Title: Something New
Rating: PG-13 for themes and language
Characters: In this chapter: Marco, Dylan, Marco's parents, Carlos, Paige, Ellie, Sean, Jay, Towerz, Tom
Pairings: Marco/Dylan, Spinner/Paige, Ellie/Sean, not sure of any others.
Disclaimer: I don't even live in the great country of Canada.
Author's Note: I'm really glad you guys liked the last chapter, and liked the scene with Craig. That one's just fun for me, to stay away from all the angst. Also, I hate to admit it, but I am not Canadian. Sometimes I'm not with it on the way they phrase things. I believe they say "university" instead of how we say "college" but if not, that's what I meant. Lmao.
Also, the play that Marco and Craig perform is not real. At all. You'll be able to tell, too. So just pretend it's a wonderful piece of art, and not a piece of crap that I made up, okay? Why thank you.
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"Marco," Dylan repeated, looking a little bit shocked. All day long he'd been rehearsing his apology to Marco. It was going to be sweet and sincere the entire time… it definitely didn't start with him running him over in the hallway.
"I've got to…" Marco started to say, jabbing his thumb at a classroom, but Dylan quickly cut him off.
"Can I talk to you?" he asked hopefully.
Marco was thinking a million different thoughts. Yes? No? Should he go? Was he still mad? Why did Dylan have to be so cute?! "I've got to go to class," he finished. If Dylan really wanted to talk to him, he was going to have to beg.
"Please, Marco."
"I don't want to be late," he said, a bit standoffishly.
"I really need to -"
"Lunchtime, okay?" It was Marco's turn to interrupt. "I'll see you at lunch." Considering it was obviously his only option, Dylan nodded his head. He was going to talk to Marco, even if it meant tying him to a chair and forcing him to listen. He needed to get him back.
"Sorry about running into you," Dylan said, for good measures.
"It's okay."
Clearly Marco was still mad. So Dylan only nodded once more, fighting a particularly strong urge to kiss him goodbye, and started to walk down the hallway. The younger boy too went on to his next class, but his brain was buzzing. He had so much on his mind. Unfortunately, math was next, so he was forced to push all non-educational thoughts out of his brain and concentrate solely on his schoolwork. That definitely was a hard task.
The class began with Armstrong handing out a long pop quiz, and ended with him assigning a large amount of homework for that night. Marco was fairly sure he aced the quiz, however, and the homework was no problem. So he was feeling good as he and Ellie discussed answers back-and-forth on their way to the cafeteria for lunch.
"What about number seventeen?" Ellie asked, looking a bit distressed. "The multiple choice one."
"I said C," Marco replied, shrugging slightly.
She relaxed a little. "Good, so did I."
Right before they reached the doors, Marco stopped suddenly. "What?" Ellie said curiously, raising an eyebrow.
"I forgot," he mumbled. "I'm supposed to talk to Dylan." Ellie gave him a look, which he quickly shielded by looking at his tennis shoes. "Look, El, I want to forgive him. I… I always have an awesome time with him. But I'm just… I'm so afraid." He looked a little ashamed by admitting that.
"Then just tell him that," Ellie responded, grabbing him by the wrist and pulling him through the doors.
Even though Marco wasn't that hungry, he went through the lunch line with Ellie and bought a hotdog. When they emerged from the line, he immediately saw Dylan's golden curls. He was looking at him with such intensity that almost wished he would look away. For that moment, they were the only two people in that cafeteria.
The blonde stood, and beckoned him over with a somewhat pleading look. Marco gave his hotdog to Spinner, who gobbled it down in about two seconds, said goodbye to Ellie, and then walked over to Dylan.
"Hey," Dylan said, somewhat tensely.
"Hey," he returned. Dylan opened his mouth to say something else, but right then Ty walked by and clamped his arm around Dylan's shoulders.
"Hey Dylan, Marco." Ty hadn't been at hockey practice the day before, so he obviously still believed they were a couple. "So, did you guys have a good time at the party?" Marco glared at him slightly, and Dylan tried to tell him to shut up, but he wasn't stopping. "I heard you guys reserved a private room." He grinned and gave Dylan's shoulders a slight squeeze. "Tell me, Marco, what was it like being deflowered by Dyllie-boy?"
Marco gaped at him, and then at Dylan angrily. "So that's… you told them you… you said we… I don't believe you! This is how you're trying to get me back?! What, did you plan this or something?"
"Marco, I didn't…!" he tried to explain, but Marco, shaking his head vigorously, cut him off.
"Stop. Just stop, okay? I've had enough of you." He turned around and blew out of the cafeteria, and Dylan stood dumbfounded. This wasn't how things were supposed to happen! He was supposed to be charming and witty and irresistible… Marco was supposed to crawl back into his arms…
"Can't you just shut your mouth for once in your life?!" he yelled to Ty, pushing him back as he raced after Marco.
Marco was wandering around aimlessly, wanting to cry or scream or yell or do something. Instead, he slid down to the floor in front of his locker, and pulled his knees to his chest.
The older boy was running through the halls, trying to find him, and it took a few minutes before he saw Marco with his head buried in his knees. "Marco!"
"Go away, Dylan," he commanded emotionlessly, not looking up.
"Wait, I really have to talk. Just listen, okay? I did not tell any of my friends that we had sex." The Italian boy lifted his head slightly, so his eyes were peeking out and he could see Dylan. "I didn't say anything. If I could take that night back, I would. I really would. I am definitely not only with you for sex. I love being with you, Marco. I love the way you laugh, the way you run your hands through your hair when you're nervous, the way you mutter Italian phrases under your breath without even noticing…"
He nearly smiled a bit at the cheesiness of his apology. He didn't know Dylan knew so much about his stupid habits.
"I wouldn't rather be with anyone else in the world. I don't care if you're never ready to have sex. This relationship means so much more to me. And I know, I acted like an ass. I shouldn't have drank. But I've learned from my mistakes, and it won't happen again." He took a deep breath, and stepped a little closer. "I really want us to work."
"I do too, Dylan," he said softly. "And no, I'm not ready to have sex. But that doesn't mean I won't ever be ready. And when that time comes, there's only one person I want it to be with." He paused. "You're going to university next year."
"Yeah, but that's not 'til next year. Let's just take every day as it comes, okay?" He offered his hand out to Marco, who appreciatively took it and pulled himself up to full height.
"You give the best cheesy speeches," Marco grinned, looking up at Dylan.
"Well, I try," the older boy chuckled. He pulled his once-again boyfriend into his arms, nuzzled his face into the silky black hair on his head, and said into his ear, "God I missed you."
"I missed you too." Dylan brought his lips down to the shorter boy's, and the two shared a sweet kiss. It continued on for a few moments until a voice disrupted them.
"Boys!" The boys quickly broke apart to see Mr. Raditch not but a few feet away from them, crossing his arms. He looked a little embarrassed to find the two too, but he tried his best to not show it. Marco's cheeks turned a deep red. "PDA is not permitted in this school, as stated in the Degrassi Code of Conduct. All students must follow the rules; it doesn't just apply to…" He fumbled over his words. "Heterosexual students," he finally finished.
"Sorry Mr. Raditch," Dylan said, with an earnest smile.
Mr. Raditch nodded in return. "You two should return to the cafeteria until the lunch period is over." They agreed, and started towards the cafeteria. When they were out of Raditch's sight, Dylan slipped his hand into Marco's, feeling better than he had in a long time.
"Do you want to go to the Dot and grab something to eat after school?" Dylan asked, looking at him somewhat seriously. "I noticed neither of us ate lunch today." He rubbed his stomach. "And I don't know about you, but I'm hungry!"
He hesitated for a moment. "Well… Craig's coming over around five to do our English project, but we could go before then."
"That's perfect," Dylan nodded. "I have practice at five, so I'll drove you home around 4:45, okay?"
"That'd be great. I'm glad we… figured this out," he said with a smile as the bell signaling the end of lunch rang.
"Me too. See you after school." He gave Marco's hand another little squeeze, and the two went their separate ways.
The rest of the day surprisingly flew by. It didn't seem but twenty minutes later before the final bell of the day rang, and kids stampeded through their hallways to get to their lockers. Marco happened to be one of those kids; he stopped at Craig's locker to tell him when to come over, went to his own and shoved everything he had inside, and then raced upstairs to Dylan's locker.
Paige stopped him, however, on the way. "Marco!" she said. "I'm so glad you forgave Dylan."
"Yeah," Marco replied, smiling a little.
"You guys really do make the cutest couple."
"Thanks." He smiled more.
"Well, I just wanted to tell you, so you know, Dylan's birthday is a week from tomorrow."
"Really?" Marco asked, looking a little bit taken aback. His eighteenth birthday was coming up rather quickly, which he hadn't known. Seeing as Marco would still be fifteen for another month or so, eighteen seemed so… old.
"Yeah. We're thinking about throwing him a surprise birthday party, so don't mention it to him," she instructed.
"Okay."
Paige hurried after Ash and Hazel, and Marco continued his trip upstairs. He saw Dylan, who beamed at him and immediately came over.
"Ready?"
"Yeah," he said, nodding. The two left Degrassi Community School and piled into Dylan's car. On the way to the Dot, Dylan started subconsciously humming a tune. Marco recognized the music, but he couldn't quite place what it was. After a few seconds, it clicked. "Millicent's Goodbye," he said automatically, snapping his fingers with an accomplished look on his face.
"What?" Dylan said, raising an eyebrow.
"Millicent's Goodbye. You were humming it… right?"
Dylan looked surprised. "Yeah, you've heard of it?" Neither boy knew any others who had ever heard of the song before.
"Yeah. My Ma always sang it to me - well, she sang the Italian version - before bed every night when I was little. But, I haven't heard that for six, seven years."
"My mom sang it to me too," he grinned. "You're the first person I've ever met who knows that. God, I used to love that song."
"Me too." Marco felt more relaxed than he had in days. He knew that he was supposed to be there - next to Dylan. It felt natural. It felt good.
Finally, they reached the diner and went in. "What do you want?" Dylan asked him, like a true gentleman. "My treat."
"Uhh, how about the Kids' Meal cheeseburger, pickle only and a Coke?" Marco asked.
"Kids' Meal?" the taller boy repeated, smirking slightly.
He shrugged. "I like the toys."
Dylan laughed, and then turned to the cashier. "Two Kids' Meal cheeseburgers, one with pickle only, the other loaded, and two medium cokes, please." The cashier rang the meal up, Dylan paid, and finally he gave the boys their meals and they sat down.
Dylan started to unwrap the black plastic that his toy was in, but Marco grabbed his arm. "Didn't your mother ever teach you manners?" he scolded jokingly. "Eat first, play later." Once more, Dylan chuckled and the two ate their meals. While they were eating, they bantered back and forth about movies, television, cute guys, and sports. Marco tried to stray away from that subject whenever it came up. He didn't want Dylan to find out he was a total loser who didn't know much about sports.
"So," Dylan said, wiping his mouth with a napkin. "Tell me something about you that I don't already know."
"Hmm," Marco said, and leaned back in thought. "Well, in Grade Nine, I won tickets to a Leafs game for winning a break dancing contest."
"Really?" Dylan looked genuinely shocked. "You break dance?" Marco nodded. "Well, you know, I thought… the way we danced at the party… you didn't seem very…" He couldn't think of a nice way to put it, so he just let his sentence end there.
"You mean you thought I sucked?" Marco laughed. "I was nervous. I'm actually a pretty good dancer, if I do say so myself."
"You never cease to amaze me." He winked before downing the rest of his coke. "You done?" That received a nod from the other boy, so he threw their trash away and they started to leave.
"Can we open the toys now, Mom?" Dylan kidded, and Marco said yes. They tore open their toys, stopped for a few seconds, and then burst into laughter at the irony of them.
They got back into Dylan's car, still roaring with laughter. Marco chucked his new plastic whale, as well as Dylan's plastic bee, into the backseat and that's where they stayed.
Dylan drove Marco home, but when they reached Marco's street he slowed a little bit. Finally, he stopped right before the driveway. Dylan looked at his boyfriend, took a deep breath, and then said, "I know I've already said it, but I am so glad you forgave me."
"Me too," Marco agreed honestly. They smiled at each other for a few seconds, and then leaned in and kissed. It was a short one, however, because Craig was going to arrive any minute now.
"See you tomorrow," they both said, and then Marco ran into his house. His parents were already gone. Good. He went upstairs towards his room, but all of a sudden Carlos came out of his own room. The sudden appearance scared Marco so badly that he jumped at least a foot back.
"Fag," Carlos said immediately, without thinking.
"Shut up, Carlos. Wait… why are you here? You have a soccer game! You, Ma, and Pa should be at your soccer game!"
"It got cancelled. Bardell forfeited. Ma and Pa went to visit Aunt Rosetta," Carlos explained. "Why? Were you and your boyfriend gonna come over and get it on?"
"No. I have a friend coming over to do homework, though."
"To do what? Did you say, Homo-work?" Carlos smirked.
"You really need to get over that," Marco said, clenching his teeth a bit.
"Whatever. Dude, all you need is a hot girlfriend. Then you'll see what you're missing." Just then, the doorbell rang, thankfully, and Marco raced down to answer. Craig was on the doorstep, holding a big bag of clothes in his hand, and his script in the other.
"Hey Marco," he said, coming into the house. He then looked up and saw Marco's older brother at the top of the stairs. "Hey, Carlos." He'd met Carlos a couple times before, though he didn't know much about him.
"Hey, Craig," Carlos returned.
"We're going to my room," Marco said, eyeing his older brother. "Don't bother us. Go ahead and order pizza if you want." Craig followed Marco up the stairs, and into his room.
"I brought some costumes," Craig announced, turning his bag over and dumping the contents on to the bed. "There was a really cheap wig for sale at this old store." He picked up a curly brunette wig and jammed it on over his head. "How do I look?" he asked, in a false high-pitched voice.
"You look beautiful," Marco laughed.
"I got you a suit and a tie," Craig went on. "And a nice black dress…" He stopped, shaking his head, as though he couldn't believe what he was saying. He then finished, "For me."
"Don't worry, Craig," Marco grinned, clamping a hand on his friends' shoulder. "You'll make a lovely woman, I'm sure."
Craig jokingly smacked his hand away. "Let's just get started. But I am not wearing the dress until I absolutely have to." He did, however, straighten his wig with a wide grin. They both took our their scripts, and saw Craig had the first line. He crossed the room, like he was supposed to, and said in his best impression of a female's voice, "There isn't much time for us to meet."
Marco looked down at his line, and said, "We have all the time in the world, Julia, my lady. No one knows."
"No one knows?" Craig-as-Julia repeated, raising an eyebrow and puckering his lips slightly. "The whole town watches you, Gregory. Everyone knows."
Marco burst out in laughter at that point. After a few seconds, Craig joined him. "C'mon," Craig complained, in between laughs, "we have to get this right. It's worth a lot of points."
"I know. Sorry, Julia."
"I still don't see why you can't be the woman."
"You look more like a girl than I do," was Marco's rebuttal.
"Are you kidding me? You own Capri's, Marco," he said accusingly, putting his hands on his hips in a mock pout.
"Oh, you are not making fun of my Capri's!" he said, stabbing his finger into Craig's chest and acting like a tough guy. Laughing, Craig threw his hands up in defeat. They both laughed for a little bit longer.
"Hey, Marco? Can I ask you a serious question?"
"Sure."
Craig put his hands up to his wig, and straightened it a bit. He turned to the mirror, frowning as he continued to run his hands through the fake hair. Finally, he turned back to his friend. "Do you think I would be better as a blonde?" Marco stared at him for a few seconds, and once again, the two doubled over in laughter.
"You are such a loser."
"Let's just try to do this thing again, okay?" Craig grinned and then put his female tone back on. "There isn't much time for us to meet."
"We have all the time in the world, Julia, my love…" They ended up starting over at least four times before they could successfully get through the play. Finally, the end was drawing near. The kiss was coming up, and Marco was nervous. They hadn't really discussed how they would perform the kiss.
"I only fear that there isn't enough time," Marco-as-Gregory said. "Not enough time to devote my love to you."
Craig looked up, and his eyes were shimming slightly with something - nervousness, discomfort; Marco couldn't tell. "For you, my love, there is all the time in the world." This was it. The kiss. Obviously neither were sure what to do. Finally, Craig put his hand on the back of Marco's neck and pulled him closer to him.
Marco couldn't tell if he wanted to fake the kiss or not. They hesitated for a few seconds, before the two bravely connected their lips. Craig kissed much differently than Dylan did; Marco couldn't help but compare the two in his mind. Dylan was slow, sweet, savoring the kiss. Craig's was quicker, rough, moving his lips with the kiss. It didn't help that he enjoyed the kiss, Marco thought.. It was a short one, however, and the two pulled away.
There was a silence, and Marco was afraid that their friendship was over with that kiss. Could Craig tell that he liked it? "That wasn't so hard," Craig said at last, but it was more like a question.
"No," Marco agreed. There was a silence once more. That is, until Craig started laughing slightly. "What?" Marco said, amazed. Was he a sucky kisser? Was Craig laughing at his incapability?
"Nothing. It's just… well, sad as it is, that was my first kiss since… that thing with Manny, you know?"
"Really?" Marco asked.
"Yeah." The brunette looked thoughtful.
"Well, that was my first kiss since… this afternoon," he said, laughing slightly and hoping he wasn't revealing too much information.
"Well…" Craig said slowly, looking unsure. He then grinned and asked, "Was I better?"
"Better?" Marco repeated.
"On a scale of one to ten -"
"I'm not rating you, Craig!"
"I say you were a… seven. There, rate me." Craig was grinning madly. Marco stubbornly refused, shaking his head vigorously. He was a little confused that the straight guy had given him a "seven" on kissing. He wasn't going to rate him, no matter what.
"Seven?" Marco said. "Did you really just give me an seven?"
"Well, I mean, if you were a girl, it wasn't that bad. You kind of froze up there," Craig said.
"Have you ever…" Marco stopped. Was this too personal? He felt really awkward. "You know, ever… kissed a guy before?"
"No," Craig said, shaking his head. "It wasn't that bad or anything. I mean, it's definitely not my thing - you know," he intimidated some rude groping motions with his hands, "but it wasn't horrible or anything."
"Oh." Marco was quiet.
"So… are you going to rate me or not?" Craig asked, a big smile tugging at his lips.
"Fine. Um… four."
"Four?!" the curly-haired boy exclaimed, looking at his friend incredulously. "How could you rate me a four? I am the master of kissing. I am a huge stud. I mean, I had two girlfriends at the same time. No way could a Four pull that off," he pointed out.
"You're proud of that?" Marco asked, raising an eyebrow. "And relax, I was just kidding. I'd give you… an eight. And I can't believe I just rated you."
Craig smirked. "So you liked it?"
"I didn't say that. It was all right." He was lying, and they both knew it. But Craig didn't care - he had said he was a good kisser. Didn't matter if it was a guy or a girl… it was definitely a compliment.
Craig didn't know it, but Marco was thinking about the kiss too. Okay, so it felt good. That doesn't mean I like Craig though, right? It wouldn't matter even if I did. He's straight. I can't like him like that. Right?
"So, now that the awkwardness of our first kiss is over," Craig joked, tearing Marco out of his thoughts, "should we try the play one more time? And then we'll just memorize our scripts and then only do it one more time after that. When we perform." The Italian boy nodded, somewhat excited to be getting another kiss from him. So sue him. No wonder Manny and Ash were attracted to him… he thought with a grin.
"There isn't much time for us to meet…" This time, they only had to restart three times before they got all the way through. Marco said his last line, and felt his heart race a little as Craig's lips came closer. They connect shortly, and then, as fate had its way, the door sprang open.
"Pizza's he…" Carlos' voice faded slowly as he saw his little brother and Craig involved in a kiss. "So you're one too, Manning?" Carlos said with disgust. "Just when I thought the fag was done, he goes and recruits."
Craig was embarrassed, but Marco was at least ten times as embarrassed. "No," Craig said, somewhat confidentially, "I'm not gay. But it wouldn't matter if I was - and it doesn't matter that Marco is."
"So you say you're not gay, yet you're in a fag's room, you're kissing a fag, and now you're defending one. Sounds pretty gay to me."
"You're in a fag's - no offense Marco - room too, Carlos," Craig said, staring at him. "Besides, it's a school project."
"What class are you in?" Carlos asked in amazement. "How To Be A Homo 101? Is Homochuk the teacher? And let me guess, that fag Tom is the best student in the class. Shit, Manning. Yesterday you were knocking up little girls, and now you're making out with a faggot. Something's wrong with you."
It was Marco's turn to talk. "Shut up, Carlos! I'm a fag, okay?! I'm a queer, I'm a homo, I'm gay. I like boys. Get - over - it!"
"Whatever. Let's just see what Homochuk thinks when he finds out about your little make-out session tonight," Carlos said, leaving the room. Marco stared after him - he hadn't even thought about that. He didn't tell Dylan about the homework assignment. He didn't know that Marco was kissing Craig. Would Dylan even believe him? He doubted he would believe someone if they said it was a homework assignment. Was Dylan going to be mad? They had just gotten back together.
"Marco, you okay?" Craig asked unsurely. "I don't think Dylan would care. We had to do it. It's not your fault."
Marco looked up at him, worried. "I've got to talk to Dylan before Carlos does."
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Was this an insanely bad chapter or what? I don't know. Review anyway. Please? Sorry about the delay… school has started, and I have soo much homework it's not even funny. (Welcome to High School, right?) Only four more years to go, at least. Anyway, after this I'm going to try and finish the next chapter of Dylan's Story so look out for that. Please review guys! Thanks!
Next chapter: It's Dylan's 18th birthday... is that a good thing or not?
Rating: PG-13 for themes and language
Characters: In this chapter: Marco, Dylan, Marco's parents, Carlos, Paige, Ellie, Sean, Jay, Towerz, Tom
Pairings: Marco/Dylan, Spinner/Paige, Ellie/Sean, not sure of any others.
Disclaimer: I don't even live in the great country of Canada.
Author's Note: I'm really glad you guys liked the last chapter, and liked the scene with Craig. That one's just fun for me, to stay away from all the angst. Also, I hate to admit it, but I am not Canadian. Sometimes I'm not with it on the way they phrase things. I believe they say "university" instead of how we say "college" but if not, that's what I meant. Lmao.
Also, the play that Marco and Craig perform is not real. At all. You'll be able to tell, too. So just pretend it's a wonderful piece of art, and not a piece of crap that I made up, okay? Why thank you.
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"Marco," Dylan repeated, looking a little bit shocked. All day long he'd been rehearsing his apology to Marco. It was going to be sweet and sincere the entire time… it definitely didn't start with him running him over in the hallway.
"I've got to…" Marco started to say, jabbing his thumb at a classroom, but Dylan quickly cut him off.
"Can I talk to you?" he asked hopefully.
Marco was thinking a million different thoughts. Yes? No? Should he go? Was he still mad? Why did Dylan have to be so cute?! "I've got to go to class," he finished. If Dylan really wanted to talk to him, he was going to have to beg.
"Please, Marco."
"I don't want to be late," he said, a bit standoffishly.
"I really need to -"
"Lunchtime, okay?" It was Marco's turn to interrupt. "I'll see you at lunch." Considering it was obviously his only option, Dylan nodded his head. He was going to talk to Marco, even if it meant tying him to a chair and forcing him to listen. He needed to get him back.
"Sorry about running into you," Dylan said, for good measures.
"It's okay."
Clearly Marco was still mad. So Dylan only nodded once more, fighting a particularly strong urge to kiss him goodbye, and started to walk down the hallway. The younger boy too went on to his next class, but his brain was buzzing. He had so much on his mind. Unfortunately, math was next, so he was forced to push all non-educational thoughts out of his brain and concentrate solely on his schoolwork. That definitely was a hard task.
The class began with Armstrong handing out a long pop quiz, and ended with him assigning a large amount of homework for that night. Marco was fairly sure he aced the quiz, however, and the homework was no problem. So he was feeling good as he and Ellie discussed answers back-and-forth on their way to the cafeteria for lunch.
"What about number seventeen?" Ellie asked, looking a bit distressed. "The multiple choice one."
"I said C," Marco replied, shrugging slightly.
She relaxed a little. "Good, so did I."
Right before they reached the doors, Marco stopped suddenly. "What?" Ellie said curiously, raising an eyebrow.
"I forgot," he mumbled. "I'm supposed to talk to Dylan." Ellie gave him a look, which he quickly shielded by looking at his tennis shoes. "Look, El, I want to forgive him. I… I always have an awesome time with him. But I'm just… I'm so afraid." He looked a little ashamed by admitting that.
"Then just tell him that," Ellie responded, grabbing him by the wrist and pulling him through the doors.
Even though Marco wasn't that hungry, he went through the lunch line with Ellie and bought a hotdog. When they emerged from the line, he immediately saw Dylan's golden curls. He was looking at him with such intensity that almost wished he would look away. For that moment, they were the only two people in that cafeteria.
The blonde stood, and beckoned him over with a somewhat pleading look. Marco gave his hotdog to Spinner, who gobbled it down in about two seconds, said goodbye to Ellie, and then walked over to Dylan.
"Hey," Dylan said, somewhat tensely.
"Hey," he returned. Dylan opened his mouth to say something else, but right then Ty walked by and clamped his arm around Dylan's shoulders.
"Hey Dylan, Marco." Ty hadn't been at hockey practice the day before, so he obviously still believed they were a couple. "So, did you guys have a good time at the party?" Marco glared at him slightly, and Dylan tried to tell him to shut up, but he wasn't stopping. "I heard you guys reserved a private room." He grinned and gave Dylan's shoulders a slight squeeze. "Tell me, Marco, what was it like being deflowered by Dyllie-boy?"
Marco gaped at him, and then at Dylan angrily. "So that's… you told them you… you said we… I don't believe you! This is how you're trying to get me back?! What, did you plan this or something?"
"Marco, I didn't…!" he tried to explain, but Marco, shaking his head vigorously, cut him off.
"Stop. Just stop, okay? I've had enough of you." He turned around and blew out of the cafeteria, and Dylan stood dumbfounded. This wasn't how things were supposed to happen! He was supposed to be charming and witty and irresistible… Marco was supposed to crawl back into his arms…
"Can't you just shut your mouth for once in your life?!" he yelled to Ty, pushing him back as he raced after Marco.
Marco was wandering around aimlessly, wanting to cry or scream or yell or do something. Instead, he slid down to the floor in front of his locker, and pulled his knees to his chest.
The older boy was running through the halls, trying to find him, and it took a few minutes before he saw Marco with his head buried in his knees. "Marco!"
"Go away, Dylan," he commanded emotionlessly, not looking up.
"Wait, I really have to talk. Just listen, okay? I did not tell any of my friends that we had sex." The Italian boy lifted his head slightly, so his eyes were peeking out and he could see Dylan. "I didn't say anything. If I could take that night back, I would. I really would. I am definitely not only with you for sex. I love being with you, Marco. I love the way you laugh, the way you run your hands through your hair when you're nervous, the way you mutter Italian phrases under your breath without even noticing…"
He nearly smiled a bit at the cheesiness of his apology. He didn't know Dylan knew so much about his stupid habits.
"I wouldn't rather be with anyone else in the world. I don't care if you're never ready to have sex. This relationship means so much more to me. And I know, I acted like an ass. I shouldn't have drank. But I've learned from my mistakes, and it won't happen again." He took a deep breath, and stepped a little closer. "I really want us to work."
"I do too, Dylan," he said softly. "And no, I'm not ready to have sex. But that doesn't mean I won't ever be ready. And when that time comes, there's only one person I want it to be with." He paused. "You're going to university next year."
"Yeah, but that's not 'til next year. Let's just take every day as it comes, okay?" He offered his hand out to Marco, who appreciatively took it and pulled himself up to full height.
"You give the best cheesy speeches," Marco grinned, looking up at Dylan.
"Well, I try," the older boy chuckled. He pulled his once-again boyfriend into his arms, nuzzled his face into the silky black hair on his head, and said into his ear, "God I missed you."
"I missed you too." Dylan brought his lips down to the shorter boy's, and the two shared a sweet kiss. It continued on for a few moments until a voice disrupted them.
"Boys!" The boys quickly broke apart to see Mr. Raditch not but a few feet away from them, crossing his arms. He looked a little embarrassed to find the two too, but he tried his best to not show it. Marco's cheeks turned a deep red. "PDA is not permitted in this school, as stated in the Degrassi Code of Conduct. All students must follow the rules; it doesn't just apply to…" He fumbled over his words. "Heterosexual students," he finally finished.
"Sorry Mr. Raditch," Dylan said, with an earnest smile.
Mr. Raditch nodded in return. "You two should return to the cafeteria until the lunch period is over." They agreed, and started towards the cafeteria. When they were out of Raditch's sight, Dylan slipped his hand into Marco's, feeling better than he had in a long time.
"Do you want to go to the Dot and grab something to eat after school?" Dylan asked, looking at him somewhat seriously. "I noticed neither of us ate lunch today." He rubbed his stomach. "And I don't know about you, but I'm hungry!"
He hesitated for a moment. "Well… Craig's coming over around five to do our English project, but we could go before then."
"That's perfect," Dylan nodded. "I have practice at five, so I'll drove you home around 4:45, okay?"
"That'd be great. I'm glad we… figured this out," he said with a smile as the bell signaling the end of lunch rang.
"Me too. See you after school." He gave Marco's hand another little squeeze, and the two went their separate ways.
The rest of the day surprisingly flew by. It didn't seem but twenty minutes later before the final bell of the day rang, and kids stampeded through their hallways to get to their lockers. Marco happened to be one of those kids; he stopped at Craig's locker to tell him when to come over, went to his own and shoved everything he had inside, and then raced upstairs to Dylan's locker.
Paige stopped him, however, on the way. "Marco!" she said. "I'm so glad you forgave Dylan."
"Yeah," Marco replied, smiling a little.
"You guys really do make the cutest couple."
"Thanks." He smiled more.
"Well, I just wanted to tell you, so you know, Dylan's birthday is a week from tomorrow."
"Really?" Marco asked, looking a little bit taken aback. His eighteenth birthday was coming up rather quickly, which he hadn't known. Seeing as Marco would still be fifteen for another month or so, eighteen seemed so… old.
"Yeah. We're thinking about throwing him a surprise birthday party, so don't mention it to him," she instructed.
"Okay."
Paige hurried after Ash and Hazel, and Marco continued his trip upstairs. He saw Dylan, who beamed at him and immediately came over.
"Ready?"
"Yeah," he said, nodding. The two left Degrassi Community School and piled into Dylan's car. On the way to the Dot, Dylan started subconsciously humming a tune. Marco recognized the music, but he couldn't quite place what it was. After a few seconds, it clicked. "Millicent's Goodbye," he said automatically, snapping his fingers with an accomplished look on his face.
"What?" Dylan said, raising an eyebrow.
"Millicent's Goodbye. You were humming it… right?"
Dylan looked surprised. "Yeah, you've heard of it?" Neither boy knew any others who had ever heard of the song before.
"Yeah. My Ma always sang it to me - well, she sang the Italian version - before bed every night when I was little. But, I haven't heard that for six, seven years."
"My mom sang it to me too," he grinned. "You're the first person I've ever met who knows that. God, I used to love that song."
"Me too." Marco felt more relaxed than he had in days. He knew that he was supposed to be there - next to Dylan. It felt natural. It felt good.
Finally, they reached the diner and went in. "What do you want?" Dylan asked him, like a true gentleman. "My treat."
"Uhh, how about the Kids' Meal cheeseburger, pickle only and a Coke?" Marco asked.
"Kids' Meal?" the taller boy repeated, smirking slightly.
He shrugged. "I like the toys."
Dylan laughed, and then turned to the cashier. "Two Kids' Meal cheeseburgers, one with pickle only, the other loaded, and two medium cokes, please." The cashier rang the meal up, Dylan paid, and finally he gave the boys their meals and they sat down.
Dylan started to unwrap the black plastic that his toy was in, but Marco grabbed his arm. "Didn't your mother ever teach you manners?" he scolded jokingly. "Eat first, play later." Once more, Dylan chuckled and the two ate their meals. While they were eating, they bantered back and forth about movies, television, cute guys, and sports. Marco tried to stray away from that subject whenever it came up. He didn't want Dylan to find out he was a total loser who didn't know much about sports.
"So," Dylan said, wiping his mouth with a napkin. "Tell me something about you that I don't already know."
"Hmm," Marco said, and leaned back in thought. "Well, in Grade Nine, I won tickets to a Leafs game for winning a break dancing contest."
"Really?" Dylan looked genuinely shocked. "You break dance?" Marco nodded. "Well, you know, I thought… the way we danced at the party… you didn't seem very…" He couldn't think of a nice way to put it, so he just let his sentence end there.
"You mean you thought I sucked?" Marco laughed. "I was nervous. I'm actually a pretty good dancer, if I do say so myself."
"You never cease to amaze me." He winked before downing the rest of his coke. "You done?" That received a nod from the other boy, so he threw their trash away and they started to leave.
"Can we open the toys now, Mom?" Dylan kidded, and Marco said yes. They tore open their toys, stopped for a few seconds, and then burst into laughter at the irony of them.
They got back into Dylan's car, still roaring with laughter. Marco chucked his new plastic whale, as well as Dylan's plastic bee, into the backseat and that's where they stayed.
Dylan drove Marco home, but when they reached Marco's street he slowed a little bit. Finally, he stopped right before the driveway. Dylan looked at his boyfriend, took a deep breath, and then said, "I know I've already said it, but I am so glad you forgave me."
"Me too," Marco agreed honestly. They smiled at each other for a few seconds, and then leaned in and kissed. It was a short one, however, because Craig was going to arrive any minute now.
"See you tomorrow," they both said, and then Marco ran into his house. His parents were already gone. Good. He went upstairs towards his room, but all of a sudden Carlos came out of his own room. The sudden appearance scared Marco so badly that he jumped at least a foot back.
"Fag," Carlos said immediately, without thinking.
"Shut up, Carlos. Wait… why are you here? You have a soccer game! You, Ma, and Pa should be at your soccer game!"
"It got cancelled. Bardell forfeited. Ma and Pa went to visit Aunt Rosetta," Carlos explained. "Why? Were you and your boyfriend gonna come over and get it on?"
"No. I have a friend coming over to do homework, though."
"To do what? Did you say, Homo-work?" Carlos smirked.
"You really need to get over that," Marco said, clenching his teeth a bit.
"Whatever. Dude, all you need is a hot girlfriend. Then you'll see what you're missing." Just then, the doorbell rang, thankfully, and Marco raced down to answer. Craig was on the doorstep, holding a big bag of clothes in his hand, and his script in the other.
"Hey Marco," he said, coming into the house. He then looked up and saw Marco's older brother at the top of the stairs. "Hey, Carlos." He'd met Carlos a couple times before, though he didn't know much about him.
"Hey, Craig," Carlos returned.
"We're going to my room," Marco said, eyeing his older brother. "Don't bother us. Go ahead and order pizza if you want." Craig followed Marco up the stairs, and into his room.
"I brought some costumes," Craig announced, turning his bag over and dumping the contents on to the bed. "There was a really cheap wig for sale at this old store." He picked up a curly brunette wig and jammed it on over his head. "How do I look?" he asked, in a false high-pitched voice.
"You look beautiful," Marco laughed.
"I got you a suit and a tie," Craig went on. "And a nice black dress…" He stopped, shaking his head, as though he couldn't believe what he was saying. He then finished, "For me."
"Don't worry, Craig," Marco grinned, clamping a hand on his friends' shoulder. "You'll make a lovely woman, I'm sure."
Craig jokingly smacked his hand away. "Let's just get started. But I am not wearing the dress until I absolutely have to." He did, however, straighten his wig with a wide grin. They both took our their scripts, and saw Craig had the first line. He crossed the room, like he was supposed to, and said in his best impression of a female's voice, "There isn't much time for us to meet."
Marco looked down at his line, and said, "We have all the time in the world, Julia, my lady. No one knows."
"No one knows?" Craig-as-Julia repeated, raising an eyebrow and puckering his lips slightly. "The whole town watches you, Gregory. Everyone knows."
Marco burst out in laughter at that point. After a few seconds, Craig joined him. "C'mon," Craig complained, in between laughs, "we have to get this right. It's worth a lot of points."
"I know. Sorry, Julia."
"I still don't see why you can't be the woman."
"You look more like a girl than I do," was Marco's rebuttal.
"Are you kidding me? You own Capri's, Marco," he said accusingly, putting his hands on his hips in a mock pout.
"Oh, you are not making fun of my Capri's!" he said, stabbing his finger into Craig's chest and acting like a tough guy. Laughing, Craig threw his hands up in defeat. They both laughed for a little bit longer.
"Hey, Marco? Can I ask you a serious question?"
"Sure."
Craig put his hands up to his wig, and straightened it a bit. He turned to the mirror, frowning as he continued to run his hands through the fake hair. Finally, he turned back to his friend. "Do you think I would be better as a blonde?" Marco stared at him for a few seconds, and once again, the two doubled over in laughter.
"You are such a loser."
"Let's just try to do this thing again, okay?" Craig grinned and then put his female tone back on. "There isn't much time for us to meet."
"We have all the time in the world, Julia, my love…" They ended up starting over at least four times before they could successfully get through the play. Finally, the end was drawing near. The kiss was coming up, and Marco was nervous. They hadn't really discussed how they would perform the kiss.
"I only fear that there isn't enough time," Marco-as-Gregory said. "Not enough time to devote my love to you."
Craig looked up, and his eyes were shimming slightly with something - nervousness, discomfort; Marco couldn't tell. "For you, my love, there is all the time in the world." This was it. The kiss. Obviously neither were sure what to do. Finally, Craig put his hand on the back of Marco's neck and pulled him closer to him.
Marco couldn't tell if he wanted to fake the kiss or not. They hesitated for a few seconds, before the two bravely connected their lips. Craig kissed much differently than Dylan did; Marco couldn't help but compare the two in his mind. Dylan was slow, sweet, savoring the kiss. Craig's was quicker, rough, moving his lips with the kiss. It didn't help that he enjoyed the kiss, Marco thought.. It was a short one, however, and the two pulled away.
There was a silence, and Marco was afraid that their friendship was over with that kiss. Could Craig tell that he liked it? "That wasn't so hard," Craig said at last, but it was more like a question.
"No," Marco agreed. There was a silence once more. That is, until Craig started laughing slightly. "What?" Marco said, amazed. Was he a sucky kisser? Was Craig laughing at his incapability?
"Nothing. It's just… well, sad as it is, that was my first kiss since… that thing with Manny, you know?"
"Really?" Marco asked.
"Yeah." The brunette looked thoughtful.
"Well, that was my first kiss since… this afternoon," he said, laughing slightly and hoping he wasn't revealing too much information.
"Well…" Craig said slowly, looking unsure. He then grinned and asked, "Was I better?"
"Better?" Marco repeated.
"On a scale of one to ten -"
"I'm not rating you, Craig!"
"I say you were a… seven. There, rate me." Craig was grinning madly. Marco stubbornly refused, shaking his head vigorously. He was a little confused that the straight guy had given him a "seven" on kissing. He wasn't going to rate him, no matter what.
"Seven?" Marco said. "Did you really just give me an seven?"
"Well, I mean, if you were a girl, it wasn't that bad. You kind of froze up there," Craig said.
"Have you ever…" Marco stopped. Was this too personal? He felt really awkward. "You know, ever… kissed a guy before?"
"No," Craig said, shaking his head. "It wasn't that bad or anything. I mean, it's definitely not my thing - you know," he intimidated some rude groping motions with his hands, "but it wasn't horrible or anything."
"Oh." Marco was quiet.
"So… are you going to rate me or not?" Craig asked, a big smile tugging at his lips.
"Fine. Um… four."
"Four?!" the curly-haired boy exclaimed, looking at his friend incredulously. "How could you rate me a four? I am the master of kissing. I am a huge stud. I mean, I had two girlfriends at the same time. No way could a Four pull that off," he pointed out.
"You're proud of that?" Marco asked, raising an eyebrow. "And relax, I was just kidding. I'd give you… an eight. And I can't believe I just rated you."
Craig smirked. "So you liked it?"
"I didn't say that. It was all right." He was lying, and they both knew it. But Craig didn't care - he had said he was a good kisser. Didn't matter if it was a guy or a girl… it was definitely a compliment.
Craig didn't know it, but Marco was thinking about the kiss too. Okay, so it felt good. That doesn't mean I like Craig though, right? It wouldn't matter even if I did. He's straight. I can't like him like that. Right?
"So, now that the awkwardness of our first kiss is over," Craig joked, tearing Marco out of his thoughts, "should we try the play one more time? And then we'll just memorize our scripts and then only do it one more time after that. When we perform." The Italian boy nodded, somewhat excited to be getting another kiss from him. So sue him. No wonder Manny and Ash were attracted to him… he thought with a grin.
"There isn't much time for us to meet…" This time, they only had to restart three times before they got all the way through. Marco said his last line, and felt his heart race a little as Craig's lips came closer. They connect shortly, and then, as fate had its way, the door sprang open.
"Pizza's he…" Carlos' voice faded slowly as he saw his little brother and Craig involved in a kiss. "So you're one too, Manning?" Carlos said with disgust. "Just when I thought the fag was done, he goes and recruits."
Craig was embarrassed, but Marco was at least ten times as embarrassed. "No," Craig said, somewhat confidentially, "I'm not gay. But it wouldn't matter if I was - and it doesn't matter that Marco is."
"So you say you're not gay, yet you're in a fag's room, you're kissing a fag, and now you're defending one. Sounds pretty gay to me."
"You're in a fag's - no offense Marco - room too, Carlos," Craig said, staring at him. "Besides, it's a school project."
"What class are you in?" Carlos asked in amazement. "How To Be A Homo 101? Is Homochuk the teacher? And let me guess, that fag Tom is the best student in the class. Shit, Manning. Yesterday you were knocking up little girls, and now you're making out with a faggot. Something's wrong with you."
It was Marco's turn to talk. "Shut up, Carlos! I'm a fag, okay?! I'm a queer, I'm a homo, I'm gay. I like boys. Get - over - it!"
"Whatever. Let's just see what Homochuk thinks when he finds out about your little make-out session tonight," Carlos said, leaving the room. Marco stared after him - he hadn't even thought about that. He didn't tell Dylan about the homework assignment. He didn't know that Marco was kissing Craig. Would Dylan even believe him? He doubted he would believe someone if they said it was a homework assignment. Was Dylan going to be mad? They had just gotten back together.
"Marco, you okay?" Craig asked unsurely. "I don't think Dylan would care. We had to do it. It's not your fault."
Marco looked up at him, worried. "I've got to talk to Dylan before Carlos does."
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Was this an insanely bad chapter or what? I don't know. Review anyway. Please? Sorry about the delay… school has started, and I have soo much homework it's not even funny. (Welcome to High School, right?) Only four more years to go, at least. Anyway, after this I'm going to try and finish the next chapter of Dylan's Story so look out for that. Please review guys! Thanks!
Next chapter: It's Dylan's 18th birthday... is that a good thing or not?
