Intermission // Van McCann

21. Happy

At 2:30 PM, Bondy got ready for his meeting. He was overwhelmed by everything ever since coming back and didn't think to dress a little nicer for the meeting but Iván had him covered. He still had the clothes Bondy and Van wore to the 80s prom from hell so he picked out a white dress shirt with black trousers.

"Thank you, Iván," Bondy said, tying his tie in front of Iván's mirror and smoothing out his tucked-in shirt. I could see Bondy wondering what to do about his hair which was flattened by his hat.

"There's no hope for your hair. Just go. Hopefully the stain on your shirt will draw their attention away from your hair," Iván stated bluntly. It was obvious he was upset about that stain not coming out. Bondy's eyes immediately went down to his shirt to find the light pink stain and he laughed.

"Luckily it's on the side. I remember drinking punch that night and I spilled some on my shirt when I saw Ren and Van stepping on hot lava," Bondy stated, laughing at the memory.

My cheeks immediately turned pink. I'm an awful dancer and there's no use denying it. Van on the other hand is proud of his dance moves even though he's not the best. As long as he's with good company and having fun, he doesn't care what others think and I admire him for that confidence.

"The both of you better rehearse your first dance. You bet I'll be recording that shit and playing it every chance I get," Bondy continued, winking to show he didn't really mean it but he did at the same time.

"Ren, can we rescind Bondy's invite?" Van teased.

"You think you can escape me? I'll be Leigha's plus one."

Van burst into laughter. "I remember that awful dress you wore, Ren," Van continued.

"Hey!" Iván shouted defensively.

Van backtracked. "Did I say awful? I meant awfully beautiful dress you wore! It was great at keeping the boys away but fucking Michael wouldn't leave you alone!"

The memory of Michael came back and I began laughing. Van thought he was being smart telling Michael I wasn't with anyone but that ended up backfiring as he got a bit jealous that he wouldn't leave me alone. I remember he told me that was when he realized he had some feelings for me. I began smiling at the memory of how far we've come.

Bondy began chuckling. "I remember when you told me—"

"Bondy, don't you have a meeting to go to?" Van asked, cutting him off. It was obvious he didn't want Bondy to finish his sentence and now I was curious. Bondy glanced at the clock and saw he only had ten minutes until his meeting.

"You're right! I better get going," Bondy said quickly as he grabbed his stuff and headed out the door. "Sinnabit!" Van watched Bondy head out and then he turned his attention back to me.

"What was he going to say?" I questioned, wasting no time.

Van lowered his gaze and began scratching his head out of nervousness. "It's nowt."

He was embarrassed which didn't help my curiosity at all. If he wasn't going to tell me, I'll for sure ask Bondy. Van seemed to read my mind as he finally met my gaze.

"Um...after work that day, Bondy and I went to the pub for a few drinks. I might've said some things." I continued to stare at Van, wanting him to elaborate and I could see him wavering. He sighed and continued. "I...I might've told him I didn't like the way Michael looked at you." I smiled and opened my mouth to speak but Van continued. "And only you can pull off that bloody dress—but my God—there's no excuse for that dress."

"That's the 80s for you," Iván interjected.

"Aww, that wasn't so hard to admit, was it?" I teased, wrapping my arms around Van's torso to bring him closer. I could see Van frowning.