In the last URL with Arasha, she said that Ian introduced her to Love is Blind. Now they are the only two of the cast that watch Love is Blind, so they can talk about that. Ian also sends her 6 threads a day, which is like the most dad thing Ian can make.
ian calling arasha “rashy” in the biñho video was soo cute
I loved that, and I wondered if she was going to call him out over it, but she seemed to accept that, and I love it. I love Ian and Arasha as a dynamic!
arasha is ian’s younger sister and when ian starts dating anthony, she gets protective, so ian decides the three of them should spend a day together so that his bf and younger sister get along.
Ian/Anthony - ianthony
Captain Clark's
Arasha plops down in the seat next to Ian at the kitchen table. She smiles at him and immediately Ian is on the defensive. Sixteen years of having Arasha as a little sister has taught him that her smiles can hold mass chaos.
“What’s up?” Ian asks.
“I was just wondering when do I get to meet your new boyfriend?”
Ian groans. “Arasha…”
“I’m serious!” she says, her eyes widening as she grabs Ian’s arm. “You come back from college with a new boyfriend and you tell mom and dad but not me?”
She turns those huge doe eyes on him, blinking big and sad, like she’s a puppy that Ian just kicked.
“I didn’t tell you because you get so weird when you find out I’m dating someone.”
“You’re my big brother! I need to make sure they are good enough for you.”
“I don’t think that’s how it works, ‘Rash.”
Arasha rolls her eyes, but Ian knows she isn’t going to give up on this train of thought. It was silly for him to think he could come home for Thanksgiving break and not have his younger sister clamboring to meet Anthony.
“Pleaaaase?” she pleads, hands under her chin, “I will be so calm and normal.”
Ian sighs. “Fine, you can meet him.”
Arasha all but flings herself at Ian, throwing her arms around him as she hugs him tight. When Ian still lived at home full-time they got along, but Arasha was nowhere near as affectionate as she is now when he comes back to visit during his college breaks.
Ian rolls his eyes, but he lets Arasha hug him. He also turns in her hold and wraps an arm around her, hugging her back. Arasha pulls back and grins at him.
“So, spill. Tell me where you met him.”
“At school.”
“Oh, come on, Ian. Give me more details than that!”
Ian laughs. “I mean, it’s boring. We both had Biology 101 and we were partnered up for a project. We exchanged numbers, texted, and then, even when the project was done…we kept talking.”
He shrugs after explaining, his cheeks feeling hot. Anthony is the first guy Ian has dated. He’s still not quite used to it all. The cultural shift from high school to college has been so much more relaxed. No one really gives a shit that he and Anthony are dating, that they hold hands while walking across campus. That they go out to eat together. Anthony’s roommate Brandon doesn’t even bat an eye when Ian sleeps over on nights where neither he or Anthony have morning classes.
Not that Ian is eager to tell Arasha about all of that. She’s still his little sister and this is still his love life.
“Well, is Mr. Mystery Boyfriend coming over for Thanksgiving?”
“Yeah, actually. He’s from Sacramento too.”
Arasha’s eyes light up and Ian can practically see the gears in her head turning. God, what has he gotten Anthony into?
“Okay,” Ian begins, his own idea coming to mind, “what if the three of us hang out tomorrow? That way we’re not playing One Hundred Questions during Thanksgiving dinner?”
“Cool! What do you have in mind?”
Ian shrugs. “I have no idea.”
Arasha rolls her eyes, knocking her shoulder against his. “Leave it to me, big bro.”
Later that night, after dinner, when Ian’s retreated to his childhood room, squished in his bed that now feels way too small even though he’s slept in it for as long as he can remember prior to leaving for college. Ian calls Anthony.
“So, my sister is very excited to meet you,” Ian says.
Across the line Ian swears he can hear the huff of a laugh and Anthony’s smile.
“She is? Arasha, right?”
“Yeah,” Ian says. He warms a little because Anthony remembered his little sister’s name. Ian doesn’t feel like he talks about his family all that much, so it means a lot to him that Anthony remembers. “Expect her to ask you a ton of questions about you, and us, how we met, all kinds of invasive stuff.”
“Sounds about right. I don’t have a sister, but I do have two younger brothers. They’re pretty much the same. They live to be the most annoying people alive. Still, it’s kind of nice to see them again after so long, you know?”
“Yeah,” Ian says, rolling on his side in his tiny bed. “I guess so.”
“What?” Anthony says, and now Ian can definitely hear the amusement in his voice. “You miss me already?”
“Shut up,” Ian groans, “you sound just like Arasha.”
“Then we’ll get along great, won’t we?”
“Yeah,” Ian says, but he can’t help but smile into his pillow.
–
The next day at breakfast Arasha takes a bite of her waffle and then points the fork in Ian’s direction.
“I thought of something for us to do today.”
“You did?” Ian asks, taking a bite of his own food. He had almost forgotten that Arasha was supposed to plan a hang out for the three of them.
“Yeah, Captain Clark’s!” Arasha chirps.
“Mini-golf?” Ian asks. It makes sense. It’s basically a tradition in the Hecox household around Thanksgiving or Christmas to go and play mini-golf at Captain Clark’s. It’s been happening since Ian and Arasha were just kids though with the two of them older their parents have begun to let the tradition slide.
Ian likes the idea of folding Anthony into a tradition from their family, but at the same time he’s worried that Anthony will think it’s dorky or lame. Still, Ian doesn’t want to hurt Arasha’s feelings either because he did leave the planning up to her.
“Okay, sounds good. I’ll let him know.”
Arasha gives him a huge smile and Ian just hopes the three of them survive the outing.
–
By three o’ clock Anthony pulls up next to Ian’s car in the parking lot of Captain Clark’s. Ian’s stomach is a ball of nerves. He and Arasha were already outside the car, in the parking lot, because Arasha can’t sit still.
“Is that him?” she asks, pointing at the car.
“Yeah…that’s him.”
Anthony climbs out of the car and Ian’s heart does a stupid little flip because even though it’s been like four days max since he’s seen Anthony he’s missed him though he isn’t about to go and admit that fact to anyone else.
Anthony is his usual handsome self with his curly hair, his dark eyes, how he looks perfectly styled even while wearing a t-shirt and jeans. Anthony meets Ian’s eyes and he smiles and again Ian’s heart does a little jump in his chest.
“Whoa…” Arasha says from next to Ian, “he’s hot.”
“Arasha!” Ian hisses, nudging her with his elbow.
“What? I mean, he is! Good for you, honestly.”
Then, Anthony is walking over to them and he offers his hand out to Arasha.
“You must be the little sister I’ve heard so much about.”
“All good things I’m sure,” Arasha says as she takes Anthony’s hand. “Are you a model?”
“Arasha!” Ian groans.
Anthony just laughs. “No, but thanks? I’m just a college student like your brother.”
Arasha is bold, she doesn’t care much what other people think, and she links her arm with Anthony’s as if he was her date, tugging him towards the check-in counter for Captain Clark’s. Ian tailing behind them.
“Have you been here before?” she asks him.
“No, I haven’t. My family aren’t big mini-golfers. I’m excited to try though.”
Anthony doesn’t talk about his family that much but Ian knows the gist of it. His mom struggles with agoraphobia, he has two younger brothers he took care of a lot as a teenager. His family probably couldn’t afford to do outings like this to Captain Clark’s.
At the counter Anthony pays for the three of them even when Ian insists he can pay for himself and Arasha. Anthony makes extra cash doing web design and programming between classes. Ian’s hung out with him while he tapped away, lost in codes that Ian barely understood, but he knows it’s a weird passion for Anthony, something he really enjoys.
They get their clubs and balls and Arasha leads them to Hole #1.
“So,” she says as Ian lines up his shot, “about my brother. What do you like about him?”
Her question comes just as Ian goes to take his shot, the question making him whiff it badly and he misses the ball entirely. He turns back to look at his sister, trying to mentally convey that he is going to kill her if she keeps this up. Anthony, though, doesn’t seem bothered, he just laughs, and smiles, and then his eyes cut to Ian.
“Everything,” he says. It’s corny but Ian still turns bright pink. “He’s really funny though, and smart, and he’s always teaching me about all this random shit I didn’t know about.”
“Oh, god. Has he talked to you about modern California infrastructure yet?”
Anthony laughs. “On what? Our second date, Ian?” Ian flushes a deeper pink. “It’s cute!”
Ian takes his shot again and this time the ball rolls cleanly down the slope and into the hole. Then, it’s Arasha’s turn and she does a little worse than Ian did, her ball not going into the hole, and she has to come and take a second shot. Then, it’s Anthony’s turn and he gets it in after three tries.
They keep playing mini golf and Arasha keeps grilling Anthony, but Anthony takes it in stride. Near the end of the game Arasha is struggling on a hole and Anthony comes up to Ian, looping an arm around his shoulder.
“Your sister is hilarious,” he says.
“And a pain in the ass.”
“Must run in the family.”
Ian cuts Anthony a look and Anthony laughs. “You know it’s true.”
“Yeah, fair,” Ian says, “but still…thanks for being cool about this.”
“Of course,” Anthony says, his hand rubbing up and down Ian’s arm. “I like you. I like your family. I’m also learning that mini-golf is pretty fun.”
“Yeah,” Ian says, stomach full of butterflies, “it can be. It’s more fun with you.”
Arasha finally nails her ball into the hole and she jumps up and down, cheering, and then promptly runs at Ian and Anthony, pulling them into a hug.
Before too long the game is over and Ian wins. Arasha complains as the three of them turn in their golf balls and clubs and head back to the car. By now, the sky has gone a soft pink with the rapidly setting sun. Arasha is sixteen and she has enough sense to busy herself with her cell phone as Ian and Anthony say goodbye near Anthony’s car.
Anthony pulls Ian in for a quick kiss and Ian’s face is hot as he blushes in embarrassment. His stomach twists in that fluttery and nervous feeling, but still, he kisses Anthony back.
“See you in two days for Thanksgiving dinner?” Anthony asks.
“Yeah, I’ll see you then,” Ian says.
They part and Anthony looks at Arasha, smiling.
“It was nice to meet you, Arasha.”
“You too!” Arasha says sweetly.
Then, Anthony gets in his car and Ian and Arasha get in Ian’s car. She buckles in as Anthony reverses out of the parking lot. Arasha grins at Ian.
“I really like him,” Arasha says, “he’s way too cool for you.”
“Gee thanks,” Ian says as he also backs out of the parking lot.
“Seriously, though…” Arasha says as Ian starts the drive back to their home. “He’s really cool, Ian. I can tell he likes you too.”
“Yeah?” Ian asks, fighting back the blush that wants to take him over.
“Yeah.”
“I…ah…really like him too.”
“Obviously! I’ve never seen your face so red before!”
