The New Kid: a Noah Beck Fanfiction *completed*

21

I quickly texted him back, standing up from the couch. "Sorry to bail on movie day, but I've got somewhere that I have to be."
"I know that you're not about to just skate past that without giving some sort of explanation," Griffin said, pausing the movie.
I stammered, trying to quickly come up with an excuse. When I couldn't come up with anything, I opted for the truth. "Noah texted me. He said that he's willing to talk if I am. I'm not gonna miss out on this opportunity."
Dixie, Griffin, and Addison all shared a silent look, and I decided not to wait for them to give me an answer.

I grabbed the keys from the table by the door, slipping on a pair of Crocs and heading out of the front door. I hadn't brushed my hair when I got up, and I certainly hadn't bothered washing the stains of my breakdown away.
I took the ride to Noah's house more quickly than I should've, and I called him when I got there. "Hey, I didn't know if you wanted me to come up to the door or not, but I'm here."
"I'll be right out. You can meet me on the porch swing."

I sat down on the porch swing, waiting patiently. I was in no position to ask for anything more.
"Hey," he said, sitting down next to me.
"Thank you for letting me talk to you, Noah. I really appreciate it," I said, looking up at him.
He nodded. "I left pretty angrily last night. I figured that I would give you a chance to speak. I guess you deserve that."
"I deserved everything that you said last night, Noah. I put myself in this position. I'm really, really sorry, Noah. It was never my intention to hurt you. I was scared, so I messed up the one thing that had the potential to make me happy. I don't know if you can ever trust me again, but I want you to know that I broke it off after that night. I regretted even calling him as soon as it was over."
I took a breath, and Noah took that opportunity to talk. "I can't pretend that none of this happened, Grace. I made myself vulnerable to you, and maybe that was my mistake. Maybe it wasn't your choice that anyone should be regretting; maybe it was mine. I think that we will be better off if we don't try to be together. We're just going to get in each other's way. It's not worth the pain, Grace."
"Noah, I don't want Ryland."
"I'm sorry, Grace. This isn't going to work out. I think that it would be best if you left," he said, standing up and heading into the house.

I got back in the car, tears stinging the back of my eyes. I was trying so hard to just make it home before I let myself break down, but I didn't even get a chance to put the key in the ignition. I rested my head against the steering wheel, letting the tears pour out. I knew that coming here was a long shot, but none of that was what I was expecting.
When every last tear had dried up, I finally turned the key in the ignition, pulling out of his driveway. As I pulled into mine, a thousand thoughts ran through my mind. Addison's car was still in the driveway, so she was clearly waiting for me to get back. What was I going to tell them?

"Hey, guys."
"What happened?" Addison asked as Griffin paused the television.
I shook my head. "Nope. 'This isn't going to work out.' I can't believe that I screwed this all up over someone that cheated on me. I'm gonna go back to bed. I'll see you guys at school tomorrow."
I ignored their pleas to stay downstairs with them as I carefully walked up the stairs. I didn't want to talk. I didn't want to think. I just wanted to be alone.

I couldn't remember when I fell asleep, but I didn't wake up until my alarm went off the next morning. I still wasn't really in the mood, so I threw my hair up in a messy bun and donned a pair of leggings and an old hoodie.
"Good morning, Gracie. Are you ready to go?" Griffin asked as I walked downstairs.
"Yeah. Let's just get this shit over with," I replied, walking out the front door.

The drive was silent, and thankfully, Griffin didn't try to pry. When we parked at school, I got out without a word, skipping the horde of our friends at my locker and going straight to class. As the bell rang, Blake sat down in his seat next to me. "Hey, kiddo. How are you?"
I looked up at him. "Does it look like I want to talk about it?"
"Hey, don't get mad at me. We're all really worried about you," he said, holding his hands up in surrender.
"Yeah? Well, don't be. I screwed up, and there's no one else to blame for that," I snapped. As soon as the words left my mouth, I was filled with regret, but I couldn't bring myself to apologize. The teacher entered the room, and I didn't speak to Blake again.

If Blake had been bad in biology, I could only imagine how Jaden and Mads were going to be in English.
"Hey, sweetie," Mads said as I sat down.
I saw Jaden shoot her a look that told me that he had already talked to Blake about my mini outburst earlier that morning. "I really don't want to talk about it right now, Mads. I appreciate all the concern, but I did this to myself, and I need to deal with it myself, too."
She and Jaden shared a look, and neither one of them tried to speak to me for the rest of the class.