Iris

by Starysky205

Warning: Major character death. This is an au where Evan's way of dealing with his depression is very different from the one in cannon, he meets Connor earlier, and they both proceed to be terrible influences on one another. Contains suicide idealization, you've been warned

7. VII

This whole story is ridiculous, and also shitty, I'm aware… but particularly the second one

If I get overly poetic blame it on the lack of content in this tag, I'm getting inspiration from somewhere else

It's not really a road trip until someone starts singing and suddenly everyone in the car has joined, I don't make the rules

VII. 'Cause sooner or later it's over

They were on the highway again, but now the music was louder, and air was lighter, and at some point one of them had broken the tension and started singing, and Connor would be hard pressed to say who it was, but they were singing now, drunk with laughter, following the words of artists; it was an experience.

They go to some road attractions, buy some extremely unnecessary and frankly useless things, and get into all sorts of shenanigans that don't really involve anyone but the two of them, and only gets them into trouble once, but it's easily resolved.

It happens because they're surrounded by people, Connor is beautiful, and Evan forgets that he isn't the only one who can see this. It happens because Evan is extremely nice, and a treat to the eyes and Connor isn't the only person to find him attractive.

Jealousy isn't something they had to deal with before, the people at school already had an image of them, and them spending time together didn't help it. The people at the beach party had thought they were together.

The complete strangers with nothing to lose are different, and they're worrying, because while they trust each other and the relationship that they've built, they don't trust other people not to get under their skins and ruin everything; they can't let it happen. And it's hard, to see it happen, even when they know where they stand, and what they mean to each other, it's hard to know they're replaceable; because they are, and that's the whole point, isn't it?

What does it matter that whenever he sees a guy flirting with Connor, Evan wants to stride over and kiss the other just to prove a point?

What does it matter that every time someone shows interest in Evan, Connor has to fight the urge to put an arm around his waist and glare at whoever is talking to him?

At the end of the day, none of them can really get here, none of them can really stop them, and at the end of this, none of them will matter either.