s t r e a m {SAPNAP}

- 30 -

BEE POV

***

AUGUST 3OTH

I led Nick up to my apartment and apologized for the mess before I unlocked the door.

"I wasn't really expecting to have guests," I admit, fumbling with my keys. "Especially not you."

When I finally pushed the door open, I prayed that some magical fairy had come and fixed my house while I was at work.

"It's not the cleanest," I murmur, setting my keys on the table and picking a few things off the floor. "I promise it's usually cleaner than this. I just haven't had the time lately."

Despite the mess, Nick looked genuinely happy to be here. I was happy too--I just wish he'd given me warning.

His eyes wandered over to the corner where I'd stacked my boxes.

"What are those for?" He said, squinting to read my messy handwriting. I pulled my hair back and tried to do the dishes as I spoke to him.

"It's nothing," I try to reassure him. "God, Nick, I wish you would've given me some heads up."

"Bee, it's literally not even that bad in here." He walked around the counter and hopped onto the fake marble, swinging his legs as he looked around the place.

"I know, I just...ugh. I don't know." I started to fret, scrubbing feverishly at the plate. I sigh. "I'm glad you're here. It...means a lot to me. And wow. Seeing you in real life is just so much better than over video chat."

Nick smiles and jumps off the counter.

"Alex and I had been going back and forth for the last like, three weeks, trying to figure out how I could surprise you for your birthday."

"Oh, so he did know where you were today! God, I hate him." I laughed and shook my head. I felt tense around him--I didn't know why. "Well--I...I wasn't expecting guests, but I've got my guest bedroom completely empty...um..."

Suddenly his arms were around me again and I melted against his chest. He was a good four inches or so taller than me, and I felt even smaller when he hugged me.

"Thank you for coming," I whispered, feeling tears spring from my eyes. I did not feel as lonely anymore.

He didn't reply, but the way he instinctively held me tighter told me that he'd heard me.

We did not break apart for several minutes. This was months and months of friendship in one moment. When we finally did let go of each other, I stared up into his face and laughed.

"God--you just look so much different in real life." I muttered. "Let me show you around my humble abode."

As my paranoia subsided, I realized that my house wasn't nearly as bad as I imagined it to be. That weekend I had been going through all my things, and started to stress clean instead of packing.

"Ok! This is my room," I pushed open the door to reveal my den, where I spent almost all of my time. My gaming set up was the first thing he noticed.

"You like pink, I take it," He laughed. He sat in my chair and I stood behind him, watching as he fiddled with my PC, trying to turn it on. "How do I go live?"

I point to my StreamLabs icon and he double clicks it, grinning when it pops up.

"I know you said you weren't streaming tonight, but I'm here, so you're streaming tonight."

While his arrival was announced, and I wasn't prepared for a guest, I was glad that he came. I knew he wouldn't judge me for my busy life style, and honestly, I needed the company. I knew he'd have to leave eventually, but I wanted to tell him that he could stay as long as he wanted.

Anything to delay my move.

He hit the "go live" button and the notification was sent out to all of my followers. I decided to send out a tweet while my waiting room started to get viewers.

BEE  (@LIBBEE)
No speedrun stream today, something else...vvvv important please join now

Nick took a picture with my cat, tweeting it out himself. As my timer counted down, he and I laughed together as people began to put two and two together.

Finally the timer hit zero, and we switched to my webcam.

"So," I said, unable to contain myself. "Clearly Nick is not in Houston at the moment,"

I watch as the chat speeds by, asking if this was confirmation that we were dating. I laugh and shook my head.

"No, no, we're not dating. This was actually just sprung on me--Nick sort of surprised me for my birthday," I mumbled shyly, trying not to glance over to him. I knew he was looking at me.

We answered some questions, but it was just a short, spontaneous stream. I was tired, and I knew Nick was exhausted from his drive too. Eventually, I ended the stream and turned to my friend.

"I missed you," I finally say. "I really, really missed you."

"I missed you, too." Nick says. His bag sits by my door, and I bring him to the guest room. I lean against the doorway as he flops onto the bed. "I actually did get you something for your birthday," He says after a while.

"I--you didn't need to do that. You being here is enough for me."

"Well, you mentioned at one point you'd be alone for your birthday. And...way back in the day, you mentioned something about a hoodie. So, I brought you a black hoodie, since I promised it to you. When we matched." He pulled it out and handed it to me. As I ran my hands over the soft fabric, I felt a lump in my throat. It was something so trivial, so normal, yet I wanted to sob.

"I can't believe you still remember that," I laugh quietly, holding the hoodie to my face. I inhaled; it smelled just like him. "I guess I owe you instant noodles now,"

Nick laughs and shakes his head. I walk over to the bed and sit next to him, resting my head on his shoulder. Like I once had, my friend tensed, then relaxed. We sat like that for a while, murmuring back and forth about little things that really didn't matter.

He told me about the strange things he'd seen on his drive. I told him about the multiple pizzas I dropped at work. I stared at the floor and he stared at his hands. And as awkward and weird we were, at least we were together.

I texted one of my nice coworkers and asked her to take my next few shifts, and I assumed she said she would. My eyelids felt heavy, and suddenly I was falling asleep.

I heard the snap of a picture being taken somewhere, but my head was too far away from reality to care.