"Guess who has the best luck ever!" Nicky asked as she stepped out of the principal's office after reporting back in. She reached into her purse and pulled out a pair of sunglasses, threw them on while flipping her hair simultaneously.
Noah and Austin had been walking by, squeezing their way through the crowded hallway, headed for the main exit, when they ran into her.
"Who?" Noah asked.
"Yours truly!"
"Mazel tov," Austin responded. "But..why exactly?"
"Because..instead of one week, I get to have two free weeks vacation!" She started walking towards where they had been going and they walked along with her.
Noah swung one arm over Austin's shoulders and Austin wrapped his around his waist.
"Pretty sure we just have a free day." Austin said.
"Oh...Aussy! You really need to buy some candles and light them up, because you are totally in the dark. In fact, you are always in the dark about everything. Probably the reason why your girlfriend lied to you your entire relationship and you didn't even -" she stopped herself after realizing what she had just said, "Sorry...flesh wound?"
"Actually...nope." Austin responded right away, "I don't think there ever were any wounds."
"Really?" Noah asked and held Austin tighter.
"Yea, really? ...Because you were pretty mad when you found out!" Nicky reminded him, "Remember the black eye you gifted Colby with?"
"All true..but you forget one thing.."
"What, that you ended up with the short end of the stick in every relationship and almost every friendship you had?"
"No, that I moved on almost immediately and now, I am dating the greatest guy that ever lived. I am so happy, I'm like 'everyone else..who?' "
"Awww," Noah cooed. "You think I'm the greatest guy ever?"
"Please don't make me take it back." They stopped walking and the two boys turned to face each other.
"I think it's amazing that you feel that way about me...but I think that you are the greatest, sexiest, most handsome, and simply the best person in the whole world. It's easy to fall in love with you."
"That's really sweet, but...don't you think you're setting the bar a bit too high?" Austin's face fell.
"What are you talking about?" Noah asked, searching Austin's eyes.
"I mean...I don't think I'm all those things. I'm average at best." Austin blushed and shied his eyes away from Noah.
"Are you serious?" Noah chuckled a bit and moved closer to Austin.
"Yes ..now, stop making me feel weird."
"Can you believe what he's saying?!" Noah asked Nicky, who was busy on her phone.
"I gotta agree, my brother is the most unappealing guy I know." She said without looking up.
"Thank you...I think." Austin said.
"The two of you must be blind then." Noah said.
"By the way, Nicky, I would be very worried if you ever found me attractive." Austin told his sister.
"Well, we don't have to worry about that ever, do we?" She responded, "You're into penises anyway."
Austin's eyes almost popped out, "Seriously?!"
"Yea," she continued, casually. "Or doesn't Noah have one?"
"Hey, I have one!" Noah cut into the banter.
"Don't get your knickers in a twist, was just confirming."
"What were we talking about? You know, before we started talking about what I like!" Austin asked quickly, desperately wanting to change the subject.
"About how you don't think you're incredible."
"True, I don't. So..can we please drop it?" Austin was never one for sappy talk. He loved love, but sometimes he found it hard to express himself or accept compliments gracefully. His cheeks were getting darker.
Noah did not say a word. He thought it was best to let Austin know how he felt by using no words at all. He grabbed Austin and kissed him right there, in the middle of the crowded school hallway. He held onto Austin tight and kissed him with everything he had. It was not a slow kiss, but it wasn't rushed either.
His hands caressed softly and his skin burned from every contact -but it was a pleasant combustion.
Austin's stomach was floating. He felt his heart swell with unexplainable emotions.
Noah believed Austin was the most perfect thing in the universe, the only right in a world of only wrongs. Austin did not have the clear idea of how much his smile, alone, had the ultimate power to change Noah's world.
Every time Noah looked at him, he saw something brighter than the sun. He saw a love he knew would last him this lifetime, and all other lifetimes he could ever exist in. He only saw Austin -perfection.
"Did you feel that?" Noah asked after he finally pulled away. Austin nodded, captured by the intense look in Noah's eyes, "Please, don't ever say that about yourself. You have no idea how much I love you... and I wish you would see what I see. You are wonderful, babe, and the sexiest guy ever!" Some people were staring at them but they couldn't give the furry crack of a rat's ass.
"Argh, you two make me sick!" Nicky scoffed jokingly. They ignored her too.
"I love you." Austin said with a side smile.
"I love you too, sexy." Noah smiled and winked at him.
"Can we keep walking now, ladies?" Nicky interrupted again.
"What's up with you?" Austin decided to acknowledge her presence as they continued to go outside.
"I have to come up with the best ideas to destroy Michael."
"You're still on that?" Noah asked while he took Austin's hand in his own and put the other in his pocket.
"When did I ever stop?" she asked.
"I just thought you would be over it by now." Noah said.
"Then you must be delusional." She said, "I'm not gonna stop until he understands fully why it's not a good idea to mess with me."
"Do you still love him?"
"What?!" She exclaimed in a high pitched voice, "Why the hell would you even ask such a thing?"
"Did you guys talk after you broke up?" Noah kept asking.
"Why would I talk to him, he cheated on me..and then lied to me about it. I get it, you're new here, which means you don't know me that well. News flash, I'm not very forgiving."
"It's true, she once shaved my head and eyebrows in the middle of the night when I was seven." Austin told Noah.
"What..why?" Noah asked, a humorous smile playing on his lips.
"I accidentally broke her dollhouse." Austin shrugged.
"So, I was completely justified." Nicky said.
"I had to go to school with poorly drawn on eyebrows for weeks!" Austin whined.
"Yea," Nicky laughed. "That was really funny."
"Do you have pictures...or a video?" Noah asked, clearly amused.
"Sadly, no. How did I not think of that!"
"Because you're not as smart as you think." Austin said.
"I'm sure you looked adorable." Noah said and planted a peck on Austin's cheek.
"I was a horrifying. I looked like Casper, but with awful eyebrows!"
"I would have still kissed you."
"By the way, is that why you keep your hair long? I've never really thought about the reason." Nicky asked him.
"Might have a lot to do with it."
"Good, short hair does not look good on you anyway." She said.
"So, Nicky, what are you gonna do about Michael."
"I'm gonna come up with a great plan with the best psycho I know." She said excitedly.
"Who?" The boys asked in unison.
"Max!"
"So, we should prepare to find Michael's lifeless body lying face down in a ditch!" Austin said sarcastically.
"Great idea!" She responded with the same wit.
"Listen, Nicky," Noah spoke. "I think you need to talk to Mikey. I know my cousin is an ass, but ...you clearly need closure. Give him a piece of your mind ..let him know how much he hurt you."
"That is why I'm planning revenge -to let him know... Clearly. I just wish I could flip him upside down with that shiny Mercedes of his...oooh," she pulled out a small notepad from her purse and started jotting down,"Key...his..car."
"I'm not talking about revenge, I'm talking about a confrontation."
She stood in front of Noah and crossed her arms, then smiled condescendingly up at him, "I'm gonna miss you."
"What are you talking about?" Noah asked, "I'm not going anywhere."
"I'm saying goodbye as a friend, you are no longer my friend."
"What?" Austin creased his eyebrows and asked.
"You are trying to get me to talk to my sworn enemy...I loved the guy and then had to watch him screw another girl right in front of me. He broke my heart, Noah..and, no matter what anybody says, it is not excusable! He did not have the right to do that to me. Nobody should do that to anybody...it's disrespectful and disgusting and infuriating! And I don't know if you've noticed, but I'm not exactly the type to take these kinds of things lightly." She said angrily and was about to cry from the way she sounded.
They couldn't see her eyes clearly through the sunglasses, "Did you know that he never actually apologized? He just went on with his life while I cried myself to sleep every night. I tried enjoying my getaway last week, but I barely left the hotel room. He had no right! I hate Michael Dawson and, even if it takes my last breath, he is going to pay for what he did to me....the high road is not a highway I'm using! Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to meet up with my friend and plan how we are going to break both his legs and use them to kick his ass." She turned to walk away, but Noah pulled her back.
"I'm so sorry, Nicole." Noah apologized then hugged her tight. She hugged him back. Austin joined them and made it a group hug. He had one hand around Noah's back and the other was stroking Nicky's back -it always calmed her down whenever she cried.
"I thought you were not my friend anymore, why are you hugging me?" Nicky asked lightly.
Noah smiled then kissed the top of her head before they broke apart. Austin did not like seeing his baby sister cry. He was silent because he was coming up with his own ideas on how he was going to get back at the bastard. He had a few colorful ones.
"Nicky," Noah called. "I misspoke before, you need to crush the son-of-a-bitch!" That earned him a smile from her.
"Austin, you're awfully quiet." Nicky made an observation.
"I just realized how much I want to kill that guy!"
"Get in line." Nicky said, "Good thing I have all week."
"What do you keep talking about, how is it all week?" Austin asked.
"Look around you, Aussy, can't you see how excited people look?"
"Yea, because they have a free day of no school."
"Why, weren't you at the assembly?"
"There was an assembly?" Noah asked her.
"Yes, in the gym."
"Oh." Austin exclaimed, "We were...at the bleachers."
"Makes sense now." She said.
"What was it about?"Austin asked.
"There's some regional teachers conference taking place a few towns over and all teachers are required to attend. I just hate that we still have to come to this wretched place from tomorrow , even when those gits are not around."
"Why do we have to be here? "
"They said that everyone has to participate in a school activity , like sports or clubs, and it will be fifteen percent of our final average grade."
"Oh, come on!" Austin complained.
"How are they gonna know who participated..and who didn't? They are not gonna be around to know who did and who did not." Noah said obviously.
"One word: substitutes." Nicky replied as her phone started ringing. She answered it immediately, "I'll be right there." She said before hanging up, "Sorry, love birds, I gotta go.
"Where?" Austin asked.
"I've got business to attend to..bye!" She ran away quickly before they could ask her anything more.
"What do you wanna do?" Austin asked Noah once she was gone.
"We are going swimming." Noah responded.
"Well, seems like a good day to swim around in people's pee." Austin said sarcastically.
"How about fish pee?" Noah asked .
"Huh?!"
"I'm taking you to the beach."
"Sounds better; fish pee and sand in my crack. It's gonna be a hoot!" He said with a forced toothy grin.
"Throw me into that equation and you have the best day ever."
"I'm sure."
"Can't wait to see you all wet." Noah said in a deep, low, throaty voice.
"Hi Noah!" A voice interrupted them, before Jesse came and stood in front of them, "Hi Curly Sue!" He said the last part to Austin. They did not say anything as they watched Jesse bounce on the balls of his feet excitedly, "I've missed you guys, sorry I missed your party."
"What do you want!" Noah demanded.
"Can't I just say hi to my best, old bestie?" Jesse asked as he maintained that stupid grin he had arrived with.
"Stay away from me." Noah said and then took Austin's hand, walking around Jesse, trying to get away.
Jesse took a hold of Noah's shirt, "Noah, can I talk to you?"
"Let go of me, you cockroach!" Noah warned angrily.
"Wow, I can see you're still coming up with new nicknames for me...that one was not very flattering." His shrill voice was annoying as ever.
"Hey, let go!" Austin spoke, uncomfortable with the way Jesse was touching Noah.
"Look at that, Curly Sue thinks he can tell me what to do." Jesse scoffed.
"You're not gonna be laughing in a minute if you don't walk away." Austin took a step forward and looked down intimidatingly at Jesse, "Do we understand each other?"
Jesse had a mouth on him, but he sure did cave in quite easily, "I just need to talk to him for a bit."
"Come on babe, we have somewhere to be." Noah rolled his eyes and pulled Austin back gently, walking away and ignoring Jesse's calls. Noah looked extremely agitated and he was fuming as he stormed away, Austin struggling to keep up with his pace.
"Hey, are you alright ?" Austin asked with concern when he saw the vein that was about to pop on Noah's forehead. They were standing by his car.
"I just hate that asshole!" Noah responded and banged his fist on the roof of the car.
"I know...me too, but we are not going to let him ruin our day...look at me." Noah did as he was told and Austin cradled his face in his palms, "Please, don't mind him...he is just some little rodent, he couldn't possibly take the both of us. We would dismember him in less than the time it would take him to blink!"
"You sure do know how to paint the picture!" Noah noted then placed his hands on Austin's hips.
"It's a gift." Austin bragged jokingly.
"You're really sexy when you get all threatening and protective. " Noah put his forehead onto Austin's.
"Really?"
"Yes, if I wasn't so mad, I'm pretty sure I would have taken you right there on the spot."
"I'm so crazy about you, I think I would have let you in a heartbeat."
Noah smiled at that and stared right into Austin's eyes, "How did I not meet you sooner! I feel like I wasted a lot of the time I should have spent kissing you instead of just dreaming about you." His breath fanned Austin's face warmly.
"You think I would have fallen for you then?"
"I don't know...maybe you would have run away, thinking I was some lunatic who moved here just to stalk you."
"Believe it or not, that's what I assumed when I first met you...but I still thought about you all the time till I started to get afraid that I might have been going crazy."
"I don't care now...I love you and I don't think I'm ever gonna stop. You're my whole world."
"That's gold, you should consider saving some of that for your wedding vows."Austin said.
Noah leaned down and and kissed him briefly, "Will I be reciting them to you?"
"Let's not jump the gun just yet." Austin said as his lips curled into a beautiful smile.
"If you marry someone else, I will be so mad." Noah jested, only a bit. His eyes bore some seriousness.
"We need to go make out in the ocean." Austin said, getting slightly uncomfortable with the wedding talk.
"I love you." Noah told him without letting go.
"I love you more." Then Noah pinned him against the car and gave him a deep kiss that left his body trembling and wanting more of it.