Chapter Text
It was Steven's idea. Of course it was. Steven was just like that, you know? He just ran up to their desks like a little ball of sunshine and went -
"I have an idea."
Shane and Ryan looked up from where they were in the midst of an arm-wrestling contest between them. Ryan was certain he'd win - his arms were quite impressive - but Shane was really giving him a run for his money this time around.
The BuzzFeed office teemed with life around them - people editing, chatting, eating, fucking around. Zach and Keith were playing catch with crumpled paper across eight different rows of desks, Quinta had a small crowd of people entranced by some crazy story she was telling, Eugene and Ashly were going head-to-head against Ben and Garrett over something or other, and Ryan couldn't even tell what was going on over near the kitchen. Needless to say, it was easy to get side-tracked in an office like theirs.
"What's the idea?" Shane asked, not ceasing his grip on Ryan's hand as he pushed against it. He wasn't about to let a little (well, not-so little, height-wise) distraction like Steven Lim get in the way of his victory over Ryan. Ryan, on the other hand, was really bringing his A-game and obviously knew it. He'd went into this challenge as confident as ever, fully aware that he could beat Shane Madej. Shane knew this too, but he was nothing if not stubborn, and initiated the challenge anyways. He liked to think it was a testimony to their friendship of how Ryan humored him every single time.
Shane liked to think that Ryan always agreed to Shane's arm-wrestle propositions because he liked the feeling of beating Shane. Over and over again.
"Can it wait, Steven?" Ryan gritted out, dismayed to note that Shane had actually improved since the last time they'd done this. "Shane's stepping up his game, which means I need to try harder now." Ryan missed the days where Shane's hand would be against the table in mere seconds. This match had been going on for at least a minute, now.
In reality, Ryan really liked to see if Shane would ever get better. Not that he thought that Shane could ever beat him, persay, because he was Ryan Bergara. He had, like, the best arms in the office, probably. Ryan just wanted Shane to keep pushing himself to beat him - they were both unbelievably stubborn, after all. It looked like it was working.
"It can't, because I think you're gonna love this idea," Steven continued, undeterred. Ryan could admit that that was something he admired about Steven. It was hard to forget that balls of sunshine were insistently bright.
Shane watched in amusement as Ryan rolled his eyes before smashing Shane's hand onto the table in the blink of an eye.
"Ow," he said mildly, raising a brow at the shorter man. "What the hell was that? I thought I was tiring you out."
"You weren't," Ryan replied matter-of-factly, wiping his sweaty palm against his jeans. Sure, Shane had proven to be an almost-worthy competitor this time around, but that had nothing to do with the fact that Ryan had been holding back just a little. In his defense, he'd wanted to see how long Shane could last that time. "Anyways, Steven," Ryan continued, finally turning to acknowledge the silver-haired man (although it was really sort of fading into a metallic pink-ish by now), "you were saying?"
This was clearly the moment he'd been waiting for. Steven splayed his hands out before him, holding them for a moment for dramatic effect. To Ryan and Shane, it really had none of the sort. Especially since Steven was visibly bouncing on his feet in excitement.
"Worth It. Unsolved. Put 'em together and get - uhhh, Wunsolved It." He wiped his hand across the air, staring at his imaginary sign in awe.
"Wunsolved It," Shane deadpanned, craning his neck to look over at Steven, who was situated behind his chair.
"You know what I mean," Steven retorted, waving a hand in dismissal. "So? How's about it?"
"You want a crossover?" Ryan asked skeptically, brows furrowing in contemplation. "How would that even go?" Would the four of them have to go eat food somewhereÉ Not that Ryan or Shane were opposed to food in the slightest, but did people really find that idea entertaining?
"Well, first of all, it isn't just me who wants it," Steven retorted, holding up a finger. "Both my fans and yours have been begging for it every day. All I need to know is if you're in," Steven explained patiently, still beaming at the two of them like the sunshiny ball he was.
Shane looked at Ryan.
Ryan looked at Shane.
They knew each other well enough that it was hardly even a question, at this point.
"We're in," Ryan decided, grinning.
"Perfect!" Steven exclaimed delightedly, clapping his hands together in that little Steven way of his. Shane admired his enthusiasm for everything he did. It was infectious. Steven Lim's sunny disposition was indubitably contagious. "I'll go tell Andrew. You guys are gonna love this," Steven assured them over his shoulder before disappearing around the corner and out of sight.
"I'd love it even more if I knew exactly what this entailed," Ryan muttered, rolling his eyes as he wheeled his chair back towards his desk.
"Has Steven ever proposed a bad idea?" Shane mused, looking over at Ryan in amusement. "He took you to get some pretty cool shoes, as far as I'm concerned."
"They were cool," Ryan conceded, remembering his sweet Oreo Jordans, "but he had no clue what was going on. The video's premise was basically me helping him search for shoes to buy."
"Tomato tomato," Shane dismissed, waving an arm in carelessness and nearly missing his monitor. There were two things opened up on his computer - clips for an upcoming episode of Supernatural season three of Unsolved, and a document containing the new addition to the hot dog saga, much to Ryan's eternal chagrin.
Sitting beside Ryan was something so comfortable and familiar to Shane - they'd been sitting beside each other since they'd first started at BuzzFeed as interns, and they'd been sitting together ever since. Ryan had asked Shane to be in one of his very first independent BuzzFeed videos, an honour that Shane still held close to his heart. He and Ryan had been on Test Friends together, and now Unsolved, and really, Ryan was familiar to Shane. He'd feel weird if he ever had to sit by anybody else.
How odd it was that their friendship was measured through the proximity of their desks being beside each other. But Shane really wouldn't have it any other way. Sure, he could be seated beside Keith - a good pal of his - or Jen or even Steven, but Shane figured he wouldn't have enjoyed it as much as sitting beside Ryan.
What if Shane had been a Try Guy? Or What if Steven had asked Shane to co-host Worth It with him? It was kind of weird to think about, not doing videos with Ryan.
Ryan watched Shane contemplate something or other - he never knew what it was that Shane thought about whenever he got that look on his face. After years of sitting beside Shane, he'd learned a few things about the oddity that he called his best friend. Like, Shane wouldn't sit down unless he draped whatever jacket he was wearing over the back of his chair first. Or, he'd always take a pen from Ryan without asking, but would make sure to return it without Ryan having to ask. Or, he tapped his foot to certain tunes whenever he was feeling particularly productive on whatever he was working on. (Ryan pretended it was annoying, but it made him feel kind of happy for Shane - the taller man was always in a better mood after a productive day.)
But most-specifically, Shane got a certain look on his face sometimes that Ryan could never, ever discern, no matter how long they'd been desk-buddies for. Shane would be typing or editing or what have you, then all of a sudden his eyes would get kind of glassy and he'd ... just ... look, for a while. It ranged from a few moments to a few minutes.
It always made Ryan curious, if not a little helpless, because he didn't know what to do. For the most part, the most Ryan could gather was that Shane looked contemplative. And puzzled. Like he was constantly trying to figure something out, but could never get the answer.
Ryan found it odd, because Shane always seemed to have everything figured out. Everything from how he liked his popcorn to how to shut down all of Ryan's arguments about ghosts. Everything from how he liked his desk organized to how to make Ryan laugh with a single word.
But Ryan had more pressing puzzles to solve for the moment.
"What do you think he has up his sleeve?" Ryan asked, arms crossed, drumming his fingers along his biceps.
"Something fun, if Worth It's gonna be involved," Shane replied, and Ryan laughed.
"I think it'd be fun to visit 'three haunted houses at three drastically different price points,'" he said in his best Steven Lim impression. His best … Limpression, if you will.
"That's not a bad idea," Shane considered, nodding his head. "Knowing you, you'll get spooked even at the one with the lowest price point."
"Shut up, Shane."
"I think a crossover's a good idea," Ned piped up from somewhere behind Ryan. Or maybe to his right. The Try Guys’ desks were all situated in a corner, right next to Ryan and Shane's. Ryan beside Shane, and Shane beside Ned.
"You already had your fun," Ryan chastised, waving Ned away. "You guys practically begged us to add a little of our flair to your show."
Of course, Ryan couldn't talk. He'd been more than a little eager to agree to their request - the Try Guys were definitely the most-known BuzzFeed series, so what if Ryan had jumped at the chance for a little promo to their audience? And sure, his and Shane's audience would've gotten a kick out of it, too.
"Zach and Keith did!" the married man protested, rolling his eyes. "Eugene and I didn't get to be a part of it."
"It's not our fault you decided to Glamp It Up that weekend," Shane retorted, poking Ned's arm playfully. Ned was a funny kind of guy, Shane always thought. The two of them always seemed to get along really well, although the rarely interacted in videos. Maybe because Shane always, always asked Ned about his wife. Ned gave brownie points to anyone who mentioned his wife before he did.
"How was I supposed to know you guys would guest-star on our show?" Ned complained, turning back towards his desk, pouting as he effectively ended the conversation.
Shane gave him one last poke before returning to typing.
Ryan shook his head at Ned briefly - he was an odd dude - before relaxing back against his chair. He peered over at Shane's monitor curiously and groaned, filled with instant regret. Why.
"Dude, quit adding more to the fucking hot dog story. Why isn't it over yet?"
"No." Ever-eloquent, Shane was.
"But why isn't it over yet?" Ryan insisted.
"Why didn't Harry Potter end after the Philosopher's Stone?"
"Oh for - you cannot fucking compare your stupid fifth-grade level hot dog story with Harry Potter."
"I can and I will."
"Jesus fucking -”
"Oh, boys!"
Ryan and Shane, who had been leaning closer and closer to each other with each quip so that their faces were nearly inches apart, simultaneously turned to look over at Steven, and now, Andrew.
"Hey again, Steven," Shane greeted at the same time Ryan said, "Hey Andrew."
Steven beamed. Andrew continued looking, well, like Andrew. But he graced them with a small nod, so that was something.
"I'm glad you guys agreed to do this," he added in that monotonous voice of his. It kind of set Ryan on edge, if he was being honest. He could never read Andrew or figure him out. Shane just smiled radiantly.
"Of course!" he exclaimed, all big goofy grin and flailing arms. "I have no idea how this is going to work, but it'll be fun!"
Steven rested his crossed arms against the back of Ryan's chair, leaning slightly. Andrew remained standing, his hands tucked into his pockets. Ryan kind of found it intimidating. Andrew was hard to figure out, in his opinion.
Shane watched Steven smiling down at Ryan with an amused expression. Steven and Ryan were always so fun to watch whenever they interacted - Ryan liked to pretend that Steven annoyed him, but anyone who met Steven was instantly enamoured with him. Shane knew that Ryan adored Steven just as much as everyone else did. It was clear in the way Ryan rolled his eyes, attempting to push the other man's arms off the back of his chair.
"I came up with the best idea, and Andrew is all for it," Steven said proudly, shooting Andrew a grin. Andrew returned an indulgent smile, and Ryan noticed that it was almost as if he couldn't help himself.
"Right, so, what's the idea?" Ryan prompted, tilting his head backwards to look up at Steven, still poking at his arms where they rested near his head. It was useless, though, as Steven didn't seem intent on moving them. And, well, at the end of the day, it wasn't the end of the world or anything. Steven could rest his arms there, and Ryan could rest his head on Steven's arms. You know, it was kind of a win-win.
"Picture this -" Steven began dramatically, but Andrew plowed through, straight to the point.
"Co-host switching. I get Ryan, Steven gets Shane. One pair ghost hunts, the other pair eats."
Steven immediately protested, turning to look reprovingly at Andrew, but the blond merely gave an even look in reply.
Ryan and Shane exchanged a glance.
Shane saw the flicker of excitement in Ryan's eyes, the raise of his eyebrows that indicated that he was intrigued. Shane liked to think that he knew Ryan fairly well at this point, and he knew exactly what Ryan was going to say before he even said it.
"I'm all for it," Ryan confessed, shooting Shane a grin. "Unless you aren't."
In all honesty, it was a good idea - Ryan had already been on Worth It, so it only made sense that he and Andrew could ghost hunt. He'd never really interacted with Andrew as often as he did with his other coworkers. It would be fun. Besides, he'd never gone ghost hunting without Shane. The feeling of it would be ... odd. Different, definitely. Ryan had no clue what Andrew thought about spooky stuff whatsoever. Was he a believer like Ryan? A skeptic like Shane? Did he scare easy, or was that impassive face of his just a perpetual thing no matter the situation? It was kind of a funny thought, picturing Andrew's blank face as he stared unimpressed at everything around him. Would they share banter like him and Shane? Would he deny all the evidence Ryan found?
The possibilities were endless. Ryan was eager to find out.
Shane gauged the situation - glancing from Ryan's encouraging smile, to Steven's eager face, to Andrew's ... Andrew. It wasn't that he was against the idea, because he and Steven were great friends, and co-host switching was genius in itself, but ...
But.
He didn't like the thought of Ryan ghost hunting alone. No, not alone - without him. Andrew wouldn't know how to comfort Ryan, how to protect him, how to act. Not like Shane knew. Andrew was stoic and emotionless, as far as Shane was concerned. Who's to say he wouldn't just leave Ryan to fend for himself? What if Ryan got hurt, or what if Ryan got so terrified that he needed somebody? What would Andrew do, then? Just leave him?
Okay, no. Andrew wasn't heartless. Not in the slightest. But Andrew had also never really interacted with Ryan properly before, Andrew didn't know Ryan like Shane did.
Steven was easy. He and Shane and Ryan were all close friends, but Andrew ... was different, in a way. Andrew was best friends with Steven, and sure, he and Shane were fairly close, but in the grand scheme of things, he wasn't so ingrained in their circle. He was more on the outer circle - hanging out with them occasionally and such, but not actively spending time with them. And Ryan had never really made an effort to get closer to Andrew, anyways, and vice-versa.
Shane just didn't like the idea of Ryan being left alone in a weird, decrepit building with Andrew, that was all. Because Ryan was his best friend and he cared for his well-being, and Andrew didn't know how to handle Ryan. Ryan and Steven were different - Andrew's tricks with Steven wouldn't fly with Ryan.
Shane was just concerned. For Ryan. That was all.
Ryan frowned a little at Shane's hesitation, the slight reluctance obvious on the taller man's face. He'd thought that Shane would've been all for the idea. Ryan liked to think that he knew Shane better than almost anyone, and he had no clue what would cause the other man to be so hesitant.
It was fun. The whole premise of the idea sounded awesome, as much as Ryan hated to admit due to it being Steven's idea. But, as Shane had mentioned before, Steven never really proposed bad ideas anyways. Shane'd hate to disappoint Steven, and disappoint the fans, just as much as Ryan would. And Shane, as much as Ryan, would hate to miss out on something this cool. And besides, Shane was always up for weird, out-of-the-ordinary things, things that spiced up routine, things that made life more interesting. So, like, what was the deal here?
"Shane? How's about it?" he prompted, poking Shane's arm for good measure.
Shane glanced up at Ryan - at his small, hopeful smile and sparkling-but-questioning eyes - and knew it wasn't even a question.
"I'm in."