I Needed a Release

"Hey, Fabes!" Joy greeted as she pranced into the living room, a huge smile plastered on her face. She had just won a small Journalism contest that her hometown was holding.

"Oh, hey Joy." a drained Fabian replied, his voice monotone and dull. Instantly, Joy knew something was wrong. She had only ever seen her friend like that once, and that was after he had found out that Nina wasn't coming back. The brunette girl's smile fell.

"Fabian, what's wrong?" she asked kindly, concern coloring her tone. Joy was the type of person who would do anything for her friends, and she hated seeing them upset, especially Fabian.

"N-nothing, I just, uh … how are Jerome and Mara doing?" he began, changing the subject.

"She's still mad at him for eating her project, and don't change the subject!" Joy scolded, a teasing grin present on her worried face, "I'm going to make you tell me what's bothering you if it's the last thing I do!"

"No, it's stupid, and I don't want anyone to hear." Fabian decided stubbornly.

"Then come with me!" his friend exclaimed as she took his arm, pulling him out the front doors of Anubis House.

"Joy, where are we going?" the boy asked.

"The school." she shrugged simply. Fabian started to turn back to the house, but she tightened her grip on his arm and continued walking. Her prisoner sighed, letting his arm go limp and following her to the school.

"It's almost seven, the lights will go off soon!" Fabian frantically whispered. Joy rolled her eyes and turned around to face him.

"So that assures me that no one's going to be around to accidentally hear about your problems," she argued, "now let's go in here and discuss them."

The pair ducked into the History classroom, and Joy perched herself on a desk.

"Spill." She demanded.

"Well, I missninaandidon'tthinki'llevergetanothergirlfriend likeherandihaven'tevenhadmyfifthkissyet." Fabian said quickly, the entire thing sounding like one word.

"Speak English." Joy laughed. Fabian rolled his eyes, but started again anyways.

"I miss Nina, and I don't think I'm ever going to get another girlfriend like her. I haven't even had my fifth kiss yet, and most eighteen year-old boys have had more than five girlfriends, let alone kisses!" he announced, wringing his hands together in embarrassment.

"Oh, Fabes! Joy exclaimed, "you may not find another girl like Nina, but you'll find someone just as wonderful, I know you will. And don't worry about kissing. When you find this girl, she'll kiss you as much as you want her to."

Fabian looked relieved.

"Thanks, Joybells." he smiled. Joy just engulfed him in a tight hug.

As they were holding each other, the lights went out. Joy giggled and let go of Fabian. The two stared at a each other for a moment, and slowly started to lean in. When their lips were so close that Fabian could smell Joy's lip gloss, the girl whispered, "kiss me". And Fabian obliged, smashing his chapped lips into her glossy ones. All of his pain, sadness, and frustration came out in that kiss. Neither of them felt sparks, but they did feel relief. It was a sad kind of relief, the kind where it's only there because something unfortunate had happened, and the pain was finally gone. But it was a good feeling nonetheless, and neither person wanted to stop. Maybe it was weird that Fabian was passionately kissing his best friend when he still missed his ex-girlfriend. Maybe it was strange that Joy was giving herself to the boy who had accidentally broken her heart over and over again. Maybe it was wrong that these two friends were kissing in a classroom of all places. Maybe it was all of those things, but maybe it didn't matter, because they both needed to feel something. Either way, the pair didn't stop. Things heated up, and soon, Fabian Rutter was having his first make-out session in a classroom, with his best friend. And he didn't mind.

When they broke apart, the first thing Fabian felt was cold. He had been so close to Joy that not being next to her made him shiver. The first thing Joy felt was excitement. After all those years, she finally, finally made Fabian feel something.

"I'm sorry," Fabian breathed, the regret starting to sink in, "I kissed you after telling you we couldn't date. I'm sorry, that was wrong of me."

"No, Fabes, that was fine. Good, actually. We now know there's nothing between us." Joy decided, no trace of guilt or sadness in her smile.

"Right, right. You're right." the boy smiled too, and extended his sweaty hand.

"Friends?" he asked.

Joy shook it.

"Friends." She agreed.

And that's how things remained. Months later, Joy would fall in love with Jerome. A year later, Fabian and Nina would end up at the same college and rekindle the love that never died. Many years after that, Joy would walk down the aisle to marry Jerome, and Nina would do the same to marry Fabian. Both couples would have children, and they'd stay together until the day they both were gone. If that kiss in the classroom hadn't happened, neither Joy or Fabian would earn a happy ending. And that was something they both deserved.

Hi! So I know I haven't been active recently, and that's because I no longer have a laptop. I do have an iPhone, an iPad, and my mom's dinosaur computer, however, so I will be uploading chapters of things and different stories here and there. I hope you enjoyed this story, and look out for the final chapter of "Nina's Little Nudger". I'm almost done with it, and it should be uploaded soon! Thanks loves! – Sydney xxx