Truth or Dare (boyxboy)

Chapter 22 - I Don't Know About You

"That was not where I was expecting tonight to go," Spizzo commented as the two teens sat back down on the lounges.

"What, you don't think about kissing me all the time?" Jacob joked as he lifted his legs up to his chest and hugged his knees. He was happy to hear the laugh that came from the other teen, evidently amused by his comment. If he'd tried something like that in the last couple of years, Spizzo and his friends would've had his ass beat.

"Oh please," chuckled Spizzo, picking up his near-empty beer bottle and taking another sip. It had been a while since he'd touch the drink and the beer had gone flat. Not the best but there was no point wasting it. As he finished his sip, he added, "from what we've learnt tonight, I'm pretty sure you're the one who was thinking about kissing me all the time."

He added a wink for added effect.

The other teen just scoffed, not letting Spizzo mess with him anymore. That didn't mean he could control the bit of red that seeped into his cheeks though; his body just had to betray him. "Don't think of yourself too highly, you might pass out up there."

Spizzo hissed and shook his hand, as if he had been burnt by Jacob's words. "So witty, aren't you?" he asked sarcastically.

"You know me and my sharp tongue," Jacob countered.

Spizzo didn't miss his opportunity. "Oh yes I do," he shot back with yet another wink. "Intimately."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," dismissed Jacob, not interested in this back and forth any longer. The less he thought about the kiss, the better. "I already told you you're a good kisser so let's move on."

The other teen blew a raspberry in response, adding, "Fine, you buzzkill."

"I'll punch you now if it'll get you to stop," Jacob offered, even though his threat was far from threatening. Spizzo seemed to think the same thing as he only laughed at his bluff.

So as not to feel hurt by the other teen's dismissal of his almighty power, Jacob asked, "what were you even expecting from tonight?" before quickly following up with, "is this where you tell me that tonight was a set up for you're grand master plan that you've spent years setting up?"

"You need to watch less TV, you fucking dweeb," Spizzo laughed, amused by the other teen's suggestion. They weren't in some weird teen drama like Gossip Girl. "I wasn't really expecting anything tonight besides playing some FIFA with the boys. Spending it with you was the last thing I would've expected."

Jacob couldn't really disagree with him; this was the last thing he'd ever think would happen too. Never in his wildest dreams (or worst nightmares) did he ever expect that he'd be spending time with Spizzo again that wasn't pure torment. "Guess we have Mr Bentley to thank for tonight then."

Spizzo grimaced at the mention of the Drama teacher, taking another sip of his beer to finish the last little bit at the bottom. "I wouldn't thank that asshole a day in my life. That miserable old git can rot for all I care," the teen proclaimed, a sour look on his face at the thought of his teacher. It was no surprise to him that Mr Bentley was probably getting divorced; he was glad that that man's poor wife was finally free of Eeyore personified. As he thought about his Drama class for the first time all evening, he added, "That play can rot too, actually."

"Speaking of, shouldn't we be practising? You've still got lines to memorise," Jacob decided to bring up, ignoring the sourness emanating from the other teen. It was, after all, the reason he was even there. While he hadn't checked the time all night, it was definitely close to midnight - if not way past it - and Spizzo still had a lot to cover.

Spizzo, on the other hand, didn't seem to be on the same page. "Why do you want to ruin a good time, Jacob?" he groaned, jumping up from his seat to grab another bottle. "We're finally getting along, do you really want me to start beating your ass again?"

"I mean, Mr Bentley did threaten to stop you playing this weekend," the other teen tried to reason but Spizzo wasn't having it.

"Well, Mr Bentley can get bent," he retorted, explaining, "my coach will work something out if he wants to try banning me."

"Really?" Jacob asked, surprised by this new information. From the sounds of their interaction in the auditorium earlier today, it seemed that Mr Bentley was in Spizzo's way of becoming a soccer star for a small town American college. "Why did you take my offer up in helping you learn your lines then if your coach could just sort it out for you?"

Spizzo shrugged. "I'm not an evil monster all the time like you'd like to think I am, Jacob. I can try to do the right thing sometimes."

"But you don't want to do the right thing anymore?" countered the other teen, eyebrow cocked up as he tried to follow Spizzo's thought process. He wasn't fully picking up what Spizzo was putting down at this point.

Spizzo shrugged again. "Learning the lines was me taking the high road or whatever, but I don't really give a shit anymore. I panicked when Mr Bentley said he'd stop me from playing  but I realised earlier that he can't really do that. The coach and my dad will make sure I'll play so I mean, it would've been nice to do the right thing but the low road's gonna get me what I want anyway," he tried to reason. "What's the point of torturing myself if I don't need to."

"God, just when I was starting to think you're not as terrible as I thought you are now, you come back and just add another layer of scum on top," Jacob groaned after hearing what Spizzo had said. It felt as though they were taking two steps forward and three steps back all evening.

"Why does it even matter to you?" Spizzo asked, confused why the other teen would even care. While they'd made progress in their relationship tonight, they still hadn't been friends for the last four years. Why Jacob felt like he had a say was beyond him. "Is my future going to be ruined over some bullshit play? It won't matter to me in like, five years time - but soccer will."

"So soccer is more important to you than being a decent person?" the other teen hit back, his biting tone not lost on his ex-best friend.

"I mean, you lied to a teacher and had sex with him; I hardly think you should be throwing stones right now," Spizzo said in retaliation, hurt by the other teen's attack.

Jacob blinked as he took in Spizzo's words. They were like a shock to his system as a story he'd shared in confidence (and under pressure) was being flung right back in his face. "Wow, really? Really, Spizzo, that's what you wanna use against me now, to-" he began, ready to ramp up into a long rant to cut the other teen back down to size but Spizzo quickly remedied himself.

"Ok look, I'm sorry, I'm sorry," he cut in, waiting for Jacob to retract his claws and settle back into his seat. "I shouldn't have brought up you and Mr Teagan. That's not relevant to this and that's my bad. But you can't just attack me and tell me I'm not a decent person like that."

"Sorry," Jacob apologised, acknowledging that the other teen did have a point, even if he still felt his blood boiling. "But why is soccer so important to you?"

From his memory of their childhood together, Spizzo had always liked soccer to some degree. Mr Spizzinelli had taken the boys to a couple games growing up and Jacob had watched him kick the ball around with his brothers from time to time during sleepovers, but Spizzo didn't really froth over it like he seemed to now.

"Honestly, it's all I really have," was Spizzo's candid response to the question. "I mean, there's nothing stopping me from doing something else in life. I could go and do something at uni or become a tradie or whatever but soccer is the only thing that I'll ever be really good at. So yeah, if I have to give up being a decent person to get my chance, I'm gonna take it."

It was Jacob's turn to be quiet as he took in the other teen's words. As Spizzo poured his heart out, it felt like Jacob was the one who'd been cut back down to size.

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A/N: Ok so, I honestly didn't think this chapter was going to go this way. I had something else plotted out but Spizzo seemed to take on a voice of his own so I let him roll with it. I know that sounds weird but I'm sure other writers get what I mean. I hope you liked it though!