Gansey entered the drugstore with a mobile phone close to his ear. Blue was on the line, laughing at his nervousness. This didn't sound funny to him. He was actually sweating a lot on his new shirt.
"Okay, now you need to find the hygiene section", Blue indicated. He knew she wasn't facing this mission as serious as he was, but it felt comforting to have her talking to him, even if by the phone.
Gansey read the cards and went to the hygiene corridor. He froze at the sight of hundreds and hundreds of options. A wall full of them. If he decided to run to the end of the shelf and run back five times he'd be fit to win a 20 miles marathon.
"Blue, I'm no doctor, but I'm pretty sure I'm hyperventilating." He tried to feel his pulse. Maybe he was having a heart attack? No, he was too young for this. Maybe his blood pressure had dropped too suddenly. Was he going to black out? His eyesight seemed blurry abruptly. No, wait. It was just a dirty spot on his glasses.
"You're being a drama queen. This isn't more complicated than finding a dead welsh king."
"We'll have to agree to disagree. I'm not cut out for this. Mission aborted." But, of course, he didn't move a foot. He would never be able to let Blue down, not if he could help it. And she was in the middle of a psych reading with Maura now, and she was in pain. She couldn't go to the drugstore herself, so she asked him. She never asked for help. It was time for him to prove himself. She could die any second now while they were speaking on the phone.
"First, take a deep breath. Now, put one foot after another. Are you doing it? Good. Now stop. Check your environment. See if there are any threats around you."
Gansey rolled his eyes.
"Now you're just being scornful to me."
"I can't believe you just said 'scornful' out loud and in public."
"Jane, you're changing the subject. Look at this. I mean, hear this. How am I supposed to choose? There are pads with flaps, pads with no flaps. For the night, for the day. Big, normal, small. It'll take too much time and then you'll die by the time I buy them."
"Jesus, I'm not gonna die. It's just cramps."
"This sounds awfully similar to dying to my ears."
Blue sighed and then explained to him what he needed to buy. Gansey memorized it, but he still needed to find it. He checked the corridor, looking for an employee that could help him and make things faster and easier.
Bloody Glendower.
"What?" Blue asked.
He didn't notice he had cursed out loud. His cheeks turned red. Nice way to get the girl, Dick, he could almost hear Ronan saying at the back of his mind.
"Orla is here", he whispered, then turned off the phone while Blue was saying "Gansey, it's okay, calm d-". Of course Orla was there. They were in Henrietta. Everybody knew each other and the probabilities of finding someone you know out and about were huge. He should've been more discreet.
Gansey didn't want her to see him all lost with that mission. She would make fun of him for not being able to complete a simple task. He turned around fast, facing the other shelf behind him. Oh, no. He was so focused on finding pads that he didn't notice the condoms and pregnancy tests on the same corridor.
Orla had spotted him. He shouldn't have to give her credit. He had to admit, actually, that going to a CVS wearing khakis and a polo shirt and loafers had been a mistake.
"Hello there", she said, coming closer. He pretended being so concentrated on his duty that he hadn't seen her until she stopped by his side.
"Oh, hello. How are you?" He just hoped she wouldn't tell anything to Blue's mother. Seeing her boyfriend looking for condoms and pregnancy tests wouldn't sound very pleasant to Maura's ears.
"So, you been very busy, hum?" Orla joked. She had a devilish smile on her face.
Gansey faked a surprised look, exchanging glances between the shelf and the girl.
"Oh, do you think this is for me?" He laughed. "Oh, no, it's for a friend." Gansey cursed again when he realized what he had just said. Everybody knew who his friends were. Adam and Ronan wouldn't be very joyful with him.
"Right", said Orla. She didn't look very convinced. "Well, if you want, I can help y-"
Gansey couldn't picture anything worse than Blue's best friend helping him with condoms. "You don't need to, really. I'll just tell them that they should come here themselves." Oh, now not only he had involved Ronan and Adam in this, he had involved them together. Minutes ago, he thought Blue would die, but now he knew he would be dead by the morning. And it wasn't even by the way he had pictured it.
"Are you sure?" pushed Orla, enjoying his tension.
"Yes, I am. But thank you anyway. You're very kind."
Orla shrugged. "Okay, then. See you around."
But before she could turn away, Gansey's phone, which he was still holding on his left hand, started ringing. "Jane" turned up on the screen. He refused the call.
"Who's Jane?" asked Orla, suspicious. Now not only she thought he was buying condoms, she also thought he was buying them to cheat on Blue with a girl named Jane. That afternoon couldn't get any worse, really.
"It's my sister", he lied quickly.
"I thought your sister was Helen." Of course she did. No privacy in Henrietta, never. He was now a cheater and a liar.
"My other sister. She's a bastard, so my parents don't talk about her."
Orla's gaze could drift holes through his flesh. He didn't doubt that Blue would hear about this soon. He only hoped she would find it funny.
"Right. I need to go now." Orla turned her back to him and left.
Gansey sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. His cellphone started ringing again. This time he picked it up.
"So, what happened?" asked Blue.
"I think you're going to hear about it later. Just please keep your mind open."
He turned off the phone again and heard a laugh beside him. Noah had tears on his eyes. He was trying to say something, but his whole body was shaking so much he could barely breathe. Gansey wasn't that surprised.
"Where were you when I needed help two seconds ago, Noah?" he whispered, then went back to his task.