Loud music, bright lights, the smell of sweat, and bodies moving to the beat. Evan had no idea where to look first. All his senses were picking up the atmosphere around him, and he felt giggly inside. He was like a little kid at a carnival.
"Look around quickly because all eyes will be on you soon," Kieran's husky voice said from behind him. His lips were so close to his ear that he could feel his breath on him. Evan shuddered, and when he felt Kieran's hand on his lower back, he laid into the touch for a moment.
"Oh, come on, you can take that outfit off of him later, now we're going to have fun!" Lola's scream reached them over the loud music, and Kieran took a step back from him. Evan turned to face him and gave him a small smile before Lola managed to pull him by the hand. She was holding Angie by the other, and with a force that Evan had no idea where it came from, she was pulling them both straight to the bar. The others automatically followed them.
"What do we want?" Lola turned to them all, her back against the bar. Various bottles were laid out on the counter, some already half-empty, and in front of them were plastic solo cups. Fortunately, everyone automatically decided that drinking from open bottles was not the best idea and only chose from closed ones.
Lola and Millie started pouring and gradually handed everyone a cup with orange juice and vodka. Thankfully, the girls knew that they had to be tame from the beginning, and the juice was predominant in the cups, so even though the vodka could be smelled, it didn't sting the throat.
"Cheers!" Their cups touched in one swift motion, and they all drank their cups to the bottom. Immediately after, Millie had a vodka in her hand, Lola a juice box, and they were refilling them. Another toast was not held, as they silently agreed that this drink would last longer.
"Is Aaron here?" Angie's question was directed at Lola. The pink-haired girl shook her head in disapproval, but the smile did not disappear from her lips. She was a ball of energy, and it was most visible in this place.
"By the time he shows up, we're stealing you for ourselves," Millie announced, grabbing her hand. She held a cup in her other hand, which she quickly gulped down and threw on the counter. The rest of the girls copied her, and in a second, they were pulling each other to the dance floor, laughing loudly.
"What about us?" Josh asked, leaning his back against where Lola had been standing until now. He ended up next to Evan, who was standing close to Kieran, elbows lightly touching. Across from them stood Rory and Aiden. The younger of them still looked like he'd rather be somewhere else, but he still didn't say anything out loud.
"I honestly expected you to stick with Clara," Aiden answered him. After he said her name, all the eyes of those present turned to Josh. His crush was no secret, and everyone expected Josh to make a move at tonight's party.
"She's having fun." He shrugged, not elaborating on his answer. It was not enough for them, which was visible in the way they did not take their eyes off him.
"So?" Evan was the one who decided to get more out of him. Josh sighed and put the half-finished cup to his mouth. Everyone watched him drink and automatically did the same to fill the silence.
"When was the last time you saw her so relaxed?" Josh drew their attention to important detail, and before anyone could jump in, he continued: "She needs to have fun, she needs to enjoy her freedom. The last thing she needs right now is a new guy flirting with her and making her nervous unnecessarily."
"You're a good guy, Josh," Kieran said what everyone was thinking. However, the addressed boy just shook his head, as if it was nothing unusual. And when Evan thought about it, it wasn't. It was the bare minimum that he himself was not used to before meeting Kieran. During his time attending Marwell, he surrounded himself with people who genuinely cared about others and always tried to do the right thing, even if it meant harm to them.
Evan raised his own cup to his mouth and drank it completely to rid himself of the sentimentality that filled him.
"I think I speak for everyone when I say that's enough sentiment for today. Let's have some fun," Aiden stated, placing his empty cup on top of the pile of others that were slowly crowding the counter even though it was only the beginning of the night.
"Let me just say I'm a terrible dancer before I embarrass myself in front of you." Kieran did the same and held out his hand to Evan, who immediately accepted it and let himself be dragged onto the dance floor to the girls. When they stopped, they let go but still stayed close to each other.
"We already thought you ditched us," Angie said loudly over the music.
"Never!" Aiden shouted dramatically, causing the group to laugh.
...
Evan already had a few drinks in him and while he didn't feel like the alcohol was clouding his senses, he had to admit it was affecting his mood. He was having fun.
He swayed to the rhythm, tilted his head, and his arm shot into the air several times. He had long since stopped thinking about how he looked and was simply enjoying the night. Kieran was by his side most of the time, but occasionally moved away to talk to the others. Lola was on the other side of the dance floor, dancing with Aaron, who turned out to be a nice guy. Well, at least that was their first impression after he came to introduce himself. Millie and Clara held hands all the time and went everywhere together like twins. It was obvious that Millie was watching out for her, and Clara looked grateful for that. Fortunately, Jacob hadn't appeared yet and everyone hoped it would stay that way.
"E!" Hearing his nickname, Evan turned to Angie. She gestured exaggeratedly to draw his attention to something, and when he finally focused his gaze on where she was pointing, he saw a familiar face. He sobered up completely for a split second.
"You should talk to them," Angie advised, shouting the sentence. At first, Evan didn't understand who she meant by them, but then he noticed the other Saunders. Their eyes instantly met, and he gave him a charming smile that hit Evan in the most sensitive spot.
"E!" The petite brunette shook his shoulder to get his attention. Evan looked at her silently, focusing on her lips to understand what she was saying.
"Go talk to them!" And for some unknown reason, he did.
His legs moved automatically, keeping his eyes on the ink-haired boy in the black shirt. He looked back at him and also stepped forward so that they could meet sooner. Both of them pushed their way through the dancing bodies, still maintaining eye contact. Evan had long since gotten used to their eyes instantly connecting like two magnets in close proximity, but today it was a bit more intense. As if everything around them suddenly ceased to exist or just functioned as a background. His heart was beating louder than the drums in the songs, and despite the multi-coloured lights flashing in all directions, his vision most clearly perceived only one colour - brown.
"Hey," Evan whispered, and despite the loud music, he was sure Ryan heard him.
"Hi." The ink-haired boy gave him another of his dazzling smiles.
People danced around them, and they just stood facing each other, saying nothing. Evan had no idea how long it had been before Ryan reached out to him and nodded his head to the side. He automatically followed him and let himself be dragged to the table in the far corner where Michael sat, who didn't look exactly thrilled to be there.
"You're drunk," he stated as soon as his eyes fell on his cousin's company.
"And you're no fun," Evan responded promptly. Confirming Michael's words, he chuckled at his own sentence.
Ryan sat up and pulled him by the sleeve to his side.
"What are you guys doing here?" Evan yelled louder than necessary. The boy next to him laughed and shook his head in amusement. However, none of them answered the question.
Even with the alcohol in his blood, Evan was aware that the presence of wolves at the Depot was more than unusual. Not that wolves don't like to have fun, but never outside their territory. Safety was of the utmost importance to them and they did not allow themselves to lose their senses in enemy territory, which for them meant anywhere outside of their pack.
"When did you come?" Evan didn't hesitate to ask more questions. This time he got an answer.
"A little while ago," Ryan said.
"Did you guys dance?" Evan yelled over the loud music and leaned his back comfortably against the leather sofa. He wasn't tired, but the alcohol was making his body more than relaxed.
"Do I look like someone who likes to dance?" Michael answered him with his own question. Another giggle escaped Evan, this time causing Ryan to let out one of his own as well. Evan turned his head to look at the raven-haired boy next to him, only to find that his gaze had long been following him.
"Hey," he laughed. Ryan copied the way he sat and also rested his head on the soft back of the seat. Their faces were right opposite each other, although there was still a gap between them.
"Hi," he returned the greeting as before.
"Oh my god, I can't handle this," Michael did not share their enthusiasm. Evan's gaze flicked to him as if only now realizing he was there too.
"Hey, Michael," he greeted. Loud laughter rang out next to him and Evan automatically joined in. This whole situation was ridiculous, but only one of them was aware of it at the moment.
"You're cute." He blinked in surprise and turned sharply to the boy as if to make sure he really heard what he heard. Ryan was smiling at him, and Evan could feel himself starting to blush. He couldn't tear his gaze away from him.
"Evan!" Fortunately, a familiar voice snapped him out of his trance. He turned in alarm which made his head spin and he had to squint to make out the person who addressed him. It wasn't until he realized Rory was standing in front of him that his mind cleared. His stomach churned at the thought of him leaving his friends and especially Kieran to hang out with Ryan.
"Got a moment?"
He automatically began to nod and quickly stood up. He grabbed Rory by the sleeve pulling him away and it took all his strength not to look back. Ignoring the cousins wasn't nice, but his conscience was screaming in his head, and he knew that in a way he betrayed Kieran again. He was sick to his stomach.
"Who was that?" Rory immediately asked after they stopped at a random corner. Evan wanted to say no one but ended up choosing a different answer.
"Just some friends from North Hallson." He waved his hand to emphasize their insignificance. He didn't need Rory to notice his affection for a certain black-haired boy.
"I had no idea you had friends in North Hallson." Rory looked genuinely surprised.
"Rude," Evan reacted. He saw no reason why he couldn't have friends. He wasn't that bad. He may not have had the best social skills, but he managed to be tolerable. Sometimes even more than that.
"You're still not having fun," he commented as his attention turned back to his friend. Evan frowned and swayed for a moment as the alcohol overcame him. Rory looked a little too sober for his taste, and he didn't like that.
"I'm just not in the mood for fun." Rory shrugged, and Evan automatically shook his head. Rory was only here for the weekend, and Evan decided to make it his mission to make the most of it.
"I'll get you in the mood even if I have to suck you off," Evan stated forcefully, surprising Rory with his words. His eyes almost fell out of their sockets, and you could see that he didn't know how to react.
„No, thank you?" he said carefully.
"Your loss." Evan just rolled his eyes at his answer and grabbed his sleeve again to drag him away. He had no idea where he was going, but when he saw the big illuminated WC sign, he automatically went for it. Rory's steps, unlike his, were uncertain, as if he wasn't sure if this was a good idea. Evan's alcohol-obsessed mind didn't understand it, as if he had forgotten that he had made an indecent proposal to him a moment ago.
Unaware of his own strength at the moment, Evan pushed open the door that slammed loudly against the wall and entered the restrooms.
"I really hope you're not planning on grabbing my dick." Evan stared blankly at Rory, not understanding his words. Why should he do that?
Fortunately, Rory understood that Evan had long since forgotten what he told him and leaned against the sinks with a sigh.
"What's wrong with you?" Evan asked him, the care evident in his tone. Rory was one of his best friends and if necessary, Evan was ready to lay down his life for him.
"It's nothing," he tried to talk it down, but Evan wasn't discouraged. His disapproval was evident on his face as he frowned.
"Bullshit," he said louder than necessary, still used to the loud music in the next room. Rory sighed again and wrapped his arms around himself.
"It's stupid." Evan had had enough of these short answers and pulled one of Rory's hands and took it in his own. The other boy looked surprised at his sudden gesture.
"You can tell me anything, Ro," he stated forcefully. Rory laughed shortly and ran a hand through his hair. He released his hand from Evan's grip, and Evan reached for it in alarm, thinking he was trying to escape. Rory quickly raised his hands in surrender and nodded his head towards the stalls. Fortunately, Evan understood and bent down with him to check if they were alone in the room.
Surprisingly, it was just the two of them and that encouraged Rory to finally start talking.
"I'm starting to feel like I'm going crazy." He paused for a moment, and Evan took advantage of that to jump into it.
"Why?" He was scowling again.
Rory sighed and instead of answering, offered a question, "Do you believe in magic?"
Evan frowned even more and answered in confusion, "I guess." He himself was theoretically a magical being, so he didn't have much of a choice. However, he had no idea why Rory was asking him that.
"Something about Walley Lane is strange. At first, I thought it was just my imagination, but I can't ignore it any longer." Before, when they texted, Rory had never mentioned anything being wrong in his new home, and Evan was suddenly worried about him.
"What do you mean?" he questioned him to find out more.
Rory's hands went into his hair anxiously again. His whole demeanour changed, and he looked more than nervous.
"You won't believe me," he announced as if it was a fact he had already reconciled with.
"Try me," Evan responded right away.
The boy across from him bit his lip, his gaze fell to the floor, and he almost inaudibly blurted out, "I think Alexander is a wizard."