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Bobby was going up the stairs lost in his thoughts. Today was the day. The party will start in a few hours and he will know.
Still not absolutely present he looked up from the stairs and saw the door to the roof. “Oh, damn, not again!” It happened three times this week so far. Today was Wednesday.
When he finally made it into their apartment, Reggie welcomed him with a smirk on his face. “Again?”
Bobby sighed.
“At least you will have pretty legs, you know?”
Bobby blushed and turned to his room. How come he sees Reggie in a completely different light now?
It started a few weeks ago. The band was rehearsing and Bobby looked up from a complicated part, which he just finished, and caught the look on Reggie, who was illuminated by light coming from the late evening sun. Something changed at that moment and when Reggie looked up at Bobby, he didn't know what to do, so he just blushed and looked away. Reggie probably didn't even find it strange, flashed angrily through Bobby’s head, with his constant attempts to flirting with everybody. And from that moment it went only down. Bobby, who was usually the one whose flirtation didn't bring out of his almost stoic calm. Now he blushed all the time when Reggie was around trying to not look too obvious.
He was ripped out from another thoughtless staring into space by a knock on his door.
“Bobby, have you finished it already?”
It was Julie. He moved his attention to things before him. The wrapping paper, tape, and gift lay on the table the same as an hour ago.
“Bobby?” called Julie again. “Are you okay?”
Bobby took things before him and called back. “I’m finishing, need to make it special for the birthday boy, you know?”
Julie just hummed something in response, which was suspiciously close to ‘what the hell is he doing in there.’
Bobby was never really good at gift wrapping and now he needed to make it look like a masterpiece worth an hour of time but in a few minutes. “Damn, how does this happen to me all the time...” He cursed softly.
When he came back to the kitchen Julie welcomed him only by raising eyebrows over the condition of the package in his hands. Fortunately for him, Reggie burst into the room just moments later and Julie had no time to comment on the result of two hours of his “work”. Problem was that Bobby stopped working when Reggie was around, so now this human puppy watched the package in Bobby’s hands with a curious look.
“Is this-” he started while reaching for the gift, but Julie was faster and grabbed the thing and hid it swiftly in the fridge.
“There is nothing for you Reginald and we have a deal that you will stay in your room, while we prepare the party, don't we?"
Reggie began to back away, with a bright smirk on his face, which was hit just a little by Julie’s pose which was slightly similar to Tía Victoria’s. When he was almost gone, he called back: “Doesn't look like you guys actually do anything...”
“How can we, when you sneak around all the time?” Julie called after him, while she pulled her phone off.
“He’s right, they should be back with cake already,” she mumbled to herself. “Who do you think will answer, when I will call?” she asked with raised eyebrows, clearly asking if Bobby's mind was present again.
Bobby chuckled. “I would try Luke if I were you.”
Now was Julie’s turn to look like ‘I have no idea, what are you talking about.’
But before Julie was able to call, the main door burst open and Luke burst into the kitchen, followed by Alex, who carried the cake box.
“What takes you, guys, so long?” Julie asked, trying to sound decisive, but it didnť come out as she imagined.
Alex raised eyebrows above Julie’s dreamy voice and looked at Bobby, who was already grinning.
Luke didn’t seem to notice, he was amazed by anything Julie did.
“You know, who was in that coffee shop, where we ordered that cake?” Luke didn't wait for an answer and continued. “That boy, who knocked Alex down the other day!”
“Oh, the one Alex hasn't stopped talking about since?” Bobby asked.
“Hey!” Alex protested
“Yes! He works there and Alex started to talk about the weather and that boy went with it and there started to be a line outside, so I must solve it.”
“And???” Julie, Bobby and even Reggie, who listened behind the door, asked impatiently.
“I invited him to Reggie’s party. There wasn’t any other solution” Luke answered, obviously satisfied with himself.
All eyes went on Alex, who blushed. “Yeah. Willie said he will maybe stop by.”
“Oh, Willie?” Julie asked and Alex casually answered. “We don’t speak just about the weather, you know?” While he pierced Luke with his eyes.
Suddenly, the door from Reggie’s room burst open and the birthday boy rushed into the kitchen.
“You say that I have to stay in my room, while you prepare the party, but you just talk there and I’m bored. I already wrote a new song!”
“Reggie, we…” Julie started, interrupted by Luke: “Buddy! Come help me with balloons!”
“We will have balloons? Awesome!” Reggie, forgetting about his previous grumpiness, started bouncing around accompanied by Bobby's lost look.
After that everything started to work fluently. There wasn’t really so much to do. The balloons were inflated, the cake cut, birthday gift found and warmed up. More friends showed up and even Willie came and now was talking with Alex, while they both blushed.
When the time for opening the gifts, everyone was impatient, what will Reggie think? They spent a lot of time doing this, so when they saw how his eyes widened with almost shock and he looked like he’s about to start crying, they were afraid that it was too much…
Fortunately for everyone present, Reggie’s shocked face crackled, and even when he still looked, that tears may come any minute, the wide of his smile could run a little village instead of electricity.
“Guys- that’s-that’s… that’s amazing! How-I-that's…”
Then Reggie stopped trying to express his emotions and tried to hug them all at once. “I love you, guys, you are amazing.” He whispered.
After a while, when Reggie let them go. Luke asked: “Will you try it?”
“Ooh, of course.” Putting down his flannel shirt, which he wore almost all the time.
In a package was a new flannel shirt, but not just any, this one had painted back. And with a closer look, there can be recognized that Han Solo looks more like Reggie than Harrison Ford. “Wait, you actually painted it?” Reggie’s eyes widened when he found this detail.
“No, they usually make merch with the faces of their fans, don't you know that?” Alex told with a slightly ironic smile on his face.
“Wait, really?”
“No, I’m joking, Reggie, don’t you think that if they do this, you’ll be the first to know that?”
“Hmmm… probably.”
“Will you really try it?” asked Julie, pushing Alex back.
“Yeah.”
When he was done, everyone looked proud and they exchanged happy smiles. The only one who just stared at Reggie was Bobby.
"Wow, you look cute." He said under his breath, even though it wasn’t probably meant to be out loud.
Reggie looked at him and his smile was even brighter and was his cheeks a little redder than before?
As the afternoon turned into the evening. The daylight, which wasn’t there much even before, faded away. But no one seemed to care about it. Fairy lights, which were already decorating the room for Christmas, were switched on and made a dreamy and soft atmosphere.
The playlist, which was set at the beginning, was already over and the speaker now played a mix of their favorite songs and Christmas carols.
Bobby, who leaned next to the window, long-forgotten drink in hand, was lost in his mind with his eyes on Reggie, who was smiling and talking with Alex. When he took his eyes from him and looked from the window, an enthusiastic smile on his face.
The snow, something really rare in LA, was falling outside. “Guys! It’s snowing!” He called after the others, who didn’t notice yet.
All eyes were now on windows.
“We need to go out!” Told Julie, while taking her jacket.
Everyone rushed out of the door.
Bobby went last, making sure that he locked the door and took the key and that he had one more surprise with him.
When he came out all his almost adult friends were dancing between snowflakes as little kids.
Just Reggie was sitting on the stairs, head turned up and a dreamy smile on his face. Bobby sat down next to him looking up too.
“That’s perfect, doesn’t it?” Reggie asked softly, without moving his look from the sky.
“Yes, it is,” Bobby answered, suddenly again nervous about his idea, but snow must be a good sign.
“I have one more gift for you.” He almost whispered.
That made Reggie look at him, with a question in his eyes.
Bobby reached into his coat and pulled out a pack of sparklers.
“I didn’t know there will be snow tonight and-”
“That’s perfect!” Reggie cut him in the middle of the sentence. “Do you have a lighter?”
“Yes. I’m not totally lost, you know?”
“Sometimes I’m not absolutely sure about it,” Reggie whispered with a little smirk almost just to himself.
Bobby didn’t try to polemize about it and instead pulled a lighter out of the pocket.
Little flame came to life and they started to light the sparklers.
Others came to get ones as well, but as if they knew something, what the boys on the stairs didn't, they went down the street and gave them some space.
Reggie had this happily lost look again as he conducted with his sparkle some song, which heard only him.
Bobby should look at him all night, especially when he looked as happy as he looked now.
Without looking up, Reggie started talking. “You know I usually don't have big parties on my birthday, with Christmas and stuff… but this one is the best I ever had.”
Bobby smiled. “And what’s the reason for it?” He asked.
Reggie finally looked at him. “The snow, the flannel, you guys, all my friends, that cake, the sparklers, and everything. I think I will remember this night forever.” The smile he had on his face wasn’t as electric bright as the one before, but there was happiness deep inside it.
After that statement they fell into silence, looking at sparklers, which slowly burned out in their hands.
Reggie then broke the silence one more time, his voice even quieter than before. “You know, what will make this night even better?” He asked slowly.
Bobby looked at him confused. “What…?”
“I don’t wanna rush anything. So I waited. But it’s months, Bobbers and I know that you were never really into this, but…”
“Wait. What are you talking about? I-I…”
“I have a crush on you, you dumbass! And you seem a lot that you have a crush on me too, but you never said anything and it drives me crazy!”
“I-I… Yes.”
“Yes? Yes, what?”
“Yes, I have a crush on you. Yes.”
“Yay! And?” Reggie looked like a happy puppy once again and Bobby wasn’t sure that he could handle it, so instead of words, he held out his hand and Reggie didn’t let him wait and pressed his hand.
“We should maybe go after others?” Bobby asked when his heart rate was a little calmer.
“Nah. I like it there and I think that they're already coming back, see?” And he lifted their joined hands to point at their friends, who were slowly coming back.
Bobby blushed in the look at their hands.
Reggie smiled at him. "So what if we come tomorrow into that music shop. I need to buy a Christmas gift for Julie and we can hang out."
Bobby nodded with a smile that looked more permanent than ever.
When their friends came closer, boys saw with horror that Luke didn't wear anything else than just a tank top and his hands started to look blue.
"Jesus Christmas, Luke!"
“Yeah, yeah, I’m coming back inside.”
The rest of them followed him through the door.
“I have keys so I should probably go open them-” Bobby said uncertainly.
“They can wait a minute.” Reggie interrupted him and started slowly standing up.
Bobby chuckled and stood up as well. They were still holding hands.
The evening turned to night and the atmosphere in the room was more sleepy. Mostly because Luke, who wanted to warm up himself and got a bunch of blankets and now was sleeping in a blanket nest with Julie, who slowly stroked his hair.
Alex and Willie sat by the kitchen table lost in conversation with smiles full of hope.
Julie’s best friend Flynn spoke about the lack of green in Dirty Candy’s costumes with Carrie, while the rest of her group was trying to figure out the rules of lacrosse from Nick, who seemed genuinely happy about it.
Bobby and Reggie sat next to the window watching the last snowflakes falling from the sky. They spoke softly about everything and nothing at the same time. Bobby looked on his watch out of habit. “You have the last five minutes of your birthday.”
Reggie looked at him. “So I probably should try my luck one more time?”
Bobby looked at him with slight confusion.
“I want to kiss you, you dumbass?”
“Oh. Okay.”
“You’re such an idiot...” Reggie whispered as leaning into the kiss.
“Merry Christmas, birthday boy,” said Bobby as the time shifted into another day.
“You know that somewhere is still my birthday.”
“Yeah, I know, time is just construct.”
“We are both dumbasses, don’t we?” Reggie asked with a soft smile.
“Yeah, we are… and it makes us so great.”
“I want this to last forever.”
“It will. We must believe and it will.”
With that, they fell into calm silence again. There was so much in front of them and the future was looking brighter than ever.