The first time Luke had ever noticed Noah, they'd been in the library. Noah had been sitting by himself in the corner of the room, deeply immersed in a book. Luke had been with a friend, looking for a book on World War II. His friend had made a stupid joke, something that didn't even make sense, but Luke had laughed anyway; loud and out of place in the quiet of the library. He could feel people turning to stare at them, people with frowns on their face. And out of the corner of his eye, he could see Noah's head slowly lifting, his eyes locking right onto Luke. The gaze followed him everywhere he went in the library, watching him oh-so carefully. Even as Luke and his friend were exiting the library, he could still feel Noah's heated stare watching his every move.

It was the second time he saw Noah, when Noah was talking to someone during lunch, a smile spreading on his face, that Luke was able to see that Noah's eyes were blue. For some reason, that had been important to him, and he made a mental note of it. And for some reason, he was never able to forget it, no matter how hard he tried.

Blue eyes…

Goddamn blue eyes…

Luke hit his head against the back of his seat; once twice, three times.

He had no idea how long he had been waiting.

Linda had said she was just saying goodnight to their dates, but at least half an hour had to have gone by, and he was still sitting in his car, waiting for Linda. Waiting, and waiting, and waiting. And he was already getting incredibly impatient. The only good thing was that he had been able to fully calm down. The worst part of it all was that, despite everything, his heart still wanted his mind to travel back to Noah.

And he couldn't let that happen.

Not without a fight.

With a sigh, he looked out his car window and into the darkness of the night. He watched as families and dates climb into their cars, watched as more families and dates arrive. Through his window, he could hear muffled laughter and see people excitedly pushing each other. They all seemed so…happy.

So, so happy…

He sighed again and closed his eyes, wanting to shut everything out. He wished they would all just shut up. He wished he weren't alone right now, and he wished his heart would shut up, and that his mind would stop listening to it.

He needed…he needed…what?

What is it that I need?

I don't even know…

And maybe that's the problem…

It seemed like he was lying there for a while, his eyes shut tightly. Finally, someone knocked on his car window and he jumped slightly before glancing out the window.

Linda.

He unlocked the car door, and Linda climbed into the driver seat, tossing her purse into the backseat. Luke lightly hit her on the arm and smiled. "How long does it take to say goodnight?"

For a moment, Linda said nothing; pursing her lips and lightly drumming her fingers against the wheel. After a while, she turned to Luke, and her expression actually seemed…angry. And in their three years of friendship, Luke had almost never seen her mad. Righteous, and riled up maybe, but never mad.

"Are you gonna tell me what happened back there?" She asked.

Luke froze and shifted uncomfortably, his gaze landing on the car headrest. Linda began tapping her fingers again. When she realized Luke wouldn't answer, she let out a sigh.

"Did you have fun tonight?"

"Of course I—"

"—Mike really likes you, Luke. He really, really likes you…" she paused, taking a deep breath. "But he knows you don't feel the same way. He wanted to ask for your number, but he couldn't. He said it was pointless." She bit her lip and shook her head slowly. "And I think so too."

Luke remained quiet, and crossed his arms tightly, as if to shield himself. But Linda still leaned closer to him, as if she thought it were possible to break his barrier. And maybe for her, it was.

"Some guy stopped me on my way out."

The tapping began again, and Luke desperately wanted to concentrate on that, and only that. Maybe Linda would eventually realize that Luke didn't want to talk about this.

But Linda didn't stop talking. "He said his name was Noah. He saw me at your table, apparently." She paused again, waiting for Luke to say something, anything. When he didn't, she continued talking. "I mean, I knew he was the same guy who dragged you away in the first place, but…Anyway, he asked me if I was a friend of yours, and I told him that we were pretty close. And then he said that he wanted to talk to me. When I asked him why..." She lifted Luke's chin slightly, staring him in the eye. "He said that if he couldn't talk to you, he wanted to talk to the person closest to you."

Luke's eyes widened and he pulled away, retreating back into his seat. Linda looked at him from a beat, before turning back towards the wheel. "Did something happen with Noah, Luke?"

He gulped, and once again he found himself wanting to say something, anything, if not everything. But he couldn't. And Linda seemed to understand that.

"Do you want to know what he said, Luke?"

Luke opened his mouth before immediately closing it. He settled for a head shake that turned into a shrug, which slowly became a nod. He glanced at Linda and cleared his throat. "Yes…" he said softly. Linda smiled at him gently, and then held out her hand.

"Where are your keys?"

He wordlessly handed them to her, and she stuck them in the ignition. "Tell ya what. I'll tell you what he said, on one condition."

"…What?"

"You tell me what happened. In your words, in your eyes."

Luke gasped. "Linda, I can't—"

"It's hard for you, isn't it?"

"What is?"

"Talking. You've probably never told anyone, have you? About what happened?" She let out a slight laugh. "It's funny, 'cause Noah said he never told anyone, and that he hasn't really been the same since. And I told him how you always seem so far away, and I swear he almost started crying." She stared out the window. "I've known you for three years, Luke. And you should know by now that people talk. I mean, even teachers' talk, which I still find ridiculous. But they do, and always talk about how sad you seem, and how introverted you are. And it's stupid, but I've always bragged that I know you better than anyone else does, because it feels so good to be able to say it. I know everything about Luke Snyder. The truth is, I don't know anything, do I? At least nothing that matters."

She turned back towards Luke, her face hard with determination. "I wanted to make you happy, but that really isn't up to me, if you're not ready. And you won't be ready until you get this off your chest. Because you've really never talked about it, have you?"

Luke solemnly shook his head, and watched as Linda leaned closer. "I've already heard Noah's side. And that was enough to learn a lot about him. But I'd really like to hear your side, if you would give me the chance." She reached out, took Luke's hands in hers. "Will you, Luke?"

He stared at her, this beautiful, outspoken Italian woman who had become his sunshine in the past few years. He remembered the first time she had spoke to him, how she had demanded to know whether her make-up made her look like a hooker. And then, he thought of one of the first stories she told him, about how her parents used to call her a boomerang because of her stubbornness. She never stopped pursuing what she wanted, going back for more even she kept getting defeated. Back then, she had always managed to catch Luke off-guard in an endearing matter, and Luke had always been drawn to her. And even though he continually tried to fight that, tried to push her away, she kept coming back for more…

Like a boomerang…

And if anyone asked him who he trusted most in the world, he would say Linda in a heartbeat.

If he had to tell this to anyone, it had to be her.

It has to be her…

With a shaky breath, he nodded his head, ignoring the pounding of his head, the pounding of his heart, and the wound inside him that was begging to be fixed.

"I'll tell you everything…from the beginning."