Nicolas sighed. It was his first day at a new school and he had already met the man of his dreams.

Unfortunately, he seemed to already be in a relationship. Still, the way Troy looked at him, the way

Troy held his hand, gave Nic hope that maybe he felt something, too. Nic made his way through the

school day the thoughts of his first meeting with Troy still fresh in his mind. His brain was clouded with

questions and feelings that would only be quelled by meeting the boy again.

Nic shuffled into the lunchroom. The morning had been a blur. He looked around at crowded

tables, seeking a place to sit. To Nic's surprise, he saw a hand waving at him. My Gosh… Nicolas

thought upon examining the waving student further. It's him! Nicolas beamed as he walked over the

jock's table and sat down in an empty seat next to Troy.

"Hey, Troy!" Nic smiled exuberantly at the boy. "You don't mind if I sit here?"

"Hey, man! I'd love if you hung out with us!" Troy's smile seemed to brighten the room. As Troy

introduced the other jocks, Nic only seemed to hear one word. Love. He knew that Troy didn't mean

anything by it other than a friendly gesture, but something inside of Nic made him wish that Troy had

meant more than friendship. Nicolas blushed and gave a shy wave to the team after Troy had stopped

talking.

After school, Nicolas was still feeling the emotions of the day. Things had gone so much better

than planned! Nicolas waved goodbye to a few of his new jock friends as he headed for his bus.

Nicolas slumped down in his chair and took out his phone to text some of his friends back home about

his amazing first day.

"I guess I'm the one asking for a seat now." Nicolas jumped at the voice. He couldn't believe the

luck he was having today.

"You want to sit here, Troy?" Nicolas questioned.

"Of course I want to sit with my new pal!". The feeling of Troy's leg against his own made

Nicolas blush. Shivers were shooting up and down his; spine. Nic had never felt this way before about

anyone. The two chatted for their entire 20-minute bus ride. Nicolas treasured every new piece of

information he learned about the boy. He played many sports and was Captain of the basketball team

that his dad coached. He was a Junior and 17, like Nic. He felt pressure from his father and the team

to lead the basketball team to victory, but he really wanted to join the musical with Gabriella.

"Don't tell anyone though." Troy laughed. "The team would kill me." Nicolas promised he

wouldn't, but encouraged him to follow his dreams.

"Listen, Troy, if you want to, I could try out with you. I wouldn't mind." Troy smiled and thanked

Nic, promising to think about his offer. Soon, the bus had reached Nicolas' stop.

"I'll see you tomorrow!" Nicolas called to Troy. Troy waved him goodbye. After the bus had left,

Nicolas practically skipped home. This school year would be amazing, especially since he could be

close to Troy, even if it was just as friends.