Chapter Text
"This is ridiculous!"
"Chloe shut up!" Cried Brooke, settling her best friend back into her seat. The cafeteria was buzzing today due to the heavy rain outside restricting students to only the school's buzzing food hall or narrow and long hallways. Brooke and Chloe sat at the far left corner table watching from afar as they picked at their food. Across the hall, Christine could be seen eagerly talking to Jeremy, trying to convince him to talk to a certain brown haired boy. Even from where the two girls were sitting it was clear Jeremy wasn't giving in to this idea.
"Two weeks," Chloe grumbled, stabbing her fries with far more passion than was necessary. "It's been two weeks since we told them. And nothing."
Brooke sighed and turned her gaze towards Michael sitting at the opposite end of the cafeteria, humming along to the beat of his favourite song. "I know Chloe, they're hopeless."
"More than hopeless. Idiotic! Blind! Cowardly!"
"You sound like Christine." Brooke giggled, playfully punching her best friend in the arm. Chloe smiled and returned the gesture.
"I suppose I have been spending a lot more time with her."
Brooke hummed in response, feeling a small wave of jealousy rush through her though she didn't quite know why. The two fell into a comfortable silence as they watched the pining boys zig-zag around each other's feelings like flies. It had almost become routine for the girls. Christine was the only one still trying, constantly cornering Michael and Jeremy in hopes of convincing them to spill - but neither were budging.
"We need to help them," said Chloe suddenly, startling the blonde girl beside her.
"Sorry?"
"They're hopeless Brooke, they can't do this alone." She claimed, turning to her partner in crime. "We need to help them."
As Brooke slowly began to catch on, she narrowed her eyes at her friend.
"Help how exactly?"
"Just, give them a little nudge y'know?" Chloe replied, a hint of mischief in her voice.
"A little nudge..." Brooke repeated, mumbling to herself in thought.
"You got any ideas?"
"Maybe..."
"Perfect." Chloe stood from her seat and made her way to the other end of the hall, dropping her lunch tray by the counter. To her left she could see Michael and Jeremy sitting at a lunch table talking, probably completely ignoring the blatant blush on each other's cheeks.
Brooke caught up to her friend and disposed of her empty lunch tray. "Are you sure about this Chlo?" She asked, a sense of doubt in her mind.
"Positive. These two may be hopeless, but they're still human. They have to deal with these feelings eventually, and all they need is a little nudge to tip them off the edge." She turned to her best friend and smiled genuinely. "They'll be happier afterwards."
Brooke returned the smile and grabbed her best friend's wrist.
"Then we're going to need a little help from Christine."
------
"Is this really necessary?" Jeremy groaned. His arm was caught in the clutches of a miss Canigula who was dragging him through the hallway towards the drama room.
"Very," she replied firmly as she continued to tug her friend along. "No one else would help me clean out the costume closet and as you are also part of the drama club it is also your responsibility."
A couple of classrooms down lay the drama room where Chloe, Brooke and Michael were all gathered. The two girls were aimlessly searching through boxes for Chloe's "missing belt" which according to her was extremely necessary for her next performance with the club.
"I still don't understand why I have to help you look for it Chlo," grumbled Michael who was currently sorting his way through last year's props. 'Some lovely memories these bring back,' he thought to himself.
"Because you owe me," the brunette replied, "besides you know just as well as I do how upset Christine will be when she discovers that I've lost it."
"Yeah yeah..."
"Chloe!" Whispered Brooke, startling her best friend. The plastic vase Chloe was holding clattered to the floor which caught Michael's attention. She smiled nervously and pulled Brooke down to the floor to "help her" clean the mess up.
"What?" She hissed in return once Michael got back to organising the props. Brooke silently pointed to the entrance of the drama room. After a few seconds Chloe spotted the faint figures of Christine and Jeremy slowly inching their way towards the club room, causing her to suddenly jump up from her crouching position.
"Michael!" She exclaimed a little louder than she intended. It went unnoticed by the boy however as he poked his head out of the scatter of boxes to heed the call.
"Yeah?"
"Could you check the drama closet real quick? Maybe the belt is in there..." She smiled as if to further her point. Brooke glared at her from the side, nudging her lightly to 'tone it down on the dramatics'.
Micheal frowned. "Why don't you check it, I'm busy sorting through about a dozen princess costumes," he held one up for example, bowing gracefully to match his new persona. Brooke giggled.
"Just do it hoodie boy, Brooke and I have our hands full."
"Please Michael!" Brooke added, hoping it would sway the request in their favour. The plan worked as Michael begrudgingly got up from his post by the props and walked over to the drama closet in search of Chloe's so-called belt. He brought his headphones up to his ears to help distract himself from the arduous task, turning the music up to as high as he wanted before slipping into the closet. As soon as he stepped in the girls ran over and slowly closed the door behind him without his notice and processed onto phase two of their plan.
The voices of Christine and Jeremy drew near and soon the door to the drama club room swung open as the rehearsal lover stepped forward, closely followed by Jeremy. From the other side of the room, Chloe's head popped out from under the hill of props to greet the two.
"Why hellooooo Jeremy!" She smiled sweetly, waving her arms up and down in greeting.
"Hi Jeremy!" Added Brooke, hoping to ease the suspicion after Chloe's very obvious poor acting.
"Hi?" Replied Jeremy before turning to Christine and raising an eyebrow.
She shrugged. "I needed all the help I could get. The props needed sorting as well. Now," turning Jeremy's attention to the drama closet Christine hurried her friend along.
She stopped just before the door and winked at Jeremy. "Don't come out until you're ready got it?"
Jeremy sighed and nodded, opening the door to the closet. Before he could notice his best friend's presence Christine shoved him inside and slammed the door shut, using her club key to lock it.
"Sorry!" She cried as Chloe and Brooke rushed over to join her. The faint sound of Jeremy yelling could be heard from the sound proof room as the girls turned and walked away.
Chloe nudged Christine's arm playfully. "Nice subtext there Chris," she added grinning.
Christine giggled and beamed as the three waltzed out of the drama room. "I am a performer after all."
------
Jeremy wasn't quite aware of the fact that he had just been pushed into a closet by Christine until the sound of the lock being turned brought him back to reality. The same sound also revealed the presence of another boy who was currently crouched down sifting through boxes. His red hoodie was a clear give away as to what had just happened.
"Christine..." he said wilfully, stepping backwards and turning only to come face to face with the locked door.
"Christine open up," he said again, shaking the door knob to confirm his suspicions. A faint "Sorry!" could be heard from the other side. Jeremy knew exactly what was going on and was determined to remove himself from the situation before the other noticed. Unfortunately it was a little too late for that.
"Hey Chlo, I think I found your-" Michael's eyes widened as he turned to see his best friend banging on the closet door. He dropped the belt, startling Jeremy into whipping his head to face him. The two stood there for a moment, bewildered as to what they had gotten themselves into.
Michael broke the silence by clearing his throat. Jeremy gulped. The silence returned.
They both knew there was no getting out of this.
"I broke up with Christine," was all Jeremy could manage. His tone was telling of how much he didn't believe the statement to be true, yet it was.
"I know," replied Michael, "why?"
Jeremy gulped again, a few sweat drops trickled down his forehead as he took a step away from the closet door.
"I didn't love her," he stated. "B-but that's fair right?"
Michael remained silent.
"I-I mean, remember that documentary we watched a while back? It stated that it takes around two months for a crush to become love. S...so if I didn't love her by then then I never would have... right?" He stammered, trying to convince himself more so than who he was telling it to.
Michael still said nothing.
"M..Mike?"
"What about two years?" He finally replied, looking up with enough courage to lock eyes with Jeremy as he said it.
The question took Jeremy by surprise. "Two years? What do you mean two years?"
"I mean if you've liked someone for two years, it's more than just a crush isn't it?" Not once did Michael's eyes leave Jeremy's.
"I... I guess so?" He stuttered in reply.
"Isn't it..." Michael repeated quietly, taking his eyes off of Jeremy to look down at the floor.
"Michael I don't understand," Jeremy took a step closer, "what are you talking about?"
"Why did you break up with Christine." Said Michael, not as a question but as a statement. He looked up and took a step forward, locking eyes with Jeremy once more. It unnerved the tall boy.
"I already told you, I didn't love her."
"Was that the only reason?"
Jeremy opened his mouth to confirm but found that he couldn't. His mind flashbacked to his conversation with Brooke in the classroom. She knew exactly what was going on in Jeremy's head before he did. The image of her shaking her head and smiling haunted him for days along with her closing sentence: "Maybe you should talk to him."
Opposite, Michael was having a similar experience. His mind was racing through the many conversations he had had with Chloe on this topic, one of which stood out the most. He remembered Chloe telling him about how Jeremy broke up with Christine but kept something from him about it. He remembered confiding in Chloe about what to do about his feelings for his best friend. After going through their whole conversation in a matter of seconds, one phrase stood out the most as it repeated in Michael head, going round and round like a ferris wheel: "Maybe you should talk to him."
"Talk to him," Michael said slowly, inching closer to Jeremy in the process.
"Talk to him," Jeremy repeated in mutter, realising how close the two boys were at this point.
"Was that the only reason?" Michael repeated.
"No," Jeremy answered, sure of his reply for the first time in weeks.
That was all the confirmation he needed. Before the other could protest Michael grabbed Jeremy's jacket and pressed him lips to his, earning a small squeal from the boy. The surprise quickly melted into wonder as Jeremy returned the kiss with as much eager as Michael giving. The realisation of how much he had wanted this shot threw him, boasting his confidence. His hand flew up to Michael neck, pulling to two closer together. The boy hummed in response, tilting his head to deepen the kiss.
The two found themselves slowly walking backwards until Jeremy's back hit the closer door. Michael took the opportunity to slip his tongue into the others mouth, earning another sound from Jeremy. His hands began to wonder and his mind was still racing and trying to keep up as to what was happening. They broke the kiss for a split second to catch their breath and Michael took a moment to take in the sight in front of him. Jeremy was up against the closet door panting for breath with bruised lips and a flustered face, a sight Michael only got to see in his dreams.
"Two years?" Jeremy managed to mutter.
"Two years." Michael confirmed before returning to the kiss. His hands landed on Jeremy's waist, pinning him closer to the door. He didn't plan on letting go of this dream.
------
"Do you think we kept them in there too long?" Christine muttered as the girls walked back into the drama room to let Michael and Jeremy out of the closet.
"I'm sure they're fine," Brooke offered with a smile. "They needed this, a little push, right Chlo?"
"Exactly," Chloe beamed, taking the key off of Christine and making her way towards the closet door. "Besides they probably won't even want to come out. I bet you ten bucks they're in there right now making-"
Chloe's speech was cut short when a soft moan made its way through the door. Chloe stopped in her tracks and stared at the wall, frozen as to what she had just heard.
"Chloe?" Brooke asked, concerned as to why her friend had suddenly stopped.
Chloe stood there not knowing what she had quite expected when she locked the two boys in the closet that day. She hadn't quite taken into account the amount of sexual tension between the two until a small mutter of Michael's name was heard through the door. As if being brought back to life, Chloe slipped the closet key underneath the door unnoticed and rushed over to lead Brooke and Christine out of the room despite their complaints.
She made a mental note to get details from Michael later.