Sheets | ✓

TWENTY-EIGHT

"Nico, can you turn that god-awful music down so I can concentrate?" I grumbled from the passenger seat, Nico just chuckling but twisting the volume dial to the left once, before reaching over to pinch my cheek. Not looking up from my screen, I just let out a half-hearted 'hmph' and puffed my cheeks out, ballooning Nico's finger off my face. My friend-that-I-happened-to-have-slept-with just laughed at the response again, pulling over to the curb as other cars lazily drifted around us.

"Made any progress?" Nico asked, leaning over the centre console curiously.

"Nope," I sighed, sinking into the seat, pulling my glasses off to massage my sore eyes. Not only had classes been stifling with everyone staring at me with questions burning from their eyes, but Sofia had completely ignored me as I passed her in the halls after school, while Parker had not hesitated to hide his ginormous stink eye. I felt bad about what I said to Sofia, but I didn't regret it; I knew that I could have approached it with more tact, but in that moment the anger had just clouded and suffocated me. If I hadn't gotten out those biting words, I may have just choked.

I had planned to drag my feet to the train station and take the train after Sofia's, but instead I almost got run over by Nico when he pulled up to the school, after ditching last period in favour of a nap in another corner of the school. He had quickly scolded me for being so mentally absent, but when he saw my downcast face his chastising had immediately morphed into concern, and I almost cried when he gently tugged on my hand to pull me into the car. He hadn't said a whole lot after that once I assured him that I was fine -  a lie, we both knew - and I had decided to at least try and lessen the guilt by sending Sofia an apology. Sure, maybe an apology in person, or even a phone call would be better, but...

I was scared.

Scared that I would get that burning, choking feeling clawing up my throat again, or that Sofia will start crying and I will choke on her tears. Either way, texting was the safest option. I could only hope my eloquent writing could convey some sort of sincerity. Though lacking in courage, I hoped that I would at least have sincerity.

But writing an apologetic text message was not easy, and I had been labouring over the black text on my glowing screen for the entire car ride back to my house. 

"It's just a text, Wes," Nico said, lips twitching. "Not an essay."

"Not listening to someone who only gets Ds on their english essays," I replied swiftly, Nico just humming as he fished out a cigarette from an elastic on his front mirror. After struggling for another 5 minutes, Nico's smoke drifting out from the slit in the window and one of his hands gently tapping on my forearm, I just cursed under my breath and pressed send. 

Sofia - 4:14pm

Hey Sofia
I just wanted to apologise for what I said earlier today - I was an ass
Sorry for sating those things, I wasn't thinking clearly
If you want to talk, you can contact me any time
Sorry again

"Oh shit, there's a typo," I sighed, Nico plucking my phone from my fingers as I moved to correct it in a subsequent message. Pouting a little, I reached over to Nico to try and take my phone back, but he just shook his head and slipped it into his own pocket.

"At least for the rest of the ride home could you just relax, Wes?" Nico said, blue eyes glinting. Frowning, I crossed my arms and nodded, slumping in my seat. I glanced at Nico's profile from my periphery, and felt the tension in my muscles wane as his small, content smile peeked from his pink lips. A small one appeared on my own mouth as he reached across towards me and linked his fingers with mine.

What had felt like a long, laborious drive was suddenly cut all too short when Nico pulled up in front of my house. Pressing my phone back into my hands, Nico softly pressed a kiss to my lips, obscured in the greyish tinting of his car windows. Pulling back, I couldn't help but lick my freshly pecked lips slowly, Nico smirking at the movement.