More Than Friends

One

Part One

Stumbling around in some stranger's house, I continued to search for a quiet corner to wait for Connor in. It was awkward, being surrounded by all these loud, obnoxious people, laughing and dancing around me, people I didn't know. Any other Friday night, I would have been home, in my room watching a movie or something, but no. Instead, I was here, standing out like a sore thumb at this party, all in the hope of catching up with an old friend. I would have never imagined meeting up Connor in a place like this before, and yet, here I was.

As I continued to stroll around the room, I noticed that people were beginning to stare, figuring out for themselves that I didn't belong. Or it could have just been my imagination. You'd think a loner like me would be used to that sort of thing after five years on my own. I never really seemed to fit in anywhere I went, but then again I never really tried. So who was to blame but me. It wasn't because I thought I was better than everyone else, though that was what most people probably thought, it was just that I had never really cared to try, at least until now.

Praying that tonight would go by smoothly, I walked into the kitchen and poured myself a drink only to spit it back out into the cup after realizing someone had already spiked it. An eighteen year old that didn't like parties or drank alcohol? Was it any surprise why I always felt like such an outcast in situations like these? But if I wanted the night to go well, I had to get over myself and suck it up. 

How badly do you want to fix things up with Connor? I began questioning myself, as I poured my drink down the sink. Is he worth stepping out of your comfort zone, the one you've spent years hiding in?

I'd been waiting for almost half an hour now, and Connor was nowhere in sight. Perhaps it was a bad idea to come after all, I thought, stepping out of the kitchen and heading towards the front door. I had no business being here in the first place anyways. I figured it would be best if I just left before he showed up and explained to him later that I hadn't been able to make it here at all, maybe then I could save myself from further embarrassment. On my way out, however, I ran into someone blocking the doorway, keeping me from going anywhere.

"Leaving already?" He asked me, as I looked up to see what stranger had the nerve to stop me, quickly realizing it wasn't a stranger at all.

With his tall frame and striking features, the guy looked like he'd stepped right out of a magazine. His dark hair was tousled just enough to look effortlessly cool, and his intense gaze seemed to hold a quiet confidence. The way he moved through the crowd, with a casual ease and an easy smile, made him seem both approachable and unattainable at the same time.

"Co-Connor," I hesitated to respond like the idiot that I was. "I was just going to uh... wait for you outside?"

I have to come up with an excuse to leave, right now! And fast!

"Well, I'm here now," he said, putting his arm around my shoulder. "Come on Ben, the guys are waiting for us in the back."

Sadly, once he put his arm around me, my mind went blank. Something strange came over me, and I blindly followed him. There was something magnetic about him, a blend of charm and mystery that made it hard not to want to stay by his side. Something about it felt right, even though I knew it shouldn't. I had to stop and remind myself that Connor was my friend. We were just friends. 

Sure, I had always cared for Connor as more than just a friend, but I had to put my old feelings aside. We weren't kids anymore, and he didn't feel the same way about me.

Would he?