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A/N: Picrew of baby boy Noel 🙂
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‘I hate fishing.’
‘So you’ve said, for the hundredth time now,’ Samuel replied with a small note of exasperation in his voice.
‘I also hate boats,’ Jayden continued, refusing to let up.
Samuel fought the urge to roll his eyes. ‘This is also the hundredth time you’ve mentioned that and for the hundredth time I ask, how do you know you hate boats if you have never been on one?’
‘How do you know you hate drowning if you have never done it?’ Jayden countered.
It took another herculean effort for Samuel to resist rolling his eyes at his boyfriend. The summer vacation was almost over and instead of spending their last week bored and at home, Samuel had suggested a weekend fishing trip. Jayden however, had immediately curled his lip at the idea and flatly refused. It had taken an absurd amount of wheedling and bribery to finally get him to agree though not happily.
As if the universe was trying to punish him, Jayden had nit-picked and complained about every single thing the entire drive to his family’s lakeside cabin in the mountains and as they made their way into the cabin, the thought of drowning was beginning to look more and more appealing.
‘Did you know that about two hundred and thirty-six thousand people die of drowning each year?’
‘I’m about to make it two hundred and thirty-seven,’ Samuel muttered under his breath as he unlocked the door.
Jayden walked in before him, oblivious to his murderous thoughts as he continued. ‘That makes it the third leading cause of unintentional injury-related death worldwide.’
‘Unintentional?’ Samuel shrugged. ‘Sure, why not. I can make it look unintentional.’
‘Also, statistically speaking, the probability of dying in a boating accident is higher in the summer than any other time of the year.’
‘Oh trust me, the probability is about to become much higher in your case.’
Jayden finally seemed to have caught on to his homicidal sentiments. He turned and fixed his boyfriend with a piercing gaze. ‘Was that a threat?’
Samuel blinked and plastered an innocent smile on his face. ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about.’
A wicked grin snaked its way across Jayden’s lips as he slowly walked toward him. Samuel backed away with each step he took, wondering how and when he became the one being preyed upon.
As the back of his waist hit the kitchen counter he realized that they had somehow managed to make their way into the kitchen and now there was nowhere else for him to run.
Jayden’s dark eyes glittered like a predator which had finally cornered its prey and continued to walk forward, forcing Samuel to lean back until his back was almost touching the surface of the counter.
He gulped on reflex drawing Jayden’s eyes to his neck and as they watched his Adam’s apple move up and down, they grew even darker.
Jayden regarded him thoughtfully and not tearing his eyes away from Samuel’s neck even once, spoke, ‘You know I’m beginning to like the idea of both of us alone up here. We would be undisturbed and especially,’ his voice dropped down to a whisper as he leaned closer to Samuel’s ear. ‘No one would hear your screams.’
Samuel didn’t know how Jayden managed to make that sound both threatening and seductive but it worked. His breath hitched and his body began to grow warm. They stared at each other as the air around them thickened but before any of them could make a move they heard the door swing open and soon Leo’s traumatized scream shattered the mood.
‘My eyes! My eyes! Help!’
Jayden pulled away regretfully and his brows furrowed in irritation as he turned to face a still screaming Leo.
Cam walked in a while later and slapped Leo on the arm. ‘Shut up. What on earth are you screaming about?’
‘Them!’ Leo shrieked, pointing at Jayden and Samuel on the counter before bringing his hands up to cover his eyes. ‘Someone rinse my eyes out with bleach, I can’t believe I saw them fornicating on the bloody counter! We eat there!’
Samuel looked embarrassed as he tried to explain. ‘We were not fornicating, we were just-‘
‘Please,’ Leo cut him off with a shudder. ‘I cannot listen to your attempts to explain your way out of this, I know what I saw. I now need therapy.’
‘You needed therapy long before any of this happened.’ Cam turned to Samuel. ‘Please excuse him, he was dropped at birth though not enough times in my opinion.’
Jayden looked amused. ‘Was it because his ugliness shocked the doctor or was it his smell that knocked them out?’
Cam thought about it for a minute. ‘I would say it’s a bit of both actually.’
‘Hey!’ Leo protested. ‘You’re supposed to be on my side. I’m the injured party here.’
Cam rolled his eyes. ‘There are no sides. Now stop yelling.’ He then dragged a spluttering Leo out of the kitchen.
‘Hold up,’ Samuel said, following them out of the kitchen. ‘What are you guys doing here and how did you know where we were?’
Cam sat Leo on the couch before explaining. ‘We kinda missed you guys so we cut our vacation short. Your mum told us where you were so we came straight up here to surprise you.’ He paused. ‘By the way, is your mum usually…?’
‘Yep,’ Samuel answered. ‘You get used to it.’
‘Yeah, I don’t think I will ever get used to seeing snakes come out of her clothes.’
Samuel laughed. ‘Anyway, I’m glad you guys are here. If only Paul and Noel were here too then it would be just like old times.’
As soon as the words left his mouth, a car could be heard coming up the gravelled driveway. They all turned curiously wondering who it could possibly be. They didn’t have to wonder long because shortly after the door opened to reveal Paul’s tall form.
Leo’s face lit up with joy and with a loud shout, he vaulted himself across the room and threw his arms around Paul.
‘Papi!’
Paul stumbled slightly with the force of the impact. He tried to peel Leo off him but Leo just clung on tighter.
‘Save me from these gays papi. Can you believe I caught those two engaging in coitus right on the kitchen counter?’
Paul looked confused. ‘What…’
‘For the last time Leo, we were not having sex,’ Samuel replied with a tired sigh. ‘Stop exaggerating, who would even have sex on a kitchen counter?’
‘I would actually,’ Jayden answered with a thoughtful look on his face and he appeared to be seriously considering it.
Samuel elbowed his boyfriend sharply as Leo exclaimed with a triumphant, ‘Aha! You see, he admits it.’
Paul shook his head in amusement as he half carried Leo back to the couch. ‘Oh you poor thing, it must have been dreadfully hard for you, witnessing something so absolutely awful.’
Leo looked close to tears as he stared lovingly up at Paul. ‘You are the only one who understands me papi. Never leave me again.’
Paul seemed to be fighting hard to hold back his laughter as he nodded and patted Leo’s head. ‘I wouldn’t even dream of it.’
Samuel shook his head exasperatedly whiles Cam just rolled his eyes at them both. ‘How did you find us by the way?’ he asked Paul.
‘Leo texted me. He told me you two were coming down here and begged me to come. I was able to convince my parents to let me come.’
Cam’s next words were interrupted when the door swung open again, this time revealing a hesitant Noel.
For a heartbeat no one was able to recognize him. There was a certain change about him but no one could put their finger on what exactly it was. His appearance had definitely changed and it was more easily to identify what was different about it.
For starters, where before his hair was longer, it was now cut closer to the scalp. If it had been cut any shorter it would almost have resembled a buzz cut. His previously slender form had also put on a bit more muscle.
That, however, was where the changes ended because when they looked up at his face, those shy eyes, that sheepish smile, and the nervous twitch of his nose, those were all part of the Noel they knew.
Jayden was the first to get up. He walked slowly towards him, his steps unsteady until he stood before his best friend. Noel looked up at him with a nervous smile. Jayden gave him a questioning look and after Noel nodded, that was all the confirmation he needed to wrap his arms around him and press him into a tight hug.
It soon turned into a group hug with everyone joining in and they may have been two or more teary eyes when they broke away but no one paid any attention to it. They just laughed and embraced again.
It took a while before they broke away again. They immediately pulled Noel onto the couch. None of them had heard from him during the entire summer so they were more than eager to hear what he had been up to.
‘I honestly thought you guys were mad at me,’ Noel said.
‘Why on earth would we be mad at you?’ Cam asked astounded.
Noel looked sheepish. ‘Well, I ignored your calls and didn’t reply to any of your messages.’
‘We were never mad at you,’ Samuel responded. ‘We understood you needed space though it may have been harder for some of us to give it to you,’ he added, giving his boyfriend a pointed look.
Jayden stared back unapologetically. ‘I don’t regret being worried about my best friend and I won’t apologize for it.’
Samuel turned to Noel. ‘See what I’ve had to put up with. Please take him back.’
Noel chortled. ‘Sorry, I don’t take returns. I’m afraid you have him for life.’
Jayden grinned. ‘I can live with that.’
‘Ah!,’ Leo groaned, breaking in. ‘Stop with the lovey doveys, else I’m going to be physically sick. Stick to the topic people, stick to the bloody topic.’
‘For once I find myself agreeing with Leonardo,’ Cam chimed, though he did not seem pleased to be saying it. ‘Let Noel, tell us what he’s been up to, especially what’s up with the military haircut.’
They all faced Noel attentively, patiently waiting for him to begin with his story.
Noel cleared his throat nervously. ‘Well, there isn’t much to tell really. After school let out, I went back home. Like you guys my family was supportive and I love them for it but it was getting a bit too much. I couldn’t take more of the concerned questions, the worried looks, and the awkwardness so I just left.
‘I didn’t know where I was going for a while, I just walked and walked until I stumbled upon the docks. There I met a guy who was looking for workers on his fishing boat and I signed up. It was a bit rough at first and much different from what I’m usually used to but the novelty and challenge of it all helped take my mind off everything.
‘Soon I settled into a rhythm and began to enjoy it very much. I even made some new friends. After that, I took odd jobs here and there in the harbours to keep my mind occupied. I even worked for luxury liners and cruise ships for a bit. I even met you guys once,’ he gestured at Cam and Leo. ‘And you more than a few times,’ he nodded at Paul. ‘But I didn’t approach you ’cause I wasn’t ready yet.’
He looked down at his hands. ‘I met someone at one of my jobs who helped me to come to terms with what happened to me. I’m not fully over it yet, as much as I would like to say I am, I am not. But I am okay with that and I know that in time I would be.’
He finished and stared expectantly at his friends, waiting for them to say something. They were silent for a while until Leo exclaimed and smacked Cam on the shoulder.
‘I told you I saw someone who looked like Noel on that ship! I was right, it was him.’
Cam had the grace to look chagrined as he rubbed his shoulder. ‘In my defense, you are not usually right.’ He stared at Noel. ‘You still haven’t mentioned what’s up with that haircut though.’
‘Oh that,’ Noel answered, fingering his hair absently. ‘I tried a lot of different looks then, this is just the one I ended up with. Don’t worry, it’ll grow back out soon.’
‘Soon wouldn’t be soon enough,’ Cam muttered, glaring at his hair. He seemed to be personally offended by it. ‘I can get you a wig.’
‘Nah, I’m good.’ Noel thought for a while before adding embarrassingly. ‘I even got a tattoo as well.’
‘You what!’ Jayden blurted out.
Leo however gave Noel an approving look. ‘Nice. What tattoo did you get?’ He frowned as he glanced down his body. ‘I can’t see it. Which part of your body did you get it on?’
Noel didn’t answer but the embarrassment on his face grew even more until even Leo managed to pick up on it.
‘Oh God,’ he groaned, covering his face with his hands. ‘Not you too. Forget it, I don’t even want to know anymore. Is there any innocence left in this world? Why is it always me?’
Jayden for his part didn’t know how to feel about that. He fixed that piercing gaze of his on Noel for a long time causing him to fidget in his seat.
‘What about you guys?’ he asked eventually in an attempt to take the attention off him. ‘How did you spend your summer?’
And that’s how they spent the rest of the day, talking and catching up just like in old times. It was well into the night before they finally called it a day and turned in for the night.
Time flies when you are with friends, and that’s how the rest of the week felt to them. They spent days hiking, swimming, fishing- much to Jayden’s consternation, and generally acting like teenagers rightfully should on the last days of summer.
On their last night in the cabin, they decided to have a bonfire. To Leo’s dismay, Cam had invited Kyle and to Kyle’s credit, he didn’t seem to let Leo’s glares dissuade him. On the contrary, he seemed to bask in it and went out of his way to find more ways to annoy him further such as placing his arms around Cam and clinging to him as he was currently doing.
Leo tore his eyes away from the painful sight and sought reprieve from Samuel only to find Jayden curled around him as content as a kitten.
‘Not again, what did I ever do in my past life to be surrounded by this much romance? Why am I always the witness and never a participant?’ he groaned before taking a huge swing of his beer.
Paul patted him comfortingly. ‘At least you’ve got me, buddy.’
Leo was a bit tipsy as he nodded. ‘We are the only straight people here so we need to stick together.’
There was silence as Samuel and Jayden glanced at each other and Noel looked away, all of them recalling a particular startling confession they had been witness to.’
The fire crackled as sparks leaped up from the logs. Paul stared at the flames in silence before murmuring almost inaudibly, ‘I am not straight either.’
Leo however was too drunk to notice. Cam had to kick him sharply to bring him back to himself.
‘What?’ Leo asked as he blinked in confusion.
A tiny fond smile appeared on Paul’s face as he repeated firmly, ‘I’m bi.’
‘Bye,’ Leo waved and turned back to his beer.
Paul rolled his eyes and held Leo’s face, looking firmly into his eyes. ‘Leonardo, I am bisexual.’
Leo stared at him dumbly before the words sunk in.
‘Oh…,’ he blinked and sat up. ‘Paul papi, my beloved pijo does this mean we can finally get married?’
‘No,’ Paul answered in amusement, bringing up his hand to stop Leo from attempting to kiss him.
Leo continued to make kissy faces at him as he pouted. ‘Why not, is it me? Am I too handsome for you?’
‘No, you’re too Leo for me.’
Leo placed his hand on his heart and swooned dramatically. ‘Ah, you wound me mi amor.’
‘Since it looks like we are all part of the LGBTQ+ what should we call ourselves?’ Noel asked. ‘The Unicorn Parade? The Rainbow Friends?’
‘The Rainbow Friends does have a nice ring to it,’ Cam agreed.
‘Does that make Leo our straight mascot?’ Samuel asked thoughtfully.
‘The hell you talking about? I am also part of the community.’
Cam snorted. ‘Since when?’
‘Since my ass got saddled with you fruity lot. My letter is A and I identify as an ally.’ He saluted. ‘Ally Leonardo Ferrars, reporting for duty, sir.’
The group burst into laughter and as they continued to sit round the bonfire, laughing and joking, everything felt right in the world. Little did they know that as the smoke floated across the starry night, it took with it the last tendrils of the innocence of their youth.
Author’s Note: Two updates in one day? Gasp😱
Anyway so what did you all think of this chapter? I’ve changed my mind, Leonardo is now officially my favourite character.
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