Learning To Love You (Noah X Cody)

Brawl Over The Bra

"Noah I need to talk to you"

It took me a minute to register what he was saying. I put my book down gingerly and looked the kid in the eye.

"Hm?"

"Are you still, like, interested in me?" He asked. He was avoiding eye contact and playing with a folded piece of paper in his hands. I could feel my heart skip a beat when he said that.

"I, uh" I stuttered, not really knowing how to respond. I let myself think for a moment.

Am I still interested in Cody?

Yes, of course I am. If he wasn't here I'd surely have drowned myself in the puny little pool.

"I am, Cody. Why do you ask?"

He looked down at his shoes.

"You just seem to not want to be with me anymore" he muttered.

"That's crazy" I replied hastily. I didn't really know how to sell it to him, but I'm being completely honest.

"If you say so" he muttered, seemingly unconvinced. He stood up and took a step towards the door. He might've gotten to the door if I hadn't stopped him by pulling him into a hug.

"I love you Cody" I breathed.

I couldn't see his face, but I could feel it light up.

"I love you too Noah"

If I hadn't been sleep deprived and infuriated about our living conditions, it wouldn't have happened, but because I'm so damn out of it, I leaned in to kiss him. Instead of him running away cowardly, his lips met mine.

They were dry, but not chapped. They were warm and tasted like the Mountain Dew he snuck into our room even though I told him not to.

I admit, it was awkward. I had never kissed anyone before. I'm not sure if I was supposed to hold my breath or like grab his butt or something. I decided I was not supposed to breathe while mid-kiss, so by the time we parted, I was slightly breathy.

After that, he flashed me a toothy grin and announced his departure to the swimming pool, leaving me alone in our room. I took the opportunity to open the little fridge in the mini-kitchen. It was empty, save Cody's secret stash of Mountain Dew. There was a little corner store across the street from the motel, but none of us had cash, so we were living off the basic bitch hotel food. I have no idea where he got all his Dew from, as the hotel only has a cheap fountain machine.

I grabbed one out of the fridge and cracked it open, plopping down on my bed. I thought about what kissing Cody had felt like. It felt like that moment you reach the top of the roller coaster, and the ride pauses for a minute before dropping, and right in that moment, you feel your heart preparing to do that pounding thing. That's what it felt like. It felt like that suspension in the roller coaster. Admittedly, I hate roller coasters and fully believe they are time bombs of sick, but analogies are important to me, just roll with it.

I was mid thought, trying to think of if I was going to take a nap, read a book, or jump out the window when there was a knock on my door. Before I got to it, I heard an enthusiastic voice coming from it.

"Yo party dude! Guess who's back at the Playa!"

Did Geoff get kicked off already? I opened the door to see Geoff and his surfer sweetheart.

"Oh, hey Nolan..."

"Noah" I corrected him flatly.

"Noah, that's right, sorry. Where's Cody?"