Chapter 116 - A Surprising Discovery

Before it was time for the truth to be revealed, it turned out there was one more thing that Evan had put off for far too long because there had simply never been time for it.

"His brother has to run some errands in Marwell and then he'll either pick him up or he'll take the bus," Lola explained as they walked down the school corridor.

"I'll text Ryan and arrange it," Evan assured her.

"Good." The blue-haired girl was satisfied with that answer. It was apparently embarrassing that Aaron and Ryan still didn't know each other, even though the two couples had been together for what seemed like an eternity by high school standards.

"I've already spoken to everyone else. We'll hang out in the park after school. A new smoothie bar has just opened nearby, and I can't wait to try it." Lola seemed to have everything planned down to the last detail.

"So now I have to drink a smoothie, too?" he asked amusedly. They mostly hung out at the coffee shop or had visited it before, so they always had coffee in hand. The smoothie was new.

Lola rolled her eyes, but a smile played on her face. It wasn't often they got the chance to spend time with everyone, especially now that several of their friends lived in another town. That's why they were already looking forward to making the most of this rare moment together.

"We both know that the moment Ryan says he wants a smoothie, you'll have a completely different reaction." His friend shot him a knowing look.

Evan didn't even bother to protest. Instead, he shrugged and said, "He's too handsome for me to disagree with him."

Lola laughed and nodded. "I know exactly what you mean. Sometimes I look at Aaron and think, 'How the hell did I manage to score such a hot guy? Like, how are you even real?'"

They stopped at Evan's locker so he could grab his textbook, and Lola leaned against the next locker to keep their conversation going.

"We're lucky," Evan agreed. "There's nothing better than dating a hot guy who doesn't even realize how hot he is."

"Exactly!"

Their cheerful mood didn't last long. A few seconds later, another person joined them, leaning against the locker with a loud grunt and her forehead pressed against the metal.

"What's wrong, Hermione?"

Evan closed his locker and turned toward his friends. Lola placed a comforting hand on Millie's back, and she finally lifted her head. Her face screamed one thing—frustration.

"You won't believe what happened," Millie began, her tone heavy with bad news. "Guess who Clara was with over the weekend?"

Lola reacted first. "There's no way." Millie's ironic smile and nod of the head assured her that there was.

"Please tell me we're not talking about Jacob," Evan said.

"Of course we are." Millie threw her hands in the air, then dragged them over her face before clasping them in front of her.

"I thought she was done with him."

"So did I," she assured Evan.

"How did that even happen?" Lola asked.

"I have no idea." Millie's voice shifted from frustrated to desperate. "She didn't mention him once. She was sad for a while after they broke up, but then she seemed to move on. She was doing so well..."

"What did she ever see in him?" Evan asked.

"Don't ask me." Millie shook her head, clearly still baffled. "But according to her, Jacob's changed. She literally said I wouldn't believe what a different person he's become. Apparently, even she didn't believe it at first, but he managed to convince her over the weekend."

"He convinced her in one weekend?" Lola's tone made it obvious what they were all thinking—it was impossible.

Millie threw up her hands again, emphasizing how incomprehensible the situation was. "Apparently, he was being a total gentleman—paying attention to her and even apologizing."

"And she just accepted his apology?" Lola asked, though she already knew the answer.

"You know what she told me? That everyone deserves a second chance," Millie snorted.

"You mean a hundredth second chance," Evan corrected.

"Exactly! It's like she's forgotten everything he's done to her." Millie shook her head, utterly baffled.

"Should we intervene?" Lola asked. "I'd like to say Clara needs to get burned to finally see the truth, but let's be honest—Clara's been burned so many times it's made her blind."

"We should have set her up with Josh while we had the chance," Evan said, and his friends immediately nodded. While Josh had kept his distance to give Clara time to recover from the breakup and find herself again, Jacob had done the exact opposite.

"Too late," Millie mumbled, folding her arms across her chest and leaning back against the locker. She tilted her head back, resting it against the cold metal, and closed her eyes for a moment. It was clear that worrying about her best friend was wearing her down—especially since it came so unexpectedly.

"All right. Enough of my drama. I need to calm down and think this through," Millie said suddenly, straightening up and opening her eyes. "What's new with you? I feel like we haven't talked in ages."

Evan seized the opportunity to get some advice on his dilemma. "I want to come out to my parents," he blurted out quickly, before he could change his mind.

Lola, who hadn't heard the news yet either, was left in shock. She and Millie stared at him wide-eyed for a moment, lost for words.

"Did something happen in Manvale?" Lola was the first to recover, asking the question.

"Why in Manvale?" Millie followed up, clearly confused. She wasn't in the loop, and Evan realized she didn't know many details, so he decided to fill her in.

"My boyfriend's from Manvale," he began, and Millie's mouth dropped open in shock, quickly transforming into a smile, which Evan instantly mirrored. "I was there to meet his parents. They're amazing and totally supportive of us. They even let Ryan and me sleep in the same bed. Not that that was unexpected—since the last time he was home, they packed condoms in his bag."

"I love his parents," Millie declared.

"Me, too," Evan agreed immediately.

"Now, back to the coming-out part," Lola interjected, and, with Millie now fully caught up, she steered the conversation back to the original point.

"Right," Evan said. "I guess seeing Ryan with his parents got me thinking about the relationship I have with mine. They already have unrealistic expectations of me, so I'm going to disappoint them no matter what. I know there's a chance they'll kick me out, but now that I've seen what Ryan's family is like, it doesn't sound so scary."

"My home is always open to you, too," Lola said first, and Evan's mind immediately flashed back to Riley's words from two days ago.

"Mine, too," Millie added without hesitation. "I have three rowdy brothers who constantly occupy the bathroom and eat all the bacon, but I'll make them behave for you."

Evan laughed, the sound light as their words took some of the weight off his shoulders. "Thanks, guys. I really appreciate it."

"What does Ryan think of this?" Lola asked.

"I haven't told him yet," he admitted. "I was planning on doing it yesterday, but there wasn't time. I know he'll support me, but I need to talk to him about something else first. I want to tell my parents that I'm bisexual, but I'm afraid that if I also tell them I'm dating Ryan, they'll forbid me from seeing him."

"I still don't get how they haven't noticed you two are together," Lola pointed out. "You always have little hearts in your eyes when you look at each other. Not to mention that you're together all the time and always find a way to touch."

"And yet I still haven't met him," Millie said, her tone playful, not reproachful.

"He lives in North Hallson now, so he's not often in Marwell. He's picked me up from school a couple of times, but I guess we just missed each other," Evan explained. "He's coming this afternoon as well. We can make it right. We're planning to introduce our boyfriends." He waved a hand toward himself and Lola.

"I can't," Millie said, looking disappointed. "I'm going with my parents to my aunt's. I tried to get out of it so I could keep an eye on Clara, but I couldn't."

"Don't worry about it," Evan said, waving a hand. "We'll find a better time," he assured her, then added, "And a better love interest for Clara."

"Please," she said, emphasizing the word as if it were the most important thing.

"I'll try to talk to her," Lola promised. "I'll pretend I don't know anything and see what she tells me. The moment she mentions Jacob, I'll remind her why she should leave him in the past."

"Thank you." Millie took her hands in hers, and their conversation was abruptly cut short by the piercing sound of the bell. Lost in their talk, they barely noticed the corridor beginning to empty, realizing they were going to be late for class.

They said their quick goodbyes and the three of them headed off in different directions.

Evan felt lighter after that conversation, especially after being pleasantly surprised by Millie's words. With the weight lifted from his mind, he managed to get through the rest of his classes without overthinking and could finally focus on his studies.

The final ring of the bell, however, brought him even more joy. As he and Aiden left the classroom, Angie joined them in the hallway. Like Evan, she seemed to be in an unexpectedly good mood, and it didn't take long to find out why.

"Lola and I came up with the perfect plan. Clara's been trying to convince us that Jacob has really changed. So, we told her we'd give him a chance, but..." Angie stretched out the last word dramatically, holding back the reveal with a sly smile.

"But?" Aiden and Evan asked in unison.

"Clara agreed to let us test him. We're going to set up a fake account and see if he takes the bait," Angie revealed.

"You girls are crazy," Aiden said, shaking his head in disbelief, though an amused smile tugged at his lips.

"He's right. I never want to end up on your bad side," Evan jumped in.

"Luckily for you, you're my best friends, so there's nothing to worry about." Angie slung an arm around each of their shoulders, adding with a playful smirk, "For now."

Her laughter rang out, infectious and full of energy. Evan rolled his eyes but couldn't help smiling, feeling perfectly in sync with her mood. Compared to the atmosphere at home, this was like stepping into a completely different world.

But the best moment was still to come. As Evan reached the school gates, his eyes lit up at the sight of a familiar car—and two handsome young men casually leaning against it.

Without a second thought, he sprinted toward his boyfriend, a grin breaking across his face as he threw himself into his arms. Ryan immediately buried his head in his shoulder and squeezed him tightly around the waist. Even though they had seen each other the day before, it felt like an eternity to their souls.

"Hi, Bane." As much as Evan would have loved to stay in his arms forever, there was one reason he willingly pulled away.

Ryan didn't even have time to respond before Evan pressed his lips to his. Though they'd shared countless kisses—more than he could keep track of—each one felt special, like the first all over again. This one was no exception.

"I missed you too, Lightwood," Ryan said as soon as his lips were free again.

Their romantic moment, however, couldn't last. They weren't alone, and Angie took it upon herself to remind them. "You literally saw each other yesterday."

Evan turned to her, frowning, and gave the only response he deemed appropriate. "Shut up." Focused on his boyfriend, he didn't even notice that their blue-haired friend had appeared next to her.

"Michael agrees with me," Angie countered, leaning over to catch a better look at the other ink-haired boy still lounging against the car.

Evan glanced over his shoulder, which seemed to be exactly what Michael had been waiting for. With a casual shrug, he pushed off the car and strolled closer. "I don't care."

"Michael is annoying," Angie quickly amended her statement.

"I still don't care," the boy in question replied with a shrug.

"I see nothing has changed after your trip to Manvale," Josh joined their conversation from a distance.

"What did you expect to change?" Evan raised his voice to match his.

Josh shrugged. "I don't know. You could have hit your head and suddenly become willingly polite like your boyfriend."

"I'm sure if that had happened, we would have found out yesterday," Aiden countered, standing on one side of him. Kieran stood on the other, smiling warmly but not joining the discussion yet.

"We didn't see him with Ryan yesterday. Maybe he needs to be around for this to work," Josh continued his theory.

"That's not how it works," Angie countered. "All Ryan has to do is ask him to behave. It's not a miracle, it's a command—like for a dog."

Evan reached out to nudge her shoulder, but she briskly sidestepped. He didn't try again, deciding it wasn't worth it, and instead returned his hand to Ryan's waist.

"Where are we meeting Aaron?" Kieran took the opportunity to change the subject.

"At that new smoothie bar. His brother needs to run some errands nearby, so I told him we'd meet there, so he didn't have to come here," Lola replied.

"New smoothie bar?" Ryan repeated, his voice intrigued. Lola immediately shot Evan a triumphant smile. He rolled his eyes without even trying to protest.

"I'd love a smoothie. What are we waiting for?" Josh asked.

"Nothing," Angie answered quickly.

"You can leave the car here. It's not far," Lola told Michael, and together they walked toward the park and the smoothie bar.

Aaron was already waiting for them, and the moment Lola saw him, she ran to him just as Evan had run to Ryan earlier. They greeted each other with a kiss, and Aaron even picked the blue-haired girl up in his arms, spinning her around. Their laughter reached the group, bringing smiles to their faces.

"Hey, Aaron."

"Hi, guys."

"Finally, the moment we've all been waiting for," Lola announced with a smile. "Aaron, this is Ryan and Michael. Guys, this is my boyfriend, Aaron."

"Lo's right. Finally." Aaron shook Ryan's hand first. "I've heard so much about you."

"Likewise." The ink-haired boy returned the gesture. "I can't believe it took this long for us to meet." Then he brought his cousin into the conversation. "This is my cousin Michael."

"Hey." Their introduction was brief, just a greeting, but they exchanged a warm smile nonetheless.

"Now we can have a smoothie," Lola said the moment they were done, wrapping her arm around Aaron's and leading them all toward the entrance of the smoothie bar.

With plastic cups in hand, they moved to the park, where they sat at a picnic table. A conversation quickly started between them. They talked about school, movies, and anything else that came to mind.

It turned out that Aaron got along with both Ryan and Michael. He and Michael started discussing music, and the conversation with Ryan quickly shifted to planning a double date.

"I really disagree with the idea that cinema dates are the worst," Aaron said.

"Did anyone actually say that?" Ryan asked, clearly surprised by his statement. It made sense, since his and Evan's first date had also been at the movies.

Aaron nodded. "Mostly my friends, but I saw a discussion on Reddit once too. Apparently, cinema dates are considered the worst because you can't talk and get to know each other. So, in most cases, there's no second date after that," he explained.

"I guess there's something to that," Josh joined in. "But only if it's a first date and the two don't know each other."

"Like the worst kind of blind date," Angie added.

"Right?" Aaron agreed immediately.

"But when you already know each other and what the other person likes..." Ryan pointed out, offering a different perspective.

"Then it's the best date ever," Aaron finished, nodding his head. "Especially if you have the same taste in movies."

At his words, Evan turned to his boyfriend with a look that said it all.

"It was a good movie," Ryan responded immediately, defending his choice.

"They all died because they were saving the cat," Evan reminded him, his tone making it clear that he still wasn't at peace with that ending.

"Because Jonesy was their only reminder of home," Ryan argued, though it was pointless. Even though he'd tried explaining this point to Evan several times in the past, it still seemed absurd to him.

"If they had stayed alive, maybe they would have come home," Evan pointed out.

"They still had the alien on board," Aiden recalled, deciding to join in on their bickering.

"Is that the Alien?" Aaron asked, confused.

"Yes," Ryan replied. "Evan and I went to see it at the old movie theater in North Hallson."

"I've never seen it," Aaron admitted. "Until recently, I was biased against movies older than me, but Dragonheart changed my mind."

"What's Dragonheart?" Josh asked.

"We've been friends forever and you've never seen it?" Kieran asked in shock. His best friend turned to him, equally confused. "You've seen it without me?"

"I have no idea where you've been," Kieran said in an overly serious tone.

"My best friend watched a movie without me," Josh stated dramatically, his tone laced with disbelief.

This absurd conversation quickly turned into laughter and continued in a similar vein until Lola noticed something in the distance.

"Wasn't Ethan supposed to pick you up later?"

At her words, everyone sitting on the same side of the table as Evan glanced over their shoulders, and their friends' gazes turned to the incoming young man—Ethan, Aaron's older brother.

"Yeah." Evan turned back to the front to see Aaron frown. He also looked as confused as Lola. "I guess he finished earlier. I can ask him if he wants to join or take the bus home later."

"We can give you a ride home," Michael suggested. Most of them immediately reacted to his offer, though all differently. Aaron was grateful, Josh and Kieran turned to him as he spoke, but Angie was the only one who spoke up, probably before Aaron could.

"You never offer me a ride."

She got exactly the answer everyone expected, and definitely the one she was used to. "Because you're annoying."

Evan wasn't paying full attention to this conversation, as he focused on Ryan, who was still watching Ethan approach with a concentrated look. Evan didn't understand what he was so focused on.

He nudged his shoulder gently to get Ryan's attention. It worked, and their gazes met. Evan tried to ask him with his eyes what was going on, and Ryan decided to give him a different answer than he was expecting.

His boyfriend pulled his phone out of his pocket and tilted it so Evan could see the display. Then he opened his notes and started typing. "I think Ethan is mated to someone from my pack."

Evan saw the letters gradually appear on the screen as Ryan typed them, but still, when the sentence was finished, he couldn't control his reaction and blurted out loud, "What?"

Of course, his loud question drew all attention to him.

"Did we miss something?" Lola asked.

Evan had no idea how to answer, so he just opened his mouth blankly and quickly closed it. Even though all his friends knew about werewolves, he wasn't sure about the situation with Aaron.

When Evan focused on his sense of smell, he came to the same—or rather, a similar—conclusion as Ryan. Ethan was indeed mated to a wolf and carried the scent of one. The question was whether his family knew about it, too.

Evan had no idea what the rules were in this case, since he only had one human in his family, and since Sam was from foster care, he had no family to tell about the supernatural world.

"Hello?" Angie pulled him out of his thoughts and called his attention to her. "Did we miss something?"

Evan still didn't know how to answer, so he turned to Ryan, leaving it up to him. And he wasn't the only one who did that. Lola flicked her gaze between the two of them and Ethan, who was already closer to them but still out of earshot.

Ryan was also struggling for words, and though he cleared his throat, he made no further sound. "It's complicated?" he tried at last.

"Oh," Lola reacted, and when Evan turned his gaze to her for a second, he noticed that she'd picked up her phone as well. A few seconds later, Ryan got a message.

"If this is about 🐺, Aaron knows," the message said as Evan silently read it with his eyes.

"Ooooh." Both he and Ryan reacted the same way to the revelation and finally let out a sigh of relief at the stressful situation.

"Not that I'm not enjoying your mind reading, but can you finally explain what's going on?" Josh asked.

"I think Ethan is mated to someone from my pack," Ryan finally said aloud, and Evan got to enjoy the shocked reactions of his friends as he calmed down, thanks to Lola.

They all exchanged confused—or rather, surprised—looks, with most of the glances eventually turning to Aaron, who, in turn, had no idea who to look at first.

"I'll stop you before this becomes another mess." Luckily, Lola decided to save the situation. "Everyone at this table knows about the supernatural world."

Even though everyone was now in the know, an awkward silence lingered, as no one dared to speak first.

"So... who's your brother's mate?" Ryan finally asked, though he didn't sound entirely confident.

"Mia Reid," Aaron answered simply. It was clear he was still processing the shock, and his brain couldn't muster anything more.

"Oh." Understanding showed on Ryan's face. Then he turned to Evan, although he wasn't the only one who understood his next answer: "She's Emma's sister."

"Really?" Evan wasn't necessarily surprised by the revelation itself but rather by the circumstances. Once again, it seemed like everyone in his life was somehow connected.

"I adore Emma," Angie chimed in.

"She's really cool," Evan agreed.

"You know Mia's sister?" Aaron finally found the courage to ask his own question.

Ryan nodded. "We've been friends since we were kids. I know Mia too. I've been to their house so many times that she told me, since I'm there so often, she's just going to treat me like an annoying little sibling and I have no choice."

Aaron laughed. "That sounds like Mia."

"What sounds like Mia?" Ethan had already reached earshot, and the first thing he caught was his girlfriend's name.

"Ryan knows Mia," Aaron told him.

"Really?" Ethan took the last few steps toward the table where his brother and his friends were sitting.

"I'm friends with her sister," Ryan replied. "I actually live not that far from them."

Ethan seemed to piece the rest together. Wolf houses were always close to one another, and werewolves had their own neighborhoods. But one thing still didn't make sense to him. "So you came all the way here from Manvale?"

"Right now, I'm living in North Hallson with my cousin." Ryan nodded toward Michael, making it clear who he meant.

"Oh, that's cool." Ethan's tone was unsure, and he didn't ask another question. It was obvious he wanted to know more but wasn't sure what he could say.

"Evan practically lives there too," Angie added.

"Unfortunately," Michael muttered before Evan could respond.

"You love having me around," Evan countered.

"My room smells like sex almost 24/7," Michael pointed out, raising an eyebrow in a way that suggested Evan couldn't refute the claim.

"Sex has a smell?" Aiden asked, inserting himself into the conversation.

"If you have a supernatural sense of smell, it does," Michael assured him.

"Oh." Aaron responded, but he didn't say more. His reaction suggested he'd just realized Ryan wasn't the only werewolf at the table.

Angie immediately took the opportunity to reveal her secret as well. "I can testify to that," she interjected, looking just as disturbed as Michael. "Evan's room is even worse."

Evan just rolled his eyes at that. Instead of responding to her, he decided that since Aaron already knew about Ryan, it wouldn't be a big deal to reveal his own secret. Besides, at this point, he already had practice.

"I'm a werewolf too," he said, looking at Aaron. "Ryan and I are mates."

"Seriously? Congratulations, guys!" Aaron responded with a wide grin, looking genuinely happy for them.

"Thanks." Ryan laughed.

Evan smiled too, but as the moment passed, his expression gradually dimmed until it vanished completely. Another person was happy for them—someone who barely knew him—while his own parents wouldn't be. The irony wasn't lost on him.

Ryan noticed the change in his demeanor, but Evan shook his head and whispered a quick, "Later," before he could ask.

For now, he wanted to enjoy one last peaceful afternoon before having the serious conversation with him that was bound to change everything.

And later that day, he finally did.