Brendan
"Brendan, why don't you just put all those away?" Mom said to me as she sat on the end of my bed. I had been looking through all the pictures of Tate and me while packing up for the move into Kevin and I's new condo.
"No... I like them, Mom," I protested, still sifting through them.
"Brendan, she's already settled in Georgia by now. I think it'll be best if you just... leave them here? I'm not saying you should forget her--heavens no. I just think that---"
"I don't want to forget her. I like these pictures. They bring back good memories. I'm taking them."
She sighed and put an arm around me. "Well, all right then, Brendan." She sat there quietly, watching me flip through the photos, before she pointed out to one I was about to put away with the others in a box.
"When was this one taken? I don't remember that one. Was it professionally taken? It's... it's really nice."
I shook my head as I surveyed it. "Nope, Robbie took it when we were out at the beach."
"I like it--it turned out really well. You tell Robbie he should be a photographer. It's probably my favorite one now... next to the one of you giving her a piggy-back ride down the driveway."
I grinned and set it back down in the box. "Yeah, it's mine, too."
Mom was getting pretty teary-eyed once Kevin and I had moved all our stuff inside the condo. It was bigger than I had imagined. Both the condo and the idea that I was now living away from home.
Mrs. Carlson and Mom gave us all big hugs before they left. We promised that we'd see them soon, and they suggested we come back next weekend. It was a struggle, but in the end, Kevin and I agreed.
"Our new pad. Bachelor pad," Kevin laughed, relaxing outside in one of our two hammocks. "This is the life, ain't it, Brendan?"
I nodded, adjusting my hat as I looked the place up and down. "Oh," I said, "Did Ryan tell you about his and Shee's new apartment yet? They've been in for about three days already. They beat us here!"
"Yeah. They'll be coming by at around five-ish. They brought us both house-welcoming presents. How nice of them."
"Yeah, especially when all we gave them was a hard time over the phone because they couldn't get their apartment door open. Took 'em half an hour, I think."
"Yeah."
I checked my watch. "Well, it's 4:48. They should be coming by soon. Should we go back in and wait?"
Kevin nodded and unsteadily got off the hammock. "In we go."
But before we could sit down in the living room, the doorbell rang. "Open up!" Shee's muffled voice called. He knocked on the door several times until I finally pulled it open and welcomed him inside.
"Where's Ry Guy?" I asked, as I let Sheehan in.
"Oh, he forgot your present, so he had to run all the way back to go get it. And he had it all wrapped up in a bow and everything." He laughed and said, "Here, Kevin #2, we got you this."
Kevin grinned and tore through the paper immediately. "Oh SPIT! Brendan! They got us a toaster!"
We all laughed and I shut the door. "Good thinking. Looks like bread for breakfast, lunch, and dinner."
We all collapsed onto the couch and sighed.
"He'll be here," Shee assured us, checking his watch once five minutes had gone by.
And finally, the doorbell rang again. "Ryan!" we all chorused.
Kevin Carlson answered the door this time and Shee and I heard him and Ryan mumble some things before they called me over to the front door.
"Hey, Brendan!" Ryan greeted with a wave, still outside on the steps. "Look what I gotcha!" And he stepped aside.
I couldn't believe it. There she was, in a white dress with a baby blue ribbon tied around her waist. And her hair was up in two messy buns.
"Hello, Brendan," she chirped cheerily.
I gasped. "Tate, is that really you? Wh--What are you doing back here in Chicago?"
She and Ryan laughed. He looked at me and said, "Well, as luck would have it, Shee and I saw her and Mr. Summers checking out the DePaul campus."
"You mean..."
"I'm going to school here!" Tate blurted out, jumping up and down. "Dad really liked the school here better than Georgia University. So, I get to stay!
Isn't that--"
"Wonderful," I finished for her.
She beamed at me, then looked up at Ryan as he said, "Yo, do we get to come in or not?"
"OH!" Kevin and I said, backing away from the door. Tate hopped in and gave me a peck on the cheek as she passed me by.
And after I shut the door, I ran up behind her and gave her a hug.
So every cloud has a silver lining. And the grass really IS greener on the other side. And Tate was here to stay. 'Course, she'll be living on campus, but
it beats never seeing her again. Kevin and I have been using the toaster
more than anything else in the kitchen, but tonight Tate's going to come
over and teach us a thing or two about cooking. I think we're going to go ahead and tape it, too. Maybe her cooking show'll fit in nicely with the variety show we're doing on cable access.
Ryan even bought her an apron that says 'Kiss the Cook.' Well, hey, I'd be more than happy to. So, yes, things are going great. I mean, not everything has a happy ending. It's a reality that hits people all around the world. But this, this isn't just anything, and she isn't just anyone. She has been one of my best friends since I was a kid. She's been there cheering me along the way, being our school's unofficial cheerleader (she hated the uniforms, and therefore refused to be an 'official' one), and well, I couldn't ask for more. So what if her parents aren't quite as fond of us as she is? It's not like I was trying to impress them in the first place. Not that she needed to be completely swept off her feet.
She is Tate Summers, and I am Brendan Leonard. And we are together. And for me, it's just like my show... us being together...
It makes all the sense in the world.
The End :)
A/N: Yaaay! Another fic done and done. :D Hope you enjoyed it! It was incredibly fun to write, and I only hope you had a great time reading along with the Brendan and Tate "romance." Thanks for all the reviews so far, and I only ask that you tell me what you think of this last chapter! It's been awfully fun, and I'll see if I can come up with another Brendan and Tate adventure soon!