Black and White

11- Will

         I groaned as I woke up, a natural instinct of teenage boys in the morning. Then I shot straight up. Today was Saturday. What happened today? Oh! Nico's date. My chest deflated, and I took a breath before standing up. Running a hand through my hair, I walked over and reached out to the doorknob. As if reading my mind, it swung open and I yelped, my hand still resting in my curls. Nico. "Mornin'," I laughed, slightly nervous. He was dressed in his pajamas still, with messy hair and a playful smile in his eyes. I almost never got to see this version of him. "Morning." He chuckled and leaned against the wall. I smiled at this. "Do you know what time it is?" His voice was a little husky, a slight accent tinting his words. I nodded and turned back into my room. "11:15." His eyebrows shot up. "11:15!?" He rushed in and grabbed my hands. I felt myself flush and prayed he couldn't tell. "Will you please, please help me get ready? I totally forgot it was a lunch date!" I nodded and shooed him out to get ready while I picked his clothes. We had gone shopping only last night, and his closet had slowly filled up with different outfits. I rummaged through and laid out a pair of slightly ripped dark jeans and a light grey shirt. I paired it with a flannel and a beanie to top it off. Nico rushed in just as I finished and he nodded in approval before pushing me out so he could change. I then rushed to get dressed myself, hoping to be ready in time to say goodbye. Slipping a random band tee over my head and ruffling my hair up, I ducked out of my room again just in time to see Nico step out of his room completely dressed. He practically glowed. I stepped back and analyzed him jokingly, then waved a finger at him to turn around. He groaned, but did as I asked. "Good! Now tuck your shirt in." He did, and I nodded in confirmation. "Yes, that's it. Perfect."

"Thanks, Will." He gave me a quick smile before thudding down the stairs and opening the door. "Oh!" He turned around. "Throw me my phone!" I ran back into his room and grabbed it from the bedside table, then tossed it down the stairs. He caught it with a grunt and waved goodbye, shutting the door behind him. Man, he had changed a lot in such a short time. And I felt partly responsible for it, in a good way. Since he had been here he had opened up a bit more, become less standoffish and more cheery. I got to see the fun, dorky side of him that loved ice cream and video games, not the crushed, lonely kid I thought I used to see. Realizing that I had been standing at the top of the staircase staring at the door, I shook myself out of it and went into the kitchen for breakfast.

Pancakes? No. I poured a bowl of cereal and brought it with me to the couch, flipping my laptop open and setting it on my lap as I sat down. Sinking into the cushions, I opened up a composing software and started to play with the dials, listening to the sound I was making. I set my half eaten cereal aside and closed my eyes, playing random tunes out of the computer. Ah! That was a good one. I opened them again and replayed the last tune. Adding a beat and some add ons, the simple tune soon transformed into a catchy chorus for a song I hadn't written yet. Composing was a habit of mine, and since my mom didn't make enough to get me a guitar, I had started downloading things off the internet and finding different songwriting softwares and programs. Eventually, I found one that I really liked, and now I found myself often fidgeting with it. This song was a slower one, less technological and more acoustic. I usually didn't use my own voice for the words- I used a default one- but this time it seemed more appropriate to try to do it myself. I left the computer playing the song on the couch and ran up to my room, clicking the beat with my teeth as not to forget it. My fingers expertly rummaged through my desk, flipping through school papers and sketches until I found something- a poem. I read it and re-read it, then fixed a few words and read it again. I copied it onto another page, this time writing as lyrics instead of stanzas. I grinned- it sounded pretty good. No doubt in a few years I would sing it over again and cringe, but for now, I liked it. My eyes flickered up to the time on the computer- 2:15 already? Nico would be back soon, so better to do this quick. I plugged earbuds into the computer and played the song, holding the sheet of lyrics out in front of my eyes. Holding the speaker on the earbuds close to my mouth, I pressed record and started to sing.
The words came easily, and I fixed my posture to improve the sound of my voice. When the song ended I adjusted the settings to make myself quieter and integrated more into the song, then I took out the earbuds to listen.

Creak. The door opened mid song and I slammed the laptop shut, startled. Nico looked tired as he entered the room, sighing as he slumped down next to me. "You were gone for like, 3 hours. What went wrong in such a short time?"

"Yuck." He flopped over and spread out over me, and I moved the computer off the couch as his head landed in my lap. I inhaled quickly- that was unexpected. His hand went up to tug a curl of mine and I chuckled. "So are you going to tell me or not?"

"It was horrible. He stood me up so I ended up going to McDonalds and hanging out there for a while before heading home." He stood him up?

"What a jerk! Goes all out with the flowers and all and doesn't even show." I laughed incredulously. "Ah, well, I didn't really know him anyway. Couldn't have been that great." Nico said. His phone buzzed. He leaned over to get it and checked the screen. "It's- ah, Jason."

"Who's Jason?"

"I met him at McDonalds. He wants to hang out." I was tempted to narrow my eyes.

"Cool. When?"

"Tomorrow." Ah, jeez. Give a guy a break.

"That's great. You sure need to get out more often." I heard myself encourage, then laugh slightly.

"Don't tell me what to do, Solace." But he was smiling. I liked his smile. It had only been two weeks, but I really, really liked his smile. And his shoulders did a cute shake when he laughed, and he never wanted to believe me when I complimented him.

"Excuse you, young man, you will listen to your elders."

"I was going to say yes anyway." He smirked and texted back a reply.

Sure, how about 2:00?
Read: 4:52 pm