When Evan had nervously told Jared about his raging crush on Connor Murphy, he had never expected this. Connor stood before him, face crimson red and his shoulders hunched. Was it strange? Yeah. Was it adorable? Yes. Did Evan love it? Hell yeah. A blushing Connor was a great Connor and such a wonderful sight.
"Um," Connor started, looking like he wanted nothing more than to melt into the ground. "Jared uh, Jared told me something?"
Evan gaped for a minute. His mind was in panic mode and all he could manage was a stuttered excuse before he ran for it. He slammed the bathroom door and hid in the stall. His face burned with shame and anger. He'd had an opportunity to talk to Connor, and he'd thrown it out the window. He scowled and buried his head in his hands. He knew his fleeing had hurt Connor, and that was the last thing Evan wanted. He knew Connor went through a ton of shit. That his classmate was full of hurt and paranoia. Evan didn't want to add to that.
He nodded to himself. He would clear things up with Connor as soon as he saw him next.
As it turned out, Evan didn't see Connor for another three days. He looked for him in the halls, but he never caught sight of his lanky figure and messy hair. Disappointment and fear coiled in Evan's stomach. Was Connor just skipping, or had something happened?
Jared teased him mercilessly about his worry. Evan managed to ignore him and brushed it off. It was Jared's fault he was in this mess to begin with.
The second he saw long tangled hair after the weekend, Evan went running. He didn't have time to regret his decision before he reached the object of his affection.
"Connor?" He said. Connor turned to him and Evan winced when his eyes instantly went cold and closed off.
"What do you want?" Connor asked. Evan swallowed when he saw the protective way Connor held himself. How he was hunched over, avoiding his eyes, and clutching his bag in a death grip.
"I, I wanted to um, to apologize. For what happened." Evan stammered, his confidence gone. "I-it caught me off guard, I, I never expected Jared to tell you..."
Connor's eyes widened a fraction and his head shot up to meet Evan's.
"It-" he stopped and looked down. He was biting his lip and fiddling with his bag strap.
"It's true," Evan said softly. "I-" he blushed. "I do have a crush on you!"
He felt heat travel all the way to his toes, and he wanted nothing more than to hide under his covers and never come out. But then he saw the sliver of hope and happiness shining through the fear and sadness in Connor's eyes.
Taking a chance, he carefully reached out and placed his hand on Connor's. He could feel the tension Connor held and gently threaded their fingers together.
"We should, we should go on a date." Connor choked out, his eyes unwavering on their joint hands.
Evan smiled and squeezed his hands. His smile grew bigger at the gentle squeeze back. "Yeah, I'd like that."
