It Doesn't Even Matter

Tomorrow

We all head back to Oliver's shortly after because of his curfew, everyone talking about some big incident at the dance where someone got in a super explosive fight. Devin's here too since he's Ryan's boyfriend. I had forgotten about that completely until we were back at the apartment and he was begging Brit in the kitchen not to mention he was an accomplice to whatever crime we committed. Now everyone was watching a movie and it felt like it did before only completely different. It felt like for the first time in years this was exactly where I was meant to be.

"I have to say I was not expecting Max to be the vote to outvote us and make us watch Twilight tonight." Ty says sounding a little butthurt and bored even though he hasn't taken his eyes off the screen since the movie started.

"Yeah you're really disappointed to be watching a movie you own the box set of." Devin sarcastically throws at his brother as Ryan grins pulling him closer.

"So what team are you on anyways Ty, Edward, or Jacob?" I ask him as he continues to stew in the corner.

"Neither, they're both toxic and controlling. Besides this is stupid."

"Says the guy who owns a signed copy of the first book." Ryan adds in even more heat to the delight of his boyfriend.

"God I hate that you two are together."

"No you don't."

"Yes, I really really do." Ty sighs and the room goes silent again until eventually Oliver's phone rings. Memories from the last movie night we had here making everyone tenses up. Jake pauses the TV as Oliver fishes it out of his pocket and we make eye contact. Both of us turning back to look at Oliver.

"It's Sharon." He says finally standing up to leave the room. His parole officer.

"Oh, good." I smile at him relieved and trying to be supportive while Jake presses play on the TV again. The room stays still even after he's left.

"Who's Sharon?" Ryan finally breaks the heavy silence.

"A girl he's been talking to." Jake says thinking faster than me.

"Cool." He's not buying it but he's being respectful about it. I turn around in my seat looking out the doorway Oliver just went through and see from the corner of my eye how uncomfortable both Sofie and Leah are looking. I turn back around again counting the seconds until it stops being just one second and moves way further into the next. One where Oliver isn't coming back.

"I'll be right back." I whisper in Brit's ear standing to leave and find him. I've never liked his apartment like this, the old one or the one we are in now. Too quiet, too much space between us, a door between us. It's fine when I'm with him, but away, away is different. There's too much there. Unspoken things, people from our past even if they aren't here now. I knock on his door and wait, the handle twists and a disheveled hardened Oliver answers it.

"Oh hey," he smiles at me, it's one of his big convincing ones I used to think was real except now I see through it. "I was just coming back to join you guys. I didn't miss any fights did I?"

"No." I put my hand gently on his shoulder moving him a bit forcefully back into the room. "You didn't. What's up, is everything ok?" I finally ask after closing the door behind me. His room is the same as always, bare, almost stale looking if you didn't know him well enough. A clean-made bed looking picked up and put together if you knew him even less. And here standing in the middle of it all is this unkept panicked boy with dark circles under his eyes looking completely out of place in his chaos.

"Yep, just checking in to make sure I was home. Nothing to worry over."

"To... to make sure that you were home, I didn't think they did that anymore?" My eyes can't help glancing down slowly at his leg just to be sure I haven't overlooked something huge. "Are you sure everything is alright?" His face falls to the floor, fists clenched and eyes clearly watery.