A/N: Another day, another new chapter. My mom's wedding is coming up so, along with a crap load of school projects, so this may be the last update for a week or two, or three. Please note that I will be updating after all of the crap I have to do is over. Hope you like this new chapter. R&R. Enjoy!

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I only look to the good qualities of men. Not being faultless myself, I won't presume to probe into the faults of others.

Mohandas Gandhi

The week went by fast, and before Alex even realized it, it was Friday, which meant that the next day, Mike would be coming over to his house to hang out. Oh, he got the most ridiculous looks from John when he arrived at school on Tuesday. After Music Theory was over for the day, Alex had deduced that John wasn't all he was cracked up to be. While he appeared childlike and lighthearted, the older teen was actually a closet pervert, one that, if he didn't knock it off, would lose his eyebrows in his hairline. What made everything worse was the fact that Mike kept snapping at John. Alex had nearly forgotten that the brunette knew John far better than he did, so it was only too obvious for Mike why John was acting like a fool.

Randy didn't help the situation either. Once they had arrived at the cafeteria and had gotten their lunch, John started laughing his ass off. When Randy joined the three of them, his boyfriend leaned in close and whispered into his ear something that caused the most devious smirk to spread across his face. By the time lunch ended, the young blonde concluded that Randy and John were making up situations in their heads about what Mike and himself were going to do on Saturday and, most likely, were going to try on each other eventually. Regardless of if his theories were right or not, when it was time for detention after school had ended that day, Alex was bright red and Mike was muttering about murdering the "big purple idiot and his tattooed freak of a horny ass boyfriend". Those comments made the taller teen laugh and the tension that had warped around them like a veil lifted, and they were back to normal yet again.

Fortunately for him though, John was almost back to normal by Wednesday. He would, occasionally, send Alex knowing looks; looks that saidthat someone might be getting some come Saturday. Those looks made him blush, and he did his best to avoid them. He even pulled John aside during lunch on Thursday and told him everything: that he was still a virgin, that he had never had a boyfriend, and that he had never even been kissed. The look on John's face told Alex that the older blonde felt like an ass. Although that wasn't the younger teen's intention, it did help calm his nerves come Friday.

Ever since Monday, Wade and his friends had been on their best behavior, although that probably had more to do with the fact that they had detention for two weeks. Unfortunately, that meant that Alex had to see them in detention, but as long as Mike was with him, it didn't bother him all that much. In fact, it actually gave him the opportunity to observe the three jocks. After watching them out of the corner of his eye since Monday, he decided that Justin was the quiet, more reserved one. Almost shy, even, but he still could be an ass when he needed to be, and he had a way about him that kept Heath in line most of the time. Heath, on the other hand, was a firecracker, which was kind of funny considering he was a ginger. And Wade, well he was clearly their leader and a definite troublemaker. But he was smart. Hell, they all were. It kind of unnerved him.

Whenever he would watch them, Mike would snort and shake his head, something that confused the blonde. Before he had even arrived to this school, Mike had been, in a sense, close friends with Wade; now, it was as though he wanted nothing to do with him. Alex wanted to ask the brunette about it, but he didn't know if it'd be appropriate to do so. While he was friends with Mike, that didn't give him automatic allowance to ask a lot of personal questions. At least, that's how Alex saw it. But then again, John constantly asked him questions, often out of the blue and often very personal, so maybe his opinion on the matter was wrong.

Either way, it seemed that, for the time being, Wade was leaving Alex alone, something that was perfectly alright with him. Time flew by on Friday, and he was stunned when detention seemed to come to an abrupt end. He walked out of the room with Mike, neither saying anything. Having to share their detentions Wade, Justin, and Heath usually kept them quiet, even after it was over. Thankfully, the next day would be just the two of them, and that thought made Alex smile.

"So, you're coming over around one, right?" Mike nodded, a small smirk forming on his face.

"One on the dot. Be ready for my, Daddy, because I'm bringing awesome to your house." Alex laughed loudly and shook his head.

"Yeah…awesome. Keep telling yourself that." Mike stopped walking and stared at him, mouth agape, as though he could hardly believe what the blonde had just said.

"Really? Really? You dare doubt my awesomeness? I invited awesome, Riley, and you better not forget that." Alex stared at those deep blue eyes and sobered up quickly, a soft smile on his face.

"I'd never doubt you, no matter what anyone else says."

That statement shocked both of them, and Alex wanted to kick himself for saying it. He couldn't help it though, he just blurted it out without thinking. For a moment, he thought that the older teen was going to do something to him, punch him or something, but it never came. Instead, when he looked at the brunette, he saw that Mike was staring at him with wide, shocked eyes, eyes full of tears yet to fall, tears that would probably never fall because he was never one to cry. At first, he thought he had said something wrong, but the look that Mike gave him told him otherwise.

"You've no idea how awesome it is to hear someone say that to me. It's been…it's been too long since I've had a friend like you…"

"What about John?"

"John and I have been out of the loop for too long. Even when we were friends, we never shared a deep connection. It's…it's really nice to have someone believe in me like that."

"I'm glad. I'd never do anything to hurt you on purpose you know. That's not who I am, Mike."

"I know, Alex. I know."

/

He would never admit it out loud, but Alex was feeling a bit nervous on Saturday. And it got worse as one o'clock ticked nearer and nearer. After waking up, he spent the majority of his morning cleaning up the house although it really didn't need cleaning. Then he took a nice hot shower and dressed in a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt. Yes, he realized that he looked like a bum, but they were only hanging out around the house and were probably going to pig out and watch movies and goof around. Therefore, Mike probably wouldn't care if he wore sweats. About ten minutes later, he changed into a pair of jeans.

Once he had cleaned, showered, and dressed, he flopped down onto the couch and turned on the television. With his leg wiggling around, he kept trying to watch whatever show that was on, but his eyes kept glancing at his cell phone, checking the time. Silently, he was keeping track of every minute that passed, making him feel a bit like poor Cinderella at her ball. Before he'd know it, the clock would chime midnight, opening a whole new world, one that he was both fascinated and frightened by.

As it was nearing one o'clock, Alex stood up and peered out of one of the living room windows. A large, bright smile broke out on his face as he watched Mike walk across the front yard. Not caring that he was acting slightly girlish, the blonde opened the front door and stepped out onto the porch, his smile still on his face. Once Mike saw him, he smiled and hopped up onto the porch, glancing around quickly before his cool blues fell upon his friend.

"Hey. Nice lookin' house you have, Mr. Riley. What do you do for a living?"

"Wouldn't you like to know, Mr. Mizanin?"

At that comment, Mike smirked and followed Alex instead the house, his own remark dying on his lips as he entered. His eyes skimmed the room, studying the pictures, the snow globes, the certificates, and anything and everything they could. Alex watched, with a sort of anxious expression, and couldn't help but squirm as Mike looked around. For some reason, he didn't like Mike being so…so awed by his house. In all honesty, Alex didn't think it was that big or extravagant – compared to some of the other houses he's lived in, it was actually quite plain – but he hated the thought of Mike being awed by his home. It made him feel as though he had so much more and it saddened him that someone like Mike, who was actually very smart and talented, may not be as fortunate.

"I know it's kind of big and old, and for just my father, mother, and I, it's way too big. I'm sorry if you-"

"You're sorry? Sorry? Really? Really, Alex, really? Your house is awesome! C'mon! Show me the rest!" Mike's excitement was infectious and Alex found that, despite himself, he was smiling and laughing alongside his friend.

"Alright. Um, follow me I guess."

With Mike in tow, Alex showed him around the house. First the living room and kitchen, which didn't take too long, and then up stairs to his parent's room, the study and the guest bedroom. Last, but not least, was his room and, with a slightly nervous feeling, he let Mike in before following behind him.

"Nice room, Lexy. Mikey likes. Mikey likes very much." Alex blushed and ducked his head, but not before Mike caught it.

"Glad you like it." It was a lame response, but the blonde didn't know what else to say. Showing Mike around the house, hearing his comments, seeing his expressions, made Alex squirm and tingle. He couldn't help but enjoy the looks of awe and interest when the older teen was observing things that Alex rarely even bothered to glance at.

"Hey, what's this?" Mike walked over towards the stairwell that led to the attic, to Alex' library.

"Oh. That's my, um, my library." Cool blue eyes met soft blue ones and before Alex could explain, Mike was climbing the stairs.

"Holy fucking shit!" Upon hearing Mike's exclamation, Alex climbed the stairs quickly and entered the attic space, wide eyes fixated on his friend. The look on Mike's face was the best one yet, and Alex found himself turning redder than ever. His friend's gaze was so clouded with awe, envy, and want as he surveyed the numerous books that created Alex's little 'library'. Crouching down close to the nearest bookcase, Mike ran his fingers over the many spines.

"You have enough books here to fill up a small Borders, Lexy." With a slight nod, Alex replied, feeling sheepish and not knowing what to say.

"Yeah. I like to read…obviously."

"Well, duh. I could tell that when I first met you." Upon seeing the confused look on Alex' face, Mike tilted his head to the side and explained.

"No offense, but you look like a book worm. Not that that's a bad thing. I've never seen a better looking bookworm than you, my dear friend."

Smiling softly, Alex lifted his head and looked at Mike, his eyes gazing into the older teen's. That electric connection sizzled yet again and Alex wanted so badly to ask the brunette if he felt it too. Neither said anything for a few seconds; both just reveled in each other's presence and in the automatic understanding that just passed between them. After a while, Alex spoke up.

"Wanna go watch a movie or something?" Mike stood up and smiled at the blonde. Secretly, the younger teen wished that he'd stop doing that so much because it was starting to weaken his knees, and the last thing he needed was to explain to Mike why he had trouble standing.

"Sounds good to me, Lexy."

Together, they made their way back downstairs, eagerly anticipating the next few hours they had together.