(Andrew)
Another week passed since the day Grey met his siblings. During that time, Grey and Cedric brought Buckley over to the Freelance Base so that the Freelancers could meet him. (Cherry and Polychrome Benjamin ended up adoring him). For school, once again, aside from cooking in Home Ec., nothing of note happened besides assignments. As for the friend group minus one, things were... more awkward. While the dynamic was similar to before, due to the uncle and aunt thing, things were pretty weird now. Also, Andrew, despite being more cheery, wasn't as energetic as before. Drake's coma still made him depressed, to an extent. For hospital visits, Chompy kept being a good boi. Not only that, but he was able to tell Andrew about Drake's exact vitals! Thankfully, Drake was doing well enough at the moment. Finally, the only other thing of note was that Gwen kept trying to get closer to Isabella, but she kept getting too flustered to do so. However, things finally changed on the following Wednesday...







...




(Andrew)
Near the beginning of the school day, Andrew noticed Gwen putting a letter in a locker as he picked up his school supplies.
"What are you doing?" Andrew asked, casually walking over.
Gwen jumped at that. When she saw Andrew, she breathed a sigh of relief.
"Oh, thank God, it's just you!" Gwen said.
Andrew gave a confused look.
"Were you doing the same letter thing I did to... Drake...?" Andrew forced that last part out.
Gwen quickly looked from left to right before sighing.
"Yeah," she admitted, "I've been trying to ask her out on a date, but I've been having no luck. So now, I'm trying a letter."
Andrew simply nodded. Before he could leave, though, Gwen asked something.
"Um, can... ask you for a favor?" Gwen asked timidly.
Andrew turned back, confused. Gwen took a deep breath and released it slowly.
"Ok, so, I understand you're going through a hard time w/... you know...," Gwen began.
Andrew cringed a little. He appreciated Gwen not directly stating it, but it still hurt nonetheless.
"I was wondering, could you, maybe... help me... plan a nice date...?" Gwen asked hesitantly.
Andrew stared for a few seconds before giving a small smile.
"Of course," he replied.
Gwen gave a surprised look.
"Wait, really? I thought you'd be offended and/or against the idea."
Andrew shook his head.
"Of course not. I would be delighted to help you w/ this!"
The bell rang.
"Shit," Gwen muttered, "Let's talk about this throughout the day, k?"
Andrew nodded, and the friends headed off to class.







...




(Andrew)
Throughout the rest of the day, Andrew and Gwen planned everything out w/ Gasper whenever possible. They decided to host the date at the only Applebee's in Ride City. It was the first place that Andrew's parents had gone out on a date to. The three also discussed getting Isabella a small gift. After some back-and-forth, it was eventually decided that Gwen would get Isabella a half-heart necklace, w/ Gwen getting the other half. After Theater, Gwen put another letter in Isabella's locker. Also, needless to say, Andrew spent rooftop time alone that day. Gwen and Gasper ran off to get ready for the date. Luckily, Gwen had given Andrew her phone number so that he could find out how things went. As Andrew sketched on the roof, he couldn't help but feel even sadder than usual. For one, he hadn't been alone in this place for a long time. Secondly, Andrew felt guiltily jealous that Gwen got to be w/ her crush, but Andrew's was in a coma.
"God, please... Give Drake back to me soon...," Andrew muttered sadly.








...





(Andrew)
During Andrew's hospital time, while he was playing w/ Chompy, suddenly his phone pinged!
"What that?" Chompy asked.
Andrew pulled out his phone. The text was from Gwen.
"Oh, hang on, I have to respond to this," Andrew replied.
The date was a success! Gwen texted.
Underneath, there was an adorable pic of Gwen and Isabella hugging. They each had a half-heart necklace on. Gwen was beaming while Isabella was timidly blushing. Andrew mustered a small smile, but he tried to hold back some tears. Unfortunately, some slipped as Andrew responded.
That's awesome, Andrew replied.
After a bit, Gwen sent a heart.
Btw, please don't let my parents know about this. They're pretty homophobic, Gwen quickly added underneath.
Andrew groaned.
Ofc.
Tanks, Gwen responded.
After putting his phone away, Andrew leaned back in his seat and sighed while looking at Drake's body forlornly.
"Andrew ok?" Chompy asked.
Andrew hesitated for a bit.
"I'm alright, Chompy. I'm just... processing right now."
"What that mean?" Chompy asked.
"Don't worry about it..."
Chompy pursed his belly lips but chose not to say anything else.