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Lars swiped his hotel key card and opened the door to find TJ furiously shoving his clothes in his suitcase. “Babe,” Lars asked cautiously, “what are you doing?” “I need to get out of here,” TJ replied through gritted teeth, “I knew it was a bad idea to come here.” “TJ can you calm down for just a minute, so we can talk?” Lars asked, plopping down on the untouched bed and patting the space next to him. TJ sighed and begrudgingly put down the hoodie he was trying to make fit into his luggage.
“TJ…” Lars starts, his eyes looking up at the ceiling, “why do you think you reacted like that to what Cyrus said?” TJ threw his hands up in the air, “because who does he think he is judging me for having a boyfriend? I mean the audacity of that man to even think he can say those things to me. He has dated every Tom, Dick, and Harry across the country and yet I’m the one who gets the heat? He’s unbelievable. He’s-“ Lars cuts him off there, “TJ, I love you.” “I love you too Lars,” TJ interjects quickly. “I’m sure you do. Or you think you do. But TJ as long as we have been together there has been a third person in our relationship. I’ve always known it was there and I hoped that it would one day go away. But now I can see clearly that that third person is Cyrus. You’ve always had him in the back of your mind. Why do you think you were single for so long? Because everyone you met you were comparing to him.” TJ starts to speak, but then gets quiet. “See?” says Lars, “you know it’s true you can’t even deny it.” “I’m so sorry,” whispers TJ. Lars chuckles, “I’m not. I got to spend a year and a half with a very cool guy. I know what I’m worth and I’ll get back out there and be okay. You just need to ask yourself what you’re going to do next.” With that, Lars stands up, kisses TJ on the temple, grabs his suitcase and is gone.
TJ, suddenly alone, exhales and picks up his phone. He scrolls through his contact list until he finds what he’s looking for. Underdog. How many times has he sat in this exact position staring at that name, his thumb hovering over the number? Dozens of times probably. But before he can hit dial, his phone lights up with Cyrus’s name.
“Hello?” TJ asks hesitantly.
“Hey…” Cyrus replies nervously.
“I was just about to call you.”
“You were?” Cyrus responds, a hint of excitement in his voice.
“Yeah. But you called me first so why don’t you talk first too?”
“TJ, I’m so sorry for how I acted. It was completely irrational and over the top and I am so embarrassed for my behavior. The truth is I was really nervous about seeing you and I had tried to mentally prepare myself for what is going to be like. I actually called all four of my parents for their advice. I just hadn’t imagined a situation where you came with your boyfriend, so I wasn’t ready. That isn’t an excuse and I’m so sorry. I really just want to be friends with you and get to know Lars he seems great. I hope you’ll be able to find it in your heart to forgive me.”
“Is that all?” TJ asked.
Cyrus paused, “yes I think so.”
“Cyrus did you write all that down?”
“Maybe…” Cyrus answered, his cheeks filling with color.
TJ laughed despite himself. “Classic Underdog.”
Cyrus found himself smiling, feeling slightly less panicked he asked, “so… what were you calling me about?”
TJ swallowed hard, “well I was hoping that maybe we could actually get together and talk about some stuff. I feel like it would be better in person.”
“Sure!” said Cyrus, a little too quickly.
“Are you free in like an hour? Around 8?” TJ asked.
“Yes absolutely, the party is dying down here and that would get me out of the cleanup which would be awesome. How about the coffee shop where I work? It isn’t too far from where I heard you’re staying.”
“That works for me, what’s it called?”
“Don’t laugh” Cyrus said, “it’s called Rise and Grind.”
TJ snorted.
“I told you not to laugh!” Cyrus exclaimed.
“Alright alright, I’ll see you in a little bit Cy.”
“Can’t wait.”
TJ hung up the phone and found himself smiling. Shit he thought to himself, I need to shower.
Twenty-five minutes later, TJ was looking at himself in the mirror giving himself a pep talk.
“Don’t overthink this man. Who knows what’s going to happen. Are you still in love with this man? Yes absolutely, do you know the adult version of him? Not so much. Just take it as you go you totally got this.” With one last look at his freshly quaffed hair, TJ grabbed his jacket and headed out the door.
Cyrus was sitting anxiously at Rise and Grind. He knew he was early, but he was too excited to wait around in his loft any longer. He picked the perfect table, one he knew didn’t have any type of draft, where the music wasn’t too loud, and he had a direct vision of the door so he could see TJ as soon as he arrived. As the clock ticked closer and closer to their meeting time Cyrus was getting more and more anxious. As 8 o’clock came and went he found himself biting his nails. 8:15, Cyrus checked his phone. 8:20 Cyrus went to the bathroom so he would stop staring at the door. By 8:30, Cyrus had completely given up hope.
Across town, TJ was on his way to the hospital.