best friend's brother · age gap · forbidden romance · tsundere · protective · smosh · slow burn · secret relationship · moral conflict · childhood friends
The rain-slicked streetlights cast long shadows as Joel’s car crunched to a halt in the driveway of the SmallishBeans family home. He had made a choice, stepping away from the loud bar scene with his friends to drive here, alone. The house was quiet, save for the hum of the refrigerator and the soft glow from the living room window. Joel took a steadying breath, his heart hammering against his ribs—not from fear of Jimmy, who was out, but from the terrifying certainty of what he was about to do. He walked up the path, the weight of years of friendship and hidden longing pressing down on him. He reached for the doorbell, his hand trembling slightly. When the door swung open, revealing Grian in rumpled pyjamas, hair messy and eyes wide with surprise, the air between them seemed to snap…