Chapter 10

Sunday 8:30 pm (2 days before camp)

N: Hey

L: Hey, dude! I'm so sorry I haven't responded to your messages. My phone has be getting fixed because I accidentally dropped it in the toilet...

N: It's okay... So about Friday...

L: Oh. Yea. I'm sorry I got caught talking to a friend and came late. Then I heard your beautiful playing and got a little nervous and scrammed.

N: It's fine, I forgive you. Are you coming to camp?

L: Yea, of course I am! How about I make it up to you and meet you there?

N: Great! It's a date!

L: Awesome. Cya!

N: Bye!

L laid on his bed with his phone clenched to his chest, face red. A date? He didn't mean it like that, right?

Right?...

Tuesday

Nick shoved his belongings under the bus and quickly took a seat before they were all taken. The drive was apparently going to take thirty minutes. The place they were staying was described as a cabin in the middle of the forest by Miss Bradley.

Nick sat there listening to Liszt pieces enjoying the sound, but annoyed by the difficulty. Why did he have to make piano so goddamn difficult? Like, this is unplayable. He thought to himself. Nick looked out of the window with his chin resting on his hand that was held up by his elbow on the window ledge. He watched the blur of houses slowly turn into green scenery over a few minutes until he felt someone throw a scrunched up piece of paper at the back of his head. He ignored it. Then it hit him again. And again. And again until he turned around annoyed to see a girl pointing in the direction in front of him. He turned back around to see Alex and Max fully turned around in their seats looking at him as if they've been waiting for hours to get his attention.

"Ah! Perhaps he does have a brain!" Max said glowering over at Nick, his response silent. "Jeez, this kid really doesn't like to talk, hey," Max said to Alex slightly bored sounding. "Hey Nick, are you going to enter the camp showcase on Saturday night?" Alex inquired.

Nick looked at him surprised that he just asked him a question like a normal human being, but he'd seen that trick before. "Yea, I have a piece lined up," Nick said nonchalantly. Max raised an eyebrow at his response.

"Oh yea? Just like the piece you played us on Wednesday? What was it called again? Um, sweat, tears and despair, right?" Max said. Him and Alex began laughing. Nick was staring daggers at both of the boys. When Max noticed, he snapped his eyes back to Nick, "Aww, come off it, Nick. What are you gonna do, huh? Cry us to death?" Max and Alex laughed even harder this time.

"Fuck off," Nick said sternly. The two boys stopped laughing, their smiles fading away as they turned to look at Nick. Alex was surprised by the tone of his voice. It wasn't like before. This was actually serious. Nick began to bring his earbud back to his ear before it was abruptly caught by Alex who had pulled him in closer to his face,his right hand restraining Nick's arm. Alex was looking slightly down his nose at Nick with a satisfied smile. "Come on, we don't mean any harm, Piano Boy," Alex said to Nick. His face started heating up against his will as he stayed silent. Alex noticed the colour in his cheeks and smiled revealing his perfectly straight white teeth glinting in the sunlight. Alex grabbed Nick's chin with his thumb and index finger.

"Piano Boy. I like that. It's got a nice ring to it. I think I'll call you that from now on." Nick rolled his eyes with annoyance, "I'd rather you not, thanks. And can you do something about this thing on my face?" Nick's eyes indicating to Alex's hand on his chin. Alex brought the back of his hand to the top of Nick's cheek and briskly skimmed the surface towards the ground before lining his jawbone with his index finger in a casual caress until he reached his chin. He lightly grabbed it with his thumb and index finger again. Nick blushed even more at this seductive move.

"Anything you want, Piano Boy," Alex said as he lifted Nick's chin with his index finger before reaching the end with a flick of his pointer finger. Both boys looked down at each other. Nick began to smile as he spoke. "And you might want to do something about your habit of abruptly grabbing my wrist. One day you might break it and I won't be able to play any love songs to you," Nick said sarcastically giving a small fake pout. Alex grinned, releasing Nick's wrist slowly, "Anything for you, Piano Boy." Alex had shifted at some point so that he was now hovering over Nick, faces apart only by centimetres. His hair fell down onto Nick's on his forehead revealing the difference in colour. Alex's sparkling eyes were focused on Nick's cloudy grey ones, for a moment gazing into each other's souls.

"And you should do something about those stares of yours. People might think we're actually in love," Nick said beaming his first smile at Alex. He turned to the side closing his eyes, "Anything for you, Piano Boy." Nick began to laugh for the first time in a long time. Alex couldn't help but open one eye to take in his happiness.

Fuck. Why's he so goddamn cute?!

"Hey, I said no looking!" Nick said. Alex closed his eye again. "Sorry, Piano Boy. Anything for you." Alex began to laugh as well. They were as is for a few moments until Alex slowly brought his gaze back to Nick's as their laughing died off leaving only smiles.

"See you around," Alex said before winking and turning back around. Nick smiled to himself as he brought his earphones back up to his ears, music still playing.

"What. The fuck. Was that?!" Max said dumbfounded, "Were you actually hitting on him?"

"Of course not!" Alex leaned into Max's ear and whispered, "Sometimes, getting close to people is even more satisfying when you break them down." Max looked surprised but eventually gave an approving look. "I'll leave that up to you. Seems like too much work," He said to Alex before opening his phone to scroll through Instagram. Alex smiled to himself smugly.

The bus jerked to a stop as they arrived to a small cabin-like "hotel". All the students grabbed their gear from the bottom of their bus and made their way to the foyer as instructed by Miss Bradley. Nick was busting for the toilet and quickly ran to the closest one in sight.

"Alright students. I'll read your names out and your room number. Come forward to collect your keys and unpack." Miss Bradly grabbed a small pin board that held two key cards by their key chains by one pin. Each pin was labelled from 1-14. "Gina and Amy, room 1. Max and Darcy, room 2..."

Nick exited the bathroom to find an empty foyer. The feeling that he missed something settled in his stomach. He spotted a cross Miss Bradley spinning a key by the key chain which confirmed Nick's feeling. "Room 12," Miss Bradley said bluntly, throwing Nick the key which he caught mid air. Rude.

Nick started down a nearby corridor seeing it lead into rooms which each had a numbered silver plate on the door. He kept walking until he found the door that read 12. He slowly opened the door to see a fairly small room. A king size bed on the right wall, two night stands, one wardrobe and a sliding door that he assumed led into the bathroom. He took a step and nearly tripped over his roommates bag that already marked that he wants the right side of the bed. Nick dropped his bad and flopped onto the bed with a sigh with his hands under his head. Just as Nick closed his eyes, he heard the toilet flush and he immediately sat up as the door slid open...

"Alex??!!"

"Piano Boy?!"

"Fuck me," Nick groaned as he laid back down on the bed, covering his face with his hands.

"Ah, but alas," Alex began as he walked over to the bed. Nick felt his head sink into the bed as Alex leaned on it with his arms. He opened his eyes to see Alex's upside down face grinning widely at him, "not yet," he finished as he winked at Nick.

"You're disgusting, Alex," Nick mumbled as he rested an arm over his eyes. "Come on, sweetheart, don't be mean!" Alex said laughing as he stood up from the bed, "Let's go. Miss Bradley wants us in the dining hall for lunch in 5." Nick groaned as he stood up and followed Alex through the door, shutting it behind him. Nick did a 360 to find they were alone in the hallway.

"So what's going on?" Nick questioned.

"Huh? Nothin'. Why?" Alex said, puzzled.

"Well, y-you know. Sometimes you're nice to me and others not really." Nick said trying to hide his eagerness to know the answer.

"Well, to be honest, that's a lot harder to answer than I thought." Alex replied.

"I think you just like the attention. Everyone is always staring at us. Like on my second day, and on the bus toda-" Nick was shoved against the wall and trapped by Alex's large arms either side of his head. Alex stood there intimidating Nick with his shining green eyes, biting his bottom lip. Nick tensed in surprise and his eyes went wide. They stared at each other for a few moments, Nick's heart rate rising, heat flowing to his cheeks forcing to blush against his will. Alex looked cool and serious as he leaned into Nick...