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    A Five-Alarm Love
    A Five-Alarm Love
    A Five-Alarm Love
    Ebook69 pages56 minutes

    A Five-Alarm Love

    By Ada Stone

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    About this ebook

    About A Five-Alarm Love
    Brian and Sully are at home on the couch, drifting slowly toward a midday nap. When they decide to set a precautionary alarm, they have to laugh at the absurd number of old alarm settings Sully has saved up. Instead of drifting off, the two end up reminiscing about a handful of memorable waking times — from Sully’s early-morning café shift where he and Brian first met to the hike they took a few weeks earlier — that span the duration of their three-year relationship. Though their trip back in time is fun, it’s not long before the conversation reveals perplexing discrepancies in their memories. Instead of letting these inconsistencies divide them, however, Brian and Sully figure out how to use them as fuel for creating spin-off fantasies.
    About Bryant Street Shorts
    Bryant Street Shorts is a new publisher specializing in exciting short-form fiction from talented and emerging writers. We’re passionate about creating immersive works that represent our readers and celebrate what matters to them, which is why our catalog of stories reflects a wide range of experiences and voices.
    Many Bryant Street Shorts are collections of stories that follow ensembles of characters across multiple storylines. We suggest reading these stories in order to get the most out of your experience. Simply scroll down to “Titles In This Series,” located just below the description of every Bryant Street Short, to find the stories in their correct order.
    To find more short stories and novellas on Scribd, simply search for “Bryant Street Shorts."

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherBryant Street Shorts
    Release dateJun 16, 2020
    ISBN9781094411026
    A Five-Alarm Love
    Author

    Ada Stone

    Ada Stone is a queer and trans book-obsessed human from the Pacific Northwest, where they live now. They love spending quiet time among trees and mountains, listening to their favorite albums on repeat, and receiving “your holds are ready for pickup” alerts from the library.

    Read more from Ada Stone

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      Book preview

      A Five-Alarm Love - Ada Stone

      Prologue

      You wanna watch another episode? Sully asks, his head in Brian’s lap, legs stretched long across the couch.

      Mmmm, I don’t know. Could go either way, I guess. What do you think? Brian combs the fingers of his left hand through his partner’s long wavy hair.

      Hey, I asked you first!

      All right, all right. Um, I suppose no, then. Since we’re both so apathetic.

      Sully yawns. Sounds good to me. It’ll be there if we change our minds.

      Brian contemplates this for a moment. Unless the power goes out.

      Looking out the window, Sully sees nothing but blue sky. I mean, in theory, yeah, but there’s not gonna be a storm coming anytime soon.

      But, Brian’s voice takes on a new vigor, there could be an earthquake. A car could crash into a telephone pole. A transformer could blow. Anything could happen!

      Okay, mister contrarian. Sully pushes himself up to a sitting position. Jeez, I get your point. The future is uncertain. Are you satisfied now?

      Yes, yes I am. Brian reaches out and pulls Sully into a kiss. "Satisfied —

      but also sleepy. He pats his lap. Lie back down and cuddle me to sleep."

      Now that you mention it, that sounds like exactly what I need. Sully again lays his head in Brian’s lap. I always forget you can fall asleep sitting up like that.

      Yep, I call it my most useful skill. Airports, buses, hospital waiting rooms — you name it, I’ve slept there. Or could, at least. Brian’s fingers return to Sully’s hair.

      Yeah, yeah, quit bragging. Let’s go to sleep. Sully shifts to find the most comfortable position for his neck.

      But before he can settle in, Brian breaks the silence, Wait, I still need to get around to cooking those lasagnas this afternoon. Can we set an alarm?

      If you really think you’re at risk of sleeping for the next four hours, then go right ahead, Sully murmurs, his eyes already closed.

      Uh, I think I left my phone in the bedroom, Brian admits. You have yours?

      Sully reaches into his pocket and unlocks his phone with a touch of his thumb, still managing to keep his eyes shut. Knock yourself out.

      Thanks. Brian pats Sully on the shoulder. When he opens the alarm app, his eyes widen at what he sees. Sully, dude! Why the hell do you have so many alarm settings in here?

      Does anyone actually delete their old alarms? I just set a new one every time I need it. If you’ve got an issue, Sully grumbles melodramatically, I have a feeling there’s another phone somewhere in this apartment that is adjusted to your preferences.

      Brian scoffs. I could not live like this. Well, let me scroll through here and choose an existing time, so I don’t have to add to this mess. How about… three thirty?

      Sure.

      It’s all set. Brian’s thumb moves toward the lock button.

      Great.

      Wait. Sully?

      What is it now?

      Do you think you remember what most of those alarms were set for?

      I don’t know… maybe. Are we going to go to sleep or not?

      Brian raises the phone again to study it. I mean, there’s this one for three forty-five a.m. That’s gotta be something memorable, I bet.

      Oh my God. Sully pulls his heavy eyelids open and springs into a seated position, his frustration fueling his energy. I’m officially over this nap idea because I can tell you’re not gonna shut up. He heaves a sigh. Yes, I do happen to recall why I was getting up at 3:45 a.m.

      3:45 a.m.

      Sully purses his lips, thinking. I want to say it was last summer. You’d gone off to your writing conference for a long weekend —

      Last September, Brian interrupts. Oh wait, that was the time at the airport…

      Cool, yeah. Sully steals the conversation back. "Anyway, as you probably remember, you were flying back early on a Monday to get home in time for work. And I had offered to pick you up from the airport. It sounded like a fine idea when I offered months ahead of time, but as the day drew closer…. Sully pauses. Of course, I wanted to see you, but also three forty-five is so fucking early."

      You could have just told me. I would’ve taken the light-rail, Brian says and raises an eyebrow.

      No, no. I would’ve backed out if it was really a problem, Sully hastens to explain. I really wanted to see you. Again, you probably remember, but it was the first time we’d been apart overnight since moving in together. So, the effect of you being away felt magnified. He pauses, feeling something come back to him. Hold on, that was the time when — wasn’t it?

      That’s what I was trying to say earlier. Brian gestures wildly, almost hitting Sully in the face. "I couldn’t believe you would have forgotten that!"

      I could never! Sully makes eyes at Brian, giving him his best seductive stare.

      It’s just ridiculous to think about just how much we missed each other.

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