12.
"Guys, quit it!" Gavin shouted, grabbing Owen's left bicep.

"I'm gonna fucking kill him," Owen seethed, using his other arm to swing a punch that made Duncan stumble back and crash into the booth behind him.

Conan watched with wide eyes as the two boys swung their fists at each other. Customers were gasping and running away from the scene while the waiters stood in shock, not knowing what to do.

Glasses and dishes shattered on the floor when Duncan knocked Owen into the table but Owen dragged Duncan down with him.

"You think you're all that, don't you!" Duncan yelled. "You think you're so cool just because you can throw a ball and run a few miles, but you're not shit either!"

Duncan's head slammed into the ground when Owen pounced on him. He punched him in the jaw and Duncan's head was thrown to the side from the force behind it. "Are you really serious right now?" He laughed bitterly. "You act like the world owes you something when it doesn't. News flash, you deserve hell."

Owen dodged Duncan's clumsy strike and grabbed his wrist before pinning it beside his head. "You have no fucking idea what I've been through!"

Owen whammed his balled-up fist into Duncan's face again. He hit him without remorse, not caring at the way the boy was helplessly thrashing around from under him.

"Owen," Conan knelt next to Owen who was burning with rage, "it's okay. Just stop."

Owen's brown eyes met Conan's big ones that were full of fury. Despite hating Duncan, they were still brothers. Twins even. He didn't like seeing him hurt even if he was asking for it- at least he didn't most of the time.

"I don't need your goddamn help," Duncan hissed at Conan. "Why can't you just leave me the fuck alone for once!"

"I'm trying to help you, asshole!" Conan's voice came out startlingly loud compared to his usual timid demeanor. "Why can't you just look past your stupid fucking pride for once and quit being a dick to everyone!"

Everyone watched Conan's outburst with parted lips and jaws dropped to the floor. The boy who was small and quiet had reached his breaking point. He was so fed up with his twin victimizing himself all the time. He couldn't take it anymore.

"It's your fault I'm like this!" he screamed, shoving Owen off of him who was too shocked to hold him down. "You're the one that made us move, you're the one that ruined my senior year. You made me leave my girlfriend, my friends, my plans, my life, my everything!"

Duncan's voice cracked as he shouted. He too was fed up with his brother who he didn't think was considering his feelings. He thought Conan was being selfish, ruining all he had going for him.

"It wasn't in my control and you know that," he defended meekly with downcast eyes.

Duncan stood and Conan pushed off of the floor in unison. Duncan towered over him and his intimidating death glare sizzled right through the shorter boy who couldn't deny his slight fear. He didn't think his brother would ever hit him or do anything rash although he couldn't shake the nagging feeling that he might.

"It's your fault for being a stupid fucking tr-"

He suddenly groaned in pain and toppled over to his knees, his hands cupping his crotch. Cailey, who was standing behind him, was revealed when Duncan fell down as she kicked him in the nuts.

"Watch your damn mouth before someone shoves a dick in it!" she yelled, kicking him in the gut and causing him to fall over completely.

She knows.

Cailey continued to scream at him while the rest of the room came to their senses. Gavin and Keegan pulled Owen away from Duncan so that he couldn't start another fight like he wanted to. He wanted the asshole to suffer for upsetting Conan who now had tears in his eyes.

Duncan almost outed him. He almost called him that godawful word in front of everyone. His own fucking twin.

"Wait, Conan!" Cailey called after him when he darted out of the restaurant.

His legs were short but fast as lightning. He didn't have his car with him but it didn't matter because he just needed to be alone. He would walk miles home if it meant he didn't have to be anywhere near Duncan.

"Conan!" This time it was Owen who yelled. "Slow down!"

He wanted to be alone but knowing Owen cared made him feel a little less upset. But his tears had already fallen down his face and he didn't want Owen to see him cry.

He couldn't be so weak. He couldn't be so vulnerable.

He knew that boys had emotions and cried sometimes but that didn't stop him from the 'boys don't cry' mentality that society spread. Though it wasn't true and he was well aware he still hated himself when he did.

"Hey," Owen gripped his arm to stop him from running, "why are you crying?"

Owen didn't understand the extent of just how upset Conan was. He had no idea what word Duncan almost called him in front of everyone because he wasn't familiar with anything LGBT-related at all. He grew up straight and was surrounded by cisgender straight people his whole life. He barely understood what it really meant for him to be attracted to Conan, another male.

"Please leave me alone," Conan sniffled and wiped his wet face with the sleeve Owen wasn't holding onto.

"You can talk to me, it's okay," Owen said softly.

Seeing him cry made his heart physically hurt. The sight made him so much angrier and he fought the urge to sprint back into the restaurant to beat Duncan up some more.

"I don't want to talk." Conan wouldn't reach Owen's eyes and instead kept them down on the sidewalk.

"That's fine," Owen said in disappointment that he tried to cover up. "At least let me drive you home. It's getting dark outside and I don't want you walking around alone."

Conan considered it before he realized that his parents would throw a fit after hearing about what Duncan did. He wasn't emotionally ready to deal with that conflict either. "I don't want to go home either."

"Then let's take a walk," Owen suggested, his grip tightening around Conan's wrist. "We don't have to talk about what happened if you don't want to."

He sighed before nodding a little, silently appreciative of Owen's sweet gesture.

Owen couldn't help himself from using his thumb to wipe away another tear that dripped down his cheek. His touch forced Conan to tilt his head up and their gazes finally met again.

The white in his eyes was a red color and made the blue color pop out more. His sniffling nose was tinted a light shade of pink as well that made him look even more delicate and innocent. Despite hating seeing Conan cry, he had to admit that he looked pretty goddamn adorable.

"Thank you," he whispered softly, entranced by Owen's intense stare.

"That's what... friends... are for." Owen hesitated, not liking the friend zone stage they were in. Not that they'd ever get past it. But he still despised the way it sounded with a passion.

The falter in his statement made Conan smile through his tears. He was starting to think that Cailey might be right. Maybe Owen did feel something for him. Why else would he do this? Why would he be so caring and touchy and gentle? He didn't act that way with his other guy friends at all. He and Gavin were sarcastic with each other constantly.

The relationship they shared was different than the rest. It gave him hope.

Cailey, he thought. His smile disappeared in an instant. She knows.

She kicked Duncan in the balls right before he could finish calling him a tranny. She was LGBT and hung out with plenty of other LGBT people like in the GSA club. It wouldn't be surprising to him if the girl knew other trans people and would easily be able to spot the signs. Women were more observant with that kind of thing.

"Come on, let's walk," Owen said after a moment, frowning when Conan lost his smile.

He slowly let go of his wrist as they walked side by side instead.

There was silence between them but it wasn't uncomfortable or awkward. It was a peaceful silence that brought comfort to Conan. Just Owen's presence made him feel more calm.

As they walked, every so often their arms would brush against each other. Every time it brought a jolting sensation that drove them both crazy inside their heads. Neither knew the other was feeling the same way.

Owen was terrified to admit his sexuality. He hadn't ever liked a boy before and he didn't know what to do about it. Especially since he wouldn't be allowed to act on it. But the thought filled him with incredible emptiness and he wanted nothing more than to pull the boy into his arms to fill it back up. His family would never allow it and he was too insecure himself to be open about himself.

Conan was terrified that Owen wouldn't feel the same. He was a popular jock that had no business hanging out with someone like Conan. He still hadn't gotten over the fact that Owen wanted to be even friends with him. What would happen if he confessed and Owen got weirded out? What if he stopped talking to him? What if he lost his friend?

Friendship was better than nothing to both of them. Even if it meant sitting in the dark, secretly craving much more but never saying so.

"Are you excited for the track competition this weekend?" Owen asked after a while. He wanted to know more about the situation that had just gone on but knew Conan didn't want to talk about it so he decided on something to distract him instead.

"A little." He shrugged. "Mostly nervous. But I'll be fine."

"It's normal to be nervous the first time, but I promise you'll have fun," he said thoughtfully.

"I hope so," Conan muttered.

"After we win we can go out to celebrate." Owen bit the inside of his cheek. "Just the two of us," he added, glancing at Conan out of the corner of his eye for his reaction.

Conan smiled shyly to himself. "I'd like that."

Owen grinned widely, seeing Conan's upturned lips again. He wished he would see him smile more often. "Cool."

"Can I ask you something kind of lame?" Conan asked quietly. "It's really stupid but I've just been wondering for a while."

He nodded. "What is it?"

"Why do you talk to me?" he blurted quickly with a red face. "I don't mean to sound like such a loser or anything but it's just like you're the most popular guy in school, and I'm just... me." He snorted in a bitter tone.

Owen frowned and stopped walking so that they could look at each other. Conan awkwardly met his stare, sighing when he saw Owen's face twisted in confusion. He didn't know that Conan thought of himself so lowly. He didn't like it.

"Don't talk about yourself like that." His eyes gleamed under the streetlight that shone and illuminated his handsome face. "And for the record, you're a lot cooler than my other 'popular' friends."

"That's a funny joke," he snickered quietly.

"I'm serious." Owen's sharp features hardened. "I like you. A lot."

Conan thought he meant that platonically. He didn't know that Owen didn't mean he liked him in the way he really did.

Conan played with the hem of his shirt awkwardly as he spoke, "I like you a lot too."

Owen had to choke down the raging happiness bouncing around in his stomach. He too thought Conan meant as a friend.

Neither of them saw the other as just a friend. It was so much deeper than that. They were two oblivious boys helplessly falling for the other with no idea what to do.

But they were starting to come to their senses and that would bring so much turmoil.