Alright guys, so, I haven't actually SAID anything for a while now. And I sort of regret it... Anywho, I want to say thank you to all of our marvelous readers! My companion and I really appreciate every view. Seriously. We get so few views on this fic, and every view makes me happy and warm and gooey inside. So, all of you are FABULOUS and I love each and every one of you. I apologize for the sucky updating schedule, or lack-there-of, but it's just really REALLY hard to find time when both my friend and myself can get on google docs and just write for a while. :/ We try our hardest though! Also, if any of you have anything to say, anything at all, just leave a review! EVERYONE OF YOU IS AMAZING AND I SEND YOU ALL MY LOVE.
*Hannah's POV*
I groaned, watching Gwen lug her book bag to the dinner table. I flopped over on the table, my hair a tangled mess and my brain completely exhausted. "Who would've thought a week's worth of school would be so damn complicated?" I mumbled.
Jeff laughed. "Aw, come on, it's not that bad." He gave me a friendly pat on the back. I hissed at the pain. Ten pounds of textbooks had definitely taken their toll on my spine. Jeff scooted away, startled. I flicked my hair back.
"So," David sat next to me. "Are you guys ready for a movie?" He grinned.
"Yes," I raised my hand feebly, not quite sure if I possessed the energy to actually move. "I need a break from work."
"Me too," Gwen agreed. "I think the teachers are trying to kill us."
"Oh no," Nick said. "Teachers will seem like that at first. They're just trying to see how hard of workers you guys are. You'll earn their respect soon enough."
Gwen and I gave a long, heavy grumble of despair. Wes slid into the spot across from me, and I instantly perked up, making sure my tie was straight and my hair wasn't defying gravity too badly. I glanced toward Jeff, who was busy showing Gwen songs on his iPod. I rolled my eyes, thinking about how creepily perfect they were for each other. They were both musically inclined for example, and had the same type of style. Jeff always made Gwen laugh, even if his jokes were a little too pun-oriented for anyone else's taste. During meals and passing times, Jeff always seemed to be showing Gwen some new song, teaching her the lyrics and melodies.
"The movie starts at eight," Wes said. "It's seven now. We might want to get going soon." I nodded, feeling my heart flutter as we made eye-contact.
"Wait," I spoke, confusion settling upon me. The group stopped turned to me. "What are we going to do for cars?"
The boys in the group exchanged glances with one another. "Well," Nick looked at us sheepishly, "I don't think we really thought of that..."
"Yeah," Jeff joined in, "Usually we all just ride in the same car, but I don't think that's gonna work now..."
"Hmm... How about Lewis rides with Wes and I in his car, then Jeff, Nick, and Alex, ride in Jeff's car?" David suggested.
"That sounds good," Gwen nodded with approval. She gave me a side-long glance, to make sure I was okay with being separated from her. Since the tea scene in the cafeteria, I had felt vulnerable whenever I was apart from someone so familiar. But I smiled.
"Yeah, okay." I said. I waved to Gwen quickly before heading to Wes's car. Thankfully I recognized it, and didn't embarrass myself by tugging on the handle of some random car. Wes and I piled into the back seat, and David took the driver's seat. He started the ignition, watching in the rear-view mirror to make sure the others were out of the way before he pulled out of the parking spot.
"So where's the movie theater?" I asked, trying to make light conversation.
"Just a few miles into town," David said. "It won't take very long."
"Are you excited for the movie?" Wes asked. "Personally I'm more of a Spider-man guy, but Batman is pretty cool."
I nodded shyly. "Err...yeah." I fiddled with the hem of my sleeve, staring at the world outside the window. "Um...Batman...Spider-man...man..."
"You're not into superheroes, are you?" David laughed.
"Uh...no, not really." I admitted. "But this movie looked really interesting!" I added quickly. Wes shrugged.
"Okay. Well I've heard pretty good reviews for this movie," he mumbled.
We sat in silence for a minute or so before David cleared his throat and looked into the rear-view mirror at me.
"So, Lewis, do you have a boyfriend? Girlfriend?"
I almost choked on air. "W-what?!"
"DAVID!" Wes exclaimed. " You can't just ask people things like that!"
"I'm just trying to make conversation!" he shrugged. "Also, Lewis didn't answer my question-"
"And he doesn't have to," Wes glared at his friend, his cheeks turning a bright shade of pink.
"No, it's... It's fine," I tried to calm myself down. "I don't have a... 'significant other' at the moment." I sat awkwardly in my seat, determined to keep my face from turning red by concentrating on the cars that drove by outside my window. I could feel Wes staring at me from the other side of the car.
"Oh. Okay..." he said quietly.
"See?" David said, oblivious to the mood. "That wasn't bad, was it?"
"Just shut up," Wes sighed. And we rode in silence for the rest of the trip. I spotted the movie theater within a few blocks. David parked, Wes quickly unbuckled his seat belt, and we waited for Gwen and the others to arrive.
*Gwen's POV*
Jeff laughed as I crawled into the back seat. Nick grinned at me from the passenger's seat. "This is going to be so much fun," the blonde told me enthusiastically. "Wes and David? They're boring old juniors. But Nick and I? We're the awesome ones!"
"Aw, yeah!" Nick agreed. They buckled their seat belts before turning up the radio, full blast.
"I love this song!" I shouted over the sound of the music. The mix of vocals, electric guitar, and electronic-sounding noises filled the air around me. We all bobbed our heads, dancing and singing along, laughing the whole time. By the time the song finished, we were all out of breath. Nick turned down the radio as commercials began to play.
"So, Alex," Nick said, turning to me. "How have your classes been, aside from the immense amount of work you've been getting?"
"Not bad," I said. "Jeff has been helping me a lot with science." I motioned towards Jeff. I noticed a faint blush across his cheeks as our eyes met.
"Yeah," he said slowly. He looked out onto the road, ceasing the conversation abruptly.
"So," Nick said again, tearing his worried gaze from his friend to me.
"Hey," Jeff said suddenly. "So how'd that date go with...er, what's her name?"
"Jennifer," Nick answered. "And not well. She was a little...stuck-up, for my taste." He shrugged. "Oh well, though. Hey, Alex, what about you? Dating anyone?"
I froze, completely thrown off by the question. "Um, I-I..." I stammered.
"If that's a sensitive topic, you don't have to answer," Nick said. "I'd understand."
I shook my head. "No, no. Um...no, I'm not dating anyone right now."
"I see," Nick said, nodding. He looked towards Jeff, who was acting abnormally silent. "What's up with you? Oh man, you're not getting sick, are you?"
"No," Jeff answered. "Just...er..thinking about something. That's all."
I suddenly noticed that we had arrived at our destination. I saw Hannah, David, and Wes waiting for us at the entrance of the theater. Hannah waved at me.
"Did you guys have an okay drive?" David asked.
"Yeah," Nick said, in place of Jeff, who normally would have answered straight away. "Little quiet, considering we had Jeff with us, but we didn't encounter any problems."
"Jeff? Quiet? Are you serious?" David raised an eyebrow in disbelief.
"I was trying to concentrate on the road," Jeff defended weakly. He rubbed the back of his neck with one of his hands awkwardly. I turned away, hoping he wouldn't catch the blush spreading across my cheeks. I noticed Hannah standing next to Wes. He stood a good few inches above her, which was impressive, considering most guys towered over Hannah like those city-destroying monsters you see on dramatic Japanese movies.
"Concentrate my ass," Nick teased, playfully punching Jeff on the shoulder. "Something's on your mind, and it's up to me, as your friend to get to the bottom of it." The brunette gave a wide, determined grin, and Jeff rolled his eyes, looking slightly irritated.
"We should probably get seats," Wes said suddenly.
"Yeah," Hannah quickly agreed. "The movie starts soon."
We followed the two into the theater. The ticket booth line was nearly empty, filled by only a woman with a few children and a couple, giggling and holding hands.
"Ah, the rustle and bustle of Lima," I commented. Hannah snorted. It took about ten minutes to obtain the tickets (which Jeff purchased, with promise that we would pay him back later), and headed for the candy counter. Wes bought a Snickers bar, David a Milky Way, Hannah some M'n'Ms, and Nick a small popcorn. I stood at the counter, looking over the candy.
"What do you want?" Jeff asked, pulling out his wallet.
"I was about to get some Redvines..." I trailed off. "But you don't have to buy them. I brought money."
Jeff blinked at me a few times, as if he hadn't quite comprehended what I had said. "Redvines?" He asked.
"Uh, yeah." I said. "They're my favorite."
"They're my favorite too!" Jeff exclaimed happily. His eyes lit up and he threw both his arms around me, in Jeff-tackle-hug fashion. I didn't have time to respond, as he pulled away within seconds. The woman at the counter-a tall Asian girl-simply stared. "We'll take two packs of Redvines!" Jeff slammed the money onto the counter. He grinned enthusiastically at me. "Nick never wants Redvines at the movies. I finally have someone to share them with!"
"Really?" I asked. "But they're amazing!"
"I know!" Jeff raised his voice to a yell. "They're fantastic! The food of gods! Made from the tears of ANGELS! They're magnificent and glorious and fabulous and-"
"Jeff." I cut him off. "I think the people are staring."
"Who cares if they stare?" Jeff exclaimed. "I am simply expressing my affection for the best food on the universe, Alex. There is no shame in that." The woman handed him two packs of Redvines-which I am sad to say, did not come in King's Size, and turned to the next customer, therefore shooing us away. He handed me mine.
'If we run out during the movie, you can always get more." Jeff said. "I always finish my candy before the trailers even start."
I smiled. "Of course."
Jeff shrugged happily.
*Hannah's POV*
The crinkling of various candy wrappers and the crunch of Nick's popcorn prevented me from hearing the advertisements playing from the screen. I turned to Wes instead.
"I've forgotten how loud some of these trailers can be..." I whispered, flinching every time the volume increased once more. Wes chuckled softly.
"Going to an all boys school, you learn to get used to loud noises," he smiled, "especially when you're friends with people like Nick and Jeff."
I laughed. "Yeah, Alex can get pretty loud too."
"Is that so?" Wes asked. "He never really seemed like the type."
"That's just because you haven't known him as long as I have." I explained. "Trust me."
Wes nodded. "So..." he started.
"So," I repeated. "Um, what's the plan after this?"
Wes shrugged. "We probably should be back to the dorms. We do have curfew, you know."
Gwen suddenly sat beside me, followed by Jeff, who sat on his opposite side.
"Hey," she said softly, "did we miss anything?"
I shook my head. "The movie hasn't started yet." I noticed the blue wrapper of a box of Redvines. "Really?"
Gwen grinned. "Yes. Jeffy likes them too."
"Jeffy?" I struggled to hold back my laughter at the ridiculous nickname.
"Jeff! I said Jeff!" Gwen hissed at me in a whisper. I withheld an obnoxious giggle by cover my mouth with my hand.
"Hey, shut up!" A man in the front shouted.
Make me. I wanted to shout back. However, the filter inside me kept the words at bay, instead forcing a death-glare in the man's direction. Wes turned towards me, noticing my tenseness.
"You alright?" he asked.
"Lovely," I returned, a deep undertone of resentment hidden under my voice.
Finally, the beginning credits of the movie flashed on the screen, in bright letters. The audience "ooh"ed and "awww"ed at the graphics. I watched intently, as names of people I didn't know faded away, revealing the starting scene. The lights dimmed, and I felt a lurch at my chest as Wes shuffled in his seat, inching slightly closer to me, before shifting away again. He seemed absolutely absorbed in the movie, whereas I barely knew what was going on.
The first scene passed into the next, and the one after that, each filled with more action. Nick passed his popcorn to us from his seat. Each person (other than Gwen) took a handful. Once the container had been passed around a few times, it settled between Wes and I. Taking careful precaution to avoid the awkward "brushing hand episode", I watched Wes out of the corner of my eye, making sure to only reach into the popcorn container when he wasn't.
I felt a nudge from Gwen. I leaned in closer to her, and snickered at her sarcastic and slightly sassy comment to a character on the screen. For a while I focused on the movie, trying to make some sense out of the costumes and plot line. An intense scene kept everyone on the edge of their seats, anticipating each actor's next move. I absentmindedly reached over to the container of buttered popcorn. My fingers bumped into Wes's hand. I glanced up, meeting my eyes to his for a second. His flicked back to the screen.
"Sorry," he muttered.
"S'okay." I said back, even though it was my fault. It was difficult for me to concentrate for a while, with my mind replaying my idiocy over and over again. As characters quarreled, and villains began to prevail, I was once again sucked into the movie, immersed into the world of superheroes, car chases, and gun shootouts.
One particularly sudden explosion made me jump, instinctively grabbing the nearest thing to me. This thing just so happened to be Wes's arm. The popcorn was long gone, inhaled by Nick by the sixty-minute mark. Wes looked at me, peeling his eyes away from the movie. I expected him to be pissed, or irritated at the least. Instead he looked concerned.
"Hey, it's okay." He whispered.
"Err, sorry." I let go of Wes's arm, moving as far away as possible from him, which wasn't really far at all.
"Scared?" Wes asked.
"No," I made a face. "It just...startled me."
Wes let out a soft laugh, only audible to me. "Sure," he said, returning his gaze to the screen. Looking at the characters that ran across the screen, I noticed him looking at me out of the corner of my eye. I sighed softly and closed my eyes, trying to calm myself down. It was only a small thing. He would have acted the same way if one of the others was in my place, right?
*Gwen's POV*
The movie was nearly at its close. The falling action was rather uneventful, with only a few whispered conversations between the main characters. The villain spewed out a particularly cliché line to his hostage and I rolled my eyes.
"Can they still get away with lines this cheesy?" I asked Jeff, leaning towards him. He grinned in return.
"I don't know, some cheese is alright," he shrugged, casually turning to face me, but his expression froze as soon as our eyes met. I realised how close our faces were and my breath caught in my throat. My eyes were glued to his, and the deep mahogany color seemed to draw me closer. Or was he moving closer? My heart began to race as our faces came even closer to one another. I felt his breath hot on my lips, and my eyes began to close-
"Do we have any popcorn left?" Nick asked a little too loudly.
His voice shook me out of the moment, and I quickly spun away. Jeff backed away as well. I couldn't see his face in the darkness, but I'm sure was as red as mine.
"Um, no. We're out," I muttered.
"Oh, okay," the brunette seemed mildly disappointed, but looked back to the movie as the ending credits came on to the wall in front of us.
As the audience clapped, and the lights came on, I let out a sigh. I was a little shaky, from my "near-kiss" encounter. I suddenly felt the weight of a week of school and a late night. I didn't even want to check my phone to see what the time was.
"Well that was awesome!" Wes said. Hannah looked sheepishly at him. Her face was rather flushed as well.
David looked tired as well. "Yeah, it was. We should be getting back though. Curfew is really soon." He stretched and led the way out of the theater. "Wes, Jeff, why don't you go with me? Lewis and Alex can ride with Nick. I'm sure they don't want to hear your post-movie rambling."
We all nodded in agreement, and made our way through the people exiting the movie. Hannah and I collapsed in the back of Nick's car.
"You guys tired?" Nick asked, smiling.
Hannah could only manage a nod. "Yeah," I said. I lazily buckled my seatbelt, letting my eyes close for a second and forget the night's events as sleep strengthened its grip, pulling me into a dreamless doze.
"Hey, Alex," Nick's voice prodded through the thick blanket of sleep that separated my dreams from reality. "We're back." His voice was soft, gentle, as he carefully shook me awake. I cracked open my eyes, noticing that my friend was providing much more trouble being awakened.
"Lewis, get your lazy ass up," I pushed Hannah. She wrinkled up her nose.
"Fine," She muttered, sitting up and rubbing her eyes.
"Come on guys," Nick yawned. "It's really late, and I don't want to get yelled at for waking other people up when we get inside."
"Wait," I crawled out of the car, looking around, "where are the other guys?"
"Probably back in the dorms, now come on, let's go," Nick seemed to be a bit irritable when he got tired. I made a mental note not to try to pull any all-nighters with him.
"Alright, I'll just see you guys in the morning then," I waved my arm at Nick as he crunched on the gravel towards his room. Hannah was out of the car by this point, shivering in the cold of the autumn night. We walked towards our building, quickly pulling out a key to unlock the front door and enter back into the realm of warmth.
"Oh! Yeah!" my friend stopped momentarily and grabbed my arm. "I have something that I really need to tell you!" She stopped and looked around the hall. Lowering her voice, she said "I'll tell you when we get back in our room."
Once inside, Hannah closed the door behind me. "You'll never guess what happened at the movie."
I grinned. "Spill."
We quickly exchanged our stories. Hannah explained how she had accidently brushed hands with Wes, then grabbed his arm during the scary part. I told her about the moment where Jeff and I nearly kissed.
"Damn, girl," Hannah giggled. "Your story totally beats mine."
I sighed, sitting on my bed. "So what are we going to do about this? You obviously like Wes, and I obviously like Jeff."
"But they don't know who we really are." Hannah said. "And we can't let them find out, under any circumstances."
"Yeah," I agreed.
"For now, I think it's best if we keep the flirting and awkward moments to a minimum. We aren't here for relationships, Gwen. We're here for school."
I nodded, thinking about our lives back at Crawford. It was so vastly different. While the classes here might have been particularly challenging, but at least I liked them. And while the teachers could be strict at times, they were certainly better instructors than the ones back at the all-girls school. I loved Dalton. And I wasn't going to trade it for anything. Hannah and I were going to keep our secret under-wraps, at all costs.
I laid down on my bed, kicking off my shoes. "Well, goddammit."
"I know," Hannah sat beside me. "Seems like every time we meet someone worthwhile, something goes wrong." She smiled. "Don't worry, though. I'm sure keeping our feelings buried under tons of female hormones won't be too difficult."
"Damn Jeff for being so adorable." I stated, closing my eyes.
Hannah laughed. "And damn Wes for being the same." Hannah quietly slipped into pajamas, her pink bunny slippers the only remainder of her once feminine past, and went to go get a quick cup of tea, after debating with herself on whether or not Sebastian had fallen asleep yet or not. I told her it didn't matter, especially because if she didn't get her nightly cup of chamomile, it would take her hours to get to sleep. Damn insomniac.
I, on the other hand, fell asleep within seconds of getting dressed for bed. I dreamed of Redvines, and superheroes, and buttery popcorn kisses.
*Jeff's POV*
I laid on my bed, gazing at the ceiling as the memories of the night flooded through my mind. We almost kissed. Alex and I almost kissed. I almost kissed another boy. I thought I was straight, but now... nothing made sense anymore. Alex didn't seem like the other guys. He seemed... different. He was cute, in a way that I didn't think boys could be. My eyes shut, and I sighed as the confusing thoughts continued to flow through my brain. The soft click of a door opening brought my attention to my roommate, who smiled as he entered the room.
"Tired?" he asked with a grin, kicking his shoes off and sitting down on his own bed.
"Mmhmm..." I nodded, spacing off as he changed into pajamas and got ready for bed. "Hey, Nick?" I called to my friend, my heart beating a bit faster as I thought of what I was about to say.
"Yeah?"
"I think... I think I have a problem." The silence in the room seemed to drag on for eternity. Nick looked at me, his face growing confused as he noticed my serious expression.
"You seemed a little off tonight. Anyways, what's going on?" he sat down beside me. I avoided eye-contact, choosing my words with caution.
"I...I think I might... like Alex..." my voice came out as a whisper, barely audible.
"...What?"
"I like Alex..." I spoke a bit louder.
"Alex?" Nick raised an eyebrow. "Well yeah, he's really nice..."
"No." I cut him off. "Like, I might..." I groaned, not knowing how to convey what I was feeling.
"Oh," Nick suddenly said. "You mean that kind of like."
I stuffed my face into my pillow and nodded.
"Well..." Nick said. "That's...that's alright, I suppose."
"You suppose?" I said. The pillow muffled my words.
"No, no," Nick quickly said. "I mean, that's great, Jeff. I have no problem with it."
"We almost kissed." I suddenly said, tossing the pillow aside. Nick stared at me, his mouth sat slightly open. He quickly changed his posture, clearing his throat as he did so.
"Well, then I guess you should... ask him out?" he suggested cautiously.
"I just-" I sighed, frustrated at my lack of words. "I don't know if it was just me, or if it was him too, and I've never liked another guy before, and I don't know if I'm just insane or something, and-"
"Jeff, calm down," my companion cut me off, placing a hand on my shoulder. I took a deep breath and shook my head. "It's all going to be fine. You just have to figure this out. Maybe you should wait a little while, see if he feels the same way? It's the most logical place to start," he shrugged.
"Yeah, I guess I'll just go from there. I can't really do much else anyways..."
"Good," my friend nodded. He suddenly yawned. "Hey."
"What?" I asked.
"You're still my best friend, okay?"
I smiled. "Thanks."
Nick fell asleep faster than I did. For hours I simply laid in bed, mulling over the conflicting thoughts in my mind. So...I liked Alex. The idea wasn't as foreign as I thought it would be. I smiled a little to myself, feeling content. Nick snored from across the room. I laughed a little, then closed my eyes, willing myself to finally get some sleep.