Small Town Boy

Chapter 30

Usually, winter break feels like it's over far too quickly. One day you're opening your Christmas presents, and the next you're back in class. The days merge into each other, and soon enough, it's over.

But not this year. Each day dragged on, and the long, dark nights did nothing to ease the wait. I clearly wasn't the only person in the house who felt this way. The tension hadn't dissipated, and the fact that all five of us were around for almost the entire break only added to it. Dad's office was closed until the new year, so he couldn't even escape under the guise of working. To make matters worse, the weather was awful. Cold, snowing, the winding whistling down the valley, causing the already freezing temperatures to feel even colder. I too was stuck at home, as my friends had either been on vacation or visiting family. 

Eventually, Sofia returned to college. Mom and Dad left the next day for Denver, and a few days later, I was sitting in the passenger's seat of Parker's car on the way to school. I wriggled further into my jacket in a failed attempt to keep warm, as Parker's heater had decided that now was the time to stop working. 

"You know, that was my last winter break as a high school student." Parker sighed as we pulled into the school.

"I know," I mumbled, half of my face buried in the collar of my jacket. "Can't say you finished on a high." 

"Yeah." He nodded. "It's a shame. We always used to have a great time."

"Remember when we went to Florida. That was awesome." I sighed. "Apart from having to stay with Uncle Frank and Aunt Samantha." 

"To be honest, all Floridians suck." Parker grinned. "But the weather is good enough to put up with them for the week." 

"You're not wrong." I agreed. Parker stopped the car, having found a spot that wasn't too far away from the main entrance of the school. I stepped out of the car, then slipped my bag over my shoulder. The snow had stopped, but the sun was still hidden by a sea of eerie gray, and the cold hadn't gone anywhere. I waited for Parker to get out of the car before we trudged through the snow. 

"Is that Evelyn?" Parker asked, pointing towards a girl who'd just gotten out of a car. She was facing away from us, meaning her bright red hair was on full display.

"Um." I paused, looking closer. "I think it is. That's her dad's car." 

"That's a look." Parker chuckled, shaking his head.

"She didn't say anything about dyeing her hair," I added. "Not to me at least." 

Before Parker could respond, a few guys from the football team approached. I quickly looked through the group, on the lookout for any that belonged to the homophobic side of the team. Fortunately, the group was headed up by Aiden, Jasper, and Julian, with Calvin and Matthew just behind them. It wouldn't make sense for Reed and his crew to come up to Parker and I on the first day back, but then again, it didn't really make sense for him to completely lose his shit in the locker room. And yet he still did that.

"How was your break, boys? I swear you both went completely off the radar." Aiden asked, reaching out to shake our hands. Parker and I shared a look before he answered. 

"Interesting." He sighed, unsure of how much he wanted to give away. These guys were our friends, but they weren't Ben or Owen. "Let's just say I'm not going to be racing home from college next year." 

"Oh, was it one of those breaks?" Aiden nodded. Thankfully, it didn't seem like he'd caught on to exactly what Parker was alluding to, although the way Jasper was nodding made it seem like he might have. 

"Yeah, how about you guys?" Parker added quickly. 

"Mine was good," Aiden replied. "Pretty simple, but nice to catch up with the whole family."