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It started the summer between sophomore and junior year. Dex was trying to spend the summer ignoring the fact that he had to start sharing a room with Nursey and ignoring Nursey all together. He was doing a pretty good job of it until he began noticing a guy pop up in Nurse’s social media more and more. His name was Huntington and Dex hated him on principle because of that name.
Every time he opened up Snapchat it was filled with Nursey and Hunt’s faces using the latest filter. If he tried to open Instagram there would be photos of the latest meal Hunt and Nursey were eating with the tag #Nursington. And forget Facebook. There Dex had to hide posts from Hunt all together because he tagged Nursey in everything. Clearly Nursey had a boyfriend and hadn’t mentioned it to the group or his to be roommate and d-man. Best friends don’t use a couple hashtag after all.
He found it odd too that none of the guys were asking him about it. Usually fledgling romances were like a drop of blood in the water that sent Holster and Ransom into a frenzy. But somehow the chat was silent and the comments left on posts were innocuous.
One afternoon Dex opened his phone and was greeted with the sight of Nurse and Hunt at NYC Pride and threw his phone down with a huff.
“What’s wrong?” his sister asked.
“Nothing Erin,” he mumbled, looking at the ceiling.
Swiping her brother phone Erin opened it and looked at the photo of the two men on screen. “See you’re still pining over your friend,” she smirked.
“I am not pining. I do not like Derek Nurse for the last time.”
“You do. You know you do. I know because you argue with him a lot. Which means you can’t figure out how to process feelings like a real person and find really weird things to get angry about like that jaywalking story.”
“He wouldn’t on the grass because it would wet his loafers wet Erin! Who does that!” he exclaimed looking frazzled.
“Yeah and you weirdly like that about him,” she teased.
“I hate you.”
***
A few weeks before school started up again, he realized he actually had to answer Derek’s questions about their room and began to respond, albeit curtly, to his friend’s queries.
Yes he could have the bottom bunk. No they did not need a record player. He’d think about the mini-fridge. Of course he could install floating shelves.
“Sweet, I figured the floating ones would give us more space than an actual bookshelf,” Nursey smiled on the screen.
“Yeah just give me a day to do them. When are you coming in again?”
“I’m driving down with a friend three days before practices start. He needs to get to his own school in Maryland.”
“Friend?” Dex asked wearily.
“Yeah, his name’s Hunt and he’s got an SUV so it’ll be easier to get both of our things down,” Nursey explained with a shrug.
“Is he crashing at the Haus before heading out?” Dex asked, trying to keep his voice even.
“Nah he needs to head down to Hopkins pretty quick. He might visit though during Labor Day.”
“Right...”
“You okay? He doesn’t have to stay in the room if it’ll be too cramped.”
“No, of course he can stay he’s your...friend,” Dex swallowed, his throat tightening around the world.
“Swawesome. Got to go Dexy, talk to you later!”
As soon as the camera was off Dex’s slammed his head onto his keyboard. He did something in a past life to deserve this, he was sure of it.
***
Dex realized he was a masochist when he pulled up to the Haus and saw the SUV parked in front. Hunt was still here and Dex would have to see his smug face and perfect jaw line.
Walking up the stairs with his first box he nudged the door open carefully, unsure of what he was going to find. To his relief the two guys were just storing Nursey’s excessive amount of books.
“Dexy!” Nursey called out and taking the box from his friend put it down to give him a hug.
“Good to see you too Nurse,” he muttered and tried not to redden too much.
“Glad you’re here. Hunt was just about to leave. Also Hunt, Dex. Dex, Hunt,” he beamed as he introduced the two.
“Heard a lot about you,” he other man said, a hand extended in greeting, and Dex was pleased that he was taller than the other New Yorker.
“All bad I’m sure,” he laughed wryly.
“Nonsense. Derek here talks about you all the time. I should be jealous honestly,” he chuckled, making Nursey look a little bashful.
“Oh,” is all Dex could get out before Nursey was chiming in.
“You actually came at a perfect time. Hunt was about to head out so now I can just help you unload your stuff. Let me just walk him out.”
“Good to meet you,” Hunt threw out as Nursey led him to the door, leaving Dex alone to cope with the fact that his crush (yes he’d accepted his fate) had a boyfriend.
The door reopening snapped him out of his reverie and he looked up to see Nursey with another box from his car. “Got another one of your boxes. Figured it’ll go faster with two of us.”
“That was a quick goodbye to Hunt,” he pointed out, standing to take the box from Derek.
“Yeah he has to stop in Philly on his way to Baltimore to get his boyfriend,” he explained, clearing out a pile of clothes from the floor.
“His boyfriend?” Dex squeaked, a little thrown back.
“Yeah, I would figure by now you’d be alright with that,” he sighed, not looking at Dex.
“I just thought he was your boyfriend!”
“What no! Hunt is my best friend from Andover. The only person in that place I could stand aside from Shitty.”
“Oh it’s just the posts, and the hashtag, and the everything…” he trailed off, his cheeks reddening again.
“Nah, that hashtag is just so I can track our adventures and shit. Hunt’s boyfriend is this super amazing dude, Carlos, but he was in Philly for an internship so Hunt was at a loose end like me. Nice to know you stalked me on social media all summer.”
“I did not stalk you! You post a lot.”
“It’s alright to admit you missed me Dexy,” he chirped.
“I did…” he confessed under his breath, showing his cards a bit.
“Well I missed you too. Hunt wasn’t exaggerating, you came up a lot.”
“Seriously?”
“Yeah seriously. Now how about we get the rest of your stuff from the car and order some pizza to catch up.”
“Sure, that’d be great,” he smiled, blushing more as Derek playfully nudged him as they walked out the door.
***
Later on that night after too many slices of pizza and a few beers, Dex and Nursey were sitting shoulder to shoulder on the bottom bunk chatting.
“I’m glad you don’t have a boyfriend,” Dex murmured, his finger scraping at the label on his beer bottle.
“I’m glad you’re glad,” he agreed, and moved in a little closer.
Dex didn’t mind in the least.