Somewhere Only We Know

If He Didn't Have To Leave

Chapter Twelve

"It's like... I want to be his friend. But I don't know if we can be just friends," I say and then I sigh. "I don't even know if he feels the same. I mean, what if-"

"You know, this would be much easier for all of us if you stopped being a pussy and you told him how you felt," Scott cuts me off.

He's making dinner for Melanie while I'm helping him out by cutting up the onions. My eyes keep watering but I don't stop talking. I think he's had enough of me. And this is only the beginning, I'm going to be staying with him over winter break.

"I can't tell him," I say and Scott groans as he seasons the chicken. "He just broke up with Benny like last week. He needs some time, I can't just drop this all on him now."

Winston is dealing with the breakup in his own way. Luckily, we played our last football match two days ago and now I won't be seeing Benny anymore.

"No one pisses me off like you do," Scott sighs and then he puts down the knife and turns to me. "Monty, just fucking tell him."

But I can't do that. It's unfair to tell him now that he's just starting to get over Benny. I shake my head. "I'll tell him later," I say and by 'later' I mean when I feel like it.

Scott rolls his eyes at me and picks the knife back up. I hope this isn't a new method of persuasion that he's trying.

"Okay," Scott says. "But don't come crying to me when he comes back with a new boyfriend after the winter break."

I scoff. As if Winston would get over Benny that quickly.

***

Winston said he had some shit to deal with so I wasn't expecting him to be in our room when I came back from Scott's. I think it was something to do with Benny but I didn't ask.

But when I walk in, he's stood in front of his mirror and he's wearing... half a hoodie? It's like a hoodie but the bottom part is chopped off exposing his abs.

I stop and stare and Winston stares back. "What? Does it look bad?" he asks and he starts chewing on his bottom lip.

"No! No, of course not," I say and I close the door behind me when I snap out of it. He couldn't look bad in anything even if he tried.

I take one last look at him and then I walk over to my bed so he doesn't think I'm weird by staring at him.

"I, erm, I'm going out," he tells me and then he sees the disappointed look on my face. "No, not to see Benny. Just... a party."

"Oh," I say and I sit down on my bed. A party. Is he trying to move on from Benny? Find someone new perhaps?

"You should come. With me," Winston then says and he smiles nervously. He stands in front of the mirror and he waits for my answer. I can see his back dimples in the mirror and I get distracted. "What do you think?"

"Uh, sure. It could be fun," I say and he grins. Fun? Parties never turn out well for us. For Winston especially.

"I got you something by the way," Winston then says and he walks over to his bed. I watch as he takes a gift bag out from under his bed and his passes it to me with a smile.

It's a Christmas gift and I look inside the bag. A puzzle?

"It's, erm... Movie night didn't work out so well. So I thought we could have game night instead?" Winston says and he shifts from foot to foot. Game night?

I look up at him and then I pull the box out of the bag. Two thousand puzzle pieces of a picture of the Eiffel tower.

I don't say anything and Winston takes that as an opportunity to ramble. "You said you couldn't finish puzzles and I'm good at it so I thought-"