Two Weeks in Europe ✓

13

It was the summer before fifth grade that Cas Roux realized he was undeniably, unmistakably, unconditionally in love with his best friend. Okay, perhaps love was a bit of an overstatement. The term "like" would have been a more accurate representation of the feelings Cas harbored for Jamie Douglas. But Cas lived for the romanticized and for the extraordinary, and "love" sounded a lot better in novels than "like" did.

He wasn't sure what it was about Jamie. Cas had moved to the New Jersey suburb that he now called home the summer before starting kindergarten. His rather large mansion was situated in front of a vast orchard, next door to the Douglas house. He had been sitting on the curb while the movers unpacked when he saw Jamie. Jamie had been, at that particular moment in time, attempting to juggle a soccer ball (and failing miserably).

Cas was watching this peculiar blonde boy as he attempted again and again and again to pull off the trick. The boy looked up, piercing green eyes pinning Cas in place. Wow, Cas vaguely thought to himself, He's beautiful. The boy smiled, and Cas frowned slightly, startled by this show of friendliness. In Boston where they had lived before, his father hadn't allowed him to go outside much. Now that Mom was back from the doctor she had been visiting in Canada, though, he had a substantial amount of freedom. The boy strolled over to him.

"I'm James," the boy said with a small smile, for at that time in his life, he was in the habit of introducing himself by his full name. Cas's eyes flicked over James's lightly freckled face and bright smile. He noticed that James's hands were covered in dirt, and his clothes were a fair bit muddy. "Who are you?"

"I'm..." Cas trailed off. The move offered the opportunity for a new beginning. Who was he going to be in New Jersey? Did he even know who he was before that? Cas had taken the question quite literally. James tilted his head, waiting. "I don't really know who I am," Cas admitted at last. "Who really does, anyhow?"

James frowned, his brow crinkling. Cas almost reached up and smoothed it away the way his mom always did to his father, but he held back, sensing that this was not the sort of thing one did to a new acquaintance. "Huh," James said. "That's an interesting thing to say. What's your name, I meant?"

Cas's cheeks flushed slightly. "Caspian Roux."

"Well then, Caspian--"

Cas shook his head, and James paused. "Call me Cas."

James nodded. "Call me Jamie." Cas smiled. "Well then, Cas," Jamie continued his previous thought. "would you like to play soccer with me?"

Cas considered this for a moment. "No," he said at last, the word blunt. He did not, in fact, want to play soccer. Spend time with this intriguing boy, yes. Play a sport, no. Plus, Cas had never really had any friends, and he didn't quite know how to go about a friendship with this Jamie boy. Wasn't he better off alone, reading his books (he was advanced for a kindergartener) and thinking his profound thoughts (he had a great many)?

"Oh," Jamie frowned, looking disappointed. Cas felt a surge of guilt. He had caused that disappointment.

"Wait," Cas called as Jamie turned to go. Cas kicked at the pebbles on the side of the road with one foot as Jamie turned around. "Can you pass along an invitation to lunch from my mom?" Jamie nodded. Cas gave him a half smile before walking up to his new house. His mom had instructed him to invite anyone he met over for lunch (she was determined to make new friends) and Cas was proud of himself for fulfilling her wishes.

"Caspian! Where were you?" asked a sharp voice as Cas stepped into the entrance hall.

Cas flinched at the sound of his name on his father's tongue. Cas did not, in fact, hate it when people said his name because he disliked it. The deep-rooted loathing came from his father, who refused to call him anything but "Caspian." Cas had far too many negative memories associated with the name, and hearing someone say it reminded him of the times his father had snapped it, before lashing out at him. "Outside," he replied sullenly.