𝐡𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐛𝐨𝐲𝐬 ✧ 𝐚 𝐰𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐟𝐚𝐧𝐟𝐢𝐜

chapter six.

in an effort to make myself feel better, i came up with some excuses.

like, its not like a walter would be there, right?

with alex not being able to come, and cole ditching.

wrong. i forgot about the fact that a sense of responsibility and dedication to anything lacked in the walter family. 

thats why i found it funny as alex walter, fresh from skipping practice, said, "cole isnt necessarily the poster child for dependability." his arms waved back a trailer for the cart, and i tried to hide my snort the best i could, "easy. easy. a little more-"

"alex!" danny's head shot out from the driver side window, "if you keep talking to me like one of your horses, youre walking home."

i let out a shocked laugh, and sent raised eyebrows over to the oldest walter boy. he just smirked over at me, and i sent an approving nod.

danny had just become my favorite walter.

as jackie and alex hooked and rolled the cart into the trailer, i sat shotgun next to danny, not having anywhere else to hang for the moment.

"we're all heading back to the house for the rest of the day," jackie appeared at my window, "mr and mrs walter are probably still at parker's game, along with the other boys," she sent me a knowing look, telling me everything she could to help the next sentence sound enticing, "wanna come hang? i need some help with calc."

being two grades above her, i was in calculus. and i had been doing pretty well, so i agreed. a walterless house, and more hours on my GoPP form, sounded like a nice enough afternoon.

jackie had hopped in the car with alex, and i uncomfortably changed my seating position in the passenger seat of danny's truck. realizing this was my first time completely alone with a walter brother.

as he tapped a beat on the steering wheel, bouncing his eyes from the road in front of him to alex's car behind him, making sure they were still following him, i heard him muttering something.

"huh?" i said, but by his reaction to my words, i realized he hadnt been talking to me. he jumped in his chair.

"oh, sorry." he squirmed, "i was just going through lines. i hadnt noticed i was doing it out loud."

danny was president of the theatre club at school, and had been in every play they showed. if not the role, another major part. rumor had it, he was always phenomenal.

"what plays up next?" i asked, sipping from one of the last cider's the walter cart had to offer.

"romeo and juliet." i was thankful danny was back to looking out the window so he didnt see my shoulder shrink in a sigh.

how fitting. just as dramatic as this town.

"what?" he mustve took my silence as the same reaction, "would you rather another Shakespearian drama?" he smiled over at me, "like the merry wives of windsor?" his eyebrows rose in shock with mine, but his was more mocking my own, true, shock.

he had remembered. just like when he had known my name the other day, his memory and attention to detail surprised me.

"something not so..." i cringed, "expected. i guess." suddenly, i didnt want to hurt the boys feelings. danny was different, danny showed people he cared about them. i had felt it.

he just laughed, "yeah, i get it." he nodded, "but i love a good shakespeare write." he looked down at his lap, "and if i get the role, i would put my own twist on it." he smiled back up at me, "hopefully make it a bit less expected." he held my gaze for a second, "you should come see it."

"okay." the quick word almost brought a gasp out of my own mouth, but i sealed my lips tight before i could.

i tore my eyes away from his. i had already been looking too long.

what are you doing? i scolded myself, agreeing to another walter event so easily? what is wrong with you?

i had already gone too far with the walter boys. i didnt want to ever get close to one, never mind promise them something.

and though danny was purer, he was full of the same blood. the same breed of drama. hormones. and horror.

i decided to promise myself that even by the time of auditions, all of this would be forgotten.

two hours into studying for calc, my phone rang at the same time a certain truck pulled up the walter's long drive way.

"perfect, thats grace." i said, flipping the phone over to prove my right, "she probably wants to hang." i said, satisfied.

if that was the walter's truck, i would want to get out of here anyway.

i picked up, and jackie and i shifted ourselves to look out the window.

"hot take of the afternoon," her gossiping voice rang through the phone, and jackie's eyes perked up as she must have been able to hear her, "you still with jackie?" i shook my head, but smiling, put the girl on speaker.

outside held just cole coming out of his truck, and parker walter walking towards him from the front porch. the walter family had already been home, we must have been too deep into our calculus problems to hear the racket of them entering.

parker had a light blue jersey in her hands, and tears smudging two black lines under each of her eyes.

"ok, hit us." i said, looking over to see a frown covering jackie's face as she watched the scene below. i watched, not as aware as to what was going down.

"cole and erin broke up this morning." grace's voice tore through the silence of jackie's room, and our eyes met each others. my lips parted, and jackie just showed the shock in her eyes, "like, for good, apparently."

down below, parker threw the jersey at the boy before her, who looked utterly defeated at the moment, and ran off crying.

"rough day for the boy." i said, monotone.

it had clicked in my head that if he hadnt shown to help out jackie this afternoon, all signs pointed to him most likely missing parker's game this morning as well. and, mustve been with erin that whole time.

now, the boy stood at the steps, picking up the jersey now crumbled at his feet. obviously sad, and newly single.

he looked up at jackie's window, and i sneaked a look over at her instead of down at him.

her frown turned into a scowl, and she reached to close the blinds.

through the thin, white fabric, i caught cole's gaze still pointed up at us. but by the time jackie walked me down, cole was gone.