A/N: Hey guys! Thank you again for the story alerts, PM's, favourites and reviews :D they mean THE WORLD! Sorry for this really really really late chapter :/ life can get hectic.

Its MY BIRTHDAY TODAY (yay me!), but it didn't turn out to be such an awesome day :/ But then I realised I can always count on Nick&Jeff to cheer me up! And they did, I love these two boys! Anyway, here's the latest chapter dudes, please let me know what you think by reviewing or feel free to PM me :)

Today is an important day for one Nicholas Duval, its the day that the Dalton Soccer team have been waiting for all year; the Soccer Championship Finals.

It had started off with ten schools in the district, all competing for the Championship Cup. But now, after a gruelling and daunting five weeks, only two schools remain; the Dalton Academy soccer team versus reigning champions from last year; the St Albans soccer team.

This game was it for them, its what they've been training day-in day-out for all these months, and they finally got there; they've finally gotten to the final and they have no intention of losing now. The pressure was particularly high for Nick as he was their strongest player and the team captain so if anyone were to score, it would be him. Plus, everyone was counting on him to give Dalton its a much anticipated win this year.

Kick-off was at 13.00 sharp. The weather was looking promising this afternoon as the sun was beaming down on the football pitch; which was slowly being filled with supporters of both teams.

Jeff hugged his knees against his chest as he sat on his bed. He let out a deep breath, trying to cast his mind back to earlier, however his thoughts were interrupted. For the fifteenth time that day, he heard his phone ringing again. "Ugh!" He groaned. "Why won't he just leave me alone?" Jeff was really fed up, he just needed sometime to himself, so just as he was about to turn off his phone, he saw the name on the caller ID and realised it wasn't Nick.

"Lily?" Jeff answered, completely taken by surprise.

"Take your time little bro." He heard her reply back.

"Ah, sorry about that." He said sheepishly. "I thought it was someone else." Jeff was surprised when he saw his sister's name on the caller I.D; they hadn't spoken for a while since she moved to New York. Nevertheless, he was so glad to hear from her, hoping she could make him feel better after the miserable week he's been having.

"...Oh yeah, who you avoiding?" She asked, feeling inquisitive. "Its not mom telling you to come home more again is it?"

He chuckled lightly. "No, no its not mom. Urm..." He hesitated, "Its no one, forget about it. So how have you been?" He said, trying to desperately change the subject.

" Jeff..." She called out slowly. Meaning his subtle conversation change wasn't that subtle afterall and didn't go unnoticed by Lily.

He sighed deeply as he realised he had been caught, "Fine. Its Nick okay" he huffed, not really wanting to tell his sister what was going on, but he knew it was no point; she would have got it out of him eventually.

"Nick?" Asked Lily, with confusion written all over her face. "Your Nick?" She added.

Jeff rolled his eyes and groaned. "He's not my Nick!" He exclaimed. She really knows the right things to say (!)

"Okay okay, calm down." She told him, slightly startled by his small outburst. "Okay let me start again, what happened between you and 'not-your' Nick?"

Jeff simply rolled his eyes at his sisters attempt at humour, before sighing. "Things haven't exactly been going that great sis." He said, rubbing his temples with his free hand.

"What do you mean?" She asked, still confused.

Jeff sighed for the umpteenth time that day, hoping he doesn't regret this. He took a deep breath, before slowly beginning.

"I-I love him, Lily."

Coach Hunt was giving them a pep talk just before the match. "Okay fellas, this is it." He said, looking each boy straight in the eye. "Go out there, and do Dalton proud. And most importantly..." He paused, all eyes glued to him waiting for him to finish. " Go KICK SOME ASS!" He shouted, this made all the boys in the locker room laugh and shout aloud too with sheer excitement, adrenaline now pumping through their veins.

As the players ran through the dark tunnel that lead towards the pitch, Nick could hear the faint sounds of fans chanting, he smiled to himself. As they got closer and closer, they could feel the sun beaming brightly on their faces and the loud buzz of the crowd was almost deafening.

Jeff was all flustered and nervous as he's never even uttered those words out loud, let alone tell somebody else. So whilst he tried to compose himself and steady his breathing, he was completely oblivious to the fact that on the other side of the phone, his sister was smiling.

" I know." She whispered.

"Yeah I-" he paused. "...wait, what?" It was now his turn to be confused.

She just giggled. "Jeff. Its so damn obvious. Whenever you hear his name, you light up like a christmas tree. Or when you're with him how you can't keep this adorable grin of your face. Its so cute."

Jeff couldn't help the smile that made its way onto his face. He shook his head in disbelief asking himself, am I that obvious?

" ...probably the same one you have now." She added whilst smirking.

The adorable, lop-sided grin he was wearing fell. How did she...?

"Look Jeff." She began. "I'm your older sister, I notice this kinda stuff. So...now that we've got the obvious out of the way, you still didn't answer my question."

Man, she never let's anything go, does she? He thought. Oh well, here it goes. "There's this new dude..." He started. "Tyler." She noticed the way he said his name with such distaste.

"...Okay?" She asked, clearly wanting Jeff to elaborate on it as she unsure as to what this new kid has to do with him and Nick.

"Well..." He carried on, his face suddenly becoming so morose and sullen. "Ever since he transferred here, things have been awful, Lily. See, he fancies Nick too."

"Ohh.." She said, finally understanding.

"...and I don't know what to do Lil. I love him, I love him so much! But at the same time I just want to throw my shoe at him!" He groaned in frustration. "Why can't he see what he's doing to me?" Jeff could see his vision becoming blurry as the tears accumulated in his eyes.

She listened intently to her baby brother, feeling complete sympathy for him. "I just want him here with me Lily." He continued. "I miss him so much! I don't think I've ever felt this empty inside. What do I do? I just don't know what to do anymore." He whispered the last bit, wincing as he felt a lump forming in his throat.

"Oh Jeffy..." She whispered, her voice filled with deep concern.

Jeff rubbed furiously at his eyes, desperately trying to clear his vision. He was so mad and angry, mostly at himself for being so emotional about this and always bursting into tears. Lily heard him sniffling from the other side of the phone. Gosh he had it bad, she thought.

The players ran out of the locker rooms and onto the pitch of Dalton academy. Nick scanned the crowd for the Warblers as they promised they'd all be there to cheer him on. He grinned and waved up at them all when he saw them, he was so glad that they all came a-

Wait, where's Jeff? He thought.

Nick frowned as he scanned the crowd carefully one more time in search for his blonde best friend, but to his dismay, there was no such luck. "Where is he?" He whispered quietly as his eyes continued to search the sea of people.

"Nick!" Someone hissed.

He turned around as he heard his name being called out; he saw one of his team members, Rick, staring at him with a puzzled look on his face. "Dude! What are you doing," he heard him say, "stand in formation, the match's about to start!" Nick had totally forgotten about that, his mind was so focused on Jeff not being there that he'd forgotten all about the game. He walked forward to his position, every now and again glancing back at the crowd for a familiar set of blonde hair. He just shook his head, he needed to focus on the match at hand. So what if he's not here, if he doesn't want to come then that's fine by me. See if I care! He thought, trying to convince himself, all the while doing his best to ignore that pang in his chest. He saw the referee slowly bring the whistle up to his lips, this is it, thought Nick. "You can do this." Nick told himself, he took a deep, the whistle was then blown.

It had been a while since the match had started and yet neither team had managed to score. The ball was booted into the air by the goalkeeper. Tyler, who was the closest, managed to chest it before allowing it to drop onto the astro-turf. He then dribbled the ball past the opposing players very skillfully, making his way towards the goal. However, he realised as he got closer and closer to the goal, that the opposing defenders were advancing towards him fast, from both sides. He needed to do something, so out of the corner of his eye, he saw that Nick was free up ahead and had a clear shot at the goal. He noticed however, that his mind looked elsewhere. What is he doing? Tyler thought. Quickly passing the ball to Nick as he had no other choice, he watched him just about manage to gain control of it. But just as Nick moved forward to score, the assistant referee's flag was raised. He was off-side.

"Hey" Lily whispered. "Jeff, you need to talk to him"

"W-what?" He managed to choke out. "Are you kidding me! I can't tell him Lily, I JUST can't. I can't lose him. Not Nick."

"I know Jeffy, but don't you think you're already losing him by choosing to avoid him." She said, trying to reason with Jeff, making him understand how Nick is probably feeling right now. "He's trying to reach out to you and you're just shutting him out. Imagine if that were you, imagine if Nick all of a sudden, out of nowhere just stopped talking to you and he didn't tell you why."

Jeff realised that she had a point there, what she was saying did make sense. And if the situation was reversed, he'd be really hurt if Nick did that to him.

"And so what if this Tyler kid likes him." She continued. "Are you just gonna stand there and let him steal the boy you're in love with, right in front of your eyes. Does Nick not mean anything to you?"

Jeff's eyes widened at that comment, "What! Of course he does, you know that!" He shouted into the phone. "How could you even ask tha-"

"Then fight for him!" She said exasperatedly, interrupting him. "Don't give up on him. And even if he doesn't return your feelings, don't lose what's right in front of you. He's your best friend, and he needs you just as much as you need him."

Jeff listened to what she was saying. Why does she always have to be right? Just the mere thought of Nick being with Tyler, them holding hands and kissing made Jeff feel physically sick to the stomach. But through the way I've been acting right now, I wouldn't be surprised if Nick did pick him. He thought. I've been such a jerk. Fine, he told himself, his face more determined than ever. From today onwards, Jeff Sterling is getting his best friend back!

"Okay" he whispered. "Okay, I'm not gonna let that Tyler win. No damn way!"

"Woooo!" He heard his sister shout through the phone. "Now get your ass off the phone to me and go talk to him. And I'm not exactly telling you to go march up to him and tell him you love him. That's up to you, you do that when you feel the time is right. But for now, just speak to him."

Jeff smiled gratefully, he really missed his sister. "Thanks Lily. I really needed that."

She simply giggled, "That's what I'm here for little bro. Anytime."

"Okay. I'm gonna go find him. Hmmm... what time is it?'' Jeff muttered quietly, whilst looking at his watch. "...okay its 2.30 which means he would have-" he paused, having just realised something. His eyes widened and Lily heard a gasp from the other side of the phone.

Shit.

"Shit shit shitttt!" He shouted, completely forgetting that his sister is still on the line. Frick! How could I forget, he thought whilst jumping around the room frantically looking for his shoes.

"What's wrong?" She asked, her voice laced with worry.

"Yes!" He shouted as he found his shoes, hastily putting them on.

"He has a match! Its the finals" he groaned, trying to explain to his sister. "And I promised I'd be there. Shit! He's gonna hate me."

"No, he wouldn't. Don't worry, he'll understand." She tried to reassure him

Jeff just groaned. "Look sis I've gotta go" he rushed. "Thank you so much for everything, I'll call you later, I promise!" He then hung up the phone and chucked it on his bed, before running out of the room.

Lily sighed as she hung up the phone as well. Wondering whether or not she gave her brother the right advice. No, she thought shaking her head, he needs to tell Nick, he can't give up on him just yet, she thought. I've seen the way Nick looks at my brother when he's not looking, and I don't care what anyone says, that's love in his eyes. The fool just hasn't realised it yet.

Meanwhile, Jeff was running through the corridors of Dalton, making his way onto the football pitch. However, when he got there he realised that the entrance was packed with people and there was no way he could get through that. "Shit!" He mumbled, "I can't miss this match!" He said, running a hand through his hair. This crowd of people will probably clear by the time the players make their way to the locker rooms, he groaned.

Walking up down, he tried to think of an idea, he couldn't just do nothing. Hold on a minute, he thought as he just remembered something. Locker rooms? "That's it!" He shouted, before rushing out of there, nearly knocking somebody over. He made his way towards the boys locker room as he realised there was a tunnel there that lead out to the pitch, the one where the players come out from. Granted, he wasn't really allowed to be there, but that was the last thing on his mind right now. Once he got there, his eyes scanned the pitch for his best friend. There. He smiled as he saw a familiar set of brown hair that he was well accustomed to.

Jeff looked up at the scoreboard and realised that the second half had just started. Phew, he thought. However, glancing at the board once more, he saw that no one had scored, the score remained 0-0.

Nick remembered the look of slight disappointment his coach gave him during half-time. He is the captain afterall, yet his performance today wasn't going as great as he hoped. He sighed to himself, what am I doing? As Nick was trying to get his confidence back, something on the edge of the pitch caught his eye. Nick's eyes widened. "Jeff..." He whispered, "You came." He smiled to himself before shaking his head, no, he told himself. This is our game. And we will win! He doesn't know where he got this new-found optimism from, but he was loving it.

Another thirty minutes had past and Nick was on fire. This was definitely not the same Nick we experienced in the first half. He was sloppy, he kept getting tackled and constantly lost the ball to the other team. What's more, is that every single clear shot he had at the goal, he missed. But now, this Nick is more fierce. His game is ten times better than before. All eyes were on Nick as he raced down the pitch, Jeff noticed the fire in Nick's eyes, the complete determination, it's something he had always admired. Then with all his might, he kicked hard, firing the ball straight at the goal and before Nick knew it, the crowd when crazy. The ball managed to dodge the goalkeeper and slip in at the top right-hand corner. He saw a bunch of his team-mates charging towards him in celebration, amidst the flailing hands and jumping, Nick glanced up at Jeff, they locked eyes and watched each other for a while. Nick saw Jeff grinning widely and clapping; he ducked his head and smiled to himself. He didn't know why, but he knew impressing Jeff meant a great deal to him. And it appears he had just done that with this goal.

As the game drew to an end, nobody managed to score again after Nick's terrific goal. The final whistle blew, and the fans went crazy. Below on the pitch wasn't any better either. The boys from Dalton all but ran to Nick, and jumped on him. "YOU DID IT!" and "YOU'RE THE MAN!" Were some of the things he heard being directed towards him. A surge of happiness ran through his whole body. We did it, he thought. We won the cup!

As the laughter and cheers slowly died down, Nick manoeuvred his way out of the grasps of his team-mates and set off on a sprint towards the tunnel. Jeff felt his heart speed up as he noticed Nick running towards him.

When he reached Jeff, he just stood there grinning like a fool. "I'm glad you made it" Nick smiled fondly, slightly out of breath. "It means a lot that you came."

Jeff ducked his head down, hiding the red creeping on his cheeks. "I'm sorry I was late, I was on the phone to Lily; lost track of time." He said sheepishly

"Oh don't worry about it. By the way how is Lily? Its been ages since I've seen her." Said Nick.

"Yeah, she's good..." Jeff said, trailing off.

The two boys were just standing there, neither knowing what to say. Come on Jeff, get a hold of yourself, he thought. However, just as Nick was about to open his mouth, he felt a pair of arms latched onto his neck.

"I'm sorry" he heard Jeff whisper into his ears. Nick didn't hesitate to wrap his arms around Jeff's waist. In fact he held onto him tighter as if he was afraid that Jeff would leave him again.

Nick swallowed, "I miss you" he whispered, "so so much." Jeff closed his eyes and batted away the tears as heard the thickness in the brunette's voice.

"You were amazing today." Jeff told him, "Its just such a shame I missed the first half, you probably played just as awesome."

Nick simply scoffed at this, "Believe me, I sucked badly the first half."

Jeff just shook his head, holding him tighter. "Come on, don't be so hard on yourself." He said, "Maybe you were just nervous and stressed."

"Yeah, possibly..." He began, "Or... maybe because my good luck charm wasn't there." He told him.

When Jeff realised what Nick had said, he tilted his back to look at his face properly. He watched Nick close his eyes briefly before opening them again, this time locking onto Jeff's firmly. "Or maybe..." He heard him say, "maybe the only person that I really wanted to be there wasn't." He whispered, eyes never leaving Jeff's. The blonde's eyes widened and his breath hitched, I must be imagining this, he thought. Suddenly, he became very aware of the way the two of them were standing, with Nick's arms around his waist and his own around Nick's neck. He could just lean forward and...

Okay, what am I doing? Nick asked himself. This is Jeff. W-Why do I want to kiss him so badly? He thought. None of this made any sense to him, but all he knew was right now and in this moment, with Jeff in his arms, he couldn't be any happier.

"Jeff... I..." Nick stuttered. He then swallowed hard before bringing up a hand and resting it on Jeff's cheek. They both looked at each other, trying to figure out what the other one is thinking.

"Hey Nick!" Both Nick and Jeff's heaad whipped around as they heard someone call out Nick's name. "Come on, let's go! Coach's waiting for us."

Nick groaned inwardly, perfect timing (!) He looked back up at Jeff apologetically. "I've got to go." He said sadly, "I'll see you later?" Nick asked hopefully. Jeff simply smiled up at him and nodded. "Later."