Tony's POV (Continued)

"Dude, I am crazy for this boy." I said to my cousin, Mason, the next day. "But I'm never going to get him because he's straight, and he's way outta my league."

"Don't give up trying. I believe in you." Mason patted my back. He has a weird country accent, but I don't mind it.

"Yeah, I'm not gonna give up. *sniff* but I love him so much!"

"What do you love about him?"

"Everything, really. I love his eyes, hair, smile, voice, body, abs, hands, arms, feet, legs--" We both laughed, even though I really did love all that.

"But yeah, I love everything about him. I'm glad that we became besties, but I want more than that."

"Have you told him this?"

"No! I can't tell him! I mean I told him I was gay, and that's it."

"Oh really? How did he take it? With you being gay."

"He took it pretty well. I'm very thankful for that, but his friends and parents are homophobic, so when he's around them, he acts homophobic too. Which is very confusing."

"Oh yeah, I kinda knew how he felt. Remember, before you told my mom or your aunt that you're gay?"

"Oh yeah, and she was homophobic. That's why our moms hate each other."

"Well, they're sisters anyway, and sister argue."

"Yeah, I never knew what it was like to have a sibling. But Mark was like a brother to me."

"Mark? I thought his name was Marcus."

"It is, that's his real name, but Mark fits him so much better than Marcus."

"Yeah, it sorta does."

Then all of a sudden, we hear glass breaking and arguing. My mom and aunt Nancy are at it again.

"You wanna go outside?" Mason asked.

"Sure, let's go." We got up and went outside. Since he lives out in the country, he has a really big front and back yard. It's really quiet and you don't have to worry about anything, which is why I love it out here. But living near a beach isn't so bad either.

"How's your surfing?" Mason asked, after a while.

"It's alright. Mark's is better than mine."

"Heh heh! Both of you are better than me."

"Well yeah, but you know how to ride a horse and that's pretty impressive."

"It's not hard, you wanna try it?"

"No, no, no! You can't make me!" I whined and screamed. He laughed at me. "Well, could I pet the horses instead of riding them?"

"Sure! They would love that!"

So we went to the stable where he kept the horses, and chilled with them. I watched Mason ride a horse and I was amazed by it. The way that him and the horse worked together to ride through the field was wonderful.

It was kinda similar to how my surfboard and I work together to ride a wave, then sometimes it fails me. I guess because the board isn't really alive, but the horse is.

Mason came back around here with the horse and got off of it. "Good job Buttercup!" He said to her, petting her and feeding her an apple.

Oh yeah, I forgot the horse's name was Buttercup. "Yeah, that was amazing!" I exclaimed, making the horse jump a little.

"Thanks. Buttercup, say 'thank you Tony!'"

All the horse said was, "Neigh!" But I took it as a compliment.

"Aww! So cute!" I squealed.

"Why don't you wanna ride her?"

"I'll fall off! And besides, I'm more of a surfer."

Mason nodded. "You wanna feed her an apple?"

"Yeah!" I grabbed an apple, and fed it to Buttercup, while Mason brushed her hair. I thought she was going to eat my hand, so I ended up dropping the apple.

"Tony!"

"I thought she was gonna eat my hand off!" I whined.

"Oh, it's fine. It does feel like that, but I raised her right. She won't bite your hand off, just trust her."

I stared at Buttercup for a while, picked up the apple, wiped it off with my shirt, then fed it to her. She gently took the apple out of my hand with her mouth. Watching her eat it was adorable. I petted her hair and felt relaxed and calm, until I heard my mom call for me.

"TONY! WHERE ARE YOU?!" Mom vociferated.

"I'm in the stable mom!" I replied in the same volume.

"Come on, it's time to go!"

"Time to go? But you said that we were leaving tomorrow, plus we just got here."

"JUST GET YOUR STUFF AND GET IN THE CAR TONY!"

"Coming Mom!" Gosh, that woman scares me, especially when she's pissed. "Bye Mason, bye Buttercup!"

"Neigh!" The horse whined.

"Bye Tony! It's sad to see you go!"

We both hugged and waved goodbye. I went to Mason's room, grabbed my stuff and headed to the car.

"Everything ok Mom?" I asked in concern.

"Yes sweetie, everything is fine. You wanna call Mark and tell him that you're coming back?"

"Well, he's probably gonna be at that party, but I'll text him instead." I pull out my phone and texted him.

______________________________________

Mark's POV (Earlier that day)

I waved goodbye to Tony as he was about to go to his aunt's house, then went back inside. The party starts at 5:00, but before then, Kyle, Nick, a few of my other surfing buds and I go do other stuff. Such as going to the mall, out to eat, teenage stuff like that.

I put on my swim trunks underneath my clothes, so when I go to the party, all I have to do is take off my shirt and pants, and I'll already be ready to surf.

I went downstairs and snacked on a granola bar in the kitchen. By the time I was finished with it, Kyle and his girlfriend were at my door, ready to pick me up.

"Bye Ma, bye Dad!" I called out to them.

"Bye Mark!" They both yelled back.

I got in the car with Kyle, his girlfriend Lola, Nick, and this other girl named Lily. She is always crushing on me one day, then the next, she's crushing on Nick. With the way she is staring at me now, she's obviously crushing on me.

"Hey Mark!" She greeted in a flirty tone, and leaning her head on my shoulder.

"Sup!" I greeted back. "Where we going first?"

"To eat." Kyle said, cranking up the car.

"No! I wanna go to the mall first!" Lola whined.

"Yeah, I'd rather go to the mall first too!" Lily agreed.

"Ok then. Mark? Nick? Mall first?" Kyle turned around and asked.

"But I'm hungry now, I wanna eat first." Nick complained.

I really don't mind what we do first." I shrugged.

"No dude. You have the tiebreaking vote. So what's it gonna be?" Everyone was staring at me now.

"We could go eat at the mall?" I suggested.

"Hmm... not bad! Ok then let's go." Kyle drove the car.

"Wow Mark, you're so smart!" Lily flirted, twirling her hair and leaning on my shoulder. Nick glared at me. I put my hands up, gesturing that I didn't want her.

Nick has a crush on Lily too. Sometimes she flirts with him and he flirts back, however, she likes to flirt with me more, even though I don't flirt back.

I sit up in my seat, trying to gently get her off my shoulder. Luckily, she got off my shoulder and onto Nick's. He smiled and ran his fingers through her hair. They would make a really cute couple.

After a while, we finally get to the mall. Nick got out and opened the door for Lily, but she got out on my side. Nick glared at me again. Dude, it ain't my fucking fault!

We started walking off to the mall. Lily tried to hold my hand, so I pushed it away. Nick tried to hold her hand, and she let him. Kyle and Lola were already holding hands, and had their other hand inside each other's back pocket.

Once we got inside, we had split up, the girls went shopping while us guys went to the food court. We got our food, sat at a table, and ate quietly. Until Kyle broke the silence.

"So... you and Lily, huh Nick?"

"Dude! They're shopping like right across from us!"

"So, they can't hear us. Why didn't you tell me that you guys were dating?" Kyle nudged Nick with us elbow.

"We're not dating, ok? I wish we were, but we aren't."

I almost dropped my soda, I don't know why though. "Dude, you should totally ask her out!"

Kyle nodded, but Nick shrugged. "I don't know. I know that girls usually wait for the guy to ask them out, but I don't know if she wants me."

"Why wouldn't she want you?" Kyle asked, leaning closer.

"Because she likes Mark too."

Kyle shot his head towards me, and I put my hands up. "I don't want her though."

"Why not?"

"Because Nick likes her, dumbass."

"What if Nick didn't like her?"

"I don't care, I just can't see her as my girlfriend, ok?"

Nick seemed a little relieved, and Kyle nodded. "Speaking of girlfriends, guess who's coming to the party?"

"I know that Annie, Jess, and Sky are coming." I named, thinking of other girls who were coming to the party.

"Jess is coming?? I can't stand that bitch!" Nick complained.

"Me either, but I did hear that she was coming."

"Yeah yeah, but guess who else?"

I thought about it for a while. "I don't know? Who?" I took a sip of my drink.

"Veronica."

I regret drinking that soda now, because once he said her name, I choked and it almost came through my nose.

"You mean Mark's ex, Veronica?" Nick asked.

"No, dude, no. We meant Mark's ex girlfriend, Veronica."

"Ohhhh! ...wait, isn't that what I just--"

"She's back in town??" I asked, panicking a little. "How'd you know?"

"Well, one day, Lola ran into her at a store, then she told Veronica about that party we're throwing and invited her to come."

I wanted to scream, "STUPID BITCH!" out loud, but since Lola is Kyle's girlfriend, no matter how much I can't stand her, I just couldn't do that. Instead, I just went, "Damn."

"Yeah, sorry about that dude. But at least you won't feel like a 3rd wheel to Nick and me."

I bit into a fry. "What? I don't feel like a 3rd wheel, nor do I care about it."

"Yeah, with your good looks and awesome charisma, you won't be a 3rd wheel."

Kyle nodded and I shrugged. Then we heard some squealing girls, we all turned to them, and saw Lily and Lola jumping around and hugging another girl. When they backed up from the hug, we saw who it was: Veronica.

She's looks a lot different, she has a new hairstyle, her blond highlights seemed blonder, and she looks a little bigger too, especially her breasts.

I stand up, and walk in the other direction, covering my face.

"Dude! Where ya going?" Kyle called out.

"Just going to the bathroom." I somehow had a sense that Nick was reaching for my fries, so I called out, "touch my fries, and I'll knock you out so hard, you won't remember how fries taste like."

I heard Kyle laugh, then I went inside the bathroom. I turn the warm water on, and run my hands under it.

"Wow Mark! You're actually washing your hands!" A voice said behind me. I turn around.

"Tony?"

"Hi Mark!" He came over to hug me, but I really can't hug him back, since my hands were wet.

"Whatcha doing here? I thought you had to go to your cousin's for the weekend."

"I was, for a little while, then my mom wanted to leave. I don't know why. What are you doing here?"

"Just chillin' with my other friends."

"Must be nice."

I heard a toilet flush and someone coming out a stall. "Yeah Tony, you should hang out with some more kids your age."

My eyes widen when I saw who it was. "Dude, why is your mom in the men's room with you?" I said in a low whisper. She wouldn't have heard me anyway over the sound of the running sink.

"I don't know just play along. And mom! You know that most people don't like me."

"Well make 'em like you. You're not a hateable person."

"I don't think hateable is a word." I pointed out.

"But still, you can make them like him the way you do, right?"

"I don't know."

"It's ok mom, I'll be fine. I need to go shopping for some more board polish anyways. Nice to see you, Mark."

"You too, man. Bye Meg."

I peeked my head out the door, then went back to our table. I sat down and bit into another fry.

"How was the bathroom break?" Nick asked.

"It was a'ight." I shrugged.

"Why would you ask him 'how was the bathroom break?' You gay or something?" Kyle scoffed.

"No! I know I'm dumb, but not that dumb. I was just being a good friend who was concerned about my friend."

'Yeah Nick, calling gay people dumb totally makes you a good friend.' I thought sarcastically to myself, then sipped my drink. "Did the girls leave?" I asked, changing the subject.

"Yeah, they went to another store on a different part of the mall." Nick replied.

"Oh yeah dude, we overheard the girls conversation. They said that they want Veronica to ride back to the party with us." Kyle informed.

I blinked twice. "What? Why?"

"Because her parents, who brought her here, live far away from the beach, so she asked them if they could ride with her good old friends."

"But we don't have enough space in the car!"

"Yeah. They said that Veronica, Lily, and Nick are gonna ride in the back. I sit in the passenger seat with Lola sitting on my lap, I don't know why either. And you drive."

My eyes widen. "I drive?"

"Yeah dude. You can drive, right?"

"Yeah, but wouldn't it be kinda weird to drive your ex around?"

"Well yeah, but Nick can't drive, and the girls act like they're too scared to drive, especially with guys in the car."

"That's true. A'ight then, I'll drive. Are we leaving now?"

"We'll leave when the girls get ready."

"And besides, I need to get more board polish." Nick begins to stand up.

Where did I hear that before? ...oh yeah! "Oh dude, you don't have to do that."

"And why not?" Nick raised one eyebrow. So does Kyle.

I couldn't tell him that Tony was also gonna get some too, then when they run into him, all hell was gonna break loose. "I have some leftover board polish that I could let you use." Which is true, besides, I already polished my board. "That way, you can save a little money."

They both nodded their heads. "Yeah that's true, thanks man."

I sighed in relief inwardly, as I drank the last of my soda.

*****

I hopped onto the drivers seat, put the key in the ignition and started the engine. Nick, Veronica, and Lily are in the back, putting their seat belts on. I start to do the same, while Kyle and Lola were on the passenger seat making out and he sucks on her neck.

I roll my eyes as I turn around and put the car in reverse.

"WHOA MARK! WATCH OUT!" Nick screamed.

I jammed my foot on the brake as the car stopped. Kyle, Lola and I turned around. "What happened? Was a car coming?"

Veronica, Lily, and Nick was trying to hold their laughter. "Yeah dude, and it was a big one."

The girls giggled out loud, and so did Nick. Kyle shrugged then turned back around and sucked Lola's breasts. Wrong place, wrong time bud.

"YOU FUCKTARD, YOU COULD'VE GOTTEN US KILLED GOD DAMNIT!" I exploded. I adjusted the mirror a little bit, and saw that my face was as red as a tomato. Probably redder than that.

"My bad dude, you know I have bad eyesight." Nick snickered. The girls giggle again.

I groaned, then started the car in reverse again.

"WAIT!" Lola screamed. I, once again, jammed my foot on the brake. I turn my head to her, which I regret because she didn't bother to cover up her breast, so I looked through the windshield.

"What do you want?" I asked, obviously annoyed and impatiently.

"I didn't get anything to eat and I'm hungry." She whined. The other girls start to whine about that too.

"Ok then, I'll drive y'all to McDonald's or something."

"No! I wanna eat at the mall." Lily whined.

"We just fucking left from the mall." I said through gritted teeth.

"No we didn't. We're still in the parking lot, come on girls." Veronica jumped out the car, so did Lola and Lily. That bitch.

"Babe, could you lend me $10?" Lola asked Kyle. He gave it to her. "Thanks baby, love you." She pecked his lip, then left.

"You ok, Mark? You looked irritated." Kyle asked in concern.

"I kind of am, but I'll be fine." I said as calmly as a could, as I rested my head on the steering wheel without trying to honk the horn.

I felt something rubbing my back, I turn around and it was Nick. "It'll be alright dude. Girls can be annoying and confusing."

"What do you know about them? I thought you were gay." Kyle teased.

"I AM NOT GAY, OK? And never will be. Plus, I do know a little bit about girls."

"Yeah, only a little bit." Kyle laughed.

"Whatcha know, Nick?" I asked, laughing a little bit also.

"That they have different minds and body parts than we guys do."

"Oh ok then." Kyle and I said at the same time, then laughed again.

"You guys are hilarious." Nick remarked sarcastically.

"Well then, Mister Girl Expert." I began. We both were now chuckling with our mouths covered. "Since you know much about them, why wouldn't you ask Lily out on a date?"

"Really? Should I? Is she ready? Am I ready?" Nick's hands were shaking a bit.

"Oh yeah, of course he's a little nervous to ask her out. Because he's gay, he would rather ask a guy out." Kyle teased.

"Nuh-uh! I'm not gay, and I can ask Lily out, watch me."

Kyle looked out the window. "Watch what? Are they on their way back?"

"Yes they are." I said, looking out the window and groaning in my mind.

"Hayyy!" Lola greeted loudly. They were pretty quick because they brought the food with them.

"Hey babe!" Kyle pulled Lola closer to him and they made out again. The girls put on their seat belts.

"Ok, anything else we need before we go?" I asked.

"Nope!" The girls answered, a little too quickly.

"You sure??"

"Wait dude, I gotta pee." Nick said.

"Too bad." I teased, then pulled out of the mall, and make our way to the beach.

After Lola was done making out with Kyle, she turned the radio on. The volume was all the way up, so it made me jump and lose a little control of the wheel, which made me run a red light. She turned the music down, then sunk down in her seat. All of our faces were pale, especially when a cop was right behind us.

"Shit!" I whisper-yelled. I slowed down the car and rolled the window down.

"Good afternoon kids." The officer greeted in a friendly tone. We murmured "Afternoon" back in a timid tone.

"Officer, it was an honest mistake. The radio was played too loud and I almost lost control of the wheel, but I can assure you it won't happen again." I explained in a calm, professional fashion.

"I understand. I'm just going to let you off with a warning. Have a nice day!"

We murmured "you too.", then I slowly started the car again. The rest of the ride was quiet, and I was pretty thankful for that. I don't want that to happen again.

We got there a few minutes before the party started, so we could set out food and drinks, let certain people in, and if they aren't allowed, we'd just turn them around.