unlucky (newtmas)

4

It was after school that same wet day that I was blinking furiously through the pouring rain, attempting to see through the waterfall dripping down my windshield. My windshield wipers worked furiously, but still it was a struggle to see very far at all through the downpour.

I was just pulling out of the school parking lot when a bright red hoodie caught the corner of my eye. Clad in soaking wet clothing, the figure sprinted down the sidewalk in front of me, evidently stuck without a car, and more notably, without an umbrella. I cursed under my breath when I recognized Newt's blond hair.

"Get in!" I yelled through the rain once I had slowed to a stop beside him. He looked over, startled, but quickly grinned when he saw my scowling face.

Without wasting a second he jumped into the passenger seat of my car. Dripping wet and shivering, his hair stuck messily to his forehead. His eyes, however, were bright.

"Sorry," he quickly apologized, glancing at my already damp seats. "But thanks for the ride. You're a lifesaver."

I scoffed, pulling back into traffic. It was mostly quiet after that, but Newt looked perfectly content as he softly hummed along to my nineties-mix playlist. He directed me towards his house and five minutes later I pulled up front of a small, suburban style home.

Through the rain, I eyed his house with a slight frown. It was a one story building with solid gray walls, and the garden was rather unkempt and overgrown. It looked the exact contrary to Newt's personality.

Newt cleared his throat. "Thank you again, Thomas. I really appreciate it."

I looked over, but waved him off as soon as I met his gaze. It was far too earnest, far too grateful for such a simple deed.

"It's no big deal," I said with a slight simper, avoiding his eyes.

Newt's gaze stayed heavy on my face and it began to make me uncomfortable. He still didn't get out of the car, perched precariously with one hand on the door handle and one firmly gripping his wet backpack. Above us, the rain pounded down angrily.

"You know," Newt spoke, and it was soft and deep and far more intimate than I liked, "You're actually really nice."

I laughed despite myself. "Now that's a compliment I've never gotten before," I said.

Newt didn't laugh with me. His face was oddly serious.

"I don't typically believe rumors," he said. "I believe in what I see, and only what I see. And you're nice. No matter what anyone else says."

My eyes fell to my steering wheel. The only sound in my car was the dim radio and the rain pounding on steel.

"I cheated on Alexis," I admitted after a moment. When I looked up, Newt's gaze didn't falter. "That wasn't a rumor. I don't regret it either. I'm not nice, I promise."

Despite it all, Newt smiled. "We've all got reasons we do what we do," he said. Then he opened my car door and vanished into the rain.