

"It- it's okay, Brynna. I understand." he looked away and hooked his thumbs into his belt loop. "I, uh... I think Hayes was going that way." He pointed per his shoulder, and Brynna looked to see Hayes walking down the hall.

"Thanks, Tyler. I'm, uh, gonna go catch him before the bell rings...Bye." she said as she backed down the hallway and towards Hayes.

When she got up to him, she pulled him from the person he was talking to.

"Hayes, I have to, um tell you something. Important. Over there." Brynna pointed to an alcove hidden from prying eyes.

"What is it, Brynna?" Hayes asked, laughingly. 

"Hayes, I, um..." she paused and swallowed. “Hayes, I've been in love with you since like sixth grade. I'm still in love with you. Now, I'm tired of not telling you how I feel. I just wanna know, do you feel the same way?" she looked down at her hands, and then determinately looked into Hayes' eyes, and reached to touch her lips to his. She started to loss herself, but she then noticed that Hayes lips weren't responding to hers, and that he was gently, but firmly trying to push her away from him. 

"Brynna... I don't feel that way about you. I love you... But as a sister." Hayes said, looking at her pityingly.

"You don't...? How could you not? I thought you..." Brynna felt a hot rage run through her emotions, making her want to hit and yell at him. "But, I be loved you since-- forever! How could you not feel the same? What's wrong with you? Do you have a cold, hard, heart? Do you not feel?" she pummeled at his chest with her clenched fists, though he wasn't reacting to her hits.

"Brynna. Stop. You're only going to hurt yourself." 

"I don't care!" she hit the doors to the cafeteria, backwards and the both fell in. "I hate you! I-- put all of my emotions into this, and you're just going to calmly tell me that you don't feel the same! Can't you even give me a reason why?" she yelled at him. Hayes clenched and she felt guilty while somewhat happy that she had hurt him.

"I... Brynna you can't tell anyone about this, okay?" she nodded, wary about what he was about to admit to. "Brynna, I think, no, I am gay." he paused. "Brynna, I like guys."

Brynna was shell shocked. She just couldn't wrap her mind round what Hayes just said.

"You like... Guys?"

Hayes looked like a kicked dog. He nodded his head. "Yes. I-- don't tell anybody. You are only the second person to know, the first being me."

"I-I..." She left the cafeteria, not saying anything else to him.

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Tyler found Brynna sitting outside, in her car.

"What are you doing, Tyler?" Brynna asked, not looking at him. She didn’t want him to see the pathetic excuse she looked like with her red eyes and swollen face. After she had left Hayes, she had broken down like a little girl in her car.

"Hayes told me you'd be out here." Tyler pulled open the passenger side door, letting himself into her car, uninvited. 

"And so you decided to follow me, while simultaneously skipping class?" she asked, not even bothering to tell him to get out of her car.

"Yes. I'm just making sure you're okay."

"And Hayes told you to come out here and comfort me, right?" she said bitterly.

Tyler sighed. “Yes, he did actually say that, but I would've come out here, nonetheless." Tyler turned his body towards hers. "So you found out he was gay, right?" 

Brynna was silent. "Hayes said that only I and he knew about his... Preferences."

Tyler cleared his throat. "I, uh, guessed." 

Not wanting to dwell on that thought, Brynna changed the subject.

"So, tell me the real reason that you followed me." 

Tyler cleared his throat, his face going red with embarrassment. "I, uh..."

"Just spit it out!" Brynna said, tired of all of this walking around the subject.

Tyler glanced at her from the corner of his eyes. He then blew out a gust of a sigh. "Okay, well, Brynna... I've loved you since about sixth grade. You know that secret admirer note you got in your locker in sixth? Me. The valentine teddy bear from anonymous? Me. The candy canes for Christmas since ninth grade? All me."

Brynna was shell shocked for the second time today. "Bu-but, I thought that was Hayes. That's one of the main reasons that I started liking him. Him sending me the small gifts made me warm up to him." Brynna sniffled. "I guess that was a lie. Like how my misplaced feelings for him obviously are."

Tyler stared at her for a second before leaning into her. She must've been temporarily insane because of Hayes rejection and confession because she let him. Kiss her, that is.

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Brynna got home at about four later that day, wondering what was wrong with her.

After a small make out session with Tyler, they had both went to class before the campus supervisor could come around and see them in the car, skipping.

After an hour of loading the cloud of the fervor of the kissing, Brynna started to have regrets.

What was wrong with her? She had thought she had had feelings for Hayes, but there she was, making out with his brother. Of course that thought came after Tyler had texted her, asking if they could go somewhere, together.

She hadn't answered by lunch, and she really didn't want to see Hayes, so she had gone to the library. 

She thought over her emotions, and she texted Tyler, without further thought. What she said was: no.

So, when she got home (late because she had drove around a bit to get a hold on her emotions), she wondered what was wrong with her. She had been rejected by a boy that she thought she loved, though it was probably infatuation. She had been kissed by a boy who she found herself more than slightly attracted to, although he was the first boy's brother, and who she rejected in a text. She had to be the worst person of the year, not even counting the fact that she had called the first boy heartless.

She needed to get her priorities straight.

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"What's wrong, Brynna?" her neighbor asked her as Brynna got out of her car. Her neighbor was often times nosy, and got into everybody's business at all times, no matter how private.

"Um, I'm fine. Nothing's wrong with me." Brynna said, not looking at the neighbor. She didn't want the neighbor to see how puffy and red her eyes were from her rubbing the gathering tears out of her eyes. 

She hurried into the house, suddenly glad that her mom's job sent her out if town for this weekend.

Brynna threw her school stuff in the living room sofa and headed to the kitchen, where she opened the stainless steel refrigerator to get some to eat.

She sat on a bar stool and say her food and elbows on the counter and dropped her head into her hands.

"What is wrong with me?" she moaned to herself. "I rejected a perfectly okay guy, to wallow in my own pity because the guy I thought I liked turned out to be playing for the wrong team. I should have agreed to go out with him, see if it could turn out to be good!" Brynna said, dropping her head into the cool steel counter.

Just then the doorbell rings, while there is a simultaneous knock at the door.

"What is it now?" She moaned, hopping off the stool. "I'm coming!" She yelled, walking towards the door.

She wasn't in so great a mood, so when she yanked open the door, she said, "What do you want?" instead of being polite n seeing who it was. Then, she finally looked up and saw who it was. Tyler.

"Brynna. I'm sorry about... Rushing you. I shouldn't have after, you know, the thing with Hayes. I, um, just came to say sorry, and to give you THIS." She then noticed the flowers and box in his hand. He started to hand then to her. She opened the box, gasped, and looked up at him in wonder. "That's, uh, a charm bracelet. I originally got it for you for your birthday, but as you know, I had baseball championships. So... I thought I'd give it to you now. And the flowers are a part of my apology. They're calla lilies. Your favorite." he shuffled a bit on the porch. "I'll, uh, go know." he turned and started walking to his car.

Don't let him walk away! He could be the best thing that has ever happened to you! Her thoughts seemed to be telling her the exact opposite that her head was saying. But, what was that old saying? 'Follow your heart.'

"Tyler. Wait!" she followed him to where he stopped at his car. He looked at her curiously. "Tyler... It's not that you rushed me. It's just that I pitied myself and wallowing in it. I just... I guess I didn't want to really feel that way again. And also... He happens to be your brother."

Tyler smiled at her slightly. "There is ways to avoid him." he frowned. "Although you can't avoid him forever."

Brynna smiled. "I know I can't avoid him forever." she pauses and swallowed nervously. "So how about it? Do you want to give me another chance?"

Tyler tapped his chin and looked like he was considering it. It made her nervous and suddenly afraid of what he would say.

"Uh..." he paused and looked at her a smile sparkling in his eyes. “Of course I'll give you another chance."



•Epilogue•

SIXTEEN MONTHS LATER-- July after graduation







She had gone shopping with Tyler to get their college supplies. They had toured the colleges that they got in together. Well. Then again it was only fitting because Brynna had gotten into Duke University and Tyler had gotten into University of North Carolina, so the schools were close together.

Ever since Tyler had given her a second chance, it had been great (even though Tyler said there wasn't a first time to forgive). 

"What are you thinking about?" Tyler asked coming into the room, and kissing her on the forehead. Her mother was currently out of town (again), but when she first heard of Brynna and Tyler being together, she was genuinely happy. Her mother even trusted them enough that she agreed to Tyler staying over whenever she was out of town.

"Nothin'." She said, snuggling into Tyler's side when he sat on the sofa beside her. "Just about college." they were going to leave to take the drive to their colleges in about three weeks.

"I can't wait." Tyler said, kissing her forehead again.

"How does Hayes like the air force?" About two months ago, Hayes had gone into the air force, and went to a training base in San Antonio, Texas, called Lackland AFB.

"He said it’s okay. He's mostly ready for it to be over. Last time I checked he has about two weeks left." Tyler stroked her cheek with the side of his finger. "He found someone he likes there. Todd Goldenrode."

"Stop giving me that look. I don't like him that way anymore. I haven't for a while. Almost exactly sixteen months." Brynna sighed. "Actually I've been in love with someone else for most of that time."

Tyler glanced sharply at her, and then smiled. "And who is that?"

"You know who it is." she said, coyly.

"No I don't. You'll have to speak plainly."

Brynna sighed. "I love you, Tyler Maleeny."