Chapter 93 - Tuesday

The next day looked more promising, even though Evan still couldn't put his foot down. Angie was riding the bus with him this time, so he didn't have to worry about using every curse word he knew again when he got off, and Aiden was helping him in the hallways again, even though the atmosphere between them was still a little strange. Certainly, less strange than yesterday, though. Evan just hoped that by the end of the week, he would clear it completely and they would be best friends again with no buts.

And while it looked for a moment like that would be the only challenge Evan would face soon, it turned out he was wrong. The last class before lunch was in fact History, and their teacher seemed to have good news for them.

Mrs. Simons, their History teacher, was standing in front of the class waiting for everyone to quiet down. She had a wide smile on her face, which was typical of her, but she seemed more excited than usual, so Evan decided to pay attention to her for a change. After all, her over-enthusiasm was incomprehensible to him and so she could often get on his nerves, even though it wasn't her intention.

"Good morning, everyone," she greeted them as usual. "I have some wonderful news for you. As part of our college prep program, we're planning a four-day trip to New York City to explore the University of New York!"

The class was immediately engulfed in noise as the students began whispering amongst themselves, and poor Evan couldn't believe his own ears. He had a chance to see his dream University! Before he could start thinking about how there was no way his parents were going to let him go, however, the brunette seemed to sense the direction his thoughts were taking and leaned toward him. "We'll figure something out," Angie whispered with an encouraging smile.

"The trip will take place in exactly two weeks. We'll be departing early Monday morning by a comfortable, air-conditioned bus and returning Thursday evening," she filled them in on the details. Some of the students were taking notes on what she was saying, but Evan knew he wouldn't forget her words even if he tried hard.

"It's a trip for all juniors, so we'll have to book a hotel, and depending on the hotel's availability, there will be two or three of you in the room. The plan so far is that we'll have breakfast together at the hotel each morning, followed by a tour of New York City in the afternoon, and then you'll have time for yourselves and your own activities in the evening. Sounds great, doesn't it?" Mrs. Simons seemed to be as excited about this trip as the students and couldn't hide the emotion in her voice.

However, then it was time for the less pleasant details.

"Now let's talk about the financial side," she said, and her smile faltered slightly. "The cost of the trip is $300 per student, which includes transportation, lodging, breakfast, and all planned activities. We understand that this can be a significant expense for some, so there are financial aid options. Please contact me privately and together we can work out a solution."

Mrs. Simons then moved to her desk and picked up a stack of papers from it. "One last thing. You'll receive a permission slip today, which your parents or guardians will need to sign, indicating their consent for you to join the trip. I want it on my desk by Friday, so I know the exact number of students who will be attending the trip," she explained, then split the stack in half, handing it to the closest students to pass on.

The moment Evan held the paper in his hand, his thoughts immediately scattered. His classmates gossiped happily about the upcoming trip, and Evan envied them for not having to question whether their parents would let them go. Things weren't looking very bright in his case, after all.

However, he was confident that he would find a way to get his parents to say yes, even if he had to promise them the moon.

...

"I heard you guys are going on a trip," was the first thing Josh said as he sat down at the table in the cafeteria.

"Yeah, to New York," Aiden replied, confirming his implication.

"You're going to see our future school." Kieran was smiling, and Evan could finally see him genuinely happy to be at university in a few months.

"I can't wait," Angie admitted, then nudged Evan with her elbow to get his attention. "We need to come up with the best plan to convince your parents to let you go. You can't miss this."

"I agree," Lola joined right in. "Do you think there's a chance they'll say yes?"

"Honestly? I have no idea. We haven't talked about university at all but maybe they won't protest if I don't tell them, it's the University I want to attend someday," Evan admitted with a shrug.

"What do they have against NYU?" Josh asked, frowning.

"It's too far away I guess," Evan said, though he knew there was more to it. The distance was one of the main reasons, though, especially since it was too far from their pack.

"I'd say I envy you, but I don't. My parents may leave flyers about universities that they like everywhere, but at least they're giving me options," Aiden interjected.

"In that case, I envy you," Evan replied right back, and Aiden gave him a sympathetic look.

"I think I feel a completely different kind of envy. You know exactly where you want to go, and you at least know the possibilities, whereas I have absolutely no idea what I want to do after school." With a sigh, Lola folded her hands on the table and rested her chin on them.

Evan was only half listening to her as he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket and immediately took it out to see what was going on. He was thrilled to find that it was Ryan texting him and so for a brief moment he stopped listening to the conversation around him altogether.

"Aww, look at him smiling."

Noticing the sudden silence around him, Evan lifted his head to find all his friends looking at him with knowing grins. Naturally, his cheeks immediately took on a darker colour and he quickly searched for words to get out of the awkward situation.

"I can't believe we didn't realise he was in love before," Josh commented. "He's not very good at hiding it. Rather terrible".

"Oh, shut up," Evan said first, instinctively. Of course, it caused a few giggles around the table.

"You're like a lovesick puppy. It's cute," Lola commented and he grunted in response.

"You haven't seen anything yet," Angie remarked. "If you were in the room with them for a while, you would see Evan like never before. He has never been so sweet to anyone in his life."

"I kinda want to see that," said the last person he expected, and Evan looked at Aiden in surprise. The blonde, however, just shrugged as if he hadn't said anything special.

Suddenly there was another vibration. All eyes automatically went to Evan's phone, which he managed to put down on the table before. But before he could reach for it, Angie got it first. And since she knew his password, she was able to read Ryan's message very quickly.

"Are you serious?" She turned to Evan reproachfully.

His confusion only lasted a moment before he realised what Ryan had offered him earlier. Obviously, Angie was ready to jump at any chance of getting a ride home instead of the bus.

Instead of responding, he just rolled his eyes at her and held out his hand for her to give him the phone back. Angie however did the exact opposite and immediately turned her attention back to it and started typing a message.

"What's wrong?" Kieran asked.

"Nothing," Evan admitted honestly and continued, "Ryan just asked if he and Michael should pick me up so I wouldn't have to get on the bus with my crutches. I said no need, but Angie obviously had a different opinion." He rolled his eyes again.

"It's a good idea." Kieran seemed puzzled by his refusal. "Besides, it gives you the perfect opportunity to introduce him to Aiden." Kieran nodded at the blonde at the end of the table, and it was only then that Evan realised it really wasn't such a bad idea.

"You're right," he admitted with a frown. Angie took the moment to hand the phone back to him, adding loudly, "You're welcome."

One look at the screen was all it took for Evan to know that Aiden was going to meet his boyfriend today after all, and it was going to be sooner than he had expected.

"Are you okay with this?" he asked the blonde just to be sure.

"I can't wait," he replied, and Evan hoped it was a sincere answer and not sarcasm. For some reason, he couldn't tell the difference now, so he had to go with the better option so as not to stress himself out unnecessarily.

"We should have a double date sometime," Lola said suddenly, stopping eating for a moment.

Evan turned to her in surprise and quickly went over the possibility in his head before answering her. "We'll see," he chose a vague answer so that he could get out of it later if necessary.

"That's not fair. I want to go on a double date too," Angie whined, drawing attention to herself.

Josh and Kieran exchanged a look that only Evan seemed to catch but chose not to comment on. Instead, he turned to his best friend and gave her a not-so-gentle pat on the shoulder. "Don't worry. Soon you'll be on so many double dates you won't be able to keep up. Not with me, of course, but with Lola and Aaron."

"How are you and Aaron doing anyway?" Angie asked, and Lola's eyes almost lit up at the mention of his name. The topic for the rest of the lunch was quickly decided and surprisingly everyone agreed that they liked Aaron and that he should hang out with them more often.

After lunch, they split up again and Aiden helped Evan to class as he did for the rest of the day. When the final bell rang, everyone gathered outside the exit as agreed in the group chat, and it took a while as Josh and Kieran had their last class on the other side of the school, but eventually, everyone was there.

Everyone was curious about the Saunders, but especially Aiden, as he was the only one who hadn't met them. Fortunately, he had seemed to be in a friendly mood, so Evan was not too worried about their introduction.

They walked to the front of the school together and Evan only took a few steps before he noticed a familiar face at the school gate. For a moment he thought about throwing his crutches on the ground and running towards him, but luckily it wasn't necessary because Ryan was in front of him with a few quick steps. Of course, Evan didn't hesitate and immediately pulled him into a hug, not caring where his crutches landed, but since he hadn't heard the crash, he hoped one of his friends had caught them.

"Hey, Michael!" Angie's scream brought him back to the present, and he looked over Ryan's shoulder at the gate where the other Saunders was indeed leaning. "Where's my hug?"

"Fuck off!" the black-haired boy shouted back at her, not caring where he was.

Evan couldn't help laughing, even though he couldn't see Angie's expression, but he was sure it was worth it. And judging by the way Ryan's shoulders shook beneath him, he also found the situation more than hilarious, only he had the disadvantage of facing the petite brunette. And Ryan was also too nice to laugh in someone's face.

Of course, Josh didn't have that much tact and started laughing too, and as soon as he did, Aiden joined him, as if he suddenly knew it was safe.

"At least come closer, you idiot!" Angie shouted again, and judging by the crossed hands on her chest, she didn't look too happy with her friends' reaction.

Michael sighed, his expression saying he was extremely annoyed by her request, but he eventually straightened up and started walking slowly towards the rest of the group. Evan took this as a sign that it was time to break away from his boyfriend and instead moved to his side, holding onto his arm to keep himself from falling.

"Hey, Ryan, we almost didn't see you through Evan," Josh teased.

"Hey," Ryan greeted him and everyone else for that matter. He had a smile on his face and didn't look nervous, which Evan was glad about because it meant he was clearly getting along with his friends.

"Hi there again. Nice to see you again." Lola was obviously thrilled by his presence and probably would have hugged him if it wasn't for Evan's stability.

"Hi, Lola," he smiled at her.

"How are you?" Kieran didn't dwell on the greeting and struck up a conversation, and judging by the way Aiden looked at him, it was the right thing to do.

"Good," Ryan replied, giving him a genuine smile.

"I've never seen him in anything but a good mood," Angie remarked. Evan almost said the same thing, but then he remembered how he had managed to disappoint the ink-haired boy, so he held his tongue. Ryan, however, sensed his quick change of mood and planted a kiss on his hair to cheer him up. And although Evan's smile faded only for a brief second, it was back again.

Michael managed to join them and gave a short greeting, obviously addressed to everyone. And although he did not look very friendly, the others greeted him with smiles on their faces.

"Since we're all finally here..." Angie not only took on an accusatory tone but gave Michael a direct look so he knew her words were directed at him, but he just rolled his eyes. "This is Ryan and Michael, our... well, my friends from North Hallson. They are also cousins." These words were directed at the blonde, who nodded as if he understood, and Angie left it to him to introduce himself.

"I'm Aiden. Pleased to meet you," he said with a small smile.

"You too," Ryan immediately offered him a big friendly grin. "I've heard a lot about you."

"I hope only good things," Aiden replied immediately and everyone watched their conversation closely. Even though Aiden promised he would try, everyone was still on edge.

"That depends." Ryan playfully pretended to think. "Do you wanna hear what Evan said or what Angie said?

"Hey!" Angie countered immediately and punched him in the shoulder. This of course caused mass laughter and lightened the atmosphere.

"Good. So you know what a good liar Angie is," Aiden commented.

"She's awful," Michael confirmed, and Angie reached in his direction as if to hit him like she did his cousin, but the older Saunders managed to dodge.

"Why can't you be on my side for once?" The brunette crossed her arms over her chest and glared at him.

Michael sighed and ran a hand through his hair before replying. "Because you're annoying."

Angie took a breath in response, but the blue-haired girl beat her to it. "I'm shipping this." She pointed at both of them, and they both looked at her like she was crazy.

"Honestly, me too," Evan dared to say, and when his best friend turned to him with her mouth open in shock, he just shrugged.

"We'll talk about this later," she warned him.

"She'll kill you," Aiden warned him too, but it was obviously not a good idea because she glared at him immediately afterwards.

"Okay," Josh interjected. "It's clearly time to get moving. Coffee anyone?"

And so Evan's two worlds came together for the first time.