BxB Short Stories 2.0

Noah & Kai

Kai's POV

As we walked I watched my breath come out like a dragon's in the cold winter air. It was better than staring at the boy beside me and getting caught or slipping on ice from being distracted.

My hands were stuffed in the pockets of my jacket, though I was wishing one of my hands could be warmed by the boy beside me.

I had a scarf wrapped around my neck, protecting my chin and mouth from the cold also. Even though it was cold, I felt my face heat up from a blush at the thought I had. I was wishing the boy beside me could warm where my scarf was warming me.

"You're being really quiet, are you alright?"

I glanced up at Noah and he was looking at me, concern in his eyes.

I felt bad. I was alright. Just lovesick-- but it wasn't his fault, it was my own. I was too terrified to confess that I'd rather keep my feelings inside.

I nodded as I looked ahead of me, at my breath and the bright street lamps, "Yeah, I'm okay. Just tired."

He lightly nudged my shoulder, "Are you sure? You know you can talk to me, that's what friends are for."

Friends.

"I know."

We continued to walk in silence.

I wasn't sure where we were walking to. He was walking me home but we had long since passed my neighborhood. We were just wandering around to, I thought, spend more time together.

As we got up to the local park, I let a small smile come over my lips. I glanced beside me at Noah, my head only coming up to his shoulders so I had to look up to see his face. His face was blank, clearly not feeling the same good memory from our childhood.

He stared ahead, his hands in his pants pockets, his hood up covering his messy hair and part of his handsome face. He took slower steps so that I wouldn't have to hurry to keep up pace with him, with my small legs. He looked serious -- not upset but I would have preferred if he was smiling. I loved his smile.

Anyway. The park.

Noah and I had been friends since we were seven years old – over ten years. The first summer we met each other, I pulled him under the playset and kissed him. It was an innocent kiss that kids did, mimicking older couples they saw. I thought he was cute and saw nothing wrong with it. Nothing ever came out of the kiss, obviously, I wasn't sure if he even remembered. But as I got older I realized my feelings weren't 'normal' in society so I hid them. I was pretty sure I liked Noah since we first became friends. It wasn't serious at first but as I got older the crush grew. I had never told a soul though. We lived in a homophobic town, I hadn't even told anyone I liked boys. Not even Noah. Especially not Noah. I didn't think he was homophobic but if I told him I was attracted to boys, it would have been much harder to keep my crush on him a secret.

Noah stopped walking and stood on the sidewalk, looking at the park. I stopped and stood beside him.

For it being a popular local park, it wasn't well-lit. Kids never stayed out there any longer than the beginning of sunset. There were no street lamps around the park, just on the street, so you could see the park a little but wouldn't be able to tell if there were kids there.

Noah stepped off of the sidewalk and walked over to the playset. I followed him silently, not asking what he was doing because I liked it there. It was dark and quiet, and I was with him.

He stood in a dark spot but I could still see the details of his face when I let myself glance at him. His cheeks were rosy pink, and his lips a deep shade of red from the cold. I had to force myself to look away.

Without warning, he grabbed my shoulders and pulled me to him in a hug. His arms wrapped around my shoulders, his chin resting on my head.

"W-what are you doing?" I asked him quietly.

"You seem sad. Let me hug you for a little."

I slowly and lightly hugged him back, "Okay."

I managed to relax after a few seconds and I let my eyes close. I pictured what we looked like. A tall handsome boy, hugging a smaller boy in a playground. On a cold and dark winter night.

To be honest, I didn't care if someone saw us and accused us of being homosexual. I was too happy that the moment was happening.

He pulled away from me and rested his hands on my shoulders, "Are you really alright?"

I nodded, my arms falling to my sides, "Yes."

He looked at me in a way that I knew he didn't believe me. But I couldn't tell him.

In the dark, his eyes were still bright. An emerald green that always dragged me in -- it had since we first met.

Those eyes started to get closer. His whole face was getting closer. It was slow but I didn't miss it. I couldn't miss it. Those bright green eyes stared back into mine intensely. I couldn't help but glance at his red lips in the darkness, getting closer to mine. And I couldn't help but make the fatal mistake of letting my eyes close softly as we were mere inches away from each other.

What I expected didn't come. And as I opened my eyes, and my deep brown ones met his beautiful green ones, tears began to slip out of my eyes. I was caught. He stood in front of me, his eyes not giving me any hints as to how he was feeling.

I was caught. He knew my feelings. And he didn't reciprocate them.

My head fell, tears continued to run down my cheeks. The tears just fell, no whimpers. I knew that day would come. It was bound to happen.

We were standing there silently, no noise besides the wind blowing softly around us.

And the silence continued. Even after I felt his hands on my cheeks, wiping my tears away. Even as he lifted my head with his hands still on my face, making me look up into his emerald green eyes. And the silence continued as, once again, those green eyes and red lips slowly got closer to me. That time, my eyes not closing even after I felt the softness of his lips and warm breath against mine.

When he pulled away this time, a tear fell out of his eye.

Without thinking, my brain failing me, I reached up and wiped his tear right away. I couldn't stand the sight of him crying. Of him being sad.

I continued to stare into those emerald green eyes as he spoke, breaking the silence that overtook us, "I know I'm late, but I wanted to return your kiss."

When all I did was just stare at him, he spoke again, "I've liked you since the day we met. And I know you feel the same way... I couldn't keep the secret any longer though. I can't stand the thought that you may be sad because of this secret."

I opened my mouth but no words came out. Even if some had, I had no idea what they would have been. I heard the confession but my brain couldn't process it. He liked me? Liked me the same amount of time I liked him? He knew I liked him?

I couldn't speak, so instead I wrapped my arms around him like earlier and I hugged him close to me. He hugged me back and we stood there again in silence, this time together and knowing each other's feelings.