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11 pm, she (he) walked in with her (his) friends
And now I'm tripping off the deep end
Nick’s just chilling out on a nearby couch when it happens. He’s usually not the type of guy to hang around with the kind of people he’s found himself with tonight, but a party is a party and it’s Tara Jones’s birthday so he might as well pretend he’s cooler than he actually is.
Beside him, most of the outcasts from Truham sit or stand, including Tao Xu, whose dark hair just tucked under his beanie and all (well, mostly) black leather outfit stands out in the blaring neon lights, belt around his waist tapping mid-thigh on his leg as he does with the music that’s practically enveloping everything, vape in his left hand.
He doesn’t really know what’s going on or how the hell he got here, when a ruckus starts at the front door before he actually sees Xu /smile/ and out of the crowd, a girl appears and makes a beeline for him, her dark skin glowing with roll-on glitter as she sticks her tongue down Tao’s throat, her miniskirt dangerously close to becoming something a lot less. Nick winces and turns away for a second, gaining Tao’s attention, the gothic-looking tall boy chuckling like it was totally normal. “Little bit uncomfy there, Nelson?”
So call me a Lyft or a black hearse
'Cause I know you'll make my head spin, yeah
“Shut up, Tao.” Nick bites back annoyed and furrows his eyebrows when Tao laughs. “Hey, no hard feelings. Just teasing.” He nodded toward the girl. “Elle, this is Nick. He’s from Truham, Year 11. Nick Nelson, Elle Argent from Higgs, fucking 10 out of 10.”
“Nice to meet you.” Nick nods in her direction, but suddenly, his world starts spinning and it’s not the alcohol he’s going to blame, because the person that’s come into the room has practically punched him in the gut. Metaphorically speaking. The girl (guy? Is it a guy? maybe?) standing behind Elle against the wall is…amazingly gorgeous, to the point where Nick’s not sure if the cottonmouth he suddenly has is because of him smoking weed earlier or it’s her (him) causing it alone.
On further inspection from a distance, Nick can confirm (to a part of his rising panic and his heart which is also beating at a speed that’s terrifying) that the person is a guy and not only that, a very pretty guy. He’s slightly shorter than him, but his black curls in the same or similar shade to Tao’s catch the lights like the glitter on his eyes, an eyeliner heart drawn on his cheek and black lipstick over his pursed lips.
He’s dressed like his clothing is tailor-made for him, a grey sweater (in Summer?) with frilled bell sleeves, cold shoulder cuts, a black choker collar around the top and ripped black denim shorts covering the tops of fishnet stockings that travel all the way down his legs to short, but heeled back boots and grey frilly socks.
And I said, "What's your favorite color?"
She (He) pointed at her (his) waist
He doesn’t know how, but he’s gotten up off the couch and is making a zig-zag path towards him, following him as he moves through groups of people to catch up to him. When he finally does, he makes an excuse to grab onto his arm, before taking it off as he turns to stare at him in confusion, blue eyes immediately wrapping him up there and there. “Hi.”
“Hi.” The boy replies tentatively, looking up at him. “Can I help you?”
“No, uh, yeah, no, I-” Nick struggled to speak, floundering before he grinned pensively. “Sorry, I thought you were someone I knew when you were hanging around Tao and his girlfriend. I didn’t mean to grab your arm so hard."
“It’s fine, don’t worry about it.” The boy shook his head, expression neutral. “Happens all the time, even when I’m out third-wheeling with them.”
“Still, I’m really sorry.” Nick reiterates, before sticking out his hand politely and letting the boy take it gently. “I’m Nick.”
“Nice to meet you, Nick.” Those blue eyes are looking him up and down now and it’s making him actually nervous, a red flush decorating his cheeks as they look back up at him again before narrowing. “A yellow hoodie tank? Really?” The boy’s lips sneer. “I’m guessing you’re a sports player then, as you’re actually wearing jeans with it.”
“Hey!” Nick protested, sounding all the more outraged. “It’s a style, it’s my style, I don’t see you wearing your favorite colour. It’s not that bad!”
“That’s because it goes with everything.” The boy had the audacity to roll his eyes before pointing at his shorts. “See? Can’t even fault it.”
And I said, "That's not a color, it's a shade"
She (He) said, "Don't disagree with me."
“That’s just a shade of black, black’s not an actual color.” Nick snorted, but backed off seeing the look on the other boy’s face.
“Of course you’d say that.” He can’t read the boy’s face anymore, but he sounds irate in one way, while disappointed in the other.
“Typical dumb rugby lad." He rants. "Apologises for grabbing me after staring at me for a million years, then disagrees with me. Piss off.”
And then she (he) walked away, I didn't get her (his) name
I can't explain the look on her (his) face
“Hey, look I didn’t mean it like that-” Nick’s much nicer words are wasted however as the boy walks off into another crowd and he’s left deflated, confused and possibly horny. He hates being a teenager. He also didn’t get the boy’s name. Nice going, idiot.
She (He) wore a sweater in summer weather, yeah
She (He) wore a sweater it was funeral grey
He stomps off dejectedly to another sofa in the house and can’t be bothered to do anything but drink his drink and think about the boy in every detail. How the black lipstick was slightly smeared on the right corner of his lips, how blue his eyes were. Things like that. Things he’d never settled on when thinking about a girl, ever.
And now it's killing me I just want you to be
My next mistake that I'm gonna make
He doesn’t mean to be having a full-blown sexuality crisis in front of everyone, but it’s plain to most that the emotions most likely passing across his face are not normal.
Then again, most of the kids here would think he was just really high and seeing some weird shit.
She (He) wore a sweater in summer weather, yeah
She (He) wore a sweater it was funeral grey
He almost wishes his friends hadn’t ditched him so he doesn’t have to deal with this internal battle himself, but he also knows that no rugby player chad guy is going to get anything he’s wanting to ramble about. They’d just think he was far gone. He didn’t want that.
3 am, she (he) walked in, took a hit
I said, "That shit is gonna kill you"
It’s a couple of hours later when he finds himself in the presense of that boy again, under yet again, another weird set of circumstances. It’s 3 am when the boy suddenly walks into the quiet room Nick’s found himself in as he smokes a joint, which suddenly becomes lax in his fingers when he notices the new presence as one of the boy’s flouncy hands waves at him and joint expectedly. “You going to smoke that, pretty boy?”
Nick almost cums at the nickname coming from the boy’s lips and he breaks out into a sweat, mouth open before he just shakes his head no, not trusting his voice right now.
“Well, if you aren’t-” The boy just nicks it out of his hands and Nick splutters before finally blurting out something along the lines of “That shit will kill you, it’s like almost 100 grams.”
She (He) kinda smiled and she (he) blew it in my face
And said, "Well, now you're gonna die too"
The boy doesn’t seem fazed by Nick’s flustered expression or declaration, smirking before taking a long drag and blowing out the smoke into Nick’s face obnoxiously. “Oops. Well, now you're gonna die too.”
Nick doesn’t know whether to be totally horrifed or fall even harder for him.
Yeah, I said that you can call me,
Beep me if you want my skin
“Well, I know we didn’t get off you the best start-” Nick tries to talk and hopes it doesn’t sound as desperate as he thinks he does. “-but I wanted to apologise for earlier. I didn’t mean to insult you in whatever way I did and I didn’t mean to stare before that, it’s just, I just wanted to figure out if you were a boy or a girl and if you would even take my number-”
She (He) rolled her eyes and then she (he) said
"I know your dying wish is to be baptized in my spit"
He stops when the boy rolls his eyes. “Really? Take your number? What kind of shit is that?" He sits up, making Nick shuffle slightly away.
"It’s called /giving/ me your phone number. Look, if your dying wish is to be baptized in my spit somehow, all you have to do is ask me outright, not look like an absolute cock.”
And then she (he) walked away, I didn't get her (his) name
I can't explain the look on her (his) face
Nick’s too frozen, face twitching and eyes wide as the boy once again gets up and walks off from him after putting out the joint and he sags, the very thought of what he said going straight down south and making him whine, closing his legs.
She (He) wore a sweater in summer weather, yeah
She (He) wore a sweater it was funeral grey
He might actually die tonight. He might not even make it back to his car at this rate, if that boy continues to step all over him like he’s doing. It's like he knows that every single action that he's doing is either angering, confusing or turning Nick on even more than previously and the latter still doesn't know if it upsets him or not.
And now it's killing me I just want you to be
My next mistake that I'm gonna make
It doesn't matter soon enough as he curses five seconds later when he realizes that once again, he didn’t get the boy’s name and is left trying to pick up the pieces of the conversation, the boy not leaving his brain.
She (He) wore a sweater in summer weather, yeah
She (He) wore a sweater it was funeral grey
He resolves that he’s going to have to avoid him with every bone in his being until he feels like going home. That or he waits out until the boy leaves and goes home himself.
Float my way I'm melting for you
Float my way I'm melting for you
(He’s not also thinking about how nice this arsehole of a boy would look spread out against the blue-grey sheets on his bed looking up at him that the same kind of eyes. He needs to leave the couch at some point.)
She’s (He’s) walked away, I didn't get her (his) name
I can't explain the look on her (his) face
It’s finally around 4 am when he finally decides it’s safe to get out of there, finding Tara and bidding her goodbye as she drunkenly hugs him before letting him leave out the front door, the light dusk of really early morning greeting him as he walks towards his Mum’s car.
She (He) wore a sweater in summer weather, yeah
She (He) wore a sweater it was funeral grey
“Wait!” A gentle voice calls to him as he’s inserting his keys in the driver's door and he almost drops them on the road seeing the boy from earlier, looking sheepish as he stands a little away still on the street, swaying. "Hi."
“Hi.” Nick’s breathless again and it must look funny to the other as the boy laughs a little awkwardly before shuffling in place.
And now it's killing me I just want you to be
My next mistake that I'm gonna make
“I’m sorry, about earlier.” suddenly comes from the boy’s lips and Nick fights to not comfort him as he shrugs, black drops of eyeliner falling from one of the boys’ still very blue eyes as he continues. “I’ve been...pretty nasty all night to you. I just came out of a breakup with someone who wasn’t…the nicest person. Elle said I shouldn’t have taken it out on you and everyone else. She literally brought me out to this party to give me a break.”
“Well, I figured it was…something.” Nick repockets the keys and slowly steps around the car to end up with his feet in the gutter, looking up at the slightly raised head above him. “I don’t like prying, so when I fucked up both times trying to introduce myself, I figured you just weren’t interested or worse, I was really just that much of an idiot and I was having a weed moment as I had to reevaluate my whole sexuality halfway through a trip.”
She (He) wore a sweater in summer weather, yeah
She (He) wore a sweater it was funeral grey
The boy laughs and Nick finds himself laughing as well before the boy talks again, sounding much brighter despite the hour. “I was interested, I just…didn’t know how to say that I need a little time before rushing into anything…complicated.”
“Totally get it. I’m not judging whatsoever.” Nick nods, heart feeling lighter as he stares before pursing his own lips in curiosity as he tilts his head down. “Listen, I’m actually about to head home myself, I don’t know if you want a ride, but-”
Float my way I'm melting for you
Float my way I'm melting for you
“Yeah.” The boy suddenly breathes before he’s even finished and his head snaps up as he catches the ghost of a smile on those black lips he’s been fantasizing about all night. “Yeah, I would like that. I have a small request, however.”
“Sure, what is it?” He expects the boy wants to go to another party in the neighbourhood or be dropped off at a petrol station or something, before he shyly looks at him and his heart becomes fast again. “Can I have a kiss?”
Nick almost falls to his knees out of shock, but he’s soon clambering the drain towards the pavement and capturing the boy’s lips as he meets him, only breaking away when the other does, both of them looking at eachother before Nick speaks. “Hi, I’m Nick.”
“Hi Nick-” The voice of the boy is gentle now as he looks at him, smiling as the sun starts to rise behind him. “I’m Charlie.”