Work Text:
“I had a boyfriend like him in high school. Make sure to enjoy it, because there truly are none of those in Ivy League schools.
Despite what the whole world seems to believe, Ethan Morales, the ‘bad boy’, is not stupid.
Yes, he could stand to spend a bit more time in school, and less time defacing public property. Yes, he couldn’t even remember the last time he’d made an effort in Spanish, despite being fluent. Yes, he’d spent a few stints in juvy.
Ethan might not understand the world of top-tier academia, but he’s very accustomed to the classism that permeates the halls of Sherman Oaks High like a bad smell.
He scowls, tossing down his skateboard and ambling through the hallways next to the cafeteria.
It occurs to Ethan that he really should have slashed her tires. Or keyed her car.
That Princeton lady might think she’s better than him, sitting in her gilded tower where things like ‘The Ivy League’ actually mean shit.
For Ethan, though, spending close to half the price of a small house each year on college tuition, travel expenses, housing, food, fucking textbooks, had never felt like reality.
Why bother applying himself in classes, when anything ‘less’ than The Ivy League felt so much like failure?
He wasn’t making the dean’s list anytime soon, but he could hold down a job at Romano’s Macaroni Grill.
Ethan sighs, turning a corner and slipping out into the parking lot.
He flicks his Zippo, rummaging in his pockets and taking a slow drag of a slightly bent cigarette.
He tries not to think about it much. He’s trying not to think about it now, inspecting the chipped black polish on his fingernails and mindlessly tapping one scuffed trainer on the tarmac.
The thing is, though.. sometimes it feels like Devi is looking for something he can’t give her.
Earlier, when she’d left her dork conference early, Ethan had been worried about her. One of the reasons he likes Devi so much is that she doesn’t give up on anything. So to see her so sad.. over something as stupid as college, really sucked.
He knows how much this means to her, the Princeton thing.
It’s easy for Ethan to slip back into familiar habits, cracking a joke about how beautiful Devi is, or offering her a well-worn strategy to stay out of trouble.
He’d googled it last week, ‘how to impress a college admissions officer’.
- Make sure you're dressed professionally and clean.
- Give a firm handshake upon introduction.
- Make and keep eye contact when speaking.
All fine, all easy, except for the fact that everyone saw him and immediately thought
‘dirtbag’
.
He lets himself into the house, which is empty.
Anyone else in Sherman Oaks would feel spooked by the dead silence permeating the house, broken only by the rhythmic tapping sound coming from a broken tap next to the freezer.
Ethan’s used to it though - his father is on an extended photography assignment somewhere in Cameroon, and his mother is on an art retreat trying to ‘redefine her visual style’.
Neither of his parents are bad people, or even particularly mean to him. They aren’t really anything , because they’re never here.
Their idea of parenting is to leave Ethan to figure it out himself. Children are meant to be free, or something, and any attempts to contain them will ruin them.
This set-up is fine for him, if Ethan’s being honest. He can lounge around on the sofa all day if he wants to, can avoid going to school, can kick his feet up on the coffee table and make a mess. He knows no one else will check in on him, unless he invites them over himself.
It’s kind of hard to respect authority figures when your own caregivers don’t really give a shit. Hard to know right from wrong, when he’s never been taught what that even means.
He finds his mind drifting to Devi again.
He likes her. Really likes her, but he’s been the ‘fun new toy’ for lots of girls over the summer, and thinks he wants something different this time.
A short glance through the window when he’d arrived at her house, back when he vandalized her car, had given him a glimpse into a life that had structure.
Devi always lights up when she talks about her family - her mom, Pati, Kamala, even when she’s complaining about something.
It’s like… she doesn’t even realize, but when her mom gets angry at her, it’s because she cares . They have a life that’s so vibrant, so warm, with shared mealtimes and Squid Game binges…
If they ever invited him over for dinner, he wouldn’t even know what to do with himself.
He hopes that it happens soon.
The doorbell rings, and Ethan startles, before realizing he’d ordered pizza on the bus home.
Accepting the delivery, he settles down at the kitchen table, chewing on a slice of pepperoni absent-mindedly.
His mind going back to Devi again, Ethan takes out his phone, scrolling through their most recent chat.
8:03 PM
Are you coming into school tomorrow?
8:46 PM
Yeah, I think so
8:55 PM
Cool. I’ll see you before the college fair then?
9:03 PM Yeah
✓ Read 9:06 PM
Ethan winces.
Devi is funny, and wickedly smart. He obviously can’t match her there, but likes being the one who can put her at ease, can make her laugh. He knows that when it comes to physical touch, there aren’t any complaints.
Ethan feels himself smiling softly.
He loves how she gives him a piece of her mind when it matters. Loves being nagged by her. It might annoy other guys, but to Ethan, it feels like a positive. Like she won’t give up on him.
He bites his lip, wondering what to say.
Should he try something a bit more affectionate?
What would Devi like?
9:37 PM
Te veré mañana por la mañana, cariño
Ethan’s heartbeat goes from a gentle flutter to a full-on jackhammer in his chest.
Is it too much?
He’s never really had a girlfriend before, and doesn’t have anyone to ask about it.
His phone buzzes almost immediately and he picks it up again gingerly, palms sweatier than they were before.
9:39 PM
❤️
Ethan breathes again.
He decides, then. As long as she wants him, he’ll be there.