Fic: Boys and Hungry Hearts (Know Just What They Want) (Hockey, Seguin/OMC, 72600, E) 2/7

[rsadelle]

Master Post - Part 1


There's a new ice cream place that opened up this summer. It's a little bit of a hike, but that helps justify it, and they have doggie treats and dog-friendly outdoor tables, so Tyler and Brownie walk down there with Marshall sometimes. And because he seems to think he still sort of lives with them, Jesse ends up coming with them a lot.

They go on a Tuesday evening after dinner, Marshall trotting ahead of them sniffing at the sidewalk and Tyler pulling back on his leash to keep him from bothering people. They do a short rock-paper-scissors tournament for who has to pay, and since Tyler wins, he saves them a table outside while Brownie and Jesse go inside to order.

The place has a cart with doggie bowls and pitchers of water. Tyler gets Marshall some water and sets it down for him to slurp at, and Marshall flops down at Tyler's feet when he's had enough.

A guy coming out of the shop with an ice cream cone stops by Tyler and says, "That's a gorgeous dog."

Tyler grins, because it's always awesome when people compliment Marshall, and because he was kind of checking the guy out before he stopped to talk. "Thanks."

"Can I?" The guy gestures at Marshall.

"Sure. Be careful of your ice cream."

The guy grins at him and holds his ice cream out of reach as he carefully holds one hand out for Marshall to sniff. He waits for Marshall to approve of him before he pets Marshall and then scratches behind his ears.

"Well-behaved too." The guy stands up and licks at his ice cream where it's starting to drip.

Tyler can't help the way his eyes follows the guy's tongue. "Yeah, he's a good dog. Tired too." Tyler tears his gaze away from the guy to look down at Marshall. "Too hot for this kind of walk, huh?"

Marshall raises his head and looks at him.

"That's right." Tyler rubs behind Marshall's ears and looks up to find the guy looking at him with a look that's somewhere between admiration for good dog ownership and checking him out.

"What's his name?"

"Marshall." Tyler holds out his hand. "I'm Tyler."

"Zack." Zack holds on to his hand for a second too long.

Tyler fumbles for his phone. "Here," he says, "give me your number. Maybe we can hang out sometime when Marshall isn't so tired."

Zack smiles at him and licks at his ice cream before he takes Tyler's phone. "I'd like that." He puts his number in one-handed and is just giving the phone back when Brownie and Jesse come out of the shop.

"My girl is actually here," Jesse says.

"My girl has an awesome internship," Brownie shoots back, and Tyler rolls his eyes because he's heard it before.

"Here." Jesse pushes a cup of ice cream across the table at Tyler.

Tyler puts his phone in his pocket and pulls his ice cream toward him.

"And for the mutt." Brownie hands over a small paper bag. The rustle of it makes Marshall sit up.

Tyler waves at them. "Jesse and Brownie. This is Zack."

They all say hi, and then Zack says, "It was nice to meet you." He mostly looks at Tyler when he says it. "And Marshall."

Jesse and Brownie make agreeing noises, and Tyler says, "Yeah. I'll call you."

Zack says, "I can't wait," and walks away licking at his ice cream cone.

Tyler takes one of the doggie biscuits out of the bag - Brownie got a couple of extras - and gives it to Marshall.

Zack is halfway down the block when Jesse asks, laughing, "Did you just get his number?"

Tyler shrugs. Even though it's early evening, there aren't very many people around, so he feels safe saying, "Dogs aren't just chick magnets."

Jesse laughs. "I saw his face. I don't think it was the dog he was interested in."

*

Tyler calls Zack after lunch on Thursday. "This is Tyler," he says when Zack answers. "We met the other day."

"Tyler," Zack says, "with Marshall. I remember."

Tyler smiles down at Marshall, who's lying next to him on the couch. "I don't know what your schedule's like, if you maybe want to hang out with Marshall and me."

"That'd be cool," Zack says. "What were you thinking?"

"I don't know," Tyler says. "There's a dog park we like to go to."

"Yeah? That sounds good. I'm not working today, if you were thinking this afternoon or something."

They make plans to meet there at three, and Tyler hangs up and looks down at Marshall. "We're going on a date."

Marshall lifts his head, but doesn't have any other reaction because he's a dog. Tyler pats his back and says, "I know you're always good, but you really have to behave yourself, okay?"

Marshall noses at Tyler's chest, and Tyler pats him again.

*

It's not really that far - they've walked it before - but Tyler drives so Marshall can tire himself out all he wants in the park. He puts Marshall on his leash, but they've been there enough that Marshall recognizes the park and tugs Tyler through it to the dog bowl.

Tyler lets Marshall off his leash when they get there. Zack isn't there yet, so Tyler settles onto a bench and lets Marshall run off and socialize with the other dogs. He's keeping an eye on Marshall, so he doesn't see Zack until he comes around the bench and says, "Hey."

"Hey!" Tyler stands up. "You found us."

"I did." Zack checks him out, and he's smiling when he meets Tyler's eyes again. "I haven't been here in ages."

"It's a good place to bring Marshall." Tyler takes a couple of steps forward and whistles for Marshall, who comes over and seems to remember Zack enough to let him pet him.

"I see that." Zack laughs when Marshall tries to lick him. He has a nice laugh. "He's a little more energetic today."

"We drove," Tyler says, "so he could use all his energy running around."

Zack lets Marshall go, and he stands up and Tyler pats at Marshall's head before Marshall runs back toward the other dogs.

"Nice." Zack shades his eyes and watches Marshall nose at a Golden Retriever. "You guys come here a lot?"

"Some." Tyler waves Zack back toward the bench he'd been sitting on. It's in the shade, and he can keep an eye on Marshall while they talk. "A lot of times we just walk around the neighborhood or I take him over to run around in my mom's backyard, but sometimes he has a lot of energy, and I don't want him to forget how to behave around other dogs over the summer."

"Ah," Zack says, "not a year-round Toronto resident then, but you grew up here?"

"Yeah. In Brampton."

"Brampton? The suburbs."

Tyler shrugs. "Yeah, but I went to school in Toronto."

Zack grins at him. "That doesn't make you any less of a suburban kid to those of us who grew up in the heart of the city."

Tyler smiles back at him. "I live in the heart of the city now. For the summers, anyway."

"It'd have to be the heart of the city if you can walk here." Zack looks around. "I could probably walk it, but it'd be a long walk. And I'm only here in the summers now too."

Tyler glances over to make sure Marshall's still having fun and behaving himself, and then looks Zack over. "University?"

"Good guess. English major at Queen's."

"That's not too far away, right?"

"Couple of hours. It's nice at holidays, but not so close Mom and Dad can drop in." Zack nudges Tyler's ankle and leaves his foot next to Tyler's. "How about you? Where are you when you're not here?"

"Farther away," Tyler says. "Boston."

"Boston? What could take a nice," Zack's eyes travel over Tyler's body in a way that makes his cheeks heat, "suburban Ontario kid to Boston?"

Tyler bites his lip for a second. He doesn't want to lie. He doesn't get a chance to decide what he's going to say, because a couple of kids nudging each other and ignoring the Boxer on a leash one of them is holding come up to him.

"Hi," one of the kids says.

Tyler smiles at them. This he knows how to do, and it decides for him which way things are going to go with Zack. "Hi."

"You're Tyler Seguin," the kid who seems to be the spokesman says.

"I am." Tyler keeps smiling at them and doesn't look at Zack. He has a Sharpie in his pocket because it's instinct to grab one before he leaves the house. He takes it out and says, "You guys want me to sign something?"

They all do, and he signs a t-shirt and a pair of hats. While he does it, he asks, "Do you play hockey?"

"Yes!" The kids scramble over each other to tell him about how they play outdoors here in the winter and on teams during most of the year.

"I want to play in the NHL like you," one of them says.

Tyler grins at him. "You can do it, but you have to work really, really hard."

The kid nods very seriously. "I will."

One of the other kids pulls out a phone. "Can we get a picture too?"

"For sure." Tyler turns to Zack, who's just been watching them and doesn't seem upset about the interruption. "Can you take it?"

"Of course." Zack takes the phone and steps back a little before he tells them all to gather in close and smile. He takes a couple of photos and gives the phone back to the kid.

The kids all say, "Thank you," and Tyler waves at them as they head out across the park.

"So that's what's in Boston," Zack says.

"Yeah," Tyler says. He doesn't quite look at Zack. "That's what's in Boston."

Zack nudges him with his shoulder. "At least it's not a boyfriend. Or, like, a wife."

Tyler laughs and looks up at Zack smiling at him. "No, nothing like that." He rubs a hand over his hair. "It probably keeps me just as busy, though."

Zack leans back a little and stretches his legs out in front of him. "All the more reason to enjoy your summer, eh?"

Tyler lets his eyes travel up from Zack's shoes to his face. "Yeah. This looks like a good one."

Zack's smile turns a little more flirtatious, and they look at each other for a couple of long moments before Tyler tears his gaze away to check on Marshall. Marshall's fine - he really is good with other dogs - and Tyler's cheeks are a little less heated when he looks at Zack again.

They talk for a while, lazy conversation about their families and growing up in Toronto and dogs, and Tyler keeps checking on Marshall every couple of minutes until Marshall turns away from the other dogs and comes over to flop onto the grass at Tyler's feet.

Tyler bends over to rub his head. "Hey, buddy. Did you tire yourself out?"

"I'll bet he did." Zack also leans over to pet Marshall, and their hands tangle for a brief, electric moment. "You were running around a lot out there."

They pet Marshall until his panting eases.

"I should probably take him home," Tyler says. "Get him out of the heat."

Zack pats Marshall. "Probably for the best."

They stand, and Tyler clips on Marshall's leash. "We're that way."

"I'm that way." Zack points in the opposite direction. "But this was fun. We should do this again sometime."

"Yeah," Tyler says. "Definitely. Or dinner."

Zack smiles at him and brushes his hand over Tyler's wrist, so quick it's almost unnoticeable. "Definitely. Call me."

Tyler says, "I will," and watches Zack walk away for a minute before he nudges Marshall toward the path.

*

Tyler texts Zack a few times over the next couple of days. Marshall is a good conversation starter, and he sends a couple of photos of Marshall looking adorable, and one of him with Marshall that Zack replies to with, Cute!

It's not just Marshall. Zack complains about the heat and Tyler sends back a picture of the rink, which gets him a picture of the inside of a GAP. Best thing about work, Zack says, is the ac.

Tyler tries talking about the Jays and gets, You're on your own there. Watching sports isn't really my thing. I used to play tennis in high school, from Zack.

Tyler thinks for a while before he sends back, Tennis? Bet you looked cute in the shorts. ;) It seems a little risky, but they're definitely talking, and flirting sometimes, and Zack sends back, Better than all the pads you wear in hockey. ;)

Tyler sends, I make them look good, and then calls Zack.

Zack answers with, "How good?"

Tyler laughs. "Hey, those pads are hot."

"I'm going to need proof of that."

"I'll find you a picture. Do you want to have dinner?"

"I would love to," Zack says. "I'm closing tonight and tomorrow, but we could do Wednesday."

"Awesome. Have you ever been to Benihana? It's in the Fairmont, which is kind of cheesy, I guess, but it's good."

"Swanky," Zack says.

"We don't have to if you don't want," Tyler says. "But the food is good, and it's fun, and I'd like to take you there."

Zack laughs a little. "I didn't say I wasn't into it. I'll meet you there, and you'd better look good."

Tyler says, "I always look good," and they decide on dinner at seven.

As soon as they hang up, Tyler calls and makes a reservation, and then he pulls up Google and looks for a picture of himself in pads. That takes a while, because there are a lot of pictures of him, but he saves the best one of him in pads to his phone and sends it to Zack later, just about when Zack is probably getting off work.

Zack sends back, Hot, and it leaves Tyler grinning down at his phone until Brownie kicks him.

"Still texting ice cream guy?"

"Zack," Tyler says. He's still not comfortable enough about it for his cheeks to keep from heating as he talks about it. "We're going out on Wednesday."

"Dating," Brownie says. "That's a little different from your hookup strategy."

Tyler kicks him. "I've dated before."

"Yeah, girls."

"And Noah, in Biel." Tyler shrugs. "I like Zack."

"It's like you're growing up," Brownie says.

Tyler laughs. "Shut up. I'm plenty grown-up."

*

Grown-up or not, Tyler's nervous when he walks down the street to Benihana on Wednesday. Tyler's early and Zack's not there yet, and there are a couple of people in the waiting area looking at him. No one approaches him, and he's only there a few minutes before Zack shows up.

Zack checks him out and smiles. "You look good."

It's not dark enough in the place to hide the way Tyler's cheeks are turning red, which only makes it worse. "You too." He means it; Zack's in khakis and a light blue shirt that makes him look really good. Tyler lets the hostess know they're there, and then they stand to the side, out of the way of the flow of people, and wait for their table to be called.

"So," Zack says, "I worked today. Your day had to have been more interesting."

"Not really," Tyler says. "I mean, we worked out and had a skate this morning, but that's pretty much it."

"We?" Zack asks.

"I train with Brownie and Jesse and a bunch of other guys in the summer."

"Ah," Zack says. "You're right. That isn't more interesting." He says it with a grin that makes Tyler grin back at him. "Unless they're all really hot. How hot are they?"

Tyler laughs and leans in a little. "I'm not out to dinner with any of them."

Zack's grin turns into more of a soft smile, and then the hostess calls for them and they follow her and a group of other people to their table.

They're still in public, but the people they're sharing a table with are having their own party and ignore them for the most part, which means Tyler can sit close to Zack and they can have their own conversation. Zack tells him stories about his day over the soup and salad, and then all conversation stops while their chef shows off his knife skills and cooks and flips food onto plates.

Zack leans close and says, "This is great," while the chef is at the other end of the table.

Tyler smiles and risks squeezing Zack's knee. "I told you it was fun."

They get offered a dessert menu after dinner, and Zack looks it over and says, "Tempting, but I don't know if I can eat anything else ever again."

Tyler laughs. "We could walk down for ice cream instead."

"Never eating ever again," Zack says.

"Come on. It's nice out, we'll go for a walk. You might be ready for ice cream by then." Tyler licks his lips. "I want ice cream, anyway, and if you don't, you can just watch me eat mine."

"Wow," Zack says after a second. "That was dirty pool. Okay, let's go get some ice cream."

Tyler pays for dinner, and they head out. It's warm out, but not too hot to walk for a bit, and they sort of amble down the street. They've barely made it a block before Zack unbuttons his collar and cuffs and rolls his sleeves up. He's not as built as the guys Tyler sees most of the time, but he's the guy Tyler's on a date with, and that makes his eyes linger on Zack's bared wrists and forearms. He wishes he could hold Zack's hand, but he settles for brushing his hand across the back of Zack's wrist for a second before pulling his hand back.

Zack smiles sidelong at him and after they cross the street, Tyler gives in to the heat and Zack's looks and unbuttons a couple of buttons and rolls his sleeves up.

"Now that's something you can get away with that I'd never manage," Zack says. His fingers trace one of the lines of Tyler's tattoo in a touch that doesn't last long enough. "Not working retail, anyway."

"Yeah, that's true," Tyler says. "No one really cares if I have tattoos. A bunch of guys have them."

"I know this goes all the way up your arm," Zack says. "Just how much ink do you have?"

"Uh, just the sleeve, and one on my side." Tyler puts a hand over his Cup tattoo. "Thinking about more, though."

"Okay," Zack says, "I know tattoos are just a thing people do now, but what's the appeal for you?"

"I don't know." Tyler shrugs. "They're important things I guess. This one's about my family," he puts his hand over the dates on his arm, "and one about my team. I, uh, like how it feels too."

"Doesn't it hurt?"

"Yeah, but, like, it's a good kind of hurt. Like, you know it's changing you."

They stop to wait for a light, and Zack turns to look at him. Tyler tries not to let it make his cheeks any redder. Zack's look is serious, and then it turns into a bright grin.

"What?"

"Just you," Zack says. "You're all tough guy with your tattoos, and then you turn bright red. It's cute." Zack steps off the curb and Tyler has to take a quick few steps to catch up with him.

"It's embarrassing." Tyler puts his hands up to cover his cheeks.

"Cute," Zack says firmly. He pulls Tyler's arms down, and the heat of his touch lingers on Tyler's skin.

They take a few steps in silence, separate to go around a couple that's glued to each other and taking up the middle of the sidewalk.

"Now you have to tell me something," Tyler says.

"Like what?"

"I don't know. Something. Anything."

"Mmm." Zack tilts his head toward Tyler. "I don't know what I'm going to do with my life. I mean, not surprising, right? I'm an English major and I work retail in the summer. None of us know what we want to do with our lives."

"I guess most people don't know when they're our age," Tyler says.

"Enough of them," Zack says. "I've got another year to figure it out, and I signed up for this program where you work with elementary kids, so maybe I'll like that and end up teaching."

"You'd get summers off."

Zack laughs. "Is that why you chose hockey?"

"No. I love hockey. It's the only thing I ever wanted to do. And I still have to work out in the summer."

Zack prods him into telling stories about growing up with hockey, and Tyler gets him to tell a couple of stories about playing tennis, and that takes them all the way to the ice cream shop.

"What do you think?" Tyler asks when they're inside and looking at today's flavors. "Ice cream or still never eating again?"

Zack taps the display case glass. "I don't think I can resist this." He orders a scoop of chocolate amaretto in a cone, and Tyler chooses the cherry chocolate chunk, also in a cone.

Zack pushes Tyler's hand away when he tries to pay. "You bought dinner. This is my treat." He nudges Tyler aside and hands over his card, and Tyler can't really protest at that point.

They take their ice cream outside and sit at one of the tables, knees bumping together under it. Tyler licks at his ice cream and watches Zack's fingers curved around his cone and his tongue drag through his ice cream.

"Good?"

Zack licks his lips. "Yep. You can't go wrong with chocolate. How's yours?"

"Good. It's kind of like Cherry Garcia." Tyler licks at it. "And the company's good."

Zack's lips turn up at the corners. "Can't argue with that."

They don't talk much while they eat, but it's a good kind of quiet. They watch each other, and there's a kind of tension stretching between them that Tyler's more than okay with.

"If you want to walk back," Tyler says when they're done, "I can drive you home."

"You should definitely drive me home," Zack says, and when they're halfway down the block and no one's close enough to hear them, he says, "I like your idea of a date."

Tyler smiles and wishes again that he could hold Zack's hand. "Good." He waits for a couple of people to pass them before he asks, "Does that mean I'm going to get a goodnight kiss?"

"I'd say there's a good chance of that." Zack smirks at him. "My parents' driveway is very dark."

Tyler's sorry they walked so far for dessert, and relieved when they get back to his building and he can turn them into the garage.

Zack lets out a low whistle when they get to the car. "Nice."

Tyler grins at him, and again when Zack gets in and rubs his hands over the leather seats.

"So this is what hockey money gets you."

Tyler laughs. "Yeah, I guess. I always wanted a nice car, so when I could, I bought one."

"It's very nice," Zack says, low and appreciative enough to make Tyler shiver.

Zack gives him directions, and Tyler can feel Zack watching him as he drives. Tyler turns into Zack's driveway, and once he turns off the headlights, it really is very dark.

"I told you," Zack says as Tyler blinks to try to adjust his eyes. "I figured you didn't want to do this anywhere people could take cell phone pictures."

"No," Tyler says, and Zack's already leaning across the console toward him, so he goes the rest of the way and kisses Zack for the first time. He hasn't really done this since high school, but it's not hard to figure it out again. The kissing is the most important part, and he gets his arms around Zack and Zack gets one hand into Tyler's hair. It's all that tension from when they were eating ice cream breaking into heated kisses. Tyler's starting to get hard, but that doesn't seem as important as kissing Zack.

They're both panting when Zack pulls away. "Okay," he says. "That was- I should probably go."

Tyler swallows down his disappointment. "Oh, yeah, okay."

Zack leans in and kisses him again, shorter this time, and he resists Tyler's attempt to take it deeper. "Thank you for dinner. I'll call you."

Tyler waits for Zack to get into the house, and then he turns the car on and drives home in something of a daze.

He only sort of snaps out of it when Marshall greets him at the door.

"Date can't have been that good," Brownie says with just a glance away from his video game, "if you're home alone already."

Tyler takes his shoes off and leaves them lined up with the rest of their shoes. "No," he says, "it was good." He touches his fingers to his lips. "Really good." Tyler doesn't really want to talk to him about it though, so he says, "I'm going to bed. Night," and goes up the stairs.

"Uh, night," Brownie says after him.

Tyler goes to his room and flops down across his bed. It was really good. He can still feel the ghost of Zack's lips on his.

Tyler takes his phone out of his pocket and types out, I had a great time!!! and sends it to Zack with a smiley face.

He's kind of idly rubbing himself through his pants, thinking about jerking off, when his phone buzzes.

Zack's text says, Next time will be even better, and there's a winky face after it.

Tyler grins at his phone like an idiot for a minute before he turns it off and unbuttons his pants.

*

Tyler doesn't have to wait long for Zack to call him. It's only the next afternoon that he looks down at his phone buzzing and grins when he sees Zack's name. He tosses his controller at Jesse and takes his phone out onto the balcony so Brownie and Jesse can't listen in on his conversation.

"I'm not so cool I could wait to call you," Zack says.

Tyler grins. "Being cool is overrated."

Zack laughs. "Let's go out again. How do you feel about clubs?"

"Love them." Tyler leans his elbows on the railing and looks down at the city while he talks.

"There's a place called Woody's on Church Street."

"I've been there," Tyler admits.

"Good," Zack says. "That means you'll go again. I have to close tomorrow, but the party doesn't get started until late anyway and I don't have to work until the afternoon on Saturday. How about it?"

"Yes," Tyler says. He doesn't have any plans, and even if he did, he would cancel them to go clubbing with Zack instead. "Want me to pick you up?"

"Again and again," Zack says, kind of laughing at him. "But, yes. My place at ten. Wear something hot."

"Everything I wear is hot."

"Mmm," Zack says. "That is true, but I mean the kind of thing that would be hot on anyone. Not your pads."

"Not the pads," Tyler says. "I won't be able to get close enough to you with pads."

*

Time doesn't drag, exactly, but Tyler finds himself looking forward to Friday night for the rest of the day, and into Friday. He makes dinner on Friday, and Brownie teases him about his date while they eat.

Tyler does his best to ignore it, and he escapes to get dressed way before he actually needs to. It's not like there's much to choose - his best jeans and a black v-neck have been good enough so far - and even spending a couple of extra minutes making sure his hair looks good doesn't take that much time.

He ends up sitting on his bed playing Fruit Ninja for a while, until his phone beeps with a reminder that it is actually time to leave.

"Let me see," Brownie says when Tyler gets downstairs, and Tyler does a slow turn for him that brings him back to a skeptical look on Brownie's face. "You're nothing special."

Tyler flips him off. "It was good enough to get me laid before." He puts on his shoes, says goodbye to Marshall, and heads down to the car.

It's not much of a drive to Zack's place, and Tyler gets there just before ten. He turns off the car, takes a deep breath, and goes up to knock on the door.

Zack answers it, in dark blue jeans that mold to his hips and a white v-neck that shows off his shoulders.

"Wow," Tyler says. "Hi."

Zack grins at him. "Hi." He pushes Tyler backwards and turns to close the door, giving Tyler a chance to look at what his jeans are doing to his ass. It's something good.

Zack grins again when he turns around and catches Tyler checking him out.

Tyler just grins back and waves him toward the car.

The drive is comfortable, and Tyler finds a parking space a couple of blocks away from Woody's. They still can't hold hands on the walk there, but they walk close enough that their arms brush, and from the looks they get from some of the other men out walking around, they probably look like they're together.

Tyler holds the door for Zack, who smiles at him, and then takes his hand as soon as they're inside. "Shots first," Zack says. "Then dancing."

Tyler grins back at him, because that sounds like his kind of evening, and lets Zack drag him to one of the bars. Zack orders them each a pair of vodka shots, and doesn't let Tyler pay for them. They clink their glasses together and throw back their first shots, then the second.

Tyler grabs Zack's wrist when he puts the second glass down on the bar. "Dancing?"

"Yes." Zack pulls against Tyler's hold until they're holding hands and leads Tyler out onto the dance floor.

Tyler's not the best dancer, but he does okay, and he knows how to have fun on a dance floor. It helps that Zack also knows what he's doing, and that it doesn't take long before they've moved into the crowd and the press of people keeps them pressed close together. It's where Tyler wants to be anyway. He puts his hands on Zack's hips, and Zack slides one arm around him, and then they're pressed so close together their dancing turns into grinding.

It's warm in the club, or dancing with Zack is making him warm. It's the kind of heat that makes him want to be a little reckless, and he loses track of anything but the music and Zack's body. He holds on to reality just enough to remember that there are things he shouldn't be doing in public.

He bends in close to Zack's ear and asks, "Want to get out of here?"

"Yes."

They somehow ended up in the middle of the dance floor, so it takes them a few minutes to make their way out of it, into the slightly less crowded areas of the club. Tyler holds Zack's hand and pulls him along until they get to the door, where he lets go and holds the door for Zack.

They're both sweaty and flushed from dancing, and Tyler wants to kiss Zack more than anything, but he can't on the street.

"I live with my parents," Zack says as they set out toward the car, "so my place is out."

Tyler sucks in a breath, because that's an invitation to more than just making out. "We can go to my place."

"Good," Zack says, "because I really want to get you alone."

Tyler drives home with both hands on the wheel. If he doesn't keep them there, he'll reach for Zack.

They manage to keep their hands off of each other in the garage, the elevator, and the hall, but the minute the apartment door is closed, Zack is pulling Tyler in and kissing him. Tyler makes a noise into Zack's mouth, and he puts his hands on Zack to get him closer, tilt his head to a better angle.

Marshall interrupts, and Tyler and Zack break apart to look down at him.

"Hey, buddy." Tyler rubs at the top of Marshall's head.

"You're adorable," Zack says, reaching down to do the same, "but you're a horrible cockblock."

Tyler laughs and grabs Zack's hand. "We should go upstairs anyway." He shoos Marshall back to his bed and takes Zack up the stairs.

Zack pauses halfway up and says, "You have a bed on the landing."

"Yeah," Tyler says. "Weird, but it's extra space when friends crash or whatever."

"Or if you can't wait to get all the way to the top."

Tyler squeezes Zack's hand. "Come on. My bed is bigger."

Zack takes two steps at once and they dash up the rest of the stairs laughing.

Tyler kisses Zack at the top of the stairs, and they keep kissing into Tyler's room where he flips on the light and swings the door closed.

Zack breaks away and laughs. "When you said your bed was bigger, this wasn't what I was expecting."

Tyler shrugs. "It just means we're going to have to be really close."

"I can get behind that." Zack kisses Tyler, then runs his mouth over Tyler's jaw and down to his neck.

During the season, he'll have to be more careful, but no one's going to care if he has stubble burn or hickeys in the summer, so Tyler tips his head back and lets Zack mouth at his neck. He slides his hands up the back of Zack's shirt, which makes Zack hum into his neck and then nip at his skin.

Zack stops kissing his neck and tips Tyler's head down so their lips can meet. He licks into Tyler's mouth, and Tyler follows his tongue back to Zack's mouth. He can taste Zack and the faintest hint of the shots they did.

Tyler tugs at Zack and walks them over to the bed. He lets go and lies down, taking up most of the space and looking up at Zack. "Come on," he says. "Plenty of room."

Zack shakes his head, and kind of laughs, and also puts his knees on either side of Tyler's hips. "How close do we have to get?" He leans down and kisses Tyler without moving closer anywhere else.

"A lot closer than that." Tyler puts his arms around Zack and pulls him down. Zack's knees slide down along his thighs until they're on either side of Tyler's knees and Zack's all the way on top of him. "Like this."

"This is pretty close."

It is, close enough that Tyler can see every tiny shift of muscle in Zack's face, the way his eyelashes look when he blinks. "Too close?"

"No." Zack nips at Tyler's bottom lip. "Just about right." He stops talking and kisses Tyler, both of them doing their best to make it as wet and deep as possible. Kissing Zack is even better this way, with Zack on top of him and Zack's cock pressing into his hip through two layers of denim.

It's mostly just kissing. Tyler has his arms around Zack, and Zack has one hand on Tyler's face and the other on his side just above the waistband of his jeans, but they're not really groping each other, or even rubbing against each other except for the little movements as they shift position as they make out.

"Wait, wait," Zack gasps. He sits up, on his knees over Tyler. "Can I?" He puts his hands at Tyler's fly, and when Tyler nods at him, he unbuttons Tyler's jeans and draws the zipper down. Tyler watches his face, so he knows that Zack's looking at his hands, at Tyler's hips as he lifts them so Zack can pull his jeans and boxer briefs down over his cock.

Zack's eyes flicker up to Tyler's face for a second, and then back down to watch as he takes Tyler's cock in his hand.

"Fuck," Tyler says when Zack strokes him, root to tip. He props himself up on his elbows. "Come here. You're not close enough."

Zack leans over to kiss him, but doesn't get any closer.

"No, come on." Tyler stays on one elbow and wraps his other arm around Zack's back. "I want to touch you too."

Zack leans down, and then he tips them to the side. There's a moment where Tyler's arm around Zack is the only thing that keeps them from falling off the bed, but then they're lying down, facing each other, and firmly enough on the bed that Tyler can let go of Zack and use his hands to get Zack's jeans open and his cock bared.

Zack's cock is hot and heavy in Tyler's hand, and he hitches himself closer so he can kiss Zack while they stroke each other.

"Maybe this small bed isn't a bad idea," Zack says with a grin.

"It's working out for me." Tyler kisses Zack, and nudges at Zack's chin so he can suck at Zack's neck.

"Oh, God," Zack moans. "Don't stop doing that."

Tyler grins at sucks at another spot. "This?" He runs his thumb over the head of Zack's cock. "Or this?"

"Both of them." Zack tips his head down and kisses Tyler. "But don't give me a hickey. I have to work tomorrow."

Tyler laughs and sucks at Zack's neck, jerks him off slow and easy. He keeps up the same easy rhythm, but it's getting Zack there. It's getting both of them there, so hot to watch Zack fall apart under his hands and mouth while Zack's hand falters on his cock.

"Tyler," Zack murmurs. "Baby, that's so good."

Tyler moves his hand a little faster. "Yeah," he says. "You're so hot like this. Let me see you come." He sucks at Zack's neck, almost hard enough to leave a mark.

"Oh, fuck," Zack moans. "Oh, baby, yes."

Tyler moves his mouth and sucks at a different spot on Zack's neck.

Zack moans without words and comes all over Tyler's hand.

"Tyler," he says after a minute. "That was so good." He kisses Tyler, sloppy and wet, and squeezes his cock. "Baby, I'm going to make you feel so good." The rhythm, when he starts moving his hand, is faster than what Tyler was using with him, a quick wrist movement that runs his fingers up and down the vein on the underside and up over the head of his cock.

"Zack," Tyler gasps. He wants to say his name before he comes, let Zack know he knows who's getting him off.

"That's it, baby." Zack kisses him, stealing his breath, and Tyler comes with a groan Zack licks out of his mouth.

Zack lets go of Tyler's cock before the touch becomes too much, but they keep kissing. It becomes more focused as the fuzziness of Tyler's orgasm wears off, and Tyler leans up over Zack to grab a handful of tissues from the box next to the bed.

They clean up enough that it's not completely gross anymore, and Tyler leans over Zack to toss the tissues into the trash can.

Zack slides a hand up Tyler's stomach and under his shirt while he's there. Tyler grins down at him and holds himself up on his arms so Zack can keep touching him.

"We didn't even get naked," Zack says.

Tyler rolls back to the other side of the bed. "We could do that now."

Zack says, "Good idea," and they scramble out of their clothes without elbowing each other or falling off the bed.

Tyler reaches out once they're naked and runs his hand over Zack's chest, and up over his shoulder. He has really nice shoulders.

"Damn," Zack says. "You really can make anything look good."

Tyler blushes, like he wasn't already flushed enough from getting off. "You too," he says.

Zack grins at him, and then yawns. "I'm one of those guys who falls asleep after sex if you don't kick me out right away."

"I'm not kicking you out." Tyler gets up and turns off the light, and then gets back into bed and puts his arm around Zack's shoulders. "We have to be close in this bed."

"Oh, yeah?" Zack scoots in even closer, so their knees are bumping together and his head is right at the curve of Tyler's neck. "Close enough?"

"Yeah," Tyler says. "Yeah, that's good."

*

Tyler's back is kind of cold when he wakes up in the morning, but his front is all warm where Zack is, and there are moving spots of warmth where Zack's running his fingers over Tyler's side.

Tyler opens his eyes, and Zack is watching him from really close.

"Oh, good, you're awake. I was thinking about blowing you."

Tyler groans and squeezes his eyes shut. "You're a morning person."

Zack laughs softly. "And you're not, I guess." He pats Tyler's hip. "That's okay. You just lie there and I'll make you feel good." He pushes Tyler over onto his back, and Tyler can hear the rustle of the sheets as Zack moves.

That's all the warning Tyler has before Zack takes him into his mouth. Tyler's already kind of hard just from it being morning, and Zack's mouth feels really good. Zack's not doing anything fancy, just holding Tyler in his mouth and sucking a little bit. He did say Tyler didn't have to do anything, so he doesn't, keeps his eyes closed and listens to the slight sounds of Zack sucking him. He blinks his eyes open once, and looks at Zack's mouth around his cock, Zack's slightly hollowed cheeks, and closes his eyes again and keeps that image in his mind while Zack works him over.

It seems like it takes a long time, but Tyler's not at his best in the morning, so maybe it's not that long before he's warning Zack that he's about to come. Zack sucks harder, and when Tyler comes, it's in warm waves that don't seem that urgent.

Zack swallows, and Tyler opens his eyes after a minute or two to look at Zack's red, red lips and the satisfied smile on his face.

"Come here." Tyler pulls Zack up and kisses him. It's kind of gross with come and morning breath, but he kind of doesn't care. Zack's hard against his thigh, and after a few seconds of kissing, Tyler pushes Zack down onto his back and moves down the bed. He looks up to make sure Zack is paying attention, and then he takes Zack's cock into his mouth, as much of it as he can at once.

Tyler knows what he looks like this, and he knows he's pretty good at sucking cock, and he really wants to make Zack feel good. He doesn't hold back at all, gives it his best effort, and it isn't long before Zack is moaning and saying, "Baby, yes, just like that."

Zack warns him before he comes, and Tyler just sucks harder, wanting to take Zack all the way there with his mouth. Tyler swallows when Zack comes, licks his lips to get the last traces that he almost misses.

"Fuck," Zack says. "Fuck, that was so good."

Tyler can't disagree with that at all. He crawls up the bed and lies down next to Zack, pressed close so they both fit on his bed.

Zack strokes his cheek. "I'm really glad I stopped to talk to you and Marshall."

Tyler smiles at him, because he's really glad too. He tugs Zack even closer and kisses him. Zack kisses him back for a while before he stops and says, "Okay, this is getting gross. Do you have a spare toothbrush?"

"Yeah. Cupboard in the bathroom."

Zack kisses his cheek and gets out of bed.

Tyler closes his eyes and dozes for a bit while Zack is gone, and doesn't open his eyes again until Zack kisses his cheek, and this time Tyler can smell the mint on his breath.

"Okay," Tyler groans. "I'm getting up."

Zack grins at him and starts picking up clothes off the floor. Tyler takes a moment to appreciate his body before he goes to brush his teeth and take a quick shower.

His bedroom is empty when he goes back to it, and he throws on some clothes and goes downstairs. Zack's in the kitchen, sitting at the counter in his clothes from last night, watching Brownie make eggs. Tyler stops for a second and bends down to scratch behind Marshall's ears before he keeps walking toward them.

"Good morning," Brownie says, and Tyler knows him well enough to know Brownie's making fun of him.

"Morning. You better be making enough for all of us." Tyler stops at the counter to put his arm around Zack for a moment. Whatever. Brownie already knows he's gay, and that he and Zack hooked up last night.

"Yep," Brownie says. "But you're making protein shakes." He turns back to the stove, so Tyler kisses Zack's neck before he goes around the counter and gets out the blender.

"Do you want some?"

The face Zack makes wrinkles up his nose. "No, I'll leave that to you two."

Tyler makes protein shakes for two and leaves one of them on the counter for Brownie and takes the other with him when he goes around to sit next to Zack. "You sure you don't want some?" Tyler sips at his shake and licks his lips after.

Zack glances at Brownie, who is very pointedly not looking at them, and says, "Maybe just a taste." He doesn't take Tyler's glass, but he does lean in and kiss Tyler, his tongue sweeping through Tyler's mouth.

Tyler's too aware of Brownie in the kitchen with them to let it go on very long, but it's a good kiss anyway, and it leaves him flushed and grinning into his protein shake.

There's a barely suppressed smirk on Brownie's face when he puts plates of eggs and toast in front of them and the ketchup next to Tyler's plate.

"Thank you," Zack says. "This looks good."

"Thanks," Tyler says, and he probably means it even more than Zack, because he's thanking Brownie for way more than just making breakfast for all three of them.

"No problem," Brownie says, and the look he gives Tyler means he also means more than just breakfast.

That part of the conversation seems to go over Zack's head, and they don't really talk while they eat. Tyler turns out to be starving now that he's thinking about food, and he makes more toast and spreads peanut butter on it when he's done with his eggs.

"I really want to make a joke about protein," Zack says in an undertone when Brownie gets up to put his plate away.

Tyler snickers and holds out his toast for Zack to take a bite of.

Brownie rolls his eyes at both of them, but he also takes their plates too, so he's still the best friend Tyler's ever had.

"I should get home," Zack says with a sigh. "I have to work later, and I should probably reassure my parents I'm not dead." He looks down at himself. "And change my clothes."

Tyler licks the last of the peanut butter off his fingers - Zack's eyes follow the motion in a really gratifying way - and slides off his stool. "I'll drive you."

Brownie says goodbye to Zack and stays in the kitchen while Tyler and Zack go out to the living room to put on their shoes.

Zack takes a moment with Marshall too, rubs behind his ears and says, "Sorry we didn't spend much time with you, buddy. Maybe next time." Then he stands up and pushes Tyler against the door. "I have to kiss you now. The driveway won't be dark."

Tyler grins and tugs Zack in by his belt loops.

They kiss open-mouthed and slow for a long moment that isn't long enough before Zack lets go and steps back so Tyler can open the door.

Tyler holds Zack's hand in the car, and when they get to Zack's, Zack squeezes his hand and gives him a look that says they'd be making out again if it weren't so light out.

"Call me," Zack says.

"Yes," Tyler says, and he has to make himself let go so Zack can get out of the car.

*

"So," Brownie says when Tyler gets home. "Boyfriend?"

Tyler blushes. "Kind of, I guess? I don't know. That was only our third date."

"He seems nice," Brownie says.

"Uh, yeah, he is." Tyler can't help smiling.

"And from what I had to hear, the sex is good."

"Oh my God, shut up."

Brownie laughs. "You learn to shut up. Our walls aren't that thick."

"You don't have to listen."

"It's hard not to when you're loud enough to wake me up." Brownie smirks at him. "I should have known. You were never this loud with girls."

"I hate you," Tyler says.

"No you don't," Brownie says with an easy grin. He tosses Tyler one of the Xbox controllers. "You have to love me. No one else would put up with listening to that."

Tyler sits down on the couch with his controller. "Like you and Julie aren't just as bad."

Brownie shrugs and starts the game. "You've never complained before."

"Because I'm a better person than you are."

Brownie laughs. "Keep telling yourself that."

*

Zack texts Tyler that day, during one of his breaks at work, and they keep up a steady conversation, interspersed with dates and spending nights at Tyler's at least once a week.

It's good. It's fun, and it keeps a smile on Tyler's face, even when he comes out of tough conditioning days that leave him otherwise wrung out.

Tyler gets recognized while they're out a few times, but he just smiles for pictures and signs autographs, and is careful not to be too obvious about what his relationship with Zack is when they're in public.

They're lying in Tyler's bed late one afternoon near the end of August, Zack tracing his fingers over Tyler's chest and Tyler with his eyes closed, when Zack says, "Hey," and Tyler opens his eyes because that wasn't just a casual "Hey."

"What?"

Zack sits up, his hand sliding over Tyler's chest again. "This has been really good."

Tyler sits up too, and says, "It has," to cover the sinking feeling in his stomach.

Zack sighs and leans forward to kiss him. "It's not going to last, though, is it?"

Tyler closes his eyes and says, "No, I guess not." They haven't talked about the future, Tyler didn't even take Zack to meet his family, and training camp for Tyler and school for Zack start soon.

Zack kisses him softly. "Hey," he says, "don't be sad." He rubs his hands over Tyler's shoulders. "It was fun. We had a good summer." He kisses Tyler a little deeper. "We still have another couple of weeks before I have to go back to Kingston."

Tyler kisses him back, and they make out until Zack's phone buzzes with the alarm that means they have to get dressed so Tyler can drive Zack to work.

Zack pats Tyler's hand before he gets out of the car. "A couple more weeks," he says. "We'll have a good time."

Tyler smiles back at him because he still really likes Zack, and even though this isn't exactly what he wants, and he feels bad about it coming to an end, it's not breaking his heart like he thinks it could, which probably says something about the relationship.

Of course, he's still not happy about it, and that's probably all over his face when he gets home, because Brownie asks him, "What's up with you?"

Tyler flops down on the couch and moves over enough to let Marshall come up and cuddle with him. "I think I just got pre-dumped."

"Pre-dumped? How does that even work?"

"We're still hanging out, but only until he goes back to school."

"Ouch," Brownie says.

"Yep." Tyler rubs behind Marshall's ears. "But you're not going anywhere, are you, buddy? Yeah, you're better than a boyfriend anyway."

"Maybe it's for the best," Brownie says, and Tyler looks up to glare at him. "No," Brownie says with his hands out, "listen to me. Once the season starts, you're going to be traveling all over the place. You wouldn't see him anyway, and this way you can hook up whenever you want. No one's going to recognize you half the places you go anyway."

Tyler sighs. "Yeah, probably," he says, "but can't you let me wallow first?"

"Sure." Brownie pats his ankle. "Want to watch The Notebook?"

Tyler puts his arm over his eyes. "Yes."

Brownie gets up, and Tyler listens to the click of the DVD case, the whoosh of the DVD player opening and closing, and then the familiar menu screen music.

Brownie throws the remote at him even though Tyler's not looking - it thunks into his chest, just missing Marshall - and goes into the kitchen. "Ice cream?"

"No," Tyler says. "We met at an ice cream place."

There's silence from the kitchen, and Tyler starts the movie. Brownie comes back with a couple of bottles of Gatorade and a spoon he hands to Tyler. When Tyler sticks the spoon into his mouth, he finds it's not ice cream - Brownie probably would have brought bowls or the carton anyway - but frosting from one of the cans in the fridge.

"Thanks," he says through the sugar.

Brownie sits down and pats his ankle again before he settles in to watch Allie and Noah fall in love.

*

Zack has plans with his family for his last night in town, and plans with some of his friends from high school for the night before that, and Tyler gets the night before that.

Brownie leaves in the afternoon to crash at Jesse's for the night, and Tyler makes dinner and sets the table instead of just putting plates on the counter.

"Hey, this is nice," Zack says after Tyler lets him in, kisses him, and gets out of the way so Zack can pet Marshall. "Are you cooking?"

"Yes," Tyler says. "I can cook."

Zack laughs and leans over the counter to kiss him. "I wasn't doubting that."

Tyler puts his hand on Zack's cheek and keeps him there for another kiss before he has to pull away to check on the food.

They eat at the table, and it's nice, if a little quiet. They're both too aware that it's the last night for it to be that happy, but it's still nice to be with Zack, and to have Zack's leg resting against his.

Tyler refuses Zack's offer to help clean up, and Zack sits at the counter and keeps him company while he puts dishes in the dishwasher and sets pans in the sink to soak.

"So," Tyler says when the kitchen's clean. "Want to go for ice cream?"

"Are you going to tease me horribly with the way you use your tongue?"

Tyler blushes a little, but also grins. "Yes."

Zack fakes a sigh, and says, "All right, let's go."

Tyler kisses him before he can get up, and then they put their shoes on, put Marshall on his leash, and walk to the ice cream shop. It would be better if they could hold hands, but at least they're making the walk together, and Marshall's completely happy running ahead and then coming back to them.

After he gives Marshall a treat, Tyler does his best to be enticing without going overboard, and the way he licks his ice cream cone does keep Zack's eyes glued to his mouth.

"Why did we walk?" Zack asks when Tyler licks the last bit of stickiness off his fingers after he's done with his ice cream. "I really want to be naked with you right now."

Tyler looks around, but Zack said it quietly enough that they weren't overheard. "So let's get out of here."

They walk a little faster on the way back, pausing only to wait for Marshall and stoplights. Tyler has to curl his hands around Marshall's leash to keep from reaching for Zack in the elevator, and Zack hovers close behind him when he opens his apartment door.

Tyler thinks just enough to unclip Marshall's leash before he pushes Zack up against the closed door and kisses him.

"You are such a tease," Zack mutters through their kisses.

"I know what works." Tyler pulls Zack's shirt up enough to get his hands on skin.

"It really works." Zack tips his head back when Tyler kisses his neck, and then he puts his hands on Tyler's arms. "Wait, wait. What about your roommate?"

Tyler sucks at Zack's neck. He'd like to send Zack back to school with a hickey, but he doesn't, stops before it goes that far. "Gone for the night." Tyler slides to his knees, looks up at Zack to make sure Zack is watching before he gets Zack's jeans open.

He presses kisses to Zack's waist, then moves down as he pulls Zack's jeans and underwear out of the way. He licks Zack's cock, a solid stripe up the underside, then a couple of little licks, like he did with his ice cream.

"God, your tongue," Zack says. He has his hands fisted at his sides, and he's staring down at Tyler with the kind of hungry look that's a thousand times more intense than it was when they were in public.

Tyler keeps on with little licks, over the head, the ridge below, up and down the shaft. He looks up at Zack as much as he can without losing track of what he's doing. He does that for a long time before Zack touches him, hand heavy against the back of his head.

"Tyler," Zack says, "please, you're killing me."

Tyler doesn't really want to make this go any faster - he likes feeling Zack's cock under his tongue, and this is his last chance, or second to last if they do this again in the morning - but he wraps one hand around the base of Zack's cock and slides his mouth down to meet it.

"Tyler," Zack moans. "Baby, just like that."

Tyler moves, sucks, lets Zack fuck gently into his mouth. He listens to Zack falling apart above him and rolls Zack's balls in his free hand. He swallows as best he can around Zack's cock when Zack comes and keeps Zack's cock in his mouth until Zack stops holding him there and pushes him off it.

"God, Tyler." Zack slides to the floor, legs spread around Tyler where he's still on his knees. "I'm going to miss you doing that so much." He hooks his arm around Tyler's shoulders and kisses him.

Tyler kisses back, and only moves away when Zack pulls his shirt up and he has to raise his arms and let Zack pull it over his head. Zack pushes Tyler back, and he twists so he has room to stretch out his legs as he lies down all the way on the floor.

Zack kisses down his chest, stopping to lick at Tyler's nipples, and again to trace his tongue over the ridges of Tyler's abs. It's slow, and Tyler's already hard, but it feels too good to rush Zack along.

Zack gets there anyway, opening Tyler's jeans and getting his cock out. He jacks it slowly a couple of times, strokes that make Tyler groan, and then bends over and takes it into his mouth.

It's good, and they've been together long enough that Zack knows what he likes, so there's no guesswork, nothing tentative about it, just Zack's mouth and tongue in all the places guaranteed to make Tyler feel good.

Tyler gets one arm under his head, propping himself up enough that he can see Zack's lips stretching around his cock. He's been so conscious of this as the last time, but now, half-naked on the floor with Zack bending over him, that all fades away to be replaced with the sheer pleasure of what they're doing.

It builds and builds and builds, and then Zack's tongue twists around him in just the right way, and Tyler cries out as he comes. Zack works him through it, and then lets Tyler's cock fall from his mouth.

"Zack," Tyler says, voice wrecked, and Zack grins at him and moves up his body to kiss him.

"I can't believe Marshall didn't interrupt us," Zack says after a couple of minutes of making out.

Tyler half laughs and half groans. "Come on," he says, "let's get off the floor."

They don't make it far, just to the couch, dropping their clothes on the floor as they go. Zack pushes Tyler down and lies mostly on top of him, and they keep making out. It's not going anywhere, not yet, but it's still good, naked and relaxed kissing that goes on for longer than Tyler thought they would get away with before Marshall comes over to demand attention. That's good too, both of them still tangled up in each other and reaching out to pet Marshall and talk to him.

Marshall wanders off after a while, deciding his squeaky toy is more interesting than them, and Zack and Tyler make out some more.

When their making out turns into wandering hands and both of them starting to get hard, Zack gets up and says, "Let's go to bed."

*

Tyler wakes up in the morning with sore lips, the feeling of being watched, and a hard-on. He opens his eyes to Zack, pressed close because they both like it that way and because it's a small bed.

Zack smiles at him, and Tyler jerks him off in a still sleepy daze that doesn't really clear until well after Zack makes him come.

"You want breakfast?"

"Yeah."

"'Kay." Tyler yawns and makes himself get out of bed and duck into the bathroom to brush his teeth and take a quick shower. He has clothes upstairs, but Zack's are all on the floor downstairs, so while he's in the kitchen cooking, Zack comes downstairs naked, and Tyler stops what he's doing to watch him get dressed.

"Like what you see?" Zack walks across the room while he pulls on his shirt.

"Yes." Tyler leans across the counter to kiss him. "Better when you're taking it off."

Zack grins and kisses him, and then crouches down to pet Marshall while Tyler finishes making breakfast.

They eat slowly, without talking much, and Zack hangs around in the kitchen, leaning against the counter with a coffee mug in his hands, watching Tyler clean up.

Tyler pins him there after he puts things away, and kisses him long and slow, and again and again after Zack puts the mug down and wraps his arms around Tyler.

"I should go," Zack says eventually.

Tyler's arms tighten around him almost involuntarily. "I'll drive you."

"No." Zack shakes his head. "I'll take the bus. I don't want you to drive me home and then not be able to kiss you." He strokes his hands over Tyler's hair. "This has been a really great summer. I'm sorry it couldn't be more than that."

Tyler nods, and doesn't trust himself to speak. He leans his forehead on Zack's shoulder instead. Zack kisses his temple and holds him for a while, until Tyler doesn't feel quite so much like he might cry and he can pull back and smile at Zack.

"Thanks," he says, and he kisses Zack gently. "You know, you were my first Canadian boyfriend."

Zack laughs. "Someday when you're out, I'm going to brag about that."

"You should," Tyler says. "You were a good boyfriend."

Zack looks at him fondly, and strokes his cheek. "I'll text you sometime, okay?"

"Yeah." Tyler kisses him, and this time he knows it's probably the last one.

Zack slides out from between him and the counter and goes over to pet Marshall. "It was good to know you, buddy," he says. "You're a good dog." Then he stands up, waves at Tyler, and then he's gone.

Tyler lets out a shaky breath and calls Marshall over to him. "You're the best dog," Tyler says, and he pets Marshall for a minute before he gets Marshall to go with him to lie down on the couch. He doesn't really want to talk to Brownie when he gets home, but going upstairs seems like too much work right now.

*

Zack leaving is pretty much the end of the summer, anyway. Tyler hangs out with his family a lot in the last two weeks before he has to go to Boston for training camp, and he eats a couple of spoonfuls of frosting, but otherwise sticks to his nutrition and conditioning plan. Brownie helps by not asking a lot of questions and, Tyler's pretty sure, telling Jesse and Fred not to ask him about it either.

Tyler could probably go out and get laid before he leaves Toronto, but he doesn't, jerks off to fantasies and memories of Zack instead.

*

Fred heads down to Boston earlier than Tyler does, and he keeps tweeting and texting and calling about the house and how nice it is to have it to himself and how Tyler owes him for groceries.

You're the only one eating them, Tyler sends back. I'm not paying for that.

Fred sends him a picture of a giant bag of dog food.

Tyler looks from it to Marshall and says, "At least you won't starve when we get down there."

*

Tyler and Brownie clean out their fridge and pack up a week and a half later. Brownie spends so much time saying goodbye to Marshall that Tyler starts to feel left out.

Brownie finally says, "And you take care of your daddy," and stands up. He goes in for a hug at the same time Tyler does, and it's a good, solid hug.

"Hey, thanks," Tyler says. "For, you know, being cool."

"Cooler than you," Brownie says. "But, dude, of course." He thumps Tyler on the shoulder. "We'll Skype and shit. You can tell me about all the dudes you're meeting. Without too much detail. I already know more than I want to about your sex life."

Tyler's cheeks heat up, and he shoves Brownie. "Shut up. Like I don't know just as much about yours."

Brownie makes a face at him. "Don't remind me. And don't say that shit to Julie. She doesn't need to know how much you heard."

"I think I'll call her later," Tyler says.

Brownie laughs and hugs him again. "Okay, dude, be careful when you're out there picking up dudes without me to back you up."

"I did fine without you here," Tyler says, but he appreciates the sentiment. He clips on Marshall's leash and gathers up the last of his duffels, and waits for Brownie to grab his last bag.

Brownie flips the living room lights off and makes sure the door is locked behind them, and they ride the elevator down to the garage together, and then they wave and get into their own cars to drive back to their own teams, and that, more than anything, means summer is really over.

"All right, buddy," Tyler says to Marshall. "Let's get back to Boston. We're going to have a good year, right?"

Marshall barks at him, and Tyler grins.

"Sure we are."

*

The first few days back in Boston are something of a whirlwind. Tyler hangs with Fred at home the first night - the drive back gives him enough of an excuse not to do anything else - and then catches up with his team, hangs with the rest of his crew, and settles back into his life in Boston.

Training camp starts up, and it's just like it always is, so much so that Tyler forgets for long stretches of time that there's anything else in his life.

He's waiting for his turn at a drill when he realizes he's barely thought about Zack all week.

Marchy hits him in the skate with his stick. "What's with that look on your face?"

"Nothing," Tyler says. "I was just thinking."

"I know how that's hard for you."

"Fuck you," Tyler says with a laugh. He jostles with Marchy and takes his turn, and comes back to it later. He really hasn't thought about Zack much. Maybe a couple of times when he was jerking off, but nothing very substantial. He kind of feels guilty about it now that he's thinking about it, because shouldn't he feel worse about the end of his relationship?

"I don't know," Brownie says when Tyler mentions it to him over Skype, both of them at the end of long training camp days and Tyler rambling a bit. "You feel however you feel, I guess. And you knew it was coming, like we watched The Notebook before Zack even left."

"Yeah, I guess," Tyler says. "I haven't even texted him."

"Has he texted you?"

"No."

"Well," Brownie says, "maybe that's just it. It doesn't all have to be, like, writing letters every day for a year and never really loving anyone else."

Tyler makes a face at him. "No, I know that."

"So," Brownie says, "live with it, and go hook up with someone else if you need the distraction."

"Yeah," Tyler says slowly.

"What?"

Tyler sighs. "It's, like, no one here knows, except for Fred."

Brownie waves a hand, because, yeah, Tyler doesn't have to explain Fred's uselessness as a wingman to him.

"I don't know," Tyler says. "Maybe I should just tell people."

"Up to you, dude. If it's just that, you don't really need a wingman to hook up."

"Yeah," Tyler says, "but, like, I don't know about doing that in Boston."

"Seriously? Are you worried about getting recognized? You went out and hooked up in Toronto."

"Yeah, but it's different in Boston." Tyler shrugs. "People always know who I am at bars and clubs and stuff. If I told people, I don't know, maybe they know people or something."

"I don't know," Brownie says. "It's your life. Do what you want. Or go hook up when you're out of town."

"Yeah, I guess," Tyler says. "Maybe I do need the distraction."

Part 3