FireFly

Chapter Ten

Dating Connor Murphy was kind of like riding a rollercoaster. Climbing slowly at first, a bit rickety until you reach the top where you stay perfectly still for just a moment, then it's loads of ups and downs and spins, teetering dangerously towards the edge of the rails before once again regaining balance.

In this moment, Evan believed they were staying perfectly at the top, equally balanced.

Connor had come to visit Evan at the Orchard on the blondes lunch break, they were currently sitting under a shady tree with an unappealing display of 'lunch' laying before them that Connor had stolen from home.

"This is nice," Evan hummed, resting his head on the other boy's shoulder.

He felt Connor nod, "Sorry about the food, I just grabbed what I could find before someone asked me where I was going."

He knew that 'someone' was Larry or Zoe, Cynthia would probably be delighted that Connor had a boyfriend but the same couldn't be said for the other members of his broken family. Larry would be, well... Larry, and Zoe? There's no telling how Zoe would react, everything with his sister depended on what he had said or did to her and whether or not she was still pissed at him for it.

Figuring that out on a daily basis was fucking exhausting, to say the least.

"S-So I was thinking l-last night-" Evan began, finding Connor's hand on the dry, yellow-y grass and holding it in his own.

"You're always thinking, Hansen, that brain of yours works a million miles a second." Connor smirked.

He let out a nervous, breathy laugh before continuing, "I-I'm serious. I was w-wondering how you'd f-feel about the idea of c-coming out to o-our parents?"

Connor stiffened, "I don't-"

"It d-doesn't have to be both! J-Just... our mums?"

The long haired boy paused. He was pretty sure Cynthia already knew he was gay, he'd not exactly hidden it, but there's a difference between telling your parents your into guys and telling your parents you're in a pretty serious relationship with a guy. It was the last thing in the world that he wanted to do, although at the same time if Evan wanted to tell Heidi about his new relationship, wouldn't it be a real dick move to stop him?

The idea seemed so conflicting that the thought of it made Connor's head hurt.

He could feel his frustration building as he thought about how fucking unfair it was and he was honestly slightly pissed at Evan for bringing it up when they were having such a good time enjoying each other's company.

But then he saw Evan's face. Evan, who looked so lost and so hopeful, the breeze was causing strands of his adorable sandy blonde hair to blow against his face, blue eyes round and squinting slightly in the sun but it was the way in which he was starring at Connor with such intensity that it caused the taller boy to agree.

"Just our mums, huh?"

Evan nodded.

He sighed heavily and he finally nodded slowly. "Okay, I can do that."

The anxious boy grinned widely, "Really?"

Connor chuckled and pulled Evan between his legs, so that Evan's back was against his chest and Connor was leaning against the tree, "Of course, Hansen. Anything for you." He added with a kiss to his boyfriend's temple.

Evan laughed, "Hey C-Connor?"

He hummed in response.

"I think w-we're going to be o-okay."
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Telling Heidi was both the most easiest and the most difficult thing at the same time.

For example, Evan knew that his mum would support him blindly but he really didn't want to disappoint her, she'd always talked about grandchildren and how was Evan going to even have a child if he was gay?

It was night, Heidi had just gotten through the door after a long shift at the hospital when Evan cornered her in the hallway and said, "Hey m-mum, can I t-talk to y-you?"

She looked startled and rolled up the sleeves of her scrubs, leading her son into the living room and inviting him to sit next to her on the sofa, "Of course, honey. What's on your mind?"

"W-Well," Evan began, picking a loose thread in his seat and trying to ignore how his nerves made his stutter more prominent. "You k-know how I-I've been working at the O-Orchard?"

She nodded, "Oh honey, aren't you enjoying it? I thought it was perfect for you-"

"No, no!" He exclaimed, "T-That's... that's n-not it."

"Oh sorry, go on."

"I met s-someone there." He said shortly, willing to get it over with.

Heidi gasped and clasped her hands together, "Evan that's wonderful! What's her name?"

Evan cringed and picked at his lips for a few seconds before answering, "T-They're actually m-more of a h-he than a she."

He observed her expression carefully, searching for any sign of disappointment or resentment, he couldn't see anything but then again Evan was never really good at reading people.

She paused and Evan noticed her eyes had wandered over to look at a picture frame on the mantelpiece, it was of Evan and Heidi when he was no older than eight years old, they were on holiday and at the beach. It was the first holiday they'd taken after Evan's dad had left them, they both looked - not exactly happy - but on the road to recovery. Evan suddenly felt a wave of guilt wash over him for all he put her through with his anxiety and how hard she worked, and it was all just for him.

He snapped his attention back to Heidi when she breathed in a deep breath and smiled widely, "What's his name then? Oh Evan honey, I'm just so happy, I knew this job would be a good thing for you!"

He smiled and relaxed slightly, "H-His name is Connor M-Murphy."

Heidi furrowed her brows and seemed to be racking her brain for the name, "Connor Murphy." She muttered repeatedly, "The... Didn't he overdose in the park a couple of months ago?"

Evan nodded nervously, "Y-Yeah. He, his p-parents aren't very," He struggled to find the right words, "h-helpful." He noticed her confused look and added, "He struggles w-with mental h-health."

"Oh." She nodded, "Evan you know I'm always going to support you, right? I hope Connor Murphy will be a good thing for you, absolutely, but if this boy gives you any trouble or shows any hints at being trouble-"

"I-I know." He nodded, "I won't- I'll be careful."

Heidi nodded and smiled, "So, when can I meet him?"

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I'm so sorry for not updating in so long!!

It's been a really busy summer for me but I won't go that long without updating again because it's not fair to you lovely people who read this! <3

What did you think of Heidi's reaction?

Cynthia's will be coming next chapter.

Iris
Xoxo