Tree Bros One Shots

Hand Holding

Connor Murphy wasn't good at expressing his feelings, by any means. Ok, that was the understatement of the year. In 2nd grade, he didn't know how to let his teacher know he was unhappy.... So he threw a printer at him. Obviously, from that statement alone you can tell that Connor has some issues with getting his point across. Especially when he's trying his hardest to paint a picture that Evan is just too oblivious to see clearly. You'd think Connor would get angry like he did in the second grade (And every other misunderstanding in his life) but with this, he just tended to get grumbly and awkward.

He was beginning to run out of ideas, finding no other subtle ways to say 'you're a dumbass for not seeing it, but hey I like you either way'. Alana and Jared were both sitting on his bedroom floor, staring at him as he paced back and forth in front of them. He was annoyedly mumbling nonsense and swears under his breath as he counted his steps to try and calm himself. Alana was the first person anyone would think to ask for any type of help with anything, so Connor understands her presence. But why he had decided to invite bath bomb boy was beyond his comprehension.

"I'm not sure. I'm not the best in the romance department. You've tried making sure he notices your intense and lingering stares of raw passion, right?" Alana asked, raising a brow as she brought up her previous plan. Connor stopped dead in his track before turning and glaring at the dark skinned girl. She had her knees pulled to her chest, her head resting atop them as she watched him.

"Yes I tried it, Alana, he thought I had started smoking weed again. He also thought I was more stoned than the other times he had found me high" he told her, causing her to frown and tilt her head. Jared shook his own head in amusement as he remembered that day, Evan hurriedly shaking Connor and asking if he was ok or if he was dying. Connor sneered at him, crossing his arms over his chest and huffing in frustration. He slammed one foot in front of Jared and tried to look intimidating, but with his hair in a messy bun that was hard. So un-school shooter chic.

"Then what do you think I should do Kleinman?" he asked with an angry expression settling on his face. Jared laughed at Connor, forcing him to have to bite his lip to keep from bursting out yelling. He knew Evan wouldn't approve. Jared noticed Connor censoring his anger at once and laughed harder, making several comments about how 'whipped he was'. He was quickly silenced when he noticed how fucking sad Connor actually looked. Sad and lost. Jared rolled his eyes and stood, leaving Alana alone on Connor's bedroom floor. He walked over to Connor and placed a firm hand on his shoulder, earning himself another glare and annoyed huff.

"Listen, dude, I've known Evan my whole life and as much as we would want him to, he doesn't just wake up and realize shit. I know you wish he would but he won't. So this time don't just stare, do something physical. Kiss him, hug him, propose or just slap his ass. I literally don't care, just be your angry, awkward school shooter self, I'd be surprised if he wasn't head over heels for you" he finished his rant. Connor opened his mouth to yell but found himself stuck on words.

"Th-that's actually pretty good advice" he admitted, looking down at his ratty Chucks as he thanked Jared quietly. Despite being an ass, he really was a good friend to both Connor and Evan. Sometimes

The next day, Connor was nowhere near prepared for what he had planned. He walked to school with Evan normally, ate normally at lunch and normally invited him out to the abandoned orchard. They often hung out there, finding it to be a calming place. Connor could be at peace with Evan, and Evan could be around all the trees he wanted. They drove normally, arrived normally and picked a spot to shoot the breeze normally. Connor was beginning to let his nerves eat him alive as he looked at his best friends.

Choking back his nerves, Connor tapped on Evan's shoulder. Evan looked at his friend, a bright smile present on his face as he asked what's up. Connor sucked in a deep breath before rushing out his question.

"Evan, can you hold something for me?" he asked quickly, watching Evan give him a confused stare.

"Y-Yeah sure, what is it?" he asked suspiciously. Connor smiled shyly and placed his hand in Evan's, looking into his eyes. Evan blushed and looked down quickly, his eyes locking on their intertwined fingers. He was at a loss for words for a minute before brightly staring back up at Connor.

"Ok" He replied happily while leaning onto Connor hesitantly. He felt like this was... ok? The stayed in that position for a while, just silently enjoying each other's presence. Evan didn't even express how he felt back to Connor, but the look in his eyes was enough alone to make Connor feel more loved that he had his entire childhood. Everything felt perfect and cliche but it was fine.

"Hey Hansen, you know I like you right?" he asked after a few hours of peaceful quiet. Evan snuggled further into his side and nodded his head right. Connor couldn't help but smirk. Bath bomb boy was right and Evan was finally seeing his love. After another minute Evan lifted his head from Connor's chest to meet his eyes, tilting his head as he spoke.

"And, you know I like you too, right?" he asked wearily. Connor let out a small laugh and nodded.

"I figured. Unless cuddling and hand holding were on your list of ways to reject someone" he replied, holding the smaller teen even closer to him. They had yet to stop holding hands as the repositioned, Evan now mostly on Connor's lap. Connor was absent-mindedly using his free hand to trace patterns on Evans back and shoulders as Evan looked down at the hand he held. He was tiredly admiring the chipping black nail polish on Connor's nails as they drifted off together.