Jared's laugh rang through the auditorium, and Evan couldn't help but watch him in awe. His thoughts ran wild but he paid no mind to them; only focused on the boy in front of him.

"Evan? You okay?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. I'm fine, thank, uh, thank you. Are you okay?"

Jared gave him a weird look, but continued to smile. "I'm fine man. God, watching the actors mess up honestly gives me like, a rush."

"Is that, is that good or bad?" Evan asked, fiddling with the hammer in his hand.

"Good for me," Jared paused to drill in a screw. "Bad for them."

"Yeah, that's uh, that's uh, yeah."

Jared chuckled under his breath at Evans awkwardness, and Evan couldn't help but smile at the boy. He was in awe of him, and he didn't know what to do.

———

"Okay, whatever Hansen. Shrek was a cinematic masterpiece, and you just can't except it."

Evan let out a breathy laugh, and he rolled his eyes knowing that his room was too dark for Jared to see him through the phone. "Yeah, sure. Sure."

"Hey, my moms coming. Talk to you soon?"

"Yeah. See you tomorrow." Evan ended the call, and his head hit his pillow instantly.

Evan glared up at his ceiling, an odd feeling inside of his chest. His lips curled into a smile, and suddenly his world came crashing down on him.

"Oh, oh god. Evan, Evan Hansen, no. No, you can't like him. You can't like him."

Evan sat up, hugging his knees to his chest. "No." He whispered to himself. "No."

He subconsciously glanced at his phone and unlocked it, only to be met with a picture of Jared and himself in ninth grade.

His gaze went soft before the panic set in again. No, no, no. He's your friend! You can't like Jared. You can't... you can't lov- Nope. Nope. Nope.

Evan rocked himself on his bed, carefully picking up his phone again. He took a deep breath, knowing exactly how to fix himself.

When he saw the picture of his dad with his 'new' family, his heart stopped racing. Evan was reminded of love, and how horrible it is.

But... Jared. Evans thoughts controlled his heart. He could be the only exception.

Yeah, Evans realistic side said meekly. Or he could break it, just like your dad did.

Evan sighed, laying back down on his bed. A weak smile fell on his face, and he lay, thinking hopefully.

Please be the only exception.