"Sorry. You did what?" To say that Riley looked shocked was an understatement. It seemed that every time Evan told him something, he told himself that nothing would surprise him anymore and then his cousin dropped the bomb. Just like now.
"They're my best friends. They've never been to my house. My parents were furious if they even set foot in North Hallson. It took me years to persuade them to let me stay at their house in Marwell. Yet they are still the people I trust most in the world, the ones I can always count on. I felt bad about lying to them," Evan explained and then waited. Even though Riley was no longer part of their pack, he was still a werewolf. And telling someone who wasn't part of their world about their secret was taboo.
"They won't tell anyone," he added when Riley still didn't say anything. When he finally opened his mouth and took a breath to answer, Evan straightened eagerly, hoping for the best, and Riley didn't disappoint him. "Okay."
"Okay?" Evan repeated.
"Mhm. If you trust them, I'll trust them," Riley said, bringing the biggest smile to Evan's face.
"I can assure you that you won't regret it," Evan declared, grabbing Riley's wrist in a frenzy of joy and dragging him into the living room to join his friends.
Riley laughed at his eagerness but didn't protest.
"So you're not mad?" Angie asked the moment they both sat down. "I was eavesdropping a bit."
"Mad? Nope. Surprised? Quite a bit, but I'll get used to it. It's hard enough for me to comprehend that you're not kids anymore," he replied with a small smile.
"If you want a spoiler, Evan broke practically every werewolf rule there is," Angie revealed.
"I did no such thing," was Evan's immediate objection.
Angie's one-word reply was enough to convince him otherwise. "Kieran."
"Okay, maybe I did."
"Who's Kieran?" Riley asked, confused, his eyes darting from Evan to Angie.
"My ex-boyfriend." Evan decided to make no secret of it. For once, he could finally reveal everything to someone in his family, and with each secret exposed, it felt like a weight was lifted from his shoulders.
"Ex-boyfriend," Riley repeated after him. Another piece of information that took him by surprise.
"We dated for about a year," Evan clarified, then quickly added, "We're friends now. We were friends before we got together, so we've come full circle, I guess."
"Does he also know that you're a werewolf?" It wasn't exactly the question Evan had expected to be asked next, but he was happy to answer it anyway. "He does."
"Josh and Rory also know about us. So five people in total. I'll save you some questions," Angie interjected.
Riley paused for a moment and seemed to be thinking about something. Then he frowned and turned to Evan. "That means your mate is a werewolf, right?"
"He is," Evan confirmed. "He's not from our pack, but I suppose you must have met him at least once. He's Michael Saunders' cousin, if you remember him."
Riley laughed amusedly. "Remember? You two always had some sort of beef with him." His eyes shifted from Evan to Angie.
"Yeah, that's changed too." Angie frowned and shook her head as if she couldn't believe it herself. "We're friends now."
And she wasn't the only one who couldn't believe it. "Really?"
"The funny thing is that Michael is actually the one who introduced me to Ryan," Evan revealed. "But yeah, he's one of my best friends now. I'd say I'm at his house more often than my own, and not just because of Ryan."
"Honestly, of everything you've told me so far, this is the most unbelievable thing," Riley declared.
"Does it help if I say that I asked him to teach me to drive and he said he didn't want to be alone in the car with me?" Evan mentioned and laughed.
"He calls me Princess Dumbass," Angie chimed in.
"Because you're always hitting on his mum," Aiden interjected.
Riley's face spoke volumes.
"You have to remember Mama Olivia, that's my only argument. Anyone who knows her has to have a crush on her." Angie threw up her hands in a defensive gesture and seemed more than satisfied with her answer.
"I'm gay," Riley reminded her, but then his expression changed for a second and he added. "But I get what you mean."
This time it was Evan who turned to his cousin in shock. "She bought me and my friends a beer once because we weren't old enough and even told us where to take it so no one would find out."
"That's my Mama Olivia." Angie smiled in delight.
"She once told Michael that I should come over more often because I was a good influence on him. You should have seen the look on his face," Evan laughed.
Riley laughed too, but then turned the conversation in a slightly different direction again. "What about Ryan? Is he like his cousin?"
"Kinda," Evan answered first, tilting his head in a gesture that said he'd had to think about his answer. "Ryan and Michael are best friends, and although they're similar in many ways, Ryan is much friendlier. He's very kind and good-hearted. He always tries to make everyone feel included and generally tends to help everyone."
"He is very polite and patient. The complete opposite of Evan," Angie quickly added.
"I'd argue with that, but she's right." Evan turned to his cousin and shrugged his shoulders.
Riley laughed briefly before his expression changed and he seemed to hesitate over his next words. "I'd like to meet him sometime," he finally said.
"I can call him right now if you want," Evan replied promptly, pulling his mobile phone out of his pocket. "You don't have to, of course, but if it helps, he knows about you. Angie and I have told him quite a lot, I think."
"He's the nicest person ever," Lola chimed in supportively.
"Okay. Let's call him." Riley let himself be persuaded, but it was obvious that he was still nervous about this meeting, even if it was only over the phone.
"You've got nothing to worry about," Evan assured him as he searched for Ryan's profile on his phone so he could video call him. As soon as he clicked the call button, he adjusted the phone so that he was in the picture but Riley hadn't moved any closer to be seen.
It only took a few seconds before there was a "Hang on a second, love." Ryan and Michael's room appeared on the screen, but Ryan was nowhere to be seen. Yet a soft smile appeared on Evan's face, his cheeks darkening thanks to the nickname his mate had used.
Before Ryan showed up, however, another Saunders was seen on the screen. Michael walked by and didn't seem to care that Evan was calling. "Hi, Michael." He paused for a second, glanced at the screen, but then continued on to his bed.
"Hey!" Evan shouted at him.
"Nope," Michael replied, not coming back.
"Why not?" Evan asked in confusion.
"Princess Dumbass has been spamming me with pictures for two days now. I don't want to hear about your trip ever again." Despite the seriousness of Michael's words, Evan couldn't help but chuckle. And he wasn't the only one.
"Because you haven't responded to me!" Angie retorted, moving next to Evan so that she could be seen on the screen even if Michael wasn't looking at it.
"Because you're annoying," he told her in a tone like he was stating a known fact.
"I'm about to stop believing that the two of you don't have a beef anymore," Riley remarked, and at the sound of his voice, Michael frowned.
Evan however, didn't have time to examine whether his expression meant that Riley's voice was familiar to him, or if it was because he didn't recognize him, since someone else had joined their conversation.
"Hey, Michael." Lola squeezed into Angie's side and leaned in so she could see the phone, even though she wasn't in the frame. "Which one of us do you think is the least annoying?"
It turned out that Michael didn't even have to think about the answer. "Aiden."
Evan's gaze automatically shifted to the blonde who had a triumphant smile on his lips.
"What? Why Aiden?" Angie beat him to the question.
"Because he knows how annoying you are." Angie's confused expression quickly turned stony, then she pierced him with her gaze.
Evan was expecting some sort of insult from her, but instead of getting upset, Angie simply declared, "I really should have thrown up on your bed on New Year's Eve."
"I'm not sure I want to know what led to this conversation," the voice Evan had been most looking forward to finally spoke up, and it was immediately reflected on his face.
"Forget them, talk to me," it came out before he could stop himself. He wasn't used to spending so much time without him, and while it was common for some couples, he was a werewolf and Ryan was his mate.
First he heard Ryan's chuckle and then he finally saw his face. "I miss you too," he assured him immediately and Evan's smile turned shy. He was more than happy with his declaration.
"Hey, Ryan." Angie greeted him and Lola quickly joined in, "Hi Ryan." They both sounded excited and Ryan matched their enthusiasm. "Hi Angie. Hi, Lola."
"Hey Ryan." Aiden finally decided to chime in and Ryan laughed amusedly before greeting him in return.
"Okay, okay, my turn," Evan interjected, demanding his boyfriend's attention.
"You have my full attention, love," Ryan assured him right away.
"Awww." Not only Evan but also Lola and Angie were struck by his words.
"I have some news," Evan began, then looked at his cousin to make sure he was ready.
"Good news, I suppose, since I've been feeling your joy all day." He hadn't even realised that his joy was so strong that his mate could feel it. After all, they hadn't fully bonded yet, so emotions had to be heightened to the maximum for the other to feel them. The only emotion they had felt no matter what was love for the other.
"The best," he assured him, then turned the camera to the side.
"Hey." Riley greeted him with a friendly smile.
Evan watched as Ryan's expression went from gleeful to surprised to something in between in the space of a second. "Hi," he replied and Evan chuckled at his tone.
"What-" Ryan couldn't find the words, so Evan took over the explanation. "I met Riley at NYU. Turns out he lives in New York."
"It was quite an emotional day," Riley added, although Ryan already knew that.
"I believe that," Ryan replied, still sort of baffled. "I've heard so much about you."
Riley laughed at that, and Ryan's words seemed to soothe him, as he suddenly seemed more relaxed. "Only good things, I hope."
"Of course," he confirmed immediately. "I don't think I've ever heard a bad thing about you."
"That's nice to hear," Riley replied with a soft smile. Evan didn't know what many of the wolves in their pack thought of his leaving, but the opinions he did know were terrible, so he was glad that someone else could now tell Riley that what he had done was the right thing.
"You know." Evan suddenly remembered something he hadn't thought about in a long time. "Riley used to tell me how great my mate was going to be." He turned to his cousin with a smile. "You were right."
"I'm glad," Riley replied immediately, looking at him as well and then at the screen. "I really hope we can hang out sometime. You and Evan could visit for the weekend."
"That sounds great. I'd love to hear about your life and of course about Evan when he was little," Ryan assured him.
"You know." Riley frowned as if he wasn't sure. "I think I remember you when you were little." At his words, not only Ryan perked up, but Evan as well. "I think I remember you and Michael dragging a flag into the woods somewhere."
"Oh my God." Ryan immediately burst out laughing.
It took Evan a moment, but then he remembered Michael explaining to him that they had once decided to give Nowhere an official flag, but it had been struck by lightning. He'd said it so casually, like it was no big deal, but they were kids, and Nowhere itself was pretty dangerous for kids.
"What did you do with the flag?" Angie asked curiously.
"A secret." Michael came closer and sat down on the bed behind Ryan. He was obviously interested enough in the conversation to join in.
"You know," Angie accused her best friend when she noticed his expression.
"Of course I do," Evan assured her.
"That's not fair. Ryan always tells you everything." Evan knew his best friend well enough to know she was joking and wasn't really offended or upset.
"Actually, Michael told me," Evan corrected her. Then he quickly turned to Riley. "See, we're best friends."
"Still unbelievable," Riley assured him.
"They say nice things about each other all the time, just not in front of each other," Ryan revealed, and both Evan and Michael gave him a look that suggested they weren't happy with his betrayal. Riley laughed at their reaction, as did Lola.
"I have no idea what you're talking about," Evan reacted, while Michael chose not to comment at all.
"Angie, on the other hand, always says nice things about his mum," Lola chimed in.
"Oh." Angie perked up at the mention of her favourite person. "How is Mama Olivia?" Angie asked with a broad smile.
"None of your business," replied Michael, who had long since stopped seeing the humour in her remarks about his mum.
"She's looking forward to when you get back from your trip so you can tell her about it," Ryan revealed.
"Aww. That's my Mama Olivia," Angie declared, then dedicated her next words to Michael. "See. That's how you're supposed to react when your best friend is on a trip." He just rolled his eyes in response.
"I want to hear all about your trip too," Ryan assured her. "The pack is too quiet without you."
"I've always said we're too good for our pack."
"You two are barely members," Michael grounded her with his words.
But before the conversation could escalate into an argument, Riley decided to intervene. "You're actually from another pack, Ryan, right? You decided to transfer?"
"Just for a year. I should be back officially in September," he explained.
"And unofficially?"
"I don't know." Ryan admitted honestly. Riley had brought him into territory he and Evan hadn't discussed. They talked about plans after high school, plans for next month, but never about plans for their senior year.
"We haven't talked about that yet," Evan interjected, his tone betraying his uncertainty even as he tried to hide it.
"We haven't," Ryan confirmed. "But no matter how we work it out, we're definitely going to be together." His smile was contagious and quickly spread to Evan's face.
"That's great." Riley smiled as well. "Evan mentioned NYU, does that mean you want to apply too?"
"I do," Ryan admitted.
"Well, I'm looking forward to showing you both all the great places in New York. Of course, you can always crash at my place."
Evan felt like he was in a dream. His favourite cousin and his mate were planning a future in which Evan had both of them by his side. He had no idea when his life had changed so drastically for the better, but he was determined to fight to keep it that way.