Stress Reliever //// {TreeBros}

dix-sept

I don't know any French. I just got the numbers off of a pic I saw on Pinterest. Please tell me if I'm getting these wrong bc I don't second check.
-----------------------------------------

They found themselves laying on the same hotel bed in the middle of Illinois, scrolling through their phones as they both absentmindedly pet the small orange kitten they had to smuggle in (again.) Connor was looking at memes he'd found on his Instagram explore page, laughing at one every now and then. Evan was scrolling through his missed calls list. 257 missed calls from his mother.

God, that really put a bad feeling in his stomach.

He was definitely getting grounded when he came home, there was no doubt about it. He was going to lose everything he enjoyed, any privileges he once had, and probably anything and everything else he had left when it was all over with. Heidi Hansen may be a sweet and loving mother, but when she grounds her child, she makes sure it's worth it.

"Take a guess of how many times my mom called," Evan looked over at Connor, their eyes meeting.

"Umm, 300," Connor guessed.

"Close, 257."

Connor laughed, "Holy shit, that's crazy."

Evan couldn't help but laugh a little with him. Even in the worst situation or mindset, Connor somehow always knew how to make him feel good again without even trying. Evan swore he was a wizard.

"I think I'm going to call her back. Maybe she won't be as mad if she finds out I'm still alive," Evan clicked a few buttons before hesitating, looking up at Connor with a look in his eyes he couldn't quite decipher. Evan felt the air return to his lungs when Connor reached over and laced their fingers together, a bright blush dusting his cheeks.

Evan took in a couple breaths to pump himself up, then pressed the call button. Oh Lord, this wasn't going to be good.

It only took two and a half rings for Heidi to pick up, quickly saying, "Hello? Evan? Baby is that you?"

Tears sprang to his eyes at the sound of his mother's voice. He didn't even realize how much he had missed her until now. How had he gotten this far without her?

"Hi Mama," he whispered, feeling himself shake.

"Honey, where are you?" Her voice was strained and he could tell she was trying not to cry.

Evan scooted over to lay into Connor's side, not really even noticing what he was doing. He felt himself slip into a vulnerable state of mind. He hadn't been there since he was about seven when his dad left, but he knew how degrading it was to be there.

Connor didn't really seem to mind, though. He just wrapped his arm around the small of Evan's back encouragingly.

"Illinois," He said quietly.

The other end was dead quiet despite the distant sound of heart monitors beeping. Heidi was at work. Evan was surprised she even picked up.

"Illinois," she said finally, sounding completely drained.

It was Evan's turn to stay quiet this time. He didn't know what to say. Anything he did say would definitely dig him much deeper than he already was.

"When are you coming home?"

Evan didn't know. The internet said just an hour under two days, but it had already been three and they were only in Illinois. Not even halfway where they need to be.

"I'm not sure. A week or two, maybe." Evan ran a sweaty hand through his already messy hair.

"So you're coming home?" Heidi asked hopefully.

Evan furrowed his eyebrows together. "Of course I'm coming home, why wouldn't I?"

Heidi let out a shaky breath, "I just thought you were leaving and not coming back." She choked back a sob quietly, "I miss you so much."

Evan let a tear slip down his cheek, not bothering to wipe it away. "I miss you too, Mom."

"You promise to stay safe for me, okay. Don't hurt my little boy." They were both crying at this point, tears streaming down Evan's face like a waterfall. Regret was the only thing he could feel right now. Was it really too late to turn back?

"I will, I promise." The familiar sound of his mother being paged to go back to work sounded in the background.

"I gotta go back to work, I'm sorry. I love you, okay? I love you so much and I want you to come home. Please come home, baby."

"Okay...I love you too."

"Bye, honey."

"Bye."

Evan felt completely and utterly numb as he heard the three beeps to signal she had hung up. He let the phone slip from his hand, but didn't move any more than that.

"You gonna be okay?" Connor asked, squeezing his hand.

"Yeah, I'll be fine. I just...I just wanna sleep." Evan put his head in his hand, not letting go of Connor's.

"Alright," Connor picked up Nico and set him on the pillow so he could move the blanket. "Do you want me to stay here or go over there?" He asked, motioning to the other bed.

"Stay," Evan mumbled, fixing his body so he was comfortable. Connor came up behind him and slipped an arm over his waist.

"Goodnight, Evan," Connor said, leaning over to click the lamp off, leaving them in nothing but the moonlight.

"Goodnight, Connor."

-----------------------------------------
This is 999 words below my minimum word count. Flip that upside down and you get 666. Which means everybody that has read this story is going to hell.

I finished writing the climax/ending of this book and I'm sure you're all not gonna be too pleased.

The bruise on my leg hurts help me