SIXTEEN

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   It was almost nine o'clock when Ethan received the text message, worded in all uppercase letters like it was screaming at him.

   PARTY @ BRIAN. BRING BEER.

-Mason

   Ethan wasn't exactly in the mood for a party, but it was Friday night, marking the last school day before Christmas break. It would be weird if Ethan didn't show up. That, and he figured having so much time off school deserved some sort of celebration. Ethan wasn't thrilled about being in a house packed with hormonal teens, but he was itching to get some alcohol in his system.

   If there was one thing Ethan Gray was good at, it was getting irrevocably shit-faced for hours on end. Football practice was about to get a lot more hectic, and Ethan believed he deserved a break before everything went wild.  

   In the midst of styling his hair, Ethan's  ringtone blared through the room. He picked it up, chuckling giddily as he read the caller ID.

   "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you miss me, Van Gogh," he taunted, unable to keep the smile out of his tone.

   He could picture Vincent rolling his eyes on the other end. "I wouldn't be so sure, Gray."

   Ethan chortled. "What's up?"

   "Just calling to let you know I emailed you the final draft of our essay. Check it out when you have the time, will you?"

   This time, Ethan was the one rolling his eyes. "For fuck's sake, Vincent, we're on break. There's no need to be thinking about that right now."

   Vincent blushed, feeling lame. He was thankful Ethan couldn't see him as he chewed at his bottom lip self-consciously. Truth was, Vincent had finished the essay days ago. Only, he was looking for an excuse to ring up Ethan. He'd lost track of how many times he'd second-guessed dialing the boy, deciding in the end that he had nothing—apart from maybe his dignity—to lose. Now, though, he wasn't so sure.  

   "I'll tell you what," Ethan broke the silence, balancing his phone between his shoulder and ear as he applied a bit of hair gel. "There's this party tonight at Brian Theodore's house. I'll pick you up if you can be ready in ten minutes. You down?"

   Vincent clicked his tongue, rolling the thought over in his head. On one hand, this was a great opportunity to spend time with his crush outside of school-related activities. On the other, he really didn't want to waste his night claustrophobic among sweaty bodies that seemed not to know the meaning of personal space. "I think I'll pass," he decided sadly.

   "Are you sure? It'll be fun," Ethan tried, really wanting to see the boy. 

   "I'm okay. But thanks."

   "No worries. I'll see you sometime during break, yeah?"

   Vincent secretly brightened, a grin on his face. "Sure. And Ethan?"

   He hummed in response, fishing out his perfume bottle and drowning himself in the cologne. "Take care of yourself, okay?"

   Ethan halted his movements, arm hovering in midair as he processed the words. Then, a smile graced his young features, feeling significantly happier as he shyly mumbled, "Okay."  

   Vincent hung up, allowing himself to clutch the phone to his chest for a few seconds as he sighed blissfully. Quickly, he sent Macey a text, not expecting a reply—the lucky bitch had left to Dubai with her parents earlier that morning. Then, he heated up leftovers and cuddled up in bed, feeling strangely content and satisfied with his uneventful night.

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