Depends on the point in time.

When Lucas falls for him, he falls HARD. Like so hard that he can hardly bear to look at Zakk anymore and doesn’t want to be around him because it’s so tough on him. He rearranges the schedule so that he and Zakk are almost never at Peace and Purpose simultaneously and uses the excuse that the interns and other staff want more hours and need to be more hands-on with the kids, and the kids need to get used to a lot of people coming and going. They only need one “boss” there at a time.

The problem is that Lucas doesn’t realize until literally the day of the wedding that he’s in love. He’s an idiot, and he’s always kept all his emotions locked so far down that no one else can read him well enough to tell. Even Zakk. Because it happened so slowly, and it’s been his normal for so long, and he thinks that everybody gets super excited and feels their heart jump when their “friend” gets home and feels all warm and soft when their “friend” wants to spend extra time with them or gives them a hug or says something nice. It’s normal to want to live with your friend. Like, for the rest of your life. And be the person who gives them the best presents on their birthday and knows more about them than anyone else in the world and someday wants to take them on a trip to western Europe, just the two you, and rent a tandem bicycle in Spain and see the biggest Italian cathedrals and get your portrait done together at the Montmartre (to hang in the office, of course) and eat overpriced pastries in little outdoor cafes with the best orange juice either of you have ever tasted. Everyone feels like that about their friends.

Right?

And by then, it’s too late. And Lucas has honor, and he’s not about to go mess up 1) a marriage or 2) his relationship with Zakk. So he doesn’t say anything, but he can’t help but go cold. And he thinks about Zakk every minute of every day for weeks and wonders when he’s having sex with his wife and what Zakk is doing in that moment and if Zakk even cares about him anymore or if he’s too caught up in marital bliss.

And of course Zakk does care. They’ve been best friends for almost ten years. Lucas was the best man at his wedding. He misses him badly, and the first time they finally cross paths (Lucas has begun leaving early and coming in late, you see, which is very out of character) Zakk is so overjoyed to see him that he throws his arms around him and plants a kiss right on his cheek, and it takes everything Lucas has not to shove him off or start to cry. He’s so angry that Zakk gets to be happy to see him when all he gets to feel is resentment for the person that he loves the most in the world.

~

After the divorce and the coffee shop kiss, Zakk starts to pine. Because at that point, it’s been at least two years, and over that time Lucas has gone mostly back to being the guy Zakk adored. Sweet and smart and gentle and quietly caring and silently loving. Always the first to lend a helping hand. Would literally give the shirt off his back to a stranger. He is composed of goodness and hard work and raw honesty, and seeing him is like coming home.

Since Zakk left the house he and his wife shared, Lucas lets him stay over at his little apartment and insists that Zakk sleep in the bed. After saying no about eight times but knowing in his heart that Lucas isn’t going to crack, Zakk accepts the offer.

The first thing he notices is that the sheets smell like Lucas. And it’s such a safe, comforting scent to be wrapped up in that Zakk huddles deeper into them and starts to cry. He’s sure to be quiet, because he doesn’t want to have to explain himself.

“Why are you crying?”

“Because I love you so much.”

Yeah. That would go over well.

Lucas would tell him that he was weak from the divorce, that he was just tired, to go to bed. He would be kind enough when he said it, but Zakk knows he would brush the whole thing off and walk away again, so he’s sure not to let his sniffles be heard.

In the morning, Zakk wakes and goes out of the bedroom, expecting Lucas to be up making coffee like he always was at P&P when he actually wanted to hang out with Zakk, but he’s not. He’s lying on his stomach on the couch with his head propped up on his elbow, and the TV is quietly playing ESPN, and Lucas is sound asleep with blue, plaid pajama pants that Zakk has never seen before (where are those dumb Dodgers pants he used to wear every damn night?) and no shirt.

And Zakk could melt, because this feels just like grad school. It feels... right.

He knows he should go in the kitchen and fix himself some food as silently as he can and then sneak back into his bedroom to eat it, but what he does instead is slide forward to get the remote and then sit down on the old, graying carpet and change the channel and lean back against Lucas’ shoulder, which is warm even though he has no blanket. And he stays like that until Lucas wakes, and both of them act like that was a totally normal thing for Zakk to do even though he never would have done that before.

Lucas starts letting their schedules overlap again.

He loves Candy Crush hehe

Hahahaha omg. And Geoff would just make a confused face and say whatever he’s going to say 😂

Aw thank you for reading it again!!!

Aw Logan, I miss YOU!!! But don’t worry, and please take your time. All of this will still be here when you have more time and feel better 💚

Agreed! I love Witherspoon. It’s like. Whimsical. And you’re right; the spelling is definitely why they call him Mr. W.