Till The End

Chapter 4.

Jake

I go straight to Dylan's place when I get off work. We have to leave in the next hour, and knowing Dylan, he will not start getting ready until it's time to leave, so I'm going to make sure he starts now. Mia will be pissed if we are late. The house is unusually quiet today. Whenever Dylan is home, there must be some noise, even if he is alone. He must be sleeping. I knock once as I open his bedroom door like I always do, but this time I should have waited for him to answer before opening it. I immediately step back and close the door. I blink, my hand still on the door handle, as I try to process what I just saw.

"Jake?"

"Sorry, man, I should have knocked. Don't forget that we have to leave soon. You better be ready or I'll leave without you."

"Wait, be right out in ten minutes."

I go to the living room and sit on the couch, still stunned. A few minutes later, I hear the bedroom door open. When Dylan walks past the living room, he does not look at me. Nathan follows him, only nodding at me with an awkward smile on his face. I hear the front door open and close, and I see Dylan slowly walking back. He sits on the couch next to me, looking nervous.

"Nathan Smith?" I grin. He always said he hated the guy because he was too annoying.

"Oh, shut up."

"Why didn't you tell me?" I feel like a shitty best friend right now. How could I not know he liked guys after all these years? To be fair, he had dated girls before. Lots of girls. But still.

"I did not know how to."

"How about, hey Jake, I have a date with Nathan freaking Smith tonight."

"If only it could be that easy. It kind of just happened. I mean, I think I always knew, but I was not totally sure... until Nathan."

"I see." For a moment, we are both silent. "So, am I your type?"

"What?"

"I know women like me, but do I have the same effect on guys?"

"I'm sorry to break it to you, Jake, but no one likes you. It's all in your head."

"Yeah, right. You definitely hit on me."

"You wish! Are you planning to go in your work clothes?" he says as he stands up. "I'm going to get ready. You don't want to be late to your favorite girl's first public speech, do you?" he grins.

Fuck I completely forgot about that for a minute. I gave him a glare before standing too.

"Fuck you," I add before leaving. We only have thirty minutes left, so I have to hurry. Today is a huge day for Aelia. She will have to speak to a room full of people for the first time. She must be terrified, but I know she can and will do it. I have been avoiding her lately. She has been stuck in my head ever since she took care of me when I was sick. It was almost two weeks ago, and I cannot blame it on the drugs or the tea anymore. I made the mistake of telling Dylan about it, and now he brings it up at every opportunity. According to Dylan, the only solution to my problem is a date. 'The only way to get a girl out of your head is by getting inside another girl, or even better, two,' he said. Remembering this makes me feel a little better about myself. Who would think that he was gay when he gives this kind of advice? To be honest, I also thought about this solution. Lucy has been trying to reach me for weeks, and I thought of testing the theory with her, but I could not go through with it. I still can't understand why thinking about Aelia applying that stupid ointment to me turns me on, but thinking about fucking Lucy does absolutely nothing.

For once, Dylan is on time. When we get to the hall where the event is taking place, I find Mia and Austin standing near the door. Mia explains that they just left Aelia with her teacher, and like I thought, she is panicking.