"Nothing yet?" Tiffany yawned, skipping through a movie's end credits.

I had been waiting for a call from Noah for a couple of hours now, wondering if they were leaving anytime soon.

"No, I don't want to bother him." I said, putting down my phone. I was so tempted to call, or text.

"Just do it, I'm sure you aren't going to." She smiled at me. Easy for her to say, Natalie always answered within seconds. And they would talk, even if she was busy.

"No, I'll just wait until he says something." I smiled back and shrugged.

"Hey, where's Audrina?" I looked around, trying to peer into her room unsuccessfully. I pursed my lips anxiously. It was way too quiet.

"She said she was going out to see an old friend. I offered to go with her but she said no." Tiffany said, her eyes fixated on the screen.

"Did she say when she'd be back?"

"An hour."

I decided I'd just call Audrina, she always lied. I knew better than to trust her.

"What are you doing?" I asked, looking at Tiffany's smile.

"I'm with a friend, why?" She spoke through laughter, making me raise my brow.

"Which friend?"

"Remember Kat? From my volleyball team?" She explained, heavily breathing due to laughter.

"She moved away, to a different country." I raised my brow, knowing I had caught her in a lie.

"Well, she's here visiting family and we're hanging out." She said, I could hear her smile through the phone.

"Alright. Be back soon." I sighed, hanging up the phone when I heard giggling again.

Even if she was lying, at least I knew she was safe. Audrina isn't stupid, she knows how people act when they want something. All her bar-hopping experience has paid off well.

"Don't tell me she's got a boyfriend." Tiffany laughed, tucking her hair behind her ear.

"She wouldn't admit it." I laughed with her, looking up at the tv.

*

My phone buzzed under my leg, making me flinch. I checked it, a smile of relief on my face.

I grinned, immediately texting him back.

The smile on my face faded, what would he want to talk to me about? I didn't do anything wrong, did I?

My eyes widened, I was still in pajamas, and I looked like an absolute mess. My shorts were loose and showed half my ass, my hair was tangled. Fuck.

"Tiff you have like 10 seconds before Noah walks through the door." I laughed, frantically picking up anything on the floor.

"What the fuck? What?" Tiffany immediately got up and started brushing her fingers through her hair, making sure it didn't look like she had been laying down all day.

I groaned loudly as I stubbed my toe against the couch, hopping around with my foot in my hand.

"You guys make it way too easy to be robbed." A familiar voice rasped behind us.

I shut my eyes, my face heating up. I didn't dare turn around.

"Natalie doesn't happen to be with you, is she?" Tiffany laughed, her face also a bright red.

I heard Noah chuckle before answering.

"No, you're safe."

Tiffany exhaled sharply, quickly walking past me and turning around, giving me a wink before she shut the door behind her.

"And you..." I heard footsteps coming at me before I felt his arms wrap around my waist.

I giggled, leaning back into him. I smelled his musky cologne, now my favorite scent.

"Next time warn me please?" I turned around, looking up at him, his arms still firm around my waist.

"Why do that, when I get to see this?" He smirked as I felt his hand flat on my bottom, making my face heat up once again.

"You're such a-" I pulled away from him, laughing. He grabbed my hand and twirled me around, making me bump into the couch again, hurting my toe.

"Fuck!" I winced and hopped to my room, being followed by Noah.

"I've never met such a dramatic person." He sat on my bed, leaning back on his hands for support.

"Shut up." I began looking through my drawers and pulling clothes out, trying to figure out what to change into.

I picked out what I liked and threw it at Noah, trusting him to catch whatever I chucked at his face.

He did, admiring everything. Everything.

"When do I get to see you in these?" He held up a half-cheek, Pink branded, velvet set of underwear, a smirk in his voice.

"Whenever you get lucky." I turned back to him, looking through my clothing options for the day.

I had no idea where we would be going, but he seemed casual enough for it to not be anywhere fancy. I furrowed my brows, standing with my hand on my hip.

"Where are we going?" I asked him, tilting my head.

"Wherever." He ran his hand through his messy hair, his hazel eyes staring up at me.

"So you came here without a plan?" I asked, sifting through my clothes.

"I feel bad about earlier today. I want to make it up to you." He smiled, making me feel a familiar warmth in my chest.

"Baby... you don't have to do that." I frowned, "I understand sometimes I can be so-"

"No, I want to fix it." He reached his hand out for mine, and I gave it to him, smiling softly.

"Okay then." I picked out a white v-neck top and a pair of ripped jeans, deciding to be casual.

I began taking off my shirt, turning away from him.

"Do you want me to leave?" He said, I could hear a hint of smugness in his voice.

"No, just close your eyes." I said, biting my lip at the thought of him staring at me.

"It's nothing I haven't seen anyways."

At that, I turned around, grabbing a pillow and shoving it in his face, both of us laughing.

I quickly changed, eyeing him to make sure his face was still buried in the pillow.

Not that I was self conscious, but I knew one thing would lead to another if he saw me naked in a locked room with a bed in it. Oh boy.

"Done?" He asked as I finished lacing my shoes.

"Yep, I'm good." I smiled up at him from the floor, standing up.

"Where to?" Tiffany stuck her head out of her room, evidence of makeup on her face.

"Date." Noah answered before I could, making me blush.

"How long will you be out?" She asked, her lips curling into a smile.

"A couple hours." I said, trying to read the expression on her face.

"Have fun." She winked and closed her door, leaving Noah and I with a confused expression.

*

"How was the protest?" I asked, holding his hand as he drove with the other one.

"Nothing bad happened, if that's what you're asking." He replied, his eyes on the road.

"That's good. I just don't want you and the others getting hurt and I can't do anything about it because I didn't know." I bit my lip, hoping I didn't say the wrong thing.

"That won't happen babe." He glanced down at me, noticing my frown.

"I actually wanted to ask you something." He said, I waited for the question.

"Shoot." I smiled up at him.

"Do you know? About Natalie and Tiffany?"

I tried to hide my shocked expression, but I know he noticed how I reacted.

"What do you mean?" I asked, scratching my nose.

"She told you right? Natalie told me." He shrugged, pulling to a complete stop in an empty parking lot and turning to me.

"Noah, Tiffany told me not to tell anyone." I shifted in my seat and looked up at him. "I assume Natalie said the same?"

"Mel, everyone knows." He scoffed.

"Everyone as in who?" I narrowed my eyes. I didn't want the wrong people finding out. If anyone who knew Tiff personally found out, it could get to her parents.

I hope she told Natalie about her parents. Natalie wouldn't be that reckless, just telling people.

"Ryan and I. No one else." He twirled a strand of my hair between his fingers.

"This is a big deal. Poor Tiffany's so confused, and I don't know how to help her." I frowned up at him, noticing how his eyes softened.

"Natalie and her talk, all day. I'm sure they're helping each other figure it out." He put my strand of hair back, grabbing a bigger strand and playing with that one instead.

"Has Natalie been with girls before?" I asked, moving my hair to one shoulder so he could keep playing with it.

"Yes. She's gay, I've been there for her since her first girlfriend a couple years ago." He smiled.

I knew him and Natalie were close, but I did not know he was there since the beginning.

"I could've guessed." I sighed, looking out the window.

"Turn around." Noah instructed, snapping me out of thought.

"What?" I laughed at the sudden change of subject.

"I want to try a braid on you again. I think I can do it." He smirked, popping his knuckles.

"Knock yourself out." I laughed and turned in my seat, facing the passenger window, my back to him.

The sun was setting, creating a beautiful orange color in the sky.

He got all my hair, running his hand through it. It felt amazing, your hair being played with.

His fingers tugged at my scalp, making me part my lips, a sound threatening to escape. There was something so sexual about having your hair pulled.

I stared out the window, a popular strip mall where almost everyone went on dates. It had everything you needed, a food place, a grocery store, even an indoor paintball arena. There was a small park attached, and a place where you could take beautiful pictures.

I had gone on several dates there, but never once going in the paintball place.

"Have you ever played paintball?" I asked Noah, breakig the deafening silence.

"Tons of times. It's Ryan's favorite thing to do." He said, his voice showing signs of concentration.

"Does it hurt?"

"What do you think?" He asked, tightly pulling on my hair.

"I'm just ask-"

My eyes focused on a table, where a familiar head of hair sat. Her hair was a light brown, blonde at the tips.

I knew that blouse, it was mine a couple of years ago before I gave it to Audrina, who was sitting there, laughing.

I squinted, trying to figure out if it was her, and with who.

"Do you see that?" I told Noah, hopefully he had a better set of eyes than me.

"All I see is hair right now." He said, finishing up the long braid.

"Noah!" I gasped suddenly, laughing when I finally decided it was, in fact, my sister.

"I think Audrina's on a date."

"What? With who?"

"I have no idea."

--

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