Helmont's Cafè, an old favourite of Evan's. High tables and comfy chairs took up most of the room, which had a fuzzy, warm air to it, mostly because of the seemingly ancient heater in the corner, which worked surprisingly well, and the thick, purple rug that draped the floor.

Thick fumes swirled out of the cafe's open kitchen, where coffee was being blended. Evan would never understand how the coffee was always so perfect. Not too sweet, but not too bitter, either, and just the right temperature. Thick, creamy and...heavenly.

Evan pushed up his thick, blue Coke-bottle glasses, which were fogging up due to the fumes. He hadn't visited this place in a long time.

"Evan?"

Evan glanced up, a tad annoyed. He'd come up here for some peace and quiet. The last thing he wanted at the moment was to bump into another overly cheery classmate of his from university - he was tired of socialising. Tired of holding up facades, tired of faking smiles.

"Do I know you?" He inquired politely.

"I suppose." The tall, lean guy, who seemed around Evan's age, replied. He had dark hair, enviably smooth, olive skin and breathtaking amber eyes that glistened mischievously under the dull light emitted by the cheap LEDs hung up on the cafe windows. Handsome. He looked vaguely familiar.

All of a sudden, it hit Evan. "Ian Kabra?"

"Precisely," Ian replied.

Ian had changed a lot over the past five years. His British accent hadn't completely disappeared, but it was hardly noticeable anymore. He was still donning his signature outfit - a crisp polo shirt and pressed trousers - but he was a lot thinner than he'd been five years back. His hair was now slightly wavier and a little longer - quite a change from the short trim he used to sport earlier. He was carrying a thick wallet. But after all the time they'd spent together, arguing, researching, trying to crack every code or clue that could lead to the Vesper's downfall, insulting each other, and, finally, bonding - just a little - he could recognise Ian anywhere.

"I thought you preferred tea over coffee?" Evan asked conversationally.

Ian barked out a laugh. "I do. But, unfortunately, here in the States, this will have to do. This shoddy drink you Americans call 'tea'. Just some hot water with one of your 'tea bags' dumped in. Ha. Tea, indeed."

"You're living here permanently, then?"

"I can't afford to go back to Britain." Ian's face darkened.

A pregnant pause followed.

"Erm...How's Amy?" Evan asked, in a feeble attempt to change the subject, awkwardly running his fingers through his sandy hair. He knew Ian well enough to avoid bringing up anything related to finances around him. It was a sore spot for the Lucian.

"She's...fine." Ian pursed his lips. "I haven't seen her in a while. She...she moved to Rome. With Jake. They, um...eloped."

"They what?" Evan sputtered. He'd decided he was over Amy years ago, but hearing about how happy Amy and Jake were together still hurt a little. Amy had been his first real girlfriend, and he'd practically done everything for her. He'd hacked into dozens of illegal portals, followed a billion pointless leads, and even risked his life for her and her family.

And she'd dumped him for a dashing, supposedly brilliant egocentric who was everything Evan wasn't.

He still remembered the day clearly. He'd been young and naive, and he'd assumed he'd found true love in Amy. Evan had decided that he needed a fresh start after the whole Vesper fiasco. And he had been ready for it.

He remembered biking to the park, fresh and excited.

And what he'd seen had nearly knocked him off his bike.

The flash of red hair, the familiar grey jacket. Entwined closely around another all too familiar body. Jake Rosenbloom's.

"A-Ames?"

He'd refused to believe it. He'd pegged all his suspicions down to insecurity on his part, and even when he'd been presented with clear cut evidence, he hadn't been able to face up to the truth. He hadn't been able to face up to the fact that Amy and he weren't soul mates, that they weren't meant for each other, that they weren't in love. Sixteen-year-old Evan had locked himself in his room for months after the incident, wondering what he'd done wrong.

Amy had tried to explain. "It was a mistake," she'd claimed. "He's a great guy, Evan. Give him a chance."

The two statements had so blatantly contradicted each other. It definitely hadn't been a mistake. Amy had replaced boring, geeky Evan with handsome, charismatic Jake Rosenbloom, and she had nothing to regret about it. She'd simply upgraded to Preppy Boyfriend 2.0.

Now, once he'd started over, he didn't want to be reminded of his ex-girlfriend and her stupid love life.

"I know," Ian said, as though he was reading Evan's mind. "I was shocked, too. I was almost as close to Amy as her brother was at the time, and I knew she was making a mistake." He closed his eyes for a beat. "Much as you were annoying, you seemed perfect for her. Below the geeky demeanour, you were a good person at heart. But Jake, on the other hand...he seemed to want Amy only for her money, her connections..."

"Then why didn't you talk to her?" It came out a little harsher than Evan had intended it to. He knew that blaming Ian for Amy's decisions was stupid, but he found it hard to help himself. And, okay, he was also tired of Ian needling him and calling him annoying and geeky at every passing opportunity. For a Lucian, the guy could be really blunt at times.

"Jake was handsome, but he had nothing else going for him. He was a shallow, vapid egoistic. And, believe me, I tried. I teased him at every opportunity, flirted with Amy when he was around to make him jealous, called him names, but..."

"Well, then?"

"She didn't listen. She shoved me across the room and said some pretty harsh stuff, and she hasn't called me since. I moved to the States for her and Daniel last year, just so that we could be there for each out it was a futile decision."

"How's Dan?"

"Heartbroken because of Amy, but mostly okay." Ian grimaced. "They used to decide everything together. Now..."

"I get it. Amy seems pretty...different from the girl I used to know."

"She is."

Evan sighed, suddenly feeling exhausted.

"Why don't we get a drink?" he enquired, wearily.

Surprisingly, Ian nodded. Evan had expected him to decline in his usual snooty way.

They chatted for an hour, and it was astonishingly pleasant. Ian was a lot more than what he appeared to be beneath the ice cold, snooty demeanour he projected to the world.

It turned out Ian had been lonely, too. After Natalie's death, he'd struggled to cope, and Amy ditching him had been the last straw. Apart from lunch with Dan and a few occasional sessions where he 'financially advised' him, Ian had mostly been cooped up in the house, brooding and doing nothing. Dan came over a few times, but this was apparently the first time Ian had left the house otherwise in a long time.

When Ian left, Evan felt surprisingly empty. It had been a long time since he'd been this open with someone, too.

...to be continued.

A/N-So. I'm probably the only person in this whole fandom to write for a ship so vague, but I just started writing and...yep. Evian all the way. I also realized I kinda hated Amy. What she did to Evan was just...pathetic. And David Baldacci? He just killed Evan off to solve a LOVE TRIANGLE? A perfectly good character otherwise. Not cool, dude.

They just feel so perfect together. And writing this is actually kinda addictive. And fun. So I'm going to continue, and sorry for ending this chapter so abruptly, BTW.

And yeah, maybe it's a little clichè, but this is my first time writing a romance, so...

Also, as always, reviews, especially CC, are welcome.

Signing off,

EvilLucian639

;)