He wasn't sure what he was supposed to do now. He couldn't take him back there, what with crazy-super-protective-mom, and stands-on-the-sidelines-and-lets-his-wife-shout-at-his-son's-only-friend-like-a-great-useless-idiot-dad being there.
He couldn't take him to his place, because THAT was the worst of all bad ideas, and breaking the 'None Shalt Know if at all Possible' credo that Nick lived by.
He crouched down beside his friend on the grass, while he continued to sob into his knees.
"Rod? You okay?"
"Nicky…. It's awful…." Rod sobbed, looking up at him. Nick almost flinched at that look, but didn't, for Rod's sake. The rain had drained all the colour out of his usually so bright blue eyes…. Made him look so…. Hollow….. "How could I…. have said such things to her…?"
"She deserved every word, Rod." Nick told him. "She was crushin' you…. You don't deserve to be treated like that, bud. She can't keep you prisoner."
"Nicky…." Slowly, Rod reached his arms out and caught the older boy in a tight hug, ignoring how he stiffened at first.
Nick let him cling to him. It must have been so hard for him. Always trying to please. Always trying to be good. Make them happy. Be home on time so he didn't have to put up with that shit. He didn't blame him, really. It probably was easier to just sit there and suffer than sit through the chaos doing something assertive caused.
After a little while, Nick reached around him and pulled Rod's arms back around to the front. Rod made a noise of protest which Nick ignored, and he pulled Rod to his feet. "Come on." He said, smiling slightly.
"N….No…. I'm not going back there. I won't!" Rod shook his head sharply.
"Wasn't gunna make you go back there, Rod-Buddy. I just don't wanna stand in the rain any more. Want to….. I dunno… go to the mall or something?"
"I….I'm….I'm not allowed… I…."
"Come with me, Rod." Nick gave him his most charming smile.
Rod blinked a few times, blush hidden by the rain. "……okay."
---
Next thing Rod knew, he was forming a puddle on the floor of the train as the two soaked boys sat in an empty train car. Nick wasn't sitting beside him, this time. He was standing near the rear of the car, standing under the vent, making an attempt at getting himself sort of dry.
"Come stand under the vent, Rod!" He called out. "You'll get a chill if you stay wet."
"That's silly, Nicky." Rod said, shaking his head. "How embarrassing."
"We have the whole car to ourselves, Rod."
"Not the point."
Nick chuckled. "You'll be more embarrassed when we're walking around and you're leaving puddly footprints all over the place."
There was a pause.
A moment later, Rod was standing under the warm vent beside the other boy. Nick chuckled.
"You're so weird."
---
The wide berth that Rod had noticed when they were on the train earlier, didn't seem to be in effect, now that they were in the shopping centre. Maybe the people on the train knew something about Nicky that the people in the mall didn't, he wasn't sure. But……. If it was important, Rod was sure his friend would tell him.
"Oh hey!" Nicky's voice snapped him out of his thoughts. "A music shop!"
"I thought you didn't like music." Rod said, looking at him from behind his clear lenses.
"I don't mind listening to the stuff. I can't play it or sing to save myself, though."
"I'd like to hear you try."
"And I'd like a lot of money to move out of home, but that sure as fuck isn't going to happen." Nick huffed, striding away from Rod, into the store.
Rod blinked and headed after him, placing himself beside the taller boy as he started looking at CDs, a little confusedly, Rod noticed.
"You really wanna move out that bad?" He asked.
"As if you're any different." He returned, picking up a CD and looking at the back of the case at the song list. "But, at least you have a chance of it. As for me, I'm doomed. What about this, do you think?" He asked, holding up a CD.
Rod looked at the CD before looking at Nicky. "What about it?"
"Any good, you think?"
"How should I know? I've never even heard of this artist before. Not one of my Father's clients…. John Mayer… I should ask Father when I get ho-…." He trailed off.
Rod slumped his shoulders and sighed.
"Ah, Rod." Nicky shook his head and took the CD over to a counter on the side of the shop, and handing it to the attendant there. "Hey, could we get a preview of this one?"
"Sure." The attendant looked at the CD Nicky had just handed him, before reaching behind him and putting a store copy into the CD player. "Any particular track?"
"Nah, just give us the first one."
"Okay."
And the attendant hit play.
The first 20 seconds did not fill Nick with joy. Acoustic Guitar.
Don't get him wrong, he had nothing against the Guitar, Acoustic or otherwise. But he wasn't exactly a Country and Bluegrass fan, and as far as he knew, or cared, Acoustic Guitar meant Country or Bluegrass.
"I like the Guitar." Rod piped up, stepping beside Nick. Fucking typical. Thanks for that, universe. He'd been about to stop the song, too. Oh well, might as well listen to it now, he supposed.
The guy singing the song had an okay voice, Nick decided. "Where's this guy from?" he asked as the song hit its first chorus.
"He's American, dude." The attendant responded. "If you're after something imported we have plenty of international stuff."
"I was just asking. Christ." Nick huffed, looking at Rod, who was looking at some other CDs.
He turned back to the attendant and was about to ask for it to be turned off, when the words of the song started to hit his ears.
They love to tell you
Stay inside the lines
But something's better
On the other side
"Something's better?" He whispered. His green eyes locked onto the CD player as it continued to push the song out it's speakers.
I am invincible
As long as I'm alive
Nick seemed to be in another place as the song came to an end. Rod had come to stand next to him, and prodded him when he didn't move or leave comment. "Nicky?"
Nicky blinked a few times and looked around. "What? What happened?"
Rod giggled. "What's with you? You were a million miles away."
Nicky blushed a little. "Oh yeh?"
"Yeah."
"Not a bad song, is it?" The attendant asked. "What did you think?"
Nicky was ponderous for a moment before reaching into his backpack and pulling out a slightly damp leather wallet. "Can I buy that album?"
---
Later, the two boys were sitting on a bench, listening to the rain still pattering down on the roof above, a burger in hand.
"Ugh… This is so inelegant…." Rod grumbled, as a bit of tomato fell from his sandwich and onto his lap.
Nicky snickered. "Inelegant, huh? Sorry, next time we'll go to some fancy restaurant. YOU can pay the bill, though."
Rod glared at him, but it dropped away after a moment, and he watched the darker haired boy finish his burger, and lick the sauce off his fingers idly. Rod caught himself staring and promptly shoved the rest of his burger into his mouth, damning elegance to the deepest pit. A quick glance to the side told him that Nicky hadn't noticed him staring….. thank Christ for that….
Once finished with his fingers, Nicky got his new CD out of his bag and looked at the cover. "You know what?" He said, frowning at it. "I'm an idiot."
Rod frowned. "What…? Why?"
"…I don't have a CD player."
"You…. Don't?" Rod blinked at him. "At all? What about a computer?"
"Fuck no! I don't have anything like that! No time to use it, usually. I'm really liking this day off shit. We should do this more often." He smiled broadly at his friend, who blushed in response.
"You like….. hanging out with me? After what happened…?"
Nicky shrugged. "Your mom is a freak, sure, but I don't blame you for what she did."
Rod looked at the floor by his feet, sighing sadly.
"We still have a stupid assignment to do too, don't we."
Rod looked up at him. "You're thinking about our assignment? Now?"
"Well, if we do good, then we'll both have a better shot at getting into college. Then we can say goodbye hell hole, and hello freedom! A dorm is better than the shit you and I put up with now."
"You really think so?"
"I know so! You're a huge nerd, right? Help me out here!" Nicky looked at him earnestly, which made Rod giggle. "I mean it! Help me! If you can explain stuff to me in a way I understand, and without all the rambling our teacher does, I'm sure I'll get better grades! I don't want to do this shit anymore, Rod, I really don't! I gotta get my grades up or I'm doomed!!"
Rod looked at him. This surprised him. He seemed to carefree sometimes… Made him wonder what kind of life he was trying to run away from…..
"We never ended up deciding what to do for our assignment." Rod reminded him.
Nick held up his new CD. "We could do something on this guy maybe?"
"On your new all-time favourite artist?"
Nicky looked at the CD. "Well…… yeah."
Rod smiled. "With the Musicals, we could have at least gotten away with a diorama of the set. With this, we'll have to do some sort of report."
"Maybe we can find the lyrics? And the sheet music for it? I dunno what we can do with that, but, surely there's something that we can do that isn't me procrastinating an essay and you doing it all in the end so we don't fail and the teacher knowing better and failing me for it."
Rod frowned. "Well, if it means that much to you I'm sure we can. But I'm not overly sure what."
"There's gotta be something. You're smart. I'm sure you'll find it."
---------
A/N: Cheers go to MusicalVampire for nagging me :P
Short chapter because I'm not sure what to do next. I am seriously tempted to have them sing :P
Anyone who can tell me which John Mayer song Nicky likes gets cookies!! xD
~Whispy