Jon never wanted to wake up. Groaning at the sun filtering into his room, he shoved his face into the pillow and then whimpered when his own noise made his head throb unbearably. His mouth felt disgusting, even worse than normal, and his eyes seemed swollen shut. He heard someone walking around in the room and sighed in relief to know that Spencer was here and that Spencer would take care of him. He forced himself to get up and brought both of his hands up to his head, massaging his scalp, hoping that it would ease his headache. It didn't help, of course, and only brought tears to his eyes. Why did so much fun have to hurt so bad?

"Spencer?" he whispered, slowly opening his eyes. He glanced at the clock and realized it was about 11:30 am. He vaguely remembered waking up around nine, sans headache. He'd thought that he had escaped the evil hangover and gone back into blissful sleep. Now he knew that it had just taken a little bit longer for his body to react. Oh, he felt like throwing up and he knew he would have the feeling all day.

"I hope you know you made a fool of yourself," Spencer said, coming out of their en-suite washroom. He glared at Jon, not even trying to keep his voice down. "And I really hope you don't expect me to sit beside you and help you put the pieces of your night back together," he added, narrowing his eyes at Jon before disappearing into the washroom again. Jon groaned and fell back onto the bed. He stayed still for a few moments before dragging himself up and getting ready. He needed to eat something and he needed to drink coffee. A lot of coffee. He had a feeling that no one was going to take pity on him today, especially considering Brendon had ditched them, Ryan hated him, and Spencer was being his no-nonsense self.

It took him longer than usual, but finally Jon was ready and he set out with Spencer to get some food in the cafeteria. "We're meeting Brendon and Ryan," Spencer said on their way down. Jon grunted, trying to walk without making too much noise. "I called them in their rooms and they agreed to come, but only because they wanted to see me. I told them you were too sick to talk, so that made them agree too." This was greeted by yet another grunt from Jon, making Spencer smile slightly. When they were in the cafeteria, Spencer got two plates and filled them with eggs, bread, bacon, and fruits. Jon got two black coffees and they made their way to their usual table to wait for their friends.

***

Ryan hadn't been so nervous about leaving his room before, not even on the very first morning he'd been there. If Brendon's reactions were wrong, Ryan would have to report back as soon as possible and then he'd probably be called home immediately. Home as a failure for his father to laugh of. Not to mention the fact that he'd have let down his whole nation. Due to these things, it was probably natural that he was taking as much time leaving his room as possible. He'd showered until his skin had started to wrinkle. And then he'd actually put on more makeup than necessary just to draw out time. He had fixed his hair five times too, for the same reason, and then tried on eight different outfits.

Now, though, he was already fifteen minutes late and couldn't really find any new excuses. He wouldn't have minded owning one of Brendon's numerous pairs of sunglasses, but the best he'd been able to find had been some odd little hat Tobias had insisted was 'stylish' but honestly looked like it belonged in a Mark Twain book. Or Charles Dickens perhaps. He'd put that on and the largest hoodie he had, too. Large only meant that it actually fit instead of being too small, though, and he still couldn't raise his arms too much if he didn't want his stomach exposed.

Taking a deep breath, he opened the door and left, locking it routinely behind him, and went with slow steps down the halls and stairs until he reached the cafeteria where he went straight for the food, deciding to deal with people only when he absolutely had to. He took a plate and stacked a small serving of eggs and bacon on before adding a pile of pancakes and syrup and some fruit. Then he poured himself some tea and put small containers of sugar and cream in his pockets before balancing his way to the table where he plopped down on the free chair without looking at anyone, making sure his hair covered his eyes quite well. "Morning," he greeted, trying to at least avoid acting like he had been a part of that conversation last night. Then he forced himself to raise his head slightly and look around on each of them, the blush actually coming naturally when he saw Brendon this time, before settling his gaze on Spencer. That, at least, he felt sort of safe with. "Sorry I'm late. Alarm didn't go off."

Spencer nodded and smiled. "How are you on this fine day?" Spencer asked, perhaps a little too cheerfully. Beside him and across from him, Jon grunted and Brendon snorted. "And is it just me, or is Jon not the only who's having a bit of trouble this morning?" He frowned, looking pointedly at Brendon, then at Ryan. Brendon shrugged, forking a piece of cantaloupe into his mouth to save himself from answering.

He was dressed in his usual khaki pants and polo shirt, but the shirt seemed crumpled, which was highly unusual, and he had faint circles under his eyes, making him look dead-beat and tired. He was eating like it was his last meal, but Spencer knew that was only because he didn't want to talk. Spencer raised an eyebrow at Ryan and Brendon, then shrugged. Someone would let him know what was going on; he was sure of it.

Ryan cleared his throat uncomfortably, letting his mind run a million miles an hour to get some sort of an idea, some sort of drama that would make it credible for him to be nervous and jumpy and whatever else it was he was right now. "Jordan called in the middle of the night," he finally said. "Apparently forgot it wasn't morning over here too. He... couldn't leave well enough alone and had to stir up some shit and try to apologize for how he handled the thing with his parents. Apparently he didn't get the fact that I'm across the pond and over it." That worked, right? He definitely hoped it would.

Spencer reached over and patted Ryan's hand. "I'm sorry. Must have been terrible," he said, the corners of his lips turned down. He turned to Brendon and raised an eyebrow to see the boy staring at Ryan, his face unreadable. "What's wrong, Brendon?" The moment he said the name, Brendon turned to look at him, clearly annoyed.

"Nothing's wrong," he said, stiffly, schooling his face into a blank mask. "Why the hell can't you ever mind your own business?" Brendon asked, then sat back, forcing himself to calm down. What the hell was his problem? There was no reason for him to be angry, even though what he really wanted to do was yell, 'Who the hell is Jordan!?' But that didn't seem right- he vaguely remembered Ryan mentioning a Jordan. Dating someone named Jordan. Brendon didn't exactly like the thought of that. Thankfully, Spencer had gone back to eating, finding that not answering to Brendon's anger would be the best idea.

"It's okay," Ryan muttered to Spencer once things seemed to have calmed down. "I think that after an hour he understood the 'just friends' he was the one to empower in the first place." He'd pointedly not looked at Brendon but had practically been able to feel the boy's anger all the way across the table. Brendon's foul mood could be taken as a sign that something was wrong, but feeling it peak after the Jordan comment made Ryan almost inclined to at least be a little optimistic about the whole thing. Jealousy was a ridiculous notion, but there had definitely been something there to set Brendon off. He cut off a forkful of pancakes and put them in his mouth, starting to chew as he chanced another glance at Brendon, once more looking back down immediately. If looks could kill he had the feeling the entire cafeteria would've been wiped out by now.

Spencer nodded solemnly. "Well, that's good, then," he said, trying to sound happy but really just managing to sound put down. Beside him, Jon was still wincing from the bite in Brendon's voice a few minutes earlier. "Hey, Jon, why don't you go back to sleep? You've eaten and you can bring a cup of coffee up with you," Spencer suggested, looking at Jon and rubbing the boy's back gently. Jon nodded slowly, smiling just a little bit, and pushed his chair back. He inclined his head towards Ryan and Brendon as a goodbye before walking from the cafeteria.

Before the silence could grow, Spencer turned back to Ryan. "There's a bonfire tonight. You want to go? It might cheer you up."

"Sounds good," Ryan answered with a slight nod, managing a small smile. He finally took the packets out of his pockets and dumped them in his tea, stirring it quickly before taking a sip. "When did you guys get back in anyway? Looks like you had quite the night."

Spencer groaned. "I do believe it was around three am when we got in... Jon was smashed and I am eternally grateful to Brendon for sending the limo to get us. Even if he didn't deem us worthy to stay himself." Spencer was purposely talking about Brendon like he wasn't there. "Jon did a bunch of stupid things while I trailed behind him, making sure he didn't do anything too horrible. There was some table dancing, though, and Jon insulted this one girl until he'd reduced her to tears. I don't even know what she did, just that he lashed out at her, verbally, nothing physical.." He shook his head and chuckled dryly, although he'd found no humour whatsoever in the situation. "Other than that, it was pretty boring. I can understand why the two of you left. What did you guys do last night?"

"Sounds fun," Ryan said, suddenly startled with how small his inner lexicon seemed to have become. "I feel bad for the girl, though." And he did. He'd been on the receiving end of Jon's guarded insults and angry looks enough not to wish them on anyone else. "But you should've gotten the table dancing on video or something. You know, blackmail value." Then he sucked in a deep breath. "We left when the music started to feel like it would permanently damage our ears. Then we sat around outside for a little, got tired and went home. I was on the Internet for a little and then I went to bed, and you already know the story of the rude awakening."

Brendon narrowed his eyes, looking over at Ryan. He'd been right! And now he definitely knew for sure that Drew and Ryan were one and the same. Well, he'd already known, actually. But this just proved it further. And Ryan didn't even know that he was really Zeke! Oh, this was good. He smirked and went back to eating silently, aware that Spencer was watching him.

"Sorry the party was so shitty," Spencer apologized, shrugging. "At least the two of you got to get back here without witnessing the worst of it, though. It got worse as the night progressed." He paused and looked at Brendon again. Something was going on and he definitely wanted to know what it was. Meanwhile, Brendon was wondering if he should just tell Ryan who he really was. Oh, the boy would be so embarrassed! Or, maybe he could wait until he had more information on Ryan. Yes, it was always good to know who you were dealing with. Unfortunately, Drew had always been perfect, nice and helpful. And Brendon didn't really see himself being mean to Drew, even if he was really the same person as Ryan. He sighed. Maybe he should just tell Ryan. It was only fair.

"That's okay," Ryan stated. "It was Jon's idea and it's not like anyone was forced to come. I can't really imagine it getting a lot worse than it was when we left, though. People were already bloody pissed." He made a slight face. "I still can't believe anyone would actually drink that... whatever it was anyway. Was it home-brewed or something? I mean, with the alcohol laws here and everything." He quickly shut his mouth, stopping himself from rambling further. "I'm glad you got back okay," he finally said with a small smile, leaning back in his chair and taking another sip of his tea.

Spencer shrugged, chuckling quietly. "I don't know anything about alcohol, so I wouldn't know. I'm sure every student in this school knows how to get his hands on some, though." He looked over at Brendon briefly. "Anyway, bonfire starts at eight tonight, all right? What should we do until then?"

Ryan shrugged before groaning slightly. "Catch up on all the homework that isn't the argumentative essay?"

***

Spencer crept silently around his room, careful not to wake Jon as he got dressed in a pair of sweatpants and a hoodie. Comfortable lounging-around clothes were always the best way to go for a bonfire. When he was ready, Spencer quietly opened the door and stepped into the hallway, closing it again behind him. He walked down the hall to Ryan and Brendon's rooms and knocked on both their doors. It took a few minutes, but Brendon finally joined him in the hallway, wearing much the same thing as Spencer. It was a rare occasion to see Brendon in sweatpants, but he still managed somehow to make them look proper. Brendon smiled softly at Spencer but otherwise kept quiet.

"One sec," Ryan called out upon hearing the knock and quickly brought the report to a halt, promising to finish it later before making sure that the encryption apparatus did its work, and watching impatiently as all the letters blurred into unrecognizable shapes. When it was finally done, he quickly disconnected the device and stuffed it as silently as possible into the drawer with the other things that shouldn't really see daylight. Then he grabbed that weird hat off the table again and opened the door, locking it behind him and walking quickly up to Brendon and Spencer. "I was writing an email," he said as way of explanation. "Thanks for getting me."

"No problem," Spencer said, following quickly after Brendon, who had started down the hall the moment Ryan's door had opened. The boys made their way behind the school, joining many of their classmates who were also making their way to the bonfire. It was situated, as usual, in a small clearing among the trees outside. Three teachers were already there and were sitting on a log, the fire already started. Spencer chose a place far from the teachers and sat down in the grass, motioning for Brendon and Ryan to do the same. Brendon plopped down beside him and smirked.

"This should be fun," Brendon said. "Wonder what we'll be doing tonight... I really hope they don't make us sing or anything."

Ryan smiled slightly. "Why not?" he asked, carefully not looking up. He felt a little more daring than he had earlier in the morning, mostly because Brendon hadn't run away from breakfast the moment he'd showed up coupled with the fact that he'd actually stayed all way through the meal. "I like singing. My voice is definitely not the best, but it's fun." He sat down carefully, wincing slightly as he was already starting to feel damp from the dew. The previous evening it had been too late for the dew to still be on the ground but this night it was fresh and wet everywhere. The place was beautiful, though; that he had to admit.

Brendon snorted. "I'm sure you may like singing, but listening to half our grade doing it could very possibly destroy your ear drums. Let's all remember that some of us sing better than others... and then some of us are absolutely horrendous. Not to mention that people will exaggerate and sing loud enough to wake the dead." He shook his head, wrinkling his nose at the thought.

"If I remember correctly, Brendon, you were in the choir at church for six years, were you not?" Spencer asked, smirking when Brendon glared at him. "I'm sure you could show them all up with your voice!" For this, Spencer was shoved away by Brendon, though he did notice the Prince blush slightly.

"Not likely," Brendon muttered.

Chuckling slightly at the two younger boys' behaviour, Ryan shook his head slightly. "Point taken," he stated, turning his head slightly to look at the fire. It was piled high with logs and nearly roaring with power, the bright flames dancing in the night. It really was incredibly gorgeous, he decided. "So what's usually done at these things? I mean, Jon said there was another party tonight, right? And yet so many people are here. So what's the appeal?"

Spencer shrugged, looking around. "I think that quite a few people are just sick of parties but they won't admit it. We usually play group games - 'truth or dare' if the teachers are feeling nice. We play a lot of games like 'If' and whoever wants to play can, or people can just sit around and talk. Sometimes we'll tell stupid scary stories when it gets later. It's pretty cool," he said. "Oh, and sometimes we do sketches and stuff. Eat marshmallows. It's all very good, clean, fun."

"That sounds brilliant," Ryan stated, the small smile on his face actually genuine. This did sound like the kind of thing he'd like as Ryan Ross too, sounded pretty much like his kind of fun. Just relaxing, unwinding, getting to laugh. It would be nice to catch a break after the whirlwind week. He let out a slightly wistful sigh, remembering the email he'd sent his mother before starting the report. He was really starting to miss home and yet it could be as much as seven or so months before he got the chance to return.

"You forgot the best part," Brendon pointed out, his tone that of extreme boredom. "They usually make us sing silly songs when it officially starts and then again when it finishes, even though people are too tired to sing. God, I hope they've come to their senses and stopped that rubbish. It was unbearable." He sighed and shook his head, openly glaring at the teachers, who remained ignorant to his whining.

Spencer rolled his eyes, then jumped when one of the teachers stood and rather loudly announced that the night had officially started. "And now, let's all sing Amazing Grace, students, as our opening song." There were collective groans from around the bonfire. Brendon rolled his eyes dramatically and Spencer snickered. "Now, now, we want everyone to join or the night will be cut short. Let's go!"

They started singing, Brendon only mouthing the words, and almost made it through half the song before one of the teachers glared him down until he actually started making some sound. He rolled his eyes and sang softly. The teacher promptly walked over and stood beside Brendon, staring him down until Brendon sang louder, wincing when he could actually hear his own voice. He hated this...

" 'Twas grace that taught my heart to fear...."

Ryan had been singing along just fine until he heard the new voice, and he couldn't help but to look up and search for its source. Brendon, he realized almost immediately. And it was beautiful. His breath nearly caught in his throat even though the boy wasn't even singing with actual emotion. It was all he could do to keep singing himself and mentally he was chastising himself for the slip. Nothing about the Prince was to keep him off-guard; there was nothing there he was supposed to admire. He quickly forced his attention away, focused on how much the guy a few feet ahead of him sounded like crap. And then he realized he'd been staring and quickly tore his gaze away. This time the blush came naturally.

When the song finished, Brendon snarled at the teacher's back as the man walked away, apparently satisfied that he'd managed to make Brendon sing. He shook his head, muttering about how embarrassing that had been, but was silenced when Spencer glared at him. "You were wonderful," his best friend admonished. "Stop being such a brat."

"It did sound really great," Ryan agreed in a very low voice, not looking at the other boys and letting his face don another blush. "Well," he added. "One song. That wasn't too bad then, was it?"

Before either of the others could answer, though, the teacher was calling attention to himself again and managed somehow to get everyone to shut up and look at him. "Well, we have a few games for you, so-" He paused to let some groans and unenthusiastic applause pass. One kid actually seemed pretty happy with the revelation and was clapping loudly, keeping it up even when everyone else had stopped; the swift movements of his hands only ceased when the teacher sent him a stern look and the kid next to him punched his arm. "We're going to split you up in two teams to play fetch. I'm sure most of you remember the game, but for those who don't, what you have to do is split into two teams and elect a fetcher who's responsible for bringing the things I call out to me before the fetcher of the other team. Understood?" Unenthusiastic agreement followed, and the teacher walked down to start splitting them up in teams.

Spencer latched on to both Brendon's and Ryan's arms, refusing to let go so that the teacher knew to keep them together. Soon enough, the teams were separated, with Team One on the right side of the fire and Team Two on the left. The trio had all been put in Team Two and reluctantly got to their feet to discuss who should be the fetcher. "Ryan's tall and lanky," Brendon said loudly, getting the team's attention. "I bet he could run fast." He smirked and looked over at Ryan, tilting his head to the side as if to ask the boy if he would do it. Beside him, Spencer chuckled, but had to agree that it was true.

It was almost automatic when Ryan blushed again, but he nodded slightly. He knew he was quite a decent runner, and he'd had years to get over the teenage awkwardness that had slowed him down when he was younger. He'd still keep claiming that he was awkward and clumsy, but he also knew that if it had been that bad, he wouldn't have been asked to join the academy. "Sure," he muttered, shrugging as he let Spencer push him towards the front. He looked over his shoulder, managing a grin now. "But you guys better help me out with this."

Brendon nodded and the team agreed. Luckily, none of the guys who hated Brendon's guts had decided to join the bonfire and so people were more likely to agree with him. And Ryan really did look like he'd be a good runner. When both teams fell silent, the boys turned to look at the teacher, who was staring them all down in turn. "All right," he said, his voice carrying in the night air. "The first object is easy enough. A navy sweater!"

It only took a second or two for Brendon to look down at himself and rip off his sweater, aware that the whole team was stumbling to find one. He shoved it into Ryan's hands, shivering at the cool night air on his torso, and turned to see if the other team had found one. It seemed one of them was also wearing a sweater, but this one had buttons, and the boy was only just taking it off. Brendon smirked. This was going to be easy.

Ryan grinned slightly, quickly taking off and jogging the few feet up to the teacher to give him the sweater. There had been no need to run with the other team so far behind them, so he figured he'd rather just save that for later. "Here," he said, pushing the sweater into the teacher's hands.

The teacher grinned back, nodding. "Good, Hastings," he commented. "One point to team two."

Ryan nodded and took the sweater back, walking back down to his team mates where he quickly found Spencer and Brendon again and handed the piece of garment over. "He sort of seemed to want to keep it," he commented with a slight shrug. "You looked cold, though." Then he quickly turned back to focus his attention on the teacher who already seemed to be getting ready to set the next task.

Spencer was poking Brendon's stomach, giggling. "You have a little-boy tummy!" Spencer announced, receiving quite a few odd looks from his team mates. Brendon grunted and pushed Spencer's hands away, the darkness hiding his blush, and quickly grabbed his sweater. He put it on, then waited for the teacher to say something else.

"A pair of flip-flops!" the teacher said, then frowned. "Hopefully the kind made for men."

Everyone looked around at each other, mumbling about what the hell kind of object that was and frowning. Suddenly, Spencer gasped and looked at Ryan. "Jon has some in his closet!" he yelled, eyes wide. He shoved his key into Ryan's hand and pushed him forward. "I dare say you'd get there faster than I." He turned to see the other team all moaning and groaning about it, since they all seemed to be wearing regular shoes. But one of the boys was saying excitedly how his girlfriend had left a pair and was suddenly yelled at by his team to go get the sandals.

Ryan was a little confused for a moment. They'd used an exit other than the main doors to get outside and he wasn't at all familiar with this part of the school yet. It didn't help that he really hadn't been paying too much attention when they'd gone out here. He scanned the building before finally spotting what looked like the door they'd come out of and ran up there, putting a little more momentum in his steps this time. He reached the door a moment later and flung it open only to find himself standing in a deserted, unfamiliar hallway. He groaned inwardly and took a few steps forward to get his bearings only to be all but toppled by some other guy who raced past him down the hall. Probably going for the dormitories too. Ryan sucked in a breath and followed him down a hall, past a few turns and up two flights of stairs, making sure to run slowly enough to stay behind the other guy who was spluttering when they reached the dormitories. It still didn't look familiar, though, and one look at the room number on the closest door confirmed to him that he was in the wrong dorm hall. He groaned inwardly and looked around confusedly.

The boy was exiting his room again and looked at Ryan with a small smirk. "Lost Hastings?" he panted out, cocking an eyebrow slightly. He was red-faced and slightly sweaty from the exertion, but still somehow managed to crack a small smile. "Well, I guess you can't really beat me either way. It's the end of this hall, a right, down the flight of stairs and a left."

"Thanks," Ryan quickly said before flinging himself in that direction, full-out sprinting now. He followed the instructions and soon after found himself in the right hall where getting to Spencer and Jon's room was no problem at all. He got to the right door, pushed in the key and twisted it before opening it silently and walking to the closet he knew to be Jon's on his tiptoes. The last thing he wanted at the moment was to wake up Walker. The flip-flops were easily visible, several pairs actually, and Ryan picked up the nearest ones before closing the closet and turning back to the door.

"Whadya doon' wi' ma flips?" a sleepy voice asked from the bed. "Knew ya wa' up t'some'in."

"Ask Spencer to explain later," Ryan quickly got out before continuing to the door. In the hall, he found that he wasn't possibly going to find his way out the same way he got in, and instead he sprinted for the main entrance, down stairs, through halls and through the entrance hall until he was outside. Then he turned swiftly and sprinted, following the angles of the school until he could finally see the fire a few hundred feet away. And the other guy, walking slowly, waving the flip-flops over his head. He was definitely a lot closer than Ryan was, so Ryan sped up even more, leaning slightly forward and using his arms to create momentum, and then people were screaming at the other boy to hurry up, and he started jogging, still a good fifty feet ahead.

Seconds later they skidded to a halt in front of the teacher, both panting as they held out the flip-flops simultaneously. The teacher looked between the offerings with a cocked eyebrow. "Peters, these are pink," he stated. "I don't want to know what they were doing in your dorm at all, so let's just pretend I never saw them." Then he turned to Ryan with a small smile. "Hastings, another point."

Ryan grinned slightly, fighting to get enough air into his lungs as he slowly, still panting, made his way back to his group, tossing the flip-flops and keys at Spencer and taking his hat up momentarily to wipe a bit of sweat off his forehead and his wayward bangs out of his eyes before putting the hat back on. "I bet... there was a... quicker way than... that one," he panted out heavily, still grinning.

Spencer chuckled, taking the keys and tossing the flip-flops to the ground. He cheered along with the rest of the team and patted Ryan on the back. One of the guys thrust a bottle of water towards Ryan, smiling widely. Brendon, who was standing a few feet away, couldn't help but grin.

"All right, maybe Team One can catch up with this next one!" the teacher yelled, and Team One cheered their assent. "A sheet of paper!" Spencer looked at Brendon, eyebrows raised expectantly, and Brendon glared at him.

"Well? You have a million of those all over your room. GET A MOVE ON!" Spencer hollered, chuckling when Brendon stepped back in surprise. The whole team was staring at him now and he had no other choice but to turn around and sprint toward the school. God, he hated running. Maybe he'd change into a t-shirt in his room, too. He made it to the school in no time at all, yanking the door open and going through the numerous hallways with ease. He took the stairs two at a time, rolling his eyes at every turn when he got to the floor where his dorm was.

When he finally reached his room, he jammed the key into the lock, turned, and left it there when he slipped into the room. He grabbed the sheet of paper on his bedside table before yanking off his sweater. He stopped, hearing loud footsteps outside his room and swore, grabbing a t-shirt quickly and running out of his room. He closed the door, locked it, and shoved his keys back into his pockets before running back down the hall.

When he was back outside, he was several meters in front of the other guy and he smiled confidently, skidding in front of the teacher and handing him the sheet of paper. The teacher studied the sheet of paper, reading it, and Brendon gaped at him. "Is this a love poem, Brendon?" the teacher asked, smirking. Brendon blushed furiously, shaking his head. The teacher grinned again. "No matter. Another point to Team Two. But really, Brendon, you didn't have to take off your shirt for me to award you the point." Blushing even more, if that was possible, Brendon hurried to Spencer's side, glaring at the teacher once again.

"What an asshole," he muttered.

Ryan nodded in agreement, eyes widening. Teachers could be cruel, that much he knew, but he'd never seen any sort of something bordering on public humiliation like this before. And it surprised him a great deal that the teachers would even have the guts for it, knowing who Brendon was. "Thanks, though," he muttered, grateful for the break that had allowed him to catch his breath again after a run that had been a whole lot longer than had in any way been necessary. He looked over at Spencer and Brendon quickly and only then did it really register in his mind that Brendon wasn't wearing a shirt. And it wasn't that he hadn't seen guys shirtless before - how could he have avoided that in any case? It was... he guess if he had to explain it, it would be the assignment he had and the obvious implications of it that made Brendon different from everybody else. Whatever it was, his face was suddenly on fire and he pulled his eyes away quickly, looking down at his own sneakers.

"Hastings," one of the guys on their team called what seemed like mere seconds later. "Hastings, pay attention. He just asked for a wrist watch."

Looking up quickly, Ryan blinked a couple of times. He hadn't even registered the teacher speaking, but when someone shoved him slightly he got it and started running towards the teacher, already fumbling with his own watch. There wasn't really any point, though, since the opposing team was already up there, having already handed their watch over. Ryan stopped in his tracks, his face burning even hotter than it had a minute ago as he despondently walked back to the others. "Sorry," he muttered, keeping his eyes on the teacher. This time he wasn't going to miss it.

Brendon quickly got his shirt back on, seeming to snap out of his thoughts when someone addressed Ryan. He huffed, smoothing down the red t-shirt. He only had three t-shirts, and this one had to be his favourite. Once it was on, he continued glaring at the teacher. He'd never seen the man, or hadn't been paying attention, but he really was a jerk. He was probably doing it purposely, as well, which made Brendon even angrier. He rolled his eyes and waited for the next item to be announced.

"All right, it's three to one, teams! The next item is... a tooth brush!"

Eight items later, Team Two was cheering loudly and high fives and slaps on backs were being exchanged as Ryan plopped down with Spencer and Brendon on the spot they'd previously been in. "Well," he started, smiling slightly as he gathered his own possessions around him. "That wasn't so bad, apart from the teacher being a right arse. Reckon there's more?"

The others didn't have time to answer him as another teacher cleared his throat to get everyone's attention. "We have one more game tonight," he told the assembled boys, smiling slightly. "You know this one. Smith, go count to a hundred."

Ryan felt his eyebrows raise slightly in confusion. "What's this all about?" he asked.

Spencer grinned widely, pushing himself off the ground with one hand and scurrying off into the forest. He got behind a tree, covered his eyes with his hands and started counting.

Beside Ryan, Brendon snorted. "You'll see," he said, grabbing Ryan's hand and pulling him up. They backed up into they were part of the circle beginning to form, Brendon latching onto someone else's hand at the same time. "When everyone's in a circle, you can move into whichever position you like, as long as you continue holding hands with your partners, all right? We have to basically become some big pretzel and then when Spencer comes back, he has to try and undo us. Like a human knot," Brendon explained, laughing as soon as everyone started going under arms making the whole thing uncomfortable. Crouching down, he went under his and Ryan's arm, straightening out as much as he could when he was on the other side. "Like that," he smirked, his arm up, and awkwardly behind his head, still holding onto Ryan's.

Ryan nodded even though he was well-aware that Brendon wouldn't be able to see him. Then he followed the guy on his other side who was pulling him with him under another pair of arms, and Ryan felt his grip on Brendon's hand becoming strained, wrist hurting just a little bit. Then he was pulled over the arms of two people who had crouched down to make the passage easier, and the strain was gone in one hand, appearing instead in the other when he looked up from the ground with widened eyes to suddenly find himself chest to chest with Brendon, immediately blushing and looking back down. The movements of the people around him seemed to have stilled, as though in silent agreement that they couldn't really become any more tangled. Someone was pressed warm against his side and two other people's tangled hands were pushing into his back uncomfortably. Standing suddenly so close to Brendon wasn't exactly comfortable either. More like really awkward. Ryan found himself hoping that Spencer would be able to sort out the knot pretty damn quickly.

Brendon chuckled into Ryan's face. "Well, well, look at us. And Spencer said I could never get close to anyone," he scoffed and waggled his eyebrows. When he glanced up, it was to see Spencer coming back, biting his lip in concentration as he surveyed the knot of people. He made his way to one side, away from Brendon and Ryan, and started attempting to unravel everyone. He was pushing heads down, moving people around, twisting arms, and revelling in the groans of pain, chuckling softly as he went.

Another blush spreading over his features, Ryan found himself wondering if he was overdoing it. But then again, it was really only on purpose half of the time. "Perhaps he's staying over there just to avoid being wrong, then," he mumbled, nodding in the direction Spencer was and inwardly flinching at the stupid comment. Suddenly the people with their hands digging into his back seemed to be losing their balance and Ryan was shoved forward, nearly losing his too, and with no arms to help him pretty much fell into Brendon's chest, his cheeks catching fire again.

Brendon grunted, nearly falling back along with Ryan, but the people behind him held him up. "Yeah, he better hurry," he muttered, glaring at Spencer when he caught his gaze. Spencer smiled widely. A big portion of the group was already untangled and Spencer was getting closer and closer to Brendon and Ryan. Finally, he got Brendon to go back under Ryan's arm, the opposite of what Brendon had done earlier, and then went to work on freeing Ryan and the boys around him. When he finished, moving on to the last few people, Brendon flexed his wrist, still holding Ryan's hand, and sighed. "God, that feels much better," he said, grinning over at Ryan. When everyone had finally parted, the teacher looked at his watch, then up at Spencer.

"Only four minutes and eighteen seconds!" he announced, and Spencer smiled, then stared pointedly at Brendon and Ryan's hands, still clasped together even though everyone else had let go seconds before.

"It definitely does," Ryan agreed, stretching his back and feeling the tension release as his spine gave a slight pop. Then he followed Spencer's glance and felt yet another blush start up, quickly letting go and taking a step away, closer to Spencer. "Congrats on saving our wrists," he said. "You could've been nice and done it a bit more quickly, though." He made sure to keep smiling to make sure there was no sting in the words.

Brendon shoved his hands into his pockets and nodded in agreement. He looked around and decided it was safe for them all to sit down again. He lowered himself to the ground and sat down, legs crossed Indian-style. He was about to ask a question when he spotted one of the teachers retrieving a bag of marshmallows from behind his back, setting it on the ground, then retrieving bananas and some chocolate. His eyes widened and he licked his lips unconsciously. "Fuck yeah," he muttered. "Bananas and chocolate! Marshmallows! Who could ask for more?!" He smiled excitedly, only to receive a questioning glance from Spencer.

"Right..." his best friend muttered, turning to Ryan and twirling a finger near his temple, the hand motion suggesting that Brendon had gone crazy.

Ryan laughed lightly, nodding his head just a little before shoving his hands, one of which seemed to be oddly buzzing, into the pockets of his less-than-comfortable jeans. "It does sound pretty good, though," he conceded, looking up to where the teachers were making rounds with the supplies as well as long, wooden sticks with spiky ends.

Brendon quickly grabbed one of the sticks and was handed on banana, a chocolate bar, and some marshmallows. The bananas had already been cut into and Brendon busied himself with stuffing as much chocolate as he could fit into it. When he was finally finished, he scooted closer to the fire and gingerly let the banana drop in the pit. He waited impatiently, taking two marshmallows and swallowing them whole before the treat was finished. Carefully, he retrieved the banana by scooping it up and balancing it on his stick, before letting it fall to the ground and cool off. He was almost drooling by the time he was peeling it.

Ryan had put two marshmallows on the stick and was letting them roast over the fire, waiting for them to turn just the right shade of golden. He'd decided to save the banana for later. And suddenly he jumped when his phone went off in his pocket, shoved the stick into Spencer's hand and wriggled around for a moment until he succeeded in fishing the phone out. "Hey," he greeted simply.

"Hi, sweetie," came the familiar soft voice of his mother and he was momentarily stunned before he quickly jumped up, starting to walk away from the others.

"How did you get the number?" he asked when he'd decided he was far enough away that no one would hear.

"I called Tobias," she answered. "Reasoned with him for a few hours. He wouldn't tell me where you are, though. Please tell me you aren't in any danger, Ryan."

"I'm not," he stated, more or less truthfully. "I was sort of... in the middle of something, though. But I appreciate you calling. I've missed you."

"I missed you too," she replied. "And I was worried when I didn't hear from you for a while. I even sent letters and emails and you always answer those."

"I'm using another email at the moment," he explained, shrugging slightly. "Listen, I'll call you later. Okay?" Content that the conversation was just about over, he turned around and started to walk back towards the fire.

"So you're on a mission," she more stated than asked. "You know, you kept complaining that you weren't being taken seriously, that they wouldn't give you one. I was relieved. I worry about you, sweetie."

"I know," he answered, finally sitting back down. "I have to go now, though. Talk to you later."

"Thank you," she said. "Don't make me worry again. I love you sweetie."

He felt himself blush once again like he always did at parental affection when other people were around, even when they only heard one half of the conversation. "Love you too," he mumbled. "Bye," he added, and hung up before she could say more. Then he rolled his eyes slightly and stuffed the phone back into his pocket.

"Aw, who was that!?" Spencer asked, gobbling down a marshmallow. He looked over at Brendon, who was busy with his chocolate banana, licking the chocolate off his lips and eating it quickly. Spencer had to suppress a laugh before looking back over at Ryan and smiling.

"My mum," he answered, holding onto the accent that had been a little too close to slipping while he had been on the phone. He cocked an eyebrow at the disbelieving look on Spencer's face. It would make sense, though, as some sort of great ironic twist that he shouldn't be believed when he was actually telling the truth for once in his life. "You ate my marshmallows, didn't you?"

Spencer froze. "What? No." He averted his eyes, swallowing the gooey mess in his mouth. Brendon laughed suddenly, apparently ignorant of the chocolate still on his bottom lip, and he nodded enthusiastically.

"He did!" He exclaimed, pointing a finger at Spencer. "He so ate your marshmallow. But it's okay; you still have your banana and chocolate, which is the best part, darling," he gave himself a British accent on the last word, then smirked at how poor he was at being British. Shrugging, he took the last bite of his banana and moaned at the taste.

Ryan tried to call a pout out on his features but couldn't help laughing, picking up his banana and chocolate as it subsided from his chest. "And I think it's a good thing you aren't English," he added. "That accent doesn't sound very good on you." Then he looked at Brendon quickly and burst out laughing again, hands momentarily shaking too much to put the chocolate into the banana. "Bloody hell, you look all of five years old," he stated when he could finally speak again, fingers working quickly with the food before he went forward a little and carefully put the banana into the fire, eating the bits of chocolate that wouldn't fit it.

Brendon scoffed, sticking out his tongue and quickly licking at anything he could get. "All gone?" He asked, looking around at Spencer and Ryan, eyebrows raised. Spencer laughed and nodded, rolling his eyes. "Wonder what we're going to do next," Brendon mused, biting the inside of his cheek in thought. "Hope we're not singing some more, eh? That would be dreadful-- ugh. I feel so full." He proceeded in rubbing his stomach and laying back down on his back in grass, looking up at the sky. "I'm going to explode."

Spencer snorted, poking Brendon's stomach harshly. "Yeah, right."

Another small laugh made its way out of Ryan's mouth and he went forward again to get the banana out of the fire, juggling it between his hands to keep from getting burned as he returned and sat down again, letting the fruit rest on the ground in front of him to cool off. "I don't understand why you hate singing so much," he mused. "I mean, I already like doing it, but if I were as good as you are I'd probably never shut up."

Brendon shrugged, sighing. "My voice isn't going to take me anywhere," he answered. "I just don't see the point." He continued to rub his stomach, listening to all the voices around him laughing and talking about random things. Sitting back up, Brendon leaned over and placed his head on Spencer's shoulder. "I'm tired. Let's just all hang out in my room tomorrow, all right? I'll sleep and you, Ryan and Jon can... try to get along." He snickered, remembering how much of an ass Jon was being.

"Yeah..." Spencer trailed off, narrowing his eyes slightly. "I need to talk to him tomorrow morning, I think."

Ryan sighed, pushing away the small pang of disappointment. Caring about Brendon, caring about something as trivial as his singing, wasn't going to do him any good, only handicap him in trying to do his job. "If you really don't want to sing, I suppose we could slip away now, before it starts," he stated, feeling a little regretful at leaving already. It had been fun. But it was work. Fun came about last. Second last, really. His feelings were the absolute last. With a small grimace he picked the banana back up, peeled it carefully, and took a bite.

Brendon nodded absently and all three of them got up. Spencer informed the teachers that they were leaving and soon they were heading back towards the school.

***

Brendon was on his bed, computer in his lap and his back against the headboard. He smirked when he saw that Drew was online.

zeke: hello you. how are you?

The ping startled Ryan away from the beginnings of the second half of the report he was now back to working on, and he quickly minimized the email, maximizing the conversation instead.

drew: hey. i'm good. what about you?

Brendon smiled and rubbed his stomach. He could still taste the chocolate and banana in his mouth, making him want more, but he knew that it was horrible for his health and eating more would probably end with him being sick from so much chocolate.

zeke: about ready to burst. i definitely ate too much. how was your day/night?

Ryan smiled slightly. That much he had noticed. He supposed wolfing it down hadn't exactly helped Brendon out with his stomach either.

drew: oh, sucks. i'm pretty sure i always eat too much, honestly, but with high metabolism and all it doesn't really matter. it was nice. i got some stuff done i'd been delaying for a while during the afternoon and the evening was definitely nice.

Brendon chuckled to himself. The evening had definitely been nice. He couldn't remember a time when he'd had more fun, especially seeing as he'd been surrounded by people he went to school with. It had surprised him in a very good way.

zeke: that's good. my night was really fun, too. apart from eating too much and some teacher being a complete jerk. oh well. it didn't ruin the fun too much

Yeah, Ryan definitely remembered that teacher. And just remembering made small sparks of anger flare up again. And it was stupid, really stupid because he wasn't even supposed to care about Brendon at all, and he didn't, he just hated seeing people - anybody - being treated badly. That was part of the reason he was so determined that his side won, he reminded himself. Because of the slavery that had not quite disappeared. Because these people lived in a country that stood by and did nothing when people were humiliated, beaten and had to live on the mercy of others with no control over their own lives.

drew: that's great. except for the teacher part, of course. they seem to be sort of arseholes here as well tbh, though.

Brendon snorted at the chat speak. He'd looked it up a while ago when it had been used and he now knew many abbreviations, but never found himself using them. He was glad Ryan agreed about the teacher being an ass, though.

zeke: yeah. i hate when teachers are like that. i mean... they're supposed to be mentors and such, aren't they? and then they go and... act like complete fucks.

Ryan found himself subconsciously nodding along to the line in front of him, mouth suddenly opening to let out a yawn. Odd. He hadn't even realized he was the least bit tired.

drew: me too. you're supposed to respect them and look up to them and they're supposed to set good examples. but in my experience they tend to be power-sick, little, insecure people who are stuck with a job they don't want and are incredibly jealous of the students because they have all the chances the teachers were either never good enough to get or have let pass them by.

Brendon chuckled, raising his eyebrows at Ryan's mini rant.

zeke: well, you don't seem to like them very much at all! let's not talk about teachers, then. how's it going with that crush of yours, eh?

Ryan smirked slightly, leaning back in his chair for a moment to think.

drew: some of them are all right. but the ones i've met lately. most of them are imbeciles.
and i guess it's going okay. i mean, at least i get to spend time with him. it's not one of those irritating cases where he doesn't even know i exist.

Brendon cackled madly, shaking his head, but quickly sobered when he remembered just who the crush was. And he wasn't quite sure how he felt about it. Sure, he was flattered, and it didn't bother him nearly as much as he thought it would, but that could just be because Ryan hadn't tried anything yet. Dear God, would the boy try anything? Brendon bit his lip, suddenly quite afraid.

zeke: oh, that's good. i suppose it would be annoying if someone you liked didn't notice you...

Another yawn made its way out of Ryan's mouth and he felt his eyes puckering slightly. And suddenly the thought of finishing the report and perhaps calling his mother and finishing their conversation seemed overwhelming. How could he have become so tired so quickly?

drew: trust me, it is. but what about you? i mean, you realised you like boys, but has there ever been a specific one to spark your fancies?

Brendon almost choked on his own spit. How could he have forgotten that Ryan knew something about him, as well!? Oh, God, he wanted the floor to just swallow him up right now.

zeke: err.... no. i don't really like people. i mean, i have my best friends and that's enough. The new guy is pretty cool, too. i, uh... yeah.

Ryan smiled slightly, feeling momentarily flattered, but he immediately changed it into pride. Pride that he'd played his role well enough. He just hoped it would be enough to get the information he needed. Perhaps they'd been wrong, the directors. Perhaps Brendon had just needed the right friend to spill to.

drew: and that's the part where i never really get you. i mean closeness is incredibly important for us to thrive as people. friends, sure, but at some point people usually start to need something more. sometimes i can't help but think that you must be incredibly lonely.

Brendon peered sadly at the screen, somewhat confused. He was not lonely! Was he? No. Definitely not lonely.

zeke: there's a difference between being alone and being lonely, you know. i'm perfectly fine with the way things are at this point in my life. it could change, but all things do. i like my solitude right now. i don't ... think it would be wise, even, to date.

Sighing slightly, Ryan shook his head, not even sure if it were at himself or Brendon. The Prince was kidding himself, that much was obvious. The annoying thing was that until he looked facts in the eye, Ryan wouldn't be able to do his job. There wasn't much he could do about it, though, not for a while.

drew: i know there is, but the two are also tied pretty strongly together. i'm glad you're fine with how things are, but you know i care about you, and i don't want to see you settle for the easiest way out when you could have it so much better. wise? because of your parents? you're at boarding school, right? if you play your cards right they'd never even have to know.

Brendon sighed, frowning slightly, and thought about the boys in his grade. There was no way any of them would be able to keep any relationship a secret- especially with a Prince!

zeke: i don't trust anyone in my grade to keep a secret. can you imagine if the whole fucking school knew!? it would surely get back to my parents... i don't know... it seems like it would be wrong.

Ryan gave another small smirk. Seemed that 'a while' was a lot shorter than he'd first anticipated; all he had to do was show Brendon that the risks were worth taking, when he did find the right person.

drew: i guess the trick would be to find someone who knows and likes you for you, and not whatever reputation or anything you have. if the person liked you, he'd risk losing what he had with you if it were to get back to your parents and that should make him as unlikely to tell your parents as you yourself. and why would it be wrong?

Brendon chewed on his lips, trying to think of what to respond with.

zeke: i don't know. never mind. ... how would i find someone like that?

The smirk on Ryan's face slowly turned into a smile. Either he was really making progress, or Brendon was just humouring him. There wasn't really any way to know, so he'd just disregard the latter option for the time being.

drew: come on, you're a nice guy. someone must fancy you.

Brendon chuckled, shaking his head. Good God, what was up with him, anyway?

zeke: i don't know...

He pushed the laptop off his lap and onto the bed. Quietly, he creeped out of his bed and to the door, smirking at Zach before opening it and darting into the hall. Taking a deep breath, he knocked on Ryan's door.

Ryan nearly jumped at the knock of his door and quickly slammed the laptop shut, walking over to the door. He unlocked it and opened it cautiously, expecting Spencer (as a positive scenario) or Jon (negative one) who might have come to beat him up or something equally painful over the whole flip-flop incident. Instead he found himself face to face with Brendon, looking at the other boy for a moment before managing a slight blush, looking down and stepping back. "Hey," he muttered. "Come in."

Brendon stumbled over his words for a few seconds. "Uh, I saw your bedroom light on and... I was going down to, uh, get coffee. You want to come?" He said quickly, eyes wide. Zach was behind him, and he snorted rather loudly. Brendon turned to shoot him an irritated glare, but slowly turning back to Ryan. "Well?"

Managing a small smile, Ryan nodded. "Sure," he answered, pushing away his fatigue and the list of things he needed to get done. "Let me just get a hoodie," he added, walking further into the room and opening his closet, pulling one out and putting it on over his t-shirt. Then he returned, feeling more than just a little nervous at the sight of the large man behind Brendon. Ever since he'd seen the bodyguard on his first night there, he'd recognized him as the biggest threat on the campus, and that caused his heart to jump into his throat where it would beat frantically. Every time. Without exception. "Ready," he stated, forcing out another smile before turning around once he was out of his room, closing and locking the door behind him.

"You can stay here," Brendon said to Zach, smiling his most innocent smile. Zach lifted one eyebrow, but didn't move. "Come on! I'm at school. Nothing's going to happen!" This statement was followed by Zach chuckling and shaking his head.

"Don't be stupid, Brendon. Something could happen anywhere. But, I suppose if you're back in half an hour and have your cell phone with you, I'll leave you alone." Brendon smiled at their little deal and nodded, taking out his cell phone to show Zach and promising to be gone no longer than half an hour.

"Let's go," he finally said, glancing at Ryan and starting down the hallway.

Ryan smiled, hurrying after the him until he caught up, secretly extremely relieved that the bodyguard had been left behind. "Thanks for... not bringing him, you know," he finally muttered. "Big guys frighten me," he admitted, blushing slightly. And this time it came naturally. "I mean, stupid as it sounds, but yeah."

Brendon snorted. "Yeah, I get it," he said, turning to wink at Ryan, then chuckling. They made it down to the cafeteria, only one of the overhead lights helping them to see. Brendon made his way to the coffee dispenser and took a Styrofoam cup from beside it before putting in a dollar and waiting for his coffee to pour. Surprisingly, the coffee there was quite good, especially after one added a lot of milk and sugar. He turned to Ryan when he was done and smirked, putting in another dollar for the boy's coffee and signaling for him to hurry up and get a cup.

Grabbing little milk and sugar packs, Brendon made his way to a table, preparing his coffee exactly as he liked it and waiting for Ryan.

Ryan waited for a moment as the dark liquid poured into the cup before it was finally full and he could pull it to him, wrapping a long-fingered hand around the Styrofoam and letting the warmth seep in. Then he quickly grabbed milk and sugar and hurried after Brendon, careful not to spill the hot drink over his fingers. Upon reaching the table, he sat down and poured the contents of the small packs into his cup, stirring quickly. "Tonight was nice," he stated, not really knowing what to say but hoping that their online conversation was what had prompted Brendon to do this. "You seemed to be enjoying it too," he added, casting the other a quick look.

Brendon sipped his coffee and nodded. "Yeah, it was actually really fun, surprisingly. Apart from singing," he snorted, "and... the teacher," he continued, feeling like he was repeating himself, which was completely understandable seeing as it was true. He took another gulp of coffee, wincing at the heat, and then put the cup down and stared at his hands.

Snickering, Ryan took a small, careful sip of his coffee. "I still don't get why you don't like singing, but I've said that enough times already," he said, putting the coffee down on the table but keeping his hand wrapped around it as it cooled off. "And the teacher was an arse. Don't worry about him. Not worth it."

"Yeah... it just kind of surprised me. I mean, what the hell? I hadn't even done anything. I could probably fucking get him fired for saying that shit." Brendon said angrily, frowning. He rolled his eyes and took a deep breath, letting all the anger drain out of him before he did something he would regret. He took a big mouthful of coffee to make sure he wouldn't say anything else and could almost feel his lips blistering.

Ryan winced at the large amount of coffee that had to be almost literally burning its way down Brendon's throat. "Surprised me too," he stated. "And I reckon you could if you tried." Then he grinned. "Actually, all you have to do is tell him you'll get him fired and I'd bet he'd be willing to be your new best friend."

Brendon chuckled, the action making his throat ache. "Fortunately for his job, I don't abuse my power," he stated, massaging his throat with one hand. "Oh, shit, that hurts," he said, still somehow managing to laugh at the situation. He breathed in deep, hoping that the heat would subside, but it didn't really seem to be working. "I wonder if I could find some ice cubes in the kitchen," he rasped.

"Luckier than he deserves," Ryan remarked before scrambling to his feet, letting go of his cup. "I'll go check. You just... stay here." With that he scurried through the room, finding the double door into the large kitchen easily. There was a lock on the door and he figured it would probably be off limits to students, but when he grasped the handle and pulled he was surprised to actually feel it give. He didn't wonder about it too long, though.

Once inside he looked around the whole kitchen and quickly caught sight of an ice cube machine. He walked over and opened it out, ready to get some already, but found that it was empty. Shut down for the weekend perhaps. Or the night. Or it had needed cleaning. Whatever the case, he moved away from it and onward, inside until he found the large door leading into the freezer room. He went inside, teeth almost instantaneously starting to chatter at the low temperature. Wrapping his arms around himself, he went about looking for something he could use until he came by three large boxes, each containing twelve tubs of ice cream. Grinning at his success, he picked one up and fumbled in his pocket until he found his wallet and pulled up a ten. Satisfied that would more than cover the expenses, he placed it where the tub had been and all but ran out of the cold space.

He returned to the cafeteria moments later, grinning slightly as he held up his prize. He went over and sat down again, putting the tub on the table and wrapping his arms about himself, still cold. "No ice cubes," he stated as a way of explanation, finally reaching out and wrapping his hands around the cup again.

"Oh, my God! You're crazy," Brendon chuckled, shaking his head in disbelief. He got up, hurrying to get two plastic spoons from the table where he'd taken the sugar and milk packs, then handed one to Ryan on his way back. Sitting down, he opened the tub of ice cream and looked inside. "Vanilla," he stated, before taking a big spoonful and shoving it into his mouth, humming happily as it soothed his throat. He looked over at Ryan and put his hand on one of the boy's arms, rubbing it up and down really fast to create some friction and thus, some heat.

Ryan smiled gratefully, letting his eyes close for a moment. "Thanks," he muttered, raising the other hand with the cup in it and taking another tentative sip. The temperature was good now, and the warmth appreciated. "I get cold too quickly," he added as way of explanation. "Too little insulation." He cracked his eyes open and smiled slightly. "Feel better?"

Brendon nodded, his hand still on Ryan's arm, and continued to eat the ice cream. "Feels really good," he said between bites, making little appreciative sounds as he ate. "You're crazy," he said again, shaking his head and laughing. He rubbed Ryan's arm one more time before taking away his hand and setting it on the table. It tingled for a few moments and Brendon stared at it, frowning, before shrugging. "But thanks," he finally added.

"Any time," Ryan answered with a slight smirk, taking another sip of coffee. It warmed nicely, and the warmed spot on his arm seemed to be spreading up to his shoulder and down into his fingers, which seemed to be prickling slightly. "I never had high thoughts about royalty," he suddenly stated, actually trying to make eye contact this time. "You're not at all what I thought you'd be. And I mean that in a good way. You're just really normal, you know? Not plain, but..." He trailed off, blushing slightly and looking away. "What I'm trying to say is that you're great and I'm pleasantly surprised."

Brendon stopped shoveling the cold treat into his mouth and looked up at Ryan. "What," he asked, ice cream visibly melting on his tongue, "just because I eat like a pig and drink coffee from a dispenser?" he teased, but managed to keep a straight face, surprisingly.

Ryan couldn't help but burst into yet another fit of laughter, shaking his head slightly. "That definitely adds to the greatness," he stated, keeping his voice carefully free of sarcasm before another set of chuckles forced their way out through his mouth.

Brendon laughed and shook his head. "Well, for what it's worth, I'm not really surprised that I kind of like hanging out with you, because, well... I'm Zeke." Brendon flinched, angry at the words that had seemed to just tumble past his lips, a complete accident, and so tactless it made him cringe.

Inwardly Ryan smirked, nearly letting a 'finally!' burst past his lips. Outwardly he let he jaw drop and his eyes go wide, forcing another blush to his face. "Oh my God," he breathed out, biting his lip slightly. "Oh, fuck... B-Brendon, I'm r-really... sorry," he finally stated, momentarily irritated he'd left his hat in his room. That thing could've really added to the effect.

Brendon chuckled, patting Ryan on the head. "That's quite all right, Ryan. I don't really care. I must admit, I was a bit shocked when I figured it out, but I'm fine with it now. We... both know a lot about each other, and that could definitely make things awkward, but it could also make us great friends, right?" He was rambling a bit, nervous, but he didn't really care. Poor Ryan thought he was mad or something.

Ryan let out a sigh of relief. "Thanks, that really means a lot to me," he stated softly before looking up with a small smile, bangs catching annoyingly in his eyelashes. "And I'd really like that. For you to be my friend, I mean." He shook his head slightly. "It makes so much sense now." And then he blushed again. "But God, I still can't believe I talked to you about, well, you."

"Yeah... that was kind of weird..." Brendon trailed off, then chuckled softly. "But it's okay, now. So, uh, yeah." He picked up his spoon again and started eating the ice cream, which had started to melt. He finished off his coffee as well before looking back up at Ryan and smiling nervously. "We should probably go back upstairs. Unless we have more to say...?" Truth was, Brendon did have something to say; he just didn't know how to go about it. What the hell was he supposed to say, anyway? He didn't usually have to talk about his feelings, unless he was writing those stupid journal entries...

Ryan quickly snatched a single spoonful of ice cream before nodding, getting up and wrapping his fingers around the cup again. "I guess we should," he agreed, before catching the last question, stopping his movements quickly and looking at Brendon again. "Do you have anything more to say?" he asked, keeping his voice soft and just a bit on the gentle side. "You know you can," he added. "It's still the same, you know. Except without keyboards and screens."

Brendon got up as well, clearing his throat. "Well, I- no. I don't really. Well, I suppose I do, but I just don't know... how to express it. And such." Taking a deep breath, Brendon tried again. "You know that person I need to find? The one who will like me for me and, uh, all that? I, what I'm trying to say is, thanks for, um... you know. Being there, I guess. Letting me talk. I just... it kind of feels like it could be, at some point.. you." The last sentence was let out very quickly, all in one breath and Brendon turned away from Ryan, because he just couldn't stand there and look at him while he waited for some kind of response. God, he was so embarrassed.

A smile spread slowly over Ryan's face, and all the while his mind seemed to be split in two. The half that was celebrating his progress was battling the side that was staying rational and trying to figure out how to answer something like that. It wasn't exactly as though he'd ever been in a situation even resembling this one before. Finally he reached out and placed a hand on Brendon's shoulder, giving a slight squeeze. "I'm happy," he finally stated, "because I'd really like to be that person."

Brendon smiled slightly before turning to look at Ryan, then it vanished. "All right. That's cool," he said, his voice much stronger than before. "Back to the dorms now before we get into trouble, I suppose." And with that he walked away, not bothering to check if Ryan was behind him. He walked the whole way back to his dorm in silence, aware that Ryan was following him, and only turned to look at the other boy when he'd reached his door. He cleared his throat and shifted his weight from one foot to the other. "Well, that was... fun."

Ryan was more than just a little taken aback by the sudden shift in Brendon's behaviour but had followed him wordlessly, keeping his confusion at bay. He wanted to ask what was going to happen next, what Brendon wanted now, but kept the questions in, sensing that the other boy wouldn't know how to deal with them right at that moment. He glanced at Brendon and smiled. "It was," he agreed, but something was telling him this wasn't exactly the good way to end the night. If it was only this - words - he couldn't be sure Brendon wouldn't just go back and pretend nothing had happened. And so he leaned forward a little, tilting his head slightly to the side and pressed his lips quickly against Brendon's, letting the kiss linger for just a moment before he pulled back, smiling sheepishly. "Good night," he said before turning around and walking back to his own room, adamant that he would have to delete everything he'd written of the report and rewrite the whole thing.

Brendon's eyes had gone wide from the moment Ryan had started approaching. Now, as he watched the door close, he gaped at the boy and gasped to himself. Quickly looking around the hallway to make sure no one had seen, Brendon hurriedly unlocked his door and slipped into his room, pushing the door shut. He looked at Zach, forced a smile, and then threw himself onto is bed. He hoped sleep would come quickly tonight, because he sure as hell didn't want to think right now.