We Are Stars | OLD DRAFT

Chapter Seventeen: Retreat

Two Years Ago...

Noah is my home.

Everyday after school, I go over to his house and we talk. We don't talk about anything specific. On some days, we just sit in complete silence, enjoying one another's company. I feel safe with him, like nothing can harm me. With this baby inside of me, growing with each passing day, it's comforting that Noah will be with me for every step of the way.

Today we decide to take a walk after school. My baby bump is growing slowly, but it's not visible enough that everyone would get suspicious. However, I have been wearing baggier clothes lately, just to be on the safe side.

Noah and I walk side by side down the sidewalk, listening to the birds singing their delightful melodies above us. Our hands occasionally brush against one another, but I'm the only one that seems to notice. Looking over to him, I notice a sadness gathering in his eyes, and I playfully nudge my shoulder against his, causing him to stumble to the side a bit. "You okay?" I ask with a smile.

He smiles back but it is not an authentic expression. "Of course. Why wouldn't I be?"

"Well, you look like you just lost your only love," I say to him, trying to get a more lighthearted reaction from him. "So what's up?"

Noah doesn't face me. His eyes only drift off into the horizon of green ahead of us. "You're not gonna let this go, are you?"

I laugh. "Um, have you met me?"

Fortunately, I get him to surrender, and he finally lets his pearly-whites shine through. Letting out a breath of air, that smile begins to struggle to remain sincere. "With everything that's been going on between us, I can't help but think that... " He cuts himself off.

"Think what?" I ask.

He shakes his head and waves off his words. "Nevermind. Forget it."

I almost hit him in the shoulder. "C'mon, don't leave me in suspense," I whine.

"No, really, it's nothing." A smile peaks out from his lips and I know I'm winning.

"Bullshit. You will be labeled a cruel son of a bitch if you don't tell me." This moment begins to remind me of the time I was having a little spat with Dylan. I was younger and it was near my birthday. He kept on saying how he knew what Mom and Dad bought me for my birthday and how he wouldn't tell me just to annoy me. If this moment is anything like that moment, Noah better pray to God that I don't punch him in the jaw.

After my grand speech about honesty that I had in my head, Noah raises his hands in the air and announces, "Alright, I surrender! Cuff me officer but be careful with the face. It's my best feature."

I burst out laughing, this time punching him in the arm. "You're a jerk, you know that?"

He walk in front of me and turns to face me. "Guilty as charged, officer."

After one more chuckle, I return to a more serious note. "But seriously, what were you gonna tell me?"

"If I told you, I'd have to kill you."

"Tell me and I'll give you gun."

Noah finally lets out a sigh and accepts defeat, the warm of his breath quickly swept away by a faint breeze. Wavy locks of my hair fall onto my face and my hands brushes them away. I can tell that he's preparing his words in his head, the wheels in his brain turning rapidly before his finally speaks. "Nyc, what I am about to tell you could very well alter the rest of our relationship, and most likely the entire world as we know it." I look at him weirdly and tell him to continue. "Okay, would it be so cliche of me if I had a crush on my best friend?"