AN: I hope you enjoy this little scene. The next story is a work in progress. I promise I have not abandoned you.
I THINK I'M INTO YOU
Andrew stared at himself in his bathroom mirror. He turned twelve tomorrow. He should be excited. He had gotten exactly what he asked for from his parents: a really birthday party. Every year since he could remember, his parents used his birthday as an excuse to throw a party for their political, social, and business connections. When he had first brought up the topic this year his father had gruffly told him he should be honored. His birthday was the biggest gathering of dignitaries and activists outside of the Mayor's New Year's Eve Ball. He did not care about political opportunities and building business networks. He was eleven turning twelve. He wanted to celebrate his birthday with his friends at his side.
His mother had given him the good news the week before. Someone, most likely his maternal grandfather, had decided to hold a gathering of the city's elite on the same night that his birthday festivities would be thrown. As a compromise, his father would mother would attended the adult's party, while his father babysat him and his friends at the house. He wished his parents had switched roles, but his mother as the daughter of the Chief of Police would be expected to attend the gala. Thankfully after brusquely telling him to keep the noise down, his father had chosen to lock himself in the bedroom with a bottle or two of whiskey.
He should be happy. He forced a smile on his face. Even to his eyes it looked fake. His whole body trembled in trepidation. This would be the first time most of his friends would be visiting his house. Besides for Zach, he rarely hung out with his peers outside of school and when he did it was always at their house or at the mall or park. He made the excuse that his mother had a thing for everything being just right. She was a perfectionist, but the problem was his dad. As much as his loved his parents, his dad was not someone he wanted his friends to meet. He almost called off the whole party when his mother informed him of the plan. Taking a deep breath, he picked up the comb and ran it through his slightly damp hair.
The party was going to start in an hour. His mother had ordered catering from his favorite local burger joint. The food was supposed to arrive before his mother left for the evening right around the time his best friend would also be arriving. He sucked in a lungful of air at the thought of Zach dressed up for the party. It had taken a few months, but he finally admitted to himself, he had a crush on his best friend. No one else had to make an appearance tonight except for Zach and his night would be almost perfect. Perfect required Zach having the same feelings for him, but even in his wildest fantasies Andrew knew nothing would ever happen.
Zach was the late bloomer in their group of friends. Even his younger cousin Matt made out with a girl before Zach. Despite his slower acceptance of adolescence, Zach made it abundantly clear he found girls attractive. Andrew did not understand the whole appeal of going out with a girl. They were so different from boys. With boys, you could talk about stuff that mattered without all those messy emotions. Andrew laughed sadly to himself. He was lying to himself about that. Boys had messy emotions too.
Even with his friends possibly meeting his father hanging over his head there was one other topic looming he dreaded even more. He had been going to therapy for just over two months. He had admitted to Dr. Halliwell, he could not think of him as Zach's father, about the possibility of his differences from other people. He knew from a very young age who and what he was. He simply never accepted it. It was against what his family believed, what he believed.
His visits to Dr. Halliwell started after an incident at the supermarket. He had gone with his dad simply because he was bored. His dad left him in the candy aisle to pick out a chocolate while he went shopping for beer. A few minutes later another boy joined him in the aisle. The boy was cute enough, not Zach cute, but cute. Unfortunately he lost track of his surroundings, trying to decide if the boy had blue or gray eyes. His father caught him. They left the grocery store without paying for any of their items. The next day his father dragged him to a meeting with their church's minister. It was the minister that suggested he see a therapist. Andrew almost laughed when Dr. Halliwell's name was on the top of the list.
Only after a number of awkward sessions where Dr. Halliwell and he sat staring at each other for the most part did he decide to open up. Years of pent up frustration flowed out of him once he started. He had no desire to stop it either. It felt good to finally tell someone about everything. Admitting the truth to himself, saying it out loud, was the hardest thing he had ever done. He had of course immediately sworn Wyatt to secrecy. The last thing he wanted was Zach finding out about the truth. He had not told Dr. Halliwell the reason for his fear, but he suspected the man knew the truth. He was, after all, an excellent psychologist.
He had almost admitted the truth in their last session, but something held him back. The idea stuck, though. The night before his dreams had been filled with various scenarios of him telling the truth. One of the most vivid of the dreams did not deal with Dr. Halliwell but his son. Andrew nervously chewed on his lower lip. In the dream, he had told Zach everything. His best friend had stood in front of him with a growing smile on his face. The blue-eyed boy opened his mouth to say something, and Andrew woke up covered in sweat.
The imagined images circled around his brain as he pulled on his button up shirt. He sprayed a small amount of the cologne his grandmother had bought him for his birthday. A flicker of the lights pulled him firmly back into the present. Walking back to his room, he listed off items he needed for his plan because the dream had spurred him into action. Tonight, he would kiss Zachary Halliwell.
The plan had been formulated between himself and Trisha, his closest female friend. She thought it was designed to give him an opportunity to kiss Jenna, the girl he had been faking having a crush on to appease curious minds. They were going to play spin-the-bottle. Trisha knew one other girl who would be willing to join in on the game. Andrew invited Carlos to be the third boy. Halfway through the party the six of them would sneak off to Andrew's room. Andrew had already hidden a bottle or two of liquor under his bed. He had snuck it out of his dad's collection the night before. He hoped the alcohol would loosen his friends up enough. The doorbell rang. Yelling to let his parents he would get it, Andrew raced down the hallway to answer the door. He reached the door, panting and smiling.
"You should open the door, sweetheart," said his mother.
He jumped not realizing his mother was nearby. He spun around and glared at her. "What! S—you look nice."
His mother smiled. "Thank you."
Andrew returned the smile and turned back to the door. He opened it as the doorbell rang again. He father yelled from upstairs for someone to answer the door. Both he and his mother ignored him. Standing on the other side of the door was his best friend dressed in a red dress shirt and slightly too long black pants. His shoes were pointy and shiny. The taller blond smiled broadly in greeting.
"ZACH!" yelled Andrew, dragging his friend through the door.
"Don't you look smart, Zachary."
Andrew noticed Zach's grimace, but his friend kept his comment to himself. No one was allowed to call him Zachary, not even his parents. It all had something to do with Zach's baby sister, but Andrew was not sure of the precise details. His mother quietly excused herself; the caterers were coming up the driveway. Andrew pulled Zach upstairs and into his room.
"So, happy early birthday, dude," said Zach once the door shut.
Andrew smiled. "Thanks. But never mind that. Have you heard who's coming?"
Zach rolled his eyes at his excitable friend antics. "Jenna is coming. Trisha told you that yesterday."
"Right, right—Jenna." His smile slipped as his stomach did another backflip.
"Come on, you can't tell me you're nervous. You're Andrew Christensen, the first boy to kiss a girl in our whole grade! How many girls have crushes on you now? Ten, thirteen? You've got nothing to be afraid of. All you have to do is pick one," said Zach encouragingly.
Andrew forced himself to smile during his friend's little pep talk. If only he knew the real reason he was nervous. He should have invited Trisha to come by early to help set up for the real party.
"You don't mind that I invited Sophie, right? I know you guys don't really know each other, and then there was that thing with Trish during lunch the other day. You guys will like each other, I promise. You just need to get to know each other. Yeah?"
Andrew could not help but smirk as Zach continued to ramble nervously. In all honesty, he had no problem with Sophia. There was a small amount of jealousy since she was Zach's first kiss, but Zach had repeatedly stated the kiss was not romantic. He had never spoken to Sophia about the kiss, but the feeling he got from her around Zach was not that of a rival. He actually thought she had eyes for another Halliwell.
Andrew shrugged when he spotted Zach nervously staring at him. "It's fine. Trish is over it, and I don't have anything against her. Maybe, you should ask Matt to join us. He was eyeing her at lunch the other day."
Zach shook his head. "No. I can't even think about that. God, imagine my cousin going out with one of my friends. It'd be hell."
"You're one to talk, Mr. I'll-kiss-some-random-girl."
Zach stuck out his tongue. "So, what's the plan for the party. Trisha told me to plan on not being at the real party for too long."
Andrew swallowed. "Well, I was thinking—and Trisha agreed—that we should have a more private party up here."
"What sort of party?" asked Zach, folding his arms across his chest.
Rather than answering him, Andrew bent down and dug out the bottle of liquor from underneath his bed. "A few drinking games? Maybe even spin-the-bottle? It'd be hot to watch a few girls lock lips and possibly get some action as well. What do you think?"
Zach eyed the bottle of alcohol precariously. "You do remember the last time we tried that stuff."
"Yeah, of course. I've read up on it. You're not supposed to drink a whole bottle. At least not so quickly," said Andrew sheepishly.
They had snuck a bottle of vodka during a family get together at the Manor a few weeks ago. They had heard stories in the locker room at school about the effects of alcohol and wanted to give it a go. Neither boy had any experience with alcohol besides for the one time Wyatt had given Zach a sip of his beer at a Fourth of July party. Zach said it tasted horrible. Vodka, in Andrew's opinion, tasted worse even though he had never tasted beer. He could not imagine anything tasting worse than his first sip. Unfortunately, he was never one to back down from a challenge and downed half the bottle. He paid for it that night.
"Who are the girls?" asked Zach slowly unfolding his arms.
Andrew ticked off the names on his fingers. "There's Trisha obviously. Jenna and some girl Trisha knows. I invited Carlos to join us, and you. Maybe a few others, but I don't want too many people. It'll just be weird."
The real answer for keeping the group small was it increased his chances of having the bottle fall on Zach during his turn.
Zach breathed out slowly. "Dude, I'm all for helping you get with Jenna, but spin-the-bottle? Don't you think that's a little tacky? Why not just ask her out on a date?"
Andrew's shoulders slumped. "It's all planned…"
"Ok, ok, but Trisha's friend better be hot," said Zach, grinning.
"Are any of her friends not hot?" said Andrew returning the jab.
Zach waivered. "I guess you're right."
The rest of the time was spent researching drinking games. Neither boy was familiar with the niceties of a real party. Zach was the oldest child in his family, and Andrew was an only child. They did not have older brothers to show them the way. Both were fairly sheltered by their families. For whatever reason, partying middle-schoolers were a rarity in their school district. Those statistics did not hold up in high school, but no high schooler was going to invite a seventh or eighth grader to a party. All their knowledge was second or third hand and they suspected highly embellished especially after the alcohol fiasco.
Andrew's mother announced her departure, and Andrew stepped out of the room briefly to say goodbye. His father reminded him to keep the noise down and vanished back into the master bedroom. Guests began to arrive a few minutes later, forcing Zach to join Andrew downstairs. Slowly the core group arrived and gathered close to the stairs. After ensuring the caterers were doing their job and eating, Andrew led the group upstairs and into his room.
The group had grown from the three girls and three guys. Trisha with his curly brown hair was the first to enter Andrew's room and make herself comfortable on his bed. She had invited her cousin Tabitha who was his spitting image except for the somber blue eyes were replaced by dazzling emerald ones. Sophia was the next girl; she stuck very close to Zach. Jenna easily fit in with the group with her flowing brown hair and easy-going personality. The final girl was another blonde named Cassidy. She was an exchange student from Wales and had a crush on Carlos. For the boys, Carlos dominated the room. He was a good head taller than anyone else and had a sultry deep baritone voice to match his physique. Nico was Carlos's wiry younger brother. He had weaseled his way into the group by threatening to inform parents of alcohol use. The other male addition was Trisha's occasional boyfriend. Henry Wu was almost as gangly as Nico, but he was the captain of the wrestling team so no one mocked him for his size more than once.
Andrew started off the night by opening up the bottle of vodka and taking a swig. He handed the bottle over to Zach. "So…" he said awkwardly.
Trisha sat up a bit on the bed. "We can all diddle dally around swallowing liquid courage or we can just get to it. We all know what is coming, so why waste precious time. Who's up for a game of spin-the-bottle?"
The boys, most of whom had already taken a sip of alcohol, nodded their heads eagerly. Sophia and Cassidy blushed, wringing their hands. Tabitha waggled her eyebrows suggestively at Zach and stood up from her spot next to her cousin.
"I'm ready," she said still staring at Zach.
Zach gulped and avoided her gaze. "Drew, rules?"
"Kisses have to last for at least three seconds. No kissing family members. Oh! And if the bottle lands back on yourself you get to choose who to kiss," said Trisha bossily. "Ready? Let's sit on the floor. Alternate sexes. Go."
Andrew landed up sitting next to Tabitha and Cassidy. Zach was sitting opposite him with Sophia and Trisha on either side. Andrew kept giving Tabitha dirty looks and having to force himself to stop doing so. He was not ready to have other people figuring out his secret. An empty bottle was placed in the center of the circle of nervous but excited young teens.
"What about if the bottle lands on a girl and it's a girl's turn?" asked Sophia, speaking for the first time since entering the room. She had not drunk any alcohol when it was offered to her.
All eyes fell on Trisha who shrugged. "It's up to the birthday boy."
Andrew gulped. It was the moment of truth. "Er—let's say the first two rounds they can choose to spin again or not. After that—uh—it's—er—yeah, you've got to kiss them."
Trisha's eyes lit up. "This is going to be exciting!"
Tabitha nodded in agreement. "Watching guys make out is so hot."
The boys in the room except Andrew shuddered.
Carlos spoke up. "Are you sure, Drew? I'm not kissing Nico."
"No kissing family, remember," spoke up Zach.
Trisha grinned, eyeing Andrew. "Alright, birthday boy, your turn."
Andrew reached out and gave the bottle a quick spin. It landed on Cassidy. He turned toward her and kissed her. He made a show of it, taking longer than the necessary three seconds. When they broke apart he shot a quick look at Carlos. The big boy did not look too pleased. He gave Cassidy's hand a squeeze, and she blushed. The kiss had been planned earlier to see if Carlos had feelings for the pale girl.
Cassidy spun the bottle. It landed between Zach and Trisha. Cassidy leaned forward, and Zach got on his hands and knees to close the gap. Their kiss was nothing for than an extended peck. Zach did not have feelings for Cassidy, and neither did she him. Zach turn ended with him landing on Nico. He chose to kiss Sophia much to Andrew's relief. Tabitha was remarkable downcast after the subtle rejection. Sophia kissed Nico who pulled away breathless. Andrew guessed it was most likely the younger boy's first time. Nico's bottle landed on Andrew, and the boy chose to follow through.
The kiss was quick. Andrew was sure it did not last even the required time limit. It had felt nice to kiss a boy even if the boy was not Zach. He was surprised how much better it made him feel. If he had any doubts about his sexual orientation Nico had answered it. Everyone was staring at them in shocked silence.
Nico arched a thick eyebrow. "What? You said it was my choice. I kissed a girl, and I wanted to feel what it was like to kiss a boy."
"And?" asked Carlos, star struck.
Nico shrugged. "Eh, girls are better, but I won't say no either. It was kinda hot." Even though he said everything with such confidence, he was blushing and shaking by the end.
Since both Andrew and Cassidy had already had a turn. Tabitha spun the bottle. To both Zach's and Andrew's horror, it stopped squarely pointing at Zach. Tabitha stood up and stepped into the center of the circle. She forced Zach onto his feet and pulled him against her. She placed both hands firmly on either side of his face and pulled him in for a kiss. Zach returned the kiss unwillingly and pulled back as soon as he reached three in his mind. Tabitha pecked him on the cheek, grinning like a Cheshire cat.
"Not bad, Halliwell, but I've had better."
Zach licked his lips. "Thanks."
Tabitha winked at him and sat back down. Trisha took the next turn. Again the bottle landed on Zach. Andrew groaned. He had not thought the game all the way through. The idea of Zach having to kiss other people besides him had not entered his mind. Cassidy and Sophia were one thing, but Tabitha clearly had a thing for Zach. Trisha would use anyone and everyone to make Henry jealous. This was not going to be an easy kiss to watch. Trisha slipped into Zach's lap and kissed him very sensually. Andrew was sure there was even some tongue action. Trisha only stopped when Henry crushed the plastic cup in his fist. She hopped off Zach's lap.
"I don't know what you're going on about, Tabitha. He's a fantastic kisser."
Tabitha smirked. "Well, I guess, I'll have to try again."
Zach bit his lip and leaned back with a slightly dazed expression. "Who's next?"
Henry grabbed the bottle and aggressively spun the bottle. It landed on Carlos. Henry spun the bottle again, and it stopped on Zach.
Tabitha giggled. "Looks like it really wants you to try some guy on guy action, Hen."
Henry glared at her. "I'm spinning again."
He did, and the bottle stopped, pointing in the direction of Nico. Nico puckered his lips, causing the group to burst out laughing.
"I say we throw away the gender rule. This is getting boring," said Trisha, smirking at her current ex-boyfriend.
Andrew nodded. "Sure. Whatever."
"Pucker up, Hen," mocked Tabitha.
Henry shoved Nico away. "No way! I'm not kissing some dude."
"Those are the rules. Otherwise, there's the door," said Trisha.
Henry glowered and turned to Nico. "Three seconds. Not a fraction of a second more."
Nico nodded. "Such a romantic."
Henry shut him up by kissing him. When it was over, Henry kept his eyes glued to the floor, his arms crossed, and shoulders hunched.
"Just Jenna and Carlos left," said Nico.
"Where's the alcohol?" asked Tabitha.
Jenna spun the bottle next. She had to kiss Sophia. Neither girl tried anything special, but they did not end the kiss early. Carlos landed on Cassidy. Their kiss was filled with passion and desire or as much as a kiss between middle-schoolers could be. It lasted longer than any of the previous kisses even Zach and Trisha's mini-make-out session. When they broke apart, Nico and Zach wolf whistled, causing the possible couple to blush.
The bottle of alcohol made its way around the group again before the second round started. Its effects on their inhibitions were remarkable. Tabitha's spin landed on Trisha. Both girls moved in for a kiss without any hesitation. Nico got to kiss Sophia, Zach, and Cassidy. Andrew kissed Cassidy again. Henry skipped the round still seething. Carlos kissed Trisha. Jenna spun the bottle last and landed on Zach. Andrew could tell both of them felt awkward kissing in front of him. He felt bad for leading Jenna on.
It was his fifth turn to spin the bottle when it finally happened. The bottle landed in the middle of Trisha and Zach, but slightly more toward Zach. The three of them exchanged glances.
Trisha shook her head. "Nope, sorry, Drew, but you're like a brother. No way."
Andrew held his breath waiting for Zach to say something similar. The blond boy bit his lip and shrugged. "Rules are rules."
Andrew wanted to jump up and scream in celebration. As had become the custom during the fourth round thanks to Tabitha's insistence, the two boys stood up and took their spots in the center of the group. Andrew felt like his heart was about to explode. His whole body shook with expectation. Zach reached out and gently cupped the back of his head. Andrew was almost too nervous to reciprocate; he forced himself to entangle his fingers in Zach's silky soft hair. He could feel Zach's hot breath against his skin. He closed his eyes and puckered his lips.
The bedroom door burst open.
"Wat de fok gaan hier! Trilkop, wat die hel doen jy?" screamed Andrew's father.
The boys and girls jumped at the interruption. Andrew paled. He knew he was in more trouble than he had ever imagined. The butterflies in his stomach were gone, and his stomach had dropped to the floor.
"I—I—I—c—ca—can…"
Mr. Christensen's glared at his quaking son. "Tell your friends to go. The party is over."
No one waited for Andrew to speak. They all rushed out of the room as fast as they could. Only Zach remained behind. He kept himself between Andrew and his father.
"Mr. Christensen, it was just a game. It was for a laugh," said Zach as evenly as he could.
Mr. Christensen ignored him. "Ek gaan die lewende kak klop uit jou. Wat de hel is jy dink?"
Andrew shivered. "It was just a game!"
"'N spel? 'N spel! Dit is 'n sonde. Vertel jou vriende uit te kry. Nou!" Andrew's father stormed off.
Andrew slumped back against the wall. He had not even realized he had been backing up during the confrontation with his father. He looked at Zach who was as clammy and pale as he felt.
"Zach, you should go."
Zach shook his head. "No, I can explain..."
Andrew closed his eyes. "No, that'll just make it worse. Just go. I'll be fine. Get everyone to go home. I'll be fine."
"Are you sure?" asked Zach, unsure.
Andrew nodded. 'Of course, he's my dad. What's he going to do, kill me? Ha, ha. No, what's a month-long grounding? It was all worth it. I got to kiss Jenna."
Zach still did not look convinced.
"Seriously, dude, it'll all work out. Just go. I'll be in more trouble if everyone is still here when he comes back out. I'll see you tomorrow. Thanks for coming."
Zach nodded slowly and left the room. Andrew held onto his tears for as long as he could. He could hear Zach ordering people out of the house. Then the house fell silent. Andrew sucked in a shuddering breath as warm tears followed down his cheeks. He had been so close. The sound of his parent's bedroom door opening chased out all other thoughts except a horrible icy sense of dread. His father entered his room holding up a belt. Andrew did not even put up a fight. He knew it was useless. He should have never tried to be anything other than what his parents wanted him to be.
AN: I guess I should give you guys some translations.
Wat de fok gaan hier! Trilkop, wat die hel doen jy - What the fuck is going on here! Dickhead, what the hell are you doing?
Ek gaan die lewende kak klop uit jou. Wat de hel is jy dink - I am going to beat the living shit out of you. What the hell were you thinking?
'N spel? 'N spel! Dit is 'n sonde. Vertel jou vriende uit te kry. Nou! - A game? A game! It is a sin. Tell your friends to get out. Now!
I apologize to any of my readers that can understand Afrikaans. My translation skills are terribly rusty and mostly self-taught.