Loss to Love Ch. 03

"Sure." The simultaneous echo of disbelief from everyone at the table seemed straight from a TV show. The others realized this too and burst out laughing at the coincidence of it all. Nick just pouted.

"So anyway, nice to meet you. I would like to apologize on behalf of the halfwit next to you for the past few years." Kate smiled.

"Okay I think I'm gonna go hide my face somewhere else before you guys completely destroy my ego. Bye." Nick said, getting up and walking away from the table. I felt kind of compelled to do the same, since the only reason I was sitting where I was, was because of Nick.

"Don't worry about him, he's not bothered by it." Tray said, breaking me from my thoughts.

"What?"

"I said he's fine with the teasing. He has said so himself. Plus we never really go overboard with it. Beside if you ask me, he could do with keeping his ego in check. Being star quarterback can kind of go to your head." Tray said.

"He doesn't seem like the kind though."

"Oh he's not, but we like to think of it as a precaution, to keep him grounded and stuff. He has so much going for him that it can get a little overwhelming at times." I got what Tray was saying. Nick was basically the perfect student. Athlete, straight A student and probably senior class president, he had a lot going for him. It would make anyone's head big.

"Enough about Nick. Let's talk about you. Senior year been good so far? I mean it's the first day and all but it's senior year." Kate bounced in her seat. I didn't know how to answer her though seeing that senior year wasn't turning out how I was hoping it would have turned out. I saw Tray shoot Kate a wide-eyed glare to which she blushed. "I mean it's not...it's just...I'm just gonna stop talking now."

"Sorry about Kate, she sometimes forgets the big picture. We know that it's probably a tough time for you." Tray said.

"No it's fine. I would be excited for senior year too. It's every student's big year I guess. I just wish I could have started it under better circumstances." I said

"Well I can't say that I understand what you're going through but I will be here for you nonetheless. I can be your best friend. I've always wanted a gay best friend." Kate said, beaming at me to which I couldn't help but chuckle.

"If you're expecting a shopping slash mani-pedi kind of guy then you've got to keep looking though. I'm more a video game computer geek type." I said.

"Damn. No matter though, you like guys, I like guys. We have that in common." She laughed. I shook my head. In a way she reminded me of Dean. She had his carefree personality and infectious laugh. "Shall we head to class? You have biology next too right?" I thought about it a while before nodding my head to her question. "Great, we can go together. Bye guys." She chirped, getting up from the table. I followed her and waved my goodbyes.

I walked out of the cafeteria, my hands in my pants pockets. Kate came out from behind me and weaved an arm through mine, locking us together at the elbow. It was strange, seeing that prior to today, my only friend in school was Dean. Who would have thought that I would have Kate Benson, on my arm?

"Hey." Nick appeared around the corner. "Wow a few minutes away from you guys and you're already best friends?" He said, looking at our locked arms.

"Why? Jealous?" Kate stuck her tongue out, showing off her child like demeanor. The relationship Nick and Kate shared was akin to a bickering couple, probably because they were friends way before they started dating two years back.

"Please. You can have her if you want." He said to me to which I raised an eyebrow.

"Well if he wasn't gay I would gladly except." I got a little uncomfortable being in the middle of their little spat but all I could do was stand there. "C'mon let's just get to class." Kate said, pulling me off towards biology.

The rest of the day went by pretty smoothly. Once parting ways with Kate and Nick after biology, things just fell back into my usual routine. Being around Nick and his gang felt surreal, like I was in a dream or something. Nick would have taken every chance to make my life miserable and he suddenly became this friend. Of course it's an improvement, don't think that I'm complaining because I'm not. It just feels weird.

The school bell marked the end of the first day of school and I found myself heading to my truck outside the school. I spotted Little Red and made my way over to her, fishing my keys from my pants pocket. I looked around and saw other students leaving as well, some getting into their cars while others headed to the field, probably to hang. I reach my truck and was about to unlock it when someone startled me from the back.

"Hey there." Nick said, his tenor voice so distinct. I jumped, dropping my keys on the floor.

"Geez you scared the shit out of me." I said, turning around and looking at him.

"Sorry...wait, no I'm not." He laughed. I shook my head and bent down to pick my keys up.

"Any reason you wanted to give me a heart attack?" I said, sticking the key into the truck door, twisting it to unlock.

"Yeah, I need a ride home." He said, I turned to him and raised an eyebrow.

"What happened to your car?" Nick drove a nice Audi RS5 and I wondered why he would need a ride from me.

"It's at the workshop. So I'm car-less and I need a ride home, and seeing that we're neighbors, I was thinking we could car pool." He said, giving me a cute smile.

"Fine. Get in." I said, getting into the drivers seat, watching as Nick bounded around the truck to get into the passenger side. He got in and I waited for him to buckle up before headed out of school.

"So how was you're day?" He asked, in an almost couple like manner.

"What are you, my boyfriend?" I said, keeping my eyes on the road.

"You'd like that wouldn't you." He smirked and I had to scoff at his remark. No I didn't want Nick as my boyfriend, no matter how cute...wait what? No. I have no feelings for Nick Preston. I shook the thought from my head.

"I would have expected you to be out with Kate or something." I said.

"Yeah well, she has other plans." He said. "Besides, she lives on the other side of town and I didn't want to trouble her."

"But you wanted to trouble me?"

"Oh c'mon, like it's any trouble. You're heading in the same direction anyway." He said, defensively.

"Dude I was joking." I smiled, to which he just muttered a quiet 'oh' and blushed. Nick Preston was blushing. If I weren't driving I would have taken a photo. "So when's your car out of the workshop?"

"Probably tomorrow afternoon, meaning..."

"You need a ride to school tomorrow." I finished his sentence.

"Clever and cute. It's a wonder you're not attached." He said. For the second time that day, Nick had called me cute. What was his game anyway?

"Stop calling me cute." I muttered.

"What? You prefer handsome, because quite frankly, don't flatter yourself." He smirked.

"Asshole." I stopped in front of my house and turned off the engine, getting out of the vehicle. Nick followed my lead. "So yeah tomorrow morning 7.30. Don't be late."

Nick walked over to me and ruffled up my hair, which I immediately pulled away from. I had something about other people touching my hair. "Sure thing. Thanks for the ride by the way." I nodded my acknowledgement and watched as he turned and headed over to his house. I sighed and shook my head. Even on good terms, Nick could be irritating in an almost innocent kind of way. I don't know.

I headed straight for my room, turning on my computer and logging into Skype. I wasn't sure if Dean would be on but it didn't hurt to check. Sure enough he was online and I initiated a video chat with him. After a few moments of connecting through, his face popped up on screen, blurry from his shitty laptop webcam and poor lighting.

"Hey man." He said.

"Hey. How's New York?"

"Same old same old. Lonely I guess, seeing that you're not here." I smiled at his comment.

"Yeah well nothing you can do to change that."

"Hmm, what about you? Today was the first day of school right?" I nodded at his question. "So how was it? I would assume everyone gave you weird looks."

"That's an understatement. I almost broke Nick's jaw today."

"YOU WHAT!" Dean shouted, making my computer speakers scream. "Nick as in Nick Preston?"

"Like there is any other Nick in school." I deadpanned. "But I said almost. Didn't actually do it. I made quite a dent in the locker though."

"Whoa Drew Langston's a gangster." He laughed. "What happened? I assume he was being an ass, as usual and you just lost it."

"Actually quite the opposite. He came to apologize to me."

"Nick Preston. The Nick Preston? The guy who has been picking on you past three years of high school? That Nick Preston?" I understood his confusion. If it hadn't happen before my very eyes, I wouldn't have believed it either.

"Yes Dean. I know it's hard to believe, part of me still thinks it's all a dream but yes, Nick apologized for being the twit that he was."

"Okay did my leaving Jameson high cause everyone to go crazy? Next you're gonna tell me you're friends with the football team." He said. My eyes went wide, unsure if I should tell the other stuff that happened today. Dean however, picked up on my expression. "You're friends with the football team now?"

"Well no...not really I guess." Dean just gave me an 'explain yourself' expression, waiting for me to continue. "Well you see after I almost socked Nick, I went to the roof. Only thing was Nick followed me up there. We talked and he apologized more...then...he offered to be friends." I stopped. Dean wasn't moving nor saying anything, making me think if the Skype call was lagging or hanged there or something. "Dean you there?" I checked, before Dean shook his head.

"Continue. I'm still here."

"Okay well. I accepted, tentatively of course and then he asked me to sit with him at lunch at the table of doom."

"Whoa whoa whoa hold up. You sat at their table? Talk about jumping social classes." He smirked.

"Yeah well our old table had been hijacked by a group of freshmen. So anyway yeah, I sat there, talk to Tray Parker and Kate Benson a little, and I guess that's it."

"Oh god, Drew Langston is now a popular. They grow up so fast." Dean mocked, wiping the non-existent tear from his face. "But I would still keep an eye on Nick if I were you. It all sounds so weird to me." I scoffed.

"Try living it. Weirdness level off the charts, and I'm way ahead of you. I think Nick has ulterior motives but I still don't know what they are at the moment."

"Yeah well I'm sure you can handle him." Dean said.

"I hope so." Yeah I sure did. Nick was an enigma, one that I intended on deciphering.