A new beginning - Tommatt

Chapter 3: straight

They got into their usual positions in the car. Edd in the drivers seat, Tom riding shotgun, and Matt in the backseat. Just sitting there reminded them of all their old adventures.
"So, where to?" Edd asked as he started up the car.
"Hmm.. maybe the arcade, we always used to go there!" Matt suggested.
"Great idea!" Edd said, starting to drive.
They all felt amazing. They were finally able to go on adventures and have fun again and best of all, Tord has no idea where they are, meaning he can't possibly come back for revenge. The last thing he would expect is for them to be back at their old address.
As Edd pulled into the driveway of the arcade, their eyes lit up. The big arcade was an amazing sight, they made so many good memories there.
The three walked into the doors of the arcade with excitement. It's been years since they've went to the arcade. Well, this exact arcade that is. Their apartment complex was over 3 hours away from it.
They were filled to the brim with joy when they walked into the arcade. The sounds of video game sound affects, people talking, and pop music gave them a comforting feeling of nostalgia.
"You all brought your wallets, right?" Edd asked
"Yup" Tom and Matt said in unison.
"That's good cause I'm not gonna pay for all of you again." Edd laughed.
Right after spotting them, the group split up and went to their favorite games. There was many new ones and a lot of them were moved around, but most of the old games were still there.
"Damnit!" Tom yelled, balling his fists. Matt overheard him from the claw machine and looked over.
"I've spent almost half of my tokens on this game and I still can't get over 10 tickets!" Matt saw what game it was, it was skee-ball, which he was very good at. Suddenly, he came up with a genius idea.
"Maybe if I get him the jackpot he'll be impressed!" He thought. "I might even get another hug!" His cheeks glowed thinking about it. He decided to put his plan into action
"I can help!" He said, walking up to his friend. "I am quite a master at this game."
"It's alright I just uh-" it was too late. Matt had already won him 1000 tickets. Tom's dark eyes widened as he watched the tickets come out of the machine, it was seemingly endless.
"Oh wow- uh- thank you." Tom said, still amazed.
"Any time!" Matt replied.
Tom was thinking about Matt's gesture. It was very out of pocket for him, but he has been acting weirdly generous today. It was charming in a way.
"What? Charming? You can't call him charming, Tom. You're straight. 100% straight. Remember Rebecca in middle school?"
He continued to think about it. Middle school was many years ago. Plus, even if he did like girls, he could still be bisexual, pansexual, or anything else involving men and women. He has felt weird around Matt lately. Like the way he froze up and went red when he simply threw his arm around him, something he did to many people.
"Maybe.. I do like him. Just a little bit. Not enough to make me gay, I'm still 100% straight. I am a straight man and nothing will change that."
Edd was watching the whole scene from afar, noticing Tom's blushing expressions. He wanted to ask him if he liked Matt, if he did then he could really help them out with a relationship. He came up with a perfect plan to ask him.
He approached the two with a wave. "Hey, guys, I heard that drinks come free with every token purchase!" He announced. "Wanna get some?" Matt and Tom looked up at him.
"Yeah, sure." Tom replied. They all went over to get their drinks and sat at a table together.
"Step one complete, now time for step two!" Edd thought. He started thinking about ways he could distract Matt. He was quite easily distracted, so it shouldn't be too hard. He looked around the arcade and soon came up with the perfect idea.
"Hey, Matt, they just refilled the claw machine." He said "You should hurry before there's a li-" Matt cut him off with a loud gasp. He instantly bolted to the claw machine.
"Wow.. that was easy." Edd thought. "Time for the final step!" He was excited yet nervous.
"So, uh, Tom." He said. "I have a question."
Tom took a sip of his drink. "Yeah?" He replied "Ask away."
"Do you.." Edd began to say. He looked back to make sure Matt wasn't paying attention, he already managed to get into a fight with a child over who's turn it was at the claw machine. It made him giggle a bit, but he wouldn't let it distract him.
"...like Matt?"
Tom nearly spat out his lemonade. He could feel his face go red.
"Well, of course I like him, haha! He's our best friend!" He said, avoiding eye contact and forcing an awkward smile.
"You know what I mean." Edd responded. "Do you like like him."
Tom stayed silent for a bit. "Well- Oh boy is it hot in here! Reminds me of last nights football game!" He said in an attempt to change the subject. Edd gave him a glare that screamed "seriously".
"Tom, we're right next to the air conditioner." He stated. "Plus, football wasn't even on last night. Even if it was, we never watch it."
Tom paused trying to think up a response but instead, he kept blushing more and more. Edd noticed this and smirked.
"Oh, you really do like him, don't you?" He asked, his smile growing wider as he inspected Tom's reaction.
"N-no! I see him as a friend, just friends!" He yelled.
"Yeah, suure." Edd said, sarcastically. He wanted to see how far he could push him. "I bet you wanna go on a date with him and kiss him and marry hi-"
WHAM
Tom slapped Edd with all the energy he had.
"Ok, ok, that was deserved." Edd laughed, his hand over the cheek where Tom hit him. Tom looked down.
"To answer your question, I do like him." He responded. "JUST A LITTLE BIT! DON'T GET ANY IDEAS!" Edd was about to reply but he saw Matt come back.
"It was outrageous! There was a big crowd and I had to get through it just for the stupid machine to be rigged!" He ranted, sitting down with his arms crossed.
"Heh, most of them are." Tom replied. "Anywho, it's getting late. I wouldn't mind going back home for a drink.. Or two.. or three."
"Alright, right after we cash in our tickets, ok?" Edd settled. Matt and Tom nodded in agreement and they went over to the counter.
"Hello, Miss!" Edd said to the woman behind the front desk. "What could we get for around 5,000 tickets?" He asked as he put all of their tickets combined on the counter.
"Hmm.. let's see.." she said as she pushed the tickets aside and looked through the prizes. "You could get this!" She put a small stuffed animal on the counter. The three frowned but accepted the small prize and went home.
"Wow.. they've really changed since we last came when it comes to prizes." Tom noticed. "Back in the day we'd be able to get this for 10 tickets."
"Yeah," Matt agreed. "They've definitely changed."
The car ride was pretty normal over all, but Tom felt a weird tension with Edd. He didn't know how to feel now that he knew how he felt about Matt. He always convinced himself that he was straight, but now he knows Edd thinks otherwise.
"I'm still straight, right? Straight guys have small crushes on their best friends all the time. Plus, you liked Rebecca." He thought. He was holding on to that short middle school crush for dear life, even if it was 10 years ago. He'd do anything to be perceived as straight, especially by himself.