Softly

Chapter V

"H-hey there, you... Noah?" Lucas smirked.

"Don't 'hey' me! How did you even get drunk?" I snapped. He kept his smirk but burped again before speaking.

"Me? Oh yeah. So a few friends and I went to the bathroom and um... Travis. Yeah, him. He had a whole bottle of Hennessy, you know that liquor right? Cool. We drank it all and skipped last period." His voice softly hit me.

"How are you gonna get home? How did you even get on the bus?" I asked furiously.

"Oh, you're right... how did I get here?" He held his chin and tried thinking. "Oh! Yeah, I walked, almost tripped, but got here somehow." I rolled my eyes. I thought about what would happen to him if he got home. The bus continued to move, eventually stopping at the first stop where a majority of the kids got off. There was a silence between me and Lucas. I turned to him slightly to a point where he wouldn't notice and he was asleep. Of course.

The bus approached our bus stop and I gently tapped Lucas's shoulder. He woke up without a problem. "Hey, we have to get off now," I whispered. He, still drunk, stumbled up and held my hand while he walked behind me.

"Hey, Can I go to your house? My dad... Dad will freak out on me if he catches me. I think I might die," Lucas asked. It was weird to hear him ask me for stuff let alone talk to me as if I was leaving and never coming back. I lead him off the bus and we walked directly on the middle of the sidewalk to assure Lucas wouldn't go wandering to the middle of the road or anywhere else I couldn't find him.

"What are you gonna do later on when you have to go home? We have school tomorrow," I asked while turned around, looking at his slouched body.

"I can just skip tomorrow, dad doesn't care enough about me," he gloomily said, his tone lowering almost as if the alcohol had worn off and he was being real. I guess the nap he took let him lose some of the drink he had in him. "Would you be able to skip too?"

I then nervously answered, "My parents might let me. If I tell them it's for a good enough reason, maybe I'll be able to." We continued to walk, and soon reached my house where we opened the front door. I noticed my parents in the living room watching television.

"Who is your frie-" I cut my mother short while I dashed up the stairs, still holding Lucas's hand.

"Okay, you go to my room and go to sleep or something. I'll ask to stay home tomorrow," I demanded and he nodded, opening my door and plopping on my bed. I thought it was cute that he was so vulnerable. I didn't mean it sexually, but I would much rather prefer Lucas drunk and sweet more than I want rude, sober Lucas. I stepped back down the steps and into the living room where I met up with my parents once again.

"Hun, why did you just go upstairs like that? Who is that boy?" my mother interrogated.

"I have a question... actually I have two questions," I held my hands together, my mom assuming it was going to be a toughy. "Question one, can Lucas, that's his name. Beside the point, can he sleep over? He's having a few issues with his dad next door and he'd feel better here."

She let out a long sigh after looking to my father who gave a slight nod. My mom then answered my first question, "Sure. But no staying up too late."

I bit my nails, anxious that I would get the wrong answer, "That's the thing. My second question was if I could stay home tomorrow. Hear me out before you say no. Well, Lucas isn't going because he can't get home to get a change of clothes and I don't wanna leave him here alone, it's my house after all." I hoped and prayed my parents allowed it. If not, Lucas would have to leave and I'd feel awful and he won't ever talk to me again and... and, I'm overreacting.

"Okay, but since he's under our care and you are too... no going outside because you this is making up for your absent time," my mother ordered with a long sigh afterward, signaling her loss of breath from the velocity of her speech. I ran over and hugged her, quickly jogging back up to my room with Lucas standing by the window, silently looking at the terrain.

"Hey, feeling better?" I shyly asked, hoping he wasn't totally confused as to why he was sitting in a random house. He turned his head slightly.

"Noah, am I a bad person?" He wondered, looking down shamefully.