The Prince

Part 42

"Do you want to study with me this afternoon?" Skye asked glancing at Noah eating his breakfast.

"I've got to go to the bakery," he sighed. It would have been a great opportunity and would have made him feel less like killing himself over failing, but he still had bills to pay between everything else that was going on.

"Asuka's given us time off for the exams and I think your work on the ball more than covers your rent money. So what do you say, want to study with me?" He smiled watching Noah bite his lip in thought, wondering what was going through his mind. In some ways, he was as unpredictable as Jackson in his thoughts and reactions.

"Why are you being so nice to me? Did something bad happen?"

"Who says I'm being nice? I don't want my gran to come back and kill me if you fail. Nice," he snorted.

"Ah yes, self-preservation," his smile cleared the frown on his face. "Then who am I to deny the world a day without the great and handsome prince, Skye," Noah smiled up at him, grateful that Skye was being so considerate. When Skye didn't look away, his smile faltered a bit before he looked down at his food, and back up again.

So this is what Skye's genuine smile looks like, he thought, watching the way the corners of his eyes creased as his smile widened and a slight blush appeared across his cheeks. His blue eyes twinkled as if capturing the happy, dancing light.

"What are you looking at?" Skye grinned.

"You,"

"Why?"

"Because you have a fat head."

"You're the only one who never has anything nice to say about me," he mumbled getting up to rinse his dishes.

Noah stared at him for a while as he busied himself at the sink. Everything seemed so easy when he was with Skye, it felt like he knew where he was going. He was going to have to go home and face the actual problem, his brother. It seemed so long ago and the fights seemed so pointless now, but even those problems needed attention. It was fun playing with the boys, but at some point, he knew he was going to have to face what was waiting at home.

Before he could get lost any further in his thoughts, Skye dumped a stack of books on the table. He could feel his insides whither under the weight of the books, his brain cells scrambling to get out of the firing line of having to work. With a groan, he cleared his dishes and prepared himself for the torture and punishment that was about to befall him.

"Noah, will you stop that?" Skye snapped after the two had been methodically making their way through revisions.

"What?" Noah jumped as Skye brought him back to reality. "I'm not doing anything."

"You keep second-guessing yourself. You're wasting time by going back and worrying that the previous answers may be wrong, that you're not getting through everything," he said in exasperation, running his hands through his hair.

"I do?"

"You do. You're making it much harder than it is," when Noah kept frowning, he sighed and lowered his voice. "Don't doubt what you know is right, it's going to save you a lot of trouble. Now," he grabbed a set of papers and set them down in front of Noah. "Stop wasting time on what you know is right and get on with the job. Here,"

 "What are these?" He lifted what looked like a test.

"An exam. If you can pass this, I'll guarantee that you'll make the top fifteen in Class B or close."

"How can you be so sure? Is this a trick to get me out of the way so you can have a free evening?" He asked suspiciously. Studying with Skye was less intimidating than at the start and he quickly caught on as he explained, but that didn't mean that the snide comments and the almost arrogant attitude weren't pervasive. At least Skye was consistent, he thought grimly.

"You're so immature. Just take the test or are you afraid of failing?"

"I'm not afraid of anything!" Noah said defiantly, standing up.

"Really?" Skye stood up as well, moving closer to him, and leaning in. "There's nothing that you're afraid of?" He whispered in Noah's ear with a smile.

Noah swallowed hard, looking up at Skye who was inches away from him. He could feel the heat radiating off his skin, he saw the gentle pulse of the vein in his neck and smelled his warm, fresh spicy scent that was intoxicating. Mentally shaking himself, he quickly jumped back and pushed Skye away from him.

"What are you doing? I..., I'm not afraid of anything. You can't go getting into people's faces like that, some may get the wrong idea," Noah argued for the sake of trying to get Skye to take a step back, he was way too close for comfort.

"And what idea would that be?" He chuckled straightening up and sliding his hands into his pockets.

"Whatever," Noah mumbled. "I'll take your damned test if it'll make you feel better!" Grabbing the test back from the table, he stalked off.

"Where"s Noah?" Tsukasa asked Skye as he entered the kitchen sometime later.

"Steaming in his room," he absentmindedly looked up from his book. "You are in a good mood," he observed, watching Tsukasa's smile widen.

"Have you two been fighting again?" Tsukasa shook his head. These were the strangest housemates he's ever had. They both spent so much time winding each other up that in the beginning, he thought they were forced to live together, but he soon realised that half the fun of being around them was their constant bickering.

"If you ask him you know what the answer will be, so let's keep the peace," he chuckled.

"Skye?" Tsukasa started busying himself in the kitchen getting supper ready. "I don't know how to ask this and maybe I'm talking out of turn, but," he paused standing over the sink, looking at his hands. What now, he wondered. He didn't come to start this conversation, but...

"No,"

"What?" He turned sharply, his eyes wide.

"Sorry, it was nothing. You wanted to say something?"

"Eh, yeah it's about Noah and eh and you,"

"Okay," He would love to leave and not be part of this conversation, but he knew that Tsukasa had something to get off his chest.

"I, it's. Do you like Noah?" He finally got out looking at Skye who hadn't moved.

"Eh, he's a nice guy and a good friend," Skye started slowly, sure that 'like' was more than Tsukasa meant. "Do you like him?"

"I, yes," he sighed in defeat. Who was he kidding, living with Noah had been a dream come true and being around him most of the time was the best thing in the world. Even those times when there was absolute chaos or when he forced them to go out and do something together.

"I don't quite understand your relationship, but... but I thought that I should let you know that, you know, that well,"

"That you like Noah and want to start dating him." Skye sighed, finally unable to watch Tsukasa struggle to say the words.

"You know and you're not upset?"

"Upset, why would I ever be? he smiled.

"I don't want to come between the two of you if you're romantically interested in him."

"I don't think you have to worry about that, even if I were romantically interested in him, I doubt he'd ever notice," he ruefully shook his head. Looking up his grin widened when Noah wafted in slamming the test in front of him.

"You're evil!" he ground out with a scowl, before going over to watch Tsukasa cook.