Chapter Text
“And you are…?”
Avonlea turned from the coffee maker with a start as the voice spoke from behind her.
The young man behind her held his hands up with an apologetic smile and a laugh, “Sorry about that. Didn’t mean to scare you.” With one of his hands still held up in the air, he moved his other one to out in front of him. “I’m Mac’s roommate, Bozer.”
She smiled and moved her coffee mug before shaking his hand, “I’m Avonlea, it’s nice to meet you. Mac told me a lot about you. All good things.” She reassured him before pointing into the living room. “Did you really make those masks in there? They are… kind of scary amazing.”
“Ah, the lady knows talent when she sees it.” Bozer grinned ear to ear, trying to be cool about it, “Those are a few of mine, yeah. I’d love to make a movie someday, but for now it’s more of a hobby.”
“Pretty impressive hobby. I thought Mac said you do stuff like that for work though?” The coffee maker went off and Avonlea turned to pour some into her mug before motioning with the pot, “You a coffee drinker?”
“Yes please, I never get going without that first hit of brown magic.” Bozer replied with an enthusiastic yawn as he sidled past her to get his own mug out of the cupboard. He held it out and she poured it for him. “I mean, yeah I do a bit of that for work, but I’m kinda an entrepreneur… I do a lot of stuff.”
“Aaand that’s just about how vague Mac was when he told me what you do for work, and what he does for work. You both are at that think tank right?” Avonlea smiled as she took a sip from her mug.
Bozer took that as a good sign. “Ah, yeah, the think tank. Yeah they give us a lot of random projects so it’s hard to explain.”
“That’s what Mac said too.” She didn’t seem bothered by it, or even curious. She just seemed amused.
They both took another hit of coffee in companionable silence before Bozer looked at her again, his curiosity taking over. “So uh, you work as an elementary school teacher right? What made you wanna go out with a guy like Mac?”
Avonlea shrugged. “I’m used to working with kids, what can I say?” Her eyes were on Bozer’s, sparkling with held in mirth.
“Oooooohhhhhhh,” Bozer hissed in approval of the joke before laughing out loud. “Okay I like you. I hereby give my approval.”
She laughed and did a little curtsy, “Why thank you kind sir.”
“Not that anyone asked for it,” Mac said, his tone teasing, at the same time from behind Bozer’s shoulder.
Bozer jumped and almost spilled his coffee.
Avonlea just laughed even harder, Mac’s deep chuckle mixing with hers as he went over to her and gave her a kiss on the cheek before stealing her coffee and taking a large gulp of it. She smiled up at him with a genuine warmth that Bozer had never seen from any of his previous girlfriends, and he couldn’t help but smile a little as he watched their casual and comfortable interaction.
“Yeah yeah you two are cute and all,” He said good naturedly, “But you can’t just sneak up on a guy like that Mac, you’re liable to give me a heart attack and I’m too young and pretty to die.” He pointed at Avonlea specifically, “And you, there’s no way you didn’t know he was there.”
“I’m sorry,” She shrugged, taking her coffee back from Mac and resting her hand on his side lovingly as he went to pour his own, “It was too good of an opportunity.”
Bozer shook his head, almost as if chiding a kid, “I’m taking back my approval, ya’ll are a bad combination. I was blinded before by your coffee brewing skills, but now I’m having second thoughts.” He waggled an accusatory finger between the two.
Mac smirked, “No take-backs Boze. Sorry.”
“Well now I gotta go calm down, and it’s all cause of you.” Bozer sighed dramatically, turning to leave. First he shot a wide smile in Avonlea’s direction however, “It was real good to meet you, don’t be a stranger!”
With that, he was gone onto the patio out back.
Avonlea was about to turn and ask Mac what the plan was for the day when his arms wrapped around her from behind instead, trapping her with her back against his chest. “I’m really happy you stayed over.” He murmured into her hair.
“Me too.” She smiled, turning a little to rest her forehead against his cheek and sliding her arm along his. Her coffee was in her other hand, nestled against her collarbone. She chuckled a little, her reply teasingly benevolent. “Besides It was the least I could do, this being like… our twelfth date and all.”
“Wasn’t that rule about the third date?” Mac asked, pulling away a little so he could look her in the eyes better.
She smiled and flicked him in the nose with her free hand, “We’re nothing if not rule breakers. Besides, I’m glad we’re moving a little slow. We’re both busy a lot and this feels good. No need to rush.”
Mac felt his heart radiating warmth as he looked down at her and nodded, “Yeah, it’s good.”
“So…” Avonlea turned in his arms, setting her coffee down and wrapping her arms around his neck “... for once we both have a saturday off and nothing to do. Any suggestions?”
He placed his hands on her waist and shrugged, “I’d be happy no matter what we were doing… but if you really want a suggestion… we could make breakfast together and watch that documentary I picked up on medieval architecture?” He pursed his lips and pretended to be in very deep thought, “Or I could show you that science experiment I thought would be fun for your fourth graders and make milkshakes with the leftovers…”
“Milkshakes?”
“Yeah, it’s a good one.” He promised, “They’ll love it.”
“It’s not dangerous? Nothing explosive?”
Mac laughed and ran a hand through his blonde hair. “Come on, what do you take me for?”
She unwrapped one arm from around his neck and held out her hand in front of his face. “Pinky promise?”
He grinned and wrapped his pinky around hers, “You got it.”
“All this sweetness in here about to make me throw up.”
Both Mac and Avonlea looked in tandem towards the door to the patio.
Bozer was just standing there shaking his head like a disapproving parent. “You two need to get a room.”
“We’re already in a room, you didn’t have to walk into it.” Avonlea countered.
Mac’s smirk got wider. He mouthed “she’s a keeper”over her head so only Bozer could see.
Bozer just rolled his eyes and threw up his hands before pointing at both of them, “It’s like I’m under attack in my own house. Don’t make me call Jack and Riley for back up and ruin your little lovey-dovey parade you’ve got goin’ on.”
Mac’s eyes widened and he ever so slightly shook his head, this time in actual dismay.
At the same time beneath him Avonlea’s eyes lit up like a christmas tree. “You should! I want to meet them.”
Mac’s eyes closed in defeat, only staying like that for a moment before he schooled his expression into an impassive one as the girl in his arms turned to look up at him.
Avonlea looked up at him hesitantly, “Although, we did just want to spend the day together… you probably don’t want anymore company over, huh?”
“What?” He asked, “Oh no, that’s fine, we could have them over… maybe later when we have a fire on the patio?”
“Sure!” She squealed excitedly, giving him a hug.
He sent Bozer a panicked look over her shoulder as he hugged her back.
Bozer shrugged at him with an expression that read, “What’s the big deal?”
Avonlea pulled away and smiled up at him, “I’m going to go change into… something else…” She blushed as she realized this entire time she’d been in Mac’s bathrobe.
“Yeah, okay, I’ll start breakfast.” Mac smiled back at her as she got on her tiptoes to kiss him before taking her coffee and meandering away down the hall, humming.
“He means I’ll start breakfast!” Bozer called after her.
“I can cook pancakes! Baking is science!” Mac called after her as well.
She just sent them both an amused look and a little wave before disappearing into Mac’s bedroom.
The instant she was out of sight Bozer smacked Mac in the stomach. As his friend grunted in surprise he shook his head, “Why don’t you want her to meet Riley and Jack?”
Mac massaged the side of his abs where Bozer’s hand had hit. “I want her to. I do.” He looked down the hall and shook his head before going back over to the pantry to search for pancake ingredients. “It’s just…”
“Just what?” Bozer knocked his hands out of the way as he failed to find what he was searching for and took the ingredients out himself, setting them on the counter.
Mac leaned against the counter, his arms crossed, allowing Bozer to take over. “The more people from Phoenix that she meets and knows… the harder it will be to keep her in the dark. I never thought I’d have this Boze. Not after… you know.” He ran his fingers through his hair again. “I don’t want to lie to her. I haven’t really had to. Not yet.”
Bozer sighed. “Look Mac, I know you’re in a rough place. I know how hurt I was when I found out you’d been hiding stuff from me. I wouldn’t wish that on her.” He started measuring flour into a bowl. “But… I can tell you like her. And I can tell she’s been good for you. You’ve been really happy and relaxed the past month since you met her. If she loves you, like I do, she’ll understand though. Maybe. Maybe not. But I think she’s worth the risk.”
“Like you do?” Mac asked, eyebrow quirked teasingly.
“You know what I meant.” Bozer said as he rolled his eyes.
There was silence for a bit longer as the two friends mixed up breakfast
“Thanks Boze.”
“Anytime Mac.”