The releasing of the bow was a good sign, Van thought. At least it meant Gil wasn't going to shoot him. Not that he thought he really would, but he also wasn't completely sure. Having Gil's full attention wasn't something Van had factored into it at all. He suddenly wished he'd just sent it in an email, but doubted it would've been received well. Might even have the opposite effect.
Van exhaled in a rush and plunged straight in. It was the best way to get in the water, and it was the best way to get past his nerves. Just do it.
"I've thought a lot about what you said that night. I mean, really thought about it. And the truth is..." Van wavered a moment on how to phrase it, exactly, and thought he should've rehearsed in a mirror before doing this. But it was too late for that. "The truth is that I have feelings for you, too, and these past few weeks where we weren't even talking have been the worst weeks I've had at the school." Granted, it had also been the past few weeks that he'd been in the center of a hallway brawl and then later got the detention of a lifetime. But Van was sure if Gil had been speaking to him, that it would've been more endurable. "I want--"
Van chewed on his lip briefly. This was where he was blazing his own trail. Gil had left it at having feeling, but hadn't said anything about what they should do about those feelings. "I want to take you to the dance, first of all." He gave a firm nod. "And I want to be able to call you to come over, even if you're, you know, with someone else." Van gestured between them, unsure how to get across what he was getting at. "And I want you to call me to come over, even if I'm... Whatever, I just want to see where we go. Where we end up." He shrugged and shook his head, falling quiet to give Gil a chance to respond.