Connected To Him (ManxMan)

Part 1: Chapter 14

(A/N: I support the Raptors, trust, but my memory is not the best. I am also not the best with sports so please don’t come for my accuracy in describing Basketball. Anywho, enjoy the chapter).

Chapter 14: Can We be Friends?

Ethan scrolled through his phone, trying to watch his step and read tweets at the same time. He wondered if he was doing a very good job when he tripped and nearly fell onto the ground. The sound of female laughter rang in his ears and he turned to find Rachel clutching her stomach.

“Oh my gosh, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to push you that hard!” She apologized half-heartedly, laughing at Ethan’s ruffled appearance. Ethan rolled his eyes and straightened.

“It seems like all the girls I know are too strong for their own good.” Ethan complained, falling into step with Rachel while rubbing his shoulder. “Or for my own good, actually.”

Rachel smiled, shrugging her shoulders.

“I do swim, remember, so that might contribute to-”

“My pain.”

“-my strength.”

The two of them paused before breaking out into laughter.

“Come on, I didn’t push you that hard, did I?” Rachel asked through another laugh, looking at Ethan hopefully. Getting revenge in the only way Ethan felt confident in at the moment, Ethan didn’t give her an answer.

Over the past several days of spending more time with Rachel, Ethan had gotten used to her soft voice and bubbly laughter that came out in the weirdest moments. Rachel was only one of many new friends Ethan made since last week. And, interestingly enough, it was all because of Aiden.

Aiden and Aaron seemingly moved into a new phase of their relationship, creating more mutual friends. Because the table Ethan and Aiden used to share alone was mostly empty, there was plenty of space for more people. So, one day Ethan was surprised to one day find that Meaghan and River were being joined by the entire Deerhurst crew for lunch.

Ethan sat down and was told by Aaron that he and Aiden wanted their friends to get closer together. That was the first day Ethan spoke to Aiden in almost two weeks. On top of catching up with his best friend, Ethan got reacquainted with everyone from the trip.

Including Chris Davis.

When Chris joined them, he plopped his firm bubble butt on to the seat right beside Ethan. This decision made sense as the seat was right in front of Aaron, it just happened to be directly beside Ethan as well. When Chris left to get his lunch that day, Aiden had been ballsy enough to lean forward and tell Ethan,

“It’s like a double date.”

Ethan snorted hard at that one.

Now, over a week later, Ethan was accustomed to that ‘double date position’ with Aiden in front of him and Chris beside him. Ethan and Chris talked at least once during lunch every day. Whether it was a conversation between the two of them or with others, they frequently shared their jokes and thoughts over damp sandwiches and slightly warm pasta.

In the same way, Ethan got used to having Chris nearby before class and during lunch, he got used to Aiden and Meaghan’s embarrassing looks. It seemed as if every time he and Chris spoke, Aiden was smiling into his food and Meaghan was laughing about a joke no one could hear. They were subtle enough that no one else seemed to connect the dots, but it still made Ethan blush chronically.

Still, Ethan was happy. His circle of friends had grown exponentially and one person he could actually call his friend was Chris. Now, their nightly messages also included promises to bring snacks for the other during lunch or tell the other an important thing when they spoke in the morning.