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“We should get married,” Josiah said, taking another bite of his tuna fish sandwich.

Carson snorted and glanced to the right at his boyfriend. “Shut up.”

The brunet lifted a potato chip out of the bag in his hands and popped it into his mouth. The pair of them were eating a late lunch on the stairs of one of the academic buildings.

Josiah made a sound of disapproval and turned his head to look at his boyfriend. “That was rude. I just proposed and you told me to shut up.”

Carson laughed. “You didn’t propose, Joe. You’re eating a sandwich.”

“Why does that have anything to do with it?”

“You know, you’re literally the least romantic person in the world.”

Josiah smirked. “I’ve been told. So, what do you say?”

“You didn’t ask anything,” Carson said. “So I don’t have to answer.”

“I’m being serious, you know. It’s legal here; for us to get married.” Josiah eyed his boyfriend, watching his facial expressions. “We should do it.”

The brunet snorted again. “I love how you think the reason we should get married is because it’s legal. Remember when I said you were romantic? Yeah, you’re totally romantic.”

Josiah dropped his half-eaten sandwich back into it’s bag and scooted closer to the younger man. “Come on. Just say yes.”

“We’ve only been together for like seven months, Joe. It’s too soon to think about marriage.”

The older man angled his body and leaned closer. “Just think about it, will you?”

Carson rolled his eyes. “Sure. If it makes you shut up.”

Sage eyes twinkled mischievously. “I know what else will make me shut up...”

“Yeah?”

Josiah’s lips curled into a little smirk and he ducked his head down. “Yeah,” he breathed, just before he pressed his mouth down onto his boyfriend’s. They kissed chastely for a few seconds before Josiah traced his tongue over Carson’s bottom lip.

The brunet was about to part his lips to allow his boyfriend to deepen the kiss, but then he remembered their surroundings. He wasn’t one for having makeout sessions in public, so he quickly pulled away from Josiah. At his boyfriend’s blatant pout, he chuckled and leaned in to give him another peck.

“Are you really gonna think about it?” Josiah asked.

Carson groaned. “Yes, okay! Just stop asking me, please.”

“‘Sup, gay boys?” Ayden asked, strolling up to her friends.

The brunet raised an eyebrow. “That’s offensive.”

“Do I look like I care?” Ayden asked.

“Not at all,” Josiah chirped, grabbing onto his boyfriend’s hand.

“Didn’t think so,” the blonde quipped. She stole a chip from Carson’s bag and sat down next to him. “So what does Joe have to stop asking?”

“Nothing,” Carson said, glaring at his boyfriend.

Josiah smiled goofily at the blonde girl. “Car and I are engaged.”

“No shit?” Ayden asked, a smile creeping onto her lips. “That’s cute!”

“No,” the brunet snapped. He turned his glare from the man on his left to his best friend on the other side. “We’re not actually engaged. He’s just being stupid today.”

“And he’s being a baby,” Josiah commented to the blonde.

Ayden shrugged and looked out over campus. It was already the middle of March and the weather was surprisingly warm for the season. She listened to her friends bicker for a few minutes as her thoughts wandered. She almost couldn’t believe how many chaotic things had happened in the last year.

“Hey, we still going out tonight?” Ayden suddenly asked, interrupting her friends’ argument.

“Is it still Carson’s birthday?” Josiah asked sarcastically.

Ayden rolled her eyes. “Obviously.”

The darker man smirked. “Then of course we’re going out. This kid in my morning class told me about a rave going on tonight. Carson said he’d go. You in?”

Ayden tapped her chin and scanned the group of people walking past them. “There’ll be hot guys there, right?”

Carson snorted and looked at the blonde. “Duh. I wouldn’t go otherwise.”

“Excuse you,” Josiah muttered, taking his hand out of his boyfriend’s grip.

Carson chuckled and leaned into the darker man’s side, throwing his arms around him. Josiah tried half-heartedly to fight him off but gave in after a few seconds. Ayden smiled at her friends’ cuteness and rolled her eyes.

A moment later, the blonde looked back out over the grounds only to see a bright blue frisbee flying straight towards them. She squealed loudly and ducked out of the way just in time. Carson screeched as well, not having seen it before it smacked right into his chest.

“My bad!” a deep voice called.

Ayden was trying to catch her breath when she looked up to see a shirtless guy running up the stairs to meet them. She raised her eyebrows as her green eyes raked up his flat stomach and tan chest. Her eyes settled on a handsome face with high cheekbones, thick eyebrows, and an easy grin. She bit the inside of her cheek as a smirk fell across her lips.

Ayden reached over and snatched the frisbee out of a scowling Carson’s hands. The boy looked down at her with a smile that she thought could kill hundreds at a time.

“This yours?” she asked, obviously knowing the answer.

“It might be,” the guy said, sounding flirty. Ayden’s smiled widened. She was liking where this was going. “So what do I gotta do to get it back?”

The blonde hummed while the guy looked her over with his brown eyes. “Give me a name,” she said.

The guy laughed and the sound was so deep and rich. He leaned forward, resting his arms and putting his weight on one of his knees. “I’m Brock. And you?”

“Ayden,” she lilted, giving him one of her best, flirtatious smiles. “You got plans tonight, Brock?”

Brock tilted his head to the side, smile still on his face. He was enjoying the blonde’s confidence and ability to be straightforward. He had always liked a girl who knew what she wanted.

“Nah,” he said. “Not any plans that don’t involve you.”

Ayden giggled. “Great.” She gestured to her friends and said, “We’re going to a rave tonight. You heard about it?”

Brock nodded. “Yeah, I heard half of campus was gonna be there.”

“Sweet. I’ll be there around ten if you wanted to hook up.”

Brock nodded and raised his eyebrows. “Okay, yeah. Totally. I’ll keep an eye out for you.” He grinned and pointed at his frisbee that the blonde was still playing with in her hands. “Can I get that back?”

Ayden bit her lip and nodded. She extended her arm, holding the plastic disc out. “There you are.”

Brock took his frisbee back, making sure to let his fingers brush over the blonde’s, and took a step back. “See you around, Ayden.”

“See ya,” she said as he ran back to his friends.

Ayden watched after Brock for a few seconds before she turned to look at her own friends. She laughed when she caught Josiah’s raised eyebrows and Carson’s dumbfounded stare. “What?”

“Look at you,” Josiah teased. “Gettin’ your flirt on, eh?”

Ayden giggled again and shrugged. “I guess.”

“Well somebody get me a hose or something, because that guy was hot,” Carson said.

“Hey!” Josiah said, a lot more seriously offended this time than he had been before.

“Paws off,” Ayden said. “This one’s mine. And he’s staying straight.”

This caused a round of laughter from the three of them. They stayed there, soaking up the spring sunshine and warm weather for a while longer. Ayden didn’t try to hide the fact that she was watching Brock play frisbee with his friends, and she didn’t miss when the guy threw his own glances right back.

A year was a long period of time. So much could go wrong or be accomplished within such a timespan. A year could make or break you, but no matter what, it worked differently for each person, and sort of like a snowflake or a fingerprint, no two are exactly the same.

When Ayden thought of the last year, the biggest part of it was heartbreak and growth. For Carson, it was about getting something that he had wanted and longed for for ages. And Josiah considered it the year he finally figured out who he really was.

All three of them had their ups and downs, but at the end of it all, they were still together. They had lost each other for a while and forgot who they were, but what mattered most was that they had managed to overcome the worst of it so that they could maintain some of the best friendships they had ever had.

After all, they figured what was the point in having a long or prosperous life if they couldn’t share it with the people they loved? They were all hoping that they would never have to find out--or come close to it again. If the last year had taught them anything at all, it was that the three of them were in it for the long haul and that was exactly how they wanted it to be.

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