Liam woke up to the loud ringing of his phone. He groans while burying his face deeper into the pillow. Ian's leg was in between his two.
Ian also groans, his head coming to rest against Liam's shoulder. "Answer your phone. It's loud."
Liam mumbles things incoherently while reaching over to aimlessly grab at where the noise is coming from. When he doesn't grasp the device he finally opens his eyes to see he was just a millimeter off. He scoops the phone up and brings it up to his face. It's his mom.
With a sigh, Liam sits up. Ian's arm goes to lay in his lap and his leg stays wrapped up in Liam's. Liam hits answer and holds the phone up to his ear.
"Hello?"
"William, where are you?"
He cringes at his mother's loud voice at eight in the morning. "I texted dad yesterday. I'm with a friend."
"Well get your ass home. Your sister is coming in from school today."
Liam's eyes widen. He rubs his eyes with his hand as to try and wipe the tiredness away. "Okay. I'll head home soon."
His mother doesn't say anything else, just hangs up. He looks at his phone screen to find he's running on twenty percent. With a sigh, he tosses the device down.
"Do you have to go?" Ian mumbles tiredly, sitting up.
"Yeah." Liam nods. "My sister is home for a visit."
"Okay." Ian leans over and kisses his jaw. "I'll take you home."
Liam starts to pick up his clothes from yesterday while Ian unzips the tent. Ian grabs their phones and turns off the lantern at the ceiling of the tent. They both begin to pull their shoes on at the same time.
They step out of their tent and the campsite looks deserted. Everyone else must still be asleep. Ian grips his hand and leads the way to the car.
"I'll come back and help them clean up after dropping you off." Ian says as they climb in the car. Liam nods. His hand rests on the center console and Ian's trails down his arm to reconnect them and intertwine their fingers. Liam feels his arm buzz. "I'm going to my mom's next weekend."
Liam perks up. "Does that mean you'll be at my house?"
"Yeah, Friday and Saturday night." Ian nods. "Maybe it's a little lame but wanna go on a date Friday night?"
Liam feels a blush spread across his face. "Uh- sure. What's your idea of a date?"
"I don't know. I was thinking we could go to Tangerine's and have milkshakes? Again, sorry it might be lame."
Liam smiles. "I like it."
I like you.
He wants to say it. The words seems so easy to say, hopping around in his head. He didn't really need all this time to think about it. He knew from that night they kissed that he likes Ian. He just didn't want to ruin his friendship. Now however, he's not so scared.
"Okay, good." Ian brings their hands up and kisses the back of Liam's. He looks over to the boy in the passenger seat with a little smirk. "So I'll be knocking at your window around ten then, does that work?"
Liam smiles, he nods. "Yeah, that works."
"Okay." Ian's grinning the rest of the drive back to his house. When they get there, he pulls into the driveway and puts the car in park. He looks over, letting go of Liam's hand and giving him a hopeful smile. "I'll talk to you later?"
"Yeah." Liam nods, smiling softly. He opens the door and gets out. Just as he's about to shut it, he pauses. Quickly he ducks down to look back in the car and meets eyes with Ian again. "Hey Ian?"
Ian raises his eyebrows. "Yeah?"
Liam leans into the car and over the center console. He presses his lips against Ian's and kisses him intently. Ian's eyes widen out of surprise before he shuts them, bringing his hand up to run it through Liam's hair.
When they pull away Liam shoots him a smile. "Bye."
Then, without another word he backs up and shuts the door. The window rolls down behind him and Ian yells out of it. "Bye!"
Liam smiles while getting in his own car. Ian drives off in the direction out of town while Liam heads back to his house. He may not be the most excited about having to leave his friends so early on but he doesn't let it ruin his mood. He's happy right now.
He pulls into the driveway and parks his car right where he always does. He hops out and walks up to enter the house. As soon as he opens the front door he hears his mother's lighthearted laughter.
"Will!" The voice of his older sister exclaims excitedly.
He looks over to see her standing from the couch and coming over to embrace him. She looks nice and well kept, as per usual. She's wearing a light pink dress that flows down to just above the knees and a white cardigan over it. Her pretty blonde hair that she got from their mother is pulled into a bun at the top of her head, a braid turning through a strand of it.
She makes it to where he's standing and wraps him up in a hug. Liam tenses up initially at the physical contact but eases into it and hugs her back. When they pull back she gives him a once over, taking in the clothes he's wearing and his slightly messy hair. Her smile doesn't deter though.
"You look rough. I like the shirt though." She pulls on the fabric. Liam looks down to see a picture of a shark splashing out of the water on his shirt. The word Jaws is written in big, red letters on top. "Did you just wake up?"
Liam nods. Even if him and his sister were never close, she's always been a good person. He lets out a little yawn as he's reminded of the fact that he wanted to sleep longer.
"I was staying at a friend's." He tells her vaguely. She looks a little surprised but smiles nonetheless.
They walk back into the living room together and sit down. She neatly tucks her dress under her legs as she takes a seat on the couch while Liam, too tired to care, just flops down next to her. His mother doesn't seem to appreciate this, giving him a side eye from where she's perched in her chair.
"William, really? You couldn't have cleaned up at all for your sister?"
"I had just woken up, Mother." Liam says, rubbing at his eyes tiredly. "I fully plan on showering and changing as soon as possible."
"Well go do so now." She snaps at him, waving her hand for him to go.
Mandy's smile drops a little and she shifts uncomfortably in her seat. She doesn't speak up though. Liam doesn't blame her. He sighs and stands, going to leave the room.
He does really want a shower. He walks up the stairs and, once reaching his room, immediately ducks into the bathroom. When he steps under the water of the shower, he feels himself wake up a bit more.
After his shower, Liam dresses in a black button up shirt and slacks. He runs his hands over his hair to smooth it out and then, after putting his phone on the charger, leaves his room again. When he reenters the sitting room it's just his mother and Mandy, his father having disappeared somewhere.
He sits down on the sofa next to Mandy again. She smiles in greeting to him. He looks over to his mother to find her looking at him with her typical neutral, if only slightly disappointed, expression.
"So, Mandy, how has it been?" Their mother finally moves to look at Mandy, a little excited smile making its way to her face. "Anything new happening?"
"Not really." Mandy shrugs slightly. "I've been busy with my schooling. I did move to a new apartment two weeks ago though."
"Oh really?" Their mother perks up, itching to hear details. Mandy nods.
"Yes, I needed a bit more personal space. The dorms weren't doing it for me anymore."
"Well that's nice." Sara nods her head. "I certainly hope living alone isn't affecting your diet too harshly."
The two kids both tense up at that. The underlying condescending tone is clear. If there was ever one thing that their mother was mean about when it came to Mandy, it was how she didn't stick to her diet.
"Of course not." Mandy smiles, strained. "I know how to take care of myself and make sure I'm staying healthy."
Their mother's smile eases. She nods, seeming content with that answer. "Well I'm glad to hear it."
They talk some more about Mandy and campus life. She discusses the topic they're learning in her class as of late and it's a bunch of law stuff that Liam only partially understands.
Then, the topic switches over to him. Mandy asks about school and he gives the same exercised answers he gives to everyone. It's almost like talking to a business acquaintance rather than his sister.
A phone ringing cuts off the dull conversation. Sara looks over onto the coffee table where her cellphone sits and stands up, grabbing it. She gives her daughter a polite smile.
"I bet this is Darla from the club. I should take this." She then walks away, answering the phone with her fake smile.
Mandy turns to him on the couch, her smile bright as ever. "I'm going to be honest with you, I am not sticking to my diet at all."
Liam finds himself smiling genuinely. "Good. You're a grown ass adult, you should be allowed some freedom."
"Did you just casually curse?" Mandy's eyebrows raise. "Under our mother's roof?"
Liam's eyes widen. He hadn't even realized. Being around Ember, Ian, and the group has made cursing seem more normalized.
"Shit." He mumbles quietly, then his eyes widen again and he slaps a hand over his mouth. Mandy laughs quietly.
"Chill out, it's okay." She smiles. "It's nice to know you're not totally feeding into this bull shit."
He smiles lightly. "When have I ever?"
"True." Mandy nods.
Their mother returns a moment later and the fake, polite smiles are back on their faces. Liam feels like if they could just have some moments that aren't under their parents' gaze then they could have a chance. Then maybe they could be closer and maybe a bit more like siblings and less like acquaintances.
"Oh the girls are all having tea in an hour. Mandy would like to join?" Their mother asks with a hopeful smile.
"Of course." Mandy smiles. It's practiced, just like all of Liam's. It's fake. She pulls it off well though.
The two girls leave soon and Liam is left alone in his room. Not that he's complaining over that fact. He goes up to his room and changes all over again. He puts on Ian's black hoodie, realizing he left the red one at the campsite, and some shorts. He missed his bed and needs some more resting time. Although, he knows trying for a nap is futile so he just snuggles into the blankets and watches a movie.
○●○●○
There's quiet knocking on his door that makes Liam pause his show. He folds his laptop shut and sits up. The noise continues so he walks over and opens the door.
Mandy smiles at him. Dinner was an hour ago, so Liam thought she would've gone to bed, the fact that she's wearing the silk pajamas his mother laid out in her room only fuels this thought. It had been awkward and tiring for him but she didn't seem to mind talking about Dad's last case over the food.
"Hey, were you asleep?" She asks cautiously. Liam shakes his head and she sighs a little out of relief. "Good, I would feel bad. Can we talk?"
"Um, sure." Liam steps aside and lets her into his room. He shuts the door and the both of them walk over to sit on the side of the bed.
She brings her legs up and crosses them. She speaks after a few seconds of silence. "I've got a boyfriend. It was his apartments I moved into. I guess, I just wanted to tell someone that."
Liam blinks over at her, slightly confused. Before he can say anything else she keeps talking.
"His name's Anthony and he's a really good guy. He wants to be a teacher." She continues, playing with her hands in her lap. "He's got this little brother that's a freshman in high school, I got to meet him when I moved in because he came over to help us move the boxes and stuff. He's a sweet kid."
She looks up at Liam again and smiles. He doesn't understand completely what's happening but he stays quiet and listens. She keeps talking, just like he expected, explaining why she's telling him this.
"When he was over, I got to see them interact together. I'd heard of him before, Tony talks about him, and I never thought anything crazy of it. I mean, I talk about you sometimes and I always thought I did so with pride and admiration. But then, these two..." She slowly shakes her head. "Watching them argue for fun and then later on seeing Kyle, his little brother, tell him a story over dinner really made me realize that their relationship is totally different than the on I've got with my little brother. I mean, we've lived in the same house for years and I hardly even know who you are."
She looks like she's on the verge of crying now. She looks over at Liam and smiles sadly.
"I want to know my little brother. I want to at least have some understanding of the person he is." She shakes her head slowly. "And I don't mean the person Mom shapes you to be. I want to know you, Will."
Liam smiles a little. His chest fills in pain because he feels the same. He wants to have an older sister, not just some person who lives in the same house with him and he talks with every once in awhile.
"Um." Liam clears his throat, suddenly feeling awkward. "I guess a good start would be letting you know I go by Liam. I prefer it to Will."
She smiles. "Liam, I like it. Where'd it come from?"
"My friend Ember. I met her in freshman year after meeting my best friend Paige." He answers. "She's a nut job but she's a good person. So is Paige, she's really nice."
Mandy nods. Liam then dives into the story of meeting the rest of Ember's friend group too. He leaves out the unnecessary details, and doesn't say anything to tip her off about his situation with Ian. He's not ready for that yet.
She nods along and seems overjoyed the entire time. After he's done telling her about his friends, she tells him about hers. There's two girls that come from rich families as well, and then a boy that works at a coffee shop, and his girlfriend as well.
She also tells him about how she met Anthony, they bumped into each other at a local coffee shop and found out they were both friends with the guy that works there. He was insistent on taking her out and chased her around for months until she agreed. That was a year and four months ago, and now they're living together.
Apparently Anthony only lives ten minutes away from the college. He wants to he a middle school mathematics teacher and wants to stay close to home. He has both a little brother and a little sister, fourteen and ten, and is close to both of them.
By the time they're done with their story telling it's an hour later. Liam sees the time on his digital clock and sighs. He's tired and there's school tomorrow.
"How long are you going to be home?" He asks Mandy.
"Just tonight and tomorrow night. I've got classes Tuesday afternoon." Liam nods and looks down at the bed.
He debates it for awhile, throwing the idea around in his head. If he's being honest, he wants to tell her. He's been dying to talk to somebody about Ian that isn't directly involved in the situation.
With a sigh he lets it out. "I kissed a boy. Or well, a boy kissed me but I kissed him back."
He looks up to catch Mandy's eyes widening. She blinks them back to normal quickly. A small smile slips onto her face. "A boy? Is he cute?"
Liam feels his shoulders relax. An image of Ian pops into his head and a wide smile breaks out onto his face. "Yeah."
"So? What happened after this kiss?" She asks excitedly.
"Well, it was Ian that kissed me. Ember's brother." Mandy nods to confirm that she knows who he's talking about. "And he had been sleeping over for a little bit before this. He's uncomfortable sleeping at his biological mom's house because he isn't too fond of his step dad so he sneaks in through my window and sleeps. We'd gone on some like late night adventures I guess you could call them, nothing too crazy. We went on some walks, played on a playground, that sorta thing. Anyway, then we're in the pouring rain with the whole group and he runs over and kisses me, just like that. Then we go back to our own thing, talk about it, and I didn't know what the fuck was happening because I've never liked someone before."
"So... he just kissed you? And you kissed back?" Mandy asks and Liam nods. "Then you guys just split apart and act like everything's normal again?"
"Yes." Liam sighs. "But just for the night. He came over after they dropped me off and we talked about it. But like I said, I've never liked anyone before, and Ian is a really good friend of mine so I didn't wanna mess it all up. Anyways he decides for us to act normally only to keep doing like... relationship stuff I guess. So it's been barely over a week and we've been talking on the phone, kissing, holding hands. He's planning a date with me for Saturday."
Mandy nods, smiling a little. "Have you figured out if you liked him yet?"
Liam holds his tongue. Part of him, the part that's still in denial, want to say he doesn't know. Although, for the most part he wants to be honest. He wants to say it out loud.
"Yeah. I kinda had a suspicion from the beginning. I like him, but how am I supposed to tell him that?" Liam felt awkward admitting all this to her. She just smiles encouragingly though which makes it a little more bearable.
"Just like that." Mandy shrugs. "If you want, wait until this date he's planning. After he takes you out just tell him you know now that you like him."
"But what if he changes his mind about this whole thing?"
Mandy laughs softly. "Liam, why would he just suddenly change his mind about liking you?"
"I don't know." Liam answers exasperated. "It's possible isn't it?"
"You're overthinking it." She shakes her head with a smile. "If he's putting time in to wait for you to make up your mind then he obviously cares about you, and if he is still acting all couple-y with you then you know he's still into you."
Liam sighs. He couldn't really deny that. "I guess you're right."
"Believe the woman that has been in a relationship for over a year." She nods. Liam smiles.
"Thanks, Mandy." Liam smiles at her, he needed a voice of reason.
"Of course." She grins. "Are you gonna tell him?"
Liam nods. "I'm gonna go with your idea, after our date."
"Good idea." She smiles happily. They both fade into quiet again for a little bit. She sighs and stands up, stretching her arms above her head. Before she leaves she turns around and looks at Liam again. "Hey, if he's the person that's making you smile so much, I'm glad. You deserve to be happy, Liam."
She left his room then after wishing him a goodnight. Liam sat in bed for awhile. He had to agree, he does deserve to be happy.
Ian makes him happy.
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Mandy moments, probably gonna be one of the only ones in this entire book.
Love you ♡
- Z