"Bradley," I say quietly, stepping toward him.

He looks at me with a sort of admiration. "And yeah, I forgive you for what you did. You were just looking out for me- I see that now."

"I think you're ready," I state with a small smile.

"Ready?" He raises a brow, pushing himself off the door. 

I nod and place a hand on his arm. "I don't think you need any more lessons from me. You've developed in this person that's so kind and caring that I don't even know if you're Bradley anymore. It's kind of scary, actually, but anyway- I'm proud of you."

There's a beat before he hugs me, and he practically melts into me. Without hesitation, I wrap my arms around his broad back, squeezing him tightly. He buries his face into my collarbone, and I find it sort of funny that he has to bend down to do it. 

"Why are you like this?" Bradley mutters into my shoulder.

I furrow my brow in confusion. "Like what?"

He looks up at me in frustration, analyzing my features. "So... oblivious."

"Oblivious?" I ask, still very puzzled. 

Bradley pulls away from me, and I can see his mood change to perplexion. "God, don't you get it already? I like you- no, I love you. And I have for a long time, but you're so damn clueless all the time. I asked you to make me a better person so that I could be around you. I got you that ice pack for your knee that one day because I care about you. I told you that you have pretty eyes, and I opened up to you. Hell, I even came to your house for your birthday! But no, you didn't notice."

"Bradley..." My voice seems so quiet compared to his.

He shakes his head to shut me up. "You make me crazy, Goof. You drive me up a wall, but... I love that about you. No one gets under my skin like you do, and even though you piss me off all the time, I'm uncontrollably attracted to you. So, either tell me you feel the same, or tell me you don't. I'm just sick of playing these games with you-"

Suddenly, I grab his chin and pull him to my face, pressing my lips softly against his. 

He freezes in shock for a moment before melting into it, his hands traveling up my back to the base of my neck to hold me against his lips. I thread my fingers through his soft hair, lost in the sensation of him pressed against me. Reluctantly, we pull away from each and look at anything but the other, almost embarrassed to have done something so rash. 

 I'm the first to speak, my voice somehow finding strength unlike earlier. "I... I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize," he says firmly, his head maneuvering to make his eyes meet mine.

"I didn't ask for permission first." I rub the back of my head guiltily and look away from him once more in discomfort.

He grabs my chin gently to gain my attention back. "You don't have to ask with me. If you didn't notice, I was probably more into that kiss than you were."

I smile at the laughter in his words that broke the seriousness in his face. "Thank you, Bradley."

"For what exactly?" he asks with a warm smile. "For that amazing, mind-blowing kiss?"

I laugh, grabbing his hand with both of mine. "Well, yeah, but I meant that 'thank you' for telling me how you felt. Oh, and also for doing all that stuff I didn't notice you were doing because you loved me."

"Love," he says pointedly. "The stuff I was doing because I love you."

"Right." I press his hand against my face. "By the way, PJ and Bobby told me that some otters are hanging around the shoreline of the river. Wanna go see?"

"I'd love that."

~*~*~

Bradley tosses a rock toward the river, which is still today with no sign of paddleboats. He smiles as the rock skips across the motionless water, and I notice him jot down how many skips it took before sinking on a little notepad. He seems to catch sight of my focus on the paper, the way my eyes dart between him and the thrown rocks.

"It's a game I used to play with my dad when he cared," he explains, latching the pen onto the metal spiral of the notepad.

"How do you play?" I ask simply as Bradley proceeds to cast another stone.

He looks over at me, seemingly delighted by the fact that I wanted to play. "Well, it's played in rounds. Whoever's rock gets the most skips in a round wins the round, and whoever wins at the end has to buy the other player ice cream."

"Interesting."

Bradley offers a small smile at my comment. "My father would always give me a couple dollars before the game in case I lost and had to pay. So, in a way, he'd pay for that ice cream every time."

I try to stop myself, but the questions leaves my mouth before I can think. "What happened?"

"Well," he says gruffly. "His business grew, and as he became busier and richer, he'd have less time for me. By the time I was ten, my parents already cared more about their money than me."

"I'm sorry."

He hums in response and shrugs, as if it couldn't have been helped. An otter floats by, eyeing us suspiciously as the child on its stomach lets out small squeaking noises. Bradley laughs a little at it, the sound warm and comforting to me.

His brown hair moves in the wind, and he has to constantly brush it back to place. I push my own hair back, the layers of my shaggy mullet making it difficult for it stay out of my face. Bradley reaches over to me and grasps my hand tightly- as if I would float away if he let go.

"So..." I begin to speak, bringing his eyes to me. "Are we boyfriends... or what?"

His gaze travels upward to the clouds in thought. "If... if you want to be."

"Don't say that," I state troubledly. 

"Why not?"

I sigh, squeezing his hand. "Because you already know the answer."

Bradley smiles softly at me, brushing a strand of hair back from my flushed face. "Are you going to make me ask?"

"Do you want me to ask?" I inquire quietly.

He nods, his grin growing wider. "Oh, I'd love to see it."

"Fine. Do... do you... want to... be my boyfriend?" The last word leaves my mouth in a strained way, and Bradley can obviously see how nervous I am. "Sorry, I've... never had to ask someone that before."

"You apologize too much," he says, his voice feigning annoyance. "I'd love to be your boyfriend, Goof."

I roll my eyes and boldly lean in to kiss him on the cheek. "Good. I would've killed you if you said no because that felt really weird to ask you."

"Remind me never to cross you," he mutters, wrapping an arm around me.

We watch the otter as it settles on the riverbank, the baby huddling close to its mother. I can sense Bradley's joy at the sight of something so cute, and I start to wonder if being associated with Gamma Mu Mu restricted his happiness outside of the fraternity. Well, I guess anyone dealing with those people would be unhappy.

Even though I wouldn't put it past Tank to manipulate Bradley into thinking he couldn't be content without him, some of his bitter personality definitely has to do with the fact that his parents neglected him after gaining their fame and fortune. He was only a child, after all, and I highly doubt he had any friends after that. 

It's moments like these- moments of vulnerability for Bradley- that make me wonder if I could make him happy again. Could the damaged boy of his past possibly be helped by the chance of someone to rely on? God, I sound like a cringy book description.

"Ready to head back?" Bradley asks, snapping me back into reality.

"Uhm... yes, of course." I stand up and dust myself off. 

He rises as well and adjusts the seat of his pants. "Wait, how'd I get rocks in my slacks?"

I laugh, tugging him toward the campus. "Come on."

We walk rather slowly back to the dorms, enjoying each other's company in the warm evening.

I don't know, maybe we could work.

Maybe he could be happy once again.