𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙬𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙮-𝙛𝙤𝙪𝙧 — 𝙢𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙤𝙧 𝙗𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙠

☕

COFFEE – IT MADE and broke relationships. It brought together people, was the start of something new for them, and it ended things just as quickly. Once the last drip went from the cup and into your mouth, it was the end of an era for some but the beginning for another. It was the perfect stage for serious conversations because you could hide your expressions under a nice, warm cup of coffee and leave the difficult topic after all the liquid was drained from the cup.

         It was the beginning of some relationships, first dates at a nice coffee shop where they might hold hands and they tentatively ask about interests and hobbies, careers and favorite colors, taking things slow as they got to know each other before ultimately deciding whether or not they would like to continue this newfound relationship.

         It was the end of others where one would sit across their significant other and end things, say the five words I'm breaking up with you before giving an explanation as to why – the most famous being it's not you, it's me (not that anyone ever believed them when they used it) – and leaving as the person they walked away from tried not to have a breakdown in such a public location. If the break up was loud enough, the others in the building were already giving them a sympathetic look and that was hard enough.

         And in the case of Brendon Winchester, sitting in the coffee shop he had been working at since the beginning of the relationship, he was unsure whether this meeting would strengthen his bond with Harry or end it. Didn't know if he would be leaving with one less friend and a broken heart, knowing that their relationship was over and it was his fault – partially, anyway. Didn't know if this would be the beginning of the spiral downward for him, where he isolated everyone and lost himself in the drugs, or if nothing would change.

         There were so many possibilities and Brendon was unsure what would happen and that caused his anxiety to peak as his leg bounced nervously under the table. He kept looking around to make sure that he didn't miss when Harry came in, heart racing rapidly in his chest, and it didn't stop when the Osborn boy did enter the building.

         Whereas Brendon was completely tense, Harry was relaxed and smiling, he looked so happy and free – he had no idea where the conversation would do. He was so completely clueless and happy, thinking they would talk about finals or something lighter, and here he was preparing to burst the bubble, end the happiness, and confront him with something.

         He wasn't ready.

         Brendon wanted to run, to hide, to go away forever so that he didn't have to do this even though he knew it was the right thing to do. Even though he knew he needed to have his questions answered and to just understand why Harry would do this because he cared so much about the boy.

         But he couldn't run, couldn't hide, couldn't go away forever; he had to do this. He had to burst the bubble and come out with the truth, let the dramatic music play as he confronted Harry with this issue and watch the boy close himself because he cared. He had to do this because he cared so much and not saying anything, by letting this continue, he was praising this lifestyle and letting it happen and he didn't want that. He cared too much about Harry, the boy meant too much to him.

         Harry was the outgoing friend who gave you one charming smile and you would fall in love with him, just a little bit. Brendon was sure that everyone who met Harry had a crush on him at least for a week – no matter if you weren't attracted to his gender or anything. That was just Harry; he was just so irresistible.

         But he was more than that; he was Harry Osborn, the smitten and blushing mess when it came to Bren Cooper. All the confidence he'd have with anyone else, the flirty nature and the smile that make everyone's knees weaken, went out the window and it was cute to see him stumble over his words because of a boy.

         He was the one who finally locked Brendon in a room with Peter and made them work things out, getting them together when they couldn't do it themselves. He's the one who made him confess his feelings to the Parker boy, starting it all when he had been too scared to do anything. When he wrote everything off as Peter just being friendly when really the boy did like him back.

         And so he cared a lot about the boy. Brendon loved his friend and wanted to help him, not hurt him. He was doing this because he loved the boy and he wanted to help him, because it was unfair for them to just continue pretending as if they didn't know and wonder why. He had to say something, speak up, because he cared and he couldn't stand it if something happened to Harry because he took drugs that could be contaminated with something else.

         So he couldn't run; he had to sit there and watch as Harry sat down next to him with a large smile on his face. He had to break the boy's heart and watch him recoil because he cared. And he didn't want to lose Harry, he didn't want this friendship to end because of his concerns, but it was a risk he had to be willing to take.

         "Hey," Harry greeted him easily, "What did you wanna talk about? Is it about Peter? I heard that you guys were having some problems."

         Brendon shook his head, though he wished it was about Peter. It would be so much easier just to lament about the boy than talk about this; to confront him on this. He wouldn't be losing hair over it like he was with this.

         "No, not him," Brendon started, "I just need some more time but everything's fine."

         Harry hummed, "Alright, 'cause Peter was really worried. Like, I had never seen him so anxious before. It was really bad and I had to end up calming him down before sending him to Ned who could probably help better than me."

         Brendon froze slightly at the thought of it. He never meant to make Peter so anxious, so worried about him or their relationship, but he had to think things through and reevaluate his life and what he really thought of Peter. Still, he didn't want to hurt Peter over it.

         "Right. I never meant to make him worry or anything," Brendon assured Harry while defending himself, though he knew there was no reason.

         Confirming that, Harry waved it off and smiled easily, "It's cool. I told him that and everything."

         Brendon looked Harry up and down, his calm and relaxed motions, the smile on his face. He looked lighter than he had in months and here he was, about to ruin that. "You look happier," he couldn't help but comment.

         Harry's grin widened and he shrugged, "Yeah. I've been having a good day and everything. Spent the night with Bren last night."

         "You did?" Brendon couldn't keep the slight surprise out of his voice, last Bren told him they were going slow.

         "Yep," Harry nodded, "We didn't have sex or anything, just watched a movie and made out a little. It was a lot of fun."

         "Nice," Brendon cocked his head up, allowing a small smile to appear on his features even though he wasn't feeling that happiness.

         "Anyway, what's going on?" Harry changed the subject and immediately Brendon's gut filled with regret and guilt, "I'm sure you didn't call me to talk about Bren and I or anything."

         "Um, no. It's just – I don't really know how to even start this or anything, it's kind of a hard topic, but well...I saw you a couple nights ago, uh, with the stoners around the pizza place smoking a joint," Brendon lied.   

         He hadn't been the one to see it, Cindy had, but he had to introduce the topic. He had to act like he was the only one who knew, that it wasn't three out of five of his friends, one him and Harry himself knew. And watching as Harry's face fell made him want to laugh and say it was a joke or turn back time and forget this whole day and the plan.

         Harry had been happy before; lighter than he had been in months and now Brendon was ruining it. Brendon was ruining everything and he hated it because he just wanted Harry to be happy and light again and now he never will.

         "Oh," Harry said, voice full of dread, "Was anyone else there with you?"

         He looked so scared, so worried, all the light drained from his eyes and left them void. He didn't want people to know; he was ashamed and now Brendon knew. Brendon knew and so did Cindy and Peter.

         Still, Brendon shook his head, "It was after my shift. No one else was there."

         The assurance was so false, so fake, and Brendon hated lying to his friend but it was for the best; it had to be for the best otherwise he wouldn't be able to live with himself.

         Harry nodded before grabbing ahold of Brendon's arm and looking at him with pleading eyes, "Don't tell them, please? I can't – you can't let them know."

         He hesitated. Others already knew; he was the last one to find out and he was acting like he was the only one that knew. He was being deceptive; he was lying directly to Harry and he had to because he was already in too deep. He felt like Peter; intentionally lying like this, but it's what he had to do.

         "I won't tell anyone, don't worry," Brendon assured his friend, watching as he sighed and withdrew. He still wasn't calm, shoulders still tense and eyes still void now. "I just wanna know why. I mean, I know it's the typical path for celebrity children and rich kids, but you're not typical really..."

         He trailed off, hoping that he got his point across without offending Harry any, and his leg bounced rapidly under the table mimicking his heartbeat.

         Harry gave a humorless laugh, a carcass of a smile damaging his features for a second before it went away again. "It's the typical thing, right? Everyone does it. Whatever."

         Brendon frowned, "I didn't – I didn't mean it like that. You're my friend and I care about you and I wanna know why. I wanna know if I can help any."

         "You already answered the question; I'm the typical rich kid, the usual celebrity child," Harry snapped at him.

         Brendon was taken aback by Harry's rudeness. He didn't think it was rude, it was the truth and much lighter than he could've gone, but still Harry snapped at him and looked at him as if he were the enemy.

         "But you're not," Brendon urged, "You're not so please don't throw me away because I care about you and wanna help you."

         Harry shook his head, "Just forget about it."

         "I can't," Brendon told him honestly.

         "Damn you and your caring nature," Harry said almost jokingly before shaking his head again, "You wouldn't believe me if I told you."

         Brendon shrugged. His best friend was Silk and he was dating Spider-Man. There were aliens on earth and he was managing to pass his Biology class. "Try me."

         Harry looked around to see if anyone was watching them, making sure that no one was going to pass by their table and then looked back at Brendon and leaned in. "My dad injected himself with some radioactive property he found and then, when I was an infant, did the same thing to me. Fun fact: it hurts and cuts your lifespan very short. So yeah, I do drugs because then I don't feel the pain."

         Brendon blinked, "Well, that certainly wasn't what I was expecting, but is there a cure? Like, is your dad working on one or having an employee work on it?"

         Harry shrugged, "Who knows? My father doesn't really care about me, probably just waiting for the day I finally die, so what does it matter?"

         "But he's gonna die too because of it," Brendon remembered.

         "Like I said, I don't really know anything. We don't talk about it...or talk at all, really," Harry said, though not a real hint of sadness in his voice.

         "So the drugs are your painkillers? And you don't have prescription ones?" Brendon asked.

         "No one even knows what this illness or whatever is so they don't know how to treat it. As far as some doctors are concerned, I'm insane and just making up the pain," Harry rolled his eyes, "So yeah, no prescription shit for me so I get my stuff from others. But you can't tell anyone, alright?"

         He almost hesitated again; almost thought about how Cindy would want to know how the meeting went, what happened and why, and by promising this he wouldn't be able to tell her the truth. He might've lied to get this information, but he wasn't going to break Harry's trust.

         "I promise," Brendon told him honestly. This was their secret and until Harry was ready to tell everyone else the truth, or if he ever was, no one would know. It would stay between them.

         Harry gave him a small smile. "I think I'm gonna go now. I don't really wanna talk about this anymore."

         Brendon nodded and watched as Harry left the building, slumping back into his seat and giving a long sigh. There were still so many questions, like about the lifespan. How long did that mean? How long was he going to live?

         And then it made him think of Peter, of what he does. Peter's Spider-Man and that must mean there's no guarantee on his lifespan either. He could die at any moment from a villain or criminal. He had seen what Spider-Man had faced; he had seen the wounds of Cindy after patrol.

         Peter could die at any moment from his second life and Brendon would hate himself if he wasn't with Peter, fully with him, and that happened.

         He stood up, taking his cup and chugging as much as he could of the lukewarm liquid before throwing it in the trashcan by the door and leaving. He didn't know where Peter would be, but he was hoping at his dorm.

         Brendon didn't exactly start running, but he was at a quicker pace than a casual stroll, he had to see Peter and had to fix things between them. When he got to the dorm, he knocked on the door and hoped that it wouldn't be Harry who answered but Peter.

         And, thankfully, it was. Peter didn't look too good but that didn't matter; he was still perfect, an angel on earth. The Parker boy looked shocked to see him there, getting out, "Brendon? What are you –" before Brendon took him by the shirt and dragged him into a kiss, though Peter didn't complain as he returned the action.

         As the pulled apart, Peter smiled as did Brendon. "I forgive you," he told the other boy.

         "You do?" Peter asked.

         He nodded, "Yeah, I do. Shit's kinda happened today that put it into perspective for me. I wanna be apart of your life and I don't care about the whole Spider-Man thing at all. Just – don't lie to me ever again, okay?"

         Peter nodded quickly, "I can – I can do that. Yeah, no more lying. I understand."

         Brendon smiled at him. "Good. Now that that's all sorted, kiss me again."

         "I'm pretty sure you're the one who kissed me before," Peter said cheekily.

         The Winchester boy rolled his eyes, "Oh shut up or I'll take my forgiveness away."

         "Alright, alright," Peter said in a mock surrender, taking Brendon's face and kissing him this time.

         And as a smile broke out upon Brendon's face, he knew that he had made the right decision. This was where he was supposed to be; this was who he was supposed be with, so he brought Peter close to himself.