A/N: Hey y'all, here's the next chapter. I've split it up into two as it was far too long for my liking. Hope you guys like it, the other one shall be up shortly :)
This particular evening found Jeff lying on his bed, thinking. His mind was teeming with thoughts of Nick, and only Nick. Jeff was extremely frustrated; all of this drama with Nick and all of the confusing feelings associated with it were messing with his head. He spent the last two hours and a half trying to sort out what to do, and thankfully he had the room to himself as Nick had soccer practice. But it wasn't working as his thoughts were constantly interrupted by his mobile phone ringing: Nick was calling - yet again.
Twenty minutes after Jeff had left Nick and Tyler at the lunch hall, his phone was bombarded with texts from him.
Nick (13.25)
Jeffy...where did u go? - 3
Nick (13.30)
Hey, you okay? - 3
Nick (13.32)
Dude? - 3
Nick (13.35)
Please reply back - 3
Nick (13. 40)
Look I have to go, I've got practice right now, but I'll call you later okay x- 3
Oh so now he cares.
He thought back to the last couple of days, where things were going amazing between the two boys. He felt like their relationship had really gone up a notch; they nearly kissed, they held hands several times, and they flirted so much. How could have it gone from heaven to hell in less than a week, he thought, before narrowing his eyes and clenching his fists.
"Tyler." He spat venomously, getting up out of his bed and walking around his room.
He thought back to this afternoon in the cafeteria. He remembered seeing Tyler's eyes roam all over Nick's body when he stood up, before finally settling on his neck. The way he eyed his neck, Jeff could practically read the word 'hickey' in his eyes.
"Bloody parasite." He sneered.
"He just had to go ruin everything" Jeff muttered "...and now, Nick's going to pick him cos he's taller and more handsome. Even I would find him hot if I didn't hate him so much." He added quietly.
Great. Now I'm talking to myself.
He groaned inwardly, running a hand through his hair with frustration. I can't keep doing this.
"I just can't." He whispered.
He heard his phone vibrating, indicating he received a text message. Unlocking his phone, he began to read it.
Nick:
Hey, you're not picking up your phone up. Or answering your texts :( I just finished from practice; Tyler asked if I wanna go get coffee after warblers. Do you want to come? x - 3
Jeff frowned as he read it. Why on earth would I want to go get coffee with that...that best friend / ex possible-future-boyfriend stealer? Now feeling more annoyed than before, he chucked the phone on the bed and made his way to the bathroom.
Only when Jeff finished using the toilet and was about to leave the bathroom, did he look at his face. He moved closer to the mirror and saw that his cheeks were pink and his eyes were still red and puffy from all the crying earlier. He opened the tap and washed his face with cold water to try and restore his face back to normal so no one would suspect a thing. Once he was satisfied, he dried it with a towel nearby before opening the door to leave.
However, Jeff didn't anticipate what he saw when he opened the door. He saw Nick sitting on his bed, staring at the floor; obviously indicating that he was waiting for him to come out.
When Nick heard the bathroom open, he looked up and was on his feet in a second, latching himself onto Jeff, wrapping his arms around his neck.
"JEFF!" Nick exclaimed. "Where have you been?"
Jeff just stood there stiff with his arms by his side. When Nick didn't get a response, he moved his head back, so that he could look at his best friend properly.
"Hey, what's wro-" He paused, noticing something on Jeff's face.
"Jeff." He whispered, placing his thumb slowly over his cheeks."You've been crying." Nick stated as he carefully studied his face. "What's wrong?" He asked, face full of worry.
Jeff just pulled back from Nick. "Nothing." He mumbled while moving back into the bedroom.
Nick managed to catch his arm before he walked away, pulling him back right in front of him to look him in the eyes.
"Jeff." He pleaded.
Jeff could feel his tears accumulating in his eyes as the intensity of Nick's gaze was getting too much for him to bear. Those eyes. Even though he knows that those eyes would probably make him spill his darkest secrets, he stood his ground and blinked back the unshed tears.
"Why do you care?" He said angrily. "I mean, you didn't even notice me leave." Laughing bitterly, he continued, "You were so wrapped up around Tyler that you didn't even notice me let go of your hand. We were holding hands Nick... and you didn't even feel me let go." He whispered. "So please don't act like you care."
"Jeff I-I'm so sorr-"
"Look, I don't want to hear your excuses." He said, interrupting him. "Just forget it." He added.
He sighed and looked up at Nick once more. "We should be getting to the choir room, Warbler practice is starting in ..." He said, before checking his watch. "...seven minutes."
"Urm, yeah...okay." Nick replied, not really paying attention to what Jeff just said. His head was just so confused. Jeff was upset. Very upset. And I just made it worse, how could I not realise him leaving? Tyler was just so... He groaned inwardly.
Nick and Jeff made their way to the Warblers choir room. Nick entered before him taking his usual seat; this time however, Jeff decided to sit on the opposite side of the room. This move didn't go unnoticed by everyone else in the room, in fact they were eyeing the two boys suspiciously, but no one said anything.
Jeff kept his head down during the entire time as he couldn't face Nick. Not yet. He knew the stunt he pulled by switching seats was a really stupid and immature thing to do, but he just couldn't sit next to Nick without wanting to lash out at him. However, Jeff realised just how stupid it was when he saw Tyler take the opportunity to sit next to him.
Great. Now I have to watch this...this leech, sit there and practically undress Nick, my Nick with his eyes. He thought, whilst eyeing Tyler with disgust.
They practised several songs within the last half hour, trying to come up with some viable options for their set list. After finally settling on one definite song, they thought the rest can be decided on another day.
Jeff looked at the clock and cracked a small smile; Warbler's practice was nearly over. He couldn't wait to get out of there.
"...so before we conclude today's session" Wes started. "Warbler Tyler. You said you had something you wanted to perform for us?"
This caught Jeff's attention. He watched as Tyler nodded and walked up to the front of the room. He then handed Thad a disc to put into the CD player, before speaking up.
"Urm hi guys." Tyler began, giving a small wave. "I never got the chance to perform in front of you guys at the beginning as I was still settling down here at Dalton. But now that I've got the hang of everything, I thought that it was finally time for you guys to hear me sing."
Jeff just frowned, not wanting to hear another word from his mouth, he slowly turned his head. However, Nick caught his eye and they stared at each other for a moment before Nick smiled at him. Jeff couldn't deny that he missed his best friend, especially that adorkable smile of his. He simply gave a sad smile in return before turning his head to catch Tyler giving a nod in Thad's direction, telling him that he's ready.
I'm not surprised, not everything lasts
I've broken my heart so many times I stopped keeping track
Talk myself in, I talk myself out
I get all worked up then I let myself down
Gosh, why did he have to be such a good singer? Jeff thought.
I tried so very hard not to loose it
I came up with a million excuses
I thought, I thought of every possibility
And I know some day that it'll all turn out
You'll make me work so we can work to work it out
And I promise you kid that I give so much more than I get
I just haven't met you yet
Jeff watched him dance around the room, singing at the top of his lungs. As he was going round, he grabbed random Warblers and started dancing with them. Jeff looked at Nick from the corner of his eye; he could see him enjoying the performance.
I might have to wait, I'll never give up
I guess its half timing and the other half's luck
Wherever you are, whenever it's right
You'll come outta nowhere and into my life
And I know that we can be so amazing
And baby your love is gonna change me
And now I can see every possibility
Somehow I know that it'll all turn out
You'll make me work so we can work to work it out
And promise you kid I'll give so much more than I get
I just haven't met you yet
They say all's fair in love and war
But I won't need to fight it
We'll get it right and we'll be united
He watched Tyler make his way around the room; everyone else was just enjoying the performance and dancing to the music. Tyler finally made his way to Nick and held his hand out for him to take. Jeff just watched Nick, he saw him laugh and take his hand. He then frowned as he watched Tyler twirl Nick around and practically serenade him. Soon after, Jeff realised that except for the council members, he was the only one still sitting down. He just sighed deeply and folded his arms, waiting for this performance to be over.
And I know that we can be so amazing
And being in your life is gonna change me
And now I can see every single possibility
And someday I know it'll all turn out
And I'll work to work it out
Promise you kid I'll give more than I get
Oh you know it'll all turn out
And you'll make me work so we can work to work it out
And promise you kid to give so much more than I get yeah
I just haven't met you yet
I just haven't met you yet
Oh promise you kid to give so much more than I get
I said love love love love love love love
I just haven't met you yet
Tyler ended the song by staring into Nick's eyes and grinning, his hand still in Nick's. Everyone started clapping, and Jeff felt obligated to a throw a few applauds in. He, however, smirked to himself when he noticed Tyler's face as Nick pulled away his hand afterwards.
"Thank you Tyler for that performance. That's all for today guys, see you tomorrow." Wes said, finishing practice with the bang of the gavel as usual. After Wes dismissed everyone, Jeff hurried to get out of the room, but obviously it wasn't fast enough as he heard Nick calling his name. He just carried on walking, pretending that he couldn't hear him, however, when he heard Nick's voice getting closer, he decided to stop and just face him.
"...Jeff!" Nick shouted, slightly out of breath.
Jeff turned around to face him and feigned a smile. "Hey."
"We need to talk." Nick said sharply.
Jeff was taken aback for a second. However, he really didn't want to talk about this with Nick right now.
"We are talking." He replied snarkily.
"Jeff." Nick warned, with a raised eyebrow. "Come on. I know something is bothering you, why won't let you me in?" He pleaded. "I miss my best friend."
"Yeah, well so do I." He stated.
Nick looked confused. "What?"
Jeff just put his hands up in defeat and laughed bitterly. "Nick. Ever since Tyler arrived, he's all you talk about. You spend nearly all your time with him."
Nick looked confused. "Jeff, honestly, It isn't like that. He's new and he just needed someone to help him settle in and stuff. Plus we both play soccer, and he's a fun guy to be around but..." He said, looking up at Jeff. "You're my best friend Jeff. That's never gonna change, okay? No amount of 'Tyler's' is ever gonna change that." He added, smiling.
Jeff smiled. He may not have a chance at ever being Nick's boyfriend, but he still had his best friend.
"So... Are you gonna finally tell me what's been bothering you?" Nick asked. He saw Jeff bow his head down. "Come on; let's go back to our room."
Jeff just nodded and followed him back to their dormitory. However, just as they turned the corner, they heard someone calling Nick's name. They both turned around to see who it was. As they turned, they saw Tyler running towards them.
"Nick." He said when he reached the two boys. "So, you ready to get that coffee now?" He asked, smiling like a fool.
Shit, Nick thought. I totally forgot about that.
"Oh, urm I-I..." He stuttered.
"Yeah, he is." Jeff spoke up. Nick turned around to face him, looking apologetically. I'm sorry, he mouthed.
"Yeah..." Jeff said slowly in response. He then looked up at Tyler, muttered a feeble "he's all yours" and faked a smile before walking off.
Nick felt immensely guilty as he watched Jeff walk away. He could cancel the coffee with Tyler and go talk to Jeff instead, but he promised Tyler, and he hates breaking his promises.
"...urm, hello? Earth to Nick." Tyler said, waving his hand in front of Nick's face, this pulled him about of his daze.
"Sorry, what?" Nick asked.
Tyler just chuckled. "You okay?"
Nick nodded and mustered up the will to give him a full on grin. This seemed to be enough to convince Tyler as he heard him continue talking about his weekend. Meanwhile, Nick was contemplating on whether or not he did the right thing.
A couple of days had past and things between the two boys had taken a turn for the worse. Nick and Jeff hardly spoke to each other; Jeff was nearly always in the library and only came into their room once he was sure that Nick would be asleep. He allocated himself a new seat during Warbler's, in fact the only time he couldn't manage to avoid Nick was during classes, but even then he focused so intently on what the teacher was saying that it couldn't give Nick the chance to start a conversation with him.
This new plan of Jeff's was actually working. Yes, his feelings for Nick were still very much intact. However, the less he saw Nick, the less heartbroken he was. He could now focus on other things without thinking about him every other second. If he kept this up then eventually his feelings should start to fade, no? Though he really missed Nick and wanted nothing more than to hear his voice again, it was better this way. He needed to get over him; the sooner the better.
Nick was getting more and more frustrated. He had to go see Jeff and sort this thing out once and for all; he needed to talk to him just once more, it couldn't carry on like this. Getting up out of his bed, he left his room in search of his best friend. It was pretty late, and at this time Jeff was usually at the library, so Nick headed off in that direction. Once he reached the entrance to the library, he smiled as he saw Jeff sitting on a desk in the far corner of the library reading a book. Thankfully the library was practically empty at this time, only Jeff and two other boys were in there. When Nick reached the table where Jeff was sitting at, he coughed to try and catch his attention. Obviously it had worked as he saw Jeff glance up from his book, his eyes meeting with Nick's, whose were full of worry. Jeff then looked shocked for a split second before closing his book and placing it on the table, giving his full attention to Nick. Jeff waited for Nick to begin talking, as he could see that there was obviously something on his mind.
Nick took the chair next to Jeff's and sat down.
"Hi" he whispered.
"Hey." Jeff whispered softly.
Nick closed his eyes for a moment, trying to gather all his thoughts together, before opening them again, and allowing them to settle on Jeff's face.
"Jeff." He began slowly. "Did I do something wrong?" He asked, hurt and confusion written all over his face.
Jeff should have known this was coming. He didn't know what to tell him. On one hand, the reason why he's so down in the dumps and heartbroken is entirely Nick's fault. However, he has no right to blame him. He couldn't be upset at him for not liking him back, as much as he wanted to. I thought we could have a shot, but I guess not. He wants his Nick back but he can't, not yet. He's just not ready. He needs time to accept the fact that Nick will never feel the same way, and that they're never going to be more than friends.
How am I supposed to tell Nick the truth? Oh hi Nick, I've only been in love with you since...oh, forever. And I'm insanely jealous of Tyler because I'm scared he's gonna steal you away and you'll pick him instead of me. But yeah, other than that, everything's cool. Get real, he thought. So he just told him what he thought would be best.
Jeff looked up at Nick and shook his head. "Look Nick, it's got nothing to do with you, I'm fine okay. Just a bit stressed with school work."
"Jeff..." Nick began, but Jeff interrupted him.
"Nick!" He shouted. "Just drop it okay!" Jeff sighed deeply before grabbing his book and bag and leaving the library.
Nick was still in shock, he couldn't believe what just happened. Jeff has never lost his cool at Nick before. He was just so confused. When did things get this bad?
Nick sat in the same spot for the last twenty minutes. He looked around and realised he was the only one left in the library. He just sat there, thinking. Whilst this new situation might have been ideal for Jeff, for Nick, it was complete and utter torture. Saying that he missed his best friend was by far, the biggest understatement of the century. If only he knew what was bugging Jeff, so he could try and fix things but that idea appeared to be more and more impossible everyday as Jeff was always avoiding him. He hated this. He's never felt so empty inside before and it was killing him. How could one person make him feel like this? But the truth was it wasn't just a person. It was Jeff. He's everything. With him, Nick can really be himself without fear of ridicule. Jeff's the only person that Nick trusted enough to tell him things that no one else knew. Opening up to Jeff wasn't something he had to think about, it was just second nature to him.
When he's bored, he's the first person he calls upon. When Nick's hurting or sad, he knows the only person that has even the slightest chance of making him feel better is Jeff. Or when he's just happy and wants to share his good news with someone, he just wants to pick up his phone and tell him, secretly wanting Jeff to be proud of him.
He's everything to Nick. And he can't believe that it took a situation like this to make him realise it.
"Please come back to me." He whispered softly, eyes brimmed to the top with tears. He couldn't help it, but right there and then he broke down.