Connor leaned forward, without a second of hesitation. His mind was not functioning properly, what with the strong sense of joy he felt when he heard Evan utter his name. He couldn't contain his excitement, as he wrapped his arms around Evan, pressing his head against his shoulders, afraid to let go.

He felt so much hope returning to him, the most happy he has felt in a very long time. He could not believe that Evan was alive and breathing in his arms. He could not believe that he could spend more time with Evan, listening to him talk about forestry, seeing him sketch adorable drawings, feeling his excited hugs every morning before classes start as if it were an unspoken ritual.

Connor just could not believe it, so he cried. He felt warms tears flowing down his cheeks, a mix between a frown and a smile on his face as he could not bare to hold back any more emotions.

Zoe, upon seeing Connor hugging Evan tightly, felt herself tear up again. She smiled to herself, feeling her tears flowing down her cheeks. She also felt so very happy for Connor, to have his lover back, and to have her own friend back.

Evan was shocked by the sudden hug, immediately as he awoken. He felt his eyes jolt open, his body being hugged back Connor quite strongly. He expected himself to question his actions, he expected himself to just hug Connor back out of surprise.

Instead, he felt his arms press against Connor's chest, abruptly pushing Connor away. Evan's breath quickened, as he felt himself lean against the strong and firm wood pressing against his back. He felt all of his emotions of despair drag him back into his skeptical nature, to doubt everything that Connor was doing.

Connor, absolutely surprised by Evan's rejection, leaned back, noticing how on edge Evan had been about Connor's presence in front of him. He scanned his body, searching for signs that allowed him to lean forward and calm him down, only to discover that Evan showed no signs of relenting his distrust.

Connor backed off.

He moved back a little, hearing the grass shuffle under him. He recognised the look of distrust. It was the same look Evan gave Connor right before he had ran off. He understood that Evan was going through his own problems, and decided that he should be careful about his next actions.

Zoe noticed that Connor had backed off, and followed. As much as Zoe hated to admit it, Connor knew how to handle others better than she ever could. He knew when was too much, which is why he could even be in the house at all. If he did not, he would have been kicked out by Larry without a second thought. She quietly followed Connor's unspoken instruction, moving away from Evan.

All that was between Connor and Evan was silence.

The quiet breeze allowing the leaves around them to dance, creating a symphony of tranquility, opposing the strong sense of tension between the two. Evan was catious of Connor, scanning him for any signs of hate and anger, only to discover neither. He held a completely calm expression, almost making Evan feel as if he was urging Evan to talk.

"So?" Evan called out, absolutely aggressive with his tone. He gave Connor a deadly tone, which only added barbed wire to the minefield that was Connor's decisions to approach this situation. He continued staring at Evan, who still sat on the grass quietly, gripping at his arm. He held a discomforting expression, as if expecting a different outcome than what he had expected.

"Y-You want to leave, don't you? Well then, leave! I don't mind!"

Connor could hear the sadness in his voice, and immediately felt his brows furrowing. He scanned Evan's face, choosing his next words carefully and changing his tone accordingly.

"I'm not going to leave you, Evan."

Evan had a sarcastic grin, thinking that Connor had been lying through his teeth. He scoffed at Connor, looking away and distrusting everything Connor could say. This troubled Connor further, as he assessed the situation and found that convincing Evan would take a long time. After all, his heart has been broken by Connor, even if it had not been intentional.

"R-Right, I totally believe you."

Connor frowned, hearing the obvious sarcastic tone in his voice. He gripped on to the grass, in an attempt to hide his sense of anger and pain. Hearing those words destroyed him, but he needed to get through this peacefully.

"I'm serious, Evan."

Evan turned to Connor, glaring at him. His irises searched Connor's face once more, trying to find any undertones of lying, but he could not find it. Connor had been as sincere as he had always been, and that terrified Evan.

He could not believe that Connor was this good at lying.

Connor scanned Evan, absolutely confused to no end. He searched his entire body with his eyes. His arms, his legs, his shirt. He glanced at the grass surrounding the boy, only to find something very suspicious that he could not solve.

There was not a drop of blood.

In fact, Evan did not seem injured in any way possible. He held onto his arm, but it was not because he was injured. Rather, he held onto his arm because he was nervous. His legs did not seem damaged either. In fact, Evan pushed Connor away with his arms and then backed away using his legs, without any sign of flinching.

In fact, the peaceful grass surrounding them both did not seem to be painted with blood at all.

He frowned, attempting to scan Evan's face for an explanation, but to no avail. Evan had been on edge. Any evidence had been erased due to this tension in his body.

Connor then stared into Evan's eyes once more, making the other nervous.

"Right, a-and I'm suppose to believe you?"

Evan stared into Connor's eyes, and he felt sick. He loved those eyes so damn much, it disappointed him to leave them for good. He loved his clear blue eyes, with a slight brown streak on his right. It only made the beautiful crystal blue sparkle even more.

He shook of his thoughts, and leaned onto the wood. He submerged his body in the shadows, leaving only his shoes under the moonlight. He glanced up at the tree, expecting himself to realise what he tried to do.

Zoe could not say anything that could help this situation. She hated that she could not do anything, but she willed herself to stay silent. Although this is something she should be working through with them, she felt that they should work it out between themselves. Even if she were to speak, she could not think of anything that would be helpful. She gritted her teeth, absolutely angered that she could not even help Connor solve this situation.

"Do you want a break from me?"

Evan's eyes widened out of shock, a strict distaste for that sentence. It was the most incorrect sentence he has ever heard in his entire life. He glanced back and Connor, noticing that his expression has softened. Evan could not help but hear the sadness in his voice, and that only guilt-tripped him into rethinking his actions.

He held his troubled expression, replying to Connor.

"O-Of course not!"

Connor chose his words carefully, trying his best not to escalate the situation any further.

"Then, why this?"

Evan stared at Connor, bewildered by his words. Connor was right, and that terrified him. If Evan had felt anxious about Connor's break up confession, why did he not just talk to him about it.

Ah, that's right.

Evan is an anxious mess who can't do anything right. He lied to all of his friends, even though they opened up to him. He pushed them away, when they tried to help him through his problems. In fact, he was the one who has been acting idiotic.

Connor read his troubled expression, and thought of an idea. It was stupid, it was the opposite of what he wanted. In fact, he dreaded saying this idea out loud, but he felt that it was the right choice. He was rethinking it over and over again, trying to find some other solution, but to no avail.

He took a deep breath, absolutely unwilling to say the following words. He felt his lips quiver, his tongue twitching. He could not say it comfortably at all, but he willed himself to.

"Maybe…" he gulped, terrified to continue, "maybe we should take a break."

Zoe felt her eyes widen, almost immediately after Connor said those words. It came as a surprise to Zoe, especially in this situation. She threw her stare in Connor's direction, as if expecting Connor to explain himself. Connor noticed this stare, and stared back. Zoe noticed the sadness in his eyes, and immediately understood the pain that he was in, even just by saying that sentence. She understood his intentions and turned back to Evan.

Evan felt his heart hurt. No, not because he realise that Connor wanted to break up with him, but rather…

…he heard the absolutely pain in his voice as he said that.

He heard the pain behind each and every syllable, emphasised each time he muttered a word out. He could practically feel Connor's beating heart, palpitating faster and faster in his chest, in his head as he uttered those words.

His expression soften, glancing back and Connor once again. Evan realised that Connor was right. Evan needed time to sort out his own emotions. He needed to handle his own frantic emotions first. It was not exactly fun to hear Connor writhing in pain, but he completely agreed with Connor.

Mustering as much confidence as possible, Evan met Connor's eyes again.

He himself felt his heart ache, just by thinking of nodding. He gripped at the grass, attempting to hold onto something that could support him through this.

"I-I…yeah, m-maybe we should…" Evan replied. Hearing it out loud hurt him more than hearing it in his head. The fact that they were in such a tranquil location, and yet hold such tension between each other is absolutely mind boggling.

"…i-is that okay with you?"

Connor, although absolutely disagreeing right from the moment Evan uttered the words breakup in his room, decided to agree. He nodded, knowing that Evan needed his space. He knew that he needed to give him that space.

Evan felt the cold breeze against his skin, which made him uncomfortable. He couldn't bare the silence between them, the lack of words.

Zoe could only watch, feeling her tense shoulders slumped in defeat. She sighed, a little disappointed that they were going to seperate themselves for a while. It was good to know that they were not going to split up forever, though.

"…I'm sorry, Connor."

He noticed that Connor had been looking down, seemingly defeated. He seemed a little sadder, emotionally distraught. He could only imagine the amount of sadness he felt.

"It's fine," Connor muttered, looking back up at Evan, "you need your space."

"N-No, not that."

Connor hung his head once more, feeling his nose sour and tears threatening to fall. He kept quiet, urging Evan to continue with his apparent apology. Evan took note of his silence, and continued.

"I'm sorry…for e-everything. I should have been more o-open with myself."

Connor continued looking down, unsure of what to respond with. He felt as if though he had made the wrong choice of splitting up, and yet he felt like it was the best choice. Perhaps he himself needed some alone, to sort out his own feelings about this situation.

"I-I…I love you, Connor."

Connor glanced at Evan, feeling tears blur his vision. He looked upwards, attempting to stop his tears from flowing down, but to no avail. His tears quickly rolled down his cheeks. He looked at Evan, and gave him the best smile he could muster.

"I love you too."