It's Saturday :)
Hello *waves*
Chapter 2 is here, just for you :) Some of you really read this, which is amazing XD
fearofpainteddevils gets a glass of milk bonus for her review, you guys just get the cookies *brings a full plate*
This is a story. Enjoy ~
Disclaimer: I don't own Glee, Curt's beautiful smile or Riker's glasses.
Used: Mr Brightside - The Killers
Chapter 2 – Lindsay was a fraud
To Miles' disapproval, Jeff slept soundly that night without accepting any objection to his plan. However, after staying up for another couple of hours, just to show his rebellion, his roommate fell asleep too, causing both of them to be late for class the next day.
Just to add to that, the blond couldn't be talked into any sort of activity the next two days of school, as he spent his time either scribbling disorganized pieces of homework or reading his friend's comic books like his life depended on it. Miles only raised his eyebrow at him a few times, before catching sight of the same person's abandoned Nintendo and filling his free time with it.
He acted like he didn't know better, but to him it was disastrously evident; his friend was distracted. Or, maybe, he was consciously distracting himself from something. When weekend came and they decided to stay inside the dorm for the day – too much snow outside and too many cosy places inside – he saw the haze over the other's eyes has somewhat lifted.
"What's up?" the ginger put his pen down on his notebook and looked over at him.
In the silence of their room, Jeff snapped his eyes fully open and blinked rapidly at his friend. He hadn't really been thinking of anything in particular; he just had a strange sensation all over his body that was keeping him from concentrating. It was neither good nor bad, but it was there, as if keeping him prepared for something.
I hope I didn't miss any convention..., he glanced at the calendar on his desk, then back at the other person in the room. "What?"
"Exactly. I'm bored," he threw the notebook and the books on the floor, now sitting cross-legged on the bed. "Let's do something."
But what...? Jeff narrowed his eyes and closed his still unused notebook too and then just resolved to clean his glasses while the other put his thinking cap on.
o0o0o
Even for February, the weather was too cold. It wasn't even snowing anymore and the air was dry and the constant wind that was hitting his face did not make Nick a happy man. There he stood, alone in front of nothing else but a Mall, looking around for any familiar faces. Even his ear-buds were frozen over, or so he felt them, while Little Lion Man started playing.
Cade should have been there already, his house was by far closer to the shopping centre than Dalton Academy was. And yet, here he was, running late again while letting Nick turn to ice outside. He tried going inside, but the crowd was depressing him.
"There he is!" someone grabbed his shoulders and he jumped off the ground, turning to look incredulously at the disturbance.
What is he...oh. A look over Cade's shoulder made him almost regret going out that day. Why can't he go on his dates like a normal human being? He glared at his friends, who caught his thoughts and only smiled, pleadingly.
"Hello, Jane," he waved with his gloved hand and the brown-haired girl refrained from smiling bitterly. I'm not more pleased than you are, but we have to deal with him, right?
"I'm sorry, did you wait long? I had to go and get her too and..." he saw he was digging his own grave. "Right. Let's go, shall we? It's freezing."
Although Nick couldn't agree more, being inside didn't make him feel better at all. It was hard to be oblivious and accepting towards your friend's 'love' life when it was happening right beside you. In the agitation, he even had to shut off his iPod, which most distinctly made his mood fall. At least, whilst it was on, he could almost pretend they were having a double date.
"You two stay here, I'll get the tickets," the brown-haired teen left them suddenly at the plastic table in front of a Fast-Food and disappeared in the cinema's direction. It was as if that boy was made of bad moods and goofy jokes. You don't leave your girlfriend to stay with your friend at a table while you buy tickets! Even Nick knew that, although he never dated to the day.
From the way Jane was almost fuming, he could tell she was thinking the same thing. "He'll get it one day," he tried, smiling at the girl, without lifting her mood. For all she knew, he was guilty too. "I-I didn't know you were coming..." he added, finally receiving a sigh from her part.
"Me neither. I'll make sure to ask him next time," she played with the straw in her drink, grimacing all the way.
"Yeah, me too. Listen, I can make something up-," Nick was almost out of his chair, his mind already building a totally unreliable excuse.
Jane dismissed it by waving her hand in the air. "It's no use now, just try and enjoy yourself. I sure will," her last words were heavy with bitter sarcasm.
The boy seated himself back down, focusing on finishing his drink while waiting in that uncomfortable silence. When Cade started dating Jane, he was always wondering how bad could he be, as David was always picking on his dating skills. However, when Nick became his 'guest' at these outings, the only remaining questing was How come she didn't dump you yet? Right now, he just knew. The girl liked his friend too much to do that.
"Right, let's go," the other returned, grinning widely while showing them the newly purchased tickets.
o0o0o
It didn't take them long to be caught with nothing to do in the campus. As always, people were always needed. Everywhere. Jeff wasn't even at the bottom of the stairs when David called out to him and Miles all the same. He knew immediately that they weren't going to get away easily now.
"You guys free?" The older Warbler asked when they reached the ground floor. The blond looked over at his friend and saw his thoughts reflected there. No use to even try to lie.
"Ah...yeah. Do you need help with something?" Jeff voiced, since he was the one that actually talked with the boy a few times before. David grinned and showed them to follow him.
I don't like where this is going, the other Warbler thought, seeing as they were approaching the main hall and there weren't many things they could do around there except-
"-so I was thinking of this song yesterday morning."
"David."
"Yes?" the dark-skinned teen turned and beamed his sunny smile at them both.
Jeff kept a happy expression on his face too, pushing his glasses back on his nose and getting his fringe out of his eyes. He knew he had no chance of winning, but he could try. "It's Saturday." Miles nodded.
"And I'm at school. Don't worry, most of us aren't even here, so we'll take it easy, okay?" his smile didn't falter. That workaholic...
His roommate stayed quiet and just waited for the right moment to escape and go god-knows-where, but as soon as he mumbled a good-bye, both Jeff and David caught his arms and dragged him back. Just because he wasn't a Warbler didn't mean he was going to be spared. A few silent quarrels later, the three of them entered the Warbler Hall.
"So..." Jeff picked up some sheets from a couch and ran his eyes over them. "What song?" But David was gone. He looked around and then at the redhead, who just took a seat in a chair and motioned to the door in the other part of the room. Sure enough, a few seconds later half of their glee club rolled in through there, looking as bored as they were.
"I was thinking of something different," his colleague came back after the others and searched through his bag.
Some of the newcomers crashed on the unoccupied seats, some just stood and waited this to be finished with. To be fair, they liked to, since they weren't in the club just because they had been brutally forced to – Jeff's case was one. In his freshman year, Wes caught him humming under his breath once and didn't give him peace until he auditioned. – but because they enjoyed it too.
This time, it was just...Well, it's Saturday, the blond waited for an answer calmly, biting unconsciously on his lower lip and yet again feeling tense. If he could just remember why, how good that would have been.
Oh..., he looked around the room. Nick's not here. Well, he usually wasn't in the dorm during the weekend. At least, not where Jeff would've seen him. He shrugged. It wasn't a big deal; it wasn't like they'd talked too much in the last two days anyway, even though Jeff could feel a change. He smacked himself mentally again for not being the one starting the conversation. He just kept inventing dialogues in his head and only too late remembering he hadn't said a word.
David took the right sheets out and came over to him. After another look around, he saw that their lead singer was absent too. But there was no way Jeff would be lead. No way. He could almost feel an imaginary cold coming over him. Not really; he was going to do it.
"Mr Brightside," the older one grinned.
Blinking, he took the papers in his hand. "Is that even possible?"
"With Thad's approval," David whispered, putting a hand on his shoulder, conspiracy-style. "You mock us, sir. Of course it's possible."
Jeff grinned now, contemplating the lyrics in front of him. "Aaron will be surprised."
His accomplice waved the statement away and pushed the sheets to his chest, counting the people in the room. Giving Miles one look that could have for all he knew even been a wink, he made him raise his eyebrows, but stay silent. The blond was almost sure that he felt as if David would have him in the chorus if he ever did as much as moving his mouth. And maybe he was right, Jeff snickered, already feeling excited for finally getting a – true, improvised – solo.
"He'll be fine. If he doesn't want it, but you're good, we might change our playlist. And lead singers," David grinned. "Okay, you. Go there and do what Trent does," he nudged Miles off the couch, leaving him speechless for a few moments.
"Wait, what? I don't sing!" The redhead flailed, trying to run in the opposite direction.
The other only pushed him harder to the small group of singers. "Then convince me."
o0o0o
Nick had no idea what he was doing there. This movie is long... He shifted uncomfortably in his seat as the other two, the intimacy of the darkness getting to them, chose not to pay any more attention to the screen and concentrate it on themselves.
Samantha? Would Samantha be a good name...? It's got to sound plausible, he frowned at the motion picture, once again considering lying the next time his friend invited him anywhere without mentioning a bigger group. He once tried inventing a Lindsay and it didn't work.
"So, how was the movie?" Cade grinned goofily when they got outside and Nick used a lot of willpower not to glare at him.
"Great, just like you said," he answered instead.
Well, it's afternoon, I think I can make a subtle exit and just go, he glanced sideways at the two lovers after checking his phone. And while he was there, he turned on his iPod too, just for moral support. Now the question is, to smile or to look high? Oh, that almost rhymes!
"I think I'm going now," he voiced out and the brown-haired boy immediately goggled at him.
The same one, though, stopped himself before making too pleading a remark. "Y-you sure?" And Nick nodded, patting him on the back and giving Jane a reluctant kiss on the cheek.
Turning towards the nearest exit, he put the other ear bud on too, increasing the volume. However, as he hid his hands in his jacket's pockets, preparing for the frozen air, and felt his mobile phone there, he stopped in his track and jogged in the other direction. What are you doing, Nick? His mind hummed in a lousy tune just as he caught up with his friend again.
"Hey. Do you have Jeff's number?" He even showed him his phone to be sure he was understood.
Cade looked puzzled for a moment, then just shrugged and scrolled through his contacts. "Here," he gave it to his friend to copy.
"Okay. Thanks. See you at school," the other typed rapidly, then returned the device and fled again. He looked at the new contact, but decided to wait until his hands were in the safe interior of a heated bus.
Meanwhile, back at the school, despite every protest he ever made, Miles was actually making his voice resound in the Warbler Hall. Jeff could have bet his roommate was going to slack off and just lip-synch the others and lose everything in that case.
"Jealousy, turning saints into the sea," he sang clearly, taking his stunned eyes from his friend, deciding against mocking him for it. He realised that it was a lot more comfortable like this: singing without the uniform. He always felt strained and way too formal in that blazer. Maybe this was David's plan after all. And maybe this was why their lead singer was always unbuttoning his shirt at the top and throwing away his blazer before rehearsal.
Just as he reached, for the tenth time that day, the end of the first chorus, the blond felt his phone buzz inside his pocket and trailed on the last words. Without stopping the others, he slipped away, while David pushed someone else to sing the lyrics, and got out in the hallway. Who on Earth is this? He stared at his ringing phone before picking up.
"Yeah?" he could hear a slight rattle from the other end.
"Jeff?" Taking a better hold of a chair, Nick asked, almost falling over a dog – what was it even doing there? – when the bus driver took a turn harder than he should have. "I got your number–"
"Nick?" The other ignored his sentence and just cut through it, using probably too much incredulity with his tone.
"Um...yeah. Are you busy?" the brunet finally settles into a cold chair, safe from other manoeuvres on the road.
"No?" Why do I keep asking questions? "I mean...no. Where are you? David called for a Warbler practice..." he let the rest of his sentence fall, hopelessly looking back at the door.
Nick stifled a snort. "He did? Won't he ever learn? What are you guys doing?" he smiled at nothing in particular, taking the phone in his gloved hand now.
He means the song, right? "Ah...Mr Brightside," and before Nick could make any comment. "We're just experimenting." That sounded odd and he grimaced at a curtain.
At the other end, the boy raised his eyebrows in wonder. "Aaron accepted that?" Because, yes, their lead singer could sometimes be a pain when it came to song selection. It just depended on the day.
Jeff swallowed, only now feeling his dry mouth. "No, he's not here." He could practically see the unspoken question now. "I'm singing it." Nick opened his mouth to express something, probably a mix of surprise and strange delight, but the other continued, uncertain. "It...it sounds okay."
"I'm sure of that," he grinned, the small accompanying chuckle getting over to the other side and looked outside the window to get an idea of where he was. "I'll get there in twenty minutes or so, maybe I'll still catch you guys at it." Yeah, he would have liked that. Jeff never tried for the lead.
A loud chorus of 'no' rang abruptly through Jeff's mind. "Ah, I don't know. We've been at it for almost three hours already. Not really doing anything, but – ..." Was that a sigh? He hoped it wasn't a sigh. Jeff, that really sounded as if he wasn't welcome here, a cruel, but truthful voice whispered up there. I could hold them here for a little longer, he tried the phrases in his mind. "I..."
"Okay then," Nick laughed instead, shifting the phone again. There wasn't nearly enough heat in that car to stop him from trembling. "Next time, I guess." Even though this was the last weekend before the holiday. Sometime, in the near or distant future, there was going to be a next time. Right?
Jeff, on his end, kept silent for a couple of seconds, deliberating whether to go back or to ramble more. Nick's tone was suggesting the first choice, however and with a good reason. Why talk here if he's coming back anyway? "Um, then...I better go back," he tried.
The other couldn't feel his feet. "Yeah. See you there," he smiled to keep his teeth from rattling until the other ended the conversation, then put his phone back and resumed to rub his hands together. I'm not made for public transportation, breathed over his frozen fingers, wishing once again that his car existed.
o0o0o
"Guys, how long are we gonna –" Jeff entered the room calmly, closing the door behind him, but was caught off guard by the sight inside. It doesn't even sound half bad, his eyes widened, watching his roommate and Trent sing lead in front of him. They must have bribed Miles somehow, but...
"...oh. OH! Cut, cut, I haven't done anything!" Miles jumped from their proximity, almost hiding behind a couch.
"You know that's for movies..." David grinned smugly at him, leaning over a chair. "You were saying, Jeffie?"
The Warbler's complexion became sour for a moment and then he crosses the room to them. One look at the others' faces signalled that he was going to have back up, so he sighed, acting tired. "Aren't we done yet? We spent more time here than we did all week." The Warblers nodded and murmured in agreement.
His dark-skinned friend glanced around, then at his phone and shrugged. "As if you didn't like it. Okay, everyone. In Wes' absence, I declare you all dismissed," he turned to the others, mocking Wes' tone at the end and making them laugh.
"Hmmm."
"Shut up," Miles snapped quickly when they were making their way upstairs.
Jeff grinned, catching up to him. You mocked me for a month when I joined the Warblers, you're not going to get away that easily. "We were just talking last week that we would do nice with some new members," reaching the second floor, he started to walk backwards, as to see his pissed off face in full splendour.
Oh, but his roommate couldn't keep it up for long. After a seconds-long staring contest, he laughed and opened their room. "With a voice like yours and with Aaron's changing disposition, I bet you do."
"So come!" He landed back in his unmade bed.
"Not in a thousand years!" the ginger laughed it off, making some room on his bed to lie on.
Taking off his hoodie and straightening his white T-shirt afterwards, Jeff chanted and looked at the ceiling. "I will wait you for a thousand more," and a heavy pillow landed on his head with a thud.
o0o0o
Yet another thud could be heard in the school grounds too, when the sun was almost setting, its last rays making the ice beam in orange. "Ouch..." Nick massaged his head, which he had enough instinct to duck, softening the impact. Cold, frozen and now hurt; this wasn't his best day.
He passed by the Warbler Hall to see it was empty, nodded to some less known colleagues and went on his way to a hot shower. One of the best parts of rooming alone for a while was the relatively clean state in which he managed to keep the bathroom.
After abandoning his day clothes on the bed and flexing his fingers until he could feel them well enough to turn on the shower, he let the water fall forcefully on his body, making him blind for a while. Soon enough, it seemed that his blood started flowing correctly again and he sighed at the relaxation that crept through his body.
Which one is this? He pushed his wet hair off his forehead after he ruffled it with a towel and took the CD in his hand. Nothing new, he always bumped into things he didn't even think he bought. This looks cool..., he glanced at its interior and then it hit him like a whoosh of 'oooohs'.
Thankfully, the marble floor on the hallways had been replaced with carpet a few years back so now Nick could hurry his pace easily despite being barefoot and almost tripping over his too long pyjama pants. He was safe from a concussion, but not from the cold air that was running through his damn hair. His only hope remained his strong immunity system.
"Ah..." the next floor greeted him with sarcastic closed doors and a smirk of quiet laughter. Maybe he was already having a fever. Not possible. Okay, Nick, which one is it? He looked at each door in turn and used his memory to cast every one of them two boys. Yeah, the list was drastically shortened now.
That one was in quarantine last year, so this had to be it; he counted while whirling the CD in the air. Shrugging, he knocked softly at the second to last door on the right.
"Hey."
"H...ey?" Jeff raised an eyebrow before glancing at his wet hair and loose PJs. "I bet it's cold out there," he remarked, but lost his tongue before the next part. Smart move, Jeff. He swallowed hardly. "...right," he laughed awkwardly when Nick only waited, with his soothing smile on his face and let him go in.
"Hello," Miles simpered over his book at the unusual visitor and was answered in the same manner. It's cold and late. Yeah, this is too random a visit, Nick shifted on his bare feet, suddenly self-content with his appearance. His hair was probably a perfect cuckoo's nest by now.
"You might want to see this," he held the CD out and Jeff took it promptly, analysing the cover with the speed of an R2-D2. "You said you liked cool stuff and this looked pretty...well, cool," Nick laughed half-heartedly, unconsciously embracing his arms at a colder rush of air. Where was it coming from, anyway?
A sparkle wandered over Jeff's brown eyes and he grinned broadly at him, still holding the disk. "This is gold. I don't know what it is, but it looks awesome. You think we can still play it?" Behind him, his roommate snickered at his childish excitement. But Nick was there, he couldn't start a squabble to save his life.
"We can try. Did it end well today?" He probably meant the rehearsal. Right? Right. Jeff shrugged, looking around at nothing.
"It was okay, but I think it'll be safe to stay out of David's way tomorrow, he was on a roll."
Nick grinned, eyes twinkling with amusement. "Did he have the gavel?" And he won a laugh from the other too.
Their friend always hunted down Wes' instrument of power when he knew the other was going away for the weekend. Fixing his glasses back on his nose, however, the blond shook his head.
Okay, I can't take this anymore, it's freezing! The black-haired teen stiffened with a shiver and eyed the other apologetically. Catching on, Jeff smiled in return. "I'll go dry off..."
"Yeah," the taller one tousled his blond hair without looking at him and then raced back and forth to the bed. "Oh. Here, take this," he handed him a rather thick comic. "I finished it yesterday."
Nick raised an eyebrow when he didn't add anything after that, but nodded once he saw the look on the other's face. "Thanks." If Jeff thought it good, then it must have been pretty damn good. At least he had something to do now.
Here you have it :)
This is fun to write. Really fun.
Next chapter, next Saturday ~ we're gonna have a movie niiight *twirls*
Thank you :)
