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A/N: Here’s a picrew of Samuel’s mother, Dr. Sandra Asamoah.
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For the millionth time that week, Samuel appreciated just how good Jayden was at not being found if he didn’t want to be. It was two weeks after the play and Samuel had been trying everything to talk to Jayden but no matter how hard he tried to corner Jayden and force him to talk, Jayden always disappeared before he had the chance.
The irony of the situation wasn’t lost on him. Just a few weeks ago, he had been the one avoiding Jayden but now he was the one being avoided. The only difference was, Jayden was far better at it than he could have ever been.
In the few classes they had together, Jayden was always the last to enter the classroom, coming in right after the teacher and sitting far away from him, destroying any chance to talk to him during class. He was also the first to leave after class ended, disappearing out the door even before the bell rang. Samuel barely had the chance to get out of his seat and when he finally did and run out, there was no sign of Jayden anywhere.
It was the same outside the classroom as well. Anytime he caught sight of Jayden in the corridors, he would run after him but Jayden always managed to disappear before he got near, leaving no sign of the direction he went in either.
It was completely maddening and asking anyone didn’t seem to help either. No one knew where Jayden was not even Noel. He had even tried waiting for Jayden in his room but Jayden never showed up, no matter how long he waited up. Whenever he woke up though, he always found a blanket wrapped around him and Jayden’s lingering sweet scent in the air.
Things were awkward within their group as well between Leo and Cam. Every time they were together, Leo chose to keep his eyes anywhere but on his friend, and when anyone tried to ask him about it, he would just mumble something awkwardly before making up an excuse to leave.
It seemed that Paul and Noel were the only ones unaffected. Noel, however, had been preoccupied lately with cello practice therefore between Jayden’s disappearances, Samuel’s quest to hunt him down, Cam and Leo’s awkwardness, and Noel’s lessons, the six friends hardly spent any time together.
It was the end of the week when they finally managed to meet on the football field. Cam and Noel were sitting up on the bleachers as they watched the practice match below.
Cam winced as a couple of guys shoved themselves into each other and toppled onto the ground.
‘Let me get this straight, so this is basically just a bunch of guys plowing into each other and tackling themselves to the ground?’
Noel shrugged. ‘Sounds about right.’
Cam grimaced as two boys crashed hard into each other. ‘What’s the point?’
‘Apparently, they find running into each other fun. I guess it has something to do with too much testosterone and a fragile male ego.’
Cam shook his head. ‘Boys are weird. Why the hell are we attracted to them?’
Noel shrugged again. ‘Who knows, probably because we find the sight of boys in uniforms unbearably hot.’
Cam sighed. ‘Life would be so much easier if we weren’t attracted to them.’
Noel glanced at him. ‘You’re talking about you and Leo, aren’t you? What happened between you guys?’
Cam looked down. ‘I might have kissed him.’
Noel sat up and stared at him in surprise. ‘You what?’
‘I kissed him,’ Cam mumbled.
Noel blinked several times as he processed this information. ‘Wow, okay. What happened to not doing anything about your feelings?’
‘That’s what I planned but then I came out to him the night of the play. He was so accepting and started talking about how he might even change teams and how amazing I was and how anyone would be lucky to have me, I kinda got a little carried away.’
Noel snorted. ‘A little?’
‘Yeah, maybe I got a lot carried away. I was taking a page out of Jayden’s book. It doesn’t matter anyway, it was clear he doesn’t feel the same way.’
He looked down on the field as Leo blocked a guy and tackled him to the ground. Noel looked at him sadly as he continued to stare at Leo.
‘I’m sorry. Feelings are a mess.’
‘That’s the understatement of the century.’
‘What are you going to do now?’
Cam shrugged. ‘I guess I have to learn to move on. I just wish things weren’t such a mess between us. I don’t want to lose my best friend over one stupid kiss.’
‘You’re not going to lose him. Leo cares about you a lot. All he ever does is to protect you. I’m sure you guys will figure it out.’
Cam smiled gratefully at him. ‘Thanks. How is Jayden by the way?’
Noel glanced down the field at Samuel. ‘He’s alright considering the circumstances. I just wish he would stop being so stubborn and talk to him.’
Cam followed his gaze and watched as Samuel scored a touchdown. ‘I’m sure he would come around. Samuel seems to care for him a lot.’
Noel nodded. ‘He does. Frankly, he’s dealing with the whole thing much better than I expected.’
The whistle sounded and the players moved to the sidelines as the game came to an end. Samuel and Leo took off their helmets but before they could move to the bleachers the coach called them over.
‘Asamoah, Ferrars! A word.’
They glanced at each other before making their way over to him. Paul stood beside him with a small frown on his face as he watched them approach.
‘What went on out there?’ the coach asked sharply. ‘The football season is almost here and two of my top players have their heads in the clouds!’
‘Sorry coach,’ Leo mumbled.
‘Save it! We have a big game in two weeks and we can’t afford any mistakes.’ He turned to Paul. ‘You’re the captain; make sure it doesn’t happen again.’
Paul nodded curtly as the coach cast them one last glare before walking off.
Leo let out a heavy breath and Paul studied him carefully. ‘I understand why Samuel has been off his game lately but what has been going on with you?’
Leo shrugged as he scuffed the tip of his cleats against the grass. Paul studied him more before letting up.
‘Fine. Whatever it is deal with it or I would have to keep you from playing the next match.’
Leo nodded and they made their way to the bleachers. Cam and Noel looked up as they approached.
‘You guys looked great out there,’ Noel said as they sat down.
‘Did we?’ Leo muttered darkly. ‘Doesn’t seem that way.’
Samuel glanced at Noel. ‘Have you seen Jayden?’
‘Not since this morning.’
Samuel’s expression fell. ‘Oh. Did you tell him what I said?’
Noel bit his lips. ‘I did but he didn’t say anything. He just looked at me and nodded before disappearing again. I’m sorry.’
‘It’s alright, thanks for trying,’ Samuel said with a weak smile. He sighed and got to his feet. ‘I’m going to hit the showers. I’ll catch up with you guys later.’
The others nodded and watched as he walked away. Noel looked at his watch and stood up quickly.
‘Shit, sorry guys. I need to go too. I’m going to be late for cello practice.’
He picked his things and quickly hurried away, not even looking back to acknowledge Leo’s goodbye.
Cam frowned. ‘What’s with him and playing the cello lately? He’s never cared about it before but lately, it’s like he’s obsessed.’
Paul shrugged and stood. ‘I better be heading back too. I have a chemistry project to finish up.’
Cam and Leo sat awkwardly together after Paul left. Leo racked through his brains for something to say but nothing came to mind. The silence was growing so painful that Cam soon stood up and muttered something about maths homework.
Leo hesitated before stopping him. ‘Cam wait. We need to talk.’
Cam paused before sliding back into his seat. ‘We really don’t need to. We can just pretend it never happened.’
‘But it did and clearly things have been messed up ever since.’
Cam looked down. ‘I’m sorry.’
‘Don’t apologise. It’s not your fault. No one can be blamed for their feelings.’
‘Yeah but I can be blamed for acting on them. I messed up big time.’
Leo was silent for some time before asking. ‘How long have you had a crush on me?’
Cam snorted derisively. ‘Since we were thirteen. But it’s no longer a crush, I’m in love with you and I’ve been in love with you for a long time.’
‘Damn, that’s…’ Leo passed his hand over his hair and took a deep breath. ‘Cameron, you know how much you mean to me. Ever since my parents died in the fire when I was six, I had no one until I met you after I had run away from that foster home. You have been looking out for me ever since you met me crying under that bridge. You are the only person I care about in this world and you’re the only family I have.’
‘I know…,’ Cam whispered, staring into his hands. ‘But?’
‘Nothing can happen between us. I care about you but not like that. You are my best friend Cam and I don’t want to lose that over a kiss. I know you have feelings for me and I’ll try to help you get over them but please don’t let it stop us from being friends.’
Cam looked up and nodded with a shaky smile. ‘I don’t want us to stop being friends either.’
Leo smiled in relief. ‘So no more awkwardness?’
Cam nodded and grinned back. ‘No more awkwardness. Now go shower, you stink worse than Noah’s ark after the great flood.’
Leo gave him a boyish grin. ‘Oi, that’s called musk. You can’t bottle that and the ladies love it.’
Cam rolled his eyes. ‘Whatever helps you sleep at night.’
Leo laughed and made his way down the bleachers. He stopped at the base and turned to look up at Cam.
‘It’s great to have you back.’
Cam shook his head but couldn’t stop the small smile from forming across his lips. ‘Get going, idiot.’
Leo chortled and made his way into the locker room. The locker room was half-empty when he arrived. Paul looked up as he entered and gave him a curious stare.
‘You look happy.’
Leo grinned. ‘That’s because I am. I fixed the issue that’s been bothering me.’
Paul cocked an eyebrow. ‘Interesting. Well, I’m glad. Now let’s just hope he would be able to deal with his.’
He glanced at Samuel who had just appeared from the showers. He seemed to be deep inside his thoughts as he changed, not saying a word to his friends. He turned after he was done and with a half-hearted wave at them, walked out of the locker room.
He had just stepped out of the building when a voice called out to him, breaking into his thoughts. He turned to watch Pearl jog up to him with concern in her eyes.
‘Samuel, where have you been? I’ve been worried sick.’
Samuel shrugged absently. ‘I’ve been around.’
‘I feel as if I’ve barely seen you since that night at the play.’ She smirked at him. ‘You’re not avoiding me, are you?’
‘I’m not, I’ve just been…preoccupied. How have you been?’
Pearl circled her arms around his neck. ‘Terrible, I miss my boyfriend. I’m so lonely without him.’
Samuel smiled apologetically. ‘I know and I’m sorry. I would make it up to you.’
‘I have an idea about how you can make it up to me. A date, just the two of us.’
‘Pearl…’
‘We can make a whole day off it.’
‘Pearl…’
‘Ooh, I know. We can-‘
‘Pearl enough.’ Samuel cut her off. He reached up and removed her hands from his neck. ‘Maybe later but I can’t today.’
Pearl stepped back and stared incredulously at him. ‘What’s up with you? You hardly talk to me, you are always busy and now you don’t want to spend time with me.’
‘It’s not that. It’s just…’
Pearl folded her arms across her chest. ‘It’s just what?’
‘I… I don’t know.’
She scoffed in disbelief. ‘You don’t know. You are blowing me off for a reason you don’t know.’ She shook her head in disgust. ‘Maybe you should go and figure out the reason and while you’re on that, figure out if you even want to continue to be in this relationship.’
She turned and walked away and Samuel watched her go with a heavy feeling in his chest. A soft breeze blew across the grounds, ruffling the leaves on the trees.
Samuel considered something in his head for a moment before moving with purposeful strides across the grounds. He passed by several groups of students who walked along the path and it wasn’t long before he arrived in front of the building he was looking for.
He stood and stared at the doorway and soon enough it burst open and a stream of students filed out. He glanced through the crowd but it wasn’t until later that he caught sight of her.
His sister saw him and whispered something to her friends before making her way across the lawn towards him.
‘Well this is an interesting surprise. Hello little brother, what brings you all the way here to the senior side of town?’
Samuel shrugged. ‘I don’t know really. I was feeling so lost I guess I just needed a familiar face to talk to.’
‘And here I was thinking you just missed your big sister.’
Samuel grinned. ‘Sure, that too.’
They walked over and took a seat in one of the many benches that dotted the wide lawn.
‘So what’s up? Broken any hearts lately?’
Samuel sighed. ‘I think I’m about to.’
Cissy sighed with him. ‘It’s an inevitable curse of our good genes. Who is it this time?’
‘My girlfriend.’
‘Pearl?’
Samuel nodded.
‘I never liked her anyway. She rubbed me off the wrong way. So what’s up with you two? Wait, don’t tell me, you met someone else?’
‘You could say that. Ever since the play, things have been so confusing. I feel as if I don’t know who I am anymore.’
‘Does it have anything to do with the kiss?’
Samuel nodded silently.
Cissy hummed contemplatively. ‘Tell me something, that kiss, it wasn’t part of the show, was it?’
Samuel shook his head.
‘I thought as much. It looked far too real and now I’m guessing it’s making you question your sexuality?’
‘Not really, I know I’m straight. At least I think I am, I’ve never thought about boys that way before and I’ve only ever been attracted to girls but…’
Cissy glanced at him. ‘But?’
‘I kissed him back Issa and I can’t deny that I felt… something. I just want to know what that something is. Why didn’t mum’s lecture include something like this?’
Narcissa let out an amused snort. Dr. Sandra Asamoah had approached the subject of her children’s sexual education in the same manner she did all her other lessons; in a lecture hall with a set of PowerPoint slides, several life-sized human models, lots of colourful and painfully detailed diagrams, and a practical demonstration with a pair of lab monkeys.
She hadn’t stopped there and had proceeded to give them tests, quizzes, project works and finally an examination to be sure they had fully grasped her lecture. They had sat horrified throughout the entire thing and if her objective was to deter them from casual sex it definitely worked for a short time because they were so traumatized that even the mention of sex made them sick. It took a long while for the effects of that lecture to wear off and after it did they could never look at monkeys the same way again.
‘Please don’t tell her that. I can’t sit through another lecture,’ Cissy pleaded. ‘I don’t think I’m even fully recovered from the first one.’
Samuel chortled as his mood slowly lifted. He was glad he had decided to see Narcissa. His sister always managed to make him feel better no matter what was bothering him.
‘Well it would have helped me figure stuff out if she had. Now, I don’t even know where to begin.’
Cissy tapped her chin thoughtfully. ‘What you need to do is figure out if you are attracted to boys and I may just know how.’
Samuel glanced at her. ‘Really?’
‘Of course,’ she stood up. ‘Now come with.’
‘Where are we going?’ Samuel asked warily as Cissy pulled him to his feet.
‘To watch gay porn,’ she answered with a straight face.
Samuel’s expression grew horrified. ‘What? Why? Absolutely not. How are you even going to get that?’
‘I know a guy. Now stop complaining, trust me it would help you figure everything out.’
She proceeded to pull her brother away despite his very loud and very verbal protests and Samuel felt a sense of dread descend on him as he was dragged off to his fate.
AUTHOR’S NOTE: I wonder how that would turn out…
I know the chapter is short that’s why I’m doing a double update. Enjoy 😉
Don’t forget to vote and comment if you enjoyed the chapter 😊. Remember to light up the little star below to make it happy.
To the next chapter…
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