On A Night Like This

Chapter Twenty-One

-Dylan-

Snow was falling softly as he looked out his living room window. He wanted to be out there in the fresh powder, surrounded by the smell of evergreens and breathing in the crisp air, but he was afraid to walk around in public now. He didn't know how far the rumors about him had spread and if any of his neighbors had heard.

Maybe if he waited a few more days, he'd get the courage to go for a walk. Or maybe he'd get in his truck and drive somewhere where no one would be around. His biggest fear was that he would eventually have to move somewhere else and start over. The people in town made him feel like a monster, but he loved living near the North Cascades and didn't want to leave this area or his cabin up in the mountains.

His thoughts were interrupted by a chime from his phone. Confused, he reached for it. If the Forest Service needed him for an assignment, they always called. No one ever texted him. The moment he saw the name in the text, his heart began to race and he read the text over and over.

"Hey. It's Jayce. I talked the Forest Service into giving me the phone number they had on file for you. I feel bad about how we left things. I'm not mad at you or anything. I miss you and I hope we can talk again. I'm sorry for the misunderstanding and for anything I did to hurt you."

Jayce had cared enough to track down his information. Despite everything he said to Jayce and how he'd pushed him away, Jayce wasn't upset. Jayce missed him. He could hardly believe the words he was reading.

He typed out a message back. His fingers were too big for the tiny letters on the phone and it took forever, but as soon as it was done he sent it before he could second guess what he'd written.

"I feel bad too. I took a lot of things out on you and made assumptions. You didn't do anything wrong. I'm so sorry."

It didn't take Jayce long to reply. "It's okay. No hard feelings. :) I hope we can still be friends? You can text or call me anytime you want. Also I thought I put the scarf you gave me in my backpack, but I can't find it anywhere. Is it with you?"

Overcome with emotion, he put his head in his hands. Jayce hadn't left the scarf on purpose. Jayce hadn't rejected him. Most of all, Jayce still wanted him as a friend. With his hands shaking, he pressed the call button on his text thread with Jayce.

It only rang twice before Jayce picked up. "Dylan?"

"Yeah, it's me."

He could tell Jayce was smiling by the tone of his voice. "I'm glad you called! It's really good to hear your voice."

"It's good to hear yours too. And I wanted to let you know the scarf is here."

"Oh, good. I was so worried I'd dropped it somewhere. I hate that it got left behind. It's the most thoughtful gift anyone's ever given me and without it I don't have anything to remind me of my time in the mountains with you."

"I can mail it to you," he offered.

"Maybe give me a couple more weeks. I'm staying in a hotel because I don't have an apartment yet. Or a job," Jayce sighed. "And honestly, I do want to see you again sometime. I mean, if you're okay with that. I can come and visit after Christmas when I get everything settled."

Dylan found himself smiling even though no one could see it. "Yeah, of course that would be okay. Sorry you haven't found a job or apartment yet."

"It's just bad timing. I don't think there's a lot of hiring at the end of the year. I'll probably have more luck next year. Anyway, how have you been? Is it snowing more out there?"

That was a loaded question. He struggled with how much to tell Jayce, but decided Jayce was the only person who he could confide in. "It's snowing a little now. I've been, uh, not great. Things are worse in town. Somehow it got out that you were in my cabin in the mountains and now there are rumors that I kidnapped you."

"What the fuck?" Jayce immediately exclaimed. "Why would anyone think that?"

"I'm not really surprised. People are always suspicious of me."

"It must have been the police. They asked if I was being held against my will, remember? But I can't believe they would tell other people about it and let them spread information that isn't true. That's so unprofessional."

He didn't know what to say, so he stayed quiet. On the other end of the line, Jayce heaved a huge sigh.

"Dylan, I'm sorry this is happening. I never wanted to make your life more difficult."

"It's not your fault."

"I feel like it is. If I had never gone out there and gotten lost, you wouldn't have stupid rumors going around about you."

"But then I wouldn't have met you. That would be worse," he confessed. "I've missed you too."

"I promise I'll come visit you again," Jayce said. "And if you ever feel up to it, you can come visit me like we talked about."

Dylan didn't know when he'd feel comfortable driving out to Seattle and being in the city, but seeing Jayce again was a strong motivator. If he was going to be a good friend, he needed to do things for Jayce instead of letting Jayce make all of the sacrifices.

"I'd like to come see you. When you find an apartment, I'll come out to visit," he told Jayce, trying to sound more confident than he felt.

"Awesome. I'm already looking forward to it."

He wanted to stay on the phone with Jayce forever, listening to his voice and the sound of his laugh, but he knew Jayce had a lot to do. "Um, I should let you go," he said. "So you can work on the job and apartment situation. But it was good to hear from you, and I'm sorry again about what I said the day you left."

"Don't worry about it. Like I said, no hard feelings. It was a rough day for both of us and shit happens. Just keep in touch, okay? I meant it when I said you can text or call anytime."

"Okay. Bye, Jayce."

"Talk to you later. Bye!"

He hung up and stared at the phone in his hand, a sense of hope returning. He still had a friend.

-Jayce-

Over the next couple weeks, he kept in touch with Dylan, making sure to text him 'Good morning' and 'Good night' every day. He wanted to earn Dylan's trust and show Dylan that he wasn't going anywhere. He meant it when he said they were friends, and once Dylan was comfortable with that, he wanted to open up the conversation to them being more than friends.

He'd called Dylan a few times, always hoping he wasn't bothering him or being annoying, but Dylan seemed to want to stay on the phone. He'd told Dylan about how things were going with his family and that he was going to visit his brother's house for Christmas, but what he hadn't told Dylan was that he hadn't bought a plane ticket yet. He knew with it being so close to Christmas, he either wouldn't be able to get a flight or would have to pay a lot more than he wanted, but he couldn't make himself pull the trigger and commit to the plans.

The thought of Dylan being alone on Christmas broke his heart. Dylan had been alone for every Christmas since he was an adult, and based on what Dylan told him about his parents not bothering to celebrate, Dylan might as well have been alone for all his Christmases as a kid. Dylan deserved more than that. He deserved lots of presents under the tree and a nice Christmas dinner with someone who loved him. He deserved the world.

He had to go back. He couldn't just leave Dylan when he was the only person Dylan had in his life. And selfishly, he would rather see Dylan than visit his family. He enjoyed Dylan's company more. Dylan accepted him for who he was and let him be himself.

With that decided, he picked up his phone to make a few calls. If he was going to spend Christmas with Dylan, he wanted to make it a Christmas to remember.