Company

Chapter Five

After Nathan walked off , Orsnick came back with a beautiful looking milkshake. I took it, and drank some of the sweet, creamy goodness that was inside. It was really good and made up for the fact he drank all of my bubble tea.

"Mmm. I forgive you now." I finished off the milkshake and tossed it into the pile of trash we had in the center of our picnic blanket. I lay back, my head hitting a soft patch of green grass. Orsnick followed suit, almost hitting a pile of dog poop. He sat back up, deciding that laying down probably wasn't going to be the best option.

"Do you want to know when Violet's going on?" he asked me. I mumbled yes and turned my head to the side. I could see Nathan, a tiny speck in the distance, talking with some guy I assumed to be his friend or cousin or whatever. Maybe he was helping Nathan with his problem too.

I lay on the ground for fifteen minutes, watching the world go by, until Orsnick announced that Violet was about to go on. I sat up and saw her take the stage, wearing a cute polka-dot dress. She sang some peppy number with two other girls, and it was really, really good. Violet knows her stuff. She goes all the way, she'll never put in half-effort. She's a special snowflake. The number ended and I made sure to clap really loud and hard so evryone could hear my support. The two girls exited and Nathan came on. People began to hoot and holler, this was the love duet that Violet was talking about. She hadn't told me what song it she had planned and I was freaking out.

All of a sudden "Love Is An Open Door" began to play and I almost died of laughter. The two had switched roles, Nathan sang the high, girly parts, and Violet was singing what the guy would have sang, It was hilarious. The two killed it and I was dying of laughter. Orsnick just sat there, with this puppy look on his face that he always gets when he feels sad.

"Lighten up, dude," I told him, tapping his kneecap. "It's just a song."

Orsnick looked over at me, gave a weak smile, and looked back at the stage. Nathan and Violet were preparing to sing another song, and this one seemed like it was a ballad. A gentle guitar began to play from the speakers as the two looked into each other's eyes and sang. I loved this song. It made me happy. I don't think it made Orsnick very happy, but he needed to relax. Violet will sing duets with whomever she wants to sing with.

The set ended and we ran up to greet Violet and give her big hugs. Her cheeks were a rosy pink, and she couldn't stop smiling. It was adorable.

"How'd I do?" she asked.

"Vi, you were wonderful! I could never sing like that!" I replied, squeezing her tightly.

"Yeah, you has great stage presence," Orsnick chimed in, trying to be a good friend. His jealousy towards Nathan had sunk a little, but you could still tell that he was bothered.

"I was thinking we could go celebrate tonight at Gunter's," I said, glaring at Orsnick. He needed to get out of his funk, just for a few hours. It was about Violet right now, not him.

"I was thinking we could invite Nathan. Is that okay with you?" Violet pulled away and looked around, seeing Nathan hanging out in the corner. I smiled and nodded.

"Go make your move," I teased her. As she walked away, I remembered my encounter with Nathan earlier. "Oh, and Vi! He needed to talk to you about something!" I yelled, letting her know. She didn't hear me, so I ran after her, stopping behind her when she finally reached Nathan.

"Hey, Violet. Hi, Jane," he said looking off into the distance. A small smile sat on his face.

"Hello, Nathan," Violet murmured. "You did a really great job! Like, I'm blown away with what you did today."

Nathan blushed and looked down at the ground. I silently screamed with joy. I wasn't a romantic person, but I loved seeing other people interacting romantically.

"Thanks," he replied. "I was so nervous today. You did great as well."

There was a pause as Violet and Nathan stood awkwardly, trying to figure out what to say. At the same time, they opened their mouths, and began to talk at the same time.

"Hey, Violet, I need to tell you something."

"Nathan, wanna go get ice cream later?"

They looked at each other, and giggled. "You go first, I insist," Violet said. In response, Nathan took a deep breath.

"So, it was rough couple of years before I moved to...you know...here," he began,"and I've met lots of wonderful people, like you and Jane, and lots of others. And I haven't told anyone this yet, but I'm in love."

Violet looked as if she was about to burst. "Go on," she assured him.

"And Jane said you were a good person to talk to, because you're open minded and stuff. So I feel most comfortable telling you. And

I guess Jane too, considering she's here as well." Nathan took another deep breath. This was torture. What was he going to say?

"NATHAN!"

A shrill yell broke the sacred tension in the air, and we all turned to see a red-haired boy racing towards us. He was tall and had a slightly muscular physique. Nathan waved at the boy and smiled.

"Hey Jack!" he yelled, causing the other boy to run faster towards us. When he stopped, I got a better look at him. He had an oval-shaped face, large brown eyes, and a spray of freckles across his face. He wore a loose grey t-shirt and jeans, with white high tops. I realized him to be the boy Nathan was talking to earlier.

"You did so well, you and Violet! I'm really, really impressed," Jack said. Violet kept smiling, but. I could tell she felt intruded upon.

"Thanks. Violet's a very special friend of mine. I was about to tell her about you, and maybe introduce you two later, but I guess we can do that now," Nathan replied. He scooted closer to Jack and I could see the both of them holding hands.

The dots all connected at once, and I immediately grinned. This was too funny. I looked at Violet, who still hadn't grasped the picture yet.

"Violet, I'm gay," he said, squeezing Jack's hand.

In a brief second, I could see the world crumble around Violet. She kept her smile intact, it looked truly genuine.

"Oh!" she exclaimed. "I didn't expect that, but that's wonderful, Nathan. Is Jack your boyfriend?"

Nathan nodded. "We've been together for two years. It was a secret thing, and now that it's our senior year, we've decided to come out to a few special people."

Two years. Oh my god, I had to keep from laughing. Why did I find this so funny?

"I'm really happy you find me to be that special in your life," Violet replied. Her voice sounded slightly flat and sad. But Nathan didn't notice. He was too occupied with Jack.

"I'm really happy we got to sing together before school ended. You just mean a lot to me and you've helped me open up things and people around me."

Violet looked at if she was about to cry. I had to get her out of here, stat.

"Hey, Violet, we're gonna be late for that thing," I whisper to her, which is pretty much another way of telling her it was time to go.

"Yeah, I think we should head out now," she said back, turning to look at me. She as beginning to tear up. "Bye guys. It was hide to meet you, Jack." She gave Nathan a hug and then grabbed my hand, dragging me away. We walked all the way to Orsnick's car. He sat inside, watching a movie on his phone. I rapped on the window, telling him to unlock the door. When he did, Violet climbed into the backseat and began to sob. I slid into the passenger side and tried to not laugh over the situation. To me, this was hilarious. I know it's rude, but it's some weird situational irony that I find funny.

"What happened?" Orsnick asked, looking concerned.

"Violet learned that her affections towards Nathan will never be returned," I replied. "We best go to Gunter's."