Silent But Sweet

Chapter Twleve - The Date Part Two

TW: one swear word... 

stoner-&-loner: "ok so ive pulled into the driveway. now what?"

jazzbandjazz: "Get out the car and knock on the door!!"

The brunet sighed, sliding his phone into the pocket of his black trousers. Hesitantly, he opened the door to Zoe's car, which she consensually lent him. Connor stood and straightened up the white, buttoned shirt his sister had convinced him to wear. Once he had felt like there was nothing more to be done, the boy shuffled to the chipped white door of the Hansen residence.

Voices could be heard within the small house making it sound so alive. Connor took a calming breath before knocking. Suddenly, the house was silent. Everyone was hushed at the sound, prompting the brunet to knock again. After several seconds of shuffling, a woman answered the door. Connor assumed this was Evan's mum: she had wavy blonde hair that draped to her shoulders and pale brown eyes that looked drained. Her face seemed like it might have been beautiful once but now it was just overworked and exhausted, not unlike Connor's.

"You must be Connor?" Her voice was light in an attempt to hide her mood. "I'm Heidi, Evan's mother." Politely, Connor shook her hand, smiling nervously. "He's just upstairs getting ready."

A few thumps could be heard approaching the door as if someone was running down a staircase. The pit of worry in Connor's stomach grew, imagining Evan coming to the door.

"Hey! Connie!" Of course it was Jared. He glided in front of the woman, face to face with the taller boy. "Alright, Mrs. H, I can watch him from here." Winking, he hinted to Heidi. In return, she nodded and left the boys by the door.

"Where's Evan?"

The boy with glasses smiled smugly. "Relax. He's just getting his shoes on. Don't worry, sunshine."

"If you call me that one more time, I'm gonna fuuuu..." His words trailed off as he saw a figure approach from behind Jared. Evan. He wore a baggy, mint jumper and white jeans, his hair slightly more tousled than usual. White headphones that drooped around his neck were quickly taken off and dropped onto a cabinet as he walked towards the door. A genuine smile appeared on Connor's face as he watched the blond step from behind Jared to his side. "... woah."

"Murphy, you're staring~."

"Sometimes things are so beautiful you can't take your eyes off them." Absentmindedly, Connor responded, earning a giggle and a playful punch from a blushing Evan.

"That was cheesy and disgusting." Groaned Jared. "Please refrain from ever being like that again."

"I thought it was... really nice."

Connor wrapped his arm around the blond's shoulders. A click sounded, causing the brunet's head to shoot up and gaze to move off of Evan. Proudly, Jared grinned, holding his phone. This time it was Connor who groaned, pulling Evan away from the door and to the black car on the driveway.

"Have him back by eleven, Connor! No hanky-panky, you two!" Called Jared as the boy's entered the car. "Keep my baby safe, Murphy!"

"Jesus Christ, the kid's insufferable." Connor joked once the doors were shut, starting up the engine. "You do look really good though, Ev. I was serious about that. Adorable."

"Not too bad yourself." Evan mimicked Connor's words from the changing room. "This was mostly my mum and Jared's work."

"Zoe dressed me so I-."

"You told Zoe?"

"She guessed. I'm not exactly difficult to read, Ev." He smiled, tucking some loose brown hair behind his ear whilst he backed the car off the drive. "You don't mind, do you?"

"No no no no! It's fine I just, uh, I just didn't think you would tell anyone. I thought you'd be embarrassed." Evan signed anxiously.

Connor laughed at that. His mind couldn't fathom why he should be embarrassed of spending time with Evan. "I have no shame, Hansen."

"Where are we going, then?" The blond not-so-smoothly changed the subject.

Connor shrugged. "It's a surprise."

They drove out of the jurisdiction of lampposts, down winding country roads in almost pure darkness. An hour and a half passed in pure silence, a silence that was not comfortable but was simultaneously far from awkward. It was almost sweet. Evan started to quietly hum love songs to himself, probably to keep the scene romantic instead of eerie. Eventually, Connor pulled the car over into more of a ditch than a parking space. A sign caught Evan's eye in the moonlight, it was like a small and decrepit billboard, rusted and broken. It read 'Welcome to Autumn Smile's Apple Orchard' next to a picture of a smiling apple. In the darkness, however, it appeared more creepy than welcoming. Evan knew this place all too well.

"You ready? I wanna show you something." Connor grinned with excitement as he got out the car, opening the passengers side and helping the blond out afterwards. "Please?"

Evan looked doubtful but nodded anyway. "Cover your eyes and I'll guide you, okay?" Soft hands were put inside Connor's as his eyes fluttered shut. It was a small act of trust that meant the world to the brunet. Evan obediently followed wherever the taller pulled him. Occasionally, Connor mumbled words of encouragement such as 'we're almost there' and 'you've basically made it'. It wasn't long before the tall boy had guided the other to a spot in the orchard where the trees were densest; you could look in any direction and all you would see were tree trunks. Relief washed over Connor as he saw his sister was true to her word and had set everything up.

"Okay... ready, Ev?" He dropped the boy's hands to move behind him, wrapping his arms around Evan's shoulder in a quick backwards hug before letting him go completely. "Well, open your eyes."

Doing as he was told, the blond gasped. A ring of apple trees surrounded him, all of which were infested with star-shaped tea lights that glowed a soft gold. They contrasted the dark navy of the empty night sky elegantly. Perhaps the sky was empty because all the stars were surrounding Evan currently. The boy's feet took him to the centre of the circle formed by the trees, his face awestruck. The sight was one of unforgettable beauty. Blue eyes were wide and shining with wonder, their gaze drifting to an anxious-looking Connor.

"Did... did you do this? For me?"

"I, uh, well... yeah, yeah. Thank Zo for this really but it's no biggie. I just know how much you love trees and I wanted this to be, uh, really special for you." Embarrassed, Connor rambled, scratching at the back of his neck. "God I sound like a fucking moron."

Evan raced towards the brunet, tightly enveloping him in a hug. The taller stood rigidly for a moment, slightly shocked. After awhile, he wrapped his arms around the boy whose head was in his chest.

"So... you wanna dance, Lamb?"

Word count: 1159

Get u a man/woman/person who treats u on dates like Connor treats my tree son