RED [BXB]

FIVE

"Hello?"

Mason drew in a sharp inhale through his nose, the hairs at the back of his neck standing at full attention. It'd been a while since he heard that voice, and nothing could've erased the way it made his heart quiver.

"Mason? You there?"

Realizing he'd taken too long to respond, Mason cleared his throat. "Yeah, hey. What's up, Ethan?"

From the other end of the line, Ethan breathed a heavy sigh. "It's all good."

"That's great to hear!" Mason responded enthusiastically. Desperate for a way to fill the silence, he questioned, "How's California?"

"Not bad."

He hummed in consideration. "And college?"

"Everything's cool."

"Cool, cool," Mason drawled out. "You'll never guess what happened!"

When Ethan said nothing, Mason continued, "Luke moved into my dorm the other day!"

"Luke Hale?" Ethan responded, his tone dripping with more emotion than it had so far.

"Yeah! Isn't that crazy?"

Uncertainly, Mason breached an uncomfortable topic, trespassing on unmarked territory. "And... And Vincent? How is he?"

When Ethan clicked his tongue disapprovingly, Mason knew he'd made a mistake. "What do you want, Mason?"

The edge to Ethan's sharp tone had him flinching. "I don't want anything."

"Why did you call me, then?"

Mason fell silent for a bit. And then, with a voice smaller and softer that he would've cared to admit, he confessed to Ethan, "I miss you."

The latter exhaled loudly in frustration. "Look, I should go."

"Wait, Ethan, I—"

But it was too late. The line had already went dead.

Mason dropped his head between his knees, rubbing at his face in frustration as his chest ached with an all-too-familiar pain. He was so immersed in his thoughts, so lost in Ethan's voice and his harsh words, that he jumped when he heard Luke speak.

"Was that Ethan?" his voice was sympathetic.

"Didn't we agree that you'd keep your mouth shut when we got back?" he reminded Luke of the deal, lying back on the bed.

Luke ignored him, treading closer. "Is everything okay?"

"How much of the conversation did you hear?" Mason shot back accusingly. When Mason made the call, Luke had left the room . Too occupied with his broken heart, Mason never noticed when Luke had returned.

The boy shrugged indifferently. "Enough to know it's bothering you."

"It's fine," Mason negated unconvincingly. "Just go to bed."

Luke frowned, not liking the way Mason's shoulders had slumped in defeat. A tense air enveloped the room, suffocating the pair. It was almost as though Luke could smell Mason's self-pity. At the thought, he scrunched up his nose in distaste. Disregarding Mason's previous request—that, and completely breaking their deal—Luke settled on the bunk bed next to his roommate.

"Whatever bad thing you might have done, it's still clear you care about Ethan."

Mason snapped his head towards him, narrowing his eyes suspiciously. "What do you know, anyways?"

Luke broke eye contact, opting to fiddle with the hem of his shirt. "I don't," he conceded. "But I know you never meant to hurt him."

"No, I did," Mason argued, "I wanted to hurt him because he hurt me."