4 Think About That

"Why are you so calm about this?" I ask Toph as he walks out of the bathroom after his shower with just a towel wrapped around his waist.

He pushes his lips together in a thinking face and then gives up shrugging, "You're my best friend. This is temporary. We'll get it figured out and life will go back to normal."

"You don't mind being my husband," I coo as I put my hand over my chest mockingly.

He laughs as he walks into his closet to get dressed, "Whatever, dude. We're both straight; it's not like you're going to start hitting on me."

"No I won't, but I'm not completely sure about you," standing up from where I was lying fully clothed on his bed, I walk into his bathroom, "You have an extra toothbrush?"

"Under the counter," he yells from the other room. A few seconds later, he shows up in the doorframe in blue jeans with his arms crossed over his bare chest, "What do you mean you're not sure about me?"

If I were a woman, I'd be swooning right now. He looks all rugged and manly. The way his arms are crossed over his pecks shows off his well-sculpted build. The look on his face gives off the playfully stern aura just as his slight lean against the wall offers casual and fun.

Turning around to look at him straight on, I cross my arms like his and lean my lower back against the bathroom sink behind me, "You're the one that kissed me last night AND you were wrapped around me when I woke up this morning."

He lets outs a little chuckle and rubs the back of his neck. I can see a slight pink in his cheeks as he tries to remedy the situation, "Hey now, you were not opposed to the kiss. As for this morning, I have no idea what that was. I can't be blamed if I don't remember."

"We both know that's not true," I point out as I turn around to look in the cabinet for the extra toothbrush. I continue my statement when I see through the mirror that he has an eyebrow raised, "If you couldn't be blamed for stuff you can't remember, we wouldn't be married."

"Who would let us get married in that state of mind? We have horrible friends," he laughs as I start to scrub my teeth. "I mean wouldn't it be obvious we were wasted? Oh and straight?"

"Who knows how much you were all over me last night," I joke as I spit some toothpaste from my mouth. "But who could blame you really?"

He pushes my shoulder as he walks back to his closet to find a shirt and shoes.

-----

"So what are you expecting to happen?" I ask Topher on the way over to his cousin's house.

She lives above the bar in a loft. The ride is only about ten minutes, but I'm not really sure what's going to happen when we get there.

He shrugs without looking away from the road, "I don't know. I just want to know what happened last night so we can figure out how to reverse it."

"Yea, that would be nice. I don't think I'm ready for a husband yet," I tell him with a chuckle.

I've never thought about myself with a husband. Hell, I've never thought of myself with a wife; or a girlfriend for that matter. I've had my fair share of one night stands. I used to be one of those guys that would have a girl take me home with her after a night at the bar and catch a cab once we were done; though I haven't done that in a while. About a year, actually.

Not to say I haven't gotten any for a year, I have. It was just from a girl that I've known all my life. One of those girls you grow up with and then realize when you both have hormones that it could be fun. Well, she came to visit from England a couple months ago. I guess that was my last time.

"What's your opinion on gay marriage?" he asks me after a few moments of silence.

I have to think about it for a second because I never have before. Then I answer as truthfully as I can, "We got married last night. So, at least at a subconscious level, I'm for it. I've never really given it any thought."

"Is it as frowned upon in England as it is here?" he asks me while tapping his hands on the wheel.

"I don't really think it's frowned upon anywhere more or less. It's only what you make it, don't you think? There are always going to be people who are going to think it shouldn't happen, but I don't see how they are right or someone else is wrong. It's like the whole God thing, isn't it? Some can't be bothered with it while others can't be told otherwise. Everyone always thinks they have to be right, He either exists or not. But there's no real way to prove either way. It's all a matter of opinion to me."

He pulls up to the bar just as I finish my speech and looks over at me, "That was a lot more than I thought you were going to say."

"What did you expect?"

"Yes or no would have worked."

"It wasn't a yes or no question."

"Yes, it was."

"No, that's like asking if the grass is green. The answer is simply, not always."

"Grass is green," he counters.

"No, when it's dried out it yellow. When it's burnt is black. When it's frozen it has blue in it. Grass isn't always green," I chuckle at the end to show him I'm not really fighting just trying to prove a point. "Not to mention the different types of grass."

A smirk plays at his lips with raised eyebrow to keep it company, "You're a complex person."

"I told you, you couldn't handle me," my chuckle turns to a laugh as I exit the car.

Once we make it to the back door while still laughing, Topher starts to knock. And knock. And knock.

"You did call her before we headed over here, didn't you?" I ask him after five minutes of no answer from her door.

He looks at me with a sheepish expression as he rubs the back of his neck, "I didn't see a reason to; she's always here."

"Obviously," I gesture toward the door. "Maybe we should go in through the front."

We walk back to the front door and casually stroll into the bar. We don't usually come to the bar while it's open to the public for a few reasons. The main one being, we don't want to cause a scene. And what do you think happens when two famous actors casually stroll into a bar?

It's like a bad joke, right?

Two actors walk into a bar.

No, it just gets really quiet. People take out their camera phones to take pictures or send messages to their friends. It's kind of unnerving. But the real problem isn't that we just strolled into a local bar; it's that we strolled into his family's local bar.

They may get more customers now, but they'll also get those annoying people that constantly ask them if they know us. We try to save them from that. So instead of walking up to Sammi's loft through the back of the building, we stop at the actual counter that we drank ourselves into oblivion last night.

The place is family owned, so one of Topher's relatives will always be serving the drinks. Today it happened to be his aunt.

"Aunt Ruth," Toph smiles kindly as he wraps his arms around the middle aged lady that has the same blue eyes that seem to run through his bloodline.

She pats his back a few times before letting him go. Her eyes glow like a proud parent as she looks at him, "Chris! How have you been, kiddo?"

"I've been good," he admits to her with a nod of his head and a smile on his face. "Is Sam upstairs?"

"She sure is. She still sleeping, kiddo. I would offer to go get her, but I don't have anyone to watch the bar. She's supposed to be down here helping today," she tells him before turning to me.

I extend my hand toward her, "Damon Jacobs. Nice to meet you, ma'am."

"So, you're the hu-... best friend?" she asks me as she ignores my handshake and crosses her arms over her chest with a stern look on her face. "I hear you have corrupted my kiddo."

I let my hand drop lamely by my side, "I wouldn't say corrupted. We just... you know... hang out?" It sounds like a question when I'm done with it.

Her tough exterior drops in an instant and she wraps her arms around my torso, "Welcome to the family."

My eyeballs almost fall out of my sockets with how wide they open. I sneak a look over at Toph who's wearing the same expression. I pat her back a few times lightly before dropping my arms.

"Excuse me; did you just say 'family'?" I ask her to clarify as we pull away from each other.

She laughs a little bit before waving a hand at us. She holds up one finger telling us to wait a second then turns to a man sitting at the bar not too far from us, "Jerry, you think you can keep an eye out for a second? I'm going to grab one of my daughters."

"Does this mean I get a drink on the house?" the man asks a little slurred.

"When's the last time you paid your tab, Jer?"

"Touché!" he holds up his glass in agreement.

Aunt Ruth turns to look at us again. Holding up a hand, she says, "Stand here a second. I'm going to get Jenny from the back."

When she leaves, I peek over at Toph who looks just as confused as I feel.

"Do you think she knows?" he asks me.

I shrug, "She's YOUR aunt."

Aunt Ruth is back again before he can say anything else with a younger version of her. Jenny is a little older than Sammi, if I had to guess.

"Alright, follow me," she tells us and she walks to the back.

All three of us silently make our way to the storage cupboard. Once safely inside, she closes the door and turns to us, "Sammi came in this morning completely wasted. Drunk as a skunk. I could barely understand everything she was laughing about. The one thing I did hear, for sure, was that you two got hitched last night."

There are a few minutes of silence where no one even moves. Toph is the one to break it, "Did she say anything else?"

"Nothing I could understand," she says with a smile.

"It's not what you think it is," I tell her because I have nothing else to say.

She lets out a little chuckle, "I think you guys got drunk and thought it would be funny to get married."

"Okay," my best friend lets out a huff of air as he runs a hand through the back of his hair, "it's exactly what you think it is."

"But, we're going to fix it," I offer hanging my head slightly.

She gesture toward the empty kegs, "Take a barrel. I want to talk to you guys."

Doing as she requests, we each grab a discarded beer container and use them as a makeshift chair. Once we're situated she grabs a keg of her own and sits across from us.

"Alright Chris, do you have any idea what I'm about to say?" she asks as she rests her elbows on her knees.

He shakes his head, "No, but I can bet you're not happy about it."

"I'm not happy about it, but I don't think it's for the same reason that you're thinking," she explains. "You know I've never been one to let marriage dictate love or happiness. Hell, I've been with your uncle for the past twenty-seven years and still don't find the need to have a piece of paper saying I love him; he knows I do. But I know that when you're in love and happy, it's just another step that most people want to take."

"I don't know what you're trying to say," Toph admit.

She sighs, "Christopher, you have been a completely different person since Rick passed away."

"He was my dad, I'm allowed to be upset about it," he tells her a bit aggressively.

She nods in comprehension, but has a sad smile, "I know, kiddo. No one blames you for being upset, but you have to remember that he was my little brother. So where you got to spend 20 love filled amazing years with him, I got 46. I cherish them every day, but I've accepted his passing. It upsets me time and time again that he's not here, but I know that he wouldn't have wanted me to dwell on it. It's been three years."

"You don't understand," he shakes his head. "He was like a superhero to me and he was my best friend."

She sighs again and puts her hand on his knee, "Chris, he was my innocent baby brother. Nothing bad was ever supposed to happen to him. I used to stick up for him on the playground at school. He took his first sip of alcohol with me. We grew up together. He was the first person I told when I found out I was pregnant with Jenny. And I was the first to find out about you. He was my superhero too. And even after 46 years, I couldn't save him from cancer."

"I miss him," my best friend crumples right in front of me. His head falls into his hands as he lets the sobs wrack through his body.

I've never been one to let my emotions get the best of me. I'm not a crier nor am I one to show my elation. But when Topher started crying, I couldn't help what came over me. Without even thinking about it, I pull him into my arms.

He willingly lays his head on my shoulder and puts his arms around my waist. If this were anyone else, I probably would have just patted their back awkwardly, but I just can't handle seeing him like this. It hurts me that something's hurting him. So I wait while he lets it all out and gently rub his back.

Once he stops the tears and pulls away, I look him in the eyes, "Are you okay?"

"Jolly good, mate," he mocks my accent and rolls his eyes trying to look away from me.

I crack a smile, but hold him away to look into his eyes again, "I'm serious. I want to make sure you're okay."

"I'm good," he nods with a sad smile. Then as an afterthought he says, "Thank you."

I wave a hand at him, "I told you. I'm high maintenance; you're a lightweight comparatively."

He punches my shoulder a little harder than I would consider friendly, but a smile hints at his lips.

"I'm pretty sure that's domestic violence," I laugh as I rub my arm.

Someone clears their causing me to jump. "I'm still here," his aunt says from beside us.

"Sorry Aunt Ruth," Topher says to her.

She smiles at him then turns to me, "You know you're the first person he's opened up to since Rick passed?"

"I didn't," I tell her honestly as we take our seat on the kegs again.

She nods apprehensively, "He wouldn't even talk to us. I didn't see him for two years afterward. Then one day out of nowhere, Sammi says he shows up here with a new friend. Do you know when that was?"

"Why are you telling him this?" Toph asks interrupting my answer.

She smiles at him with love shining in her eyes, "I'm telling you both. Now shush up and listen." She turns her gaze back to me, "Do you know when that was?"

I shake my head, but keep quiet.

"That was the day that you guys came here for the first time to grab drinks after a shoot. That was the first time we saw him since Rick's funeral," she smiles at me like I gave her the secret to cure world hunger. "We owe you more than I could tell you."

"I didn't really do anything," but to be honest I feel proud. I didn't know that he hid away from his family. I just thought we were two friends going out to get a drink like normal people do.

I'm happy that I could help him.

"What's your point, Aunt Ruth?" Toph asks from beside me.

She smiles at me before facing him, "Maybe you should think about that before you get a divorce."