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Chapter Text

It had all started around ten years ago when Ethan was nine and Chad and Mindy were ten. A new family had moved into the home beside The Meeks-Martins, though at the time they were just The Martins.

The Baileys! Mindy recites, having heard her mothers discuss it.

Currently she and Chad were sent on a task, a mission, a spy situation, code: deliver brownies to the neighbors. Which really just meant knock on the door, sit the brownies on the porch, and RUN.

Their Ma was very old school, she liked to hand out snacks to welcome people into the neighborhood. This was the third time she had sent the twins out to do it, though this was the first time they were sent without one of their Mothers. Just the door, Chad, Mindy, and as far as their little legs could take them.

Chad volunteered to be the door knocker, as last time they practiced this, he sent all the brownies to the floor in his rush to greet the new people on his block.

Chad places his fist in front of the door as Mindy slowly lowers the brownie tin, and right when his knuckles are about to meet the wood, the door slams open right into his hand.

In a attempt to act natural, he straightens like he had not just been mid-knock, and instead just standing straight up right infront of the door.

Way less creepy, way to go Chad. He is certain Mindy is about to say just those words when suddenly the sound of metal clanging against concrete makes both Chad and the mystery boy at the door jump back.

Chad was only just registering the boy, he looked like he jumped back FAR like it was a bomb or something. He doesn't have time to dwell on it as he turns around and sees brownies all over the neighbors porch and dark red shoes stomping on them, further solidifying their state in the cement. He locks eyes with Mindy, both prepare for sprint back home, when the mystery boy clears his throat.

"Uhm, hi?" The twins both shoot their heads over to look at him. Chad has time to realize how pretty the boy infront of him is. He's like really pretty for a guy. Chad finds all words stuck in his throat as he faces the other kid.

Luckily Mindy saves the day. "Hi!" She greets, all too chipper for a child that just accidentally stomped brownies into a strangers porch. She keeps going in the same tone, "I'm Mindy, this is Chad." He waves awkwardly. "Our Ma sent us to give you brownies, but, uhhh." She just looks down at the mess of chocolate.

The boy looks down with her, head turning sideways to signal confusion, the same way a dog would. Adorable.

After a couple seconds of considering, the boy lets out a loud giggle contagious enough that it makes Chad grin like an idiot.

"I'm Ethan." He hold his hand out to Chad after containing himself. Chad hesitates for a moment, brain short-circuiting, before taking the hand in his and shaking it. The feeling is foreign, as Chad doesn't believe he's ever actually done that in real life.

Ethan releases Chad and holds his hand out to Mindy, who shakes it with a smile like a smug business woman who's just won a case. "It's nice to meet you, Ethan."

"Nice to meet you guys too." Ethan smiles at them and then looks down, remembering the brownies. "I'm sure they were great brownies, but I gotta go get my sister Quinn to see if she can help clean it up."

Chad is happy Ethan seems to come to a conclusion on cleaning, because frankly, how the hell does one remove brownie from concrete? He doesn't know, and he's glad he won't have to find out.

The three kids stand there for a second, not really knowing the next move. Chad takes initiative this time, his extroverted side of him finally coming out. "Okay well," he claps his hands together, Ethan's eyes shoot towards him. "We'll see you later Ethan, we have a story not-to tell our moms." Ethan smiles at that and nods, turning back inside to find his sister.

Chad and Mindy turn to go home, once out of earshot, Mindy nudges her brother. "You like him..." The teasing tone obnoxious. He shoves her back, cheeks heating up.
"Shut up."

Mindy practically squeals the entire rest of the walk home.

They see Ethan outside sometimes, and spend that whole first month of summer together. Eventually Ethan gets to try a fresh batch of the Martins Infamous Brownies and looks like he's never eaten food before in his life, the way he eats the whole container before his sister can even eat one. Chad counts it as a win. It becomes their thing.

They hang out at the park one time and then don't see Ethan again until the following week at school. The last month and a half of summer, he had been in Michigan for a break through in a case his mother had been working on. As he reluctantly shared with them on the swing set that day.

He's in neither Chad, nor Mindy's class, much to both of their dismays. Ethan gives them each small smiles each time they pass one another in the hall, but never actually greets them in any sort of fashion, it's as though he's not sure where exactly the boundaries lie.

Luckily, for Ethan, he befriended the most obnoxious kids in all of Woodsboro. The first day of 5th grade, Mindy greets him at his locker before lunch. "Hey, Ethan!" He turns around confused, but smiles when his eyes land on the familiar girl.

He finishes putting his binders away, closes his locker, and turns to look at her. "Mindy, hey! What's up?"

She grins. "So, Chad was wondering if you'd like to sit with us at lunch today? If you dont have plans with other people, of course." She totally threw Chad under the bus, but the way Ethan's smile grew up on hearing his name definitely made it worth it.

"Yeah, sure!" He agrees, so they collect Chad, and the three of them walk to the lunch room together. They introduce Ethan to the rest of their table, to their friends. Wes, Liv, and Amber are the three other members of their little group of 5. Ethan thinks he remembers them being brought up briefly in conversation over the summer. They get along great with one another. Cracking jokes and messing around like they've been friends for years, rather than a measly 20 minute lunch period.

They all become quite close friends over the course of the school year, and become an inseparable friend group through the rest of Middle school.

Ethan gets himself nicely aquainted with Amber. She is definently one of his closest friends in the group. Besides Chad, ofcourse.

He and Amber get asked if they're dating quite often. It doesn't bother them, though. They both know where Ethans feelings really lie. With a certain dark skinned male 2 minutes younger than his nerdy twin sister.

In seventh grade, they befriend a girl named Tara as a seventh member of their crew after her older sister befriends Ethan's and becomes Chad and Mindy's designated babysitter.

Chapter Text

During a sleepover a week from Ethan's fifteenth birthday, and a month before the crews first year of highschool together, something important happens.

It had been a normal sleepover at the Martins with Ethan, Amber, and Liv. Typically Wes and Tara would join them, but Wes had a family event and Tara had a girl's day with Sam. Something about a mall and coffee. Chad really did not want to know.

At the end of the night they went to their respective bedrooms. Amber, Liv and Mindy in Mindy's room, Chad and Ethan in Chad's room.

It had been nearly an hour since they had left the girls, and the boys were in Chad's room laying on the bed talking about anything and everything they could think of.

Eventually the conversation gets to a dull point, and if he weren't laying right in front of him, eyes wide open, Chad would think Ethan had fallen asleep. The way they're laying places Chad against the wall, facing Ethan, and Ethan mirroring him, facing him from the opposite side. It had taken everything in Chad's power not to think about how he can literally feel Ethan's breathing from this distance.

Realistically, they didnt have to sleep on the same bed. Chad has a perfectly good love seat across from his tv that Ethan could sleep on. Wes does when he comes over. Ethan does too when its the three of them, but, for some reason, when it's just the two of them. They both crawl into Chad's bed together no questions asked. Chad tries hard not tot think too hard about that as well.

For a moment they were silent, just laying there looking at each other, their previous conversation about Mario Kart now lost. Chad tries not to think too hard about how he's fairly certain Ethan's eyes kept flickering down towards his lips.

There are too many dangerous thoughts for a moment like this. It's too quiet. Chad cannot get lost in his head right now or he'll do something he is 100% going to regret in the morning.

He's about to speak out, but when Ethan looks him, a small smile forming on his face as he takes in the features of the other boy. Chad is rendered silent.

Ethan opens his mouth to speak, it comes out as a whisper, almost, as not to ruin the peacefulness of the moment. "Have you," Ethan starts, looking down at his hands, he is trying to find how to word his question. "Have you ever been kissed before?" He asks, the words ending almost silently. Had Chad not been looking right at him, watching his mouth form the words, he probably wouldn't have heard them.

He just looks at the younger boy, the question catching him off guard. This is what he's wanted this whole time. There's no way this is what he thinks it is. Ethann's just curious, right? Casual bro things? Chad tries to find a way to play it off.

As the question hangs there for a moment, just floating in the air, Ethan looks like he's about to throw himself out of bed and apologize for asking such a silly thing, when the answer to his question comes.

Chad shakes his head and mutters a small "Not yet." Testing the waters.

Ethan seems to consider this for a moment, before coming out with a mumbled confession of his own.

"Me neither."

The boys look at each other, something new in the air.

~~~~~~~~~

If they're both way too giggly in the morning, no they're not. If Ethan can't look Chad in the eyes without going bright pink and grinning wildly, no one points it out. If they shared more than one kiss in the darkness of Chads room, no one else needs to find out.

Chad swears his Ma can tell. If the smile she gives the two as they walk to the kitchen table together says anything. Mindy gives Chad a smirk during breakfast, seeing straight through him too, but he can't find it in him to care. He just rolls his eyes at her and continues his conversation with Ethan.

~~~~~~~~~

This starts a thing between the two of them.

Secret hand brushing in the hallway, secret kisses in empty classrooms, secrets muttered to each other in the safety of Chads bedroom.

They never put a name on it. Neither feeling the need to. They know what they're doing, they know what they like, who gives a fuck what they decide to call it?

Chad loves Ethan. Ethan loves Chad. That's just how it is.

Until it isn't.

Chapter Text

It's the middle of their Freshman year of high school. Things are going great. They have a loving friend group, and a loving...whatever it is they have.

Ethan is walking home after school. He walks most of the way with Chad, Mindy, and Liv. Liv breaks off first about half way, and Mindy is left to complain about being a third wheel for the last half.

Mindy, as far as Ethan is aware, is the only person besides him, Amber, and Chad that knows. He's been trying to find a time to tell Quinn, but it just hasn't come up yet. She's been too busy trying to convince Richie to move back anyway.

Ethan trusts Mindy to keep the secret. He's not too sure how much she likes him, but she loves Chad and wouldn't do that too him. So besides small remarks in public, and loud complaints in private, she doesn't comment on it too much.

Ethan steps into his home and is greeted by a sad looking Quinn sitting at the small table in their kitchen. It only seats two, despite there being four people living in their home. Though it's just him and Quinn who eat there most nights anyway.

He studies her a bit more before deciding to make his presence noticed. She looks pissed, he realizes. "Quinn?" His sister looks up at him, her gaze softening a bit. She still looks pissed, but she just looks more sad. "Is everything alright?" He asks, though he's sure he knows the answer already.

Quinn looks at him, seemingly having an internal debate. After a small sigh, she answers his question. "Come here," She says softly, patting the dining chair next to her. He does as he is asked and sits down. He looks at her, his head tilted to the side in a silent question.

The ginger takes a deep breath and smiles sadly at him, grabbing his hands in her own. "Ethan..." She starts, not quite sure what to say.

Ethan looks at his sister, concern leaking in to his features and making itself known through his voice. "What is it?"

His sister just looks at him, tears threatening to fall from her eyes. "It..." She looks down at their interlocked hands. "It's mom."

Ethan's eyes widen, squeezing Quinn's hands tighter in his. "What happened?" His voice threatens to give out on him. This could not be happening to them.
His mother was the last stable adult in his life, and even that was saying something. Sure, Chad's Ma had become something of a second mother to him, but she could never substitute in the place of his real mother.

He's brought out of his thoughts by Quinn's voice. "Car accident." She answers his question, voice suddenly void of emotion.

"No..." Ethan feels the tears fall down his face, but he's still just looking at his sister in disbelief. There is no fucking way.

Quinn just regards him sadly, stands up from her chair, and pulls her brother into a tight hug. Ethan let's it's all out into her shoulder, hanging on for dear life.

Safe to say, things are no longer going fucking great.

~~~~~~~

Mr. Bailey comes home later than normal that night, door slamming hard against the door frame. Ethan and Quinn are in her bedroom watching shitty cable television in an attempt to forget. To give them some sense of normalcy. Their own tragic little calm before the effects of the storm kick in.

Quinn quickly steps out of her bedroom to greet her father. It is quickly followed by the sound of an argument being sprung between the two. Ethan just turns up the volume on the TV in waits for his sister.

She comes back in after around ten minutes of arguing with her father, and she is pissed. She slams the door as she enters and throws herself on the bed. "We're fucked." She says into a pillow.

Ethan pauses the TV and looks at her. "What do you mean?" He asks quietly. She sits up and looks at him, the tension in her shoulders fading slightly.

"Dad's dropping us out of school." His eyes widen, and when he goes to speak she cuts him off. "I know. Hes also forbidding us from leaving 'under any circumstances' ." She says the last sentence in quotes with her voice she uses specifically to mock their father. "This situation has made him realize how shitty people ar, so he's making us suffer because of it." She concludes voice cracking a tad at the end.

Ethan looks at her, fear and worry coursing through his bone. He doesn't know how he's ever gonna contact any of his friends again, or how anything good is supposed to come from this, but he just admits defeat and curls further into the bed.

They will figure something out. They will. But they need time to process and think first.

That's what he tells himself as he falls asleep on his sister's bed. Life completely changed from when he woke up this morning.

~~~~~~

It's been a month. One whole month of no mother. One month of no contact with anyone but his sister and father. He had tried to DM Amber on Instagram through Quinn's phone, but their dad took it before he could even search her username.

Ethan was sitting in Quinn's bedroom trying to find a movie to watch, while she was in the kitchen making popcorn. That's how they've been for the past 30 days. Staying in Quinn's room watching movies and occasionally playing board games. It was boring, Ethan can admit, but he appreciated the alone time with his sister.

He had even opened up to her about Chad! She promised him that if she had a chance, she would tell Chad what had happened and would try to get them back. He had faith iin that. All he could do these days was hope.

Quinn enters the bedroom, pulling Ethan from his thoughts and his mindless scrolling. She pulls the remote from his hand and clicks on the movie he had ended up on. Tangled. It was a childhood favorite of hers and she rewatched it regularly.

About fifty-five minutes in to the film and half an hour into ignoring it to talk about Richie's visit home next week, when their dads slams through the door.

Quinn instinctively places herself in front of Ethan and faces her dad. "What?" She asks. Tone sharp. The old man's expression is happier than it typically stayed, so there was no way it meant anything good.

Wayne grins at his two youngest children and chuckles. "Pack your shit. We're moving to New York." He turns back out of the room, slamming the door behind him.

The siblings face each other, confusion and panic equal on both their faces. Ethan moves from his spot on the bed and pulls apart the red curtains to look out the window.

There it is.

A big white U-Haul parked in the middle of their driveway.

Quinn comes up behind him and peeks out too.

"Fuck."

This was serious. They were moving back to New York.

Chapter Text

Ethan really doesn't know what he would rather. Staying trapped here, watching Netflix and gossiping with Quinn forever. Or moving back from New York to do god knows what to appease his father.

Wayne swung back by an hour later and told them that they had to pack all their shit today, as they would be leaving tomorrow. Then he got back in his car and went to wherever it is he goes these days, though unlike most days when he leaves, today he left the door unlocked so that they had easy access to the van.

Ethan and Quinn formed a plan.

He speed packs all of his things, not that there's much anyway, and finishes in an hour and a half. He then runs to the Martins home. He hasn't been able to speak to them in a month. Had zero contact for a month. For all they know he's dead.

He knocks on the door. Their Ma answers, smile beaming as she sees who it is. "Ethan!" She pulls him into a hug. He returns it gleefully, her hugs are always the best. "Where have you been? We've all been worried sick."

His heart pangs a bit with guilt at the fact that he worried them. "It's a really long story." He settles with. "Is Chad home?" The woman looks at him, a knowing smile on her face, and nods.

She leads him inside, he stands awkwardly next to her, facing the stairs that she yells up. "Chad!" A grumbled response comes, and she sighs and rolls her eyes. "You have a visitor!" Ethan hears Chad mumble something more, and then hears the stairs creak as he walks down to see who it is.

"I swear to God ma, if it's Liv aga-" His complaint is stopped short as his eyes fall on the boy in his home. "Holy shit!" He runs down stairs, jumping the last four steps and barrels into Ethan. He hugs him tight as hell.

God he missed him.

"Where have you been?" Chad shakes the other teen to emphasize. Ethan sighs. Right, he has to tell them. It's the least that he can do.

"It's a really long story, that I do not have the time to get into right now, but-" He is cut off by the honk of the U-Haul, Quinn's signal to 'haul his ass back,' aka, he's got five minutes. Chad follows Ethan's gaze out the window and to the truck.

He turns and looks at him in disbelief. "No..." The sadness in his tone makes Ethan want to jump infront of traffic.

"I'm sorry." Chad hugs him again. This one is just as tight, but full of sadness rather than relief.

"Why?" Chad asks as he lets him go. Ethan just shakes his head and shrugs.

"I don't know." It's a broken sound, he knows, but the look on Chad's face makes him want to cry more than he already has.

Chad looks between Ethan and the truck in the window. "Where?" He asks, the sun in the window shining on his face, perfectly illuminating the tears running down his cheeks.

"New York." Ethan provides, a low mumble. Chad just looks at him, nods, and pulls him into one final hug. "I'm so sorry." Chad just shushes him and runs his hand through Ethan's hair. He wants to stay like this forever, but he knows he's has to go back before his dad gets home.

Reluctantly he pulls himself out of Chad's grasp. Pushing there foreheads together, he leaves him with three final words.

"I love you."

And he walks out the door knowing he'll probably never see him again.

Chapter Text

It had been five years since then Since their goodbyes. They had gone from freshmen in high school to freshmen in college. Chad would be lying if there wasn't a certain scrawny brunette in the back of his mind every single day following the departure.

He's lying further when he says he is not biased in his pickings. Lying if he says he doesn't chose a guy with the same name as his lost lover.

It's been half a decade and still nobody beside Amber and Mindy know about what went on between the two of them. He had his suspicions that his Ma did too, but she never confirmed it. He imagines Ethan probably told his sister.

Despite being three years older, Quinn seemed to have been really close to her brother. Chad didn't get to know her very well, but he had only ever heard good things about the girl. She was close to Liv and Sam and he trusted their judgment. He always loved her and Ethan's sibling bond. Always a little jealous that Ethan had an older sibling while Chad was stuck being the older one. He wouldn't trade Mindy for the world though, he loves her more than he loves himself.

Speak of the devil, as he's lost in thought, Mindy suddenly appears in front of him. He jumps back, hitting a pan that's on his kitchen counter, for some reason, and listens to it as it clangs on the floor.

Deja Vu.

Mindy looks down at the pan amused. She's probably not having the same memory come back that Chad is, but the thought is there.

"You look a little lost in thought there." Mindy turns to him, stating the obvious.

Chad just rolls his eyes. "Just waiting for this dirt bag to show up." Chad didn't bring much to his new living quarters, and had most of his stuff put away anyway. Save for some random posters that he didn't feel like unpacking. He had already chosen his bed and was now just waiting for the other guy to come and take his.

Mindy looks at him and hums a noise of acknowledgement, looking around the small dorm. "What's his name again? I don't know if you ever told me." Chad nods.

He had purposefully been ignoring this task, he knows she would tease him relentlessly for it. Though who can blame him if he needs a new guy to step in and cleanse the name from his palette? Make new memories of this Ethan to cover the past ones of...the other Ethan. "his Ethan" Chad's brain provides, and he silently tells it to shut the fuck up for a moment.

Chad opens his mouth to speak, just gonna go with whatever bullshit comes out, when Mindy cuts him off, previous train of thought derailed. "Oh! Did you know that Sam and Tara's roommate is named Quinn? Definitely not the same one we used to know, but it's so crazy." Chad stills.

No fucking way.

A Quinn and an Ethan both entering their lives at the same time again? That's insane. He must make some sort of face at this revalation, because Mindy is suddenly looking at him like she was just handed a secret NASA code. "My roommates name is Ethan..." He explains, dragging the name out further to make sure she gets what he's hinting at.

Mindy's eyes go wide. "What are the odds they're the same?"

Chad shrugs, but adds on an extra bit of context. "The Ethan that's moving in with me is nineteen." Mindys starts to look doubtful. "But it's not August twenty third yet." The twins just look at each other. Both equally unconvinced, but also considering the possibility.

Mindy pulls out her phone and dials a number. Chad looks at her in confusion, tilting his head to the side a bit, a habit he picked up from Ethan all that time ago. Mindy just puts of a finger to shush him and and move the phone to speaker.

"Hey Mindy, what's up?" Sam's voice comes from the phone.

"Uh, nothing much. I was just wondering," Mindy makes a face. "How old is your roommate?" Chad looks amused, but Mindy just rolls her eyes.

"Um," Sam drags on a bit, and they hear papers rustling. "Ah! twenty two, why?" Mindy's eyes dart around, looking at the room like it'll give her an excuse to use.

"No reason, just wondering. Thank you!" And she ends the call with a poor excuse, looking at her brother in shock. "There's no way."

Chad starts to speak, but they are both interrupted by the sound of the front door creaking open. Both twins turn to face the door a little too eagerly.

Chad forces on a smile and faces the mop of brown curls and the two suit cases in the doorway. He tries very hard to ignore the fact that his Ethan also had brown curly hair.

Chad's 'Welcoming' smile fades into one of confusion and surprise when the boy in front of him lifts his head up to look at him. A mirrored expression forms on the other boys face as well.

"Ethan?!"

"Chad?!"

They face each other wide eyed, neither quite sure what to do. Do they hug? Shake hands? How are you supposed to greet each other with a past like theirs?

They don't have much time to think when another person makes their presence known behind Ethan.

"Ah cute." A feminine voice says between pushing Ethan further into the room and letting herself into the dorm. "Hi, I'm Anika." She puts her hand out, and Chad shakes it awkwardly. "You of course, seem to already know Ethan. So that means you're Chad." She points at him and then turns slightly to where Mindy is standing by the couch. "And you must be Mindy!" She concludes, holding her hand out to her as well.

Mindy shakes the girls hand, and from the look in her eyes, Chad assumes shitty flirting is about to ensue. He is proven correct when Mindy shakes the girls hand and follows it up with. "Well I'm Mindy right now, but maybe later I can be yours."

Chad almost bursts out laughing right then and there. Ethan gives him an amused smile at the girls antics and Chad find himself returning it. A foreign, but quite familiar feeling.

Anika giggles at Mindy's attempt at a pickup line, though pink spreads through her cheeks. "Maybe."

Chad groans halfheartedly. "Ugh, get a room you two." Mindy laughs.

"Pay back for highschool." Ethan's face turns red and Chad looks at her, mouth agape. Anika bursts out laughing and the other three quickly follow.

"Low blow Mindy, low blow." Chad shakes his head, laughing still. Mindy perks up at this and Chad can feel the sarcasm before she opens her mouth.

"There's a joke in there about what I overheard y'all doing freshman year, but I am not gonna scar this poor girl like that." Anika nearlly topples over from laughing so hard. Ethan and Chad just look at each other, both red in the face.

He can get used to this again.