Big Dreams

thatoneryderlynn​:

Ryder & Cooper || Hit Me With Your Best Shot

The comfort shown in a small tap on his back was enough to secure him in the environment. Brown eyes flitting between machines and trailing over other members of the arcade. He preferred settings like this, the dim lighting and shadows that crossed his face made him indistinguishable from another patron.

A question that had the same reaction as a kid in a candy shop with the chance to get anything he wanted. Frozen with his mouth slightly ajar, he drifted over the menu and then affirmed the selection by viewing what was on display. His milkshake was placed on the bar, which dragged his eyes to the cup and a choice was made. “There’s enough sugar in that to keep me going for the rest of the week, I think I’ll stick to that or I won’t sleep,” decided the naturally hyper man. He had to take a moment to be the responsible adult he attempted to be.

“Dude you’re just picking games I ace – your boy played basketball in High School. Now if you’d have chosen Street Fighter, you might have won,” he jeered confidently, a small smirk in the corner of his mouth.

Like a knife in the atmosphere, the entire mood shifted. It was the phrase everyone dreaded “we need to talk.” 

Cooper had heard it many times in his life and it usually associated bad news. His Mom “needed to talk” about rehab. His agent “needed to talk” about work. Jesse “needed to talk” about a break. He felt his heart skip over itself.

His face was too much of a give-away. For a man bundled up with anxiety, that drove him to overthink every glance, word and feeling, he jumped the gun. He always presumed the worst in order to prepare himself for that fall.

In a flash he’d wiped that looked off his face and replaced it with a neutral one. He was an actor after all. “Uh, sure,” he nodded and forced a smile that didn’t even try to reach his eyes. “You wanna go grab a seat?” he offered, passing the man his milkshake as he spoke. Exchanging money with the cashier, he took his own and followed him over to a huddle of couches around a Nintendo set up. 

“Sure thing.” He followed his best friend to the couch, and he couldn’t help but stare at the Nintendo machines for a brief moment. They were so amazing. He snapped himself out of these thoughts. Focus. Focus. 

Ryder took his glass, and had managed to drink halfway through it in a couple of seconds. He wasn't sure if it was the adrenaline after their game, or the fact that he was about to ask Cooper a huge question. He noticed how Cooper's attitude had suddenly changed after he'd said the magical "we need to talk" phrase, so the brunette thought he'd comfort his friend.

"No need to worry, nothing too serious. I think." If one could say, his wedding wasn't too serious. He and Marley hadn't planned anything yet, so it was just a simple question, or that's what Ryder thought, "Hey, I'm pretty good at basketball too. Damn, I used to play so much in college. Good times." The boy reminisced, realizing how much time he'd passed since he graduated. It seemed like he was living a different life now.

After clearing his throat and taking another sip of his drink, Ryder looked over at Cooper, "So, you probably know that Marley and I are engaged. Of course, you know, you helped to pick the legendary ring, which I'll be forever grateful for. Sorry, I know I'm rambling." He crossed his legs as he made himself comfortable on the chair, trying not to make the conversation too awkward.

"Anyway... nothing's set yet, but I've been thinking…" Ryder started, suddenly remembering that he had a small envelope in his pocket. There was a small card and key ring inside of it, so it wasn't too heavy, "I have something for you. I thought it'd be nice. I know some people do huge things for this occasion, but you know I'm not really into that stuff. So yeah...here it is…" He put the envelope on the table and passed it towards Cooper's direction, "You can open now, or at home. Just a lil thing…"

theoneryderlynn​:

Ryder & Cooper || Hit Me With Your Best Shot

Cooper straightened his stance and was not at all shy about showing off the prideful smile. “You should have just forfeited that one,” he taunted. They’d had an air-hockey table and pool table in the basement of their house while growing up. It made a change to not be boasting at poor Blaine for once.

“Alright, they’re on me,” he announced. 

Navigating his way through the machines, he stopped next to the refreshment stand. Eyes flicked from hotdogs, popcorn, candy, slushies and then settled on the milkshakes. “You’d be wrong if you thought I was getting anything other than chocolate,” he turned to his best friend and ran his hand through his hair, a nervous tic that eased him in noisy and crowded places.

“You get next choice though on game, just go easy on me.” 

“Never.” Ryder raised his eyebrows; he had to admit that he was competitive, even if it was just an air hockey game. It was a part of his nature, “I gotta say, you’re a pro, my brother. You’re a tough one.” The brunette tapped his friend’s back, happy that they could finally spend some time together.

Hearing the other’s offer, he nodded, “I’ll have a strawberry one! It’s a classic.” He smirked, following his friend to the bar. The arcade, games, milkshakes...it was a perfect spot for them.

Seeing the candy they sold at the bar, Ryder chuckled. Luckily his possibly future brother-in-law made sure he did his workout right so that he could enjoy all the goodies, “Chocolate’s a good one too. Do you wanna get anything else?”

“I’ll be up for the hoops. Get ready to practice your basketball skills.” Ryder replied, taking a seat at the bar, “Hey, but before that, I kind of wanted to talk about something. You know, a small chat between the games or something…” He said, rubbing the back of his neck nervously. He knew he had nothing to worry about, it was Cooper after all, but a part of him had always been stressed, and he couldn’t help it.