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Steve had felt...out of place. Maybe not the best choice of words, but accurate enough.
In the last couple weeks, his life had turned upside down. Going from wandering the Overworld in search of the Earth Cube to settling down in the real world with his newfound friends was a big transition for him. Even after fourteen mornings, Steve still couldn't get used to the sun being round. Getting to see Dennis made the transition easier, of course. But how could he adjust to life on Earth after spending so long in the land of creativity? He could never go back to his old life, not after everything.
And in his time of need, Garrett stepped up. "The Garbage Man" proved to have a good heart after everything, offering Steve a place to sleep in Game Over World and getting him settled with a job there. Their friendship had strengthened immensely since they moved in, too. They ate out together, they visited places in Chuglass together, and whenever Steve was particularly down, Garrett'd call the group over--with Dennis, of course. It was as if Steve had been dropped off the deep end, and Garrett was there to catch him lest his foot be dashed against a stone.
Life in Chuglass was not without its reminders of Steve's past, however. Whenever he and Garrett were there to pick Henry up from school (at Natalie's request), he couldn't help but notice Nitwit in the principal's window, and feel homesick. He couldn't pass by Garrett's piles of stuff without glancing at the Atari Cosmos box the Earth Crystal and Orb of Dominance were kept in. And when Dawn suggested that the whole group go to an amusement park sometime, he couldn't help but be reminded of the masterpiece that was Steve's World.
It didn't help that he was noticing that Garrett acted...differently around him. It hadn't been so in the Overworld, but Garrett had been a bit more touchy-feely. Not that Steve found anything wrong with that, but he didn't take Garrett as one for hugs--at least, not so often. It didn't help that whenever Steve called Garrett "bro," or "compadre," or something along the lines of "friend," he could sense a sadness within his buddy. That, along with the growing awkwardness between the two of them, would make anyone feel like something was up.
And Steve was determined to find out what.
It came to a head at dinner. Henry had just dropped off some bacon-wrapped tater tots (Garrett's favorite), and the two compadres were eating in silent contentment at Garrett's dinner table (it was a plastic foldaway, but who cared? certainly not them). It wasn't until Garrett started speaking that the situation got awkward.
"So," Garrett started as he cleared his throat, "I was thinking."
"About what?" Steve asked.
"I know how you've been feeling homesick about the Overworld lately. I mean, I've been homesick too, before. Believe it or not, Garrett 'The Garbage Man' Garrison didn't always live in Chuglass."
"Yeah, it's been a bummer..."
"So...what do you say we do a rebrand?"
"We?"
"Yes, WE," Garrett continued as he pointed to the two of them. "You're a part of the Game Over World family now!"
"Of course! No other compadre I'd rather do business with."
Garrett's smile faded a little. "Yeah, compadre." Realizing he was drifting away from the conversation, he continued. "Anyways. About the rebrand. What if we based it off the Overworld? Sucks that you feel sad about leaving your home behind, so I figured, why not bring some of the Overworld here? It'd be kickass, and different, and a way to remind you of home."
Steve's face shone with gratitude. "That's the second nicest thing you've done for me, man! I'd love to help you do that."
"Second nicest thing?"
"First place goes inviting me to live with you, of course."
"It was nothing, bro--" Garrett started bashfully.
"Don't sell yourself short, Gar Gar! If it weren't for you, I'd have such a tough time getting back in the groove of living in the real world. You're my best buddy, and I'm not afraid of saying it."
"Oh..." Garrett's face fell a smidge, "that's nice of you to say, buddy."
"...Garrett."
"Hm?" Steve almost never called the man by his first name anymore, this caught his attention.
"Is there something you're not telling me?"
"What do you mean?"
"Whenever I call you 'compadre' or 'buddy' or 'bro,' you get sad. Don't try to deny it, either," Steve accuses, pointing his finger at his friend, "because it just happened."
"That...that's nothing," Garrett mumbles, uncharacteristically nervous.
"It's not the only thing I've noticed. Since we got out of the Overworld, you've been acting weirdly around me. And I don't mean 'The Garbage Man' weird. Whenever we hang out, you get quiet when it's just the two of us. You're never quiet, man!"
"Now THAT is not true--"
"Plus, that one time Dawn joked that we should get matching jackets to 'secure our bromance,' you got weirdly defensive about it."
"Steve--"
"Buddy, you're my best friend! There's nothing you can say that'll cancel that out. The Garrett Garrison I know wouldn't hide things..." Steve paused, remembering the fiasco that occurred when Henry found out that Garrett had hijacked the journey through the mountains for diamonds, "...okay, maybe you would hide things. But the point is, no matter what you say, I'll still be your friend. Even if you say something that makes me mad."
Garrett sighed. "Steve...It's not that I'm worried you'll be mad," he started as he made his way to Steve, "it's that I'm worried you won't feel the same way."
"What do you mean?"
"Look, after the whole Overworld mess, I...realized something about myself. I don't know if it was because we were in so much danger in the fight with Malgosha, or--no. I'm gonna say it."
"Are you hyping yourself up?"
"Garrett 'The Garbage Man' Garrison is not above hyping himself up." Garrett took a deep breath and turned to face Steve, his eyes shiny. "Steve, I have a crush on you. Kinda hard for me to admit since I'm a role model and overall cool person, but, yeah. I just... I've known since we left the Overworld. It's totally fine if you don't like me back or whatever--"
"Gar, I like you too!"
"--but I just wanted to put it out there. I...what?"
Steve inched closer to Garrett, bridging the gap between them. "I like you too."
"You do? But you called me your best friend--"
"And you are." Steve's hand reached for Garrett's underneath the table. "But I'm definitely open to being best friends AND lovers."
"I just--I've never really been open to anyone about something like this before, man."
"We'll figure it out together," Steve said, ending the conversation with a hug. Garrett, relenting, hugged him back.