The Elements: A Novel

When Evan left the island, he settled at first in South Wales, where he found a job as a seasonal worker on a farm. He bought a new phone and called his parents. His father was furious and called him gay for wanting to paint. Evan nearly told him that he is gay, but did not want to get Cormac in trouble. Evan blocked his father’s number.

At the farm, Evan and the farmer’s son had sex, but the son pretended like nothing happened. Evan used the little money he earned to buy art supplies and paint dirt. When the season ended, Evan went to London to sell his paintings, but no galleries wanted them, saying he was unoriginal. He rented a room in a horrible building and went to a gay bar one night to find a boy his age. An older man, Rafe, approached him.

Evan and Robbie’s barrister, Catherine, brings Evan and his parents to a room with Robbie and his parents, Lord and Lady Wolverton. The Wolvertons try to blame anyone but Robbie for the trial. Robbie is accused of rape and Evan of accessory to rape, having filmed it. The Wolvertons look down on the Keoghs, accusing them of raising Evan poorly. The insist that Robbie is innocent and that the girl is extorting him.

At the bar, Rafe offered Evan more money than Evan had to go home with him. Evan did not hesitate, and at the apartment, he learned that Rafe was married. Evan was not attracted to Rafe, and he had to escape back home in his mind while they had sex.

Rafe tried to humiliate Evan while they had sex, but Evan considered how his own father was better at it. Afterwards, Rafe asked for Evan’s phone number, explaining that this was an audition.

As they enter the courtroom, Evan reminds himself of the story he sticks to. He did watch Robbie and Lauren Mackintosh have sex, but they consented to it. He filmed it, and that video shows that it was a consensual event, though he lost the phone right after and bought a new one the next day.

The prosecution begins, making the case that Evan and Robbie abused their power and status to rape Lauren, making an emotional plea to the jury. When Catherine speaks, she argues that they are innocent and should not be condemned without evidence. The jurors seem sympathetic to this, except one, whom Evan cannot read.

Evan began working as a sex worker for Rafe. One day, Rafe told Evan that he had a new client for him. However, Evan would need to sign an NDA, and Rafe warned him that revealing the man’s identity would carry severe consequences.

Evan agreed, and was shocked when Rafe revealed the man to be someone famous. After this, every Thursday for six months, Evan saw Sir, the codename for the man. The sessions were violent and degrading and despite Rafe’s promises to not put Evan in danger, Sir hurt Evan.

Evan dreaded the sessions, but only Sir could end them. When a reporter called one day, hinting that he knew about Sir’s relationship with Evan, Evan hung up. He told Sir at the next session, and Sir told Evan he did the right thing and that their sessions were now over.

The next day, Evan came home to find Rafe and Sir’s driver waiting for him. Rafe explained that though he trusted Evan, his career as a sex worker was over, and that the driver would break his arm as a warning to never speak of the experience. Evan begged, but Rafe did not budge. Evan realized he would need to make money a different way and chose his left arm to be broken.

Catherine questions Lauren’s account of going to Robbie’s apartment. She went to his apartment with members of his team and other girls. Lauren asked a friend if Robbie had a girlfriend, and Catherine begins painting her as scheming to date Robbie.

Lauren explains that Robbie playfully pushed her onto the bed and took her clothes off. She was fine with it but insists that she could revoke her consent whenever she wanted. Lauren tells the courtroom that she said “no” when Evan entered the room. Catherine asks what she said “no” to, and whether Robbie had offered sex. Lauren admits that he did not.

Catherine reveals that Lauren once filmed herself having sex with an ex-boyfriend of only six months and showed the video to her friend, suggesting that this behavior was normal of Lauren. Lauren breaks down on the stand.

Evan first left the island with his father when he was six for a football match. He held his father’s hand on the way, but once they entered the stadium, his father shook him off, saying he was too old for that. Evan had to pee, and tried holding it in, but when he peed himself, his father dragged him to the bathroom and punched him in the face.

When his arm healed, Evan went to a different city and walked into their local football club. Evan told a coach that he wanted to be a professional football player. When Robbie walked by, he acted kindly toward Evan, and when Evan offered to only play for five minutes, Robbie and the coach agreed. After the five minutes were up, the coach was impressed.

After Robbie’s testimony, which does not go well, Evan goes to the bathroom. Lord Wolverton follows Evan in, standing closely behind him at the urinal. Lord Wolverton is Rafe and commends Evan on finding Robbie as insurance for his protection; Evan saw a picture of Robbie in Rafe’s apartment.

Rafe asks if Evan is in love with Robbie, and though Evan can only think of reasons why he hates Robbie, he admits that he is. Rafe begs Evan to take the fall for Robbie, threatening Evan that if they both go to jail, Evan will die. Rafe kisses Evan and whispers something in his ear before leaving. Evan goes into a stall, sobbing.

When Evan began playing, he was impactful and grew famous, even being called up to the Irish national team. He grew close with Robbie purposefully and even moved into a building across the street from Robbie. When Evan realized that a player from Poland on their team, Wojciech, wanted to have sex with him, he invited him home.

After sex, Wojciech began talking about Robbie. He told Evan that Robbie likes being watched while he has sex. He made Wojciech film it once, after Robbie threatened the girl to comply. Evan was captivated.

Evan testifies, matching Robbie’s account. When he leaves the courthouse, he sees Ifechi outside. He invites Evan to a pub, where he reminds Evan of the confession he once gave on the island before he attempted to run away.

Evan remembers feeling like he wanted to die after that confession. He took the boat out to sea to drown himself. He loved Cormac, a lifelong friend, and invited him to a field one night. They drank beer and smoked marijuana, and when they were high, Evan kissed Cormac, but Cormac pulled away and told everyone, shaming Evan.

Ifechi asks if Evan wants to confess again about what happened with Robbie and Lauren. Evan insists he told the truth. He breaks down when Ifechi promises he can help, and Evan finally admits that Cormac was a bad friend. Evan sobs, and finding Ifechi attractive, leans in to kiss him. Ifechi pushes him away. Evan faints, remembering all of the men who have rejected him.

One night, Evan was with Robbie in his apartment. Robbie asked why Wojciech comes to Evan’s apartment so often, and Evan revealed that they are having sex. Robbie told Evan he knew he was gay the first day they met and was astounded that Evan never did anything with a girl. When he asked if Evan had a crush on him, Evan admitted he did. Robbie then suggested they call a girl over and film them having sex with her. Evan refused and left. It was the last time they saw each other before the night they met Lauren.

It is the day of the verdict, and Evan is alone with his mother in the courthouse. Evan’s mother asks Evan to be honest with her and explain what happened with Cormac. Evan admits that he loved Cormac and tried to kiss him. Cormac was mean to him, and his mother reveals that she always thought Cormac was mean. Evan tells her that men in his life all made him feel worthless, and she tells him she loves him no matter what. He denies being guilty, but his mother does not believe him. In the courtroom, Evan looks for his mother, but she is not there.

The night of the crime, Robbie, Evan and some other players went to a club where girls swarmed them. When they went back to Robbie’s apartment, Evan wanted to leave but stayed and followed Robbie and Lauren upstairs after making eye contact with an excited Robbie. When Evan entered the room, his presence made Lauren uncomfortable. Robbie pinned Lauren down while Evan began filming. She cried for help, but Evan did nothing. After Lauren left, Evan stripped and got in bed with Robbie. Evan stayed awake, and left at five in the morning. On the way back to his building, Evan went to a nearby garden, and buried his phone.

The jury finds Evan and Robbie not guilty. The team announces that they can play again, though Evan follows people’s reactions on social media, equally horrified by his detractors and supporters. When they return to play, Robbie’s talent skyrockets, and he signs with the Premiere League, while Evan remains with the team.

Two years later, Evan is in a pub in London and encounters Lauren, who works there. She sits down, and though he apologizes, she does not forgive him for destroying her life. She tells him that if he were truly sorry, he come forward and admit the truth.

The next day, Evan returns home, takes out an old easel, and paints a final picture. He feels more at ease than he has in years. Afterward, he digs up his phone and turns it into the police. As he awaits his arrest at home, he watches football, enjoying it for the first time, and realizes that he no longer smells dirt.