Frenemies with benefits(boyxboy)

A shoulder to cry on

Brian's POV:

"You're gonna have to tell me what happened eventually", Cole said. "You've been in the bathroom for an hour now". The door squeaked open to reveal a very concerned Cole. "Why are you just wearing boxers?", I sniffed. "Oh, about that.. you wouldn't come out, and so I made myself comfortable", Cole scratched his head. "Do you want me to put on some clothes?" I shook my head. "It's fine", I said.

I shamefully walked out of the bathroom. My eyes were so puffy I almost couldn't open my eyes. Going to the kitchen, I grabbed some ice from the fridge. The cool sensation of the ice against my skin calmed me down. The sound of footsteps came closer as I felt a big hand on my shoulder. The warmth of Cole's skin spread through my body. He did always have warm hands. I turned around to squint at him. From what I could tell, Cole was wearing a worried expression and still no pants. "You don't seem very happy", Cole said. "Great observation", I nodded. "You are so smart", I said and patted his head. Cole smiled. "So you're not completely ruined", he sighted. I tilted my head. "You think anyone, let alone a stupid boy, can break my attitude? I've suffered worse", I scoffed. 

"Still, I'm so pissed at Will. I could beat him up", Cole snarled. I went to the couch and collapsed down. "Please don't. He's not worth breaking your fist over", I waved my hand. Cole sat down next to me. "He wouldn't break my hand", he claimed. "Have you seen his jawline?" I could see the wheels in his head turning before he finally sighted like he gave up. "Yeah. Fuck", he pouted.

"Don't worry about me, though. I'm fine", I tried to reassure him. He turned and gave me a look up and down. "You sure? You haven't cried this much since your dad died." I shifted in my seat. "I'm fine. Can we talk about something else, please?", I said exasperated. 

Cole studied my expression before finally dropping it. "Okay, if you insist." "I don't even need him. There's what, a month left of high school. It's not like I had time to be in a relationship. I'm gonna focus on my studies and get into my dream college and move the hell away from this shitty place and live my dream." I clenched my fists into the fabric just thinking about how shitty this town is. "I hope you'll visit me though", Cole smiled. I turned my head. "You're staying here?", I asked in disbelief. Cole nodded. "But your grades aren't that bad. You can do better than community college", I frowned. "Actually, I'm not going to college at all", Cole said sheepishly. "WHAT?", I yelled. "Not everyone wants to go to college, Brian", Cole softly said. "I'm gonna start working after I graduate", he said. "But don't you want a more secure future?", I asked. "To be honest, I just want to work somewhere fun, earn money and live life. And I don't want to leave my family. Going to more school just seems like a waste of time and money for me", he said. "But", I argued. "No buts. Despite what you might think, I've thought this through thoroughly, and I'm not going to change my mind", he said. He seemed determined. More than I've ever seen him. "Okay, I support you", I told him. "And of course I'll come visit you. I'm gonna visit you and mom as often as I can", I said. 

Cole put his arm around me. "Don't forget me when you become a big politician or whatever", he murmured into my hair. I leaned on his shoulder. "I'll never forget you. You're my best friend. I don't need anything else", I said.

He grabbed a blanket and pulled it over us before grabbing the TV remote. He pressed the button and some random show started playing. "Are you okay?", I asked. "You seem a little off, like somethings bothering you." Cole adjusted under the blanket. "Uh, just, you know, life", he said. I raised a brow. "No, I don't know. What have you done?" He scratched his neck. "Uh, you know. Just catching feelings for someone. Who you're not supposed to fall for. Because you were supposed to seduce them." "Cole, that's not normal. Normal people is not in that situation. Do you know who is in those kinds of situations? Rom-com main characters", I told him. Cole groaned and grabbed his head. "I don't know what to do, Brian. You know what, I'll procrastinate it", he said. I facepalmed. "You can't procrastinate feelings, Cole", I deadpanned. "What does it look like I'm doing right now?", he asked and threw open his arms, smiling like a maniac. I just shook my head. Cole's mental state was questionable to say the least, but I didn't have the energy to fix his problems. Not today. 

"Whatever, man. But you might want to change before my mom comes home. She might get the wrong idea", I said, throwing off the blanket. "Brian! Why can't we just be lovers?", Cole yelled and threw his arms around me. "It's not so complicated with you", he sobbed. I pushed his face away, but he was persistent. After a final kick he finally fell off the couch. "I feel so rejected and sad now", Cole pouted. "Put your pants on!", I yelled. Just then, we heard the door close. My mom walked into the kitchen. She barely spared us a glance. "Hello, Cole", she said. "H-hello Ms. Kim", Cole stuttered. "I'm gonna go to my room, you boys tell me if you need something", my mom said in a much warmer tone than she usually used on me. "Cole, don't be shy", she cooed. "And Brian, give him something to drink at least. He is our guest!", she scolded me, then she disappeared into her room. 

"Your mom is so cute", Cole said. I groaned. "Don't say that. I'm pretty sure she has a crush on you." Cole smirked. "I can't blame her", he chuckled. I threw a pillow at his face. "Just shut up and put on your clothes", I groaned.

A/N: Heyyyy...exams r over. It's been like, a month? So sorry about that, but the book is gonna be finished soon, so I will be posting 2 chapters, one on Monday and one on Friday. (I've already written most of the chapters I won't disappear into hiatus again I promise.) To all the lovely people who has stuck with this book and is still reading, thank you so much ily<3

See you Friday~