How To Stay Afloat (BxB)

Chapter 92: Out with the truth

I can't fall asleep again after Harry leaves and just read comics on my phone and wait until Austin wakes up.

"You're awake." Austin points out.

"Yeah. Morning." I greet him.

Austin's eye looks bad. Swollen and painful looking colours surrounding it.

"Did you sleep well?" I ask him.

He nods. "Yeah. Would have been better if you had slept here all night instead of over there." He comments with an annoyed expression.

"Sorry. I fell asleep talking to Dylan." I explain.

He groans angrily. "And what did you talk about for so long?" He asks.

I shrug. "This and that. All that happened over the past month." I explain.

He groans again. "I wanna leave. Let's go home to your place." He suggests.

"Uh, sure." I say and stand up. "Let's go."

Dylan is fast asleep when we leave, so I send him a short text, explaining that we left already. I thank him for listening and tell him he can always text or call me.

On our way out I grab the toothpaste filled with my pee, chuckling as I imagine what would have happened if I had forgotten to take it with me. Caleb definitely deserves pee on his toothbrush after locking us out in the cold.

"I don't like him." Austin says when we sit on the bus. "I don't like Dylan."

I chuckle. "He's really nice. Why don't you like him?" I wanna know.

"I just don't like him. The way you look at him." He says grumpily.

"Austin. Don't say that. I look at him like I look at other people, too. The only one I have eyes for you." I assure him.

Austin bites his lip. "Why can you talk to him and not to me?" He asks.

"What? What do you mean?" I ask him.

"I heard you telling him about Noah." He says.

I gasp. "What? What did you hear?" I ask him instantly.

Fuck. Did he hear everything? Does he know I was high?

"I heard enough to know you're keeping something from me. You said you don't understand why you can tell him and can't tell me." He says.

"I thought you were asleep." I admit.

"And I thought we're not lying to each other." Austin says.

I drag my hands over my face. "Alright. Let's get home and talk then."

"Thanks." Austin whispers and grabs my hand.

_____

"You're not coming home with Caleb? I told him not to leave you alone!" Mom says as we walk in at home.

"Austin was by my side all night." I explain.

Austin nods. "Yep."

"Happy new year by the way." I say, rolling my eyes.

Mom smiles and embraces me in a hug. "Happy new year."

She frowns as she looks at Austin.

"What happened to you?" She asks him.

"I ran into the car on the ramp." He lies.

"What a way to end this year, with a black eye. Now come on. Let's get this over with." Dad says, nodding to the toilet.