Noah (5th Street series)

Chapter 8

Gio called just as he was getting ready to walk out of his room, and Noah winced, remembering he'd forgotten to call him.

"Hey, Gio, what's up?" Noah could hear the noise in the background. Even this early, Gio probably already had a full house.

"Not much. What time you coming down? Rita is here, and she was asking about you."

Shit. Rita was Gio's cousin from up north. They had sort of a holiday understanding. Since she lived so far and only really came down for the holidays, a relationship was out of the question, not that Noah had ever felt inclined to have one with her. But she was fun and very generous under the sheets. So a few times a year, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter—the holy holidays—they got together. Though their trysts were anything but holy. It was perfect because she openly admitted she wasn't into settling down, so she'd never been clingy. Once she went home, he rarely heard from her except maybe to text him good luck before a fight or a random question here and there. She was a cool chick and hot enough, but most importantly, he never had to worry about her getting hung up on him.

"I meant to call you earlier, man. I'm not gonna make it this year."

"What? What do you mean? Where you gonna be?"

Gio knew better than anyone that unless Noah was spending time with a chick or was at the gym, he really didn't have anywhere else to be. And since Gio's family was the closest thing Noah had to family, he wouldn't pass up spending the holiday with them for a night of lust. But this was different. As cold as the shower had been that he was forced to take earlier, this wasn't about lust. "I'm having dinner here—at home."

The second the words came out, it hit him. He'd never used the word home in relation to where he lived. It was always the Fuentes' place or whatever other foster parents' place he was staying at. The thought nearly suffocated him—he was getting too sucked into this whole thing. He had to keep in mind that this also was only temporary. Just like all the other homes he lived in throughout his life, this was no more his home than any of those had been. So why the hell was he referring to it as that?

The silence on the other end went on a little too long. "You still there?"

"Yeah, I'm here," Gio said, clearing his throat.

"So, uh, yeah. Let your mom know—"

"Noah, what are you doing?"

"What do you mean?" Noah squeezed his eyes shut, knowing exactly what Gio was getting at. Several times over the past couple of weeks, he'd gotten strange looks from Gio, especially when he'd slip and refer to Veronica as Roni in front of him—Gio already knew what Noah hadn't even admitted to himself yet.

"Are you falling for this chick?"

Noah's first thought was to play stupid, act like Gio was being ridiculous, but he knew it was pointless. So instead, he sat down on his bed, letting his head fall back and said nothing.

"Dude, I'm not saying there is anything wrong with it or that it couldn't work out. I just hope you're not getting too comfortable in case it doesn't. You're my boy, and you know with everything you've been through, I don't wanna see you hurt is all."

Noah wanted to smile, but he couldn't. Things weren't even close to what he knew Gio must be imagining. "It's not like that with us, man. So if you're ever around her, don't go saying something that would make her think I said it was. She just ... She has no one. I know what that feels like, and she was gonna be alone tonight, so I decided to stay and keep her company. That's all."

Noah knew Gio would never buy that's all it was, but he also knew he'd let it go. He heard his friend exhale, and then Gio spoke again, "Okay, well, I'll tell Rita and you'll be missed, bro. Enjoy your day with Roni." He chuckled. "We'll have plenty of leftovers, so come by this weekend and grub. You know my mom. She'll be disappointed you didn't come by tonight, so you'll have to make it up to her."