The football field is gone. No, like, actually gone. Pete and Patrick immediately stop where they are when they notice a giant gaping hole in the ground. Andy and Joe come up seconds later, almost walking right into it.

"Wait!" Pete yells, running after them. He grabs one of each of their hands and pulls backwards. Andy looks down, and his eyes widen when he sees the hole.

"You.. you saved our lives." Joe breaks the awkward silence with a huge smile on his face, smiling at Pete. Andy narrows his eyes and clenches his jaw. "Thank you." Joe says, hugging Pete. He looks at Andy expectantly when he pulls away.

"...Thanks." Andy says after a moment, dropping his head and kicking a rock in the hole. A small smile engulfs Pete's face before he hides it, nodding at the two of them and rejoining Patrick.

Ace comes strolling up, whistling, with a paper in his hands seconds later. He walks right into the hole, no one caring enough to say anything. He yelps and falls out of their view.

"Well, if I'd known we could've shut him up that easily, I'd have dug up the football field years ago." Someone says from behind them. Pete, along with everyone else, turns to see the person with the unfamiliar voice.

However, when the other guys see who it is, they all go running towards the guy, Andy and Joe yelling, "Trevor!" before all three of them jump into his arms. Pete feels strangely awkward and left out.

"How've you boys been?" 'Trevor' asks, pulling away from them. He ruffles Patrick's hair, pulling him in for a side hug. "I missed you, nephew!" Patrick turns bright red before nodding, a smile on his face.

"We're great! Gavy can be a handful when you're not around." Andy says, smiling at Trevor's laugh.

"Who's your friend?" He asks, waving Pete over. Pete walks awkwardly to join the group.

"That's Pete. He's Patrick's boyfriend." Joe says, and Pete shoots him a death glare. Before he can clarify that, no, he and Patrick are not dating, Patrick links their hands together and smiles at Trevor.

"Oh! You're.. but.." Trevor looks confused for a second before he covers it up with a smile. "I'm happy for you two." Pete stands there for a second, body heating up because he's touching Patrick before Trevor finally thinks to introduce himself. "I'm Trevor Wells, Gavin's younger brother. I used to teach here a few years ago before I fell in love with a mortal. Cate and I got married," he pauses to hold his left hand up and show the tattoo of a ring with 'CTW' in the middle of it, "a few years back, and I had to give up my powers."

Pete nods. "Nice to meet you. I'm Pete, Patrick's boyfriend." He holds his hand out, and Trevor takes it. After they let go, Trevor turns his head to look behind him, and Pete sees a deep scar on Trevor's left cheek. His eyebrows furrow, but he doesn't say anything, making a mental note to ask Patrick about it later.

"So, you guys want to go to lunch early and catch up? I'm sure Ace would be fine with that." Trevor says the last part loudly, and everyone hears a groan in response. "What a shame, he's still alive."

They all laugh and make their way to the café, making jokes along the way.

--

TJ and Gavin meet them there after their classes are over, joining them at the round table made for four people. The seven of them are crushed together but don't mind it too much.

"So I have big news." Trevor says after they finish talking about Pete's ability to control water. Everyone turns to him. "Cate and I are fostering a boy so he can finish his last year of high school in our town. He got taken from his parents because they neglected him."

"Wow, little brother, you're growing up." Gavin says, clapping his brother on the back and smiling widely at him. Everyone congratulates him. "I also have big news." Gavin adds, looking straight at Patrick. Patrick smiles back at him and nods. "I'm adopting Patrick. Legally. I know it's only for a few months, but he deserves to have someone that cares for him and treats him like a son should be treated, even if it's only for seven months."

Everyone goes quiet for a second before grins and shouts break through. "Oh my god, I'm so happy for you, Patrick. If anyone deserves this, it's you." Joe says, pulling Patrick in for a hug. Patrick smiles, thanking him like he does everything else - silently.

"With that being said, he's also going to move in with me off campus." Gavin says, and Pete bites his lip. He hates to be selfish in a moment like this, but he's going to miss Patrick.

"I'm happy for you." Pete whispers, pressing a kiss to Patrick's cheek. Patrick's hand finds his thigh and squeezes it, a blush on his face.

"Patrick Wells." Andy lets the name slip from his lips, and everyone turns to him. "I like it." A smile takes over his face and he reaches across the table to ruffle Patrick's hair.

"It has a nice ring to it." TJ speaks up, smiling at Patrick and Gavin. His eyebrows furrow after a second. "Wait a minute, how did you guys get out of class early?"

As if on cue, Ace slams the door to the café open. He's covered in dirt and snow, his hair messed up to hell and back. He marches over to the table, opening his mouth to shout probably. Then he sees TJ, who is very amused by this whole thing.

"H-Hi." Ace says, looking down at TJ. TJ looks behind him before turning back to Ace, pointing at himself.

"You're talking to me?" TJ asks, clearly very confused as to why this guy he's heard so many bad things about looks fucking adorable covered in snow and dirt and has a sort of high-pitched voice despite his intimidating attitude. Ace nods, a blush on his face. Everyone else at the table watches in silence, big smiles on their faces. "Well, hi?"

"I'm Aeson." He holds out his hand, face still bright red. TJ smiles and takes his hand.

"Thomas."

ace & tj finally talked. i ship it so hard

sorry it's been a while

thoughts?