Pretend to Love Me ~Norray~ (DISCONTINUED)

Chapter 8.

Ray had fallen asleep on Norman's chest. Norman played with his hair as they lay there. 'Why was I worried about if he was with someone else?' He thought to himself. He was confused. Ray wasn't his.

So why was he so afraid of losing him? Those feelings. The ones that made his heart hurt. They came from Ray. But at the same time, happiness. Ray brought him happiness. He knew he couldn't live without him.

He didn't think he liked Ray more than a friend. So why didn't he like the idea of Ray moving on? Did he accidentally find comfort in knowing Ray liked him? Knowing Ray would always be there to catch him. But what if he wasn't there? Who would catch him then?

He didn't want to think about that. He looked at Ray, who was sleeping peacefully. How much pain has he actually put Ray through? 'How can I ask him to wait, when he has been waiting for years..?' He thought. He felt terrible. He felt terrible about it all. He hugged Ray. "I'm sorry," he whispered. Then closed his eyes and fell asleep.

In the morning Ray woke up to Norman holding him on his chest. The events of last night are still fresh in his mind. Norman was confusing him. Ray thought he understood him. He thought he knew everything about Norman. But maybe he didn't.

"Norman, wake up," He said quietly. Norman squeezed him and groaned. Ray blushed. "Come on, get up." "Five more minutes," Norman whined. Ray sighed, giving in to his whines.

He lightly touched Norman's face, tracing it. Norman grinned. "That tickles," he said opening his eyes. Ray smiled. "Morning."

...

Norman and Ray continued to "date." Norman made more of an effort to be with Ray. To anyone, their fake dating seemed completely real. Even sometimes to them sometimes. Ray often had to remind himself Norman didn't actually like him. Whereas Norman kept getting more and more confused. There were times when he'd kiss Ray, and he wouldn't want it to ever stop. Other times he would kiss him and not think twice about it.

Maybe he did like Ray. But he had liked people before, and this feeling was so different. So he convinced himself he liked Ray as a friend. That was all.

It was career day at their high school. There were booths set up with different jobs. There were even booths for colleges too. "We'll be in college soon, huh?" Norman asked. "Mhm," Ray nodded in response. It didn't feel real.

Norman held Ray's hand and squeezed it, making Ray look at him. "We'll both go to Grace University, okay?" Norman said. Ray smiled. "Yeah," he agreed. They walked around the "convention" holding hands. They went to different stands with different careers.

"Hey, Ray look, photography!" Norman pointed out. Ray looked over where he pointed. "Don't you wanna check it out?" Norman asked. Ray shrugged and played with his hair nervously. "What's wrong?" Norman asked, his tone getting softer, more comforting. "It's nothing, I just don't know if that's something I can make into a career, I mean I'm not even that good, it's just a hobby," Ray said. Norman looked at him like he was crazy. "Not even that good?! Ray you're amazing at it! Now go to that stand!" He pushed him to the table that was set up.

"Okay! Okay! No need to push," Ray said laughing. "I'll wait here for you," Norman smiled. Ray walked over to the stand and Norman waited patiently. "Norman! There you are," a woman's voice said. Norman looked in the direction the voice came from, to see the principal walking towards him.

He smiled and waved at her, and she returned the smile. "How can I help you, Mrs. Lee?" Norman asked. She seemed very excited about something. "Here." She handed him a paper. He took it confused. "What is this?" He asked. She was beaming. "Open it and read it!" She said happily.

He chuckled at her enthusiasm. Then he unfolded the paper and read over it carefully. As he read his stomach kept tightening up in knots. This was bad.

"Isn't this wonderful!" She asked clapping her hands together. "I— I'm not sure.." he said still in shock. "Oh! I knew you'd be excited!" She said. He just nodded his head.

"How did they—" "I recommend you," she cut him off. "Wow..." he whispered. He had some excitement behind his eyes, but drowning that out was dread. What would Ray think?

"So you'll need to—" Mrs. Lee started to speak but was cut off. "I don't think I'm going to do it," Norman blurted. She looked at him shocked. "Wha— what do you mean?" She asked in disbelief. He sighed, thinking of the right words. "It's just, I don't know if I'm right for this," he said.

She frowned. "I understand this must be a bit overwhelming, but this is an amazing opportunity Norman, I don't want you missing out," she said placing her hand on his shoulder. He looked down. "It's a once in a lifetime opportunity..." he mumbled. "That it is," she said.

He felt like he wanted to throw up. "Talk it over with your parents," she said letting go of his shoulder. "You are a brilliant young man, Norman. Don't let that go to waste," she said. He nodded.

Just when he thought everything was going so well, another factor was thrown into the equation. His head was spinning. What should he do?

"Think about it, if you have any questions you know where to find me," she said. "Mhm.." She told him bye, and walked away as he waved. He decided to tell Ray about the paper, or the conversation. He just wanted everything to be how it was. When they were kids playing pirates and life was simple.

Ray walked back over to Norman. "So? How did it go? What did they tell you?" Norman asked. "They just basically gave me information about the class, and the job and stuff. Turns out Grace University has a great photography program!" Ray smiled.

Norman smiled, but it was more of a sad smile. "That's great Ray, I'm happy for you," he said hugging him. Ray didn't expect it, but he wasn't complaining. He hugged Norman back. "Thank you, Norman," he said. His voice was muffled because his head was buried in Norman's shoulder. Norman closed his eyes. He focused on Ray. Pushing everything away. "Hey, Ray?" Norman said. "Yeah?" Ray answered. There was a bit of a pause. Then Norman finally spoke.

"I think I love you."

Authors Note:
Hey, y'all I'm so so so sorry this took so long. I know I said I'd finish it quick so ye 💀 but I hoped you liked it.
Bye! Thanks for reading!