*Episode 3: Telling Jay*
The morning after the hug, everything is different and nothing is different.
Cass still makes coffee at 4PM.
Milo still leaves sketchbooks everywhere.
But now when their hands brush reaching for the milk, neither of them pulls away first.
It’s terrifying.
"So," Milo says at breakfast. Pancakes. He made them. Cass pretended not to like them and ate three. "We should probably... talk."
"About Jay," Cass finishes.
"Yeah."
Cass nods. "Tonight. After work. Face to face. Not text."
"Face to face is scarier."
"I know."
Milo picks at his pancake. "What if he hates us?"
"He won’t," Cass says, but he doesn’t sound sure. "He’s my brother. You’re his best friend. He’d rather us be honest than lie."
"What if it’s weird?"
"It will be weird."
Milo laughs, nervous. "Cool. Great. Love that for us."
Cass reaches across the table and squeezes Milo’s hand once. Quick. Then lets go.
"One step at a time," Cass says.
---
The day drags. Cass is in his office. Milo tries to draw and ends up drawing Cass’s hands instead.
At 6PM, they sit in the living room. Laptop open. Jay’s name on the call screen.
Milo’s palms are sweating. "You do it," he says.
"No, you do it," Cass says.
"Together. On three."
"Okay."
"One... two... three."
They hit call.
Jay answers on the second ring. Hair messy, hoodie on, background looks like a tiny apartment abroad.
"Hey! You guys look serious. Did something break?"
"Hey," Milo says. His voice cracks.
"Hi," Cass says.
Jay frowns. "What’s wrong?"
Cass looks at Milo. Milo nods.
"We need to tell you something," Cass says. "And we’re really scared."
Jay sits up straighter. "Okay. What is it? Did you guys fight? Because if you fought I’m going to be mad at both of you."
"We didn’t fight," Milo says quickly. "Not like that."
"Then what?"
Silence.
Cass takes a breath. "Milo and I... we’ve been getting close. This summer."
"Close how?" Jay asks.
Milo jumps in. "Like. Really close. Like maybe we like each other close."
Jay blinks. "Wait. You mean... you mean like each other?"
"Yeah," Milo says. "I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to. It just happened."
Another pause. It feels like 10 years.
Then Jay bursts out laughing.
Both of them flinch.
"Oh my god," Jay says, wiping his eyes. "I thought someone died."
"What?" Cass says.
"I thought you were gonna tell me you totaled the car or that Milo burned down the house or that you were moving to Antarctica."
Milo stares. "You’re... not mad?"
"Why would I be mad?" Jay says. "Dude. I’ve been waiting for this."
"What?" Cass says again.
"Come on," Jay says. "You’ve been glaring at each other for two years. And the way Milo talks about you, Cass? And the way you text me ‘is Milo eating actual food’ every other day? Please. I’m not blind."
Cass rubs his face. "We didn’t want to mess things up."
"You won’t," Jay says. "Look. You’re both idiots. But you’re my idiots. I just want you to be honest. And be good to each other. And maybe not make it weird at family dinner."
"We won’t," Milo says, relief flooding him so hard his knees feel weak. "Promise."
"Also," Jay adds, grinning. "I get to say I told you so for the rest of my life. This is amazing."
They talk for another 30 minutes. Jay asks questions. Teases them. Makes Cass promise not to work so much. Makes Milo promise to text him art pics.
When they hang up, the house is quiet again. But it’s a different quiet.
"Well," Milo says. "That went... better than expected."
Cass lets out a breath he didn’t know he was holding. "Yeah."
He looks at Milo. Really looks.
"Can I kiss you now?" Cass asks. Quiet. Serious.
Milo’s heart does something stupid. "Yes."
Cass leans in. It’s soft. Careful. Like he’s checking if Milo will pull away.
Milo doesn’t. He kisses back.
It’s not fireworks. It’s not a movie scene. It’s warm. And safe. And real.
When they pull apart, Cass rests his forehead against Milo’s.
"Rule three is officially broken," Cass murmurs.
"Good," Milo says. "It was a dumb rule anyway."
Cass smiles. A real one. Small, but real.
---
The next two weeks are soft.
They stop pretending.
Cass teaches Milo how to make actual coffee. Milo teaches Cass how to dance in the kitchen. Badly.
They tell Jay’s parents on a video call. It goes fine. Awkward, but fine.
Cass starts leaving his office door open. Milo starts knocking before coming in anyway.
One night, Milo has a nightmare. He wakes up shaking.
Cass is in his room in 30 seconds.
"Hey," Cass says, sitting on the edge of the bed. "You’re okay."
"I’m okay," Milo says, but he’s not.
Cass pulls him into his lap. No questions. Just holds him until Milo stops shaking.
"Thank you," Milo whispers.
"Always," Cass says.
---
Day 58 of 60.
They’re packing. Milo’s suitcases are half full. Gertrude has been repotted and is thriving.
Cass is quieter than usual.
"You don’t have to go back to the dorm," Cass says suddenly while folding Milo’s shirts. "You can stay. If you want."
Milo stops. "What?"
"The summer’s almost over. But you don’t have to leave. Not if you don’t want to."
"Are you asking me to move in?"
"I’m asking if you want to try," Cass says. "No rules. Just... us."
Milo crosses the room and kisses him. "Yes."
---
Last night in the house.
They’re on the couch. No space between them. Cass’s arm around Milo’s shoulders. Milo’s head on Cass’s chest.
"What now?" Milo asks.
"Now we figure it out," Cass says. "Messy and loud and real."
"Like us?"
"Like us."
Outside, it’s not raining. For the first time all summer, the sky is clear.
*END OF EPISODE 3*
---
*AUTHOR'S NOTES* 💙
Hey.
If you made it here, thank you so much for reading. Seriously.
This story started as a dumb "what if" in my notes app: _what if grumpy x sunshine but make it hurt a little?_ And it turned into something I actually care about.
*Cass and Milo* are both pieces of me. Cass is the part of me that thinks I have to be perfect and in control or everything will fall apart. Milo is the part of me that talks too much because silence is scary. Writing them taught me that softness isn’t weakness.
*Why 5 chapters?* Because I wanted to tell a full story without dragging it out. I wanted the angst, the confession, the resolution, and the hope. No filler. Just them.
*About the "best friend's brother" thing:* I know it’s messy. That’s why we talked to Jay. Consent and communication matter. I didn’t want this to be a scandal story. I wanted it to be a "we’re scared but we choose each other anyway" story.
*What’s next?* Episodes 4 and 5 will wrap this up:
*Ep 4: The Reckoning* - them navigating being public, dealing with fallout, one more big fight
*Ep 5: The New Rule* - the finale. No more rules. Just them.
Thank you for all the comments on Ep 1 and 2. Reading "Team Cass" and "Team Milo" made my whole week 😭
Drop your thoughts below:
1. *Were you Team "Tell Jay Now" or Team "Wait"?*
2. *What scene wrecked you the most?*
Love you all. Let’s finish this story together.
- [C.Faith ] 💙
