Since Evan couldn't walk very far, and his friends didn't want to split into two groups (and use Michael's car), they decided to go to the café closest to their school. Luckily, they had booths there, so they could all sit comfortably at one table.
There weren't many people there at the moment, so they ordered quickly, and there was nothing to stop them striking up a conversation.
"Hey, Michael," Kieran said to the black-haired boy, who obviously hadn't expected it and wasn't able to hide the surprise that showed on his face. "You're older than us, right?"
At first, Michael just nodded silently, but then Angie gave him a not-so-subtle nudge with her elbow, and he decided to use words as well. "Yes, I'm 19."
"That's cool," Kieran replied with a small smile to show that he was just curious and not trying to judge him in any way. "So you decided not to go to university?"
Michael shrugged and said, "I didn't see the point."
"My parents would kill me if I didn't go to uni," chimed in Aiden, who was sitting next to Ryan. Something Evan hadn't expected but suspected his friends had done on purpose. The blonde didn't seem to mind, but Evan's eyes checked him every now and then to make sure.
"Mine too," Josh joined in. "They wouldn't have minded me taking a gap year, but they were thrilled when I told them I got into NYU."
"So NYU?" Ryan repeated immediately, picking up the topic.
Josh nodded. "Kieran and I both got in. We're starting in the autumn."
"That's great. Congratulations, guys." Ryan gave them both a smile, which they returned.
"And what about you? Do you have any plans about where you want to go?" Kieran asked in return, and Evan automatically turned his head to his boyfriend as well. The future was still a topic they (or at least he) avoided and Evan honestly had no idea what they would be doing in six months when Ryan had to go back to his pack, let alone after high school.
"I'm not quite sure," Ryan admitted, turning his head to meet Evan's gaze, and giving him a reassuring smile, something Evan desperately needed. "I haven't thought much about the future, but my parents wouldn't mind if I decided not to go to university, so there's no pressure on me."
"Enough about school," Lola interrupted suddenly. "We've just left the school gates. Something more fun, please."
"Of course, you want to talk about parties." Aidan rolled his eyes at her, and she stuck her tongue out at him in return. "I never said the word party, just so you know."
"Oh, so you weren't trying to bring Depot into this conversation?" He raised an eyebrow, and the blue-haired girl suddenly looked like the picture of innocence.
"No talk about Depot," Evan interjected. This conversation could quickly turn into one about a certain day that he didn't want to deal with yet, so he preferred to stop it before it started. "If you haven't noticed, I can't really go anywhere right now."
"But your boyfriend can," Lola countered.
"If you really think he'd go anywhere without him, you don't really know him," Michael chimed in before Evan could even think of an answer.
"That's sweet," Lola commented, "I don't know if it's healthy, but it's definitely sweet."
"How long have you guys been together?" Aiden asked suddenly, turning so he could look at Ryan, obviously expecting an answer from him.
"Since Evan's birthday, actually," the black-haired boy replied, returning his eye contact, also indicating in his own way that he would answer anything he wanted.
"That's cool," the blond assessed automatically. It looked like he was considering his next question, but before he could ask it, Lola interjected.
"I'd almost forgotten about that. I assume you went to school in Evan's hoodie." Her wide grin indicated exactly what she was referring to, and a blush quickly appeared on both lovers' faces.
"Sounds like Evan had a really great birthday," Josh teased, to which Evan pierced him with a look.
"Enough already about his birthday. I still reserve the best friend's right to all the details," Angie interjected, saving them from an awkward conversation. Not that Evan minded telling his friends more if they were really interested, but it still felt weird to talk about his new relationship in front of Kieran. Especially when it was obvious he'd managed to give Ryan more in one day than he'd given him in a year.
"I agree," Michael seconded her opinion, and their gazes swivelled to him. Not only did Michael not often talk on his own, but he even agreed with Angie, which was really shocking. Luckily, he understood, so he added with a shrug, "I've got a bed right next to Ryan's, I've heard more than I ever wanted to."
"New topic," Lola declared in a brisk tone. "What do you do in North Hallson for fun? Besides the obvious."
"Most of the time we watch movies or play board games," Ryan replied.
"Oh, Evan actually mentioned that you two saw Alien together," Aiden remembered.
"We did," Ryan confirmed. "Although I have a feeling Evan is forever traumatized by it." He chuckled, letting everyone know that this was an exaggeration.
"Because it didn't make sense. They all died because they were trying to save the cat," he quickly defended his reluctance.
"I would have died saving the cat, too," Lola declared. "And I haven't even seen the movie."
"Jonesy, right?" Aiden asked.
"Yeah," Ryan replied, suddenly looking like he had come up with a brilliant idea. "You like Marvel right?" He waited until Aiden nodded in confusion, though he must have figured Evan was talking about him, and then Ryan added. "Did you hear the theory that Jonesy is actually Goose?"
"Oh my God, yes." Aiden's whole demeanor suddenly changed, and he leaned closer to Ryan across the table, looking excited. Evan smiled delightedly and quickly exchanged a look with Kieran and Josh, who also seemed pleased by the change.
"He just stole another friend from us," Angie declared, nudging Evan with her elbow.
"Another one?" Josh asked. And even though they'd more or less started another topic, Ryan and Aiden stayed in their bubble, continuing their conversation about fantasy cat conspiracy theories, ignoring everyone around them.
"Ryan and Rory text almost every day," Evan explained.
"Really?" Kieran looked surprised, and Evan only now realized that Rory hadn't been talking about his new friend, and it was probably his fault.
"They're talking on the videochat some nights. It's annoying," Michael replied before he could do so.
"Makes sense. They both moved in the middle of high school, I guess they can relate," Lola spoke up.
"Not only that," Angie giggled. "Rory once said Ryan was hot, you should have seen Evan's reaction."
"Hey! It wasn't that dramatic at all. You weren't even there," Evan defended himself immediately even though he knew her words were true. He didn't consider himself a jealous person, but his wolf claimed otherwise.
Although his words belied hers, his blushing cheeks told a different story and so quickly made his friends laugh. The sound drew Aiden and Ryan's attention as well, and when his dark eyes met his brown ones, the redness in his cheeks intensified.
Ryan looked like he wanted to kiss him at that moment, but he was holding back, probably for Kieran's sake, so Evan leaned into him in a different way, resting his forehead against his shoulder, hiding from the others' gazes.
"Awww, you guys are so cute."
...
Aiden's introduction to Ryan and the first ultimate meeting of his two worlds turned out to go better than he had anticipated. The real challenge came when he got home.
Since he'd stayed at Marwell a little longer, when he got home his parents were waiting for him on the couch in the living room. Luckily, he had thought to text them after a few minutes at the coffee shop and let them know he'd gotten a ride, but he'd still be staying a little longer.
"Hey, honey. Did everything go well at school?" his mom addressed him first. Slowly, with the help of his crutches, he moved closer to the couch, first dropping his crutches on the side of the couch, then his backpack, and finally himself.
"All cool. Angie and my friends helped me, so luckily I wasn't late for anything and didn't have to argue with anyone about being in my way," he replied honestly.
Although he usually didn't mention his friends in front of his parents, fearing their reaction, this time he couldn't help himself. Ever since he and Ryan had gotten together, he'd been less inclined to hide everything from his parents, and even though he couldn't tell them about him, he decided to at least tell them something else.
"That's great. Luckily you won't be on crutches for long," his mom encouraged him, and surprisingly she didn't seem bothered by the mention of his friends.
"I can't wait," he admitted with a sigh.
"Think of it positively,'" his dad tried to encourage him. "Luckily, you're a wolf, so this is probably the last time you'll need them. Hopefully."
"Right," nodded Evan, whose thoughts had managed to wander to the permission slip in his backpack. His parents seemed to be in a good mood, would it be bad to take advantage of that?
"Listen," he said out loud before he could think it through. "I know you don't like me sleeping away from home, but I really have two very important reasons for wanting to do this." Not only did he need to get them to let him go to New York, but he also needed their permission to stay at Josh's on Saturday.
"Sounds serious," his father spoke up.
"Just because I'm seriously hoping you'll say yes," he admitted honestly. "My friend Josh asked me if I wanted to sleep over at his place on Saturday. Angie's going too. All my friends are going to be there and I'd love to go," he explained, biting his lip with nerves, then quickly added, "Theoretically, I shouldn't need crutches by then."
"And the other thing?" his mom asked him, her tone still neutral, so Evan still had hope.
He reached over to his backpack, knowing they'd get more information that way, and quickly dug the permission slip out of it. He then automatically handed it to his mother, as it was an unwritten rule that her opinion carried a bit more weight when it came to their household.
Her eyes quickly ran over the paper, but it didn't take long for her to notice the words New York in large letters.
"New York?" His mom's expression turned into a grimace, and Evan knew he had to save the situation quickly.
"It's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity." He nodded vigorously. Even though it wasn't entirely true and if he managed to get a scholarship, New York would be his life, his mom didn't need to know that.
"Sleeping at your friend's house and sleeping in New York miles away from us is different, Evan," was the next thing she said.
"Does that mean I can sleep over at Josh's?" he tried.
His mom sighed loudly, but at least his dad seemed amused by his attempt. "One thing at a time," he said, and his tone was far from serious, giving Evan hope that they would eventually say yes.
"If your leg is okay by then, you can spend the night at his place," his mom said, surprising him, but thankfully he managed to control his expression and didn't show it.
"Thank you, thank you!" He beamed at her.
"Yes, yes." She waved her hand as if it wasn't a big deal.
"About New York..." she began right away, and his smile quickly fell. "We'll talk about it with your dad and let you know." At the mention of his father, Evan shifted his gaze to him and automatically gave him puppy dog eyes. His father, however, had expected it and just rolled his eyes at him, still looking amused by his attempts.
"Even if we say yes, it's still a large sum of money, so you'll have to contribute," he warned him. Evan immediately started nodding in agreement. He didn't see a problem with it, since he still had money saved up from birthdays and contests he had won in the past.
"So you're not saying no?" he asked cautiously.
"We're not saying yes either," his mom immediately told him.
"Okay," he agreed, deciding that that was enough persuasion for today and he'd give it a try tomorrow so as not to anger them. "Angie's going too, by the way." However, he couldn't help but tell them this piece of information, which he knew was crucial to them.
"Oh, one more thing," he added, and his parents looked at him expectantly. "I love you." He gave them one last innocent smile, earning an eye roll from them, and they said the same thing back to him with an amused laugh.