Alone With Your Best Friend's Older Brother

Transcript

Yes. Yes. Just, just tell them I'll be there.

Yes. Tomorrow morning. Yep.

First thing. All right. Thank you, Howard.

Thank you, Howard. All right. Yep.

You too. Okay. Bye-bye.

Bye. Bye. Bye.

Bye. Bye. Bye.

Bye. Bye. Bye.

Bye. Bye. Bye.

Thank you. Bye. Bye.

Bye. Bye. Bye-bye.

Bye. Bye. Bye-bye.

Bye-bye. Okay. Sorry about that.

Work stuff. Nope. Nope.

Not busy. I just have to clock in extra early tomorrow. Apparently, we have a pretty important client.

Some big shot from a start-up company. Yeah. Yeah.

No. I think my boss really wants to bag this guy. I don't know.

I think it's a bit of a stretch of I got to call him a few times and I actually got to meet him once or twice. Great guy. Like really, really good guy.

But I don't know. You know those people that are just like all passion? That's just all they want to do? Yeah.

Yeah. This guy is like 100% just wants to do his own thing with his start-up, make a difference or whatever. And yeah, just go with the flow.

So yeah, him and Howard? No go. Yeah.

I'll try for him, I guess. That's not why we're here though. So it's been a while.

Yeah. It's been like, what, two years? I mean, we've been messaging each other here and there, I guess.

Right. Right. Yeah.

Definitely not enough. How are you though? You know, last I checked, you were pretty busy.

Yeah. That's still holding you up? How's it been though? Right.

Gotcha. Busy as ever, then. I mean, God, do you ever sleep, by the way? Just asking.

No, seriously. When was the last time you really, really got some rest? Like really? Sure.

Right. Sure. Right.

Yeah. There's no way. No.

No. All right. Hey, I'm not the one who has to deal with all that stuff.

I'm actually getting some shut-eye. Okay. All right.

All right. I trust you. Seriously, though.

Are you good? It's the weekend. You know, you should probably get some rest.

Yeah. All right. All right.

All right. All right. All right.

All right. All right. All right.

You know, you should really end the week. Hmm. All right.

Sure. How's things with Jesse? You talk to him at all recently? Hmm.

Yeah. Yeah. He messaged me a few days ago.

I was checking up on him, and it took him a while to respond. I'm alive. Stop messaging me, is all he said.

Yeah. I always got a sense of humor about him. Ooh.

Speaking of, I should actually message him. One sec. Okay.

Miss you, baby bro. Think that's embarrassing enough? I know his girlfriend has his phone.

All right. Sent with love. No, no, no.

Sent with love. And send. Okay.

Yeah. Hopefully he enjoys that one. God.

Can't help but feel a little worried, though, actually. Last time I saw him, he dropped like 20 pounds. Looked like he didn't get a wink of sleep, either.

He's worked himself to the bone his entire life. Sometimes you just have to respect it. Other times.

.. Well, I trust him. He'll be all right.

We had a family call, too, the other week. Yeah. And he was in high spirits.

Oh, sorry. I'm rambling. How are things with you and.

.. Uh-huh. Mm-hmm.

Oh, great. Great. Happy to hear that.

How long has it been since you two started dating? Oh, I didn't know that. Uh-huh.

Oh, okay. Right, right, right, right. So you two were never a thing? Huh.

I always swore that you two were. .. Didn't they like you, like, a lot? Like, a lot, a lot? That they did.

Right, right. Okay. Um.

.. Until now? No? And you're sure? Okay.

Right. Double sure? All right.

Okay. Cool, cool, cool, cool. I could've sworn you two were dating, though.

Are you sure you weren't dating, aren't dating? Well, I don't know. I mean, you guys were always the closest thing.

Whenever we hung out back in high school, it always felt like you were this close to just inhaling each other. No, no, I swear, I swear. It was always us three and Jesse, right? Jesse had his own girl-a-loo, and you two had, you know, whatever the heck was going on.

I'm not joking, I'm not joking. I genuinely felt like I was third-wheeling every darn time. I think that anyone who was around you two felt like they were third-wheeling.

Honest. Right, right. Wow, that honestly reset my brain.

All this time, I thought, all right, okay, right, not a thing. I got it, I got it, okay. Wow, okay.

But, the heck do you mean I'm smiling? I'm not smiling. Oh, oh, you think this revelation makes me happy? Is that right? Well, idiot, I'm smiling because you're smiling.

So stop smiling, or I'll keep smiling. God, this is so stupid. You're so stupid.

Interesting revelations. God. Wow, I miss this, you know? Well, just this.

Just hanging around, hanging out like this. Everything's been going by so quickly that I kind of forgot what taking things slow felt like. Yeah, I don't know.

I guess I've just been a little stressed here and there with everything. I mean, I'm sure you've been going through your fair share of troubles and stresses. We don't have to go through any of those.

But, yes. I'm just very glad that things have been going slow for a little while. Yeah.

Yeah. God, we used to hang around the grimiest places back then. You remember that one little corner store we used to stay at? The one with the really nice tasting bread? Yeah, yeah, yeah, that one.

The one like five minutes away from the park. Yeah, yeah. God, we really used to hang around there.

And the stupidest part is that we thought we were cool. We thought we were the coolest kids laying around there. Me with my gangly limbs and you with your stupid hat.

Yes, yes. I remember that hat. I can never, ever forget.

No, I'm being for real. All these things. All these.

.. All these things. Jeez.

Hey. I missed you. I really did.

Oh, yeah, sorry. Sorry, I don't know. ..

I don't know what took over me there. But. ..

But I mean it, though. Seriously. I really missed this.

I really missed you. It feels like it's been 50 years since we last talked like this, no? I can't be the only one.

And like I said, I really forgot how to take things slow nowadays. It's just sort of felt like I've been on autopilot, I suppose, for the past year. Like I didn't have anything to wake up for, other than a promotion.

Like I was just a zombie at work. And all the times I've gone out, it's always for some business or whatever. Or whatever.

Wow, I can't believe I just talked about work like that. But seriously, it's all been work, work, work. I can't remember the last time I went out just to have fun.

Like serious, genuine fun. Not even just by myself. Well, until now, I guess.

So. .. Thank you.

For calling me the other day. You could have so easily just not told me that you were in town, you know? Yeah, yeah, I know.

That's not like you at all. It's just. ..

I've been losing touch with a lot of people nowadays. I've been meeting a lot of new ones and they've been super great. But it's hard to beat home.

Yeah. I guess at some point, I started thinking that. ..

I'd lose you too. And that. ..

That you'd lose me too. I don't want to lose you. Not after seeing you again.

I don't know what the heck I'm saying either. But just. ..

Just roll with it. Okay? Just roll with it.

Just roll with it. I feel that I'm going to say something stupid. And I don't want to say it in public.

You wanna. .. You wanna come over to my place? It's not far.

At all. Yeah? Okay.

Okay. Excuse me. Check, please.

Thank you. Alright. I get it.

Yes, Howard. I get it. I'll.

.. I'll be there first thing, like I said. Okay? I have to get some sleep now, so can we please leave this for tomorrow? Alright.

Great. Thank you. No.

No. You did good too. Alright.

Bye. Sorry. Work.

No, I do not talk to bosses like that. It's just Howard and I go way back. Yeah, we started off on the same internship, and then we figured out we went to the same college.

And we just kind of got close from there. Yeah, but that's besides the point. If I talk anymore about Howard, I think I'm literally gonna vomit.

So let's leave the work talk for work, okay? And just relax a little. I know I already said it at the cafe, but I really do appreciate you stopping by.

You know, even if it wasn't me. You know, I wasn't there. I mean, I'm not gonna lie.

I'm not gonna lie. I'm not gonna lie. I'm not gonna lie.

I'm not gonna lie. I'm not gonna lie. I'm not gonna lie.

You know, I wasn't the reason why you stopped by town. Oh, I was. Okay, right.

No, I just could have sworn it would be because of Jesse, but I'll take it. Right. So you came all this way just to talk to me? Is that right? Yeah, I am very flattered.

No, it's really cool. You deciding to do this, I guess. Really appreciate it.

What stupid stuff? Oh, right. Yeah, yeah, I did say that.

Yeah. It's nothing. Are you sure you want to still hear all that stuff? I guess I was just feeling a little sentimental a while ago.

So I was just a little drunk on emotions. Yeah, sure. Wow, when did you get so bossy? No, I don't mind.

I already gave you my fair warning. So if you come crying to me about something that I say or said, something that I say or said, that's on you. Yeah, no point in dilly-dallying.

Ever since we were in middle school, well, when I was just about to go to high school. Okay. I had a major thing for you.

And I genuinely do not know why I'm saying any of this. Of all the times that we've talked over the years, you know, after the fact, I genuinely have no idea why I'm suddenly, like I said, telling you about any of this. But there just must have been something in the air at the cafe that made me start to think about all these things again.

And I don't like you anymore, I don't think. Well, at least I was sure that I didn't anymore. You know, after, I guess, the second year? I don't know, it's all blurry, but.

..