“How’ve you been?” Jake asks, and David raises one shoulder in a shrug before realising that’s a poor answer.

“It hasn’t been a very good season,” David says finally.

Jake looks at him, doesn’t say anything, and David looks away, takes a sip of water.

“You’ve been good,” Jake says finally.

“Sometimes,” David allows. “How are you?” he asks, after another silence settles, and of course Jake has an answer to that, news about his sister Natalie getting into grad school and his cousin getting married, the Panthers’ hopes, the new rookie who’s started looking a little crazy around the eyes from the pranking, and how Jake’s waiting for him to pull the most epic prank of all time, either that or punch someone.

David listens, looking up at Jake’s face when he pauses, at his hands while he talks, until they’re the only ones left and David knows it’s past closing. The girl behind the counter comes out, starts cleaning up, stacking chairs on tables.

“Oh,” Jake says, looking around like he’s just realised they’re the only ones there. “We probably should head out.”

David doesn’t know what the plan is, what Jake’s plan is, but he thinks maybe he does, or maybe just — maybe what he wants it to be.

He doesn’t know how he gets up the nerve to say it, but he’s always been brave when he has to be, took the strides to Québec, to New York, and he did them himself, and needed no one to help him get there. This isn’t the same thing, but —

“Should we go back to your place?” David asks. He can feel his face flushing as he does, his throat tight, but he gets the words out and he can’t take them back.

“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Jake says quietly.

“Do you have a girlfriend or something?” David asks, doesn’t know why he doesn’t just drop it. His cheeks are hot. He feels nauseous. He should just go. Jake’s made it perfectly clear he doesn’t want David to come over, and Jake’s nice about things, David’s noticed that about him, that it’s not as fake as it seems, so that’s probably as nice an answer as he’s going to get. He should go.

“No,” Jake says. “I just — maybe we should try being friends first.”

“Isn’t that what friends do?” David asks blankly.

Jake grins. “What, you think I do this with all my buddies?”

David blinks at him, and the smile drops from Jake’s mouth.

“Wait, you think that?” he asks.

“Don’t you?” David asks.

“That’s—” Jake starts, visibly stops himself. “No. I — no.”

“Benson—” David starts.

“Gross,” Jake says with feeling.

“Everyone says you were really close at the U18s,” David argues.

“I can be friends with someone without fucking around with them,” Jake says. “Jesus, David. Is that what you thought?”

David chews his lip, shrugs after a moment.

“What did you think Toronto was?” Jake asks.

“I was convenient,” David says quietly.