Chapter Text
Erlin was so excited to visit Beverly. Long distance was hard on him, and he missed his goofy boyfriend all the time. It felt like Beverly was drifting away from him at times, but this weekend would prove that wasn’t the case. It was just Erlin’s insecurities at play. The fact that Beverly enjoyed college didn’t mean Erlin was losing him. Beverly should be enjoying college, and Erlin was happy for him, it was just hard. It would be alright though. He was sure they just needed to see each other, to remember what it was like to be together.
They met at the airport, embraced, and Erlin was thrilled to hold Beverly close again. The excitable boy he was so in love with was beaming, and all of Erlin’s worries faded away in an instant.
The weekend didn’t turn out quite like he’d expected. He’d pictured hanging out just the two of them. They’d see Bev’s friends, of course, but Erlin had thought they’d spend most of the time just the two of them. Beverly had planned a full weekend of experiences and hang outs with his friends and his roommates, and even his roommates’ friend who was visiting this weekend as well. Erlin tried to keep a positive attitude though. Beverly was so excited for Erlin to take part in his college life, and Erlin wouldn’t dream of denying him that. Besides, it sounded like it would be fun, even if he was a bit skeptical of the party Bev had planned.
Bev’s friends were nice. They had dinner with Moonshine and Hardwon, the two people Bev had befriended in the spring, and they were nice, Moonshine had cooked a great meal, and she made sure to always include Erlin in the conversation and ask about his classes and hobbies, and no one seemed to mind that he didn’t drink. They’d even gotten some non-alcoholic options for him, which he appreciated. The roommates were nice too. He wasn’t sure exactly what to make of Mavrus, but Carl was nice and polite and fairly easy to talk to. Their friend, Tread arrived Friday evening, and was there when Bev and Erlin returned from dinner. They only exchanged polite hellos though, before Bev and Erlin retreated to Bev’s room, where they tangled up on Bev’s bed, too small to comfortably house the two of them, but neither was willing to let that stop them.
Saturday was hectic as they toured all Beverly’s favorite places. The burgers they had at a small diner were delicious, and Erlin tried not to let any of his nagging thoughts get to him. For the most part he managed to focus on being excited to see what Beverly’s life was like here. Until the party. Moonshine and Hardwon came over to the dorm. The guy named Mavrus blasted loud music from his wildly expensive speakers, ignoring Hardwon’s teasing comment about how a red solo cup was plenty good enough. It wasn’t that no one tried to include Erlin, it was just so wildly not his scene. Having to shout over the music to be heard, watching the others get drunker as his hands wrapped around a bottle of coke. He engaged in polite conversation with Carl, who to his credit turned down the music so they could talk more comfortably for about five minutes before Mavrus turned it up again. Bev kept looking over at him with that adorable smile of his while talking loudly with Moonshine, holding a bottle of beer between his thumb and index finger. Carl was nice, a real solid dude, but Erlin still felt painfully out of place. At some point he excused himself, saying he needed some air. He sighed in relief as the door shut behind him, dampening the music slightly, and walked out of the building. Once outside he inhaled, drawing in the fresh air, and enjoying the quiet.
“Hey.” He wasn’t sure how long he’d been standing there when a soft, quiet voice interrupted his thoughts. He turned to see the other visitor, Tread, looking at him.
“Hey,” he replied, grip tightening slightly around his bottle of coke, not sure whether Tread was there because he’d been gone too long, or if he just needed some space too.
“I just needed some air,” the guy explained, but there was something in his voice, or maybe the slight twitch of a smile that made Erlin wonder if there was more to it.
“Me too,” Erlin nodded, “and a break from the music if I’m being honest.”
“Yeah, Mavrus likes it loud,” Tread chuckled.
“So, is this your first time here too, or?” Erlin asked, not wanting to complain about the music, considering Mavrus was a friend of Tread’s.
“Yeah,” Tread nodded. There was a pause, but something in Tread’s expression, the way his brows furrowed and his lips tightened made Elin wait for something more. It seemed like Tread was just piecing together his words. “They’re my best friends from high school. Well, two of my best friends. Dave couldn’t make it this weekend.” Erlin nodded, there had been mentions of a Hungry Dave a few times this weekend, and he’d gathered that he was another friend of Carl, Tread and Mavrus.
“Cool. Do you study too?” Erlin asked, not sure why he was so eager to talk to this stranger. Maybe because he could talk without screaming and wanted to take advantage of it, or maybe because Tread seemed as out of place as he felt.
“I’m…” Tread paused, fidgeting with his sleeve, “taking a gap year. While working on my writing.”
“Oh, you write?” Erlin asked, remembering that he’d seen a black moleskin on the table that morning, and on the counter when they stopped by the dorm around lunch. Tread nodded, and in the light of the building Erlin could see a slight blush on his face.
“I write songs,” he said. “They’re not all that great, but I enjoy it, so…” he let the sentence trail off, as he couldn’t name the justification he seemed to think he needed to do something he enjoyed.
“That sounds nice,” Erlin said, encouraging, “it’s cool that you write.”
“You think so?” Tread’s lips curled up into a shy smile as Erlin nodded.
“Really cool,” he confirmed. “I’m not much of a writer myself, but I like listening to music, so I am greatly in favor of people writing songs.”
“Cool,” Tread nodded and silence seeped into the cool air between them. It was an unfamiliar silence: uncertain and hesitant, but not quite uncomfortable. Erlin let it linger for a while, not sure what to say to break it. He wanted to keep talking to Tread though. The lanky guy with the swoopy bangs and the nice floral shirt seemed nice, and he seemed like he wasn’t much more comfortable navigating the social scene back at the dorm than Erlin was.
“Do you ever post your writing online?” Erlin finally asked, knowing he’d have to say something before Tread decided to go back inside. “I’d love to check it out.”
“Oh, not really,” Tread said, looking down. Then, after a pause he glanced at Erlin. “I could maybe send you something though? If you really want to read it I mean.”
“Really? That would be so cool,” Erlin grinned.
The conversation moved on, halting and filled with awkward pauses. Tread was shy, and seemed like he couldn’t believe that Erlin wanted to talk to him. It was nice though, pleasant. Finally, after about half an hour Erlin sighed.
“We should probably head back inside, huh? Before they send out a search party.”
“Yeah, probably,” Tread agreed, but Erlin thought there was a hint of reluctance to his voice. Unless it was just the uncertainty that seemed to coat every word Tread spoke.
So they did. Only when they stepped through the doors and the warmth of inside enveloped them did Erlin realize he’d been starting to get cold.
“Tread! My dude!” Mavrus’ voice rang through the room, as soon as they stepped in from the hallway and the smell of beer, a stark contrast to the fresh air outside, hit Erlin like a wall. There was a slight flush to Tread’s face as Mavrus turned back to his conversation with Hardwon, and went on about how Tread and Carl were his boys, loud enough for Erlin to hear him over the music, which to Mavrus’ credit had been turned down ever so slightly. Erlin and Tread exchanged a look before Tread joined Mavrus, lingering on the sideline of the conversation and Erlin went to join Bev who was talking with Carl and Moonshine. He let Bev put an arm around him and just listened to the conversation.
The party did eventually end, and Saturday night turned to Sunday morning and Erlin had to go home, his weekend with Bev over.
Sunday evening, after Erlin had brushed his teeth and washed his face, the friend request from Tread clicked in. He accepted it, letting the giddy feeling of having made a new friend settle in his chest. He then turned his phone on silent and texted Bev goodnight before getting into bed and letting sleep take him.