This wasn't exactly finished in half an hour like I said, but oh well.

Trigger warning for talk about sexualizing! It doesn't actually happen, it's just mentioned, I promise /srs/gen

Anyways, I hope you enjoy the chapter!

*    *   *

"And snacks are in the fridge," Etho said as he handed Joel a very soft blanket. "But you already know that."

Joel gave him a soft smile. "Thank you," he said. "I really appreciate it."

Etho smiled back, making Joel realize how much he missed that smile given it wasn't often that Etho was rid of a mask that covered his nose and mouth. "Anything for a pal." Joel felt it when Etho grimaced at the word 'pal.' "Kind of strange, isn't it?" Etho sat down on the sofa next to Joel. "Pals instead of... you know."

Joel nodded silently.

"Eh, but I think it's a bit better this way," Etho shrugged, leaning back against the sofa and resting his hands behind his head. "It's nice being just friends with someone." He glanced over at the brunette, who was sitting closer to the edge of the cushion and staring down at the blanket in his hands. "So, what happened? If you don't mind my asking."

"No, it's... fine," Joel sighed. "It's just a lot to unpack mentally." He let out a small laugh. "All of this happened so suddenly."

Etho hummed in acknowledgement. "Well, you don't have to talk about it if you don't want to," he said. "I was just wondering."

There was a beat of silence before Joel mumbled, "She really broke up with me."

He didn't have much time to process that Lizzie had actually broken up with him given he was overwhelmed with trying to find Grian. But now that he can think about it... ouch.

"Woah, Lizzie broke up with you?" Etho asked, sitting upright. "Now I really want to know what happened."

Joel glanced at Etho. "We got into a fight," he sighed. "I hit her in a rage, she broke up with me, and now..." He looked away again. "And now I'm not allowed to go back to my apartment until I'm eighteen because the police found out I've been living on my own the past two years."

Etho blinked, then frowned. "Dude, are you okay?" he asked sincerely.

Looking back up at Etho, Joel felt his eyes watering. "No," he murmured, his voice small. He covered his face with his hands. "I'm fucking stupid, that's what I am." He let out a weak sob into his palms and felt an arm curl around his shoulders. "I don't know how to fix this."

"Maybe... just talk to her?" Etho suggested. "I know it sounds kind of crazy coming from me, the grand social regect of Rivendell High, but..." He sighed. "I don't think it'll turn out that bad if you just tried to talk about it."

Joel looked at Etho. "I did try to talk to her when she broke up with me," he said. "I was..." He glanced away. "Well, maybe I wasn't exactly talking..." I was trying to just talk, though...

Etho snorted. "Look, just sleep on the idea, okay?" he said, standing up. "I don't want to keep you up too long, so I'll go back to my room now. Get some sleep, you look horrendous, you dork." He flicked Joel's forehead, and the brunette rolled his eyes playfully.

"Yeah, and you definitely don't look like you haven't slept in a week either," he joked.

"Shhh." Etho had a finger pressed to his lips as he walked away, giggling to himself as he waved goodnight.

Joel sighed and stared down at the blanket in his lap again. It was funny that he never realized how much he missed Etho.

*   *   *

"Grian?" Lizzie's muffled voice came through the door after a gentle knock. "I have some cheesecake if you're hungry. It's not really the healthiest dinner, but..."

Grian glanced over to the door from his spot on the bed, exhaustion keeping him from answering right away. "You can come in," he mumbled, surprised when Lizzie had actually heard him and opened the door.

She didn't look too great; her hair was a mess, her nose was bright red, and she was in her night clothes already. A sudden guilt hit Grian, and he realized that he was probably the reason she was sick.

"I'm sorry," the boy apologized, tears welling in his eyes. Lizzie gave him a confused look as she sat down next to him. "I didn't to make you sick-"

"Honey, you didn't get me sick," she assured him. She lifted a hand to rub up and down his back, probably to try and soothe him, and handed him the small plate of dessert. "It's not your fault, so don't apologize, okay?"

Grian nodded slightly, staring down at the slice of cheesecake. It was a rather generous amount compared to slices he'd had in the past. He would've said something if he didn't feel like his throat was closing up.

Lizzie was quiet for a moment as well, watching Grian carefully before speaking again. "So, what happened with Joel?" she asked.

For whatever reason, that question forced a sob from Grian's throat, a tear or two falling onto his plate.

"Oh, sweetheart..." Lizzie took the plate from him and set it aside to wrap her arms around him. She wasn't surprised in the slightest when he inmediately clung to her like his life depended on it. "Baby, it's okay-"

"It's not okay," Grian sobbed, his fingers twisting tightly in the material of Lizzie's shirt. "It's all my fault! If I wasn't so stupid, then- then-" He hiccuped before letting out another cry, unable to form coherent words.

Lizzie didn't say anything to him, instead rubbing his back and humming to him softly. It was just as calming as it always had been, even despite her voice sounding so rough from being sick.

Grian's grip naturally loosened as he relaxed in Lizzie's arms. "If I didn't run away, Joel wouldn't have t-to leave his flat, a-and- and I would still be living with him," he rambled, pulling away to wipe at his wet eyes.

Lizzie tucked a strand of his hair behind his ear.

"I didn't mean to ruin everything," he cried. "I w-wasn't trying to ruin it-"

"You didn't ruin anything, my love," Lizzie whispered, scowling. Though, it was clear she wasn't scowling at Grian. "It was Joel's fault for neglecting how you felt. He scared you. He should've known otherwise, and how you reacted was not your fault."

Grian stared up at her. "But it's all messed up," he murmured.

Lizzie's gaze softened as her lips curled into a sweet smile. "Nothing is messed up." She leaned forward to kiss Grian's forehead before reaching for the plate of cheesecake to hand it to him again. "Still hungry for some cheesecake?" she asked.

"Sure," Grian said, a small grin pulling at the corners of his mouth. He took the plate from her and hesitantly stuffed a fork-full into his mouth. He sighed, savouring the flavour. "It's been, like, years since I've had cheesecake," he said, his mouth still full. "This is so good!"

Lizzie giggled. "I'm glad you like it," she said. "I made it myself, you know."

Grian's eyes snapped up. "Really?!"

She couldn't help but laugh at the shocked expression on his face, mixed with his cheeks being full of the dessert. "Yeah, it's a recipe my mother taught me in junior high," she managed between laughs. "Though, she made chocolate cheesecake. I just made regular cheesecake and put some cheery syrup on top."

"You should make the chocolate cheesecake," Grian said as he took another bite. "Just sayin'."

Lizzie snickered. "Yeah? I'll have to put that on my To-Do list, then."

Soon, Grian finished his dessert, and Daniel made Lizzie say her goodnights so they could get proper rest that night.

"Since you moved in with Joel, I've had to put the old spare sheets on the bed," Daniel said. Grian frowned at how exhausted he sounded. "I hope it doesn't smell too much like the attic."

Grian shrugged. "I like the way your attic smells," he admitted quietly. "It's a cozy smell."

Daniel smiled softly and sat next down to the boy. "Is that so?" He paused, then took a deep breath and settled a little closer to Grian now that the latter was beneath the covers. "I know it's late, and you're probably exhausted, but, uh... If you want to talk about what's going on with you and Joel, you can." He watched Grian's facial expression for a second before continuing. "I only heard Lizzie's side of the story, so I probably don't have a single clue what's actually happening" - he paused to laugh, and Grian smiled at the joke - "but I'm always here if you need somebody to talk to, okay? And I'm more than happy to house you until everything gets sorted out."

Nodding, Grian pulled the blanket over his nose. "Thank you."

"Anytime, kiddo." Daniel hesitated slightly before kissing Grian's forehead. "Get some sleep, alright?"

At Grian's nod, Daniel got up and turned off the light as he left the room, leaving the door cracked slightly.

It always made Grian want to cry whenever Daniel remembered that he liked the door cracked open.

*   *   *

"Please answer, please answer," Jimmy mumbled to himself, pacing in the hallway as his father made breakfast in the kitchen. "Come on, Scott..."

"Hello?"

Jimmy gasped at hearing that familiar Scottish accent. "Scott!" He cleared his throat. "I- I mean, hey, Scott," he said calmly.

Scott sighed down the line. "Hey, Jimmy," he replied exhaustedly. "Are you calling to call me a whore again?"

"Wha-" Jimmy blinked. "I'm sorry?"

"You know, like you have been doing the past few days?"

What? Jimmy shook his head, utterly flabbergasted. "I'm very confused," he said. "Can you slow down, back up, and start over?"

Scott sighed again, the sound shaky. "Listen, I get it, okay?" he said, sniffling a bit. "You only ever wanted to be friends with me so you could get in my pants. It's not original. You're not the first to do it, and by now I know you won't be the last. Just... please, for your sake and mine, leave me alone, Jimmy."

"I... I don't get it," Jimmy mumbled. "I never said I wanted to... get in your pants." He grimaced at the phrase, knowing full well what it meant. He hated that Scott thought that's what Jimmy thought of him, and he hated even more that he didn't know why Scott thought that way.

"You called me 'princess'," Scott said slowly. The beat of silence that carried down the line was painful. "It's a pet name." Another pause. "Like... how people call each other pet names in bed...?"

Jimmy gasped. "What?!" he exclaimed, startling everyone in the other room. "No, I never meant it like- well, I didn't mean it at all, but God, no, I didn't mean it like that!"

Scott took a moment to respond, though he only muttered a quiet, "Oh," when he did reply.

"That's what you thought I meant?" Jimmy almost couldn't believe it. He never meant to call Scott that in the first place, and he definitely didn't mean it like that, even if he did mean to say it. "Scott?"

"W-well..." Scott trailed off, sighing. "Usually guys just call me things like that to sexualize me, so... you know..." He groaned, then let out a frustrated sob. "I'm so stupid," he whined. "I thought I was being smart by putting the pieces together..."

Jimmy didn't know what to say. 'Usually' and 'sexualize' were two words that did not belong in the same sentence, and the fact that Scott just assumed... "Scott, I would never do that," Jimmy said finally. "I'm really sorry for calling you that. I shouldn't have. It was wrong."

Scott didn't answer.

Jimmy sighed. "I get it if you still don't want to be friends with me," he continued, "but I really am sorry. For what I said about you losing your virginity to a senior, too. That was... that was really awful of me."

"I'm sorry, too, Jimmy," Scott sobbed suddenly, the volume of the cry making the blonde jump. "I was rude, and" - he stopped for a moment to sniffle loudly - "I said mean things to you that I didn't mean..."

"It's okay," Jimmy assured him. "I deserved it anyway." He laughed softly, trying to make the mood a little bit lighter.

Scott let out a cry. "You mean it?"

"Yeah, I mean it."

"Okay." Scott took a shaky deep breath. "Okay."

Jimmy paused. "Are... are you alright?"

Scott let out a breathy chuckle. "Yeah, I'm fine," he answered. "Sorry, I didn't mean to start crying. That was really dumb."

"No, no, it's fine."

There was a brief moment of quiet that Jimmy couldn't tell if he was okay with it or if it made him uncomfortable.

"Jimmy?"

"Yeah?"

"Can you... give me until the weekend?" Scott asked nervously. "Like, for us to be friends again."

Jimmy bit back the feeling of disappointment he felt. "Why do you need until the weekend?" he asked. He tried to make it sound as neutral as possible, but it still seemed to come off a bit bitter.

Scott sighed. "Because I'm going to break up with Zach," he admitted, whispering into the phone. "I just need to wait because he promised to take me to see my sister Friday after school, but I swear we can go back to being friends after that. I just... I need to keep him happy for now, okay? I don't trust that he won't go back to being mean, even if he has been nice to me lately."

"Oh!" Jimmy felt a wave of relief flood his body. "Yeah, of course. I can wait, no big deal."

"Oh, thank you," Scott said. "Thank you so much, Jim-" He gasped softly, and Jimmy heard muffled talking before Scott spoke again. "I have to go, but thank you. I'll see you later."

Jimmy smiled. "Yeah, of course. Goodbye." He waited to hear the tone that signaled the end of the call before jumping up and down with joy.

Fwhip was right after all.

*   *   *

I'm so glad I finally finished that chapter. I can sleep now! Lmao /lh/hj

I hope you all enjoyed. I know I will be enjoying a nice night of rest. <3