❝I either eat too much or not at all. Sleep for 14 hours or have insomniac nights. Fall in love very hard or hate passionately. I don't know what grey is. I never did.❞ -Anais Nin
Dotting the final touches of the oil painting I had been working on for two weeks, I lean back in satisfaction as the purples blend intricately with the darker colours below.
"Is that supposed to be two people we know?" Alyce asks suggestively, winking at me. "Perhaps...Noah?"
I roll my eyes. It is true that it does sort of look like Noah, but it is pure coincidence that I decided to make the boy's hair brown. That could be Damon for all she knows.
"Not to mention," Thalia drawls as she picks up the most recent rose off my desk. "He gives you roses just like Joshua used to. He knows how much it means to you."
"It's because he saw how sad I got when I talked about Josh," I say vaguely. "He's just being a good friend."
Even Katia looks sceptical. "If you say so, Diana."
"I'm friends with Noah, but you don't seem him giving me any flowers," Alyce muses.
I never really thought about that. I brush it off, concluding that it's probably because Noah and I are closer than him and Alyce.
"You guys would be cute together," Katia says casually.
I feel myself blush a little, unsure how to take that bit of information. Noah's just a friend. Right?
❀ ❀ ❀
"C'mon, Elington, it will be fun," Damon whines. "This is our grad trip! We only get to graduate once."
Hunter looks at him and scoffs. "I wouldn't worry about only experiencing grad year once if I were you..."
Damon glares at him. "Says the guy getting fifty two percent in foods class."
Damon and Hunter continue to bicker while Noah rolls his eyes. "Give me one good reason why you shouldn't go on the grad trip." Noah challenges.
"The trip is in December," I state. "It's going to be cold."
I actually love snowboarding, but for some reason, the idea of going on the trip makes me nervous. Perhaps it is because the most laidback teachers supervise the trip every year and this year, Noah Jackson is going. The trip is notorious for hookups.
"You could stay in the lodge all day," Noah argues. "It has a hot tub, pool and huge rooms. You don't have to go skiing or snowboarding if you don't want to."
After thirty more minutes of incessant pestering, I finally agree to go on the grad trip to the mountains. It's the same, gorgeous lodge every year and only Seniors are allowed on the trip. All my other friends already agreed to go. Almost the entire graduating year is going, despite more than half of them not even knowing how to ski or snowboard.
At around noon, Hunter leaves to meet up with Alyce and talk about what happened at the party. Damon leaves shortly after without telling us where he is going.
Since our friends ditched us, Noah and I decide to go for lunch at a nice restaurant nearby. Noah used to come here a lot with his family, so all the servers know him well and I occasionally came here with Josh when we used to date. Noah suggests the pasta and basil lemonade. I take his suggestions and order the dishes.
"I can't believe the guys who crashed were Joshua and his friends," Noah says in disbelief, taking a sip of my drink. "You've got shit luck, Diana."
I roll my eyes. "I know. You don't even have to worry about running into your ex."
Noah laughs. "The guy had some guts, I'll give him that. He was really straightforward about everything. How are you doing, though? Shaken up by what he said?"
I shrug, trying to keep a nonchalant expression. To be honest, I couldn't stop thinking about Josh, but not because I still love him or want him. He had simply caught me off guard. It's not everyday you see your ex boyfriend and he tells you he still loves you.
"I don't know what to think," I respond honestly. "What do you think?"
Noah smirks. "I hope you don't get back together with that jerk. You're better than him." There is a hint of annoyance in his voice.
"You don't know him." I don't know why I still feel the need to defend him. It's been almost nine goddamn months. I feel frustration build in me; at myself and Josh. Why does he still have this hold on me?
"But I know you." He answers as though it is simple.
"And I know Josh."
Noah groans. "All I'm saying is that Joshua Williams is no good for you."
"No need to be jealous," I tease and watch as Noah's cheeks grow rosy. "Maybe I could become friends with Josh again. We had some good times."
Noah glowers at nothing in particular. "I'm not jealous. I just think he's a shitty guy and treated you terribly. Why would you even give him the satisfaction of being his friend?"
"Because I miss him," The words come out of my mouth before I even think about it. "Because he might have been the first boy I ever loved and I don't like how badly things ended between us. Because it kills me to let go of the people I'm close to."
Noah's quiet for a moment, something I'm not used to. "Can you honestly say you will be happier with him back in your life?"
"I won't know until I try, will I?"
He looks at me for a moment, wonder filling his eyes. "Okay. I'll be here, whatever you choose to do. But just know, if he hurts you again, I'll beat the shit out of him."
I smile at that, finding reassurance in his words. I know now that if I get my heart broken by Josh again, I would have someone there for me. Someone I didn't know I needed all these years.
"Becoming protective already, hey?" I tease once more.
Noah's mood immediately shifts as he rolls his eyes. "You wish, Diana. I'm only looking for an excuse to fight that guy."
"You don't need to fight to win girls over."
"Well, obviously I don't," Noah scoffs. "Have you seen me? I'm hot, girls are already won over by me."
"Whoever told you to be yourself gave you bad advice. Your ego is bigger than Africa."
"It's called self esteem and it's a good thing I have a high one," Noah says lightly. "You could have really hurt my feelings."
"Obviously not, you're Noah Jackson."
Noah chuckles, but then turns serious when our eyes meet. He watches me for a moment, a soft look in his hazel eyes. "J'entends ta voix dans tous les bruits du monde."
I raise an eyebrow, impressed by the effortless French in which Noah had just spoken. "You speak French?" I ask curiously.
Noah shrugs, grinning. "I learned a lot when I was dating Amelia. Her parents can only speak French, with a couple of English words here and there."
"What does it mean?"
Noah smiles before shaking his head, "Maybe I'll tell you one day."
"You are an ever growing mystery, Noah."
"I like to keep people guessing," Noah says and taps the tip of my nose once with his finger. "Especially you."
"Well, I have no secrets," I laugh. "We're complete opposites, aren't we?"
"The good girl and the bad boy." Noah smirks.
"I was thinking we're more along the lines of the morally-questionable girl and the golden hearted boy who likes to make people think he's a bad boy but he's really just antisocial."
"No, no," Noah shakes his head profusely. "Every bad boy has a golden heart. That's common knowledge."
"Sorry," I hold my hands up in surrender. "I didn't know you were an expert on what a bad boy is."
"I have to be an expert," Noah chides. He motions towards himself. "Or else I wouldn't be able to embody the perfect example of a bad boy."
"Bad boys are so cliché."
"Yes, but everyone loves them," He winks at me. "And no one can resist them."
"Trust me when I say, it's easy to resist." I grin, but Noah doesn't look convinced or bothered at all.
"Just wait, the good girl always falls for the bad boy." Noah says, leaning back in his chair in a relaxed manner.
"And the bad boy always falls for the good girl." I add on easily.
"Try not to fall for me, Diana," Noah says in a teasing tone. "Though I know that will be hard."
"Keep dreaming, Jackson."
"As long as you're in my dreams, then I have no complaints."
I roll my eyes at Noah's flirty self and get up to go pay for our food at the front, but Noah grabs my wrist and spins me around, successfully crashing me into his chest.
"Where are you going?" Noah smirks, holding me against his chest.
"The bathroom." I lie.
"You're a shit liar, Diana," Noah states. "Good thing you're pretty. You can't lie your way out of anything."
"Fine, I was going to go pay for our food."
"Remember last time?" Noah shakes his head, acting as though he is disappointed. "I said I would pay the next time."
Noah and I argue for five minutes about who should pay. In the end, Noah pushes me into a plant and runs to the front counter to pay.
I end up covered in dirt, but at least I got a free meal out of it. To apologize, during the drive back, he buys me another rose.
We are laughing the whole way home.
A/N: painting by Vickie Wade!
If you guys liked the chapter, give it a like and comment, means a lot xx
We're about to get some To All The Boys vibes on this grad trip (even though the trip from TATB wasn't for grads). But I do plan on making what happens quite different ;);)
Noah and Diana are too cute to me 😍
also I am by no means a painter, so I just tried to make it as accurate as I could while describing her painting. sorry, I really did try oops <3