#bfasis

“I’m your last resort,” Ryan says with a laugh, but the look Shane shoots him stops it almost immediately.

“You were our first choice,” he admits, voice low and even, and Ryan knows he’s telling the truth. “We tried to keep you out of this, because we didn’t want to be the ones to drag you back into something you hated.”

“Dream sharing?” Ryan asks and Shane shrugs.

“And our relationship.”

“This isn’t funny,” he whispers. “It’s not funny, Shane. This is the furthest thing from funny.”

“I know it’s not fucking funny,” Shane snaps back. “You’re about to tell me it’s fucking, 2022, or some shit and I’ll lose my goddamn mind.”

“It is 2022,” Ryan rasps, throat tight like he’s about to cry. “And I’ve no idea where you’ve been these last two years, but I have a feeling you don’t either.”

Ryan wants to hug her close again, run his fingers through her hair in the way she likes, but it’s too public, so he settles for asking Shane a bunch of boring questions about their flights until their bags appear on the carousel. He helps Shane grab them and soon, he has Sara’s backpack on his shoulders as he wheels her’s and Shane’s suitcases out to his car. It’s awkward to pull them both (they keep knocking into each other) but he knows how exhausting a long day of international travel is and his two favorite people shouldn’t lug their bags if they don’t have to.

Of course the answer is right in front of their faces.

They take Ryan out for lunch, because that is a perfectly normal and reasonable way to request that a person demolish your girlfriend.

When she glances up again, two sets of dark eyes are looking over to her. "Hey boys," she smiles, giving them a quick one handed wave.

So the Ryan thing isn’t an option. He’s never been an option, which is probably why Sara’s never really thought about him in a sexual way. And that’s totally fine. He’s a great friend to her, and not just Shane. And she knows that’s rare. There are few people who love their boyfriend’s friends.

So no, she’s not looking for anything different from Ryan.

But Sara stepped forward and pulled Ryan down into a soft kiss.

Her hands were gentle against his face, and when they pulled away she looked so very loving Ryan was embarrassed to look at her.

”Tell that to your prince,” she said. “He might bear it better from thee.”