Disclaimer: I don't own Degrassi or the title of this story, which was inspired by the song of the same name by The Antlers.
Author's note: This is my first fanfiction story uploaded on here, and I couldn't be more excited about it! I am an avid Degrassi fan, but to be honest, I never expected my first fic to be about Adam and Bianca! Ever since Dead or Gone, though, they've quickly become one of my favorite pairings. I just couldn't seem to find enough stories about them; therefore, I took matters into my own hands. Anyway, I appreciate everybody that takes their time to read and review.
"Hey, is Drew around?"
Having been previously settled back into the comfort of his couch, Adam Torres jumps up from his seat at the unexpected voice that shatters the silent atmosphere. A curse rolls off his tongue as he loses grip on a video game controller, which goes flying into the air. Sighing, he pauses the video game and stands up from the couch to face the owner of the voice. "Jesus Christ, Bianca, are you trying to give me a freaking heart attack?"
In that moment, something strange happens to Bianca DeSousa. A blush spreads across her cheeks, and she feels unusually shy. "Sorry," she mutters.
His eyebrows furrow together, because it seems as though whenever Bianca is with him and nobody else, she acts like this. He has no idea why; it isn't typical Bianca behavior. The only reason he can possibly come up with is that he makes her feel uncomfortable because of… well, yeah. But it pains him to think that. They had bonded in a way he had never imagined possible over the course of the summer… but maybe she just did so out of guilt?
No. Stop it. Don't think like that. If Bianca didn't want to be friends, it would have been obvious by now. Pushing the cynical thoughts from his mind, he answers her question. "Nope, sorry to say that your lover-boy is nowhere to be found," he announces, though he actually isn't that sorry. He likes it when it's just him and Bianca, even if she acts different. That way he doesn't have to put up with Drew's pining stares.
"Ugh, please never refer to Drew as my 'lover-boy' ever again," grimaces Bianca, plopping down on the couch. "And thank-freaking-God!"
Now Adam's eyebrows shoot up in surprise. Her response is definitely not what he had been anticipating. Here he had assumed that Bianca came to their house in search of Drew, when really it appears as if she's trying to avoid him. "Trouble in paradise?" he says with a small chuckle. After all, Bianca has never whined about Drew before, what with being in love with him and junk.
Bianca turns to him with a somber expression. "Katie broke up with him today," she replies.
"Oh…" is all Adam can think of to say. He can't help but feel sorry for Katie. He knows that she really likes Drew, but he's glad that she finally ended things. Not because he still likes her. He doesn't. But it just isn't fair to her; it's been glaringly obvious all along that Drew has feelings for Bianca. The only thoughts he has is that he hopes he and Katie can still be friends because she's nice, and he hopes that she'll find somebody that she deserves. Somebody that will only have eyes for her. Adam knows that if he was in a relationship—yeah, right—he wouldn't even bother to so much as glance at another girl.
Shaking his head, Adam sends Bianca an inquisitive look. "You're gonna have to help me out here. I'm pretty confused. That doesn't explain why you're here and not with Drew."
She lets out a huffy sigh of frustration. "Well, the first thing that Drew did was call me and mope about their breakup. Then he started making hints about wanting to hang out with me and shit. Ugh, I knew it! I knew that he still likes me!" she practically growls. "But yeah, I quick came up with an excuse about having to go, then I hung up and bolted over here."
He continues to stare at her blankly. "Wait a minute… I thought that you wanted Drew back!" he exclaims, bewildered.
Bianca hesitates and purses her lips. "Well… okay, don't get me wrong here. Drew was, like, my first serious relationship. There was definitely something there that had never been there with the other guys I was with. And I did still care for Drew around prom time…" She trails off, gazing off into space.
"But…?" he prompts expectantly.
"Oh, um… it's actually kind of weird. You'd think that I would just want Drew even more since I spent almost every day over here. Instead, I feel as if my feelings slowly started fading until one day I had this moment of realization that I wasn't in love with him anymore." Exhaling, Bianca nervously begins to play with her curls.
"Wow, I had no idea," he says sincerely. He wonders if she can sense his own growing apprehension. His palms are prickly with sweat, and his mouth is dry, and his heart pounds fast and uneven in his chest.
Don't get your hopes up. Don't get your hopes up.
But Adam suddenly can't stop thinking about that night at prom, before everything got all fucked up.
When Bianca looked up at him with those big brown eyes of hers, she didn't look at him with malice or disgust or indifference. No, that night her eyes were different. They were breathtaking, sparkling with earnest.
And God damn it, that smile on her face was nothing like he had ever seen. He couldn't stop focusing on her red, tempting lips or her clean white teeth. But a weird tingling feeling filled his insides when he realized that Bianca was directing her radiant smile at him. Jesus, he could barely believe it.
A girl had never looked at him like that. Not even Fiona.
Adam had forgotten just how gorgeous Bianca really was until that night.
And then Bianca got up and danced with him, just like they could have all that time ago, and she apologized, brief and to the point. All he remembers after that is that they couldn't stop laughing together, and hidden feelings began to resurface, and it was the best night of his life.
Even getting shot turned out to have an upside. It's what strengthened his and Bianca's friendship.
"Hello, earth to Adam?"
Adam is brought back from his reminiscence when Bianca snaps her fingers in front of his face. "Huh? Oh, sorry!" he mumbles, flushing.
She merely smirks. "Spaced out much?"
A small smile tugs at the corners of his mouth. "I was just thinking… about prom."
Her face fell. "Oh…"
"No, no, not that!" he backpedals. "Listen, what's done is done, okay? I want you to stop blaming yourself… for everything. We're in a better place now, and that's all that matters."
Bianca's troubled expression remains. "So I… I didn't ruin your life?" she asks, voice laced with fear.
"Huh?" Frustration gnaws at him. He's tired of their relationship—er, friendship being confusing and slow-placed and complicated. Adam genuinely wants to put the past behind them and move forward. Truth is, he forgave her the moment she apologized. Hell, maybe even before that.
Another sigh escapes her. "I… I know your life isn't easy. I just feel horrible for the way I treated you. I probably made your life a living hell." Bianca stares at him with those big, earnest, sparkling brown eyes that make him feel alive.
This time Adam is the one to smirk. "Don't flatter yourself." She doesn't find his snarky comment amusing. For once, she's dead serious. "Bianca, I mean it, all right? You've already apologized, and that's enough for me. I know you're different now."
Bianca relents and smiles a bit, but it's sad and wistful. "I wish sometimes that I hadn't made such a mess of things. I wish I was different back then. I wish we were different back then," she confesses softly.
His heart beats even more erratically. "What… what are you t-talking about?" he stammers.
"I feel like we could have had something special. I really did like you, Adam. I just reacted the worst way possible when I found out that you were transgendered." She says the last part with complete calmness, showing just how much her attitude has changed and how much more accepting she is now.
"Maybe we could still have something special," says Adam, and he even catches himself off guard with his bold words.
Her eyes widen, and her blush from earlier returns. But Bianca stays silent, as if challenging him to take charge.
She doesn't have to worry about that, because Adam's on a roll. "Is that why you aren't interested in Drew anymore? You… you have feelings for me, even though I'm trans?"
Bianca glances downward, face growing redder with each passing second.
Oh my God. She isn't saying no. She likes me. She actually likes me!
An uncontrollable grin lights up his face. "Jesus, Bee, why didn't you tell me sooner?" he laughs cheerfully. Confident now, Adam grabs Bianca gently by the waist and pulls her onto his lap, his paused video game completely forgotten. His one hand cradles her cheek while the other wraps itself in her curls and brings her head down towards him.
And their lips finally, finally meet.
The kiss starts out innocent and sweet enough, but they've both been dealing with pent up longing for each other for months now. Therefore, it soon turns more passionate and fiery, their lips frantically moving in sync and tongues battling for dominance.
They can't keep their hands—or lips—off each other, and damn, Adam sure wishes this had happened a long time ago. But he's determined to make up for all of those missed opportunities.
Which is why they don't stop kissing and touching for hours, not even pausing when Drew returns home and discovers them making out on the couch, with Bianca laying on top of Adam. And needless to say, his aghast yells of protest go ignored.