The only thing Cody could think while waking up was that he didn't want to. He knew there was a conversation coming, the outcome of which he couldn't begin to predict. It was silent. No cooking, no chatting. It took all of his resolve to open his eyes and confirm his suspicion that he was alone.

The glow of low light slowly filled his eyes. It was darker than he expected. He glanced out the window. Overcast skies. He pulled himself up to see the rest of the room. He was right—nobody was here. He straightened his spine and leaned to one side, trying to see if any of their doors were open. None were. He could relax, if only for a second. He took his hands and rubbed the sleep from his eyes. His phone!

He quickly reached into his pocket and pulled it out. No messages. But it was noon. He'd slept for ten hours. Geez. He turned off his phone and returned it. Of course, Noah wouldn't respond in text. Cody rolled his neck, working out the kinks of sleeping on a couch for two nights.

He decided to take a quick shower. He was officially out of clean clothes, but he figured it'd be best to stay as fresh as possible. When he was done, he changed into the pair he wore the first night. With any luck, he could fool Noah into thinking they were clean.

By the time he came out, Noah was sitting at the kitchen table, book in hand. Cody froze. Was he waiting out here for him? How would he respond?

"Morning, Sleeping Beauty," he said, not looking up from his large tome.

Beauty…? Was that a compliment or just a joke? "Hey." Cody paused, waiting for Noah to say anything about his message. Receiving no response, he continued. "Whatcha reading?"

Noah flipped a thin page over. "It's my complete works of Shakespeare. I'm on Julius Caesar right now."

Maybe he hadn't checked his phone? Cody tried to push the thought to the back of his head. He wasn't quite ready for the conversation, so he was thankful for the distraction. "Is it something for a class?"

"Nah, I do this for fun," Noah responded. The book had an attached cloth bookmark, and he pulled it down between the pages he was reading. He closed the book and placed it on the table. "I want to read the whole thing. I always thought it'd be cool to say I've read every Shakespeare play."

"I guess that's cool, in a literary snob sort of way."

Noah rolled his eyes. "I am a literary snob, but that has nothing to do with it. I just like knowing that the great Shakespeare also wrote some hot garbage."

"Do you need to read everything he wrote to figure that out?"

"No, but it helps. You can't get the full, awful experience through Sparknotes."

"I guess that's true." Cody took a seat at the table. "What's the best and worst you've read?"

Noah's eyes lit up. "Shrew is awful. Actually not worth reading. Hamlet is the best, easy, but that's probably because I personally relate to Hamlet."

Cody chuckled. "Did your ghost dad tell you to kill your uncle, too?"

"Yes," Noah said, not slowing down a bit. "Hamlet is the prototypical 'everyone dies' story. I love how heavy-handed it is. Anybody who's anybody gets poisoned or stabbed or both, and Horatio ends up all alone. The ending is actually hilarious. Everyone's dead, Fortinbras shows up, and Horatio basically has to say, 'Well, I guess that makes you king.'"

"Hilarious? Isn't it supposed to be a tragedy?"

"It can be both. It's a tragedy with a comically overblown ending, though I don't think Shakespeare was ever one for subtlety."

"I suppose that's one way to think about it. I never did like Shakespeare much."

"That's because you're not a true literary snob like me." Noah laughed at his own joke. "Hey, have you eaten? We can go out or I can cook if you really want."

"I haven't," Cody said. He'd been too busy thinking about his message, but now that he had a reprieve from those thoughts, he noticed the dull ache in his stomach. "I'm down for whatever."

"Awesome. Breakfast is the only meal I can cook." Noah moved to the fridge and leaned to peer inside. "Do you like eggs?"

Cody looked at Noah's backside, butt slightly stuck out to accommodate the lean. Normally, he'd enjoy a sight like that more, but right now, all he could focus on was the clearly defined shape of a phone in the back pocket of Noah's jeans. They weren't the same pants he was wearing last night, which meant at the very least Noah had moved his phone since he got the message. Of course, that didn't necessarily mean that he had checked his phone, but it seemed unlikely to Cody. Still, Noah hadn't said anything about it. Surely if he'd read it he'd say something…?

"Dude. Yes egg or no egg?" Noah called behind him.

"Oh! Um, yes egg? I don't really care how they're cooked. Whatever's easiest."

"Oooh! Poached eggs here we come."

"Sounds good." Cody didn't actually think so. If anything, poached eggs were probably more trouble than they were worth. But he wasn't really listening. He was caught up in an internal debate on whether or not Noah had seen his message. It'd be strange if he hadn't, but then why wouldn't he say anything about it? Cody pulled out his phone to check. The message was marked delivered. Weird.

It did present a unique opportunity. If Noah actually hadn't seen the message, then Cody had the chance to tell him about his feelings in person. He couldn't pinpoint why, but Cody felt better about confessing in real-time. At least in theory. Finding the courage to do it was another matter entirely.

"Poached eggs are my go-to for impressing people," Noah said nonchalantly, just beginning to boil water in a tall pan. "They're not too hard to make, but most people just go for the easier way."

Cody tilted his head, wondering. "Who are you trying to impress?"

"You. Who else?" Noah said.

Cody looked down, startled. Why would Noah need to impress him? Could he be trying to broach the topic?

"After all, I want the first review of my BnB to be five stars."

Oh. Was it just a joke? This was all too confusing. Cody wanted to clear the air, but for some reason, the right words were jumbled up in his head, a tightly coiled tangle of wires and thread. He couldn't seem to pick out what he should say or string together a satisfactory sentence. What do you do at a moment like this?

Before he could get something out, Noah was already serving him two little balls of poached egg. They were a little rough around the edges, but they looked pretty good otherwise. "Oh, wow. Are they already done?"

"I told you they're not too hard."

They ate their late breakfast. Cody didn't think the eggs were spectacular, but he said otherwise. It wasn't like Noah did anything wrong. They tasted like eggs. Very average eggs. Still, he assured Noah that he'd definitely leave him five stars on Yelp.

"So, what's on the agenda today?" Noah asked.

"I'm not sure I'm feeling up to going out on the town." Cody palmed his phone through the fabric of his pants, feeling around the screen for comfort. "I'm not really sure what's worth seeing."

"You sure, man? It is your last whole day in Chicago. Isn't it kinda lame to spend your vacation sitting in some rando's apartment?"

"Yeah. It's fine. This was never supposed to be a vacation anyway."

"Alright, man. You're the boss. I've actually got some stuff to take care of in my room. It shouldn't take too long. If you want to mess around on the Switch or whatever, you can."

"Thanks." Cody gave a fraction of a smile. He was still too caught up in his thoughts. He needed a second opinion on this. He watched Noah retreat behind his door, leaving it slightly cracked. He wondered what he was up to in there. He thought about trying to catch a peek through the door, but he deemed that creepy as soon as it came to his mind. After a few minutes, he heard soft music coming from the door, and this gave him an idea.

He grabbed his phone and opened his contacts. If Noah had music playing, he could make a private call. He'd just have to keep his voice reasonably low. He thumbed through the list of numbers saved in his phone. To be honest, he didn't have a lot. He could call his parents, but he didn't want to talk to them about anything even tangentially related to relationships. He had a few work friends and two girls he went to class with, but they definitely weren't close enough to have this kind of conversation with. He did have a few close friends he could call, but he knew they'd be wondering where he was. He wasn't in the mood to hear any admonishments.

Then there was Gwen's number. He couldn't call her, could he? She was the reason he was here, but she didn't know that. Trent might have told her he'd been there, but if she knew he was here, she didn't let on in her text. He had told her a half-truth about a girl. He could probably spin his current predicament to fit that narrative. It would be lying, but only a little bit.

Would she even answer? She still had his number, and she acted friendly enough in her messages. She did say she was down to talk if he needed to. And he definitely needed to. He decided to bite the bullet. She was the best option he had.

He clicked on her name and a tone played. After a few moments, his phone made a soft buzz to indicate it was ringing on the other side.

"Hey! Cody?" a voice said over the line. It sounded just the way he remembered.

"Yeah, it's me," he replied, voice low and shaky.

"Oh my god! It's so great to finally talk to you again. You should totally come down to Chicago sometime so we can hang out!"

Cody would've laughed if he wasn't so nervous. "Yeah, we should definitely catch up sometime. But I actually called to ask for your opinion about something. Are you free?"

"I've got time. Is this about that girl?"

"Yeah. I'm kind of in a jam and need advice." Cody felt odd calling Noah a girl, but he didn't want to be called out on his lie.

"I'm definitely here for that. Spill the deets."

Cody took in a deep breath. "Well, there's this, uh… girl I sort of like."

"Sort of like?" Gwen responded.

"I don't know, it could really be something, you know?"

"Vague, but alright. Continue."

"So I wanted to let her know how I felt, but I was having some trouble saying anything to her face."

"Cody, tell me you didn't do it through text."

"I mean…"

"Oh boy." Gwen sighed, taking a small pause. "Okay, it's not too bad, I guess. Depends on the response."

"Well, that's sort of the problem."

"Was it bad? What'd she say?"

"Nothing! I thought maybe she was ignoring me, but I ran into her today. She acts like I didn't even send it."

Gwen hummed softly on the other line, thinking for a few moments. "That's definitely tricky. When did you send it? Does she seem upset or nervous at all?"

"No! It's like she hasn't seen it at all. And I sent it last night, so she's had plenty of time."

"Interesting. So what are you going to do now?"

"I don't know. That's why I called you."

Gwen smirked. Cody couldn't see her, of course, but he knew by the tone of her voice that she did. She always liked this kind of thing; she'd take any chance she got to analyze people without having to go through the trouble of meeting them. "Alright, so there are a few possibilities. There's always a chance she actually hasn't seen your message, in which case you're free to do whatever. But it's 2020, so I don't know how likely it is."

"See, she had her phone with her, so I'm pretty sure she's already seen it."

"Alright, with that out of the way, I think the path forward is pretty clear," she said.

"Is it? What should I do?"

"Just talk to her, Cody."

"But what if she doesn't like me and is trying to avoid the whole discussion?"

"Then that sucks, but she could also just be waiting for you to do it in person. You'll never know unless you talk to her."

Cody sighed. He'd really rather not bring it up at all. At least, that's what he wanted right now. He knew Gwen was right, and if he ever wanted to know what was going on, he'd have to talk. "Right. Talking. Got it."

"Yes, talking. What are you scared of?"

"Rejection!"

"Oh yeah, that. Well, if you don't say anything, that's a one hundred percent chance of rejection. I think your odds are better if you do."

"I guess," Cody said, heaving out a deep breath. "Then it's decided."

Noah's music stopped. "I've gotta go!" Cody said. "Thank you, seriously."

"Hey! Don't forget, we still need to catch up. I'm holding you to that."

"Alright, alright. I'll, um, talk to you later, promise. Bye." He ended the call. He could hear Noah shuffling about in his room. Cody was ready. That talk with Gwen was just what he needed. All he had to do was talk to Noah. It seemed simple enough, but he knew it'd take a lot out of him. Rejection was a powerful deterrent. But Gwen was good with these things, so he could at least trust in her. That gave him confidence.

Until Noah walked through the hallway, tapping on his phone.

The color drained from Cody's face, along with every ounce of courage he'd been building up. It was confirmation that Noah had checked his phone. Now Cody knew he'd been ignored. More than that, though, they were standing face to face. Everything was different when it was out of his head.

Noah glanced up at him. "Dude, what's wrong? You look like you saw a ghost."

Cody straightened his back. "Nothing!" he said, quickly. "Just feeling a little off."

"Sick? You're going to be able to make your flight, right?"

"No, no. Nothing like that. I'll be fine."

"If you say so. Just let me know if you need anything. We've got some medicine, or I can run to the pharmacy if you really need it," Noah said, walking past Cody and relaxing against the wall just outside the kitchen. If he didn't know any better, Cody might have assumed Noah was trying to look cool.

"Actually," Cody began. He fought off the tightness in his stomach. There was no time like the present, especially since he knew Noah knew. "Actually I need to talk to you about something."

Noah frowned. Not a great sign, but Cody continued anyway. "You know when you told me that I should let my feelings be known?"

Noah closed his eyes and gave a long sigh. "Yeah. I think I know where this is going."

"Well don't sound too excited about it," Cody chuckled nervously. "I'm just trying to bare my soul here."

"Sorry, sorry. This is probably hard for you," Noah said. "But I was actually sort of hoping you didn't really mean what you sent me."

Cody retreated a bit. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Noah took a heavy breath. "That sounds bad. Here, let's sit down for a bit." He gestured over to the couch.

Cody followed, trying to mentally prepare for whatever was coming next. He sat some feet away from Noah, who turned to look straight at him. To his credit, Cody managed enough nerve to look in Noah's general direction as well.

"Look, I like you," Noah said. "And I'd be lying if I said I didn't feel… something about you."

"But…" Cody supplied. He knew there was going to be a but. Still, that was an admission of feelings. He hadn't struck out completely.

"But this is a complicated situation. Crazy complicated."

"But you feel something, right? And you keep talking about 'providence'. And you're always talking about seizing the moment and going in with no plans. And I just thought, you know, that we could take a chance."

Noah furrowed his brow. "I said I wish I could live life without a plan. But it's just not something I can do."

"This is your chance!" Cody said, energy suddenly surging through him, some kind of unknown confidence sprouting from the core of his being. After all day of assuming the worst, he knew that his feelings were returned, at least somewhat. He refocused his gaze on Noah's eyes. "If you want to do it, just do it! There's nothing stopping you."

"What exactly is it that you want to do? It's just hard for me to really grasp what it would mean. I say that I like you too. Then what happens?"

"We go on a date, obviously."

"And by 'date' you mean…?"

"Date stuff. We can go out to eat and talk."

"You mean like we did at Wildberry yesterday?"

"It'll be different if it's a date. You know that."

Noah put his hands up in defeat. It wasn't a cute gesture; it was genuine defeat. "Fine, fine. I already said we could do whatever you wanted."

"But I don't want to do it unless you want to. It's not just about me."

Noah shrugged. "It's all cool. I just hope you're not getting your hopes up for this."

"I'll be sure to keep my expectations low."

An eye roll. "Fine. A date. Okay. Give me like ten minutes to get my head on straight." Noah retired to his room.

After twenty or so minutes, he came back out, and his demeanor had completely changed. He was back to his usual snarky self. A complete 180 that took Cody by surprise.

"Okay," Noah began, gesturing to his couch. They both sat down. "So, a date. What kind of date do you want to go on? What do you want to do on the date?"

Cody looked at the other boy thoughtfully. "I'm not sure. New city, remember? But I just kinda want to… talk to you."

Noah gave a chuckle. "How corny. It's almost like you like me or something." He gave the thought some consideration. "Let's simplify it, then. Do you want to go out, or stay in?"

"I guess we don't have to go anywhere."

"Intimate setting, I get it." Noah gave a sly wink. "Though I don't know if my apartment is exactly romantic."

Cody looked around. It was a little cleaner than it was when he got here, but it was still pretty messy. "I don't mind. It's lived-in."

"Lived in by a goblin. But if you're good, I'm good. What exactly do you want to do on this date, then?"

Cody thought for a hard moment. "I think I just want to get to know you."

"So, a social activity. No movies. Got it. Anything else?"

"Not really. I'm down for anything that lets us talk. What do you wanna do?"

"Really? Anything? There is one thing I've been aching to do with someone. Izzy and Eva refuse to even try. And it'll give us all day to talk."

"Sounds cool. What is it?"

Noah's eyes narrowed. "Alright, you've raised my hopes real high, so you can't back out after I show you, okay?"

"Okay…" Cody was a little worried about this, but surely it couldn't too bad. Especially considering it was something Noah asked his friends to do. Still, he was being awful secretive about it.

Noah flashed a wild grin and scrambled off the couch. He quickly cleared the coffee table in front of them and began moving it to the side, creating a wide empty space of floor in front of the couch. "Alright, I'll be right back," he said, retreating to his room.

He came back out half a minute later with a substantial box in his hands. He sat it down on the floor before Cody. It was a bright, garish thing with big lettering reading Cakes and Candy 2000 Piece Puzzle.