MORE THAN SURVIVE ( trc. )

𝐈𝐈

—MORE THAN SURVIVE—
chapter two

GANSEY STOOD JUST beside the car, looking like he's right where he belongs, despite the broken down car on the side of the road.

Although, Julius mused, he had yet to find a setting in which Gansey doesn't look like he belongs. It's only slightly annoying.

Ronan was on the phone with someone, which in and of itself was the closest thing to supernstural Julius was hoping to see that day, although his clear annoyance at the caller somehow made the situation feel a bit less otherwordly. The fact that he had been driving with the thing pressed to his ear did nothing to calm Julius' nerves about Gansey, but he was never really calm so what was there to loose?

Julius was the first to step out of the car, walking towards Gansey as both Ronan and Adam lingered behind. He looked back but Ronan was already getting out.

Ronan's frown was a bit more pronounced than usual, which was never good.

"My dick brother wants us to meet him at Nino's tonight," Ah, there it is, "With Ashley."

Ashley Mendell was Declan Lynch's latest and possibly best girlfriend. As pretty as she was smart, Aglionby had made it its duty to talk about her all week after she made an appearance to see her boyfriend. It appeared, however, that no one else actually bothered with gossip coming through the halls of an all-boys school as Gansey asked what an Ashley. He wondered if Adam knew who she was, but he was still inside the car, Ronan's phone in hand, presumably talking to the eldest Lynch brother.

"Declan's latest. We're meant to look pretty for her." Was Ronan's answer.

"All of us?" Julius asked.

Julius knew, of course, that the invitation was likely not meant to be extended to him. The Franklins might have had a horde of oddly outstanding children, but the couple themselves were frowned upon. Money with no explanation, dirty politics and a scandal or two, no aspiring politician would want to be associated with them. So, of course, Declan hated his almost friendship with his brother. Julius supposed that was the only reason Ronan tolerated him.

It bothered him less than it should.

Ronan smirked as insufferably as always, clearly well aware of how unwelcome the youngest of the group was likely to be.

"Duh."

Gansey and Ronan talked as they messed around with the Camaro. Julius didn't care enough about cars to know what they were doing.

"Ask me if I found something," Gansey suddenly said, which meant he did.

Ronan sighed, "Did you find anything?"

Gansey gestured to the recorder in the car as he reached for it, fuel slowly making its way to the boy's chinos. Julius could almost picture Adam's face filled with annoyance.

"Something. I recorded about four hours of audio and there's — something. But I don't know what it means. Give it a whirl"

Ronan pressed play.

For a second, Julius thought there would be nothing there, or perhaps just the simple sound of nature, something like leaves rustling.