Hey, Mr. In Denial (LBGT)

Chapter 15

Chapter 15

There are so much things I want to stay. His arms stay wrapped around me, and I don't know whether to return the hug back. Eventually I decide to put my arms around him, my fingers trailing the curves of his back. Someone whistles at the crowd and I smile at them awkwardly, waving, tipping my imaginary hat. Among the crowd, Derek's eyes bore into mine, there's no hint of disapproval or whatsoever in his eyes, just pure happiness, and a bit of proudness. I smirk, winking at him and he rolls his eyes at me in return.

"I know that I'll stay as your friend," he mutters under his breath, slightly pulling away from me so he can take a look at my eyes. My mouth opens, but the words don't come out of my lips, as if they are stuck in my throat. "And that's okay. Perhaps I'm not the person who can heal your broken heart, but I'm the type of person who can make things bearable surely. Best of friends?"

He offers his pinkie at me to take, and a chuckle escapes my lips. The crowd goes silent, still watching us. My eyes scan the area and I still find Lilith, Dale, Gloss, Derek and the others watching us in anticipation. Looking back at Dustin, I hook my pinkie in his and we share the same look, the same smile, and that's it, we're officially best of friends. "Best of friends." I agree, grinning widely. "Of course Derek will be pretty jealous."

"Nah," he chirps, his eyes twinkling in amusement. "Maybe."

"Let's go," I motion for him to go down off the stage with me, and he obliges. "They might be thinking now that we're officially, exclusively, happily dating."

The crowd begins to disperse, going into their preferred musical instrument and we walk up to our friends, who are grinning at us, probably thinking that Dustin and I are together. Well, I'd hate to pop the bubble, but they need to know that Dustin and I will stay friends. Best of friends. Gloss gives me a thumbs up, his hair disheveled and sticking up in every possible direction, and raises his palms up, offering a high-five. I slap my palm against his, and my palm stings of pain, both Gloss and I hiss at the contact of our palms and everyone but Dale lets out a soft chuckle.

Kaila grins at me widely, her hair in a ponytail and she winks at me suggestively. "So... are you guys together now?" she purrs, tucking a strand of her hair behind her ear. Dustin purses his lips, his dimple showing, fighting back a smile. I purse my lips, and Kaila begins to squeal like a pig, her skirt twirling as she spins herself. "I knew it. I knew it. I knew it. God, I suddenly remember Kevin and Collins. I need to text them ASAP."

"Sorry guys," Dustin says, scratching the back of his head, rather awkwardly, but you can see his lips twitching, the edge slightly turning upwards, lips curving slightly, as he fights back a smile. "The one that you saw back there on stage, it's not me asking to be together with him."

"He basically proposed to me," I say, chuckling when Gloss' eyes widen, "to be my best friend." I add hastily upon seeing my friends' expression.

Derek's eyes fly between me and Dustin, his mouth agape. "Seriously?" Dustin nods, letting out an awkward chuckle. From what I remember, Derek was basically not a fan of Dustin for me, but now, I'm beginning to question whether he secretly likes us to be together or there's something wrong with him. He mutters something under his breath that I can't quite catch.

"Congratulations, then," Dale speaks, his cold eyes boring into mine, that makes me shudder. His tone is monotonous, like he's somehow angry, but I could be wrong. "Congratulations that you guys are now best of friends." There's something about his tone that makes me question whether he's being sincere or not. He doesn't have any issues with Dustin, or so I think.

"Congratulations, too, um, again," I say awkwardly, letting out an awkward chuckle. "You guys fit together. I mean, Lilith and you look good together."

"We're not together," he says almost immediately. Everyone's brows furrow as we look at Dale and Lilith. Lilith's arms are crossed across her chest and she arches a brow at us. As Kaila opens her mouth, as if on cue, Dale stops her by speaking. "We made out just to experiment if there's something brewing with us... but there's not." As he says those words, he's looking at me intently, and I feel my knees wobble a bit and Dustin has to wrap his arm around me to balance me. I silently thank him, smiling.

Someone calls out my name, and I'm suddenly thankful for that person. I can still feel his eyes boring, burning at the back of my head and I gulp. The person who calls me is my classmate in PE, Ralph. His brown hair is shaggy, sticking up on his forehead. He has brown eyes and puffy cheeks, and he's of Spanish descent. There's also Michael, his best friend, who is a full blood Filipino. Both new to the school, who has a black hair and brown eyes, darker than Ralph's.

As he runs into my direction, he stops in front of me and puts his palms on his knees, breathing out loud and Michael shoots his best friend a look, which his best friend ignores. "We saw you singing," Ralph declares, panting hard as he catches his breath. "Perhaps you might want to join us the music club?"

"That's a little too late, don't you think?" I say.

"No, it's never too late," Michael says.

Michael has this thick eyebrows, his complexion is of brown. His lips are naturally big, especially the bottom lip, and the girls and some of the gays envy it. Not just that, he's got a big butt, too. His height is 5'4", making him look like a kid to me. As if sensing my gaze, he arches a brow at me then frowns, as if he already knows I'm criticizing his height.

"It's okay if you don't want to join," Ralph says.

"I'll think about it,"

"Okay," Michael chirps, pulling his best friend by the hem of Ralph's uniform. "You know where to find us."

After the encounter with Michael and Ralph, Dustin decides to take off, states that he has something to do and that's when my opportunity appears; I join Dustin. We walk out of the studio hall together, Dale still looking at us with a frown etched on his face. I'm glad that Dale has something to do as he announced it to the crowd earlier, and we all dispersed.

Dustin bumps his shoulder against mine, making me look up at him. He's grinning at me, his pearly white teeth flashing. "Would you like to do something else? School's pretty boring."

I look at him, mortified at the image of me cutting classes. My mother and father would be disappointed at me if I cut classes, and that's not a good thing. I don't want my parents looking at me with disapproval and annoyance in their eyes, and the guilt would eat me up. Education is important, my mother has said. It is important to me.

As if realizing what he has said, he immediately laughs and shakes his head. "That's not what I meant, dufus. We're not going to cut classes." I sigh in relief, then I frown. "I mean, our sixth class will not start until fifteen more minutes, so we could just hang out at the back, on the school garden. Or hide seek at the Garden of Luck!" Garden of Luck. It has been called that way because that's the place where people confess to their special someone that they love them.

John and Ashton confessed their love for each other on a boat.

Kevin and Collins confessed their love for each other in Collins' house with the help of Kaila.

Gloss and Noah confessed their love for each other while they were busy, basically, killing each other.

Mike and Eros confessed their love for each other while Mike was slightly and nearly dying.

Josh and Ezerette confessed their love for each other at the altar when they got married.

I wish I could have those.

Before I even agree, Dustin starts to run across the Senior Hallway, taking a left turn that leads to one of the gardens of school. I sigh, shaking my head and cursing under my breath, and bolt, following my newly best friend Dustin. It feels weird to call him as my best friend. All my life, I've only known one best friend, and that would be Derek. I have never even thought that one day I would gain another best friend. When I met Gloss, I always thought that he'd be one of my best friend, that I'd consider him my best friend, but it changed when I realized that I had feelings for him. From that day, I never considered him as my best friend but only Derek.

Taking a left turn, I run out of breath as I continue running, the students looking at us with complete absurdity. I catch a glimpse of his shadow as he takes another turn, right, and then I run after him, shouting his name. The students keep sending us looks, some are annoyed, but others just don't care. When I get outside, I'm greeted by the growing flowers in the bushes, and I scan my area, looking for the dirty blonde hair who led me here.

Hide and seek my face, I think.

Cautiously I take a step towards the bench. I begin to call out his name, and he's not answering. We only have ten minutes left before the next class starts. I call him again, but this time, slightly annoyed by the fact that he decided to be childish. Walking through a maze of gardens and trees and bushes, I find an empty bench and take a seat, sighing out loud.

I rest my elbows on my knees, and my face in my hands. I shut my eyes, feeling the cold breeze of the air, making my skin tingle. There's a presence who sits beside me, and for a moment, I smile, knowing that it's Dustin. I just let my face buried in my hands, not looking up at him. There's a comfortable silence looming over us, and I'd like to keep him there. Like I have mentioned before, Dustin has this aura that makes people feel at peace.

He puts his palm on my shoulder, and I feel myself freeze. Dustin's hand is pretty warm, warmer than the last time I've touched his hand. His palm becomes suddenly rough, as if he has been doing house chores all day and night, against my skin. Something about his touch makes me feel alive; electricity runs through my veins, making me feel hot. Adrenaline rushes to my body, through my veins, making my heart beat faster. Despite the cold air the October gives, I feel suddenly warm. I lean into his touch, sighing out loud, relaxed. My eyes remain shut, and it doesn't bother me that he drapes his arm over my shoulders. The last time I've thought of Dustin's arm, it's a bit short, but this one is lengthier. Despite the difference, I feel myself smile. Dustin feels comfortable. I feel comfortable.

His fingers run through my hair, making me sigh in content, purring. The way his hand massages my scalp, the way he pushes me closer into me, it has me thinking that perhaps he has changed his mind about being just best of friends. It has me thinking that perhaps he has given us a chance to be together, that he gives me a chance to be happy. Dustin keeps running his hand throughout my hair, and if he continues, I might doze off and forget about my next classes. I could just sleep here all day, him running his hands continuously across my hair, and I wouldn't mind getting scolded by my parents.

I wouldn't mind getting scolded by my parents if I skip classes if Dustin gets to do this every time, and I'm not going to complain about it. Sighing out loud, disappointed that I have to stop him because we still have next classes, I tip my head up and open my eyes.

A gasp escapes my lips, and I'm suddenly frozen in my spot, staring at him wide eyed and mouth agape.

The one sitting beside me, the one who has pulled me closer into him, the one that kept running his hand through my hair, is no other than Robert Dale Waites.