Chip didn't sleep at all that night.
The entire night was spent checking the time on his phone, scrolling through social media, and willing the anxiety building up in his chest to die down. The brief moments his mind did settle enough to shut down were few and far between. He kept staring at his text messages, rereading the last ones with his best friend over and over. Even with his phone sitting on the bedside table, the messages replayed in his mind.
Me
hey, so I have weekends off. so that'd probably be the best time to talk about what you wanted to.
(Dale)
i dont think ive got anything going on saturday! would then be okay?? :)
Me
sure, that sounds fine. about what time would you be coming by?
(Dale)
god thats a good question LMAOO, im usually not even alive until like 11, so maybe around 1? unless ya wanna do it later in the day?
Me
i'm free the entire day, so that's fine with me. i'll set a pot of coffee on. :)
(Dale)
make sure to get my favorite creamer! you know how i like my coffee ;p
Me
trick question, you don't like coffee. you like creamer and sugar.
(Dale)
you know me so well chippie <3 i'll see you saturday!
The heart sent with the text message left him tossing and turning. Ever since he called Dale at one in the morning while drunk a few days ago, this talk has been inevitable. Bringing up the fact that they had made out at a party several years ago. Asking if he was straight. Chip couldn't help but cringe at himself. He should really stop drinking.
It was 5:37 in the morning. Chip could see the daylight breaking through his window, stealing away any last reprieve of sleep he may get. He groaned, dragging back the covers and slipping his legs over the edge of the mattress before sliding down onto the hardwood floor. He yawned and stretched, snatching his phone up off the charger and headed out into his living room. He grabbed a robe and slung it around his figure on his way out.
Millie was surprised to see him up this early, rousing from her spot on the floor and staring at him before whining, barely audible even to Chip. He gave her a soft pat on the head as he passed, opening the back door to let her outside. His body was on autopilot as he walked straight to the kitchen to start a pot of coffee. As he waited, he stood on the back patio and watched the sun rise. ` It is nice to watch the sun rise every now and again, ' he thought, a small smile coming to his face. ` Maybe not at the cost of a good night's sleep, but it is nice. ' A bright golden light illuminated the outside world.
A ding from the coffee pot startled him out of his waking daze. He rubbed his eyes and dragged himself over to the kitchen counter, the pitter patter of his feet echoing through the empty kitchen. He reached inside the cabinet above the counter to pull out his favorite coffee mug. As he filled the mug with the steaming hot liquid and a few scoops of sugar, the faces of all his old friends stared back at him. He felt his nerves build as he stared at one particular red-nosed face and turned the coffee mug around before picking it up and carrying it to the couch.
He plopped down onto the couch and set his coffee on the side table before picking up the remote and flicking on the television. Millie clambered over and laid on an empty spot on the floor next to the couch. She seemed to still be sleepy as well, because not long after she laid down, her eyes closed and her breathing slowed. Chip smiled and patted her nose before flipping through the channels. Seen. Seen. Not interested. Rerun. Poor reviews. He could feel his eyes start to droop from lack of sleep as the movies and shows passed by. After several minutes of browsing, he settled on one. He had already seen it before, but it was worth a rewatch or two.
In reality, the movie remained for the most part unwatched. Only about ten or twenty minutes into the movie, Chip had found himself rather comfortable against the cool leather of the couch. The sounds of special effects and rattled dialogue he had already heard lulled him into sleep, leaving the untouched coffee to cool on the side table. Until...
Chip was awakened by a loud knock at the door and the sound of Millie barking. As he rubbed at his bleary eyes, they squinted to try and make out the numbers on the clock.
1:08 P.M.
`Shit.'
Chip launched himself off the couch as he attempted to wipe the drool out of his fur where it had dried at the corner of his mouth. ``I-I'll be right there! Gimme just a minute!'' Coming straight out of sleep with a racing heart isn't the best for his health, but at least it gave him the energy that he needed to sprint up to his bedroom and get dressed in actual clothes. He could hear soft humming coming from outside in a familiar pitch as he pulled on a shirt. He tried to still his beating heart as he quickly walked back out to the living room.
Chip gave Millie a comforting pat as he passed by on his way to the front door. He stood before the wooden threshold with widened eyes. He breathed in deeply, holding it for several seconds before slowly exhaling. ` In, Out. Just like your therapist taught you, Chip.' He took in a particularly deep breath before grabbing the door handle, turning it and swinging the door open.
``Hi, Dale.''
The CGI realistic rodent turned and smiled at his old friend. ``Chippie!'' Dale exclaimed, quickly rushing into the doorway and wrapping his arms tightly around his old friend.
Chip could feel his face warm, and only hoped that his fur was enough to cover it. He pulled away from the hug with a warm but awkward smile. ``It's nice to see you again. Come on in. Mind Millie, she gets a bit excitable around people.'' He stepped out of the way in the doorway, gesturing Dale in with an arm.
Dale walked in, and Chip watched as his eyes scanned around the place. `Man... those fucking new eyes of his. I can see exactly where he's looking at all times.' As if on cue, the brilliant baby blues landed on him.
``Nice place!'' Dale traced the edge of a living room table with his finger, letting out a low whistle. ``Can hardly believe this is the first time I've been here!'' Millie was sniffing at him, her tail narrowly whiffing past a few chairs.
``Haha, yeah.'' Chip rubbed the back of his head awkwardly. Damn that nervous tick of his. ``I-It's just not much to look at, so I don't exactly have get-togethers here.'' He laughed, looking to the side. ``Especially because Millie almost knocks everything down! Millie, sit!'' He rushed over to the pup, who looked at him with a pout before taking a seat on the floor. Her sitting won't stop her tail, though.
Dale just laughed at the scene. ``So, how many roommates do you even have to afford a place like this, huh? How many of these surfaces are actually beds?''
``Uhm...'' Chip rubbed his thumb against the back of his opposing hand. ``None. Well, unless you count Millie, but she doesn't pay bills, now do you girl?'' He tried to distract his anxiety by burying his hands deep into the dog's fur, and it did work. At least for a moment.
``Oh really?'' Dale walked into the kitchen, still just looking around at the place. ``Hey, you looking for roommates? I think my mom's starting to get sick of me..'' He laughed, rolling his eyes. ``Although I might just deal with her nagging if that means I get to have her bomb spaghetti some more, you know?''
Chip couldn't help but let out a half-hearted laugh. He knew that Dale had been trying to get out of his mom's place ever since the whole acting thing fell through. The world is not kind to actors fallen from grace, though. ``Yeah, your mom is a pretty good cook.'' He cleared his throat, trying to act as if he had not remembered the first question asked by the man standing in his kitchen. ``Speaking of cooking, do you want anything to eat? Anything to drink? I know I talked about coffee in our text, I can-''
``Chip, first off I sincerely doubt you have my type of creamer.'' Dale smiled, amused. Chip's eyes glanced over to the refrigerator, where there was in fact the type of creamer that Dale uses. Despite the fact Chip does not use creamer. ``Although maybe just a glass of water?'' Without even asking, Dale started rummaging through the cabinets. ``Where do you keep the cups anyway?''
Chip rolled his eyes and scoffed, joining the other in the kitchen, his feet not echoing as much as this morning. He leaned over the counter, reaching up and opening the cabinet which held all his glasses. A mix of actual glass and some plastic. He gestured with a playful unamused face and watched as Dale reached up and grabbed one, not having to lean up quite as much as Chip did. He walked over to the sink and filled it up with water, taking a sip and turning to face Chip again. Chip finished closing the cabinet and turned towards the other, leaning on the counter.
``So...'' Dale started, but obviously not going anywhere.
``S. So.'' Chip's fingers danced nervously on the countertop, averting Dale's gaze. The glance he spared towards the other showed a face full of worry and frustration.
``...Come on man, don't make me start this,'' Dale laughed weakly, placing the glass of water down before running his fingers through the tuft of fur on his forehead. ``You started the phone call, you can start this.''
``How in the hell am I supposed to start this?'' Chip's brow furrowed, but not in anger. Just in frustration. ```Sorry I called you drunk at one in the morning'? I don't even know where to go past that!'' Chip could feel his voice raising and took a moment to calm himself down. ``I-I just, you know I've never been good at serious conversations like this.''
He watched as Dale's shoulders drooped and a reassuring smile crossed his face. Chip couldn't help but recoil a step as Dale stepped forward. A hand landed on his shoulder, which caused Chip to look up at his best friend.
``Listen Chippie,'' Chip softened up at the affectionate name that slipped from Dale's mouth. ``No matter what happens after today, we are still gonna be best friends, okay?'' Dale's grin grew wider, until it looked like it was going to split his face in two. ``You've been stuck with me for how many years now? And you're not getting rid of me now!''
Chip laughed a little, a smile dawning on his own face now. ``Yeah, okay.'' His own hand rested on top of Dale's. ``That forever in BFF isn't going away, not for me at least. Twenty-five years, by the way.'' He laughed loud as he watched Dale's eyes widen at the mention of the number.
``Twenty-five years?!'' Dale exclaimed, pulling his hand back and making exaggerated gestures as he talked. ``There are millions of people out there who haven't even been ALIVE as long as we've been friends!'' Chip gave a side-leaning smile at the disbelief of the other.
As he listened to his red-nosed friend ramble on, he couldn't help but to stare at his feet and zone out. If things continued on like this, they would never get to the matter at hand. He knew them. They both could talk in circles all day, and Chip knew he would just to avoid the confrontation. Confrontation of his feelings. Confrontation of his thoughts. Confrontation on whether or not this would affect their friendship, even despite their promise.
``What do you mean you lied that you didn't remember?'' Chip interrupted Dale's ramblings, his shoulders up by his head, eyes clenched shut, and fists balled up. Dale looked a little shocked about the sudden comment from the other, and as Chip's eyes opened he could see the other starting to stumble over himself.
``W-Well, uhm, I'm not even sure if it's even the same event, but-''
``What other event would I be talking about?'' Chip interrupted again. ``There's only been one high school party we got drunk at. There's only one night that we forgot.'' He could feel Dale staring straight through him. Chip rubbed at his upper arm, looking down at the ground again. ``...Why did you lie that night?''
Dale started to say something before stopping before a whole sentence got out of his mouth. For once in his life, he seemed to be at a loss of words. Chip watched as his brow furrowed, eyes closing, his fingers playing with the hem of his shirt. Chip could even swear he saw a light tint of red on his cheeks, but played it off as wishful thinking and his imagination.
``...To be honest with you, Chippie? I was scared.'' The words that fell from Dale's mouth weren't at all what Chip was expecting, and his brows furrowed in confusion.
``...Scared? Scared of what?''
``Of...'' He groaned and huffed, turning away and trying to gesture the words out with his hands. ``This- This isn't what I wanna say, but of you.'' Chip flinched and Dale immediately started backpedaling. ``Not, not of you, really! Ugh, why are words so fucking hard...'' Dale swore, putting a hand to his forehead.
``...I mean, you never were the best in English,'' Chip joked, trying to lighten the mood. It didn't get a laugh, but it did at least draw a smile on Dale's face. ``Remember when you tried to turn in a paper trying to convince everyone unicorns were real?''
Dale let out a cackle, bending over a little. ``I completely forgot unicorn toons were a thing.''
``We had one in our class. She was so offended.''
``God, don't remind me,'' Dale groaned with a smile, wiping his hand down his face. ``It's not like I ever paid attention to anybody in that school other than you.''
The comment wiped the smile off of Chip's face and replaced it with a blush. ``I, I mean, we are best friends, but...'' He tugged at the collar of his own shirt. ``Nobody?''
Dale took a deep breath, scrunching up his face in thought before continuing. ``I lied because I was afraid of what you'd say. What you'd think.'' His eyes met Chip's before continuing, and this time Chip could tell the blush was not just a trick of the light. ``I was afraid that... it was just a stupid drunken mistake to you.''
Chip's jaw dropped. Had he heard him right? ``N... No way. Really?''
Dale nodded solemnly. ``Really really. So, instead of trying to face that might be fact... I just lied.''
Chip stared at him dumbfounded before laughing. The laughter bubbled up out of his lungs, to the point tears started to trail down his cheek. He could see the look of hurt on Dale's face, and immediately raised his hands, trying to talk through the laughter. ``I- I'm sorry Dale. I'm not laughing at you. It's just...'' He took a few deep breaths, wiping his face off and calming down before continuing. ``I thought the same damn thing that morning. That's why I lied too.''
Chip could feel his face heating up as Dale stared at him, now with the same dumbfounded look that the elder one was wearing earlier. All he heard was a soft ``wait, what?'' whispered out of Dale's mouth.
``I- Dale, for all this time I've thought you were heterosexual ,'' Chip almost started laughing again, but cut it off before it could start. ``I thought you were straight. I didn't even know you liked guys like that.'' He anxiously started pacing around the kitchen, blue eyes staring him down the entire time. ``That's why I didn't say anything, if I had known-'' He sighed, running his hands through the fur atop his head. ``I literally asked my coworkers in a bar! My straight coworkers! Now the whole office knows I'm gay!''
``Wait, you're WHAT,'' Dale exclaimed, looking like a deer in the headlights. ``I always thought you were bi!''
``N, No, Dale, I'm gay.'' Chip couldn't help but look a little amused. ``I dated a girl like, once . And rather quickly figured out that I was not really into it,'' he laughed nervously. ``I've never liked girls romantically. Hell, even the guys I've liked are limited.'' He cursed himself for bringing it up because Chip could immediately see the curiosity spread across Dale's face.
``...What guys have you liked, Chip?''
Chip winced at the question, trying desperately to think of a way to dodge or avoid it. The more frantically he tried to think of opportunities to avoid, the more confused Dale looked. He sighed deeply. There was no avoiding it now.
All the cards are on the table, and they're all showing hearts.
``Guy,'' Chip corrected. ``Singular.'' He couldn't look Dale in the eyes while he said it. ``And... It?s been the same guy for about twenty years now.'' He heard the inhale that Dale took in.
``...Twenty years?'' Chip could tell Dale was doing the mental math. His gaze was still heavily fixated on his feet.
``Since about seventh grade, roughly.'' Chip sighed out. He couldn't believe he was confessing his love to his best friend. ``There's no specific time or date, but that's when I realized.'' He closed his eyes, memories of the past rushing to mind. ``That night that we got drunk? After we hung up, I cried all day.'' A tear rolled down his cheek, feeling it get stuck in his fur. ``Because I thought you could never love me back.''
``Chippie, I...'' Chip looked up to see Dale shaking his head, his eyes brimming with tears. ``I, I never even knew. I was too hung up on my own thoughts about...'' A small chuckle escaped his lips before he continued, ``About how I thought you'd never love me back either.''
The silence that followed could be shattered by a breath. The two best friends stared at each other in disbelief, each one not believing that after all this time, all these years, their fears back when they were just kids were nothing but self doubt and worry.
``Y- You did?'' Chip choked back a sob, his hands gripping onto the countertop.
Dale shook his head, taking a small step towards his partner. ``And I thought I was the one that was bad at English.'' Chip's brow furrowed in confusion and Dale smiled. ``Wrong tense, Chippie.''
Chip's fogged mind took several moments to work out what he had meant, when suddenly everything clicked together. Like a puzzle finding its missing piece, like the last plot twist of a story, or like two hands perfectly linked together. Everything clicked. The words that followed were barely words and more of mouthed syllables with naught but a breath of air behind them.
``You love me?''
Dale was choked up by tears. All he could do was smile and nod.
``...Even after all this time?'' Chip's fingers started rubbing at the back of his hands. ``Even after everything that's happened, everything that I've done to you?''
``Chippie...'' Dale reached out and placed a hand on top of Chip's, his voice soft and vulnerable. ``I don't think I could stop loving you if I tried, if I'm honest.''
Chip could feel himself shaking. He couldn't stop the tears rolling down his cheeks, the heart beating wildly in his chest, or the utter look of disbelief that was plastered on his face.
``Now, for the million dollar question...'' Dale hesitated, eyes looking down at their hands laying on top of each other before he weaved his fingers in with Chip's. ``Do you still love me too?''
Their eyes locked together, and Chip was frozen in place. This couldn't be happening. He was still dreaming, right? He bit at his bottom lip nervously, vocal chords frozen in shock.
He nodded. Once at first, then slowly, growing more rapid before his head was nodding furiously.
``Yes,'' Chip gasped out, finally regaining control over his vocal chords. ``Yes, I love you. I love you Dale, I've always loved you.'' He choked out between sobs, trying not to collapse in the other chipmunk's arms.
Tears had started rolling from Dale's eyes as well, a grin plastered to his face. And finally the words that Chip had waited for all his life came.
``I love you too, Chippie.''
Chip felt his knees give out, collapsing into Dale's chest and sobbing into it. All of the pain he had been holding back, all the self-created misery he had been drowning in coming out now. But most importantly the overwhelming joy that filled every inch of his being at this moment.
Dale's arms held him up as he wailed, muttering between tears and hiccups the same three words repeated. He felt Dale's face buried in the fur between his ears, repeating the same three words back, like a broken record. Now that they had the chance to say it, it was hard for them to stop saying it.
As Chip slowly calmed down from crying, he finally was able to steady himself on his own two feet again. He felt a hand wiping at his cheeks, futility in work as it stuck to his fur stubbornly. The hand wiping away his tears cupped at his cheek, tilting his head up so to look at the other again.
``Chippie, can I kiss you?''
Chip fought back tears again as he nodded, both of their eyes fluttering closed and meeting in the middle between the two of them. The polar opposite of the one they shared so many years ago - slow, gentle, but still just as passionate. Chip tossed his arms around Dale's neck as Dale's arms wrapped around Chip's waist, pulling him close. At this proximity, Chip could feel Dale's heartbeat and was still surprised at the fact that it was beating almost as quickly as his own.
As the kiss slowly separated, both of them breathed in a deep breath and rested their foreheads together. Dale's smile was infectious in all the right ways, and they found themselves laughing and smiling together over nothing but each other.
The content silence seemed to stretch on forever, before one of them finally broke the silence.
``Hey Chippie?'' Dale started, rubbing a hand against the shorter one's back. ``You remember how we made that promise earlier today, about us still being best friends after all this?''
``Yeah...?'' Chip replied, his head tilting a little and raising an eyebrow. ``What about it?''
``I think I've gotta break that promise.'' Dale smiled, and Chip could see the stars in his eyes. ``I don't wanna be best friends anymore.''
Not a shroud of doubt was in Chip's mind anymore as he gave a playful smile. ``Oh really?'' he muttered, just egging on the other to finish his statement.
``Yeah,'' Dale sighed in response. ``I think I wanna be something else with the acronym bee-eff. I-If, if that's okay with you.''
Chip's arms tightened, pulling their faces just barely an inch apart. ``Dale, I've been waiting for you to say those words for twenty years now. I think if I had to wait any longer, I would have exploded.''
Chip pulled their lips together as Dale's laughter bubbled out from between their lips, him hastily kissing back. Just the first few of many more, of course.
Their lips, their hands, their bodies, them. Together.
Finally.
