Tucker Goes to Deutschland-Tucker

Somehow, someway, some ethereal, mystical, wizardly way, I was allowed to go to Germany with Ax's family after Christmas our senior year.

Our flight was on the 26th at 12 PM, and my mom and Peter, my dweeb of a little brother, dropped us off at the airport a few hours before that. Pete grabbed my hand as Ax and my mom were loading our bags on some trolley.

I turned to face him, practically looking in the mirror. Pete was like a smaller, less athletic version of me. He had short brown hair like mine, deep brown eyes, and wide-set shoulders that we both inherited from my dad. Pete also got his quiet demeanor and nurturing nature from my father, whereas I had inherited my mother's confident, can-do attitude and panty-dropping smile.

"What's up, kid?" I asked him, smiling, thinking of the cute "I'm going to miss you so much big brudder" speech he was about to give me.

"Are you gay?" Was what I got instead.

"Excuse me? I have a girlfriend. She's even in your fucking grade." Pete was a year younger than me, just like Maggie.

Pete raised his eyebrows. "Doesn't mean you aren't gay."

I sighed, rubbing my temples. "Peter. What is this about? You know I'm not gay."

"Didn't look that way yesterday morning." I groaned. I had completely forgotten about that by then. That was the awesome thing about being friends with Axel. We had weird moments, we had fights, sure. But it took about 2.5 minutes for us to get over them.

"Peter, we're best friends. It's not weird for us to sleep in the same bed like that." I had to explain to my little brother that when he walked in on Axel and I snuggling the morning before, it was strictly platonic.

"You had a boner, dude."

Okay, so maybe it was a touch more than snuggling. But it was just a little morning wood, nothing too harmful. For some unGodly reason, Ax was moaning while I was still asleep, interrupting and definitely intensifying the not-so-platonic dream I was having about his little sister.

"Peter, it's called morning wood! I'm not gay! I'm dating Maggie Otto, okay? NOT AXEL!"

"Not me what? Let's get going babe, we're gonna miss the flight."

Axel's little pet name did not help me rest my case. Peter was grinning like a maniac alongside my best friend, who was only smiling because he thought it was funny to call me babe. I groaned again.

"Peter, we'll talk about this never again. Axel, call me babe again and I'll break your dick in half."

"Wouldn't you like that," Pete mumbled under his breath. I didn't even have the energy to punch him in the face. That, and Axel's goofy ass laugh was making me smile despite the fact I wanted to, like I said, break his dick in half.

"Goodbye, Peter." I told him, swinging my backpack over my shoulder. Axel was still grinning.

"Let's go babe!"

"I'm surrounded by imbeciles," I muttered, more to myself then to anyone around, allowing Ax to throw his arm over my shoulder as my mother kissed my cheek goodbye.

Right before we walked in to the airport through the sliding glass doors, I swear Pete shouted, "IT'S OKAY WITH MOM AND I, TUCKER!" But I couldn't be too sure.