Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Chapter One: A New Beginning

Wes:

“Wes, I’m pretty sure you’ve checked that damn check list fifty times by now,” Wes’ sister, Tessa complains.

“I just need to be sure,” Wes says as his eyes travel down the list of everything he needs for his sophomore year.

The thought of walking into school without a necessary utensil is Wes’ own personal nightmare. He’s seen what happens to kids who forget a pencil and end up writing ten pages worth of notes in a yellow highlighter. One word–terrifying.

His sister, however, just doesn’t get it. But then again, that goes for most things in their lives. At one point, he seriously considered the idea of one of them being adopted. But despite the fact they have barely anything in common, the test results Wes pleaded into having spoke the truth.

“Did you drink the last of the milk?” Tess asked while stuffing her face in their refrigerator.

“Uh…no? Mom must have,” Wes said while scarfing down a muffin before the bus got to the end of their street.

“Damn…”

Wes looked up to see the microwave clock read 6:45. “Alright, gotta go sis. Enjoy the retail life,” he said while running towards the door.

“Oh, I will,” he hears his sister yell before he slams the door shut.

Connor:

Most people dread the start of a new school year–Connor Walsh is not one of those people. For him, school is the one time of year where he feels he belongs. It’s a way to escape the hellhole called home for a few hours.

But the seven hours of class wasn’t long enough. In his freshman year he decided to join the Lacrosse team to add in some extra time. And much to his surprise, it was probably the best decision he had made. It brought him not only tons of attention, but plenty of access to any party he wanted to attend. And the parties added in extra time that wasn’t spent at home.

As Connor stands by his locker to put the few things away that he had bought for classes, he hears someone yelling his name from across the hallway. His best friend, Asher, comes strutting towards him.

“What’s up?” Connor asks as Asher puts his arm around Connor’s shoulder.

“Not much. Checking out all the hot new freshman. The usual.”

“Shocker,” Connor says while giving a slightly dramatic eye roll. Asher was infatuated with just about any girl who breathed in this building.

“Hey, did you hear Principle Keating took away the vending machines? What a bitch!”

“All you ever bought were lame animal crackers anyways,” Connor replied while shutting his locker with a loud bang.

“Do not insult the magic of frosted animals with sprinkles, Walsh. Well, I gotta go. Chem first period. Lucky me.”

“Which teacher did you get?” Connor asked with actual interest. All the Chemistry teachers we’re known to be the toughest…and hottest.

“Winterbottom. I do love myself a nice blonde.”

Connor laughs, “Good luck with that one, dude.”

Laurel:

Laurel takes a deep breath as she enters the new building that she would call home for the next four years. She dreaded this day for far too long. But her parents would never fall for the “I’m sick on the first day of school prank.” So she sucked it up and opened the door.

Chaos. There were hundreds of students all crammed into one area and talking at the top of their lungs. Laurel took a deep breath. She could do this. She would not let the fear overtake her. This was her moment.

She realized she left her schedule in her backpack. She quickly walked over to a corner to retrieve the paper from its hiding space.

As she scammed the paper just like she did a hundred times last night, she saw that English was first. She went looking for the room number, when all of a sudden, she felt herself crash into someone.

“Oh my god! I’m so sorry! Are you okay? Please tell me you’re okay!”

“Um…I’m fine,” Laurel says as she fixes her dress.

“I’m truly sorry about that. I’m Michaela by the way.”

Michaela holds out her hand for Laurel to shake and she politely accepts. Laurel finally got a good look at the girl who bumped into her side and she felt a frog leap into her throat. The girl was beautiful.

Laurel knew she was bisexual before she could properly read. And thankfully, her parents accepted her with open arms. Laurel knew she was lucky to have such loving parents. She made sure to never take that for granted.

“Well, it was nice meeting you. I hope to see you around, maybe?” Michaela asks.

“I hope so,” Laurel says with a shy smile. She imagined her face must be as red as could be. How embarrassing.

Asher:

The second Asher walked into that room and saw the creature known as Bonnie Winterbottom, he knew it was too good to be true. She sat at her desk, chewing the corner of a pencil, while looking at her computer screen in deep thought.

It was like something pulled right out of a movie. And Asher was the lead actor everyone fawned over.

“Excuse me, Ms. Winterbottom, but where do you want me to sit?” Asher asks with his pearly white smile.

“The board clearly says there’s a list on the desk in the front of the room, Millstone.”

“You know my name?”

“I know all my students names. Don’t feel special.”

Asher nods in defeat and heads over to the seating list. Their first conversation may have not been romantic, but what good romance film has a good start?

Exactly.

Michaela:

Michaela’s heart thudded in her chest as she walked away from the girl, Laurel, whom she accidentally bumped into.

Michaela realized she was gay in her early years and it’s a secret she’s kept deep inside of her for all her life. Only her closest friends knew her inside and out. Her parents always displayed signs of homophobia, so she knew coming clean would just cause a huge fight between her family. They fight enough without her dropping the bomb on them.

Eventually, her parents starting to question why she wasn’t dating anyone. Because unlike most parents, they wanted her to be out and having fun. So when a junior named Aiden asked her out last year, she said yes to please her parents.

They hadn’t questioned Michaela’s true motives for dating Aiden yet and that meant she had to keep the act up for as long as she could.

A part of Michaela felt awful about using Aiden, because he was so kind to her. But she knew it was best for her to keep quite, because if she didn’t, she might lose everything. And that just wasn’t an option.

Connor:

Most people who took one glance at Connor wouldn’t expect him to be the one at the top of his class; but the truth speaks for itself. He often gave off the impression that he often didn’t care, when in reality, he did.

Connor knew if he wanted to be happy and successful, he needed to strive to be the best he could be. The lowest grade Connor ever received and ever will receive was a C+.

Of course, Connor would always lie to his teammates about his real grades. Telling his friends he got a solid D- was much more impressive than any A + could ever get you.

But it often made Connor mad that people looked down upon trying your best. If all you ever talk about is buying an expensive sports car, but you’re constantly bragging about failing a test, what’s the point?

At the end of the day, Connor didn’t care. He knew he had a bright future ahead of him. He knew that if he focused on his career and less about whom he’s spending his nights with, he would be fine.

He saw what happened to his father. He fell in love with the wrong girl who almost ruined his whole career. He would never let that happen to him. Being alone is better than almost losing everything you spent your whole life working towards.

Oliver:

As Oliver slinked his way through the crowds of people flooding the entryway of his high school, he made sure to keep his head facing the floor. He found it easier to avoid any awkward eye contact that way. The worst thing was catching sight of a random stranger and then have them suddenly look right into your gaze.

So looking at the floor was the better option. He made his way towards Ms. Winterbottom’s class as silent as a mouse. He had a few friends throughout the school, but they all had classes on the other side of the building.

As he walked into the classroom, he noticed they had a seating chart already made. Oliver’s heart dropped just a little. He hated not having his choice of where to sit. If he had it his way, he would sit in the back corner seat in every class. Unfortunately, certain teachers had to have it done their own way.

He looked to find he was in the second row. Dammit. And right behind one of the most popular members of the Lacrosse team–Asher Millstone. Oliver only knew Asher because he had a huge crush on his best friend, Connor Walsh.

Oliver would never tell anyone, but he secretly went to a few of the games just to have an excuse to stare at Connor for a few hours without being judged.

Oliver trudged his way towards his seat that was right behind the infamous Millstone. This was going to be a really rough day.

Annalise:

The first day of a new school year was something Annalise dreaded more than her birthday at this point.

The loud and obnoxious teenagers didn’t care if they we’re in a public building, they will scream at the top of their lungs without thought. And they certainly are not afraid of talking about the amazing sex they had over the summer.

It didn’t matter how many guest speakers came in to talk about “the dangers of unprotected sex,” because the kids all did it anyways.

Annalise was prepping to do her daily live announcements that only the kids without cell phone to distract themselves listened to. It was such a waste of time to do these.

Does anyone truly care about the birthdays of their sworn enemies? No.

Does anyone care about who scored the winning goal? No. Because the people who did care we’re playing or attending.

It may sound like Annalise hates her job, and on days like this she really does, but most of the time she does really love it. Growing up as an only child, she always took a liking to being in a building full of nonstop activity.

As a young girl, her home was always too silent. This job keeps her preoccupied morning through night.

“We’re ready to go on air,” the vice principal, Frank Delfino, told her.

“Thank you, Frank,” Annalise said while she faced towards the camera.

“Good morning, Lincoln High. Welcome to another year of High School.”

Chapter Text

Michaela:

Michaela didn’t see Laurel for the rest of the day. In fact, she didn’t see Laurel throughout the whole school week. And as she exited the school doors on the first Friday of the school year, a sudden sadness fell over her.

She hoped to at least catch a glimpse of the girl from the hallway. She always kept a look out for her during lunch, but she was nowhere to be seen.

Michaela let out a deep sigh as she made her way towards her friend, Alexia’s car. Alexia was one of the few people who knew Michaela’s true self.

They met one another on their first day of middle school and became glued to the hip ever since.

“First week over! And only ten million more to go,” Alexia announced as Michaela moved to throw her bag in the back of Alexia’s piece of crap she calls a car.

“A bit of an exaggeration…but it might as well feel like ten million.”

“Can you believe we don’t have one damn class together? This is the first time since we met! I think Keating is up to something…”

“Alex, she has nothing to do with this,” Michaela said with a giggle.

Alex shrugged and started her engine. “So…how’s Aiden?”

Michaela let out a large sigh full of a mixture of emotions. “He’s good. He’s always good.”

“You can’t string him along forever you know,” Alexia reminded her for what had to be the thousandth time.

“You know that I hate what I’m doing to him. He thinks we’re going to get fucking married one day and little does he know our whole relationship has been one big lie.”

“It’ll all work out, Mic.”

“How do you know?”

“I just do.”

Oliver:

Unlike most of the people Oliver was surrounded by five days a week, Oliver enjoyed spending time with his family. He didn’t feel the urge to find the closest party near to him and chatter the night away with people he barely knew.

Instead, a night well spent with his parents and his dog was good enough for him.

And like most Friday nights, this was his plan. On the occasion, he would take a visit to one of the local lacrosse games. His parents never asked why he went, but he felt they had a good idea. There was no other reason why Oliver would be interested in a sport he knew nothing about.

The first time Oliver laid his eyes on Connor Walsh, he was eleven. Now he’s eighteen and still hasn’t spoken a word to him. Despite being utterly infatuated with the boy since Mr. Charters sixth grade science class.

Connor was everything Oliver wasn’t – charming, outspoken and full of confidence. And that’s a huge reason why Oliver was attracted to Connor. He admired him for so many different reasons.

But Oliver had no hope that his crush would ever be something more than what it was – a crush. They lived completely different lives and just happened to live in the same town. That was that.

Oliver finally reached his house and he quickly jumped out of the car. He needed to stop thinking about him. It wasn’t healthy and he knew that.

As Oliver walked into his house, he noticed it was strangely empty. He turned his attention to a little blue post–it note stuck onto the microwave.

Friend’s birthday party tonight.

We’ll be back around midnight.

Pizza in the fridge.

-Love mom and dad

Dammit. Oliver completely forgot about the party they had to attend tonight.

Jess, his dog, suddenly rushed to his side.

“Well Jess, looks like it’s just us tonight. Unless…”

No. Oliver knew he shouldn’t go to the Lacrosse game tonight. He knew he would be wasting his time. But sometimes temptation got the best of him. And this was one of those times.

Asher:

Before Asher headed back over to the school to prepare for tonight’s game, he swung over to his house real quick to pick up a few necessities for tonight.

The Millstone’s were one of the most wealthy in town, and Asher's home was the largest mansion on his street.
Most people dream of the idea of living in a house as large as Asher’s – at least, that’s what they tell him.

But it always slightly bothered Asher when people told him how lucky he was. Sure, he was lucky. He had a lot going for him. But deep down, Asher often felt empty.

The mansion didn’t feel like home, despite him living in it for his whole life. It simply just felt like a bunch of empty rooms and cold lies. His family was full of more range than happiness.

And behind their smiles in front of friends, they were an actual mess. His parents had often said that enough was enough and it was time they split – but they always made their way back to each other – for better or for worse.

Asher had always had the comedic bone build into him. He always tried to find the bright side to any situation. It was his only shield against the pain that lay deep down inside of him.

And it seemed to work, because no one ever suspected that he sometimes cried himself to sleep at night. And of course no one ever heard him, because the house was too large for anyone to take notice of the loud sobs trying to come out of the thick walls of his room.

As Asher entered his house, he heard muffled screaming coming from the kitchen. As he inched closer, he realized that sure enough, the yelling was coming from his parents.

He quickly rushed up the winding staircase leading to his room. As he reached his bedroom, he made sure to slam the door shut so his parents might realize he was in fact home.

Of course, no one took notice. Asher took the bag full of the stuff he needed and slung it over his shoulder. He rushed down the stairs again and paused in front of the kitchen.

His fathers face was beat red and his eyes were full of rage and anger. His mother, on the other hand, had her face stained full of tears.
He stared at them until they finally looked over to see their son looking right at them.

“Asher,” his mother choked out.

Asher nodded and then rushed out of that house he dare call home.

Laurel:

Laurel had no idea what to expect during her first week of High School. In her mind, she thought she would be crying to herself over how awful it was. But in reality, it wasn’t half bad.

She felt a huge wave of relief once she realized she made it through the first week. And she realized that if every week went as smooth as this one, graduation day would be here before she knew it.

She met two girls in her math class that she’s starting to already consider good friends. Their names are Beth and Lena. And the conversations they had flowed like they have known one another much longer than a few days.

But one thing stood out the most from the first week – her incident in the hallway with the girl who introduced herself as Michaela. Laurel thought the girl was cute, but didn’t exactly know why her face kept popping into her head at times.

It was hard to get through an hour without once going over the action that occurred on Monday. It was odd for Laurel to obsess over something so small, but for some reason, the girl just wouldn’t leave her mind.

Laurel sometimes wondered if Michaela was thinking about the incident as much as she was. But that would be ridiculous. Surely she’s forgotten all about what happened. Besides, people bump into one another in the hallway all the time. With how tiny the building is and with all the students rushing from room to room, it was impossible to not have such an occurance every once in awhile.

Laurel's car reached the animal shelter that she works at. She parked her car and walked into an almost empty building. It saddened her that people didn’t often visit the shelter. And when they did, they didn't often bring an animal home with them.

She adopted one of her dogs here a few years ago and fell in love with the place. She instantly knew this was where she wanted to spend her time. Even though the pay wasn’t much, it didn’t matter. It made her feel as if she had a purpose.

Wes:

Wes has been a movie fanatic for as long as he can remember. His father was the one who got him into film, and the interest has never faded away.

For most people, Friday was the night where his friends went to a sports game or a party. Wes on the other hand, spent his night viewing the films that came out that night.

It wasn’t unusual for Wes to be at the theatre from the minute school got out until the second they closed.

But as Wes walked into the lobby to hand his ticked to Ariel, he realized it wasn’t Ariel working the stand at all. It was a frail girl with jet-black hair and an attitude that showed she didn’t really want to be here.

Wes cautiously walked up to her and handed her the ticket.

“Really? You give your money to these cheap asses who keep making horror films with no scare whatsoever? See, people like you are the problem…” she started rambling.

“I’m aware the movie will be awful,” Wes said in between her rant.

“Then why waste your time?”

“To review it and let the world know what makes it so terrible.”

“You’re a tad young to be the new Roger Ebert.”

Wes was a little caught off guard that the girl was aware of one of his biggest role models.
“Not trying to be. I just enjoy doing it.”

“Whatever,” she says as she points in the direction his movie is at.

Wes nods at her and walks away. All while thinking that Ariel better still be working there.

Connor:

Connor can’t believe just how bad that whole game went. A team that wasn’t even that good had crushed Lincoln High. Connor got off that field as fast as he could.

“Well…that didn’t go to well,” Asher said as he caught up to Connor.

“I’m fucking humiliated,” Connor mumbled as they entered the locker room. “And no offense, but you seemed really off out there.”

“Yeah…lot’s of shit going on.”

“But the Millstones are perfect!” Connor said with intended sarcasm.

As far as Connor knew, he was the only one who was aware of the problems the Millstone’s had behind the smiles and outrageous parties.

“Yeah, if you call perfect being ignored constantly and coming home to a house full of screams,” Asher whispered under his breath.

But Connor heard anyways and patted his teammate on the back. “Sorry you’re going through that, Ash.”

“It’s alright. How about you? Everything good in Walshland?”

Connor let out a laugh. “Yeah, Fucking perfect.”

Soon enough, the rest of their team made their way into the locker room. No one mentioned the loss. Not that night. Not ever.

~

Connor dragged himself out of the locker room and towards his car. He didn't want to tell his family about the game, even though he knew they would ask.

"Hey! Walsh!"

Connor whipped around from where he heard his name being called out from.

He saw Aiden Walker leaning against his car. "That was some loss," Aiden told him as Connor inched closer.

"Fuck off," Connor said with a laugh.

Connor knew Aiden and his family for years. But they didn't speak to each other often at school because of how different they were. Either way, he still enjoyed Aiden's company every once in awhile.

"Say...my parents are out of town for the weekend. Wanna hang out?"

"Uh, i suppose," Connor agreed. He could use any excuse to not have to talk to his parents tonight.

"Cool. I'll meet you back at my place. Don't worry, Michaela won't be there," he said with a wink.

Okay...that was weird. But Connor shrugged it off and walked to his car.

Oliver:

Oliver felt bad for Connor. He could tell, even from one of the highest benches in the stand, that he felt defeated. And yeah…they lost pretty badly, but he still felt like Connor gave it his all.

Oliver made his way back to the car, popcorn in hand. He saw Connor disappear from the field almost instantly so he decided that he should just head home.

On his way to the Car, he heard what sounded like someone crying. He saw a girl standing in front of her car, wiping tears from her face.

“Are you okay?” Oliver asked.

“Yeah, I’m fine. My boyfriend and I just got in a fight. No big deal,” she said, as she seemed to start getting herself together emotionally.

“Okay,” Oliver said and started to head further towards his car.

“I’m Michaela by the way,” she added after Oliver was already a few steps away.

Oliver turned around to look at the girl once more.

“Oliver,” he said with a smile.

Chapter Text

Michaela:

It’s funny. How life can be perfectly fine one moment and before you know it, everything has fallen apart. At least – that’s how Michaela felt in this very moment.

She thought she was the only one with a secret in her relationship, but it turns out, she wasn’t.

It all started when Alexia dropped Michaela off at Aiden’s house. She was going to surprise him. She was going to forget about all of the thoughts of her being a liar and enjoy the company of a great guy. She was going to try her hardest to enjoy her time with Aiden – despite wanting to be near the girl from the hallway.

Instead, she got a rage fest. She had never seen Aiden Walker so angry in her whole life. She arrived at his house a few minutes before Aiden showed up. None of his family was home – but luckily Aiden gave her a house key a while ago.

So she went up to his room to wait for him. When she got in, she sat on his bed, because the seat to his desk was filled with dirty laundry. She noticed a magazine on his bed, so naturally she picked it up.

And to Michaela’s surprise, it was a playgirl magazine. No…

“What the fuck are you doing in here?”

Michaela lifted her head up to find Aiden’s face full of not only anger – but also hatred.

“Aiden… I’m sorry. I came here to surprise-“

“I don’t care why you’re here! Don’t you ever walk into my room without permission! You got it?”

“Yeah…” Michaela said with utter defeat.

She wanted so badly to tell Aiden it was okay. That maybe they both were in the relationship for the same reasons. But she knew he wouldn’t process it. Not right now.

Instead, she called Alexia and stood a little further down Aiden’s street to wait for her. She didn’t have to tell Alexia anything – she could tell how much pain Michaela was in just by looking at her.

So they drove back to their school to watch the big Lacrosse game that was taking place in a few hours.

But the whole time, Michaela just replayed the events that took place at Aiden’s house. She knew in that very moment – their relationship was over. Even if it never really was real to begin with.

Aiden:

Aiden sat in disbelief on his bed for what seemed like hours. He was caught and there was nothing he could say to save himself.

What would Michaela think of him? Would she tell anybody? Probably Alexia. She tells that damn girl everything. His life was over. Everyone will have a different perspective of him.

No one will want to be associated with him anymore. What will his teammates think of him? Basketball was all he had.

Aiden turned his lights off and lay down on his bed. He was ready for this day to be over with.

~

Much to Aiden’s dislike, he couldn’t fall asleep. Too many thoughts kept rushing through his head. But he was over his pity party. What once was sadness was now desperation.

His reputation was already down the drain, so he might as well make the best of it. There was only one guy Aiden really had feelings for – Connor Walsh.

It was almost like the second Aiden laid his eyes on Connor, he fully knew who he truly was. He wanted Connor so bad. And tonight, he was going to get him.

Asher:

The world truly did suck – in every way possible. Asher was hoping that they could really pull off a win last night. That way, his parent’s argument wouldn’t seem like such a big deal.

Instead, They had one of the biggest losses in probably the history of the school.

When he came home, the house was eerily still. If a pin dropped, the house would shake violently.

He didn’t even care to check on his parents. What was the point? Exactly. There wasn’t one.

Instead, he went right to bed. He couldn’t even think of a witty joke to text Connor like he usually does each night.

No. Shutting out the world was much easier.

~

When Asher woke up, it felt like he just came out of winter hibernation. Because now, the house wasn’t so quite anymore. Instead, he heard loud music coming from downstairs and the ever so slight whispers of chattering.

It was like nothing happened last night. And as Asher opened his door and walked down the stairs, he saw his parents laughing and touching one another like any happy couple would do.
It was like this almost every time they fought. One second they are on the edge of divorce and before you know it, they act like they’re on their honeymoon once more.

Asher quickly walked into the kitchen to grab something quickly for breakfast. He hoped his parents wouldn’t notice him, but of course, this time they do.

“Hey, kiddo! We made pancakes! His dad says while holding out a plate to him.

“I see…” Asher says as he makes his way over to get a plate.

“How did the game go, Honey?” his mother asks.

Asher grits his teeth. She just had to ask that question.

“Uh… we lost.”

“Well that’s too bad. Bet it wasn’t you’re fault though, eh? Your teammates could use some more practice anyways.”

“Okay, dad, you can stop. It wasn’t their fault. It was all ours.”

With that, Asher dropped his plate and headed for the door. He would just have to suffer with the food served at school. It was better than listening to his father trash talk his team once more.

His teammates were actually on his side. His father, however, was not.

Laurel:

As usual, the pet shop was quite slow today. Only two visitors walked through the door in the two hours she’s been working – both only there for dog food.

But suddenly, to Laurel’s surprise, a man walked through the door. Laurel’s spirits lifted, as she had immense hope he wasn’t just here for dog food.

“Hello,” the man said in a deep voice. “You guys got any cats?”

Laurel let out a slight giggle. This man, tall and with scruff covering his face, did not look like the cat type.

“What?” he asked.

“You uh…you don’t-“

“Seem the cat type,” he said with a dramatic eye roll. “I get that a lot.”

Silence filled the air, but not the awkward type. “I’ll show you the way,” Laurel said as she stood from her stool and walked towards the door that leads to the cat section.

“Pretty empty here…people wise,” the man said as he entered the room overflowing with cats.

“Yeah. Not a lot of people like commitment around here.”

The man laughed at her comment. “I’m Frank, by the way.”

“Laurel,” she replied.

Frank’s gaze left her and went over to a young kitten.

“I like this guy.”

“That’s Duke. He’s just shy of a year old,” Laurel said with confidence. She always adored Duke.

“Was he a runt?”

Laurel was a tad taken aback. Duke was in fact the runt of his litter. “Uh, yeah, actually he was. You must really like cats.”

“Oh yeah. I’m a total cat whisperer.”

“Do you want to hold him?” Laurel asked.

“I’d love too,” Frank replied.

Laurel got the kitten out of his cage and gently placed him in Frank’s arms. Frank’s eyes glowed once he held Duke in his grasp.

“I’ll take him,” he said suddenly.

“Are- are you sure? You didn’t even look around and-“

“I’m positive. He’s perfect.”

Laurel’s heart swelled. She finally sold an animal and it barely took any effort.

“Aright. Well, follow me and I’ll get you the paperwork.”

Oliver:

Oliver couldn’t sleep. He tried at the very least. But you can only toss and turn for so long. Before he knew it, the clock struck a few minutes past midnight and he heard footsteps above his bedroom ceiling.

Oliver signed in defeat. He got out of bed and walked up to where his parents were.

“Ollie? You're still up?” His mother asked as she saw him walk into the kitchen.

“Can’t sleep,” he mumbled as he walked over to the fridge to grab a bottle of water.

“You didn’t eat the pizza we left you. Matter of fact, the kitchen looks practically untouched,” his dad said while staring at Oliver.

“Um, yeah. I ended up going to the Lacrosse game.”

The kitchen was immediately filled with silence until his father spoke up once more. “I still don’t get why you go to those damn things. You hate sports more than anyone.”

Oliver knew he had to come up with some excuse. Telling them the truth would just be embarrassing.

“I… made a new friend at school and he plays on the team.”

“Really?” his mother asks with wide eyes.

“Yeah,” Oliver replied.

“What’s his name?” his mother asked.

Shit. What was his name? Should he make one up or –

“Connor. His name is…its Connor.”

“Well, that’s nice. Glad you’re making some new friends,” his father chimed in.

“Yeah. Well, I’m going to try and go to sleep again. Goodnight,” he told his parents.

Well…that was runner up for the most awkward parent talk to date.

Connor:

“So, why exactly did you invite me over?” Connor asks as he walks into Aiden’s house.

“Because you need to know something,” Aiden replied with a serious tone.

“What?”

“I’m gay. And with my blabbermouth of a girlfriend, everyone will know by Monday.

“Dude, really?”

“Shut up, Walsh. I don’t need you to judge me of all fucking people!”

“I’m not judging. So Michaela was a beard?”

Aiden paused for a second. “Yeah, I suppose.”

“Look, no one cares that I’m gay. Why do you think they’ll care about you?”

“We have different groups of friends, Walsh. They won’t look at me the same…”

“Then fuck them. You are who you are, Aiden. If they don’t except you, they aren’t your actual friends.”

“I guess,” Aiden whispered.“Thanks Con.”

“It’s no biggie. But…like…are we gonna fuck now or not? ” Connor asked with a present smirk.

Aiden smiled and leaned in to kiss Connor – and Connor gladly accepted.

Wes:

“How was the movie?” Tessa asked as Wes joined his sister on the living room couch.

“It was alright. Not winning an Oscar anytime soon.”

“What do expect from a movie about a fucking haunted doll?”

Wes laughed as he reached for the remote.

“No way! You are not turning the channel. I was clearly here first,” Tessa whined.

“How can you watch this thing? The people clearly looked at more houses than three! You can't possibly find your dream house just like that-”

“Shut up,” Tessa said, cutting Wes off.

Wes sighed and got up to leave. “I’m out,” he declared and left for his room.

As soon as he closed the door, he dialed Ariel’s number into his phone.

Ariel had been working at his local movie theatre for years. She soon caught on to how often Wes visited the theatre. She always asked him for a review after each film, and he was happy to tell her.

To not see Ariel on a Friday was odd to say the least. She always worked Friday nights.

After a few rings, Ariel finally answered her phone.

“Wes?” she asked.

“Yeah, hi Ariel. I was just wondering where you were tonight.”

“I didn’t tell you? Oh shit! I’m so sorry Wes. I…I moved.”

“You what?” Wes asked with shock clear in his voice.

“It was pretty sudden. My brother got a new house and wanted to know if I wanted live with him. I said yes, obviously.”

“The one in Minnesota?”

“Yeah. That one.”

“Damn…”

“But the new girl they hired, Rebecca, she’s really nice.”

“Does she have black hair?”

“Yup! You saw her tonight?”

“Unfortunately.”

“What does that mean?” Ariel asked.

“She wasn’t exactly nice when I saw her.”

“Well, from what I know she’s had a rough past. I’d start a conversation with her. You’re pretty good at that.”

“I’ll try,” Wes sighs and soon ends his call with Ariel. But he had a good feeling he would fail miserably at cracking that girl’s walls.