Chapter Twenty eight

Over a year had passed since Nate had last been home.

That fact surprised even him.

He spoke to Sarah every weekend without fail. Sometimes the calls lasted ten minutes because he was exhausted. Other times they lasted nearly an hour while she updated him on everything happening at home.

He spoke to Max almost every day.

Sometimes they talked for twenty minutes.

Sometimes Max simply called to complain about school.

Sometimes Nate called between hospital shifts just to ask, How was your day?

But physically, Nate hadn't made it home since Christmas.

His residency had consumed him.

The second year had been even more demanding than the first, and he was preparing to move into the next stage of his training. There were patients, overnight shifts, conferences, paperwork, and the constant exhaustion that came with learning how to become the kind of doctor he'd always dreamed of being.

Micah, on the other hand, had managed to return home every few weeks.

He'd made a point of it.

Sarah always teased him about it.

"You visit more often than you live there."

Micah would simply grin.

"Someone has to check on you."

And, of course, he checked on Max too.

Which was why, when Max called them both one evening, Nate was immediately suspicious.

"What happened?"

Max laughed.

"Nothing happened."

"Then why are you calling me and Micah at the same time?"

"Because I have something to ask."

Micah's voice came through the other side of the call.

"Here we go."

Max groaned.

"Can you both just listen?"

Nate smiled.

"Go ahead."

There was a pause.

Then Max said,

"I want you guys to come home."

Nate leaned back in his chair.

"For what?"

"My birthday."

Micah answered immediately.

"Obviously."

"My eighteenth."

That made Nate sit up.

"Eighteenth?"

"Yes."

"You didn't tell me it was coming up."

"I've mentioned it approximately seventeen thousand times."

"You have not."

"I have."

Micah laughed.

"You absolutely have."

Max ignored him.

"I want you both home."

His voice changed slightly.

Not childish.

Not pleading.

Just honest.

"I want us all together."

Nate felt something tighten in his chest.

He had missed more than he wanted to admit.

"Okay," he said.

Max went silent.

"Okay?"

"We'll come."

"Really?"

"Really."

Micah laughed.

"Now you've done it."

"What?"

"He's going to make us spend the entire weekend doing whatever he wants."

Max's voice brightened.

"Correct."

Nate smiled.

"I'll be there."

----------------------

They left Friday afternoon.

Micah drove.

Nate sat in the passenger seat, half listening while Micah talked about work.

They had been on the road for nearly two hours when Micah glanced sideways.

"You nervous?"

"About what?"

"Going home."

Nate shrugged.

"Not really."

Micah raised an eyebrow.

"You haven't been back in almost a year."

"I talk to them constantly."

"That's not the same."

"I know."

Nate looked out the window.

He thought about Max.

The last time he'd seen him, Max had been sixteen.

He'd been thinner then.

Still carrying some of the awkwardness of adolescence.

Still learning how to stand comfortably in his own skin.

But Nate had watched him change over the phone.

He'd heard the difference in his voice.

The confidence.

The laughter.

The way he talked about school.

The stories about the people he'd dated.

Max had told him about his first boyfriend with an embarrassed laugh.

Then his second.

Then someone he'd gone out with for a few weeks before deciding they were better as friends.

Nate had listened.

Given advice when asked.

Teased him when appropriate.

It had all seemed normal.

Until now.

"I wonder what he's like now," Nate said.

Micah smiled.

"You'll see."

----------------------

They arrived shortly before sunset.

Sarah was already waiting outside.

The moment Micah got out of the car, she walked straight toward him.

"You took long enough."

Micah hugged her.

"I was here three weeks ago."

"Too long."

Then she looked toward the passenger side.

Nate stepped out.

Sarah's face immediately softened.

"Oh, my boy."

She pulled him into a hug.

Nate laughed against her shoulder.

"Hi, Sarah."

"I've missed you."

"I've missed you too."

"You've gotten thinner."

"Hospital."

"You're not eating properly."

"I eat."

"You're lying."

Micah laughed.

"He's absolutely lying."

Nate pushed him.

"Traitor."

Then a voice came from behind Sarah.

"Are you three planning to stand there all evening?"

Nate turned.

And stopped.

For a second, he genuinely didn't recognize him.

Max stood on the porch.

Not the sixteen-year-old boy Nate remembered.

Not the boy who had once avoided eye contact.

Not the teenager who had spent hours locked inside his bedroom.

This Max was eighteen.

And he had changed.

A lot.

He was taller.

Broader through the shoulders.

He had filled out over the past year, his body carrying the unmistakable definition of someone who had discovered exercise and actually stuck with it.

His hair was different too.

His clothes were more confident.

But it wasn't any of those things that caught Nate off guard.

It was his face.

Max looked...

comfortable.

There was no hesitation in his expression.

No uncertainty.

No guardedness.

And then their eyes met.

Max looked directly into Nate's eyes.

He didn't glance away.

Didn't duck his head.

Didn't retreat.

He simply smiled.

"Hey, Nate."

Nate blinked.

"Hey."

Max walked down the steps.

"It's been a while."

"Yeah."

Nate smiled awkwardly.

"It has."

Max stopped in front of him.

Then hugged him.

Nate hugged him back automatically.

But when they separated, Nate found himself looking at Max again.

Something about him was startling.

Not because he was suddenly a stranger.

Because Nate could suddenly see the person Max had been becoming all along.

The frightened boy was gone.

Or at least, he wasn't the only version of Max anymore.

This Max carried himself differently.

He stood straighter.

He spoke with confidence.

He looked people in the eye.

He had learned how to take up space.

And Nate was stunned by how much he had missed.

"What's wrong?" Max asked.

Nate realized he'd been staring.

"Nothing."

Max smiled.

"You sure?"

"Yeah."

Micah walked past them.

"He's just shocked that you grew up."

Max grinned.

"I told him I was going to."

Nate laughed.

"Apparently you weren't kidding."

Max looked pleased.

"I'll take that as a compliment."

"It is."

Sarah called from the doorway.

"Come inside before your food gets cold."

----------------------

Dinner was loud.

Almost immediately, the old rhythm returned.

Micah argued with Sarah about the amount of pepper in the stew.

Max told a ridiculous story about one of his classmates.

Nate laughed more that evening than he had in weeks.

But every now and then, he caught himself watching Max.

It wasn't deliberate.

At least, not initially.

He noticed how Max carried himself.

How easily he laughed.

How confidently he spoke.

How he no longer seemed desperate for approval.

Then Max caught him looking.

"What?"

Nate smiled.

"Nothing."

"You keep saying that."

"Because there's nothing wrong."

Max narrowed his eyes playfully.

"You're weird."

"So I've been told."

Max laughed.

And Nate looked away.

Something about seeing him like this unsettled him.

Not because Max was doing anything wrong.

Quite the opposite.

He was thriving.

And Nate was proud of him.

But there was a strange awareness in Nate now that hadn't been there before.

A realization that Max wasn't a child anymore.

He was eighteen.

An adult.

He had his own opinions, friendships, relationships, ambitions.

He was becoming his own person.

And Nate was going to have to learn how to see him that way.

----------------------

Later that evening, Nate found Max outside.

The porch light cast a warm glow across the steps.

Max was sitting with his elbows resting on his knees.

Nate sat beside him.

"How's everything?"

"Good."

"School?"

"Good."

"Dating?"

Max laughed.

"You really want to know?"

"Your mother tells me everything anyway."

"That's terrifying."

"She loves gossip."

Max smiled.

"You know everything I’ve been up to."

"Seeing anyone lately?"

"Not really."

"You happy?"

Max considered it.

"Yeah."

Nate nodded.

"Good."

Max looked at him.

"You've changed too."

Nate laughed.

"Me?"

"Yeah."

"How?"

"You look tired."

"That's not a compliment."

"It wasn't."

Nate laughed.

Max smiled.

Then their eyes met again.

And this time, Nate didn't look away immediately.

Neither did Max.

There was no awkwardness.

No fear.

Just recognition.

Two people who had known each other for years, suddenly discovering that time had changed them both.

Max smiled.

"You really did miss a lot."

Nate shook his head.

"I can see that."

"You'll have to make up for it."

"I intend to."

Max's smile widened.

"Good."

From inside the house, Micah shouted,

"Birthday boy! Your mother calls!"

Max groaned.

"Coming!"

He stood.

Then looked back at Nate.

"You coming?"

Nate smiled.

"Of course."

Max walked inside.

Nate remained on the porch for one extra second.

He looked out into the darkness.

He had expected coming home to feel nostalgic.

Instead, it felt unfamiliar.

Because everyone had changed.

Sarah was older.

Micah had built a career.

And Max...

Max had grown into someone Nate hadn't been prepared to meet.

Nate exhaled slowly.

Then he followed him inside.