I Wanna Be, I Wanna Be, I Wanna Be Boyfriends

Chapter 2

The next day did in fact turn out to be a challenge day. And an utterly thrilling one at that: dodgeball. The only way it could've been worse was if team captains had been assigned to pick their teams, but thankfully, that much had been done for them already, so as least he'd been sparred the embarrassment of being picked next to last like he'd always been in middle school. Noah had mostly chosen to sit out and keep to the bench reading his novel, but with Cody's persistance, he'd been coerced into playing a couple games— both of which of course ended with him taking a dodgeball to the face.

Noah rubbed his sore nose as they left the court. "I can't believe they pulled a win!" Cody exclaimed beside him.

"Maybe if you'd tagged in someone other than me, they wouldn't've," Noah mumbled.

"Aw, c'mon, Noah, you weren't that bad," Cody gave him a little elbow on the arm.

"I was pretty bad," Noah retorted. He glanced sideways at the other boy. "And what was with you taking the hit for Gwen that one game? You could've stayed in. You were basically our MVP."

~~kkkssshhhttt...!!~~

"Before you say it: Yes, I know I agreed to go out with Noah." Cody gestured a hand outward, "But that doesn't mean I can't be nice to Gwen at the same time." He shrugged, "Who knows, maybe eventually she'll come around. Everyone knows that if you're taken, it makes you three times more desireable. It's like an unspoken law of relationships: everyone wants what they can't have."

~~kkkssshhhttt...!!~~

"I dunno. I think she's cute. I didn't want her to get hurt," he explained.

"I guess. If you're into that whole pale-skin, dark-lipstick scene," Noah rolled his eyes. "You know you're never going to get her to like you."

"Yeah, probably not," Cody chuckled anxiously. He didn't want to hurt Noah's feelings by saying that if Gwen did like him, he'd most likely— okay, undoubtedly— be going out with her instead of him. Cody made the quick decision to change subjects. "It's gonna be our team's first elimination. I dunno if I can decide who to vote off. Who are you thinking of?"

Noah snorted. "Oh, I've got a few ideas."

~~kkkssshhhttt...!!~~

Noah crossed a leg over a knee. "Lindsay. She's bringing the average IQ of our team down at least 10 points all on her own."

~~kkkssshhhttt...!!~~

"I'll see you at the campfire ceremony," Noah said in parting.

"'Kay, see you then!" Cody waved. Noah didn't even look back at him. The teen's hand drooped.

~~kkkssshhhttt...!!~~

Cody facepalmed. "Ugh, I hope Noah isn't too mad at me." He looked down at his feet in the bathroom stall, shuffling them against the floor guiltily. "I probably ought to think of a way to make it up to him tonight."

~~kkkssshhhttt...!!~~

—

The vote came down to he and Lindsay. He knew he wasn't anyone's favorite on the team (not even Cody's and they were technically "together"), but seriously? He gave an insulted snort out of his nostrils as Chris pinched the squishy marshmallow between forefinger and thumb tauntingly. Beside him, Lindsay was biting her a-week-past-due-for-a-manicure nails. Well, if it did turn out to be him leaving the island, he wasn't going to give any of these idiots any satisfaction.

"Noah."

The marshmallow came at his face before he had a chance to react, bopping him right where two dodgeballs had impacted earlier that day. "Ow," he commented, annoyed. Owen reached down to grab the fallen marshmallow; he didn't even brush off the dirt before popping it in his oversized mouth.