Taylor didn’t know how luck had shone on him, but Will was an angel sent from the sky.
Will seemed to be controlling the flow of the conversation.
He cracked jokes, and not only that…
Every time Megan tried to send little signals to him under the table, Will was one step ahead. He grabbed his hand, pulled him close, and even when she tried to play footsies under the table, Taylor was pretty sure Will kicked her a little.
On Will’s side, he knew how to be charming and approachable. On his mom’s side of the family, they were all lawyers, and on his dad’s side, everyone was in the army or law enforcement. Will liked to believe he could make small talk without revealing too much about himself.
Will and Morgan laughed with each other, and Will tried to study Morgan in the best way he knew—by flirting.
Another thing Will liked to believe was that a little flirting didn’t hurt anyone (yet).
After everything Will had seen Megan do right under her oblivious boyfriend’s nose,
he no longer knew who to feel sorry for more.
He tried to keep the conversation light and flowing,
but the only ones actually talking were him and Morgan.
For some reason, Taylor and Megan seemed completely disconnected from the conversation.
Taylor, feeling a little lost,
let himself drift into his thoughts, only to snap back when he felt a nudge from the side.
He looked straight at Will, who gave him a questioning look.
Taylor raised his eyebrows in confusion. Feeling another pair of eyes on him, he turned to his side and found Morgan giving him the same look.
"Sorry, what was it again?" he asked, a little embarrassed.
"How did you two meet?" Will repeated, an amused look on his face as he pointed between Taylor and Morgan.
"In middle school," Taylor replied in a sharp tone.
It seemed like Will was waiting for a longer reply, but Taylor did not know how to give one—it felt like he had forgotten how to speak.
"That’s it?" Will asked, another question that Taylor suddenly found difficult to answer.
Morgan noticed Taylor was struggling.
"Tay, you’re telling it wrong. Will, let me tell you," Morgan said, coming to the rescue.
Will looked back at Morgan, leaning forward, all ears.
Just before Morgan could start talking, one of the workers approached the table. Will recognized him as the one who had given him the milkshake.
The worker was holding a plastic cup with a brown beverage in his hand. He stopped in front of Will and placed it on his side of the table, staring directly at him.
Taylor recognized the worker from school—and not in a good way. He was one of the scary ones, the kind who smoked out front and picked fights with other kids.
The worker rubbed the back of his neck and said to Will,
"I know the store has different opinions on what counts as an essential drink choice."
He looked directly at Taylor, making him shift awkwardly in his chair.
"I felt bad watching your drink spill after you barely got a sip," he continued, still staring at Taylor.
A flashback of the spill jumped into Taylor’s mind, making him blush with embarrassment—just one more thing to add to the pile.
"I felt worse that I had to clean everything," he continued, still looking at him.
Taylor buried his flushed face in his hands. "Sorry, I'm so sorry," he said in a muffled voice through his fingers.
The three of them were amused by Taylor's embarrassment.
"Anyway," the worker said, seeming to accept Taylor's apology with a slight nod.
"This," he pointed at the cup, "is on the house. I hope you see it as a peace offering for what I said earlier."
Will raised his cup in a gesture of cheers, accepting the offer. "Thanks, Brian."
The worker smiled at him. "You are welcome, Will," he said, then turned and headed back to work.
"How do you know him?" Taylor asked with curiosity.
Will looked at her. "You know, it's what's written on his tag, and you have to give your name when placing an order," he said as if it was the most obvious thing ever.
Will noticed that Megan didn't seem to like him much. She and Morgan were whispering, and it looked like she wanted to leave, but her boyfriend was trying to convince her to stay a little longer with sweet words.
He really wanted to push her to the edge. He didn’t like what she was doing—what she was doing to Taylor and Morgan, to their friendship. It was irritating him.
If this had been his old city, with his old friends, they would have gathered around the backstabbing, cheating B, and put her on the spot, making sure she never did that to anyone again.
This was one of the downsides of the crazy new city he found himself in.
He really missed them. Will didn’t know how he could manage without those late-night sleepovers with his best friend. When they lived in the same neighborhood, it was a given to have sleepovers as often as possible.
Will’s radar started to light up. He had a general idea of what he should do, but he just needed to be one hundred percent sure of his feelings.
He rested his elbow on the table to support his chin, put a smile on his face, and started. "You know, Morgan, I think it’s wonderful how open-minded you are about me and Tay," using the special nickname Morgan had given Taylor.
Morgan laughed shyly. "For me, Tay will always be Tay," he said, giving Taylor an encouraging look. Taylor felt his heart warm and mimicked the look.
Will tried to read all the vibes that shifted in the split second. Quietly, he took a sip from his drink.
By the time Will finished half the drink, he had come to a conclusion, lost in thought about how he should proceed from here. Helping a complete stranger meant he was on borrowed time. He knew he needed to think of a quick solution. He set aside the idea of confronting him here and now—it was too risky and would make Taylor uncomfortable.
To ask straight out was also out of the question—it would make Morgan uncomfortable and, for sure, aggravate Megan. He needed to be vague, maybe add a touch of sarcasm to it.
"Penny for your thoughts?" Taylor turned to Will, bringing him back to the present. He needed his safety net.
Locking eyes, Will decided to go for it. Either way, he wouldn’t have to deal with the consequences tomorrow.
"Just some thoughts."
"Want to share?" Megan asked, which brought a smile to Will’s face.
"I was thinking about you," he said, looking directly at Morgan.
Morgan shifted excitedly in his chair. "What? You can tell me!" He reminded Will of an eager puppy.
"OK, but don’t take it the wrong way. I’m only saying this because you’re open-minded," Will said.
Morgan nodded in agreement.
"I believe I’m a good judge of character. I’ve observed you, and I get the feeling you’d be perfect for one of my friends. I mean, because you’re so open-minded," Will continued, saying it with a serious tone, not a hint of humor, and offering an apology afterward.
He noticed that everyone at the table was silent, mouths open in surprise, as he continued.
Most of them knew him from school, aware of his reputation and the relationship between Morgan and Megan.
"I really believe you and Daniel would be a perfect match. Think about it, Daniel is such a caring man with a big heart, and I think it would be a benefit for both of you," Will finished, then took another sip of his drink.
Taylor was the first to snap out of his daze.
"Did you all hear about the dog that was on the news yesterday?" Taylor blurted out, the first thing that came to his mind to change the subject.
All eyes turned to him, and he continued, "Apparently, this dog saved a squirrel from drowning, and… and the camera caught it! The dog swam to the squirrel, who was struggling to stay afloat, and the moment the squirrel saw the dog, it jumped onto its head. The dog then swam back to the shore with the squirrel!" he finished, speaking quickly.
Everyone remained silent, staring at Taylor.
"And now, the dog and the squirrel are best friends," Taylor added in a quieter voice.
"Sounds like a children's book," Will responded, amused by Taylor's response.
Taylor nodded, relieved that he had successfully shifted the topic.
"At the end of the article, they both wore the same vest," he added.
This made Will laugh. "I love videos about unique friendships between animals. They give me a good feeling about society."
At the entrance of the shop, a child with a baseball cap worn backward scanned the place, looking around before walking over to their table.
She stood with raised eyebrows, studying the four of them, and finally locked eyes with Will. The child shook her head in disagreement.
"Hey, Alex, what brings you here?" Will said, addressing his sister.
Alex's hair was tucked under her cap, and she was dressed like a tomboy — which often made people assume she was a boy at first glance.
Not letting anyone at the table bother her, Alex crossed her arms and said,
"Mom sent me to tell you — and I am quoting — 'Go to your brother and tell him to fluffy finish his fluffy errands, so we fluffy can get in the fluffy car and hit the fluffy road.'"
She made air quotes every time she said "fluffy."
"Oh... fluffy..." Will said slowly, as if the word had just triggered a memory.
"I almost forgot about that."
"Yeah… Mom and our little Olaf are in the car, and he is reciting Frozen," Alex said, her lips pressed into a thin line.
Will turned to Taylor with an apologetic smile.
"I guess I have to go."
"Oh… what a shame," Megan said in a sarcastic tone. "We hardly had any time to spend with you."
Will stood up, mirroring her fake-considerate expression as he placed a hand dramatically over his heart.
"Oh… I can almost believe you."
She responded with a smile just as fake.
From what Will had seen so far, he could tell Megan was one of those people who did not like being talked back to.
Well, life is hard. Sometimes, you just have to deal with it.
"So… I have to go. It was very interesting to meet you," Will said to Morgan, flashing a polite smile.
"Ditto," Morgan laughed. "I hope we get to hang out again soon."
Do not hold your breath.
"Don’t hold your breath," Alex muttered under her breath, just loud enough for Will to hear.
Will held back a smile. DNA sure is amazing.
Will placed a protective arm around Alex, and the two of them began making their way toward the exit.
"Let me walk you out," Taylor said, jumping up to join them, keeping his distance from Megan.
"Let’s all go," Morgan said in a cheerful tone.
Alex gave Will a questioning look.
On their way out, as Will passed by Brian, he gave him a final nod of thanks.
"Are you in some sort of distress?" Alex whispered to Will as they walked through the parking lot, glancing back at the tall trio behind them.
"Give your brother more credit," he whispered back.
Will stopped and turned to face them.
"I guess this is it. We part ways here."
Taylor stared at him, eyes wide.
Morgan looked at Taylor and Will like he was expecting something, giving them a strange, curious glance.
Will noticed it and took the hint, stepping closer to Taylor.
He rose slightly onto the tips of his shoes and wrapped an arm around Taylor’s shoulders.
For a second, Taylor didn’t know what to do. Will whispered in his ear, “Hug me.”
Taylor hesitated for a moment, then obeyed, wrapping his arms around him. It felt unbelievable to bond with someone he’d just met today. He squeezed Will a little harder than he expected, the warmth of the embrace surprising him.
His insecurity never let him do that.
"You should tell him," Will whispered again.
"What?" Taylor said lowly, still unsure of what Will meant.
"Tell him and let go," Will replied softly.
"Are... are you sure?" Taylor hesitated, feeling a lump in his throat.
"Yeah, you should let go. My mum is waiting," Will said, and Taylor noticed that Will had already released his arms from the hug.
Not giving him much of a choice, Taylor let go of Will, his heart feeling like a child being told he couldn’t have one last piece of candy. He looked heartbroken, his expression quiet and resigned.
Will mouthed without sound, "Tell him."
"AL... let's go," Will said to his sister.
"Goodbye!" Alex said, waving to the three of them. Morgan waved back, a little too enthusiastically.
As Will and Alex walked toward their mom’s car, Alex broke the silence with a quiet question.
"So, how did that happen?"
Will glanced over at her, raising an eyebrow. "I don’t know what you’re talking about."
Alex shot him a look of curiosity. "How come you found this boy?"
Will let out a small sigh, thinking for a moment. "To tell you the truth, he found me, and he asked me to do him a favor."
Alex stopped in her tracks and gave him a skeptical look from below.
"Hey… don’t think about anything weird. Where did mum park?" he asked.
"Two rows on the right," Alex replied, and they both turned in the direction she pointed.
"So, what kind of favor did he ask you?" Alex asked curiously.
"Save something for dinner," Will said jokingly.
"Is this appropriate for dinner?" Alex said sarcastically.
"OMG, what are you thinking about your big brother?" Will teased her.
They arrived at the car, and Will opened the back door for Alex. After she was safely buckled up, he got into the front seat.
"What took you so long?" their mum asked when Will fastened his seatbelt.
"Your older son has been lured by a stranger," Alex said.
"WHAT?" Their mum looked back at Alex, then back to Will, and then back at the road.
"Don't worry, it's not as bad as it sounds," Will defended himself.
"And besides, I was planning to tell you over dinner."
She looked at him through narrow eyes. "Looking forward to it," she said while directing the car out of the parking lot.
In the back of the car sat Alex on one side and their younger brother, Oliver, a sweet little five-year-old, shaking his head to the rhythm of the songs he sang to himself.
"What about you? Did you find everything?" Will asked his mum.
"Almost. I bought some clothes for all of us, I got us an early dinner, and I guess we still need to stop at the hardwood store," she said.
"Ok, tell me when, and I will come with you. I think I want to upgrade my desk, for work and school," Will told her.
"Sure, on the bright side, I found a babysitter, so it will help us when I have to stay in the office and you need to work on your part-time job, and of course, when you get together with Daniel and the others," she told him.
Will glanced at his mum, a smile spreading on his face.
He felt his heart warm up, feeling lucky and happy that his mum understood the need to reunite with his childhood friends.
"Thanks, I really don’t know how I'm going to get through high school. I'm so used to my friends, and I don’t know if I'll fit in a new location, a new environment," Will said, feeling his mood sinking.
His mum ruffled his hair, and they spent the rest of the drive listening to Oliver sing the last part of Frozen.
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