Chapter Text
Neil Perry is a romantic, has always been and probably will always be. Maybe not in the literal meaning of the word, as in love with somebody – his last heartbreak has made him a lot of damage – but simply in love. Neil Perry is in love with being alive.
However, at seventeen he learned that not everybody shared his feelings towards subjective. Many people actually prefer the black and white of the simple, measurable and rational side of life. His father was one of those people. Neil resented him for years, especially because parents usually teach you to see the world the way they do, and that was what Thomas Perry tried to do with his son.
Took him twenty years to realize that his heart was too steeped in love for hate, and he should be thankful to Eva for showing him that much. He probably wouldn’t notice if it wasn’t for her.
“What are you doing?”
Neil looked up from his book immediately after recognizing Charlie’s voice. He should be reading that very book for the presentation he had in less than two hours, but he definitely wasn’t.
“Nothing.” He replied shortly. It was kind of true, after all. “I should be studying, but I’m not.”
Charlie sat by his side on an empty chair and threw his bag on the library’s table like it was a sack of potatoes. He leaned against the chair, insouciant as only he was, and flashed Neil a smirk.
“You look happy.”
“I am happy.” Charlie responded as he unwrapped a piece of gum from its packaging. It was prohibited to eat at the library, but that was Charlie. He didn’t really care. “My MMAE teacher has the flu and I escaped from the biggest zero in my entire academic career.”
Neil laughed. He had no idea what the hell was MMAE, but Charlie was majoring in Economics. It was probably something dull.
“You do know you gonna have to take the test later, right? Probably on the same day of some other subject.”
“Don’t ruin the moment, Perry.” He scowled. “Hey, Knox and I are having lunch in twenty, wanna join?”
“Knox Overstreet?”
“Is there another Knox I don’t know about?”
“You and Knox are getting lunch together?”
“I’m sorry, am I missing something?” Charlie sarcastic grin as he put the gum in his mouth. “He’s my friend too, you know.”
In theory, that was true. Charlie, Knox and Neil were all friends, but only in theory. In real life, Neil is friends with Charlie and Knox and the two occasionally coexist whenever the three of them are together, not really talking to each other. Things had been that way since high school, probably because Knox and Charlie didn’t have many things in common except for Neil, and now they were all used to it.
So yes, Neil found it weird that they were getting lunch together. They hadn’t before. Ever.
“I know...” He final replied, trying to keep his tone unbothered.
“You’re coming or not?”
“Not. I have to study.”
“Study?” Charlie raised his eyebrows accusingly, like he had never seen Neil study before. “Study wouldn’t happen to be creeping to the Psychology department to see Eva, right?”
Neil started to defend himself, but stopped halfway. That was exactly what he was going to do, even if he would use the word “creeping” for what he was doing. He looked away, desperate to run from Charlie’s suddenly judgmental brown eyes.
“You broke up months ago, Neil.”
“I know, okay? I know that, but my feeling don’t have a switch that you ca-“
“Thats it, I’m leaving.” Charlie interrupted, getting up from his chair so fast he almost made It fall. “I’m not that good of a friend to hear you whining about how much you like Eva even after what she did to you.”
He grabbed his bag and left the library in hurried steps and without looking back. Neil could only sigh and wait to see if Charlie was coming back or not.
Now, before you get the wrong idea, Charlie is not a bad friend. He’s Neil’s best friend.
However, as good of a friend as Charles Dalton can be, he is intense to say the least, which is both his best quality and worse flaw.
When Neil and Eva started going out, Charlie was crazy about her. He thought she was great and was almost as in love with her as Neil was. But as soon as they broke up, his feeling took a turn. You couldn’t mention the girl and not have Charlie storm out like that.
People do say that the line between love and hate is a thin line, right?
When he concluded Charlie really wasn’t coming back, he checked his wrist clock: 11:30.
Charlie would probably forgive him later.
Eva had red hair. Not ginger. Red.
When Neil met her, he noticed her flaming hair from across the campus long before she came up to him. When they broke up, he realized that maybe he should’ve seen her red hair as a warning sign.
She got out of class at 12 o’clock. She was wearing neutral colors, as she usually did, and carrying about a thousand books that severely compromised her posture, as she usually did.
Neil never got close enough to be seen. His worst fear was Eva noticing him there, knowing he still thought about her even after she broke his heart.
Eva was wearing a braid. Neil liked when she wore her hair like that.
He watched her walk across the campus with two girls Neil didn’t know. They were talking a bit too loud, but he was too far to understand their words. He watched them until they were out of sight.
“What the fuck was that?”
Neil jumped from his place when he heard Charlie’s voice again. He could be disturbingly quiet when he wanted to be.
“What are you doing here?!”
Charlie was standing right next to him with a nauseous expression on his face, chewing on what was probably a piece of gun. Knox was by his side, looking at where Eva had passed by while eating a roll, too busy with his food to show any kind of disapproval.
“What are you- didn’t you-“ Both brunettes looked at Neil as he tried saying something. He felt his face itching with shame.
“We study here, haven’t you heard?” Charlie responded with a tone of joke.
“I mean, Charlie...” He sighed. It wasn’t worth getting mad. He wasn’t in a position to get mad anyway. “What are you doing here? I thought you too were getting lunch.”
“We were going to.” Knox said. He took a big bite off his roll before continuing his explanation. “But Charlie said we had a situation that required immediate assistance.”
“And what’s the situation?”
“Guess.” Charlie smiled.
“I’m the situation.”
“Not exactly. “Knox said. He finished his roll before pointing at the building where Eva had most of her classes as a psychology major. “She’s the situation.”
Charlie hummed in agreement.
“Oh.” Neil said simply. “Her.”
“I knew you’d be here, staring at her like the big creep you are.”
“Geez, thanks Charlie.” He frowned.
“Don’t interrupt me.” Charlie raised one of his hands to demand silence. Neil found it extremely offensive, but let him continue. “As I was saying, I knew you’d be here and decided that it’s enough.”
“Enough?”
“Exactly. Enough.”
Neil crossed his arms over his chest, shielding himself from Charlie. They were still watching the building, each one with their own set of thoughts.
“Enough of what?”
“Of stalking Eva,” Charlie stared at him with a raised eyebrow. “Obviously. It’s fucking weird and probably illegal.”
“It’s not illegal...”
“Then it should be.”
“It is weird, Neil.” Knox said, more carefully than Charlie had. "It's kind of worrying, even."
Neil didn't say anything. He kept his eyes away from his friends and from the building. He certainyl wouldn't like if someone stood in front of the Performing Arts bulding waiting for him every day, so why was he doing it?
“But worry no more, I have a plan.” Charlie smirked.
Neil let out a nervous grin. Charlie’s plans were always either really bad, crazy or poorly executed, when not all at once.
“You’re not gonna ask me what it is?”
“Do I have a saying whether I’m in or not?”
“Don’t be ridiculous.”
“There you go, then.”
“It’s a terrible idea, that’s why we’re not telling you.” Knox smiled.
“Naturally...” Neil sighed. “Wait, who’s “we”? You’re in it too?!”
Knox’s smile made Neil frown. First lunch and now Knox was part of Charlie’s stupid plans? What next, they’d start hanging out without him?
“Okay, let’s go then.” Charlie clapped his hands together and looked between Neil and Knox.
“Let’s go!” Knox chanted.
The pair didn’t move until Neil moved. He sighed in defeat and started walking, only to have Knox’s hands over his shoulders to put him in the right direction. Charlie let out a mischievous grin before taking the lead.
Neil soon realized they were going back to the library. He couldn’t stop thinking about Charlie and Knox actually talking, because if they had come up with a plan, they had to talk. And agree. They’d never agreed on anything, Knox had never considered Charlie’s opinions and Charlie never presented his to Knox. What the hell was happening to the world?
Charlie guided them through the shelves when they got to the library, finding an empty table and taking a seat. Knox sat by his side and they both looked at Neil expectantly.
“I’m afraid to ask, but I’ll ask anyway...” He said he took his seat near his friends. “What are we doing at the library?”
Charlie beamed brighter than ever, like he’d been expecting that question for years.
“Because your type is pretentious and arrogant. What better place to find pretentious people if not here?”
“I don’t have a type.” Neil wrinkled his nose.
“Yes you do. And it’s people who think too highly of themselves.”
“It’s not.”
“Yes it is. And we’ll find you someone like that.”
“But why?”
Charlie and Knox shared an accomplice look. Neil didn’t like it.
“Come on, Neil. What’s the best way to get over a break up?” Knox asked, slightly leaning forward to get closer to Neil, who shrugged.
“Getting into a new one, of course.”
“We’re finding you a new girlfriend.”
“What?!” Neil widened his eyes, leaning closer to Knox as well, thinking that maybe he’d heard wrong.
“Don’t make that face. It’ll be good for you.” Charlie said.
“I don’t need you to- to find me a girlfriend. I don’t want a new girlfriend!”
“I don’t care.” Charlie crossed his arms over his chest. “You need to stop following her around the campus and watching her from afar. It’s fucking creepy.”
Neil sighed. He knew he shouldn’t be doing that, but he never thought of himself as creepy. Not until Charlie pointed it out like that.
“Well, I still don’t need you to find me a girlfriend.”
“You clearly can’t find one for yourself.”
“Yes I can! I found Eva, didn’t I?”
“Yes, and then she cheated on you with her AP.” Charlie replied sharply, immediately shutting Neil up. He continued. “Me and Knox created a game especially for this.”
Neil let out an airy laugh, full of disbelief.
“A game?”
“Yes, now shut up, I’ll explain the rules.”
The game was easily one of the dumbest things Neil had ever head. It was called “one, two, three, she’s mine”. It was simple, really: they’d watch people enter the library, Knox and Charlie would pick a girl each and Neil would have to chose one of them.
“What if I don’t like either?”
“That’s where the third comes in.” Knox explains. “You can say no to the first two.” He had an amused smile in his lips, which made Neil awfully suspicious.
“But?”
“But,” Charlie said. “If you do, you’re automatically stuck with the third one.”
“This is stupid.” Neil sighed. “I’m not letting a game decide who I date next.”
“Yes you are. Wait, what if a teacher comes in?” Charlie turned to Knox.
“People over forty aren’t playing?”
“Perfect.”
“Oh, there’s a girl coming in right now!” Knox pointed at the door, touching Charlie’s arm. “I pick her.”
She was tall and blonde. Neil was sure he had seen her around, talked to her even, but couldn’t remember her name. She was wearing a blue dress with a matching headband.
“No.” Charlie said.
“Why not? She’s cute!” Knox protested as if he was choosing someone for himself.
“She’s too blue.”
Knox couldn’t contain his laughter.
“Really? She’s too blue?!”
“She has a blue headband that matches her blue dress! Please, I bet she wears all her clothes matching!” Charlie wrinkled his nose. “Oh! Second girl!”
Neil didn’t know her. She had short dark hair, heavy bangs and walked funny. Given her bad posture, Neil would say she was a humanities student.
“No.” Charlie said immediately.
“Charlie, you chose her!”
“I know I did, but look at her!”
“What’s wrong with her?”
“Her eyes are too blue!”
“Dude, what’s your problem with the blue?!”
Neil smiled. He couldn’t believe those two! They really were playing that stupid game!
“Fine, then the next person that comes in. That’s who Neil is dating next.”
“Hey!” He protested, not getting any attention.
“Deal. You can’t say no.”
“Deal.”
“Hey!” He said a little louder getting the pair to finally acknowledged him there. “I said I wasn’t playing.”
“Come on, Neil.” Knox smiled warmly at him. “It’s just a game, you don’t actually have to talk to those girls. We’re just having fun, okay?”
"Fine. But really, don't expect me to date someone you chose because of a stupid game."
"We don't." Knox smiled.
“Holy shit!” Charlie exclaimed a little too loud, getting a couple crossed looks from people using the tables around them. Knox and Neil looked at him, and then followed his eyes to the door. "Third person! Third person!"
Neil felt like he had just swallowed ice. He recognized the light brown hair and the dark blue eyes immediately.
“Oh, fuck!” Knox cursed in the same enthusiasm as Charlie. Neil was speechless.
Todd Anderson had just walked through the damn door.