A New Start

Chapter 8

"Are you guys sure about this?" Quinn asked as they walked around, trying to find James.

"You'll do great, Quinn," Connor reassured her. "And if things go south, there's always my reputation for picking fights."

"If I don't kill him first," Jared said. "He hurt my baby sister. I'm not letting that go."

"A-and I'll be here for-for emotional support!" Evan chimed in.

Quinn smiled. "I appreciate this." She nodded towards the guy leaning against the wall. "That's him." Jared shot a glare his way. Quinn sucked in a deep breath. "Here it goes." She walked over to him as the boys stood back, ready to defend her at any point. They watched as James started yelling, causing Quinn to take a step back. Jared glanced at Connor and Evan before walking over, standing in between his sister and her (now) ex boyfriend. Before they could process what was happening, James' fist connected with Jared's face. Evan grabbed Jared and Connor grabbed Quinn. They dragged their friends out of harm's way.

"You two okay?" Evan asked. Quinn nodded, controlling her breathing. "Jared?"

"That fucking hurt," he whispered.

"So, he's okay," Connor said. "Let's go find you some ice," he offered. The mismatched group walked down the road to the nearby 7/11 to get some ice. Evan was humming something as they walked, his hands twitching at his sides.

"What's up, Ev?" Connor asked.

"I-I'm just... nervous about auditions tomorrow."

"You'll do great, Evan," Jared said.

"I'll even go with you if you want," Connor offered. Evan smiled. Oh, that smile. That smile made Connor's heart flip every time.

"That-that'd be great, Con."

Quinn and Jared exchanged glances, silently saying the same thing: gay.

They reached the convenience store and headed towards the drink machines. Jared got a small cup of ice while the others got actual drinks. The woman behind the counter seemed really bored as she rang up the items. The teens walked out of the store.

"Hey, my house should be empty, wanna hang there?" Connor asked.

"Wait, is Connor Murphy going to willingly spend time with me?" Jared asked, looking a bit ridiculous as he held the ice to his eye.

"Ha-ha very funny, Kleinman," Connor said, rolling his eyes. Quinn and Evan laughed.

"Are you two ever gonna like each other?" She asked.

"That's a solid no," Connor replied as they neared his house.

Jared placed his free hand on his chest. "I am highly offended!"

"Yeah, yeah," Connor chuckled, unlocking the front door. It swung open and Connor announced, "Welcome to Casa de Murphy. The place I hate spending my time." He flopped on the couch and propped his boot-clad feet up on the back of it. "Make yourselves at home."

"Connor?" He heard his sister call. He groaned. "Who are you talking to?" She came down the stairs and stopped at the last one. "Who are they?"

"My friends. Fuck off."

"Friends?" She laughed. "How much did he pay you to go along with that?"

Connor opened his mouth to argue when Quinn raised her hand and said, "I got this. Zoe, he did not pay any of us anything. And we are not pretending to be his friends. At least I'm not." Zoe gave a satisfied hum before walking back up the stairs. Quinn fell backwards over the couch, hanging upside down. "So, what now?"

"We could get high," Connor offered.

"I'm good," Quinn said. "How 'bout a movie?"

"Sure," Connor shrugged. He turned on Netflix and so the debate began. They eventually settled on watching a few episodes of Parks and Recreation. Quinn and Jared sat on the floor, leaving the couch for Connor and Evan. At some point, Quinn wandered into the kitchen to look for popcorn. She threw a few packs in the microwave before grabbing a bag of prepackaged kettle corn. You know, the kind you buy at the store when you don't have access to the stuff from amusement parks. She walked back in and sighed, seeing Jared passed out on the floor. She glanced at the time on her phone. 9:30.

"Looks like it's past his bedtime," she said, throwing the popcorn at Connor's head. Quinn nudged her brother with her foot. "I'll take him home now." She pulled him to his feet, surprisingly strong for her size. "See you tomorrow. Good luck, Evan."

Author's Note: hello, my lovelies! I know, we all hate these. But I was considering writing another treebros fic where Zoe was the one who died instead of Connor. What do you guys think?