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IV

chapter name: 3

The ride home was silent, I was lost in my thoughts while everyone else did whatever they were doing. I was thinking of my room, if Nick was in there then he might dig around, and I wasn't sure if the secret door was locked, I would just have to hope it was.

We got home a few minutes later and it was 5:30, I had been looking forward to seeing Nick but now I wasn't so sure, yeah he was still my friend but that Dream had some other plans. Me and Nick had actually not really talked much since last summer, he didn't know about any of the things I had gotten since then. Or hobbies but he would just get to figure those out.

Eventually we got home and I was the second one inside, Clay was already in his room by the time I got to mine. I slowly cracked the door open and saw that Nick wasn't in there, and he wasn't anywhere in the room at all. I did notice the open window though, so I poked my head outside and saw him sitting on the roof. "Hey Nick." His head snapped to face me and he immediately smiled, "Finally you guys are back!" He quickly got to the ledge and got to the room.

I backed a little away from the window ledge but didn't say anything while he crawled back into the room, I felt so awkward standing there. That was until I got tackled onto the bed, well not really tackled more like pushed until i was sitting. I was confused for a moment until I got pulled face forward into Nick's lap. Me being taller than him I could rest my face in his hair while his was dug into my chest.

"I've missed you jacobs." My face turned red at the sentence and I could feel my heart starting to beat faster. I needed to get out of this situation and relatively fast. "Wanna get your graduation gifts?" Nick immediately got excited and shook his head yes. "Ok, go get George and Clay then meet me in the living room." He was very excited to get his presents, but none the less he was very gentle and easy as he set me back off of his lap. Once I was sitting back down on the bed he got up and starting booking it down the hall.

I realized that I won't have much time to actually get downstairs so I decided to make him wait.

I had known for a little while that I liked Nick, and so I decided this summer I would do something about it. I was out to my entire family, and I was to George to but not to Nick, so I decided to tease him a little bit by wearing some of his clothes. I dug around in his suitcase that was in my closet and got his black and white hoodie out of it, sure Nick was shorter than me, but he was more muscular so his clothes still were big on me.

This specific hoodie went down to my mid thighs, perfect for teasing. I laughed at my stupid antics before taking off the uncomfortable shorts I had been in for so long, all I was wearing was boxers and the hoodie. Finally I left my room and walked downstairs, I could see George and Nick talking in the living room so I went to the kitchen to get the keys for the gifts.

Clay happened to be in the kitchen. He looked at me and his eyes got a bit protective for a moment, despite me being adopted, he still had the protective older brother instinct. Then after a moment of realization he was smirking. "Finally came to terms with yourself, I'm guessing that this is a teasing of some sort?" I looked down a bit embarrassed that he had figured out my plan so easily. He laughed a little bit and then spoke again. "If you really wanna drive him nuts there's two things you can do."

Yes it was childish but I immediately started listening to Clay. "Ask him if you can wear some of his rings or chains, maybe even his headband, then where them while we swim or in something like that." He mentioned the clothes I was already wearing. "Second, make sure he notices that tongue piercing you got, Nick told me a while ago he wondered what it was like to kiss someone with a tongue piercing. Just make sure Mom doesn't see it though." I laughed a bit at his end statement, then I hugged him, "thankyou Clay." He smiled and ruffled my hair before walking back to the living room.

I grabbed the box with the two sets of keys and walked back into the living room. Nick glanced at me since his attention had been on the tv, but then he looked back and stared at me. My steps stuttered a bit before I regained my confidence and walked over to him. I slowly sat down on the couch so I was on my knees next to him, he glanced at Clay who was barely smirking before facing me all the way.

I smiled and handed him the little box before discreetly pulling the hoodie sleeves over my hands. He glanced at George before he started to untie the ribbon on the box and open it. He saw what was inside and his face lit up, then he shut the box and stood up, pure joy across his features.

Nick booked it outside with me, George and Clay following behind. The first thing he ran to was the dock in the backyard, he actually jumped and hollered when he saw the speedboat tied to the left side of the dock. He jumped in it and leaned over the opposite edge to see the name.

Bandit. That's the name I decided on for the boat and Nick seemed to love it, which was always good. He looked at the interior and smiled as he walked around. The he put the key back in the little box and pulled out the other set. He smirked at the keys before quickly walking back to the house and through it to the garage.

He walked into the garage and smiled when he saw a dodge srt hellcat at the end of the room, his smile grew impossibly wider and he quickly unlocked the car and got inside of it. I got in the other door and sat down, he looked around at the leather seats custom orange and black paint job inside and out, his customized lighted radio and speedometers. He looked like he was nothing but happy. Then he faced me.

"Who picked out the designs for everything?" I smiled and slightly raised my hand into the air. Nick smiled and looked up at the roof, "Oh my god, I could literally kiss you right now Jacobs!" We both busted into laughter before he got back out of the car, I copied him and was met with a super tight hug.

A half hour later we all ate dinner early, we just had takeout from a new restaurant in town because of the last surprise tomorrow. Nick and me were laying on my bed now until he started talking. "I know you don't like physical gifts so what did you get with your graduation money?" Quickly a few of the things I had gotten flashed through my mind. The multiple tattoos, one on my lower back, two on my inner thighs, and the ones on my collar blades, just to name a few. The tongue piercing, the stomach piercing.

I just smiled and didn't say anything, "You'll know them all eventually. What do you think the surprise tomorrow is?" Nick groaned. "No don't change the topic just tell me some of the things." I thought about it for a moment and decided to show him one of my tattoos. I sighed, "ok, I'll show you one of my tattoos." I turned my head and pulled back my hair and moved my ear so he could see the tattoo behind it.

"Why is there a lizard?" I slightly laughed, "It's one of the ones without meaning." Nick giggled and I swear my heart skipped a beat. "One of them?! So there's more with meanings?! Please show me one? please please
?" I thought about it for a moment.

I had one on my back, two on my shoulders, two on my thighs, three on one arm four on the other, one on my chest, a few on my sides, two on each side of my v-line. I didn't want to show him any of the ones on personal areas or that had extra deep meanings. The one with the most meaning we're on my wrist, I got a thin line around my arm every time something life threatening happened to me, six lines cause it happened way to often.

The second most meaningful one we're on my waist and sides. I went through a stage in my life where I ate to much from stress, then I lost all my weight but the stretch marks never fully left. They were there for so long and I hated them so much that I decided to love them instead, i got tattoos on my body over them and once i accepted them I truly saw my obviously very thin feminine frame, and I loved it.

Finally i snapped out of my thoughts and answered Nick. "ok, I will show you two of my tattoos, but you can't look at any of the other ones that you'll be able to see ok?" I made him pinky promise. He closed his eyes as i pulled off my shirt.

"Ok look at my shoulders." He opened his eyes and looked at my collar blades. I got these pretty recently and they were still swelled but I never minded the pain. "Love me?" I nodded, "That's how I learned to love myself." Nick smiled at them. "I don't understand who couldn't." I turned red but we both laughed at his statement. Once my shirt was back on Nick decided that it was time to go to sleep, so he pulled me into the bed and snuggled up so that my face was in his chest and he was holding me.

I smiled at the position before drifting off to a peaceful sleep.