Keep Driving // James Cook x OC

t w e l v e

Matilda - Harry Styles
1:05━━♡━━━━━━━━━━━5:19
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"Cook I-" Mae started.
"Shh." He replied gently, his hand on her cheek and his fingers in her wet hair. His kissed her again, more desperation going on this time. Her words fell apart as she melted into the kiss. She wrapped her arms around his neck and he moved his to around her waist. Speckles of water dancing down their faces from their wet hair, but they ignored the tickley feeling, putting all their energy into the kiss.
Cook finally pulled away.

****

Mae sat on her bed after she'd had a shower. She was dazed to say the least. She didn't expect to be kissing Cook in the middle of a lake that afternoon. Her towel was wrapped around her and her hair still damp. She hadn't bothered to get dressed or blow dry her hair because her mind was elsewhere, that was until she heard her phone ring.
"Hello?" She said answering the call.
"Hey it's Noames, can you...talk for a bit?" Naomi voiced in an unsure voice.
"Yeah sure, want me to come over?" Mae asked, biting her lip.
"Uhm, yeah...yeah...yes...please." Naomi mumbled.
"Right." Mae voiced in an unconvinced tone.
Mae slapped her phone shut and pulled on some underwear, a hoodie and some leggings. She left her hair damp and her face makeup-less, grabbed her handbag and flew out of her flat.

Before she knew it, she was outside of Naomi's house knocking on the door. The door swung open and Naomi walked off without greeting Mae properly. Mae thought this was odd as Naomi was normally quite bubbly and happy to see her.
"Uh hi." Mae said, awkwardly stepping into her house. She walked into the kitchen, where Naomi was sat holding a cup of tea in her sleeves.
"What's up?" Mae asked.
A single tear trickled down Naomi's pale face.
"I've fucked it Mae, I've done something...bad." Naomi sniffled as Mae took a seat opposite her.
"What've you done?" Mae said softly.
"I didn't mean to...I wasn't t-thinking." Naomi sobbed, letting out a huge sniff at the end of her sentence.
"I can't help you if you don't tell me." Mae replied.
"It feels more r-real if I...I say it out loud." Naomi huffed.
"It's real either way." Mae said in her brutally honest manner.
"I cheated." She whispered, barely audible.
Mae just about heard her, but she wanted to make sure she was right in what she heard.
"Huh?"
"I cheated, on Em." Naomi cried.
Mae slapped her hand to her forehead.
"Why would you do that to her?" Mae sighed after a few seconds as Naomi sobbed into her jumper sleeve.
"I was hurting, I wasn't ready to come out, I know...I know it doesn't make sense Mae, I'm a cheater I know, but try and understand...for me." Naomi spluttered.
Mae nodded hesitantly, allowing Naomi to carry on.
"I always knew I wasn't straight, but it was easier to cope with when I didn't say it out loud, I liked Emily, but I wasn't ready to...be with her. She made me more confident in myself, but I still wasn't ready, I suppose I was jealous at how easy it was for her to just admit it, so I slept with this other girl - I thought it would...help me...I'd know if I were really gay, but it just made me realise...." She paused. "I really love her." Naomi finished, sobbing.
Mae was silent for a moment. Then she spoke.
"If you love her, you should tell her."
"But she won't forgive me." Naomi whimpered.
Mae moved to give her a hug.
"You don't know that Noames." Mae replied, pulling the blonde into a tight hug.
Naomi nodded.
"If you love her, you don't want to see her hurt, the longer you wait to tell her, the more it will hurt her, she might forgive you after a while...." Mae let out.
"I should call her over, right?" Naomi said.
"When your ready...yeah." Mae replied. Naomi nodded and sniffed.
"When are you going to admit you like Cook?" Naomi said out if no where, changing the topic .
Mae let out a fake snort.
"How'd you figure that one out?" Mae said sarcastically, knowing that she had in fact developed feelings for the boy.
"I can tell by how you look at him." Naomi said, trying to smile.
"It's complicated Naomi, we kissed today, in the lake...but that might not have meant anything to him, he's kissed loads and loads of girls." Mae sighed, taking a seat around the table again.
"Aww you kissed?" Naomi said, trying to sound pleased, but Mae could tell she was miserable with her own problems.
"I'm just gonna brush it under the carpet, I don't want to let him in, he'll hurt me, he might still love Effy or live his promiscuous lifestyle, I've got an alcoholic father to worry about." Mae huffed.
"He doesn't still love Effy, I talk to him a lot too Mae, he's told me that himself, we often have hear to hearts, he tells me the truth." Naomi voiced reassuringly. Mae nodded in response.

They spent the rest of the evening talking, drinking wine and watching crap on TV until they fell asleep on the sofa.

****

"Hey girl." Katie Fitch said, walking along side Mae and smirking with her pink sparkly lips.
"You're talking...to me?" Mae said.
"Yeah silly, I invited you to my party didn't I? silly." Katie giggled.
"The whole of Bristol was at your party." Mae replied.
"Yeah well, let's cut the bullshit, me and you are obviously the best looking in the college, so we should form an alliance." Katie said in an 'obvious' tone.
"Right." Mae said, hiding the scepticism from her face.
"You wanna come to mine for a sleepover tomorrow?" Katie asked.
"Busy." Mae replied.
"Day after?" Katie enquired.
"Nah, busy then too." Mae panicked.
"Right...I'll ask again next week." Katie said brightly before sashaying into the psychology classroom.

Mae had been avidly avoiding Cook for about a week now. She felt like he would boast about some girl he'd fucked when she knew she had feelings for him now. She sighed as she walked past the psychology classroom, knowing that she was missing the 4th lesson this week. Naomi had been doing the lessons with Mae at hers after college whilst Mae tried to convince her to tell Emily of her infidelity.

*****

"Mae I can't! I don't want to see her face when I tell her, it'll break my heart." Naomi said, slamming her ruler on her kitchen table.
"It'll break her heart more if you wait longer," Mae insisted before she lowered her voice "doesn't she live here now?....with you?"
"Yes," Naomi rolled her eyes and sighed "She's got a job, that's where she is at the moment."
"Right, well I think you should tell Emily today." Mae stated.
"Tell me what?" A voice arose from the door way.
"Ah, Emily your...home." Naomi fake smiled, booting Mae under the table. Mae flinched and forced out a cheesy smile.
Emily crossed her arms and looked at Naomi.
"Tell me...what?" Emily said, eyebrows furrowed "Have you put a red top in the white wash again because I really can't have anymore pink t-shirts Naomi, it's killi-"
"I cheated on you." Naomi blurted out, cutting Emily off.
"Uh- do you want me to go?" Mae said awkwardly as she watched Emily's face go blank.
"What?" Emily said in an airy whisper.
Naomi fiddled with her fingers. You could see the cogs turning in her head as she desperately searched for an emotion on Emily's face.
Emily looked at Mae who hastily began shoving her things in her pencil case.
"You...cheated on me? Naomi?" Emily murmured.
Naomi opened and closed her mouth, trying to find words to say before she gave up and nodded her head slowly.
Emily's arm manoeuvred rapidly, she clasped her hand around a stray glass and launched it across the room. Mae and Naomi ducked as shards of razor-sharp glass paraded around the room that suddenly felt worryingly small.
Mae and Naomi slowly raised their heads to look at Emily whose face had been invaded with big thick tear drops.
"Why would you do this to me Naomi? I thought you loved me!" Emily screeched.
"I do love you!" Naomi cried.
"Why would you do this to me if you love me then?" Emily sobbed.
"Love makes you do crazy things!" Naomi pleaded, standing up and desperately trying to hold Emily's hand.
"I'll just go th-" Mae started.
"Shut up!" Both Naomi and Emily screamed.
"oh...okay." Mae smiled, putting her hands in her lap awkwardly.
"Please Emily, I was trying to understand myself." Naomi whispered.
"By sticking your tongue in another girls fanny?" Emily hissed.
"It wasn't like that!" Naomi argued.
"What was it like then? did you enjoy it? did she make you finish? didn't you cuddle and run your fingers through her hair after? was she better than me?" Emily leered.
"Stop it." Naomi said, sobbing.
"You did this to yourself." Emily taunted, pointing her finger at Naomi who rubbed her arm, obviously feeling very small. Mae wasn't sure who to be sympathetic towards, she understood Naomi and she was her best friend but cheating was wrong.
Before anything else could be said, Emily marched out of the room. Mae and Naomi heard a loud, clear "BANG!" Emily had left the house.