Evan was quiet. He was quiet when he went back inside. He was quiet when his friends asked him if everything was okay. And he was quiet when they arrived back at Lola's.
"Everything okay, E?" He almost overheard Lola's question, but he didn't want to cause her unnecessary worry. Well, more worries.
"Just tired," he uttered those two words in almost a whisper. He saw that Lola still had a worried look on her face, but she didn't ask any more questions. She was giving him space, and he was glad for that.
"I left a towel on the couch for you if you wanted to take a shower." He just nodded silently.
A shower couldn't hurt as he was still sweaty and sticky and couldn't wait to get out of these clothes.
When he walked into the living room, he found Rory spreading out the blankets for the both of them. Without a word, he joined him and began to help. Rory was also quiet. He obviously had his issues too, and maybe he was just wondering if it was a good idea to confide in Evan. After all, they did not return to their topic of the supernatural later.
...
In the morning, or rather in the afternoon when Evan woke up, he felt even worse. He felt like shit. His head ached despite the wolf's healing abilities, the inside of his mouth felt like the Sahara, and his conscience was blacker than the night before.
"Morning," came the voice next to him, and he realized Rory was still next to him. Obviously, he wasn't feeling his best either, but in his case, it was mainly fatigue.
"Morning," he answered. If he was in a better mood, he would probably joke and reply with Afternoon or something. But Evan didn't feel like joking.
"How's your head?" Rory asked him and sat up. Evan repeated his action, pulling the covers closer as the cold shook him.
"Hurt like a bitch," he admitted. Rory chuckled, and Evan gave him a surprised look to which he just shrugged.
"Do you remember what you told me yesterday?" he asked him suddenly, and Evan was left confused. Rory had been the one to talk to him about the supernatural, but it seemed like the question was more appropriate for Evan, and he had no idea why.
"What?"
"You're gonna have fun even if I have to suck you off," he reminded him with a laugh, and Evan groaned. Now, when he said that, he vaguely remembered saying something like that. Apparently, he paid attention to literally nothing last night. Neither to how he behaved, nor what he said, and he didn't notice his surroundings at all. Could he have been any more stupid?
"Never drinking again," he declared.
"Nah, it's kinda cute when you turn into a mama bear." Rory flashed him another bright smile.
"I'm pretty sure that mom that offers you sucking off is actually a stepmom," he joked.
"At least you didn't get stuck in the washing machine," Rory answered with the same level of playfulness, and they both laughed.
When their laughter subsided, Evan snapped back to reality.
"Do you think the girls are up yet?" He placed one foot on the ground, preparing to leave the makeshift bed.
"Dunno," he answered but then added, "I think if they were, they would already be there."
"True."
Nevertheless, Evan stood up and stretched himself as much as possible. Both his head and stomach protested, but he tried to ignore it. He couldn't stay in bed all day, or in this case on the couch. He would needlessly get lost in thought and that was the last thing he needed.
"Hey, E."
"Huh?" He looked over his shoulder. Rory's carefree expression also managed to disappear and was replaced by the thoughtful grimace he had been wearing constantly for the past few hours.
"Can we forget about the stuff we discussed yesterday?" He looked more than nervous as if he doubted at all whether it was a good idea to bring up the subject.
Evan paused. He wasn't sure what the right decision was in this case. He clearly remembered that he had considered telling Rory his biggest secret yesterday, but now he was quite glad he hadn't. Not that he didn't trust him, but he still didn't have enough information to know how Rory would react.
"No, you promised that we're gonna talk more about it later. So I'm waiting for later," he finally decided, and his friend seemed surprised by his answer.
"You sure about that?"
"Positive. Although I have to go home today so the sooner the better." He had originally planned to stay in Marvell for as long as possible, but an apology awaited him at home. Plus, after yesterday, he couldn't look Kieran in the eye and pretend everything was fine and at the same time he couldn't even tell him the truth. All he could do was avoid him.
Evan went to the kitchen, and after a while, he heard footsteps behind him as Rory decided to join him. Together they decided to prepare breakfast (or rather late lunch) for everyone and exchanged some casual words between mixing the ingredients. They both knew that the real conversation would come later.
Waffles were soon ready, but still no sign of the girls. Deciding not to wake them, the boys put their portions in the oven, hoping they would stay warm.
They had breakfast together in silence and then automatically got up and went to the bathroom. Neither of them had the energy to do anything more than brush their teeth, and Evan was glad he forced himself to take a shower in the evening since he was getting tired again after eating.
"Can we talk now? Rory surprised him with a question when they got back to the couch. From his last question, Evan would have assumed he'd been avoiding this conversation for as long as possible, but here he was, starting it himself.
"Sure." They moved to the edge, leaning on the armrest, and sat down comfortably. Despite their moment of action a moment ago, their duvets were still thrown haphazardly on the couch and so they decided to tangle in them again.
Evan waited patiently for Rory's next words, but they didn't come. So, he decided to break the silence himself.
"I believe you. About what you said. It sounds odd, but honestly, I think I need more information to give you real advice." He was looking directly at him to let him know he meant it.
"You believe me?" Rory looked shocked anyway, which made sense since they were talking about magic. Evan would probably feel the same way if someone started talking to him about UFOs.
"Yes. We're friends, Ro, I don't have a reason not to," he assured him.
"Okay," his tone was still in disbelief as if he didn't expect Evan to believe his absurd explanation. Maybe that's why it took him so long to find the right words.
There was another brief silence, but this time Rory broke it.
"I've made some friends in Walley Lane," he began, and Evan nodded. He was happy for him. "I thought they were cool, and I still think so, but at the same time, there's something weird about them, just like Alex. I tried to ask them about it at first, but they were always quick to change the subject or just wave it off, but I know what I saw." He paused, and Evan frowned. He didn't like what he heard, not because of someone casually revealing the supernatural world, but because of the reactions of Rory's friends. Apparently, this happened multiple times and they weren't careful anyway. His paranoid side made him consider the possibility that they didn't really care about his friend and if it was necessary to silence him eventually, they would find a way. Evan didn't have much experience with witches, but he didn't think they could be that much different from wolves.
Rory noticed his expression and probably understood what he must have been thinking as he quickly resumed talking, "You don't have to worry. What I saw wasn't bad and neither was their reaction. They weren't trying to convince me, that I'm crazy or something. That's just my opinion."
"Then what did you see?" he asked him.
"All kinds of things. A coloured mist that disappeared as quickly as it appeared. An injury that didn't exist after all," he paused to chuckle, "tell me how you see someone cut themselves, but then they show you their palm, on which there is nothing with the explanation that the blade barely touched them?" He shook his head. Evan, on the other hand, had a different question in his mind. Was it possible that witches healed as quickly as they did? Or did they use some kind of spell for it?
"What else?" he asked, hearing the urgency creep into his voice even though he wasn't even trying to. Rory raised an eyebrow in surprise, but if he felt like he was being interrogated, he didn't say anything out loud.
"Uhh... I saw a vase break at my friend Claire's house, but a few hours later it was back in the same place as before. She told me that it happens often, so they have several of the same ones in stock. Before I thought, that it could be a real thing, but after everything else, I'm beginning to question this too." They weren't bad examples, but it still wasn't enough for Evan to be 100% sure. He needed more.
"What about their eyes? Your friends'. Are they like Alexander's?" he reminded him of another part of the conversation from yesterday.
"Yeah, they are, but different." He nodded, looking like he was imagining it in his mind.
"What do you mean?" Evan frowned.
"I saw Alex's eyes glow so much that they illuminated his cheeks. Theirs lit up too, in the same colour as their eyes, but less and for a shorter moment," he explained. It made sense to Evan. Alexander was probably less careful in Rory's presence and that's why his eyes seemed different to Rory.
But although he understood it, Evan still had no idea what to do. Rory confided in him because he trusted him, and he had a chance to do the same. Of course, their secrets were different, but still. It was a life-changing secret, and he didn't know of anyone who wasn't a wolf mate who knew about the supernatural world. On the other hand, Rory already knew about the supernatural, he just needed a push in the right direction.
Before Rory could open his mouth to say anything else, Evan cut him off, "Do they..." He could hear his heart beating in his head as panic began to overcome him, but he knew that once he made up his mind, he should finish it.
He took a deep breath, looked down at the covers, and tried again. "Do they glow like this?" Along with his words, he focused on his eyes, summoning a familiar gold into them. The moment he finished his question, he looked back up at Rory and looked him straight in the eyes.
"What the..." Apparently, he wasn't the only one who had trouble finding words. Rory was in shock and frankly, Evan wasn't surprised. Thinking you know something and knowing it for sure were two different things.
Evan's irises returned to their original brown colour, and Rory immediately started shaking his head. "No, put it back. Please, or I'll really think I'm crazy." He immediately obeyed and let them shine again.
"Are you..." Rory clearly had no idea how to formulate his thoughts when it came to what he saw. However, Evan was patient and waited for his words.
"Are you a wizard?" he finally vocalized, and Evan couldn't help but chuckle.
"No," he stated with confidence in his voice that he didn't expect there. He expected to panic, feel guilty, or even make up an excuse, but surprisingly, he felt relaxed. Maybe this was the last push, and he finally went completely insane.
"Then... what are you?" Rory's words were almost a whisper. His eyes darted over Evan's figure, constantly returning to his eyes, and his stance looked stiff as if he was stuck in shock.
Evan bit his lip. He never said it out loud. Now he finally had the chance and his stomach was turning at the thought. "I'm a werewolf."
The sound as Rory drew in a quick breath of air, distracted him enough to let his eyes transform back again. And Rory began to panic again.
"Wait!" he even raised his voice. He stretched out his hands in front of him as if he was afraid that Evan would approach him and although he understood that, he still couldn't prevent the sharp pain that stabbed into his chest.
"I'm not going to hurt you," Evan tried to keep his voice neutral but clearly failed. Rory winced guiltily.
"I know. I'm sorry. I just..." This time he was the one who bit his lip, and silence fell between them again. Evan wondered what to do. Apparently, this conversation went better for him when he was drunk.
Fortunately, Rory wasn't drunk either way and so he was able to continue, although both of them could tell they weren't sure if it was a good idea.
"Can I..." he began, not looking at Evan, but then he seemed to change his mind, and their eyes met again. "Can I see?" He didn't have to say anything more for Evan to understand what he was asking. He wanted to see his true form.
He nodded silently, but quickly added, "But not here."