Chapter Text
The spot Colt had chosen was comfortably quaint - a small Mexican hole-in-the-wall that sold quite frankly mouth-watering burritos, decorated with warm lighting and pinstripe plush booths, a gentle timbre humming from an old jukebox in the corner.
Ryland, Colt, and Jody had wedged themselves into one of said corner booths, tucking into their food and chatting mindlessly over whatever came up.
“So you really did throw up after asking her out?” Ryland asked between laughs, a smile bright and aching on his face as his brother’s expression turned affronted.
“No! I only nearly threw up!” Colt turned his head to look at where Jody sat close to his right, her arm resting lovingly around his shoulders and a teasing look in her eyes. “Oh wow, Jody, just tell him everything about me, huh? Thought we were supposed to stick together.”
Colt’s voice was accusing, almost a childish whine, but the both of them knew he wasn’t really upset from the grin he was actively trying to fight back.
“Oh come on,” Jody scoffed playfully, splaying a palm over the side of his head to push him gently. “It’s your twin brother, of course I had to tell him how embarrassing you were.”
“You said it was sweet that I was so nervous!”
“Yeah, and also really really embarrassing, Colt. I just didn’t want you to throw up again.”
Ryland watched the two of them bicker, studying their faces cast in a golden glow from the hanging lights. How Colt’s face seemed so tender and open, the crinkle in his eyes as he laughed at something Jody had said - warm and undeniably happy.
Love looked good on Colt, Ryland decided. His twin had always been a happy person, of course, but to see it displayed so openly now in front of someone Colt so obviously cared about made something like pride settle warmly in Ryland’s stomach.
“Enough about that,” Ryland blinked from his musings to instead see Colt looking right at him instead, his finger pointing accusingly, “we’re gonna talk about you.”
“Me?” Ryland replied dumbly.
“Yes, you. What the hell is all this about you and Ryder?”
Jody perked to attention at this, suddenly looking much more interested in Ryland. “Wait, what about you and Ryder? I thought you hadn’t met him yet?”
“Oh they’ve met alright.” Colt scoffed, narrowing his eyes at Ryland’s pleading look. “Ryder mistook him for me, slapped his ass, and now trails after him like a lost dog.” Jody gasped, half dramatic and half genuinely taken aback, and Colt only nodded grimly. “Now he’s been bothering me on set all day, asking all about my little twin brother. Hey Colt, any chance you could give me Ryland’s number cause I’m a sick fucking pervert who wants him desperately! It’s sickening, Jody, honestly.” Colt’s impersonation of the actor was high pitched and girly, and Ryland wasn’t sure whether to laugh or reach across the table to shake his brother for saying such a thing.
“Oh my God, Colt!” Ryland yelped over the sound of Jody’s laughter, “You’re disgusting, he didn’t say that!”
“He basically did!”
“So, wait wait, hold on.” Jody waved her hand frantically, nearly doubled over from her amusement. “Ryder slapped your ass, found out you weren’t Colt, and now wants your number?” From the look on her face, Jody seemed almost overjoyed at this sudden influx of information.
“Ugh, you should’ve seen it.” Colt turned his head away and crossed his arms grumpily. “Ryder was basically feeling him up.”
“Ryder was feeling you up?”
Ryland groaned a long sound, hid his face behind his hands and slumping lowly in his seat, praying the ground would open and swallow him whole.
“Wait, did you give him your number, Ry?” Jody asked, leaning over the table to drag his hands away from his face and stare inquisitively at him. “Cause it kinda sounds like he’s not giving up on this, Ryder’s a really determined person.”
“Of course he didn’t, why the hell would he.” Colt waved his hand flippantly, scoffing at Jody’s question and watching amusedly at the familiar exchange in front of him. “It’s Tom Ryder, Jodes, Ry’s smarter than that.”
At this Ryland shuffled nervously in his seat, eyes flickering away from them to stare at the decorated wall instead, hands still trapped in Jody’s grip.
“Ryland Grace.” And now Colt was leaning across the table too, hands reaching out to engulf either side of Ryland’s face and shake his head frantically. He’s sure if the table wasn’t separating them, Colt would’ve grabbed him in one of those annoying headlocks and ruffled his hair to hell. “Tell me you did not give that asshole your number, tell me!” Jody - nice, lovely Jody who was so not taking his side right now like he thought she would - just tilted back and laughed.
“I didn’t, I didn’t!” Ryland basically shrieked and struggled to pull away, hair mussed and glasses half dangling from his nose. “He found me and asked, but I said no!”
“Oh thank God.” Colt slumped to drop his head face-down on top of the table, hands still loosely holding Ryland’s face. His voice was thick with relief, like all of this sudden stress drained out of him in seconds. It was a comical sight - a part of Ryland felt Colt, with all his dramatics, would be much more suited for acting.
“He accepted your answer, right?” Jody voiced after a moment, concern lining her tone. “Ryder is known to be pushy sometimes, so if he’s being an arse about the rejection please let us know.”
“Well…” Ryland hummed, shucking off his glasses to fiddle with them in his hands. Colt jerked from his position in an instant, his grip shifting to cup Ryland’s cheeks firmly and dragging him forward to stare eye-to-eye.
“Say the word and I’ll beat the shit out of him.”
“We’ll beat the shit out of him.” Jody chimed, Colt nodding his agreement.
“Not like that. I, well, I told him that I wasn’t going to give him my number directly, and he seemed to accept my answer.” Colt huffed his approval, dropping his hands and drifting back into his booth seat. “But, I basically insinuated he should try finding my number some other way? Like - like a game, y’know?”
Colt threw his hands up in thorough exasperation, his face distraught as he slumped further into his seat and groaned out a long ‘whhyyyy?’.
“Wait wait wait, hold the phone,” Jody was reaching forward again, excitement brightening her face. “A game? You, Ryland Grace, are teasing Tom Ryder? Trying to make him - what, work for your phone number?” Ryland hesitated, thinking about it for a second before giving an unsure nod. “Oh my God, I didn’t think you had it in you! What did he say back?”
“Well it took him a moment, but as I was walking away he yelled after me that he’d definitely get my number, or something.” Ryland shrugged, flushing a bit at the recount and the intense focus Jody had on him. Distantly, he was reminded of the ‘gossip circles’ his students would form at lunch, huddling into a corner and whispering about who kissed who, giggling in between words.
“You walked away from him? Oh wow, Ry, who knew you were such a flirt. Playing hard to get, huh, that’s the best way to go.” Jody seemed almost overjoyed, a direct opposite to Colt who only groaned louder and dropped his head to his palms in distress.
“ ‘m not flirting.” He startled, reddening at the thought. “I’m just, I don’t know - playing with him? He seemed real passionate about this, so it was kind of funny.” Ryland raised his brow at where his brother had almost sank to the floor now, dramatic fake sobs muffled behind his hands. “Plus, it’s not like that. Ryder’s not into me, I bet he’s just curious cause I’m his stuntman's brother. He’ll give it up soon, I’m sure he’s not even bothering to look for my number.”
Jody hummed in disbelief. “Curious enough to fondle your ass like he did?”
Ryland guffawed, and even Colt lifted his head to scoff a disgusted sound at his girlfriend.
Tom knocked once, twice, heavily on the door to Dan’s trailer. He waited a minute, tapping his foot impatiently, before knocking again a few more times with vigor.
“Alright, alright!” The door swung open, and Dan stood in the doorway with a disgruntled expression, melting into confusion when he saw Tom. “Ryder? What are you doing here?”
“Heya, Dan. You gonna invite me in, or what?” Tom grinned widely, pushing past Dan and stepping into his trailer without waiting, ignoring the other man's disbelieving scoff and instead peering around uninterestedly at the rest of the room.
“To what do I owe the pleasure?” Dan’s voice was basically dripping with sarcasm, standing near the door with his arms crossed unhappily and staring daggers at Ryder. “Must be important for Tom Ryder to come all the way to my humble abode.”
“D’you know a Ryland Grace?”
Dan faltered then at the sudden question, arms dropping to his side as his face twisted in confusion. “Ryland Gra– yeah, Colt’s twin. Real nice guy, we’ve been friends a while. Wait, hold on, what do you want to know about Ryland?”
“Not much,” Tom shrugged with one shoulder, grabbing some half-built prop off of Dan’s desk and inspecting it flippantly in his hands, “just curious about Colt having a twin, you know how it is. Isn’t it so freaky they look like, basically exactly alike?”
“Well, yeah, that’s how identical twins work. Put that down.” Dan grumbled and near snatched the item out of Tom’s grasp, placing it back onto the desk with an exasperated sigh. “But so what? Why’re you asking me about all this?”
“We talked a bit, me and Ryland. Hit it off really well, the guy’s way more chill than his uptight brother.” Tom smiled, a small thing that he shifted his head a bit to hide from Dan. “Anyways, something super important came up on set and I had to run off mid talk ‘cause they needed me, but when I’d already left I realised the poor guy had asked for my number and I hadn’t yet given it to him.” He sighed, pouted in Dan’s direction. “Such a shame, I think he was really into me, actually. And ‘m not sure we’re gonna bump into each other again, of course cause I’m so busy, so is there any chance you can do Ryland a favour and pass his phone number along to me?”
It was dramatic, yeah. Maybe a little bit rambling, which Tom never did, and maybe a bit of lying, which he did a lot. But he was kind of desperate here.
“Wouldn’t want to deprive him of the honour of knowing me.” He slipped an award-winning smile right in the other man's direction, convincing and confident. God, he’s good - no wonder he was an acclaimed actor, right?
“Oh hell no.”
What?
Immediately Dan was on the defense, squaring his shoulders and pointing an accusing finger in Tom’s direction. “I’ve seen Colt today, and I’ve heard every threat he’s muttered in your direction. He’s pissed, Tom, like I’ve barely fuckin’ seen. I thought you were just being annoying as always,” woah, excuse you, “but I bet it’s cause you're sniffing after his brother, yeah?”
“Sniffing is such a brash word, Dan.” Tom snorted, raising his hands lazily in mock peace. “I’m only curious, Colt will get over it. C’mon, help a guy out here, you’ve got his number. Scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours?”
“Absolutely not.”
“C’monnn.” He whined, a needy sound that Dan curled his lip at.
“I gotta put me first, man. Colt will kill you, then maim me if he catches me talking to the enemy. No can do, Ryder, you need to leave.” Dan swung his door open again, waving Tom out incessantly. Tom paused, looking at Dan with something like betrayal, before sighing when he recognised his defeat and making his way out the door.
“Ryland’s too damn good for you anyway, so stay away, Ryder.” The door rattled as Dan slammed it shut, and Tom stared at it for a moment in the quiet. Another bust, then.
This was the fourth attempt of the day - none of the stunt team had his number, Alma had to rush off to pick up Jean-Claude before he could get the chance to ask her, and Gail had made it known before all of this that she was going to be unavailable for a few days. Whatever, Dan was too close to Colt anyway; he was properly dialing Colt right now to snitch, the nark.
Tom sighed again, slumping his shoulders and kicking a rock on the ground. It had never been this difficult to get someone’s number before, usually people were falling over themselves to get a spot in his phone. Tom wasn’t used to it, all this effort, but maybe he’d admit that he kind of liked the hunt. Liked that he knew what prize was waiting for him at the end.
From across the path to Dan’s trailer, a tent flap opened and a woman poked her head out; someone from the makeup team, he remembered absently, Sally or Sarah or whatever. She peered nervously at the closed door behind him, before locking eyes with Tom and raising her phone up - from where he stood, he could make out a contact titled ‘colt’s brother’ displayed brightly across the screen. Sarah-Sally-Samantha beckoned him over with a brief gesture, before dropping the flap and disappearing swiftly from view.
Score! Tom pumped his fist in celebration, hurrying over to the tent as quickly as possible before the chance could slip away.