The day after the funeral, Lance woke up, still in his tuxedo, to find Everett all suited up and reasy to go out. "Everett? Where are you headed?"
"Today's Emmet's little sister's birthday, and his family invited me to go to the orchard with him!"
Lance frowned. "I thought you'd want to take today do yourself after how tiring last night wa-"
"I'm not tired at ALL, Dad!" Everett assured. "Now, Donald will be here in five, so can I PLEASE get ready?"
Donald. The police chief who Lancelot had yelled at was coming over. Shit.
"Fine." Lancelot rubbed his temples. "Just come back by the time the Super Bowl comes on. We watch it together every year."
"Got it, Dad!"
"You come here often?"
Everett shook his head. The boys had been discussing lots of things together, from Everett's upcoming baseball game to Emmett's performance of Grease. "I've never been here before; my parents used to take me to the zoo all the time as a kid, though."
"We were going to go there, but my mom insisted on picking some more fresh fruit." Emmett smirked. "You're looking pretty cut-"
"Emmett?"
"AAH!" Both of the boys jumped. "LUCY!"
Emmett's little sister Lucy peeked from the orchard, confused. "Stop standing around and come pick some fruit!"
"Coming!"
"Sorry about that." Emmet rolled his eyes. "My sister's really nosy."
Everett laughed nervously. "It's no issue. Ready for the orchards? I heard they have amazing fruit here."
"Definitely. But before that..."
"...I found this for you."
Everett's face turned beet red.
"My mom and I went to the florist, and they gave us a free rose." He tucked the rose into Everett's shirt. "Here you go, Rosebud."
"T-thanks..." Everett's voice shook with gratitude. He felt like he was going to faint in the best way possible.
Meanwhile, while the boys were at the orchard, the 5k team was beginning to prepare for their race coming up, running outside on trails and working out at the gym.
"Come on, Teo!" Aurora panted, jogging her third mile. "We've got to do this- for Mom!"
"Yeah... for Emilie." Teo wheezed behind her, his face full of exhaustion.
And Everett came back just in time to watch the Super Bowl with his family, still red from what happened with Emmett, the rose still hidden in his pocket.
He went to bed in a daze, and Lancelot was more worried than ever. "Tones, do you think that Rett is... okay?"
"Okay? What do you mean, is there something up with him?"
"He's not spending as much time at home lately, he's always up in his head, he's been working out more and hanging out with Donald's family more..." Lancelot's face turned white.
"...Toni. Do you think Everett knows something about my mom that we don't...?"
Toni stared at Lancelot as if he had grown two heads. "Lancelot. Come on now."
"I'm SERIOUS! What if he has info?"
"He barely KNEW his grandmother, let alone a thing about her death. Maybe old age really is getting to you." Toni's face softened. "You're letting this whole incident get to you, Lancelot. Fitness Fest is on Monday- why don't you take a day to yourself and relax a bit?"
"But Everett's baseball game-" His final one a a teenager."
"You really need to calm down. Aurora just lost her mom- she can't lose you next."
"Yeah. Maybe." But despite Toni's assurance, Lancelot was still concerned.
Adhering to Toni's demands advice, Lancelot was off to the lake to swim the following day, and despite the peace he got while working out, he was still feeling anxious about Everett.
He would have loved being here, in the water on this nice, warm day. I really need to have a true conversation with him when he gets back from the game.
While his father was at Gibbi Point, Everett had his final baseball game as a teenager- his senior night.
"Everett!" Everett's friend Sebastian, also on the same baseball ream, ran over to him. "Congrats on senior night, man! WE DID IT!"
"Thanks, Seb." Everett smiled.
"Where's Emmett? I thought he'd be cheering you on."
"He has practice for Grease tomorrow. Hey, Sebastian?" An idea came to Everett. "Do you know where I could get any flowers? Because Emmett gave me a rose and-"
Whoops.
"He gave you WHAT?!"
"SHHHHH!" Everett shoved Sebastian away. "Not in front of the others!"
"Wait, wait, wait." Sebastian was processing this revelation. "So if he gave you a rose, and roses are the flower of love, does that mean you two are..."
"It's not official!" That was true, but it was starting to feel like a lie the way Emmett acted around him.
"It's okay to be gay, you know."
"I'm not gay!"
"Well, you clearly aren't straight. Are you bi?"
"NO! Well, I don't know."
"Pan?"
"No...?"
"Omnisexual?"
"I DON'T-" Everett went silent. "I don't know what I am, Sebastian. THAT'S the problem. And I can't tell my parents about this, I just can't-"
"Well, they're going to know eventually, so why not rip the band-aid now?"
Everett felt himself turning red again. "I have to go."
"Everett, wait, I'm sorry-"
But Everett was already gone.
"Hey, Dad." Everett slumped on the couch, exhausted. It was pitch dark outside.
"Happy senior night, Ev!" Lancelot was alone in the house; Toni had gone out with friends. "Did you all win your game?"
"Yeah- it was a blowout." Everett grinned. "I got 4 runs."
"Congrats! I'm sorry I couldn't make it- I had a gig." Lancelot lied.
"I was hoping we could do something special tomorrow night- just the two of us. We could go to the zo- you used to love that place as a toddler! Or, the ice cream shop I took you to as a kiddo."
Everett shook his head no. "Sorry, Dad. I have to watch Grease, remember? I need to go back to the school."
Lancelot looked at Everett suspiciously. "You're going out again?" He scowled. "Okay, that's it. We need to talk."
"What is me having a life a problem now?"
"It's not that you have a life, it's that you've been so aloof from us lately." Lancelot's voice lowered. "Is this about the murder?"
"The MURDER? It's not THAT! I just want to live, OKAY?!"
"Everett, I need you to tell me the truth-"
"Wha? So you don't believe me?"
Lancelot's voice strained; he was TRYING to keep his cool. "Everett, don't make this more difficult than it needs to be."
"I'm just reiterating what YOU said! YOU think I'M a LIAR!"
"I never said I thought you were a liar, I just need you to say what's on your mind for Christ's sake-"
"Well, what if what was on my mind was that I'M GAY?"
Lancelot's heart dropped.
"I'm not straight, Dad. I might be bi, I might be gay, pan, whatever, I don't KNOW WHAT I AM. And I've been talking to Emmett and he's nice and I might have a crush on him and I don't know what to do and THA'S why I've been ignoring you. Not because I HATE you or KNOW what happened to Grandma but because I-"
Everett paused. He grabbed his chest. Pure terror filled his eyes.
"Everett?" Lancelot sat up in fear. "Are you-"
"I..." Everett inhaled, catching his breath. "I-" He inhaled again. "I- I can't- breathe-"
He fell to the floor, wheezing. "Dad- help- I- I'm dying-"
"You're having a panic attack." Lance had learned to recognize them ever since the incident with Teo on the boat last winter. He started moving fast. "Come here- just breathe."
"You- you hate me-" The anxiety had clouded his brain. Everett couldn't think straight.
"I don't hate you, Ev. I don't."
Everett sobbed into his dad's arms, all of the stress of coming out, the worry about the murder, the anxiety about his relationship with Emmett, all of it flowing.
Lancelot was scared. He had unleashed this. It was his words that let this out. It was his fault Everett was struggling for so long and he didn't have the nerve to check in until it was too late.
They stayed like that for a long time. Everett fell asleep on the couch.
