Work Text:
Noah sat on the living room couch watching a TV show that came out not too long ago. With one hand holding the remote and the other rubbing the back of his dear golden retriever, Winston, he received a plethora of text messages from his device, which rang on the glass coffee table seated in between the television and himself. He leaned over to reach for his phone.
He opened the messages, which all came from Cody, his current roommate and, believe it or not, boyfriend. But apparently, Gwen had taken his phone and spammed his name till he replied. She then proceeded to complain about Cody ranting on and on about different types of pasta and creating some sort of pasta tier list that fits best with Alfredo sauce— whatever that meant.
After switching off the television and silently grumbling about the interruption, Noah rose from his seat and grabbed the car keys from the dining table. He put on a jacket draped over the living room couch and slid into a pair of shoes. Before opening the door and heading downstairs to the parking lot, he received another text message, this one clearly from Cody himself. His sloppy spelling begged for Noah to bring Winston along, which he finally agreed to do after others begged for him to pick his boyfriend up.
Noah smiled and switched off his phone after reading Cody’s smiley face with one too many parentheses. He turned to Winston patiently waiting on the couch and called his name, patting his thigh and whistling. Winston immediately reacted and came rushing over to him, ready to tag along. After leashing Winston with a blue leash hanging on the coat rack next to the door, he opened the door and met the cool, breezy air from the open space of the apartment complex.
They hopped down the stairs till they met ground level, then rushed to his car to warm up. He opened the passenger seat and unleashed Winston to buckle him in. Noah took a picture of him buckled in and sent it to Cody, who immediately responded with jumbled-up words Noah couldn’t quite decrypt, but it was still cute.
Noah hopped into the driver’s seat and turned on the engine, shivering at the leather seat’s chilly touch. He turned on the heater and began to back out of the complex parking lot to drive to Geoff’s house, where the special occasion occurred. He drove in silence as he faced the road, looking over to Winston doing the same at every other red light.
“Winnie!!!” Cody called as Noah came in through the front door. Everyone present greeted him inside, with some rushing to Winston. Cody giggled as he bent down to squish his dog’s face, then looked up to Noah. He proceeded to grab Noah’s cheeks and squish them together, instantly irritating him. But instead of lashing out, he decided to sit through it as Cody then dragged him to one of the stools of the island counter, where Gwen and her girlfriend, Courtney were seated.
“Oh my God, finally. Cody wouldn’t shut up about that pasta.” Courtney exhaled at the sight of Cody putting Noah onto one of the stools.
“Fettuccine is superior with creamy sauce! You can’t tell me otherwise! But then again, classic penne isn’t so bad.” Courtney faced Noah, who gave her an approving expression. Leshawna sitting on one of the living room sofas called Cody’s name as the dog began to lick her face, causing him to give a quick peck on the top of Noah’s head and rush over to control his dog.
“Hey, Noah. Great to see you here!” Geoff called as he and DJ approached him from the opposite side of the island. Katie and Sadie walked up to him, too, with the former kissing her husband on the cheek.
“I’m just staying here for a few minutes.” Noah eyed a bottle of beer sitting on the counter and moved his hand away.
“Aw, come on, man. Lighten up! It isn’t a crime to hang out once in a while.”
“Have you seen you guys when you get drunk? No thanks; not a drinker.” He spun to face Cody, who was busy getting tackled by the golden retriever.
“Even I’m attending these events. It’s not so bad watching them, actually,” Noah eyed Courtney as she spun an unknown liquid in her red Solo cup. “You missed out on Trent and Justin accidentally kissing while playing Twister.” Noah’s eyes widened as he slammed a hand on the counter.
“No shot.” Courtney nonchalantly shrugged and took a sip of the drink in her cup.
“It’s nice to relax and let the alcohol wash away all your stress,” Gwen said before chugging down half of a beer can.
“I know alternatives,” Noah responded, rolling his eyes at the sight of Gwen slamming the beer can onto the countertop.
“Come on. Just one time?” Gwen pleaded with a face full of white paint and heavy liner.
“Cody is just too cute when drunk, Noah,” Sadie mentioned, holding a cup similar to Courtney’s.
“Oh my gosh, I know, right? You are such a lucky guy!” Katie mentioned as she wrapped her arms around DJ’s left.
“He’s always babbling about how cute you are and how soft your hair is—.”
“And also about how hot you are in bed!” Noah’s face flustered as everyone around him chuckled. He turned to Cody, who chatted with the people sitting in the living room then surprisingly turned to Noah. His face brightened as Cody gleamed a bright smile at him, tooth gap interrupting his perfect teeth.
Noah turned to the people he currently talked with, who all seemed to notice the excessive blush on his cheeks.
“… If you send me video evidence of that Twister game, I might reconsider.”
“See you soon, guys!” Geoff waved farewell along with the others still present. Cody and Noah waved as they and Winston headed to the car.
After Noah entered the driver’s seat to turn on the engine, he watched Cody as he hopped into the passenger seat with Winston draped over his torso. He turned to Noah as he slowly buckled Winston and himself. Noah simply chuckled and turned on the heater, ultimately glad that he wouldn’t have to worry about strapping his dog in.
The drive home was quiet, broken by the soft noise of shoegaze Noah played before drifting off to sleep. Turning the volume down to almost nothing, he eyed both his dog and boyfriend drooling in their sleep, chair reclined to support Cody’s back. Noah continued driving after the red light became green, though he stole a few glances at the two to cherish the moment.
“Cooooody. We’re heeeere.” Noah whined as he tried to awaken Cody. Winston blinked awake and began to lick Cody’s cheek, which finally woke him up. He stretched and tried to get up, but he was strapped to the seat by the buckle. Noah unbuckled him and dragged him out through the open passenger seat.
Cody grunted and drowsily fell onto Noah as he got up. Noah tried to take Winston to leash him, but Cody refused to let the dog go. Even Winston didn’t seem interested in having to walk. Noah ultimately gave up and dragged Cody to the elevator, with Winston’s pink and black leash dragging behind them.
They both stood in the middle of the cramped elevator, both drifting off to slumber before the elevator bell rang and the door cruised open. Cody leaned against Noah as the wind grew cold, and since he had no jacket, they both rushed to their complex to warm up.
Noah jammed the code into the keypad and pushed open the door. Cody trudged to their bedroom, half awake and not aware of his surroundings.
“Cody, your shoes—“ was all Noah managed to say before he heard a hollow thud. He rushed to Cody after shutting the door and removing his shoes to see him wincing against the door, rubbing his forehead as Winston pawed at his feet waiting to be picked up again.
Noah removed Cody’s hands, causing the latter to look up at him with teary eyes. Noah rolled his eyes at his ploy for a kiss to heal the injury, but he couldn’t help but smile. He opened the door and led Cody to the bed, which he flopped onto and patted his stomach for Winston to lay atop. Cody flailed around his limbs till he removed himself from the duvet and draped it over him and his dog. Noah peeked under the covers and removed Cody’s Adidas, then fixed Cody’s stray hairs before silently walking out of the room.
“Where’re you going?” He heard from behind. He saw Cody sitting up with drowsy eyes squinted and a head full of messy chestnut-colored hair. Noah tossed the shoes out of the room and approached him, flattening the hairs on his head and holding him by his cheeks.
“I got chores to finish. Go to bed.” Cody took Noah’s hands in his, causing Noah to sit at the edge of the bed.
“No. Come sleep. Now.” He slurred, voice croaky and impatient. Noah shook his head and ruffled Cody’s hair, then Winston’s.
“I’ll be finished in a few minutes.”
“Promise?” Cody pouted. Noah’s face flustered as he watched Cody’s soft pthalo eyes glimmer from the moonlight seeping through the thin curtains. He kissed him on his forehead and nodded.
“Promise.” He smiled, which caused Cody to smile and lay back down, cuddling Winston in a warm embrace. Noah kissed him on his ear and walked to the doorway.
He looked back to Cody and softly smiled before shutting the door as quietly as possible.
Fixing up the living room and washing the dishes didn’t take as long as he thought. He saved vacuuming for tomorrow since Cody and Winston were dead asleep, so that left him with watering the plants. Bad news, there were probably more plants in their complex than in the Amazon rainforest. He wasn’t sure if he could keep his promise.
He sighed and took off his jacket, then sweater, revealing his black tank top. Since Total Drama, he’s picked up on some workout routine after reconsidering his oath to never do anything physical due to maturity and the natural need for strength, and because Eva and Izzy threatened to jump him while he was sleeping after they found out his address.
Grabbing the watering can from outside, he brought it inside to fill it with tap water and begin the process, which he found dreadful as soon as he reached the first plant in the kitchen.
He shut the sliding door of their balcony after placing the watering can in its respective place; he finally finished watering the plants. Rubbing his eyes as he approached the bedroom, he was slightly concerned when he noticed an absence of a pale body in bed.
The door opened behind him and a pair of cold arms wrapped around him.
“Where’s your jacket?”
“I took it off.” Cody placed his chin on his right shoulder.
“Haha. You never wear these shirts ever.” Cody ran his hands over Noah’s chest as he fervently rocked him back and forth.
“Yeah, because you grope me like crazy.” Noah opened the sliding closet and picked out the first jacket he saw. Cody let him go so he could put on the hoodie. After Cody removed his baggy light-washed jeans and Noah put on plaid pajama pants, Cody clung onto his arm like a leech as they walked to the bed.
Noah sat on the edge of the bed as Cody stood before him. He held Noah’s hands and stared at him for a while with his muted teal eyes.
“Why do you never come to the hangouts?” He asked with a pout. Wow. Straight to the point.
“I…” Noah sighed. “They’re just as loud and annoying as they were back on that island. And film set. And plane. And with alcohol involved? I’ll pass.”
“… Am I loud and annoying?” Cody whispered, fingers running over his chapped lips.
“Yeah. The loudest and most annoying of them all.” Cody groaned and fell onto the bed face first, feet briskly touching the cold wooden floor.
“You’re way too honest.” He mumbled through the thick duvet.
“The perks of dating someone who can’t handle the truth.” Noah lay down on his side and leaned on his arm to face Cody's face planted on the bed. He removed himself from the bedding and sat upright to avoid suffocation.
“Why not just give it a shot?” Noah shrugged.
“I’m busy.”
“Busy watching teen gay shows to cope with the fact that you couldn’t come out as gay during Total Drama?”
“You—“ Noah hissed with a pointed finger. He sighed and flopped onto the bed, head hitting a chilly pillow. “… Where did Winston go?” He asked, trying to feel a patch of fur with his feet at the edge of the queen bed.
“He’s beside you on the ground.” Noah turned over to the other edge of the bed facing the window to see Winston curled up and quietly snoring on their fluffy, snow-white rug. Cody pulled him back by his chin and pecked him on the lips. He pulled back, staring into Noah’s eyes with an unreadable expression.
“Wow. Romantic.” Noah said in his usual sarcastic tone, placing his left palm under his head.
“Shut up.” Cody groaned as he fell onto his back next to Noah. His face was covered in a red blush and attempted to hide it by throwing the duvet over him.
“… When’s the next get-together?” Cody removed the duvet from his upper body and sat up.
“Bridgette’s birthday at Geoff’s again.” Noah stared at him. “… Next Saturday?”
“Wow. Too close for comfort.” Noah scoffed.
“You’re coming?” Cody grinned as he scooted closer.
“Gwen and Courtney wouldn’t stop nagging me about it. Even Katie and Sadie joined in,” Noah sighed, massaging his forehead. “But, even if I do go, I’m not much of a drinker.” Cody leaned into Noah’s torso and cuddled against it, hands pressed against his chest.
“Me neither. And I still go.” Cody shrugged.
“Yeah. You get drunk at the first sip.”
“I don’t!”
“You do.”
“Don’t!” Cody exclaimed as he leaned back to face Noah, who was already smiling.
“Do.”
“At least I have the courage to face them!” Noah pressed his lips against Cody’s and turned him to lay on his back as he towered over him on all fours. He pulled back to lay back down, but Cody grabbed hold of Noah’s cheeks and pushed him into the kiss.
Noah finally pulled back and smirked over Cody, whose blush couldn’t get redder. He covered his face with his hands, knuckles equally as red.
“I was gonna ask if you had enough courage to do that, but I think I found my answer.” Noah grinned, laying back down and pulling Cody close into an embrace.
“… Just go to bed, dude.”
“Can we bring Winnie again?” Cody asked as he ruffled his dog’s ears, then scratched his chin. Noah turned around from the kitchen stove as he prepared breakfast.
“No.” He bluntly replied, turning back to the scrambled eggs. Cody groaned and trudged over to him, Winston tagging along.
“You brought him last time!” He pouted. Noah looked to Cody and then to Winston, no difference found in their button noses and puppy dog eyes.
“I don’t want the party to turn into a dog daycare.”
“I’ll take care of him!” Cody said proudly.
“You’ll end up giving him beer, and FYI, I’d like to keep Winston alive for however long he’ll last.” His boyfriend groaned and rested his forehead on his shoulder, watching him stir around the fluffy eggs.
“… Can we please come with Winnie? Pleaaase?” He pleaded. Noah sighed and placed down the spatula after switching off the stove. Sure, he was prone to giving in to Winston’s puppy eyes— he was a dog, after all— but with Cody in the mix? He didn’t have a choice.
“Go get ready.” Cody pumped his fist in the air and held up Winnie in his hands.
“Yes! Finally! The old grandpa said yes!”
“Excuse me?!” Noah shouted, but by that time Cody had already run off to their bedroom and slammed the door. He could hear him snickering and talking to himself as he picked out an outfit. Damn, they really needed to soundproof that room… for a number of reasons.
He scooped half of the pan’s worth of eggs onto Cody’s plate, then the other half onto his. He then chopped up the leftover bacon from yesterday in the fridge, heated it, and aimlessly sprinkled it onto their toast along with chopped cherry tomatoes. He tossed an extra bit of bacon to Winston, who eagerly jumped up to snag the meat. As he applied salt and pepper with their shakers, Cody walked out with a new outfit besides his boxers and oversized shirt. He had denim jorts and a pale gray shirt paired with his New Balance 550s, and his face and hair were refreshed from his bedhead from last night.
“Hi."
“Hey,” Noah responded as he removed his apron and packed it into a drawer. Cody stuffed a quarter of the toast into his mouth and melted into the taste.
“Mmmhh… Yum…” Noah shook his head while smiling.
“It’s the simplest meal ever.”
“Well, it’s still good.” Cody shrugged as he stuffed even more into his mouth. Noah leaned against the counter on the opposite side of Cody and took a bite of his toast, silently agreeing with Cody.
Noah parked in the available space in Geoff’s driveway and turned off the car engine. He, Cody, and, Winston hopped out and walked to the front door. As Noah rang the doorbell, Cody slipped a hand into his while his other held Winston’s leash. Noah decided to not pay attention to it as Bridgette opened the door.
“Hey, guys!” She greeted them with a friendly smile on her lips. Hair no longer tied into a ponytail but instead let loose around her shoulders, Bridgette had grown from a teen surfer girl to, well, a grown surfer woman, according to the many recent pictures of her on or with a surfboard.
“Yo! Cody, the Codester!” Geoff hopped off the counter stool and approached the two. “Noah! Great to have you here, man! Awesome you could join us tonight.” He shook Noah’s hand, causing him and his boyfriend to unlink their fingers. A few others— Leshawna, Harold, Katie, and Sadie— greeted them as well, giving a feeble hug to Noah and crushing Winston and Cody in their arms. Harold gave a subtle nod, to which Noah responded with the same.
“Winnie is potty trained, right?” Courtney asked as she emerged from the bathroom with Gwen trailing behind. Cody and Noah looked down to their dog, and then to each other.
“He is, right?” Cody leaned into Noah and whispered with a smile, clearly meant to play with Courtney. Noah took the hint and held in a chuckle.
“Is he not?” He responded in the same whisper voice.
“You two are so childish,” Courtney rolled her eyes. “Are you sixteen or thirty?” She crossed her arms.
“I’m thirty-three. Noah’s like… sixty.” Noah playfully nudged Cody with his elbow, a teasing grimace on his face.
“Oh my gosh, grow up,” She scoffed. Gwen wrapped an arm around her hip and reeled her in by her side.
“Let’s just be grateful Noah decided to come out of his shell. He’s only been hanging around with Owen and Cody, and Cody doesn’t count.”
“Yeah, yeah. Not my fault I’m Ex-Total-Drama-contestants-intolerant.” He grinned.
“ So creative,” Courtney grimaced as she looked at Gwen, but it was clear she was glad Noah attended Bridgette’s party.
“No, no— Alejandro was in love with Heather , not me .”
“Doesn’t change the fact that you were obviously crushing over Al.” Alejandro glared at Tyler for calling him by his unpreferred nickname.
“And that also doesn’t change the fact that you were obviously crushing over him, too.” Tyler’s face flushed as red as his tracksuit in Total Drama.
“Oh my god, get over it! Alejandro’s with Tyler and I’m with Lindsay,” Heather snarled after what seemed like hours of useless bickering between Noah and Tyler.
“And you . I thought Lindsay cursed you out on Island.” Noah pointed a finger at the ravenette.
“You were lucky it was censored, because, oh girl, did Lindsay pop off.” Leshawna and a few others cackled after unlocking a core memory of Lindsay’s elimination in their first season together.
“Oh, shut it—“
“Ghetto-glamour, too-tight-pants-wearing, rap-star wannabe?” Bridgette perfectly quoted. Everyone burst out into laughter in their makeshift circle in Geoff and Bridgette's connected kitchen and living room. Noah and Cody hid into each other’s shoulders while silently snickering.
“So, Noah, man,” Geoff wiped away a tear after everyone calmed down, “how’s life been? I mean, Cody’s been hangin’ around but he never talks about your personal life—“
“Except for how hot you are in bed!!!” Katie and Sadie simultaneously teased in a sing-songy voice.
“Shut it!” Noah hid his face in his hands as everyone burst out into laughter once more. 16 years and these people still haven’t grown up!
“But really,” Bridgette said, catching everyone’s attention, “how’s life treating you? Cody’s been talking about the insane stories about your experience of working as a high school teacher.” ‘Oohs’ surrounded Noah as he looked over to Cody, who beamed an innocent grin at him.
“Teaching psychology to these kids is worse than my experience on Total Drama. I kid you not, one of my kids auditioned for the reboot,” He sighed in agony.
“No way,” Gwen gaped while rubbing Winston’s chin, speaking for practically everyone in the house. Noah nodded with as much disbelief.
“I’m praying to God she doesn’t get accepted.” Noah placed prayer hands on his forehead, earning a couple of chuckles. Winston barked his way over to Noah and Cody, sitting in the latter’s lap as the pale adult showered him with affection.
“Do your kids know about Cody?” Trent asked, swishing the alcohol in his glass bottle. Noah and Cody looked over to each other, then back to Trent.
“Uh, we were on international TV. Of course, they know about Cody.”
“Right, right. Apologies for asking,” Trent chuckled. “I was just askin’ cause Cody’s been talking about kissing you in front of your kids.”
“Cody!” Noah hissed. Cody held his stomach as he laughed out loud along with the other adults.
“Just one time!” Cody said through chuckles as he wiped his tears.
“Aw, this is so much more awesome with you, dude! I’m tellin’ you— you should’ve come to other get-togethers!” Owen wiped away a tear, supposedly from overbearing happiness for seeing Noah the Hermit finally crawl out of his shell.
“Let me remind you that it was Cody who convinced me, not you. I learned my lesson after you stole Winston for a week.” Noah bitterly petted his dear golden retriever as if Owen would steal him for seconds.
“I thought you were besties with Owen. Your friendship was practically the guy equivalent to Katie and Sadie over here.” Eva pointed her thumb to the BFFFLs seated next to her on the white leather couch.
“And Cody’s my boyfriend. I’m biased.”
“Was it when we were swapping spit the night you brought me home from the get-together last week?” Cody innocently quipped as he let Winston bark his way over to Owen. Noah quickly shushed Cody by slapping his hand over his lips.
“You can’t be serious!” Noah hissed with wide eyes glaring down at his boyfriend.
“Everyone already knows we’re actively having sex every night,” Cody added after he shrugged off Noah’s hand.
“How much have you been telling them?! Argh!” Noah covered his face, unable to face anyone in the room.
“Nothing. They just found out about that part,” Cody responded. Noah knew him well enough to mentally imagine his sly grin.
“Ha! He got you!” Trent teased, holding his stomach from how hard he was laughing.
“Need I remind you of the video evidence of you and Justin kissing during Twister?” Noah removed his hands from his face.
“You weren’t even there!” Justin scoffed, face in full heat.
“I sent it to him. As the only sassy homosexual besides Alejandro, I only thought it was appropriate,” Courtney added after raising a hand to speak. Trent and Justin sank in the seats, deliberately chosen on other sides of the couch.
“So, it was never really clear whether you liked Al or not…” Sierra proposed. Noah had noticed her switch in hair color and style, which was before a plum braid and now a curly black tied with an elastic. He’d never really forgiven her after Total Drama; she was practically harassing him on World Tour, after all. Cody said he got over it, but the constant worrying whenever seeing a girl with a purple braid in public said otherwise.
“I’ll be completely honest with you guys because whatever the hell you say won’t affect me anymore,” Noah sighed, “Sure, maybe I did find Alejandro attractive—“ Squeals rang in his ears, and he looked over to Alejandro with a red face he couldn’t decrypt. “But it wasn’t serious! You know, it was that kind of trope where I fell in love with a rival, big deal. We all know who I really liked.” Cody faced him and held onto his arm.
“Who?” He mockingly asked with bright, puppy eyes and a gleaming smile.
“Oh, I wonder,” He beamed back. Cody sheepishly giggled and scooted behind him.
“Ughhh, corny!” Heather rolled her eyes as she handed her nail file to Lindsay, who put it in her pink purse lined with gold details.
“Nothing was cornier than watching you miserably attempt to balance between the win and Alejandro in World Tour.” Noah crossed his arms as he leaned against Cody, who sat behind him to play with his hair. Cody wrapped his arms around Noah’s chest, leaning his chin onto his shoulder and softly teetering him from side to side. They both noticed everyone’s intense stare, with one more concerned than the other. “Can it,” Noah grumbled as he tightened his crossed arms. Cody chuckled and removed himself from Noah, patting his lap and calling Winston’s name. Owen bid the golden retriever farewell as he hopped back to Cody.
“Which relationship is cornier, boy? Heathsay, or Noco?” Cody asked his dog as he rubbed behind his ears.
“Heathsay? Noco?” Noah cringed at the official ship names for their relationships. Cody shrugged with a smile as Winston tackled him with a merciless intention.
“Who’s ready for karaoke?” DJ and Geoff, who at one point surprisingly left without Noah noticing, held microphones and mic stands in their hands and began to set them up for the adults.
Noah sat close to Cody as the latter waited for them to finish setting up karaoke. He looked over to his boyfriend for a short minute, only to take a glance at the songs he searched up on his phone when he saw a certain sparkle in his eye he’d never really noticed before. The glimmer in his untreated tooth gap after all these years shone brighter in this atmosphere, and that’s when Noah realized how dependent everyone is on each other in this friend group. By being put through the same trials and tribulations by some shady reality TV show host, teens who couldn’t be any different found something to bond over, which caused the bond to last for over a decade.
Noah always thought Cody was attending just to be there, but seeing him laugh and shoot a snarky comment back helped him realize that he wasn’t the same as him. Noah had missed out on this side of Cody because he was too fed up with these people when really he found a sort of comfort around them. Perhaps it was gained from their stay on that radioactive island or aerial deathtrap, but the cause didn’t matter anymore. What mattered to him now was the surprising amount of tranquility he found in this group of 22 adults, and the fact that he’d missed out on Cody’s similar feelings of found family.
“Noah,” Cody whispered, snapping Noah out of his trance. He blinked awake and leaned towards Cody, who showed him his phone. “What song should I sing?” Noah glanced at his screen, which displayed Love by Keyshia Cole right under a song he didn’t recognize but judging by the cover was an obnoxious song, both lyrically and rhythmically. Still, Noah enjoyed seeing everyone he hated as a teen hate him back as an adult.
“Second one,” Cody grinned as nuzzled into his chest.
“It’s like our minds are connected,” He giggled right before adding it to a queue, the song very much out of place.
“Noahhh….. did the, uh… Linsee and Heath come back with Winnie?” Cody softly slurred as his head bobbed back and forth. Noah looked up from his phone and scanned Cody’s body wavering like an inflatable.
“No. They’re still on that walk— they’ll be back any minute.” Cody groaned and leaned into Noah’s nape.
“But I wanna see Winnie,” He softly grumbled under his breath. Noah briskly held Cody’s head to wipe away the saliva subconsciously drooling out of his mouth with his thumb.
“Later,” he replied, returning to his phone after wiping his thumb onto Cody’s shirt. As the only sober person in the room, Noah felt responsibility sit on his shoulders with more weight than Owen, and that said a whole lot.
Leshawna drove her drunk boyfriend Harold home to watch over their kids, Beth, Sierra, and Sadie offered to watch over DJ and Katie’s kids as they stayed over to clean up the place, and Eva and Izzy chased Ezekiel—who surprisingly was still alive after treated for his mutant stage— around the neighborhood because he vomited bucketfuls on both their laps. And Justin and Trent? God knows wherever the hell they were— Noah took an educated guess and said they were making out in a separate room, but he didn’t bother to say it out loud, not like anyone was sober enough to hear him anyway. With Owen and Duncan passed out on the floor and DJ and Katie cleaning up on the patio and in the kitchen, that left Noah, Cody, Gwen, Courtney, Alejandro, Tyler, Geoff, and Bridgette.
“Guys, I think Geoff’s about to tap out,” Bridgette groaned as she removed her husband from her lap to get up. “I’ll be back,” She grunted. The rest of the adults stared at her practically dragging Geoff’s feet into their room. Eight to six— Noah couldn’t believe it, but he hoped Heather and Lindsay would come back just a tad bit faster. He preferred Heather bullying Alejandro than Alejandro bullying him and his flat-out drunk, non-stop wavering boyfriend.
“So, Sterecra, how’s the wife?” Gwen asked as she leaned an elbow on the coffee table, alcohol bottle in the other. He eyed Courtney, who held a White Claw, and back to Gwen.
“What does that even mean?”
“Huh. Not a real one.” Gwen leaned back as she chugged the remnants of the booze. Noah rolled his eyes, unable to bark back due to his extreme lack of energy.
“Really, though. He looks as if he’s about to pass out.” Alejandro chuckled as he looked over to Cody flailing around aimlessly, chestnut hair flying out and about as he teetered his head in all directions. Noah stared at Tyler huddled into his nape, in which Alejandro immediately hugged him close and whispered soft words in his native tongue reserved for Tyler, and Tyler only.
He stared at Cody starting to fall back onto the wooden floor, and Noah quickly held the back of his head to stop him from gaining an injury, which he was prone to when drunk. He sighed as he brought Cody’s head to his chest. His face couldn’t possibly get any hotter, and the others were probably thinking the same thing after feeling their stares bare into his skull.
“Quit staring,” Noah finally responded to their stares. He opened clenched eyes to see not only the four in the living area, but DJ and Katie as well.
“O-M-G! This is so cute!!!” Katie squealed as she ripped out her phone from the back pocket of her matching light pink bell bottoms with Sadie, just like their shorts in Island.
“Put that phone away,” Noah commanded, but Katie ignored his irritated tone and snapped pictures of him and Cody before the latter started to grumble and push Noah away.
“Raaagh.” Cody slowly blinked at Noah, who stared at him in genuine concern.
“What?”
“Winnie!!!” Cody started to shout through cupped hands. As his calls progressively grew louder, Noah ultimately shushed him up by covering his hand.
“I told you he’s coming back soon with Heather and Lindsay!” Noah hissed. Cody pouted and returned to leaning on his boyfriend. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have raised my voice,” Noah apologized in a softer tone. Cody had no response, but he nodded in understanding, too drained to reply verbally.
“Just get married already, Jesus.” Gwen exhaled with a smirk through her jet-black lips. Noah knew she was just teasing, but it was impossible to bark back. Courtney sat by her, centimeters away, waiting for him to open his mouth, so he bit his tongue and silently glared. Soon enough, DJ and Katie took a break from the enormous mess the adults made in the Algolen residence and embellished in the antics of the six, including Bridgette, who soon joined them in an evident attempt to take responsibility.
“God, what’s taking them so long? We gotta go before Cody starts stripping,” Noah groaned after checking the time on his phone for the umpteenth time.
“Before he what ?” Alejandro gaped, holding a now snoozing Tyler in his lap.
“Kidding, obviously. Though he does get touchy,” Noah added right before Cody started rubbing his forehead on Noah’s nape and running his hands around his chest, “So they better hurry.”
“I’ll call them, then,” Courtney stated as she whipped out her phone. With a few clicks of her sage green acrylics, she held her phone to her ear, awaiting Heather’s acceptance of the call.
“You might wanna hurry,” Courtney said after greeting Heather and Lindsay, “Cody and Noah might share their first public kiss and you’ll miss it.” Noah’s eyes widened as his face flustered in embarrassment.
“That’s not what I wanted you to say!” But before Noah could snatch Courtney’s phone away, Heather hung up the call and Courtney placed it back in her pocket with a devious smirk.
“You asshole,” Noah grunted as he tried to ignore Cody’s hands now playing with his collarbone and tugging at his shirt collar.
“Learned from the best,” the lawyer smiled as she gave Gwen a quick peck on her cheek, wiping her pecked lips after in fear of any white face paint getting on her mouth. Everyone turned from the sapphics to Noah and Cody, who were in their own world as Noah desperately attempted to shrug Cody off.
“How come you guys’ve never kissed in front of us before?” Alejandro asked as he leaned on the coffee table with his elbow, Tyler’s head in his lap. He looked down at Tyler and played with his brown locks briefly before returning to his main focus.
“We don’t need to,” Noah blatantly stated. He wished to not speak of it, but he knew the adults surrounding him thought the exact opposite.
“If only you came to the other events. We once played Seven Minutes in Heaven and Alejandro and Tyler ended up together—“ DJ looked over to Al before Katie respectfully interrupted him.
“Oh, boy, was Tyler swooning like a swan!” Katie and the rest of the girls laughed, with Bridgette half-heartedly chuckling before fluttering her eyes shut and snoozing on Katie’s shoulder.
“I can speak of it in detail if you’d like,” Alejandro teased. Noah groaned as they all agreed. Hearing him take back his words was relieving, but the tense feeling in his gut remained.
Perhaps the adults were right; if he’d attended the other events, then his relationship with Cody would’ve evolved a hundred times faster with the help of the Total Drama cast. He knew he was being selfish when he stayed home every time, and the sinking feeling in his stomach wavering every time an hour passed made up for his shitty decision. What if Cody had gotten hurt and wasn’t informed about it? Or if Sierra…
“I’m a horrible person,” Noah mumbled just loud enough for the rest to hear. He sunk into his hands and leaned his arms against the glass table, seething through his teeth in anger— anger at himself. The adults paused whatever conversation they had and turned to Noah in concern.
“Noah? You okay?” Katie spoke first, shaking Bridgette awake to help with the situation.
“It was Cody who asked me out. Cody who got us to first, second, third, and however many fucking bases there are,” Noah confessed with a face brighter than a campfire’s flames, “And I haven’t done shit for him.” He clenched and tugged at his hair. The adults looked at each other, a lack of words slapping them in their faces.
“Noah…” Gwen sighed as she bit her lip, thinking of what to say. Noah knew she wasn’t much of a talker. Great. Best to not have her talk anyway, let alone anyone.
“Haven’t you heard Cody? He always talked about you at the parties you weren’t at, and even if the conversation wasn’t about you, he somehow found a way to blabber nonsense, like what you bought him last night or— or just the pure, nice things you do for him,” Katie assured him with a sad frown.
“You don’t even realize how much you changed because of him.” Noah looked up to DJ and back to Cody, who stopped his flaunting acts moments ago and now clutched his arm like a burr stuck to a sweater.
“Has anything bad happened to him at these get-togethers? I sound shitty just by asking this,” Noah sighed as he returned to pressing his palms on his eyes, mostly to subside the surging tears.
“You aren’t a bad boyfriend, Noah. And nothing bad has happened in the last few years, excluding the skinny dipping situation,” Everyone in the room shuddered as Cody and his former bandmates got arrested for skinny dipping in a neighbor’s pool due to excessive alcohol consumption. Not. Good.
“I’m sure Cody’s just as worried about you as you are of him,” Bridgette finished in a croaky, soft voice. “Last time, he wasn’t only babbling about that pasta, but also the date you brought him out to and that present you got him.” Noah’s eyes widened as he removed his hands from his face.
“Was the food good?” Noah asked as the two walked down the busy street. Traffic buzzed in the streets and vendors chattered along the sidewalk.
“I say anything sweet’s good,” Cody smiled. It was obvious bringing him to a well-known cafe that specialized in cakes rather than a fancy restaurant with expensive reservations and pricier food would make him all giddy, but Noah enjoyed seeing a smile on Cody’s face.
Noah clutched the bag in his hand, stopping in his tracks as he looked down at his shoes. Cody paused his walking— or hopping— and approached Noah.
“You okay?” Cody waved a hand in front of Noah’s face.
“Here,” Noah extended his hand towards Cody and pressed the bag to his chest. “Just a little something I thought you’d like.” Cody beamed a bright smile as he took the gift bag in his hands.
“Thank you!” Cody pecked Noah’s nose before looking inside the bag. He suspiciously eyed his boyfriend after pulling out a jewelry box from his favorite brand, but his expression changed after opening the box revealing not one, but two silver rings.
Cody looked up to him as tears surged in his eyes.
“I— it’s not a proposal. I just…” Noah surprisingly stuttered as he waved his hands. Although Cody was disappointed that the rings weren’t to propose, that didn’t change the fact that he was practically squealing and jumping like a lunatic.
He wrapped his arms around Noah and swung him side to side, a bright smile on his face. “Thank you, thank you!” He giggled as he pulled back to take a closer look at the rings. “This brand is so expensive!” Cody gaped and looked up to Noah, “Why?” Noah looked down at the box and took a ring in one hand and Cody’s left hand in the other.
“I can’t do nice things for my boyfriend once in a while?” Noah grinned, causing Cody’s cheeks to burst into flames. He slid the silver ring onto Cody’s ring finger, and Cody held up his left hand to observe the new presence lingering on his finger; one he’d hoped he’d feel during his relationship with Noah.
“You never do nice things!” Cody called. He walked a little faster to escape Noah’s grasp but Noah grabbed him by his shirt collar and pulled him close. After pecking him on his lips, Noah retracted from Cody’s face and smiled down at the blushing mess of his long-term lover. Cody’s hands trembled as he slid the other ring onto Noah’s finger.
“Will you propose soon?” Cody looked up to Noah with stars dancing in his teal irises.
“Who said I’m the one required to propose?” Noah chuckled.
“Hurry up with it! These temporary rings won’t last forever. I’ll feel bad when I dump you for taking too long,” Cody teased.
“Watch your mouth, Anderson!” Noah shouted as Cody picked up his pace running down the sidewalk.
“Make it Sterecra soon!” Cody hollered back with a big, gleaming smile on his rose-tinted face, an incisors gap visible to all. Noah’s eyes widened in embarrassment, but his expression softened as he ran to Cody with a smile just as bright.
Noah looked down at the ring on Cody’s finger, and at the one on his; how could he have forgotten? His face flustered a great mess.
“Look; you might think you aren’t doing much for Cody, but how you treat him is much more than he could ever wish for,” Courtney spoke after Noah calmed down, “so don’t feel guilty. Just be happy with him, okay?” Noah hesitantly nodded with a sad smile. Cody began to stir and sigh, and Noah took the initiative to treat him with more care than he had beforehand. He patted his head and brushed the stray hairs out of his face; he reserved these services for only Cody’s eyes, but he began to feel more comfortable with the teens— or rather, adults— he’d known over the years.
“Now that we’re all good and settled,” Gwen groaned, “I wanna see some action,” She turned to Alejandro and Tyler, both as drowsy as before. She rolled her eyes and turned to Cody as he stirred in Noah’s shoulder. Noah glared at the goth.
“Do not,” he commanded.
“Winnie!!! Hi!!!” Gwen hollered as loud as she could. Cody shook from his sleep and rapidly turned his head to the door.
“What?! Where?!?” Cody crawled to the door and collapsed on his hands, hitting the caramel wood flooring with a thud. Noah dragged him back by his arm.
“Gwen was kidding. Go back to drooling on my shoulder,” Noah grimaced at the wet spot on his sweater. The teal-eyed adult glanced at the large puddle seeping into the dark brown and first green threads.
“Oops,” Cody mumbled as he wiped a finger on the collar, but it had no effect. He then wrapped his arms around Noah’s and scanned the people left awake.
“So… where’s Winnie?” Cody pouted as he looked up to Noah with his puppy eyes. An exhausted sigh from his boyfriend made Cody shyly hide his face in his arm, mumbling a quick apology before shutting his mouth fully. Gwen sighed as she slammed her can down on the table, causing Cody to squeeze Noah’s arm.
“I’m bored out of my mind. What do we do?” She whined, looking at the adults left awake who were also slowly drifting into slumber.
“Heather’s usually the one to make the room heated, but she’s not here,” Courtney said. “Leshawna is tending to her kids, Eva and Izzy are busy chasing Ezekiel down…” She then trailed off and glanced at Alejandro and Noah, who both stared at her in suspicion.
“Noah will hate me for all eternity like he did on the plane. And fall in love with me again.” Noah shot a glare at him as he hugged Cody tighter. He knew Al was only trying to lighten the mood, but falling in love with him was torture, especially since he was a lot more interested in Heather. He faced the girls– and DJ– who all had pleading puppy pouts and praying hands begging for him and Cody to give them action. He instead flipped the bird with the same glare he gave Alejandro.
“Please, Noah. Courtney and I can’t even drive home,” She whined. The others whimpered too as if it’d help her case. Noah, still unconvinced, ignored them as he brushed Cody’s ring. Unexpectedly, Cody looked up at his boyfriend with his teal irises, causing Noah’s eyes to flutter wide open, as opposed to his usual half-lidded stare.
“Maybe we should,” Cody whispered in Noah’s ear, “We’ve never done this for them like ever.”
“You serious?” Noah asked with a frown; he can’t back out if Cody’s on their side, not when he whips out his kicked-puppy look. And there it was; Cody nodded with a peach-lipped pout and wide eyes glistening under the warm lighting above them. Noah sighed and faced the group, who he all assumed eavesdropped and quickly picked up their phones or turned to their partner to avoid any fingers.
“Fine,” Noah said in a louder voice, “but only once.” His boyfriend’s face brightened as he hugged him tight. Gwen got her device ready to record. “And no phones.” Gwen, along with the rest of the millennials, set down their phones in response to Noah’s demand.
“Finally,” the goth murmured. Noah rolled his eyes and faced Cody, who was busy looking at himself through his front camera. He eyed him with eyes squinted in puzzlement, but he didn’t say a word. He assumed Cody was just readying himself for the big moment. After he was finished prettying himself, he climbed onto Noah’s lap and did the same to him, wiping away any stains on his face and patting the top of his head clean of any stray hairs. His face burned at the close proximity between their faces.
“... What are you doing?” Noah asked with a shake in his voice. Cody looked down at Noah and smiled.
“Getting you ready for the big moment,” he informed as he relaxed onto Noah’s thighs. “I can’t let my boyfriend look like this when we’re having our first kiss in front of these guys.” He gleamed a bright smile at Noah, his tooth gap still shining bright after 16 years.
Cody never cared to get braces since his teeth were relatively straight, so the same tooth gap he had on Camp Wawanakwa remained in his mouth till now, where he’d been shining that familiar smile at him. Noah never thought he’d see his smile again; not until he was reintroduced through a coincidence when Noah caught Cody working at a cafe near his university. They soon moved in together after he was kicked out of his house for dating Noah 4 months after meeting him at the ordering station, and they’d lived in that complex until now.
It was hard for Noah to believe that so much had changed. When he met Cody at the order station, his hair was bleached a bright yellow with his roots starting to peek through. His face held more wrinkles than before, and his eyebags were more noticeable. With the prize money out of the way, Noah and Cody’s relationship grew a lot faster, which is what caused them to start dating after four months. They applied for proper jobs after college to pay for their lives, when one day they considered paying for a new one. After days of debating, they settled on Winston, and that golden retriever has stayed their companion ever since they found him in that shelter.
Flashbacks after flashbacks, memories after memories piled onto Noah, ones of his relationship with Cody from their involuntary kiss during the Awake-a-thon to now, where Cody was picking at his ears and lips, more focused on observing his face rather than fixing it. Noah’s face brightened and his lip quivered as it met with Cody’s fingertip. He stared into Cody’s aqua irises and at his light freckles. He traveled down to his button nose and his pair of mildly chapped lips, a pinkish, pale shade curled into a smile as he pressed Noah’s cheeks with his fingers. He let out a shaky breath as he took it all in. Cody wasn’t exactly the greatest-looking, but he was still as adorable as Noah found him to be. His flirtatious façade to hide his geekiness is what caused him to fall in love, after all. He knew those late nights playing on his Nintendo and early days practically flirting with each other in the kitchen making breakfast meant something; something he hoped, and did, also mean something to Cody, whose last name is Anderson yet wants it to be Sterecra.
Noah held the back of Cody’s neck and pulled him in, pressing his lips against his. He could feel Cody’s eyes flutter shut and take hold of his collar with both hands. He didn’t even begin to think about the others in the room; his top priority was Cody. They moved their heads and lips in sync, both awkward at first but now relaxing into each other’s touch, fully feeling their emotions as they brought each other closer. Noah parted to catch his breath, but per an unsaid routine, Cody refused to let him go and brought him back, causing Noah’s eyes to blank as he seeped further into the way Cody made him feel— the way he’s always had him feeling, kissing or not. Every day with him was enough to fulfill his needs.
They eventually parted to catch their breaths. Noah stared at Cody’s panting lips then up to his spiraling eyes, tunnel-visioned onto his. He glanced behind him to see Heather and her girlfriend standing at the doorway with their phones in hand and the camera pointing directly at them. Cody noticed his sudden freeze and turned around to see the two women still standing there in shock, eyes wide and mouths agape as their phone charms dangled at their hands. Cody hid in Noah’s chest as he turned to the original seven, who all had their phones out as well.
“You gotta be kidding,” Noah groaned, covering his face with his hands as Cody continued to hide in his chest. A few of the adults laughed as Heather and Lindsay sat in between Alejandro and Gwen, leaning closer towards the sapphics. She let go of Winston’s leash, in which the dog first rushed to his owners to give them a quick lick on their faces before doing the same to Owen, still passed out on the floor.
“This is a moment in history,” Gwen chuckled as she put her phone down on the table. “How could I not take a picture?”
“Don’t you dare post it on social media,” Noah glared, especially at Heather and Lindsay. The ravenette rolled her eyes as she typed on her screen.
“Ugh. I’m not an idiot. Why would I want to post about you two?” She shuddered in disgust. “I’m just sending it to the group chat.”
“That’s even wors—“ Everyone’s phones buzzed at the notification of Heather’s message. Noah unlocked Cody’s phone and checked the group chat, which was pinned in his Messages.
heather: look at these fools
sadie: OMG katie ur sooo lucky!!!
sierra: NO WAY this is def going on my blog!
gwen: noah’s gonna leak your ip address if you do
Noah glared up at Gwen, who had a grin on her jet-black lips. He trusted the adults enough to know they’d keep their promise, but he still felt queasy in his stomach. Alejandro, who was close to dozing off, noticed his off behavior.
“Didn’t expect you to initiate,” Alejandro said while checking his cuticles, “though you must be so pent up from these past years, so I don’t blame you.” Noah only replied with a sneer as Cody began to play with a loose thread on his left sweater sleeve.
“Be proud of yourself, Noah. He’s been waiting for this moment for a long time, but he hasn’t ever told you because he’s scared you’ll ‘hate him forever,’” Courtney quoted with quotation fingers. Noah looked down at Cody, who eventually looked up and locked eyes with him.
“This was way past overdue, and I’m sorry.” Noah apologized while cupping Cody’s left cheek. Cody rubbed his face against his hand, shutting his eyes in the warmth.
“It’s okay. I’m just glad we finally got to it,” Cody replied with a soft smile. Noah bit back a grin as his boyfriend returned to folding and unfolding his sleeve. A few moments of silence passed until Cody decided to speak again. “So, when are you proposing?”
“Yeah! You’ve kept him waiting for 16 years, Noah,” Gwen added while swirling around the liquid in a beer can she got from God-knows-where. DJ and Katie joined in too, asking for a specific date and location. Even Owen had awakened from his snoring nap to join in, but a quick kick in his side caused the man to fall back asleep.
“Alright, that’s enough, morons,” Heather groaned as she rolled her eyes, “if you say anything else, Cody’s gonna combust on the spot.” Noah turned to Cody’s hot-red face as his hands trailed up to his shoulders, where the drool area began to dry.
Heather received a call from the three babysitters and accepted it, standing from her spot on the ground as she turned on her camera. She began to talk about Noah and Cody, but they didn’t care enough to listen. As the conversation sidetracked, Noah slid Cody’s hands into his, and his boyfriend nuzzled into his nape, still sitting in his lap. Noah rubbed his arm as Cody began dozing off, whispering words in his native tongue as Alejandro did the same with Tyler.
“Still have no idea what you’re saying,” Cody whispered with a croaky giggle. Noah grinned and hugged him closer.
“Use the time you use playing Minecraft to learn Hindi instead.”
“I’m not—!” Cody paused, then sighed as he relaxed in the embrace. “Alright. For you.” Noah chuckled and kissed Cody’s forehead. He glanced at Gwen and Courtney, who snapped a few pictures of the two with their cellphones. After Noah began mouthing insults— which Gwen seemed to comprehend, they put down their phones and chatted with Beth, Sadie, and Sierra, but not before sending the photos in the Total Drama group chat.
The three began to squeal on the other end of the line and shouted Noah and Cody’s names, but they didn’t care enough to reply. They flirted in their little shell, rings pressing against each other’s cheeks as they leaned in for another kiss. They blocked out the excessive squealing and laughter as they shut their eyes, indulging in their kiss. They parted their lips and Noah rubbed his hands on Cody’s as they held his face, fingertips playing with the promise ring he purchased for them. Cody grinned before leaning back into Noah’s shoulder, shutting his eyes as he attempted to catch up on some sleep. Noah teetered him side to side as he played with his ring, hoping he could replace it with a new one; one that would signify a closer bond in their relationship. Noah hadn’t expected anything to come out of that incident at the Awake-a-Thon, but was he grateful for this? For Cody coming back into his life and giving him the happiness he never thought he’d need? Of course, he is; nothing could ever repay his debt, but it seems to Noah that staying by Cody’s side and tending to him with affection is enough to make up for it.