Ethan and I stood at the front door, glancing at each other as we contemplated whether we should just waltz in or knock. With a shrug, Ethan simply opened the door and stepped through, me following suit as I looked around. There were definitely less people here than last time, music playing at a level where you could still hear another person talk. Some people stood around in the living room, sizing Ethan and I up before quickly losing interest and returning to their own conversations.

"Do you think Vera is here yet?" Ethan asked as we walked down the hall to the kitchen. I was startled by a fake spider web that became stuck against my cheek, jerking backwards violently with wide, fearful eyes. A dreadful thought crossed my mind that I may have hallucinated the sensation, and with such a visceral reaction from seemingly nothing, that would appear quite unusual to an onlooker. Ethan simply laughed as he plucked it away from my face, the tip of his thumb gently swiping across my cheekbone with the movement. I let out a shaky breath, relieved I was still in the same reality as him at that moment.

"Thanks," I mumbled, embarrassed. "Vera is always fashionably late, I don't think she'll be here yet."

"Let's find Chloe then," Ethan smiled and led us to the kitchen. There were some teenagers there refilling their drinks, and Chloe happened to be present as well, trying to direct traffic through the kitchen as an older woman dressed in a hot pink velvet jumpsuit that looked like it came straight from the early 2000's prepared some food at the counter.

"Hey guys!" She shrieked and bounced over, giving Ethan a tight squeeze and giving me the same treatment. I could feel myself tense under her touch, and she pulled back with a sheepish expression, suddenly realizing I wasn't one to be too appreciative of physical contact.

Well, from most people, that is.

"You two look great! Love the matching costumes," she complimented, giving me a knowing look.

"You look great too Chloe," I said bashfully. She chuckled and smoothed out the red skirt to her Little Red Riding Hood costume.

"Thanks, I have to admit it was very last minute. Do you two want something to drink?" She glanced back at the woman in the kitchen and stepped closer to us, lowering her voice. "Sorry there's no alcohol, my mom is home this time, so the party is a little low key."

Ethan shook his head, "it's fine Chloe. I'm alright thank you though."

"I'm okay," I smiled.

"Alright, well you know where the drinks are, you can help yourself. And, um. . . Ethan, can I talk to you for a minute?" Chloe asked softly, chewing on her lip.

"Um," Ethan looked at me in uncertainty, probably feeling just as uncomfortable as she was. "Are you going to be okay? We can always wait for Vera, right Chloe?"

Chloe nodded quickly. I glanced around, trying to see if anyone I even remotely knew was here, but there wasn't anyone around that I recognized. "It's fine, I'm sure Vera will be here soon."

Ethan looked at me with a burning gaze, asking me with his eyes if I was sure. I nodded my head pointedly, and he seemed to be satisfied with that as Chloe began to walk down a hallway that didn't have as many people in it, Ethan following close behind.

Being by myself wasn't too bad, I wandered around Chloe's home as much as I could without being super creepy, looking at all the little decorations on the fireplace mantle and the pictures of a younger Chloe and another older boy. I stepped closer and squinted at a small pumpkin figurine with a malicious grin painted onto the plastic. Once the face appeared to warp and grin even wider, I was quick to move along.

I wasn't alone for long, as Vera and Emma made their appearance, walking through the front door wearing long white dresses with golden accents.

"Ivan!" Vera yelled and rushed over to me, pushing my shoulder playfully.

"Hi Emma, how have you been?" I asked quietly.

"Hey Ivan. I've been real good, your friend treats me right," she giggled, kissing Vera's cheek. "How are you?"

I shrugged. "Alright I guess."

"Where's Ethan? Did he seriously leave you alone? One of these days I'm going to smack him," Vera huffed, crossing her arms as Emma snuck off into the kitchen.

"Please don't," I winced. "He's talking to Chloe."

"Chloe? And why would he be talking to her?" She said, raising an eyebrow.

"I don't know," I sighed. "She's not going after him, Vera. Look-" I quickly glanced around to make sure no one was near, before waving for Vera to follow me, moving us off to the side. "Chloe told me that Ethan likes me. He said that to her face."

Vera's eyes widened comically, the thick black eyeliner making them look even bigger. "No way," she breathed. "Wait, wait- does this mean- you guys are going to get together?" She hurried out, bouncing up and down on her heels.

"I don't know! I've never done this before should I- should I wait for him to ask me? He still doesn't know I like him-" I rambled.

"He still doesn't- what?" Vera shook her head, closing her eyes in frustration. "Ivan. You know that Ethan liked you and you still haven't told him you like him!"

"It's complicated! Okay? Remember the dead friend? Do you seriously think I was going to confess my feelings while he was dealing with the grief? He's in a better place now, but I- I just don't know what to do," I mumbled, staring down at the flattened carpet.

"Listen up, here's what you do. During the party, you do everything you possibly can to let him know that you like him. If that doesn't work, you'll have to go the direct route. So touch his arm a little more, smile at him, laugh at his jokes, grab his junk-"

"Vera!"

"I don't know what men do when they find each other attractive!" She exclaimed, throwing her hands up in defense. "You know what I mean."

"Yeah, okay."

"Good. I don't know what the hell they're talking about, but it's taking way too long for my liking. Let's go play beer pong," she said, storming off and yelling into the kitchen for Emma, who came out with some soda in red solo cups for the both of them.

"We're playing beer pong, and we need your skills," Vera informed her, to which the red head grinned.

~

Vera wasn't lying- Emma did have some incredible beer pong skills. I didn't really understand what was going on, but I knew the two guys Vera and Emma were playing against were struggling to keep up.

"Oh come on, really?" One guy dressed as the killer from Scream complained, the iconic mask stuck to his forehead.

"Go on, big boy. That requires a drink," Vera laughed, high-fiving her girlfriend. The guy just rolled his eyes, taking a sip of his soda. Even though we weren't actually playing with beer in the cups, the competitive nature of everyone made having to take a drink equally as punishing.

"There you are," I heard a voice come from behind me, and I gave Ethan our usual nonchalant greeting. I felt someone burning a hole into the side of my head with their gaze, and I glanced up to see Vera looking at me pointedly. Of course she was actually serious about that conversation we had.

"I- I missed you. . ." I said quietly, looking up at Ethan. He smiled softly and nudged me with his elbow, stepping a little closer so I could hear him over the shouting of people.

"I missed you too. I see you found Vera, and I'm really glad you did. I was nervous about leaving you alone," his dark lashes fluttering as he spoke. We stood close to each other and continued to watch the beer pong match until it ended in a win for Vera and Emma. I started to shiver a little in the cold garage, and of course, Ethan noticed the second I started to do so. He was always observant with things like that in regards to my well-being, so it made me feel especially nauseous keeping such a big secret from him.

"Why don't we go into the backyard? They have a fire pit going and some blankets," he suggested. I nodded, following him out of the garage and through the house, into the backyard where the memories of me vomiting into a bush materialized in my mind. I hoped Ethan wasn't thinking about the same thing.

He led me over to the outdoor couch in front of the fire pit, and the heat instantly warmed me to my core. There wasn't anyone gathered around the fire, the only people outside was a small group throwing bean bags engrossed in some kind of game. I felt Ethan wrap a blanket around our shoulders as we sat for a while, staring at the fire and enjoying each other's presence. Remembering Vera's advice, I scooted closer to Ethan until our legs touched, and I quickly began talking to distract him from what I just did. It was hard enough getting myself to cozy up to him in the first place, I would probably just die if he had brought it up in conversation.

"So, um, what did Chloe want to talk to you about? If you can tell me, of course." I hurried out.

"She apologized. For. . ." He cleared his throat and looked away awkwardly. "Spreading rumors. I'm sure you know the ones."

I nodded slowly. "We didn't do anything. I swear," Ethan said, staring into the fire before looking deep into my eyes.

"I know. She already told me," I smiled reassuringly. Ethan and I continued to sit by the fire as we softly spoke to one another, wrapped up in our own little world where no one else existed and we weren't currently at Chloe's house- maybe in a world where my mind would never lie to me.

"How are your college applications going?" I asked.

He shrugged, leaning back on the bench. "Good enough, I guess. I'm finishing my Harvard application this weekend, but I doubt I'll get in. It's more like wishful thinking, it's just nice to imagine the possibility of getting accepted."

"You're smart. I know you can get in," I nodded resolutely, leaning into his side a little more. His eyes widened momentarily, before smiling gently and glancing down at my lips. I felt my hands shake, my body temperature skyrocketing as I glanced at his lips and back to his face. Was this really happening right now?

We both subconsciously began to inch closer, not quite realizing what we were about to do and the potential consequences of it. I couldn't care less though, not when my mind was filled with Ethan, Ethan, Ethan-

"Hey! We're starting up a movie inside the living room and putting out the fire, so unless you want to freeze to death- get in here!" Chloe yelled from the porch, causing Ethan and I to jump and jerk away from each other. God damn it Chloe.

Ethan stared at the fire and cleared his throat awkwardly, before standing up and offering me his hand. "I guess we're being forced to join, given the other option is dying."

I smiled tightly, taking his hand as he pulled me up. I gathered the blanket up in my arms as I followed Ethan into the house, the living room floor was quickly being filled with bodies of people laying or sitting. There was an empty space next to Vera and Emma, who waved us over and patted the floor beside them.

"There you two are! What were you doing sneaking off?" Vera wiggled her eyebrows, and I playfully smacked her arm, lowering myself onto the ground next to her.

"I'm getting drinks, you guys want anything?" Ethan asked us.

"I'll have a Coke, thanks Ethan," I told him.

"Oh I'll have a Coke too, you wanted a Sprite, right baby?" Vera looked at Emma, who nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah, two Cokes and a Sprite."

We watched Ethan turn around and leave for the kitchen, and of course Vera took that as an opportunity to hound me.

"So? Anything happen? Did you do what I said?" She inched closer to me, leaning forward in interest. Even Emma was peeking around her to listen in.

"Yes, alright? I think we almost kissed in the backyard but Chloe interrupted us," I murmured, glancing nervously to my left to watch out for Ethan's return. Vera gasped, clutching her chest with her hand and pretending to be faint. I rolled my eyes.

"You two are going to be the death of me. I don't know how much more my little heart can take of this," she sighed dramatically.

"Well, you better get that look off your face because Ethan's coming back now," I hissed.

A few seconds later Ethan appeared in front of us, leaning down to pass out our drinks before throwing himself down next to me. Vera was being not so subtle about staring at him arranging the blanket over the both of us, and I was seriously about to beat her up.

"Don't you have a girlfriend to pay attention to," I whispered to her, only to look up and see Emma also not so subtly staring at us.

The lights turned off in the house suddenly and Chloe stood in the middle with the remote, beginning the film and yelling at everyone to be quiet.

That was how the rest of my time at the party went, watching some horror movie with Emma, Vera, and Ethan, who ended up playing with my hair around half way into the movie when we decided laying down was much more comfortable.

As the movie credits were rolling and people began lazily getting up, Ethan pulled out his phone and glanced at the screen before suddenly shooting to his feet.

"Ivan, we gotta go!" He grabbed my bicep and helped haul me to my feet. Vera and Emma looked up at us quickly due to the commotion we were causing.

"Wha- what time is it?" I rushed as we hurried to the front door, yelling some quick goodbyes to Vera, Emma, and Chloe over our shoulder.

"Um, let's just say we have two minutes to get home," he huffed.

We ran down the dark sidewalk until we reached Ethan's car, throwing ourselves into the seats. I was still struggling to get my seatbelt on when Ethan was already on the road- I guess he didn't really care about getting seatbelts on before the car started after all. I texted Mrs. Clarissa and said that we were on our way back, and I let out a breath of relief when she replied that it was okay if we were a few minutes late.

"Mrs. Clarissa said it's okay if we're a little late, you can stop driving like a bat out of hell," I laugh.

Ethan glanced over at me and grinned sheepishly, slowing the car down. I shook my head, an easy smile on my lips as I watched the empty streets. In the reflection of the window, I could see Ethan staring at the side of my face when we stopped at a red light; but when I turned around to look at him, he quickly focused back on the road and attempted to act casual. Even though he totally got caught, I thought it was endearing.

We made it back to my house a few minutes later, Ethan pulling the car up to the curb. There was an awkward beat of silence as we both sat there, neither of us knowing what more we could say. We made eye contact, the intense looks being exchanged between us made me shift uncomfortably. I glanced at the front porch to see Mrs. Clarissa standing there in a grey robe and slippers, waving enthusiastically at us.

"Well. . . I guess I'll see you later?" I asked. Ethan looked a little disappointed.

"Oh, um, yeah. I'll see you later," he replied, looking at me with a strained smile. He had a look on his face like he wanted to say something more, words swimming in his eyes as though he wanted me to understand with just a look- and I hated to let him down, but I just can't understand words that are left unspoken.

"Goodnight, Ethan," I said softly, getting out of the car and closing the door behind me. When I reached the front porch, I turned around to wave at him, and he returned the gesture with a slow wave of his own. I never realized how painful it was to watch Ethan be silenced, and I never wanted to witness it again.

~

These two just can't get their act together. Thank you for the votes and reads, I really appreciate you all sticking with me!