Sinking

recognition

"Troye's having a New Year's party!" The voice in my phone shouted excitedly, my head shifting slightly as I winced.

Tyler had called me around twenty minutes ago, and he'd been rambling to me about how amazing Troye was for all of that time. I didn't mind; I was finally painting again, using my new brushes from Phil, and luckily I was feeling good enough where his loud voice wasn't that big of a distraction since I knew what I was doing.

"Tonight? What time?" I questioned in response. Tyler was now one of the people I could talk to out loud. I'd called him only three days ago once he'd returned home from America, only to ask how the trip had been. Long story short, I had once again had my voice called 'cute', and apparently "quite sexy" in his words, before I explained that it was not a big deal and that it was just me withholding a recognition that I was becoming comfortable around other humans again.

"Well it starts at eight, but you're a friend, so go ahead and come at seven," He explained. "And don't forget Philip."

"Of course," I laughed, lightly dabbing the green paint at the end of my paintbrush onto the half empty canvas in front of me. This was a simple painting I'd only started this morning, a field of flowers, although the technique I was using to achieve this was more interesting than the description of what the painting was.

"Okay, I have to go help set everything up. See you soon, Daniel!" Tyler hung up suddenly, and I rolled my eyes at the use of my whole name.

I set my phone down on the piano and poked my head out of the door, shouting down to Phil where he was most likely eating dinner with my brother. They'd left me alone with my canvas although I hadn't specifically asked for that favor.

"Phil! We need to be at Troye's by seven!"

"What?" He shouted back.

I sighed, setting down my brushes before making my way downstairs. It wasn't worth shouting back and forth just for him to not understand what I was saying. I walked into the kitchen to find my friend sitting on opposite sides of the counter as my brother, both of them holding grilled cheese sandwiches.

"We need to be at Troye's by seven," I repeated as I sat down on the stool next to him.

"Oh, cool," Phil responded, seeming indifferent as he straightened his glasses on his nose before he passed me the plate beneath him. "I made you a sandwich."

Before I could thank him, Adrian spoke up from his place across from me. "Can I come with you to your party?"

I looked at him, furrowing my eyebrows. "It's a senior new years party," I told him slowly, "I do not think it would be a good idea for you to come with. Aren't you spending time with Susie anyway?"

"Yeah, but I thought maybe both of us could go." He stated quietly.

"Sorry, dude," Phil spoke up apologetically, "but a sea of irresponsible drunk seniors cannot afford to be responsible for two freshmen. Especially not on New Year's Eve."

I was relieved when he nodded understandingly; normally my brother was not one to resist throwing fits when something didn't go exactly his way. I sat there for only a few seconds before turning to Phil, wasting no time.

"Come on, it's five, we should get ready," I grabbed his arm and dragged him along beside me. It made sense to give us an hour to get prepared; nearly the entirety of this break had consisted of Phil and I remaining inside, barely doing anything at all. It was quite a good time for us to recharge before we had to go back to school and finish up senior year. I had no idea what I was doing after high school, but it wasn't something I wanted to worry about right now.