Here it is and please do enjoy. It took me forever to make this chapter work the way I wanted. This should pretty much wrap things up for the event. There's some more Blake to the right. I personally think he needs to smile more. Inn_1234 there is a little scene here I so badly wanted to tell you about but couldn't for obvious reasons. Well now you get to see it for yourself. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Nikita
“Are you sure we should be doing this? Didn’t Blake say Matt was nineteen years old? Wouldn’t that be illegal?” I couldn’t stop worrying even though what was done was already done. Now I was having second thoughts even if it was too late.
“Yes Nikki,” Mandy gave an exasperated sigh, a bit dramatic if you ask me. “It’s sad but true that Matt may be a bit too old for our Jamie. That doesn’t mean love has a limit.”
I gave Mandy a sideways frown as a reply as I said, “That logic doesn’t make enough sense.”
“Nikki love, just look at the big picture here.” She gave a sweep of her hand at the scene right before us.
“The big picture I’m seeing is my boyfriend hiding behind his boyfriend from a clown that was just offering a free balloon.”
Mandy snapped a finger at me, “Nikita, focus.”
I held back the urge to roll my eyes and just nodded.
“We’re just planting the seed. Nothing more. Matt seems like a good guy so I’m pretty sure he’ll keep his hands to himself. It’s the desire here that’s important. Putting something in front of each other that neither of them can have, well it could lead to something great in the future!”
I guess I could kind of see what she was talking now.
“But is it fair?” The words tumbled out before I could stop them.
Mandy pursed her lips for a moment before saying, “Do you have to question, excuse me, the word I was looking for was challenge-“
“-Everything? Yes and no.”
She pursed her lips again and I realized we had stopped walking.
“Just please try and see what we’re trying to do here is a good thing.”
I nodded though reluctant.
“What?”
“What what?” I asked possibly too innocently.
“Your eyes did a shifty move?”
“A shifty move? What’s that supposed to mean?” Now I was just lost. What did I give away by accident?
“You do this shifty eye things when you have something to say but keep it to yourself.”
“I do?”
Mandy just glared at me. It was a glare and also filled with something like suspicion. If anyone could manage it, Mandy could.
“Fine, fine, fine I give up. I was wondering how it was going to work because as far as I knew, they both top.”
Mandy kept looking at me suspiciously at first but once the words sank in, she started to laugh. You know when they say it rains it pours? Well when Mandy laugh’s she really laughs and it’s the kind of laugh that’s contagious. At first all I could do was stare at her because what I said couldn’t have been that funny.
Ultimately I gave in.
We laughed together until tears started to fall freely from our faces. Mandy’s laughter was so contagious it spread to several people that were only passing us by. This was sure to end up on YouTube.
“It’s not funny to laugh at someone’s clown phobias,” Sean said standing between us. Somehow Mandy and I both ended up our backs on the ground.
“Oh… my… God… Sean…” Mandy had to say between breaths. “…does… everything have to… revolve around… you?”
Sean just sat on Mandy’s stomach.
“Argh! Ah! I take it back! Oh my freaking goodness you’re heavy!”
Sean crossed his arms across his chest as he looked down at her.
“Are you calling me fat?”
Mandy did dig her own grave for that one. However she was saved by her phone. Here’s a funny fact about Mandy’s phone. When her family call’s, she has what she calls, special ringtones for each family member.
Darth Vader’s theme (meaning her father) caused everyone to momentary pause.
Sean did get off of her though.
“Like Hello?” Ah, the preppy voice as she liked to call it. She only used it with her father because it was whatever she did was never good enough for him. This was her way of rebelling though subtle.
Once she was distracted it was when I caught Blake staring at me.
“What?”
“Where did Shane and Jenna go?”
I tried to think back, then realized a few seconds late to remember I had a phone. It rang and rang with no answer. I found myself shifting my weight from foot to foot getting slightly annoyed. It wasn’t like listening to a phone ring was ever my thing. At least it didn’t head straight to voice mail.
“Not getting an answer,” I said placing it back in my right pocket, “Maybe they ran off together.”
“Sounds kind of romantic,” Sean didn’t sound enthusiastic. In fact he looked glad to be rid of them.
He caught me making a face at him, “Hey, hey you know I didn’t mean it like that.”
“Liar,” Blake pointed out giving him his own pointed look.
“Hey look! Dancing!” Leave it to Sean to jump from one subject to the next.
Well he was right because right behind us was a crowd of people gathering on a dance floor. I noted a small boy and girl dancing together. The adults all were enthralled and some were taking pictures. This was barely what I would call an attention grabber.
“Later,” I said with a harsher tone than intended. Sean wasn’t paying attention but I was sure Blake was. “Maybe you can try Matt or Jamie?” Call me a mother hen or whatever you want. For some reason I always felt it was my job to keep tabs on everyone.
It was Blake’s turn to stand still while trying to hear. Only he placed one hand over his left ear and kept the phone glued to the other. It may have been seven rings by the time he gave up. Blake shrugged his shoulders at me.
“Then do you think they split up?”
“I don’t really know your friends that well but I doubt the guys would leave the girls.”
I was pretty stumped myself.
“But anyways why did you decide to go ahead of us and try to face off the creepy butcher? You even went as far as stomping your foot at one of those other creepy pig people. I wish I had a set of lungs like yours because I’m sure even the people still standing in line might have heard you. The guy with the pig mask even ran away from you. I mean I get Sean made a terrible shield and all-”
“-Because I hate being the damsel in distress.” My hands balled into fists subconsciously. Even Blake backed up a couple of steps from me. Remembering that we were no longer in that place, I calmed myself down. “I don’t like to get scared easily and it was sort of something my dad taught me.”
“Oh?” Blake was curious and I realized there was still so much we had yet to learn from each other.
“I should always,” I said then had to think of my next choice of words carefully, “at least try to face my fears. Fears can be the thing that dictate your life and I really don’t want that.”
“Inspiring. I like that about you.”
I fought the urge to blush that started to creep up my cheeks, “Thanks but all the credit goes to my dad.”
“Hmm? What are you guys talking about?” Sean finally decided to drop back down to the world of us mortals. Even though he was standing slightly between Blake and myself, he could zone out that. Only Sean could do that.
Blake answered for me though, “Nothing for you to concern yourself with. Nikita and I were just talking about going for a little walk.”
Sean looked taken back by that, “What do you mean? Nikki what does he mean by that? What are you both up to? Why are you both going to leave me out of everything?”
“Oh quite whining,” Blake snorted but the teasing smile on his face was clear. “Besides you were standing right there while Nikita and I were talking about seeing the fireworks. Yeah those should be happening soon I think.”
I hid my smile to play along as I nodded my head in agreement. Who knew how much fun it could be to tease Sean?
“So you’re both going to leave me?” Oh he was seriously pouting now.
I was about to cave but Blake continued, “It’s not our fault you have short attention span.”
“Blaaaaaake,” he actually got down on his knees in front of Blake. Oh man, how could he not cave when Sean gave those puppy eyes? I mean he was putting them to their full use.
Blake stood immobile with an impassive face as he said, “I know Sean, I love you too.”
I flinched.
Even Blake flinched.
Mandy was still busy talking to her father still on the ground at that. Gosh even I forgot about her. She was completely in her own world giving cooking instructions to her father. I think it had something to do with brown sugar not going on meatloaf.
“Say what?” Sean’s body was rigid but it was hard to tell with his back to me.
Blake looked like he was seriously regretting his words now. “I said, I know.”
My face formed into something like concrete. What was I supposed to say? What was I supposed to do? Even Mandy finally picked up on the sudden environment change. Her eyes were darting back and forth from them to me. Her father was shouting things over the phone which she wasn’t replying to.
You could pretty much cut the sudden tension with a knife.
“No, no, no don’t try that on me,” Sean was standing up now and Blake looked ready to bolt at any moment.
Could he really be that humiliated that easily with emotions? That must be a guy thing. I guess it didn’t matter what orientation they were.
“Sean, just forget it.” Blake was freezing up by looking away and closing his eyes. I could have slapped him for it but then I realized… he said he loved him. He loved my boyfriend. Then again he was his boyfriend too.
“No Blake,” Sean was cupping Blake’s face with the palm of his hand. “You don’t just go and say things like that out of the blue. I know you well enough to know better.”
Blake tried to fight out of looking into Sean’s eyes.
I had to fight that dark cloud of emotions that seemed to linger over my head. Not only was Blake in love with Sean but I was too. I was just too cowardly to say it first. Even after that short speech I had just given Blake, what was it all for? Here I was preaching something I obviously wasn’t practicing.
Sean refused to let Blake look away. Then I saw it, the shimmer, small glimmers in Blake’s eyes as he looked at Sean.
Sean was right. Blake wouldn’t have said anything like that so freely without meaning it. The look in his eyes proved that. I couldn’t see Sean’s face but I knew better. Sean may not match the same look as Blake because they were very different people, but I knew he…
A sting erupted at the points of my eyes. Why didn’t I see this coming? A part of me wanted to jump up and down to say, hey don’t forget about me! Instead, all I could do was stand there frozen like a statue.
“Say it again,” I heard Sean breath into Blake’s face.
Blake’s eyes swam with tears himself.
‘Well, that was new,’ I thought bitterly. ‘Yet you act like any of this should come as any shock to you. You chose. You’ve made your bed and now you’ve got to lay in it.’
I had to shake my head to clear the thoughts out. There was no sense in being that way because bitterness never brings happiness. I couldn’t and wouldn’t let myself become that way. My dear mother would scold me until I was thirty if I so much as set one foot in that path. Both my parents had raised me to be better than that.
Mandy was at my side and I realized her phone was nowhere in sight as she rubbed small circle’s into my back for comfort. I sighed letting myself be comforted as I looked back at her. My face had broken free of its concrete state. In that moment I heard the smash of lips briefly crash into one another. I had missed the kiss.
Well I was only human.
“I can’t,” Blake said and I realized he was answering Sean’s earlier question.
It was Sean’s turn to sigh, “Blake, why do you have to be so difficult.” It wasn’t a question but a fact.
Normally I could be enjoying this with my three best friends but this was… well you get what I’m trying to say here.
“I’m sorry,” Blake’s throat croaked up, “I just can’t do it. Not now. Not right now. I need some time ok? This scares me. This scares me for than anything.”
Even I could say the same but the difference being that he could openly say it where I couldn’t.
Again that was like a sharp pain to the stomach.
Blake
Sean’s stomach growled killing the moment.
Sean backed away with his face flushing with embarrassment.
I rose an eyebrow at him in disbelief that of all times, he would be hungry. Again.
What Sean did next was make funny noises and shortly an excuse followed, “Ah, ha, ha, s-sorry Blake. You know me. A growing boy.”
I sniffed to keep from making any strange faces back at him in reply. Don’t get me wrong the kiss we just shared had a fluttery feeling in both my stomach and head at the same time. But did his stomach just have to go growl like an angry tiger in a cage like that? Hadn’t be eaten like three hot dogs, cotton candy (my cotton candy too that I couldn’t finish myself), nachos, and possibly his own large soda cup (more than half of Nikita’s too) enough?
You’d think that would have been enough for one day if it were anyone else. Just not for Sean.
Oh crap Nikita!
Now I felt guilty. She had to have heard everything! She probably felt completely left out! Heck she had every right to feel that way! Oh man I really screwed up!
I had to talk to her. I tried not to be too obvious by looking over Sean’s shoulder. A part me started to feel sick at what she must be feeling now.
As if on cue there was a bang and a flash of blue light over us.
“Sean you must have missed your second dinner,” I tried to gently push against his chest. Hmm, had he been working out too lately? “Why don’t you go get yourself something? Here’s a ten, spend it wisely.” Ha-ha as if!
Sean looked down at the crumpled bill in my hand and then up at me.
“What? We don’t want to miss the grand finale and you’ll want to enjoy it on a full stomach so hurry up.”
“Um, thanks? But you know I can’t accept this. It would be like, wrong. I mean the guy is supposed to be the one paying for-“
“-Finish that sentence and you’ll wish you never had,” I said threateningly taking a step forward, purposely on his foot. “I am not a girl.”
‘Nor am I Nikita who you are totally forgetting about,’ I wanted to add but held back from doing so. The guilt may have eaten half my insides by now.
“Well ok,” Sean backed off taking the money. “But only because you love me.” I tried not to flinch from that. “I’m still giving this back to you.”
“Good,” I patted the back of his neck as he walked past me.
“See you guys soon!”
At least he acknowledged Nikita now.
Speaking of which, Nikita was looking at anything but at us. Mandy wore a frown on her face as she looked at her. I noted she was keeping a slight distance from Nikita.
“Why don’t you go with him Mandy,” I addressed by name to avoid any possible confusion. “You can use the ten I gave him. Be sure to tell him that.”
Mandy caught the hint though and trailed off after Sean.
I didn’t miss the neutral look she gave me but I also think she was glad to go.
Nikita was on her phone trying to get a hold of Shane. I only knew because the name that flashed on the screen.
“Still no answer,” she said when she stared down at the phone like it was unbelievable that her other two best friends would leave her out of something. “Where the hell did you girls go?”
Now what was I supposed to say?
“Should I try Matt again?” I offered. Well it was lame I’ll admit but it was the best I had to offer at the moment. I was never good at the emotional stuff and it wasn’t like I lacked any empathy. That was frustrating sometimes.
“That won’t be necessary,” she said making an obvious motion to look behind me.
There was Jamie smiling more than I’d ever seen him smile with Matt just behind him. They both were getting on the very same dreaded roller coaster I got on with Nikita’s aunt. Just the thought of crazy twists and turns on that thing…
It wasn’t like they were scared at all though. Matt was being a gentleman and allowing Jamie to go on a head of him. Even though they were pretty far, I didn’t miss the fact of Matt paying for the ride for Jamie too. Aw, I raised him right!
But wait, weren’t they both tops?
How was this supposed to work?
“You know, now that I think on it, Matt is like nineteen years old right.” Well dang she was right. Why didn’t I remember something like that? I should slap myself for having anything to do with it! I could have indirectly sent my poor cousin to jail for freaks sake!
“And Jamie is like seventeen so that still kind of makes things illegal.” I pursed my lips glaring at no one in particular.
“But I doubt Matt would really try anything.” Nikita was suddenly right beside me which caused me to jump. She still wasn’t looking directly at me but she didn’t hide the smile.
She would be right again. Even I knew Matt well enough to know that.
“No I guess not,” I said getting my heart to settle back down. “He’s into this whole celibacy thing lately. A part of me wants to see how long it’ll take before be cracks but mostly I just believe him.” Another thought passed my mind just then, “Are you sure your friends should have…” Should have what you might ask?
“Don’t worry,” Nikita gave me a very direct look. At least she could look at me again. “They are usually pretty good at their match making job.”
“Ah usually?” I kind of gulped.
“Yeah so don’t underestimate their intuition. They don’t just do it just for the boy on boy fandom. They do it because they know what they’re doing.”
I sincerely hope so. For everyone’s sake. The odds may stack against them but maybe we just hope for the best. Surely both Matt and Jamie deserved happiness just like everyone else.
“Well they do look happy together,” I pointed out but maybe I spoke too soon.
It was also hard to miss the fact that Mandy must have spotted them, ditched Sean, and joined them. She ran from out of nowhere just as the guy started to place the chain across the line. The guy stopped what he was doing as she quickly paid her way in and made a path for the guys.
So the smiles had wiped off their faces as she sat in between them.
The ride was getting set as Mandy got herself cozy looking from Jamie to Matt with a dreamy look.
“Well my cousin won’t have to touch Jamie,” I said. “Mandy is going to smash their heads together sometime soon.”
Just as the ride started to pull forward, Mandy’s hands stealthily reached up behind their heads to do exactly as I said. She may have failed but we didn’t get to see much more. My stomach lurched at the memory of the ride taking off to a complete 360… … … …
I just wasn’t going to think any more of that ride.
So I turned to Nikita trying to take baby steps about this.
“Nikita, are you ok?”
“Of course I’m ok. Why wouldn’t I be?” She appeared unbothered by the question as she stared straight ahead.
She also made a terrible liar.
“Right because people who use those choice of words are always ok.” I wasn’t trying to come across as insensitive. Honestly!
She started to walk away, hands balled into fists. I never imagined myself having to chase a girl ever in my life. But chase her I did.
“Nikita… Nikita!” I snapped grabbing her attention in the process. She swung around and if she could set things on fire with her mind, I would have been barbeque. Her face was paler and all her features blazed. I felt myself lean backwards away from her.
“I. Am not. Mad.”
“You look mad.” Maybe that wasn’t the smartest thing to say.
Instead she appeared to collect herself.
Now I suddenly understood.
“You’re in love with him too.” Maybe I shouldn’t have been so direct.
I watched her blink a few times and subconsciously wipe her face, even though there were no tears present. Her mouth opened ajar but no sound came out.
“Look you don’t have to tell me. Tell him.”
Now she was looking at me again but this time my life didn’t feel threatened. “Are you angry with me?”
What? “What?” My mouth and mind were running in different time zones. Seriously, it felt like my brain was running on New York time while my mouth ran at Utah time. Only a two hour difference.
“Are you mad at me because I’m in love with him too?” Her dark eyes were searching for anything my face would give away.
I knew better than to lie, “No.”
She didn’t believe me as she rose her eyebrows at me. Her head even tilted forward as her hands came up but only waistline length.
“Seriously no,” I said.
My face expression may have been imperturbable but that was how I always looked. At least from what Jamie and Skylar have told me. That was just how I was!
The fireworks started to burst faster.
“Nikita, let’s at least enjoy the fireworks. Sean should be back at any moment now. All of this emotional stuff is draining the life out of me.”
People pretty much chose to stand where ever they wanted. Nikita and I chose to stand by the merry go round. It looked like somebody had recently shut it down. Minutes passed and possibly twenty by now. There was plenty of surprised gasps from the crowd. The people in charge of the fireworks even used smiley faces as part of the show.
We even got ourselves an upside down smiley face.
Overall this had been a pretty good show. I never got bored.
“I won’t lie when I say I never had a New Year’s Eve kiss,” I admitted out loud.
I felt Nikita briefly look at me but turned away quickly too.
“What?” I asked as everything lit up in a purplish blue.
“I always wanted a kiss with the fireworks.”
I couldn’t tell if she was blushing because everything was green now.
“Hmm, me too I guess.” I went back to watching the sky. It would have been romantic but my boyfriend also had a girlfriend. I was talking to that girlfriend too. Our lives just weren’t that easy.
Then I got an idea.
“What’s taking him so long? He’s going to miss the grand finale.” I asked at the same time Nikita’s phone buzzed.
Her face expressions ranged from amusement to pity. I didn’t bother to read whatever she was reading on her own phone. That was like an invasion of privacy in my book.
“Sean’s looking for us,” Nikita said as her fingers moved at lightning speed over her phone. “He’s telling me that clown from earlier ran into him just now. The clown lost all of his balloons in the mishap and decided to chase him. So he had to hide in the maze of mirrors. The clown guy found him, chased him some more. So Sean had dove into the kid’s ball pit. He claims he has plenty of size two footprints on his back to prove it.”
“Wow.” What could I say to that?
“I’m telling him where we are.”
The grand finale was just beginning when I turned to Nikita at the same time she turned to me.
“Do ya think-“
“-that we might be on the same thought pattern?”
“Yeah,” we both said at the same time.
It was too noisy to really hear much else as our faces started to close in. First I admitted to my first love. Second I had to chase a girl for the first time. Third I was about to kiss a girl for the first time. It wasn’t like Sean was here to make our dreams come true. Go ahead and laugh.
An oldie but goodie, Katy Perry song, I Kissed a Girl, came to mind.
My eyes closed about the same time hers did. No one would be watching us so I can at least say that there wasn’t any pressure involved. I could feel her curly locks brush the sides of my neck as we moved in closer to each other. I think I could feel her body heat rise or it was just my imagination. Just what the heck were we doing?! Was my body heat rising?
When our lips finally met all I could think was, ‘I wonder what she uses to keep her lips so soft. Really, what is Victoria’s secret?’
Then we just awkwardly stayed lip locked in place. Her head was tilted one way while mine tilted the other. Our lips were connected but unmoving. Neither of us knew who was supposed to move first. Was their supposed to be tongue involved yet?
The kiss (if you can call that a kiss) ended quickly.
“Okaaay.”
“That was weird.”
“I agree.”
“Do you think Sean would be turned on by that?”
I don’t think we laughed this hard in weeks.