Chapter Ten – Forever Ended Today
A month and half passed and Ephram couldn't believe how close he had become with Ryan. He had been able to trust her so easily, and she would listen to him for hours at a time. With her parents often away, he spent a lot of time with her, just hanging out in her room. The two had tried to teach each other their instruments, but both decided one instrument was enough.
They hadn't stay just excluded with themselves. In fact, it was the five of them, Ephram, Ryan, Amy, Colin, and Bright. They'd spend every weekend together, trying to find new things to do. The past month and half had been great, and Ephram couldn't believe he was actually happy in Everwood. He actually considered all four of those people his friends, and said it without hesitation.
He still had feelings for Ryan and they just kept growing over time, but he had accepted that she had Adam. He hadn't forgotten that day she had apologized, and admitted she was interested in him. He kept it in the back of his mind, and for some reason, had a lot more hope for this situation than he did with Amy.
So, it was a Wednesday night, he was sitting in his room, trying to finish up some science homework, when the phone rang. In the past, he would have let it ring, but Ryan called every night now, and had this habit of calling him at the same time, at just a little past nine. He picked up the phone, "Hello?"
"Hey."
Ephram could sense something was wrong right away. She could fool everyone with her smile and they all believed her, but he had come to pick up on the little hints that showed she wasn't okay. And whenever she was sad, her voice was a little less sarcastic and a little quieter.
"What's wrong?"
"How do you do that? You know, I tried extra hard tonight to fool you, but I can't get anything past you. Damn you, Ephram Brown," Ryan said. And then she let out a sigh. "I know I have no right to ask this, but, is there anyway you can come over? I'm home alone, no surprise, and I really need to talk to you."
Ephram didn't question why she couldn't just talk to him on the phone. "Sure, I'll be right over," he said as he slammed the phone down. He closed all his books and grabbed his jacket as he ran down the stairs.
"Ephram, where are you going?"
Damn, he thought. He had tried to get out unnoticed. "Look Dad, I wouldn't normally do this and I don't really care if you say I can't go, because I'm going to anyway, but Ryan just called me and she sounded upset and asked me if I could go over there. So I'm going to go over and make sure she's okay. I'll be home early. Is that okay?"
Even though Ephram and his father had come to form a decent, actually good relationship over the past year, he still was unsure of how his father would react. Instead of protesting, though, Andy Brown just nodded his head at his son, as though in understanding. Ephram was going to help someone he loved, and if it was one thing he had learned about his son, nothing would stand in his way when it came to that.
So, Ephram ran out the door and hopped on his bike and rode over to Ryan's as fast as he could. When he got there, he left his bike on the front lawn and ran onto the porch, through the front door, and straight to her room.
He pushed open the door and there she was, sitting with her guitar on the edge of her bed. She looked up and gave him a half smile. "Thank you, for coming. You really didn't have to. I didn't expect you to." She put the guitar down behind her.
"Nothing would have stopped me."
"You're a good friend, Ephram," she said.
"So… what's up?"
"I was wondering, if you could maybe tutor me in math?" Ryan asked, trying to avoid answering the question.
"Try again."
"Okay, I was thinking tonight, about something. This is our junior year, so we have our prom this year and since I don't really want to go with anyone else, I was wondering if you would go with me? I'm planning ahead, I know, and you probably wanted to have an actual date, but I figured it was either you or Bright and since I'm afraid Bright might step on my feet when dancing with him, I chose the better option." Ryan smiled at him.
"Of course I will. And I was going to ask you anyway," Ephram replied. "But try again, I know there's something else on your mind."
Ryan gave him a look. "You know, I hate you!" she said in a playful voice. "I can't keep anything from you." And then, she looked down, trying to find the way to put this.
"Ryan, what is it?" Ephram came and sat down next to her, put his arm around her shoulders.
Ryan looked up and into his eyes. With a laugh she said, "Adam and I broke up."
