I looked away to give them the privacy of their first deliberate embrace as brothers, and found Elaine doing exactly the same.

When Austin finally turned toward me, he stepped close and asked, “Would it be okay if I hugged you too?”

“Of course.”

He was taller than me.

He smelled of laundry detergent and the peppermint gum he always chewed before exams.

I put my arms around him and tried not to hold on too long.

“I wasn’t looking for a different life,” he whispered.

“I know.”