THE END HAS ARRIVED! Luckily, you didn't have to wait until next month for the final update!

And yes, this is an alternate ending to last chapter. It wouldn't be a Total Drama fic without one, right?

So, just for clarification: the alternate ending is everything that happens during the final challenge. Everything that happens after that - ie, what happens after they get on the boat when the volano erupts - is canon for both endings.

But enough of this author's note. I know you just want to read this chapter already. So, here you go!


Cody was so close to the end. So very close. All he had to do was cross the river of lava and carry his sacrifice up to the top, and he would be a million dollars richer.

This was no time to get lazy or complacent. He was up against Heather, one of the most capable players in the whole competition. He needed to be constantly moving and making a proper effort.

Up ahead were the various ropes that would drop god-knows-what on his head if they were cut. Ezekiel was on DJ's back, holding his machete out of reach and screaming as DJ tried to pluck him off. Noah was tussling with Leshawna, trying to pull her machete out of her grasp.

Ahead of him, Heather was jumping from rock to rock, her own sacrifice on her back, panting heavily. She gave him a glance as she hopped to the next rock. Cody tightened his grip on his sacrifice as he too jumped. His hands were slick with sweat and his fringe hung limply in his eyes.

He had to keep going.

He did not make it this far just to fall at the last hurdle.

Cody's legs began to wobble. The sacrifice felt like it weighed a million tons. He let out a groan, one that was equal parts pain and frustration, as he stared at the lava below. He had to keep going, but it was starting to feel like an impossible task.

"Cody!" It was Noah, giving him a worried, frazzled look. "Hang in there, dude!" In a sudden burst of strength, he wrenched the machete out of Lesawna's grasp, leapt onto the plank of wood and sliced through one of the ropes.

The scraping of metal echoed from somewhere above him and he looked up just in time to see a cage fall down and trap Heather underneath it.

"Are you KIDDING ME?!" she screeched in fury.

"Go, Cody! Move!" Noah called out right before Leshawna grabbed onto him and tried to take the machete back.

Cody didn't need to be told twice. He sucked in a deep breath, tightened his grip on his sacrifice, and jumped onto the next rock. Another breath, and he leapt to the next rock. The one after that, and the one after that, until finally he made it to the other side.

He let out a sigh of relief. Not only had he cleared the river, but he was in the lead!

"Go, Cody!" Ezekiel cried as he wrestled DJ.

Cody nodded and, after wiping his sweaty hands on his trousers, began dragging his sacrifice up the slope in front of him.

Back at the lava river he heard Heather yell, "You two are the worst helpers ever!" to which Leshawna immediately responded with, "Just shut up and climb outta that cage!"

Cody gave up on trying to carry the heavy wooden body on his back, instead resorting to holding it under its arms and dragging it along. After each tug he gave a loud grunt. His arms screamed at the strain and tension he was subjecting his muscles to. His twiggy geek physique was unused to the huge workout he was doing.

Looking behind him, he saw that Heather had finally managed to free herself from the cage and was glaring up at him with fire in her eyes. Noah, Ezekiel, DJ and Leshawna ran past him on their way to the top, their work as helpers completed.

Now it was just a matter of who was strong enough to join them.

Cody grit his teeth and pushed forward. He wasn't going to give up. Not today, not ever. He was so close to winning. Everyone was cheering him on. He couldn't disappoint them. Especially Noah.

Heather was starting to gain on him.

He had to keep going.

Mercifully, he finally reached the top. But it wasn't over yet.

He dragged the sacrifice over the rocky ground, trying to ignore everyone's eyes on him, trying to ignore the pressure that welled up uncomfortably in his chest.

The edge was right there. Just a little ways to go…

The crowd watched with bated breath as Cody finally reached the edge and pushed his sacrifice in with one final groan…

...As Heather stood watching only a few meters behind him, wide-eyed with shock. Her sacrifice fell to the ground. Her lips began to move soundlessly, as if she was willing herself to go back in time and change everything; do things differently.

"We have our winner!" Chris announced. He strided over to Cody, who had fallen to his knees in exhaustion, and lifted up his arm in victory. "Cody, you just won yourself one. Million. Dollars!"

At that moment, the entire crowd burst into cheering and applause. They all circled around Cody, making their happiness known to him. Cody got to his feet and looked around him at everyone's smiling faces.

He'd done it?

He won?

"I won?" His voice wobbled with disbelief.

"You sure did, li'l dude!" Geoff told him, smacking him on the back.

That smack seemed to jolt him back to reality. "I won!" He looked over at Gwen, then at Chris and at Ezekiel, all grinning widely. "I won!"

"Congratulations, Cody!" Gwen said, "You did great!"

"Yeah! I'm proud of you, man!" Ezekiel added.

Cody's cheeks began to hurt from how much he was smiling. But he couldn't help it. After all, he just won a million dollars!

The ex-contestants all began to swarm him with hugs and handshakes - except for Heather, still trying to recover from the shock of losing - and Chris presented him with a shiny gray briefcase with his rightful winnings securely inside. Right now, Cody Anderson, the skinny tech geek everyone considered to be early elimination fodder, was on top of the world.

And then he caught sight of him. The one person he wanted to see the most. Noah. Cheering for him alongside everyone else.

Cody's heart began to ache. God, even when Noah's hair was damp with sweat and hanging limply all over his face, he still looked as unfairly gorgeous as ever. And the fact that he was genuinely happy for him made it all the better.

"Cody, you are incr-"

Noah didn't get the chance to finish that sentence, because right then, Cody, in a moment fuelled by pure love and adrenaline, cupped his cheeks with both hands and pressed his lips against his.

The cheering around them stopped immediately. It was so silent that one could have heard a pin drop.

When Cody pulled back, Noah's eyes were wide open, as if he'd awoken from a terrible dream. His lips were parted slightly and Cody felt the urge to kiss them again. But he resisted. He had something he needed to say first.

And he wasn't going to let himself chicken out.

"Noah, I...I love you," Cody said, voice beginning to stutter as he gently took Noah's hands in his own. "I-I've loved you for ages. You're one of the most amazing people I've ever met and I...I-"

"I don't believe it," Noah said quietly, slowly blinking his wide eyes.

Cody swallowed. Oh god, he was going to reject him, wasn't he? After they just kissed in front of everybody!

What had he been thinking? He'd let his emotions get the better of him. And now he was going to get his heart broken on international TV!

But Noah simply continued to gaze at him with those beautiful brown eyes of his. His fingers gradually encircled Cody's own, reciprocating his hold on him.

"Cody…" He trailed off uncertainly, and Cody braced himself for the bad news.

The bad news never came. Instead, Noah's lips curled upwards into a shy smile. "I just… I've been wanting to hear you say that for a long time."

"Wh-what do you mean?"

"I love you, too," he finally admitted. "And I think I always have, to be honest. I guess it just took me a while to admit it to myself."

Cody stared right into his eyes and saw nothing but total adoration. His weary heart skipped a beat. He smiled nervously in return. "You do? You really love me?"

"That's what I just said."

Cody knew it was time to bite another bullet. "Does this… does this mean you want to be my boyfriend?"

Noah leaned in close and murmured a "Yes" that made Cody let out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding.

Noah was the one who initiated their next kiss, by closing the distance between them until their lips were touching again. It was so much more soft and gentle than the previous one. Cody's heart just about stopped altogether.

The crowd sighed and awwed at the display; Katie and Sadie were of course being the loudest. Their cacophony was quickly overshadowed by both Heather and Ezekiel exclaiming, "Finally!"

"Aww!" Chris grinned widely. "Isn't young love just the purest thing?"

"Wait…" Alejandro trailed off, as the only one out of the loop. "Heather, you knew about this?"

The kiss lasted a little longer this time. Cody's entire body was so overwhelmed by intoxicating joy that the rest of the world seemed to slip away. It was just him and Noah now, pressing their bodies tightly but gently against one another, as if they were always meant to be that way.

Cody wasn't going to pinch himself. This wasn't a dream he could ever wake up from. This was real life. And he was so so lucky to have Noah in his life, or here with his lips against his own.

He still couldn't believe it.

They pulled away from each other. Cody looked straight into his eyes, those eyes that he now admired so much. They were, dare Cody say, sparkling. At the very least, they didn't hold a single shred of Noah's usual sarcasm and cynicism. Their hands were still clasped firmly together; fitted together as neatly as jigsaw pieces.

"So," Geoff spoke up, breaking the silence. "When's the wedding?"

That drew a quick laugh from the crowd. Noah rolled his eyes.

Owen started to cry. "Aww, it just warms my heart to see my little buddy in love!"

Gwen elbowed Duncan in the side. "Come on, you have to admit: it's pretty wholesome."

"You know me. Wholesome ain't really my thing."

"Aww," Chris said. "That's very nice, boys. Imagine the ratings this is gonna generate."

Noah opened his mouth to give him a snappy comeback, but just then, two elderly Hawaiian men barged their way through the crowd and marched up to Chris.

"Hey! You didn't throw pineapples in the volcano, did you?!"


April 2nd had been a very wild day indeed.

First there was the final Aftermath episode, in which Noah had to compete in a challenge involving surfing, jaguars, and lava rocks (Cody hadn't yet gotten all the details out of him). Then there was Cody and Sierra's journey from Drumheller to Hawaii. And then, of course, the finale.

But after that, the day still wasn't over, as Geoff set up a party on the ship that had rescued them from the volcano. With an endless stream of drinks, reckless dancing, and music so loud Noah complained that his eardrums were bleeding, all twenty-four former contestants partied the night away like it would be the last one of their lives. Well, it would be the last one they'd all spend together for a very long time…maybe ever.

The last few days had moved so quickly that Cody still couldn't quite comprehend that this was The End. At several points throughout the night, he kept deciding to go to bed - as he'd need his rest for the challenge tomorrow - only to remember that there were no more challenges.

He was free.

So he spent his night dancing along with Noah, who kept insisting they take breaks because he was tired. Honestly, Cody was just glad Noah decided to dance at all. Noah often complained about not knowing how.

All in all, the night had dragged on for what felt like years.

Geoff and Bridgette made out a lot, as was par for the course. Ezekiel and Harold got into an extremely intense beatboxing session. DJ took over the ship's bar, mixing up cocktails for everyone, not caring that they were all technically underage. Even Courtney, who was usually very uptight about things like this, didn't bother stopping him.

Izzy started up a game of tag right as Katie and Sadie tried to form a conga line, which resulted in a few collisions and even more bruises and scrapes. Beth and Lindsay sang some terrible karaoke together. Trent sat in the corner, strumming his guitar and humming to himself.

And Cody witnessed Heather and Alejandro, standing on the deck at the front of the ship, share quite a few kisses with one another under the light of the moon.

Finally, Noah had had enough of dancing and mingling with the others. He'd taken Cody by the hand and dragged him out onto the deck. Going round to the back of the ship, where it wasn't anywhere near as loud, they located a couple of sun loungers and pushed them together.

And there, they leaned back and stared at the sky together.

Noah pointed out all the constellations he could see while Cody leaned his head against his shoulder and listened intently. The stars were spread out across the sky like glitter spilled on black construction paper. Noah's voice was so calm and quiet, it lulled Cody into a dreamy state of peace.

The air had cooled down a lot; a far cry from standing next to an active volcano. The scent of sea salt was crisp and refreshing. As Noah talked, Cody put his hand on top of his and held it tightly.

He was so exhausted, and yet…he could stay awake and listen to Noah talk about star constellations forever.

Cody did fall asleep eventually. His body simply needed to properly recuperate after everything he'd put it through. He deserved every second of rest.


When he eventually stirred and opened his eyes in the early morning hours, he immediately noticed two things. The first was that someone had draped a blanket over them to keep them warm.

The second was that Noah was leaning against Cody' head, which was still resting on Noah's shoulder. He was still fast asleep.

Cody decided not to wake him. Instead, he held still and listened to the steady rhythm of Noah's breathing. He watched the world light up as the sun peeked over the horizon. The twinkling stars disappeared into the powder blue of the sky. A new bright day was on top of them.

Behind him, he could hear a few people moving around, but apart from that everything was still. The boat powered its way through the water. It didn't appear to be heading in any particular direction. Soon, Cody supposed, it would eventually take them back to the island, where they would head for the airport and start they journey home.

Home…

Cody crossed his fingers and prayed that there wouldn't be a massive shitstorm once he arrived.

Why did he have to confess his feelings for Noah in front of a camera? When the editors would undoubtedly put that in the final cut of the episode? What had he been thinking?

Normally, Cody's response to anticipation of trouble would be to run and hide. But now, he felt his nerves steel themselves. He probably won't get to run, which meant that he was going to have to stand tall and weather the storm. He had a boyfriend now, and friends who supported him. They'd be there for him if he ever needed them.

Cody placed one hand on top of Noah's and gave a gentle squeeze. Noah stirred lightly in his sleep. Cody wanted to lean up and give him a kiss, but he couldn't move his head without waking him. Even though his head and neck were starting to get sore from the position he was in, it was fine. He can enjoy the moment for a little while longer.

Footsteps thudded loudly on a nearby deck just outside of Cody's peripheral vision. Along with them came the low murder of voices. Cody strained his ears to listen to whatever was being said.

"I don't know what I'm gonna do now." It was Ezekiel. He sounded completely distraught. "I got nowhere to go."

The second person spoke up. It was Harold. "Woah, that's rough. What kind of parents just kicks their kid out? Gosh!"

"I really wasn't tryna upset them." There was a tense pause. "I dunno why they hate me so much now."

"Some people just suck, I guess. Too bad they have to be related to you."

Cody strained his ears, not quite believing what he was hearing. If he was correct in his current assumptions, then Zeke's parents kicked him out…

Wait, why? What did Zeke do?

Sure, Cody knew they had some backwards views on society, but he didn't think they were evil enough to pull something like this. Poor Zeke.

"They must've always hated me," Ezekiel continued. "Dad said I embarrassed them because of what I did on the show, but he also said that I was too lazy and useless on the farm. I don't get it. I couldn't have been that bad, right?"

More silence. Harold seemed at a loss for words. And to be honest, Cody was as well.

He would have jumped up and offered to let Ezekiel stay with him for a while…if he wasn't terrified of what his own parents would have to say about that.

And now Cody was back to fretting. Would his parents turn him out of the house too, for his sexuality? Would they act like he died? Would they just never speak of him again?

A huge bubble of sympathy welled up in his gut. Zeke deserved a place to stay, but bringing him home would probably just get the both of them kicked out. But Zeke was his friend, and he would feel terrible for not trying to help.

Just then, Harold broke the silence.

"Y'know…you could probably stay with me for a while…we have plenty of room in our basement."

"Wait, really? I can stay with you? Woo-hoo!" Ezekiel cheered. Cody breathed a sigh of relief.

Sudden and rapid footsteps thundered along the deck towards where Cody was lying. He didn't even have time to sit up properly because Ezekiel came flying round the corner, fists raised into the air. He was still whooping with excitement.

"Woo-hoo! Yeah!" Then Ezekiel spun around and caught sight of Cody on the sun lounger. "Hey Cody, guess what? I'm not gonna be homeless any more!"

"That's great, man!" Cody smiled.

Harold appeared then. He seemed happy, but his smile held a hint of nervousness. "Mom might be surprised, but I'm sure she won't mind."

"Oh man, if I randomly brought someone home, my parents would kill me." Cody remarked.

That statement stopped Ezekiel in his tracks. "Yikes, man. I'm glad I won't ever meet them."

"Yeah. No offense Zeke, but they wouldn't like you at all. You'd be too 'uncivilized' for them." Cody chuckled, short and dry. "I feel like they can barely tolerate me half the time."

"Damn…maybe you should come live with Harold and I, too."

Harold held up his hands. "Dude, I think my mom can only tolerate one surprise guest, not two."

"It's okay," Cody reassured them. "They're hardly ever around anyway. I'll be fine."

Beside him, Noah stirred, muttering something in his sleep. Harold and Ezekiel both jolted their heads towards him, as if they only just realised he was there.

"Heh, he doesn't look as mean when he's asleep." Zeke leaned forward and reached out one hand to try and poke him in the cheek.

"Shhh! Don't wake him!" Cody lightly admonished him, slapping his hand away.

Harold tugged at Zeke's sleeve. "C'mon, let's leave them alone. Besides, I need to go over our house rules. Mom can be very strict about some things."

"Ooh, okay." Zeke obliged, following him as he walked away. He gave one last quick wave to Cody before disappearing.

Cody relaxed. He inhaled an enormous lungfull of salty air and tipped his head back slightly. Noah continued his gentle murmuring. Cody grasped one of Noah's hands in his own and held it, feeling the warm skin of his slender fingers against his own.

It was going to be the little moments such as these that would stick with Cody forever, he just knew it. Grand romantic gestures would be amazing, but he knew that they weren't really Noah's thing. No, it would be things like this.

Cody closed his eyes and leaned further into Noah's body heat, feeling ready to drift off to sleep again…

But the sound of music being blasted over the speakers up the other end of the ship caused him to sit bolt upright and gasp in fright. Geoff must be trying to revive the party. Seriously, couldn't he have waited for later?

And who plays club music in the early morning? The heavy bass was practically shaking the entire ship.

Noah groaned and slowly lifted himself into a proper sitting position. He rubbed his eyes and looked around, blinking in the bright morning sunlight. "Ugh, what's that godawful noise?"

"Just Geoff trying to restart the party, I presume."

Noah sighed. "So much for a sleep-in."

Cody giggled. "I know what'll cheer you up!" With that, he leaned in and lovingly pecked Noah's lips.

When he pulled back, he saw a slightly less grumpy Noah. "Yeah, okay…that did cheer me up a bit."

"Glad to be of service!"

"...But seriously, I've had enough of this music. I'm gonna go tell Geoff to knock it off."


The next flight Cody took luckily didn't involve anyone getting shoved out the door while still airborne.

No, his flight back home to Calgary was blissfully uneventful. Not to mention the fact that Noah was on the same flight, and they were able to sit in the same row together. They shared their in-flight snacks, and used each other as pillows for the second time in as many days.

And when they arrived at the airport, they also went through baggage claim together.

"I wish you lived a little bit closer," Cody said sadly, watching Noah hoist his humongous backpack onto his shoulders.

"Me too. But hey, at least I don't live in a completely different province like Owen does." Noah didn't seem particularly happy about that. "I don't know when I'm gonna be able to see him in person again. But I'm honestly pretty lucky to live close to Eva and Izzy. Did you know Eva only lives ten minutes away from me?"

Cody was surprised. "No? Really?"

"Yeah. We had a good laugh about that. We were so close to each other this whole time, and yet we never crossed paths until Total Drama Island."

"That's amazing. Where does Izzy live?"

"Edmonton. That's about forty minutes from my house."

"Man, I wish I lived closer to my friends."

"Oh, come on. You'll still get to see DJ and Leshawna. And didn't Tyler say he also lived in Calgary?"

"Yeah. But I was talking about Trent, Harold and Ezekiel."

Noah patted his arm as they strolled through the terminal. "You'll see them again. And look, it's a two and a half hour drive from my house to yours. I have my own car, so I can come down and see you whenever you want."

"That sounds amazing." Cody said.

The airport was crowded with passengers and their loved ones greeting them, or seeing them off. Noah and Cody maneuvered around them. Noah seemed to be on the lookout for somebody. Cody knew he was just going to have to take a taxi back home. He hadn't bothered calling his parents. They'd be at work right now. He'd called his grandpa, but he was too busy to come get him.

"How are you getting home?" Cody asked.

"My brother's picking me up. What about you? Do you parents have at least enough decency to not leave you stranded here?"

"I didn't call them," Cody admitted, fidgeting with his fingers. "They'd be too busy."

"Of course," Noah muttered darkly.

"Look, I'll be fine. I'll just get a taxi-"

"Nope. You're coming with me." With that, Noah gripped him tightly by the arm and walked along with him, still on the lookout for his brother. "You deserve a proper send-off."

"If you say so." Cody couldn't hide his tiny smile. This was why he loved Noah. He was always looking out for him.

Above the roar of a crowded terminal, one voice rang loudly. "Hey, Noah! Over here!"

Noah turned instantly towards the voice. A man stepped out of the crowd and made his way towards them. He was somewhere in his mid-thirties, with the same wavy dark hair and nose shape as Noah. He was dressed in a pressed black suit and a pair of expensive sunglasses.

When he reached the pair, he stuck out his hand and attempted to tousle Noah's hair. "Hey, you. Long time, no see."

Noah quickly ducked out of his reach. "Hello to you, too."

"Play any sports recently?" The man asked jokingly.

Noah rolled his eyes. "Get harassed by any penny-pinching CEOs recently?"

The man roared with laughter. "Yes, actually. How'd you guess?"

"Just a hunch."

Then the man turned to face Cody. "So, are you two finally together?"

Cody blinked, confused. "Wait, did they air the Hawaii episodes already?" he asked Noah.

He shook his head. "All the episodes air a week after filming."

"I remember you saying in the Sweden episode that you wanted to kiss him," the man clarified.

"...Oh, yeah. Right."

"Mom is so excited right now. She can't wait to ask you about it." He put his hand on Noah's shoulder and urged him to start walking with him. "I know you hate her bugging you about your love life, so if you want to get it over with as soon as possible, then we should probably leave."

"Wait," Noah hung back. "I said we'd give Cody a ride, too. He doesn't live very far away."

"Fine by me. But seriously, we should go now. If we're not home in time for dinner…"

"You don't need to remind me." Noah cut him off.


Ten minutes later, Noah and Cody were sitting in the back seat of a sleek, stylish car. The man - who Cody learned was one of Noah's older brothers, named Thomas - drove away from the airport and headed for the suburbs, following the directions Cody had given him.

"It's good to be back home," Cody said, staring out the window as they passed by the various houses and businesses.

"Have you been here your whole life?" Thomas asked.

"Yeah."

"I moved here about…ten years ago, now? It's a lovely place. Way better than the shithole we grew up in, right Noah?"

"Miles better."

"Why, what's wrong with it?" Cody asked Noah. "I always thought small towns would be really peaceful and friendly."

"They're not." Noah snorted. "Hill Creek is full of assholes. The only reason Mom and Dad even still hang around is because they own businesses there."

"Maybe you should go live with Cody, then." Thomas said, smiling.

Cody didn't respond to that question. Really, as much as he would love if Noah lived with him, he knew that that wasn't a feasible option at the moment. He'll, he didn't even know what the immediate future held for him, either.

Silently, Noah gently held Cody's hand and comfortingly rubbed his thumb over his knuckles. Cody relaxed slightly into the touch. It made him feel a little better.

For the rest of the way there, Thomas kept engaging the two of them in small talk - mostly Noah - telling them about how excited their whole family was at the prospect of the youngest son finally having a relationship. "You have to come visit, Cody," he told him, half-seriously. "Otherwise Mom'll track you down and bring you over herself."

"Mom's a sucker for romance. Especially when it involves her own kids." Noah said.

"I think that's sweet," Cody remarked. "Sge sounds really nice."

"She is," Noah assured him. "But she can be a bit…overwhelming at times."

Thomas chortled. "I remember the day I brought my partner Clara home for the first time. As soon as we set foot through the door, Mom immediately rushed over and swept Clara up in a massive hug. Like she was a long lost relative. She squeezed so tightly that poor old Clara ended up fainting."

Noah joined in with laughter. "Remember how Mom thought she killed her?"

Cody giggled along with them. Noah's mother sounded really kind, if not overbearing. But it also reminded him of how his own mother treated him. Marissa Anderson had very little compassion or warmth. There was no reason to believe she'd treat Noah differently. If anything, she'd hold him in even higher contempt than anyone else.

Now he started feeling down again. He knew what kind of household would be greeting him when he returned: an empty one. No one to hug him or congratulate him on making it all the way to the finale. Nope. It would be straight back into the daily grind of cooking and cleaning for him.

Noah seemed to notice his change in demeanor, because he gripped his hand a little tighter, still rubbing his knuckles with his thumb.

Eventually, Thomas turned onto a long, familiar driveway lined with neatly pruned hedges and trees. A large, stately home rose into view. It was painted a crisp white, and had a huge front porch that looked to be made of marble. It even had pillars, making it vaguely resemble an ancient Greek temple.

Thomas whistled when he saw it. "Woah, lucky you. I'd kill for a place like this." He pulled up next to the front steps and put the car in park.

Noah threw open his door. "Come on. I'll walk you up."

"You're becoming quite the gentleman, aren't you, Noah?" Thomas observed.

Noah ignored him. He grabbed Cody's luggage from the trunk as Cody stepped out. Cody took a moment to take a deep breath of air scented with roses and freshly cut grass. He got his bag from Noah and walked up the front steps with him.

They reached the alcove that housed the front door. Noah ran his eyes over the elaborate design of the glass inlaid in it. His expression was unreadable.

"So I guess this is goodbye," Cody spoke up.

Noah nodded.

Cody stepped forward and wrapped his arms around Noah's waist. "I'm gonna miss you."

Noah put one arm around Cody's shoulder and his free hand on his cheek. "Same here. But remember: I'll come down and visit whenever I can. And one day I'll bring you up to my place. Everyone'll love to see you."

"I hope your mom doesn't hug me to the point where I pass out."

Noah grinned. "I'll make sure she doesn't do that."

Cody felt tears prick at his eyes. He already couldn't wait for that. He leaned in and kissed Noah, long and deep and loving. Noah reciprocated with full force. Cody could still taste cherry chapstick. Already, he'd grown accustomed to it, and he knew he was going to miss it.

A tear dripped onto his cheek when they pulled apart. Noah wiped it away.

"Hey," he said, his voice uncharacteristically gentle. After all, this was not an appropriate time to make a sarcastic remark. "You'll be okay. You're a lot stronger than you think. Whatever happens next, you can get through it."

Cody locked eyes with him. Noah's chocolate-brown irises held more sincerity than he'd even seen before. His heart ached inside his chest.

The only way he could quell that pain was to kiss Noah again. It was a little more desperate and needy than before. Cody's grip on Noah's waist tightened, holding him in place.

But it couldn't last forever. Noah had to go eventually. And it was with great reluctance that Cody indeed let him go.

Noah made his way down the steps towards Thomas' waiting car. "If you need help with anything - anything at all - call me, okay? I'm always available to listen."

That comforting feeling that Cody always got whenever he chatted with Noah in the plane's cargo hold came back in full-force. It made him feel a lot better. Noah would always be there for him. Even though he'd be halfway across the province, he'd be there.

"Bye," Cody waved. "I love you."

"I love you, too." Noah climbed into the car, and it started back down the driveway. It pulled out onto the road, then disappeared from view.

Cody watched it go. He let another tear roll down his cheek. And yet, he was smiling. He felt do forlorn, and yet strangely happy at the sane time.

It felt weird to say I love you to Noah. And, admittedly, it felt weird to hear him say it back. Noah was usually such a closed book in regards to his emotions. But there he was, being completely open about them. Stating his love for someone. A new chapter in both their lives.

It was the kind of weird that Cody thoroughly enjoyed.

Everything about being in a relationship was so new to him. That included the pains of being separated. But Cody knew he had to be strong.

He had to be strong to his classmates. His community. And above all else, his parents.

But Noah had faith in him.

And as long as he had such a robust support system, then Cody could face his hardships head on.

It wasn't just Noah. He had his friends: Trent, Harold, Gwen, Ezekiel and Sierra. Heather as well, sort of. They were a huge help in many ways, and certainly made the experience one he would never forget. But Noah was by far his biggest supporter, and it was his encouragement that helped Cody see himself through to the end of Total Drama World Tour.

"I love you," he whispered to the wind.

And with that, he turned around and headed into his empty, silent house, ready for whatever lay before him.


A huge, enormous, larger-than-the-sun thank you to everyone who commented, favourited or followed this story! Writing this was immense fun, and I'm glad you were all here to enjoy this with me! It was your incessant encouragement that helped push me along, and I'll be eternally grateful to you all!

You can follow me on Tumblr at starlight-tequila to see what Total Drama projects I work on next! Again, thank you all so much!