A Friend Like You || Completed

Chapter Six || Matthew

"It feels like a perfect night to dress up like hipsters." Matt groaned and blindly reached out to dismiss his alarm. "And make fun of our exes, uh uh, uh uh."

Taylor Swift quieted suddenly, which Matt was grateful for. He didn't fall asleep until after midnight to finish The Fault in Our Stars, forgetting that he had to be up before seven for school. Unfortunately, he forgot how close to the edge he slept on, and the upper half of his body fell off the bed. All attempts at getting off the floor and back in bed resulted in more of him and sheets on the floor.

"Having issues?" Matt saw Brooke standing in his doorway, eating cereal.

He glared at her and removed the sheets from him as he got off the floor. "Shouldn't you be at school?"

"I don't have classes until Wednesday, so I'll be leaving tomorrow." She rolled her eyes and left.

Matt dressed in his usual jeans and plaid before grabbing his bag and shoes. He ran out of the house, not stopping to grab breakfast or to say goodbye to Brooke when he saw that school was going to start in less than twenty minutes. He really needed to stop being late.

"Here you go." Aiden handed him a cup of coffee when they met at his locker during the break. "How you can have this shit without anything more than a single sugar is beyond me."

Matt shrugged in response as his hands were full. They made their way to their lockers to gather what they needed for the day; it wasn't until they reached Matt's that he remembered about inviting Charlie to lunch.

He set his coffee down and signed the information to Aiden then opened his locker.

"So, you're telling me that I have to find somewhere else to eat." Aiden huffed. "It was only a matter of time before you ditched me. And for a cuter blonde, I thought I was the cute one."

Matt stared at him and slowly shook his head. "It is literally lunch, A. You don't have to go elsewhere."

"I'm not third-wheeling your first date, okay?"

"Lunch."

"Give me your phone." Aiden held out his hand, and Matt gave it to him after unlocking the device.

Matt returned his AP Chem and AP Lang things to his locker while Aiden scrolled through what he presumed to be his texts with Charlie. He closed the door and reset the lock after getting his World History textbook and notebook then leaned against the metal. Aiden grinned and showed Matt his phone; it was the text he sent to Charlie about having lunch together.

"You sent her a smiley face."

"S-O?" Matt picked his coffee up and took a sip.

"So? It turns lunch into a date, Matty." Aiden gave Matt his phone back, and they began walking. "That's basic flirting."

Matt rolled his eyes and handed Aiden his coffee so he could sign. "I have no interest in dating her, A. She offered to buy me lunch for snapping at me, but since I bring my lunch, I told her to eat lunch with us instead."

"But you didn't mention me."

"She is not going to think of this as a date, nor will she mind you being there." Matt took his coffee back.

"Fine." Aiden sighed. "I'll be the third wheel."

#####

"Hi." Matt and Aiden stopped right outside of the cafeteria when Charlie was about to enter. "I thought you didn't eat school lunch."

"He doesn't," Aiden answered for Matt since today's lunch took two hands to carry. "But, he overslept and forgot to grab his lunch."

Matt nodded in agreement. They moved to the side when a group of students came up; Charlie watched them go by, then looked back at the boys. She gestured towards the food in Matt's hand.