Requested by thebasicmemes
Drew never told anyone, but behind his cold mask of bitterness, he had a secret burning deep in his heart.
Liam only thought of them as friends, but just thinking of the two as "just friends" hurt him more than anything else.
Meanwhile, Henry was oblivious to everything.
---
"Hey, guys!"
Drew looked up to see a green haired boy nearing the two friends on a bright, lime bike. The goofy smile on his face was contagious, and Drew felt the same smile brush his plaintive face as his heart beat faster.
"Hey, Henry!" another voice spoke at the same moment as Drew, and he turned to see that it was Liam who had echoed those same words.
"Hoho, is that some telepathy I smell? You guys really seem to read each other's minds," Henry chuckled as he got off his bike and locked it on the bike racks.
"I know right, we're the best," Liam said proudly.
"Nah, I'm better," said Drew with a sly grin.
Henry rolled his green eyes. "I mean, to be fair, you kind of are. You're not a simp for older woman, unlike someone here." He glanced at Liam as Drew roared with laughter.
"Oh, come on, that was a year ago when we were all juniors! I've gotten over that!" Liam protested.
"I know, I know," Henry said comfortingly. He clapped Liam on the back, and Drew eyed them enviously.
Wait - what? No, I can't be thinking like that! Liam and Henry are just... friends.
Still, something was pulling at his heartstrings that made him want to punch something.
"Did you have a good weekend, Henry?" Drew asked, trying to change the subject.
The green haired boy beamed. "Sure did! I went to my grandfather's farm to stay for a bit, and you will not believe how much lettuce he plants! It was practically a Lettuce Heaven!"
"Oh no, not this again," Drew laughed as he slapped his forehead, "you still haven't let go of those lettuce fantasies even after junior year?"
"Eh, yeah. I don't think that'll change about me, though, even as a senior. Can you believe that, though? We're seniors already! Well, be going to university soon!"
"Well, some things change, and some don't," Drew shrugged.
Like my crush on you. That hasn't changed.
Liam asked, "How 'bout your crush on Lia? Has that changed?"
Henry made a face. "I dunno... ever since she started dating that need in art class? Yeah, I've gotten over her. She's become such a nerd after Zoey left!"
"Mhm..." Drew remembered the day his ex-girlfriend got expelled, and shuddered. He still couldn't get her furious shouts out of his head.
"Anyways, er, Henry," Liam suddenly went pink, "I was wondering if you're free after school today?"
Drew frowned.
"Oh, yeah, I think I am! Why?"
"Great! Well, uh, I was wondering if you wanted to go visit the new ice cream place down the street!"
"Sounds fun," Henry agreed, giving a cute smile that melted Drew's heart. But when he looked at Liam's delighted face, he felt sick to the core.
"I-I thought you were going to come over to my place to play ping pong today..." Drew muttered.
"Ohh, right!" Henry said, drawing in a sharp breath. "Sorry, Liam, but -"
"But you can play ping pong with him any other day!" Liam said. The fact that he wasn't going to let go of this 'hangout' with Henry made Drew more than just annoyed.
"I know, but... I promised Drew..."
The short teenager couldn't see it, but over his head, Liam and Drew were both glaring at each other.
"You can go with Liam some other day," Drew said gingerly. "I'm sure that the ice cream shop will still be around at the end of today."
"As your ping pong table will," had Drew imagined it, or did Liam really just scowl at him? His best friend...
"Woah, guys! Look, I know I'm amazing and all, but you don't need to fight over me! Liam, I'm sorry, but I'll go with you to the ice cream place tomorrow. Besides, it'll be less crowded, right?"
"Fine..." Liam sighed, a trace of bitterness in his voice.
"Good! We're all best friends here, so there's no need to fight," said Henry cheerfully.
What if I want to become more than just best friends? Drew thought. He had never really thought of Liam as a potential threat, but... perhaps he had been looking blindly this whole time.
As if reading his mind, Liam suddenly said,
"Aight.... Well, if you can... can you meet me at our special place after you come back from Drew's house? I'll... need to tell you something."
"Sure!" Henry grinned. But Drew's stomach suddenly lurched as Liam shot him a victorious smirk.
He's... going to confess? Already? Is it because of me? Was I really that obvious? And they have a "special place" together, huh... if they're hiding this whole location from me... then how do I know they're not hiding something more?
All these thoughts raced through Drew's head in a whirlwind, but one thing shone clear: he wasn't going to let Liam get the chance to confess.
---
"Ha! Out! My point!"
"Just barely, you little lettuce brain," Drew teased, picking up the fallen ping pong ball.
"Another point for Sir Henry!" he did a little victory dance that made Drew laugh.
"Oh, blessed be, for the Great Drew has fallen to a terrible, terrible loss!" he faked collapsing to the ground, and he and Henry burst into fits of laughter.
Drew sat up from the ground, watching Henry gloat as he wondered how on earth he had ever come to love this boy. From his disheveled green hair to his shockingly bright, lime eyes, one wouldn't have expected Henry to be Drew's sort of type. Suddenly, Henry fell onto the ground next to him, stomach facing the ceiling.
"It's really fun to hang out with you, just saying," he said brightly, turning to smile at Drew. His heart skipped a beat.
"Yeah, you too..." Drew murmured.
Henry grinned, and then stood up.
"... Now bow down, mortal, to the Grand Henry!" he said in a deep voice, making Drew laugh. "You shall always be inferior to me, and -"
Henry was suddenly interrupted by a notification from his phone, and he frowned as he looked down at the screen. His face fell.
"Oh... it's a reminder that I have to meet Liam now," said Henry apologetically, "sorry, mate, but it was fun playing with you!"
"Ah..." said Drew quietly. "That's alright... thanks for hanging out with me."
Henry grinned. "No problem! I'm sure we'll get many more opportunities to play in peace later on!"
Not if Liam confesses first, Drew thought bitterly, but he said, "Yeah, I'm sure we will..."
"Bye, Drew," Henry waved as he put on his shoes and left the house. Drew stared at the place where he stood moments before, a heavy weight crushing his heart. Vengeance roared in his ears. If Liam was going to confess, then fine, so would he! He just needed to figure out how...
He rushed over to the window. Henry was just barely in sight, walking quickly along the pathway towards wherever his special place was with Liam.
That's good... I'll be able to follow him easily. Now all I need to do is hope that I don't lose him... and pray that Liam doesn't confess first.
---
"You made it!" A grin spread from ear to ear across Liam's face as he stepped from behind a massive oak tree. Its branches towered over him, and spread out wide so that shadows cast over everything in sight.
"Of course! You didn't think I wasn't going to come, did you?" The short boy came walking along the pathway that was paved with pebbles. Warm, golden light engulfed his figure, making him and the rose bushes at the entrance look like they were made of gold.
Evening sunsets were always a sight to see, but here in their special garden was a beauty that you couldn't miss. A wooden bench sat on a hill that overlooked a wide valley, where a river snaked across fields of lilies. As far as Liam understood, only he and Henry knew of this place, and that's why it held such a close place to his heart. He loved everything in the garden. From the soft, emerald grass, to the exotic flowers that lined the pathway, and the light zephyr that would tug at their locks as they gazed into the watercolour sky.
"I just wanted to tell you something important today, so I didn't want you to miss it," Liam answered Henry's earlier question. "C'mon. The sunset looks especially nice today."
Henry joined him on the wooden bench, and gave a sigh of wonder as he admired the astonishing colours. Bright, bold oranges and reds as rich as roses painted the sky, and they looked almost like they were glowing. Below them, the river glittered as the sun's rays bounced off of it, sending streaks of amber illuminating their faces. Liam desperately wanted to hold onto this moment as the two sat side by side, basking in the beauty of the sunset.
He looked over at Henry, whose features were lit aglow in the light of the melting sun.
Now's the time, he thought. He cleared his throat, and Henry turned.
"... Earlier, I said I wanted to tell you something important," Liam began. Was it his imagination, or was something rustling behind him?
"You've been my best friend for ages now... and, I always just thought of us friends, you know?"
There was definitely something rustling in the bushes. Liam didn't want to leave Henry's gaze by checking to see what it was, but he also wanted to know what was awaiting him. He swallowed and continued.
"But... lately I've been having a lot of feelings building inside of me. I can't quite describe it... but... one thing that's for sure, is that my heart is calling out for something. For someone. I think I'm in love."
Here, he took a sharp inhale, unaware that he was shaking. All of the sudden, the bushes parted, and he knew that he had lingered too long as he heard familiar footsteps running up to the two.
Liam blurted out the same time as Drew's voice echoed in the air:
"I'm in love with you, Henry!"