Chapter Text
Now Playing: Hilary Duff - Wake up
There’s people talking
They talk about me
They know my name
They think they know everything
But they don’t know anything about me
Give me a dance floor
Give me a DJ-
Isak groaned out loud before throwing the covers off of him and rolling out of his king bed to look for his phone.
“Fucking asshole,” he hissed under his breath, feeling disoriented and dizzy for a good three seconds.
Where did I put my damn phone?
It was under the bed which was stacked against the wall. It had probably fallen when he dozed off around two in the morning while browsing his camera roll looking for outrageous material to share on his instagram.
Isak sighed then pushed the bedframe off the wall before shoving his arm between the two to reach for his phone. It hurt because he hadn’t pulled the bed far enough but it was worth it. Anything to stop whoever was singing from reaching the chorus.
“God!” he groaned again when he finally stopped his alarm.
He then sat up on the bed, ran a hand through his messy hair, and typed a furious text.
Drittfyr
07:02
You’re the fucking worst
Morning to you too
You changed my alarm again
Just wanted to make sure you woke up
You always sleep through your regular alarm
Who the hell is Hilary Duff
Are you serious?
Yes
I’m gonna stop responding now
Are you still mad at me?
Yes
It was a joke
Goodbye
Isak threw his phone away then lay back down on the bed for a second or two. He wasn’t used to waking up this early. His body needed a moment. He just needed to lie down for a moment.
He woke up to Hilary Duff bullying him into waking up again because he had hit the snooze button instead, and he sighed so loud that he might have awoken Edvard.
Isak needed new friends.
.
“Good morning, young Isak,” said Edvard, propped on his usual couch by the big window in the living room with a newspaper between his hands and coffee on the table beside him.
Isak wanted to say something about how he probably shouldn’t be drinking coffee, but Edvard was almost a century old and he was still healthy. He probably knew what he was doing.
“Good morning, Edvard,” said Isak, avoiding eye contact and feeling awkward as usual.
He was probably never going to get used to this living arrangement.
“You’re up very early today,” said Edvard, a kind and warm smile on his wrinkled face.
Edvard barely had any hair left, but he took good care of whatever was still on his head. It was always brushed and pushed back and it made him look like a businessman. A very very old businessman, but a businessman nonetheless. He was also always dressed nicely as if he were going on a date with a lady or on his way to an important meeting. He was taller than Isak but the way he slouched made him look shorter sometimes.
“It’s my first day of university,” said Isak, rushing to the kitchen to shove the almost finished bag of cereals he knew he had left in one of the cupboards in his backpack.
“Oh, how wonderful! So wonderful! I’m so envious,” said Edvard, folding the newspaper on the coffee table and getting up on his feet rather painfully. “We have to celebrate this occasion!”
“Oh, uh, it’s nothing special,” said Isak, stumbling behind him.
Edvard had trouble walking without his cane and Isak always felt the need to stay close just in case he tripped. It was ironic how he often ended up being the one tripping instead.
“It’s very special!” said Edvard. “Young Isak is starting university. This is very special. You need a good breakfast.”
Isak sighed and decided to let it go. He knew Edvard would insist and he figured he could have breakfast with him at least once. Isak always turned down his invitations then left the house feeling like the world’s biggest asshole. All Edvard wanted was some company, but Isak was too awkward and selfish to grant him his simple wish.
It was part of their arrangement after all, and despite his initial doubts, Edvard never brought up how Isak wasn’t fulfilling his part of the deal.
When he opened the cupboard Isak left most of his things in, there was a new cereal box on the bottom shelf.
“Your blue friend replenished,” said Edvard with a smile. “He was here last night when you went out for a walk.”
“Oh okay,” said Isak, feeling his cheeks heat up and a sense of shame crawling its way into his veins.
That must be when he changed my fucking alarm.
“Coffee or tea?” said Edvard.
“Coffee,” said Isak, grabbing a coffee mug that said “best roommate ever” from the dishwasher. “And I’ll do it.”
Edvard almost swatted his hand away when Isak reached for the fancy Nespresso machine, but in an affectionate way, almost. The way grandmothers did when their grandchildren reached for the hot cookies before they had cooled down. Grandmothers on TV at least. Isak wouldn’t know about real life.
“I may be 89, but I can still pour you a cup of coffee, young one,” said Edvard with a smile that made Isak nearly blush in embarrassment.
.
Isak had been living with Edvard for maybe five weeks now, but it was still awkward. It was still very weird and he still had no idea how to act around him or how much conversation was considered enough.
He had found Edvard’s ad online after typing ‘need cheap place to stay in Oslo please i’m about to explode i can’t do this anymore’ on a drunken night and he had responded almost immediately.
.
Edvard Albertsen. 89 years old. Single parent of the best cat in the world.
Needs roommate to keep him company and talk about ‘Skal vi danse’ from time to time.
No rent required. Just time and a good sense of humor.
Help cleaning and doing grocery shopping would be ideal.
No people working in finance, please.
Thank you very much.
.
Isak wouldn’t have e-mailed him if he were sober. He would have maybe taken a screenshot and sent it to Mutta or Sana (not him though. He was so fucking mad at him that night. But then again, Isak always seemed to be angry at him ) . Inebriated Isak had different plans, however. Inebriated Isak always seemed to have different plans.
Hi Edvard. Cool ad. Loved the font and i wanna meet your cat even though cats hate me. My name is isak and i’m 19. I’m starting uni soon and i need to move out asap of my current place. can i crash?
Love the hat and love u.
Isak.
.
Isak had honestly forgotten ever sending the e-mail until he got a response from Edvard asking if he was okay and if he needed help or assistance.
Isak thought it was sweet so he replied while hungover.
An elegantly dressed woman in her forties wearing the sweetest perfume welcomed him at the door two days later and went over the arrangement with him. She was Edvard’s youngest daughter and she explained to Isak that he could no longer take care of himself but that he refused to go to an elderly home.
One thing led to another and Isak ended up moving into Edvard’s house a week later much to his delight. Little did he know that Isak was an awkward turtle at best and that he would barely leave his master bedroom.
His bed. The kingsized bed was the best thing about this whole arrangement.
.
“I’m gonna go now,” said Isak, waving awkwardly. “Have a good day.”
“Have a good day, young Isak,” said Edvard.
Isak quickly ran out the door before Tequila gave him more scratches.
Drittfyr
08:20
Did you miss the bus?
I bet you missed the bus
I didn’t miss the bus
Still angry?
Yes
How are Edvard and Tequila?
“I’m Eva,” said a girl with beautiful auburn hair and a western accent whom he had previously seen on Sana’s instagram. “Not sure what I’m doing in uni yet.”
“Uh, Isak,” he replied nonchalantly before biting into the worst sandwich he had ever eaten. “Engineering.”
“Wow. What kind?” said Eva, pulling her chair closer to Isak’s.
“Why are you interrogating him?” said Sana, looking as unimpressed as ever.
They were in the campus cafeteria and Isak gathered that Sana’s entire group of friends was just as lost as he was.
“We could use a guy in our girl squad,” said Eva.
“It wouldn’t be a girl squad anymore if we added a guy,” said Noora, a beautiful girl with short blonde hair.
Isak wanted to reply with something just as snarky but he didn’t have the energy to do so. He had barely had any sleep and he hadn’t signed up for conversations with Sana’s friends from Nissen.
“I’m not interested in joining a girl squad anyways. Don’t worry. I won’t ruin your aesthetic,” said Isak while taking another bite. He couldn’t help it and the look on Noora’s face was worth it.
The two other girls, Vilde and Chris if Isak had remembered their names correctly, burst into laughter at his remark.
“Sana, I like him,” said Chris, sucking on a spoon while maintaining eye contact. What the fuck.
“I told you he was a bitch,” Sana shrugged.
“Oh, piss off,” Isak groaned.
The truth was that Isak had absolutely no idea he would end up joining Sana of all people for lunch. But he was a little bit desperate and everyone seemed to magically fit in with a group of people. So when Sana offered on their way out of the class they shared, he feigned reluctance and followed close behind.
“So how do you two know each other?” said Eva.
“He’s friends with my brother,” Sana shrugged. “We’re not that close actually.”
“Oh please!” Isak rolled his eyes. “I was practically your biology partner. Remember all the times I saved your ass?”
“Oh you mean, when I saved your ass?” Sana replied.
“Wait. You went to Nissen, too?” said Chris.
“Nah,” said Isak. “I went to Bakka. I just helped her with homework.”
Drittfyr
12:18
Lunch?
No
No you didn’t have lunch?
No i won’t have lunch with you
Ok
I see you made new friends
You’re watching me?
Someone’s gotta look out for you
I’m not a child
“Who’s Drittfyr?” said Vilde, her voice too high pitched for a Monday and for the first day of classes. Isak almost wanted to grab his backpack and run.
“Just someone,” Isak shrugged before locking his phone.
He wanted to add something about how rude it was to peep on someone’s texts but he refrained.
“Like an ex or something?” said Vilde, looking overly enthusiastic for someone he had literally just met.
“Something like that,” Isak shrugged, feeling slightly vain for holding a grudge for so long.
He then remembered that Sana was right there and that he had just called him an ex. He almost felt like taking it back or explaining himself but what was the point.
“Let’s talk about other things. All anyone talks about in my house is Isak. I’m so sick of it,” said Sana.
“I heard there’s this really fucking hot guy a year above us who does the weirdest stuff on campus,” said Eva.
“Eva, you have a boyfriend,” Noora rolled her eyes, finally looking up from her copy of ‘Assholes: A Theory’ by Aaron James.
“I’m not saying I want to hook up with him,” said Eva. “Besides, Jonas and I are not exclusive.”
“Yeah right,” said Noora.
“Anyways, we need to be in the know and meet the cool people here. We’re first year losers again,” Eva replied.
Isak yawned and unlocked his phone to browse instagram. And he grew frustrated when he realized that he had seen all those memes the night before. Nothing was entertaining enough and he couldn’t ignore the girls’ blabbering.
He really needed male friends. Talking about boys with a bunch of girls was the last thing on his list today.
“His name is Even Bech Næsheim and he makes short movies and stuff,” said Eva. “He has a Vimeo channel or whatever hipster kids have.”
Isak’s neck probably snapped at the mention of Even’s name. Yeah no. And the only thing that made the whole exchange bearable was the frown between Sana’s perfect eyebrows.
“He’s so fucking hot! I saw pictures of him on one of his friends’ instagram. Yousef or something,” said Eva. “I think they all went to Bakka.”
“Can we talk about something else other than boys?” said Sana, suddenly looking irritated and shy?
Isak smirked to himself. The only times he had ever seen Sana’s face flush were all related to Yousef in one way or another.
“You okay there, Sanasol?” Isak laughed.
“What about you, Isabell?” she bit right back. “What do you think about this Even guy? You went to Bakka after all.”
Not fair.
“I think he’s a dick,” said Isak with a grin on his face, moving his legs so that he could fold them on the seat. “I also heard he can’t last in bed.”
“For real?!” said Eva.
Isak closed his eyes and sealed his lips then nodded dramatically.
“Heard he has a big dick though,” said Chris, still sucking on her spoon.
“God!” Sana groaned while Isak stood up as fast as he could with his hands covering his ears.
“Alright, that’s my cue,” he declared. “Let’s never do this again.”
.
The afternoon classes weren’t any less painful than the morning ones, but Isak enjoyed the freedom. He enjoyed the anonymity of it all. He enjoyed the non-Bakka-ness of it all.
He was about to doze off when a shorter boy wearing a blue tracksuit approached him.
“Yo, bro can I borrow a pen?” said the darker boy.
“Uh, yeah sure,” said Isak, turning to the side to rummage through his bag. “Here.”
“Thanks,” said the boy. “Uh, can I also have a piece of paper?”
Isak squinted his eyes then took him in. This guy didn’t seem to have a backpack.
“Forgot to carry my backpack. I’m Mahdi,” said the boy. “Nice to meet you.”
“Uh, Isak.”
Isak hoped he would get to spend the rest of the lecture in peace but Mahdi decided to sit next to him.
By the end of the class, Isak decided that he didn’t mind his company all that much.
“Which school did you go to?” said Mahdi on their way to the cafeteria, Isak struggling to remember the way back.
“Bakka,” said Isak. “What about you?”
“Nissen,” said Mahdi. “So you’re like a creative media hipster guy?”
“No, not at all,” said Isak.
“Why would you go to Bakka then?”
To take care of him.
“Not everyone at Bakka is like that, you know,” Isak said instead.
“Anyways. Gotta introduce you to my bros! You seem lonely.”
Isak wasn’t lonely. Friends his age had decided to join the workforce instead of going to uni and he was avoiding his friends who didn’t.
“Sure,” said Isak, relieved when he finally spotted the cafeteria.
“By the way do you have kinky sex or something?” said Mahdi very nonchalantly.
“What the fuck?”
“You have scratches all over,” Mahdi laughed, referring to his bruised neck.
Ugh. Fucking Tequila.
“It’s a cat,” said Isak.
“Kinky.”
“No! No. Like an actual cat,” said Isak, his face flushing for whatever reason. “A very vicious cat that’s probably possessed.”
“I don’t trust cats, man,” said Mahdi. “Why would you have a cat as a uni student?”
“Not mine,” said Isak.
And it was true. Tequila was Edvard’s cat and the primary reason he never left his room once he locked it. Isak remembered first meeting Tequila and waiting for Edvard to start laughing and reveal her real name.
“Her name is really Tequila,” Edvard smiled.
“Uh, why? If you don’t mind me asking,” said Isak.
“Because she’s fun and she keeps me company at night.”
Isak felt like writing down what he said sometimes.
Drittfyr
17:12
How was your first day?
Still mad at me?
Yes
Good
?
You’re just gonna get a little bit angrier then
??
I might have done something.
To: me
Dear Isak Valtersen,
Thank you for your interest in joining Studio 2121. Auditions will be held Wednesday night at 19:00. Please pick an available timeslot through the WhenIsGood link attached and specify which musical instrument you’ll be playing or if you’re auditioning for vocals.
We’re looking forward to watching you and hearing you perform.
Best regards,
Sigrid.
Drittfyr
18:19
Are you fucking insane??
You can’t sign me up for random clubs
Ouch
Didn’t mean to say it like that!
All good
And it’s not a random club
Sigrid’s the president
Just give it a try
You might like it
I’m not going
Wednesday 19:00 in the main auditorium
I’ll be there
You better show up
Isak groaned in the middle of the bus and shoved his phone in his pocket. He was fuming. He then thought about why he was fuming. If Mutta had pulled this prank on him, he would have probably just brushed it off and not gone to the auditions. But this was him.
Isak sighed then pulled out his phone and his headphones again. Listening to songs always calmed him down, always got his mind off of things. So he put on the cheesiest John Legend songs and leaned against his seat.
.
Isak was singing along and struggling to get the door to open when Edvard got it for him.
“Oh,” Isak gasped, immediately removing his headphones and feeling very self-conscious.
“You have a beautiful voice, young Isak,” said Edvard, stepping to the side to allow Isak to come in. “Welcome back.”
“Uh, thanks.”
For some reason that comment made him feel warm inside. Isak enjoyed singing when he felt a bit overwhelmed, and truthfully, even when he didn’t. It was a good outlet and he had a pretty solid fanbase even though he never meant to have one.
“How was your first day?” said Edvard.
“It was nice,” said Isak very awkwardly.
“Did you have dinner?”
“Uh, yes,” said Isak, now in the middle of the living room.
He was going to disappear into his room and let Edvard watch TV until it was time for him to go to bed.
Isak felt bad but he didn’t know what else he could offer.
“I have some work to do,” Isak lied.
“Go on, then.”
Drittfyr
21:23
Still mad?
Yes
Did you have dinner?
No
Kebab?
Ugh fine i’m starving
I’ll be there in 10 min
Wait outside
I wanna talk to Edvard
NO!
Eva Mohn added you to Los Losers
Los Losers
23:27
Eva: let’s welcome our newest recruit Isak!!
Vilde: yay hi Isak!
Chris: ayee ;)
Sana: -_-
Uh hey
Eva: party at my house this friday if you wanna come btw Isak
Eva: jonas will be there and i can introduce you guys
Thx for the invite
Eva: so anyways
Eva: that guy Even dyed his hair BLUE!
Chris: omg I saw him earlier on campus. SO HOT
what
Eva: he’s volunteering as a model for the photography class
Eva: LOOK BITCH
Vilde: wow
Noora: oh
Sana: wait What
200% photoshop
“What do you think?” said Even, holding both hands in the air and standing under the street light pole in front of Edvard’s house. He was wearing a black t-shirt and blue jeans. He looked nice, very nice.
“What the fuck?” said Isak, his eyes wide and his mouth nearly hanging open.
“It looks cool. Doesn’t it?” Even smiled. “Sigrid helped me dye it.”
“Even, what the hell?!” Isak groaned, taking a step forward and threading his fingers through Even’s hair, pulling at the ends. “Your hair is fucking blue!”
“I know,” Even grabbed both of Isak’s wrists. “What are you doing?”
“Is this real?” said Isak, still pulling at his hair even with Even’s fingers over his pulse. “It’s not like a temporary thing? I thought it was photoshop!”
“100% real,” said Even. “Edvard said it looks cool. I came over last night.”
Isak sighed then remembered Edvard’s comment about his “blue friend”.
“I’m supposed to be the child here. Not you!” Isak groaned.
“You don’t like it?” Even asked quietly. His eyes blue. His hair blue. His tone blue.
Why am I so angry.
Isak was always so angry lately. Everything Even did made him angry. Everything Even said drove him mad.
Why am I so angry with you all the time.
“No, it’s nice,” Isak eventually said, finally letting go of Even’s hair, his soles finally regaining the ground. He hadn’t noticed he had been on his tiptoes the entire time.
“You think?” Even smiled, not letting go of Isak’s wrists. “Sigrid and I spent so much time on it.”
Of course they had. Sigrid had once tried to do something about his hair, too.
“Let me guess,” Isak smiled. “You rewatched ‘Blue Is The Warmest Color’.”
“How did you know?” Even smiled right back, his thumb ghosting over Isak’s pulse ever so gently.
Why am I always so angry when you’re not smiling at me.
“You rewatch it at least once every three months, so I guess it was only a matter of time,” said Isak, getting out of Even’s hold very gently, and stepping ahead of him.
“Fair point,” said Even, before catching up with him, walking backwards so that he was facing Isak. “I stopped trying to get you to rewatch it with me.”
“Yeah, not interested in watching two women eat each other out for 30 minutes a second time,” said Isak. “Not enough penis action. Once was enough.”
“God. You’re so gay!” said Even, laughing.
“The gayest,” Isak shoved him and smiled, then let Even pull him by the arm and throw his own over his shoulders.
“Let’s go lil' V,” said Even, wrapping his arm around Isak’s neck as if he was holding him in a headlock. “I’m gonna feed you well tonight.”
“Asshole,” Isak elbowed him in the ribs. “I told you not to call me that.”
“That’s what you get for telling people I don’t last in bed,” said Even, walking so fast that Isak was now breathing hard to keep up.
“News travel fast,” Isak shrugged despite the little tug at his heart. “Besides, that’s what Sonja said. I’m merely reporting facts.”
“I last very long in bed Isak Valtersen!” Even groaned, now properly holding him in a headlock, the tug at his heart getting almost painful.
Right.
“Yeah, sure.”
.
By the time they sat down for Kebab, Isak forgot what he had been mad about, too busy glaring at anyone who looked at Even’s hair for too long.
“So how was your first day besides the ‘not hanging out with me’ part?” said Even, apparently oblivious to everyone around him. “Still ashamed of me?”
“It was great. Met a bunch of people,” said Isak before taking a huge bite out of his kebab, sauce dripping everywhere.
“You’re a mess,” Even sighed, bringing his thumb and tissue to wipe Isak’s mouth.
“We’re not kids anymore,” Isak swatted his hand away, feeling a bit flustered. “I can do this myself.”
“Still mad at me. Noted,” said Even, going back to his own Kebab and leaving Isak’s personal space.
“I’m not mad.”
“You’re still insisting on keeping our relationship a secret though,” said Even.
“Friendship, Even! Friendship!”
“A friendship is a relationship, Isak. Minus the sex,” said Even.
Isak made dramatic gagging sounds and only stopped when he heard Even mutter a ‘come on!’.
“Please don’t ever talk about us hypothetically having sex ever again,” Isak said only half joking but Even didn't have to know.
“What the hell? I didn't!” Even scoffed.
Switch topics. Now.
“Creep.”
Isak watched Even’s face turn into something between feigned annoyance and fondness and he stuck out his tongue like a child because why not.
“Heard back from that Jakob dude?” said Even while holding his gaze.
“You’re a dick!” Isak groaned, suddenly remembering why he was so angry.
“Why? I was just looking out for you,” Even shrugged.
“You’re the absolute worst wingman ever! I’m never taking you out with me ever again.”
“I’m telling you. That guy gave me a bad vibe. I did you a favor,” said Even, speaking with his mouth full. “Heard he’s very clingy and insecure. You hate that. He would have probably tried to make you choose between him or me.”
“Not every guy is like that, Even!” Isak rolled his eyes.
“It happened twice already,” said Even. “Just saved you some time.”
Asshole.
“You didn’t have to be such a dick!”
“But it was a joke,” said Even.
“Whatever.”
Even walked Isak back home then waited for him to go inside.
“I’m not a girl you just took out on a date,” Isak groaned. “Go away.”
“No. You’re a boy I just took out on a date,” said Even, smiling.
“God, I’m gonna throw up again,” said Isak, feigning gagging sounds, almost at the door now. “Do you practice your lines on me now? Is that what I’m being reduced to? Target practice?”
“You’re so dramatic,” Even rolled his eyes fondly.
“Yeah whatever,” said Isak. “Go now.”
“Not until you go inside,” said Even, crossing both arms over his chest.
“Why are you so annoying?” Isak rolled his eyes, a hand on the door knob.
“Go!” Even gestured with his head.
But just as Isak was about to open the door, a weird sense of giddiness took over his body. It was the end of summer and the start of a new year. He was a university student now. He could see Even every day now. He didn’t have to be miserable all by himself because Even and Mutta had graduated from Bakka and left him all alone now. He lived with Edvard for free, had daily fights with a cat named Tequila, and his best friend had blue hair. Life could be worse.
He couldn’t see the stars but he was sure they were out there shining for him. There was a nice breeze. But it wasn’t cold. It was almost comforting on his skin and through his loose white t-shirt. It was the perfect weather.
Even was wearing black and Isak was wearing white.
The sky was dark, dark, dark.
And Even’s hair was blue, blue, blue.
Isak locked eyes with Even and smiled.
We’re not kids anymore.
But Even smiled right back and opened his arms big and wide.
We’re not kids anymore.
Isak ran to him like a child and wrapped his arms around his back when he reached him, laughing when Even embraced right back, both arms around his neck, rocking them gently in the middle of the street.
“We haven’t hugged like this in years,” said Even, holding him tight.
“Yeah,” Isak mumbled, letting his cheek rest against Even’s neck.
“Congrats on surviving your first day as a uni student.”
“Whatever.”
They stayed there under the street light in front of Edvard’s house for a few more moments simply rocking in each other’s arms, and it wasn’t even the tiniest bit awkward. They had done this a million times. They stayed like that until Even spoke again.
“Can you change my contact name from ‘Drittfyr’ to something else now?”
“Alright. Hug time is over!” said Isak before leaving his arms.
.
“Mind if I sit?” said a boy with thick eyebrows, wild hair, and an acoustic guitar.
“Not at all,” said Isak.
He was at the auditorium and it was 19:00 on Wednesday.
“I’m Jonas,” said the boy with the guitar. “Nice to meet you.”
“I’m Isak,” he replied then watched him settle next to him. “I’m guessing you’re auditioning for guitar.”
“You’re very observant,” Jonas laughed. “What are you auditioning for?”
“Uh. Vocals,” said Isak, suddenly feeling very self-conscious.
“Nice,” said Jonas. “I’m guessing they’re placing us by alphabetical order.”
“Hm?”
“I just looked at the list. Our last names are close alphabetically,” said Jonas.
“Oh that’s weird.”
“Yeah. Kinda nice though,” Jonas smiled.
Isak sat there awkwardly then pulled out his phone to check the time. It was past 19:00 and Even was nowhere to be found. Great. Awesome. Sign me up for this crap then don’t show up. Whatever.
Drittfyr
19:24
Your contact name just went back to being Drittfyr fyi
I’m here
Corner on the far right
Why are you hiding
Closed door auditions
Isak smiled to himself. What a loser.
“What’s that guy trying to do?” said Jonas, pointing to Even who was now trying to discreetly go a few seats down.
Isak laughed because Even was so tall and so lanky and so awkward, and how could he think for even a second that he could get away with this?
“You know that guy?” said Jonas.
“Yeah,” Isak laughed.
“Who is he? Sick hair. Love it!”
“That’s Even,” said Isak.
“Even?”
Isak burst into laughter again because someone spotted his giraffe of a childhood friend and was now trying to get him to leave only for Even to not so gracefully jump to the next row of seats and try to run away.
“Yeah Even. He’s my best friend slash only fan,” said Isak.
And we would die for each other.
.
Flashback 1: The joke. 19 and 21
Isak didn’t go on dating apps because he didn’t think they were authentic enough. He never knew what to expect until he was face to face with the person. And rather than the idea of being disappointed, the thought of actually disappointing someone when he finally met them in real life was what kept him away.
So Isak went on the hunt at parties and bars and let the boys come to him.
Isak was on a ‘date’ -- well, hardly, it was in the bar where he always ended up with Even and the guys -- with Jakob, a pretty boy who looked at him like he wanted to worship the freckles on his back, when Even decided it was time for the ‘Best Friend’ sign-off.
“I’m his best friend,” said Even, sliding into their booth and almost glaring at Jakob.
“Well, you know. Like best bud. Like we’ve known each other our whole lives,” Isak added nervously. He didn’t want Jakob to get freaked out.
But then Even downed his sixth or seventh drink that night and leaned in across the table.
“We might have known each other our whole lives, but I’d fuck you if you asked.”
.
“You’re a fucking asshole. Why would you say that?!” Isak yelled in the middle of the street.
Even never replied, too busy throwing up against the wall.
The next day, Isak woke up to two texts.
Giraffe
03:27
Because you liked him too much
07:24
It was a bad joke. I’m sorry. I had too much to drink :(. Did you change my contact name already?
"Hey Siri. Change Even's contact name from 'Giraffe' to 'Drittfyr'."
.