Gabby's was what most people would call a 'hole in the wall', as it was smaller than probably most restaurants; capacity was about fifty. The eatery's lighting hadn't been fixed since Tay and Jake were about twelve, and the decor was mismatched, but it had character. Every time the duo ended up there, they were hoping for a change, but it always stayed the same.

The door still had the carvings of their names on it and the greenery surrounding it differentiated it from the other shops on that strip of town.

Walking in, Taylor led the way, with the others behind her. Jake felt a small smile creep up his lips, as he made his way inside the tiny establishment. The wooden tables were long overdue for a painting, and the posters on the walls were from the seventies and eighties; something rare and unique. The place could have definitely used a spruce or two, but Gabby wasn't one for change.

An energetic, blue haired woman with a notepad and pen met the group at the entrance; her smile growing by the second. "I wondered when I'd see y'all again!" Her bright pink name tag read Zoe, and her black t and matching pants were pretty worn out.

"Missed you, too, Zoe!" Tay pulled the woman into a hug. Zoe happily hugged the brunette back.

"How long's it been?" Zoe motioned for the lot to follow her, as she found them a table. The question was mainly directed at Jake, as she's seen the others more often.

"Quite a while, I guess," Jake replied, taking a seat on an empty chair. It was only after fire and electricity ran through him that he registered who took the seat beside him.

The slightest brush of their skin could ignite their hearts; this was unknown territory to the two.

"Don't worry, Z, we're working on his addiction to school," Landon ruffled Jake's hair from across the table.

"I'm not addicted, Lan!" Jake huffed, pouting like the child he was.

"Dude, you brought school books on a weekend vacay", Mike agreed with Landon.

"Is that what had your head occupied on the way?" Caiden quizzed, finding it truly innocent of the boy beside him.

Something about the way Jake tried to hide the small heat of red on his cheeks had Caiden's heart pound against his chest.

"Listen, I have homework to do, okay?" Jake's pout was becoming more prominent.

"So do we, but we understand when to quit," Taylor stuck her tongue out, earning a laugh from the lot and Zoe.

"I'll go get your menus, loves," Zoe walked away, laughing, her pony tail swaying side to side.

"I'm guessing you know her?" Caiden thought out loud, his eyes reading an unknown emotion to Jake.

"Her mom owns the place; we've been coming here since I can remember," Jake began, motioning to Taylor and himself.

"Gabby was actually going out of business the first time we came around here. We were caught in the rain; my parents, Tay's, and her two brothers," Jake continued, his eyes on his finger, playing with them.

"Yeah, I remember you were crying because your precious Gameboy Color was getting wet," Taylor laughed, recalling the events that happened close to sixteen years ago.

"Listen, that shit was a collector's item!" Jake furrowed his brows, with daggers in his eyes at his friend.

A unanimous laugh sounded from the table, when Zoe came back with an older lady beside her. The other woman's dark blue eyes matched the color of Zoe's hair.

With the sight of the older woman, the group got up in excitement.

"GABBY!"

"GABRIELLA!"

"GABS!"

The lot of friends couldn't help but shout in utter joy, seeing the owner of the eatery. She was where the story had all begun. She had always greeted each customer with a permanent smile, thanking them for choosing her place.

"I see a new face," Gabby smiled at the boy with the raven hair.

"Hi, I-I- I'm C-Caiden," He spoke, nervously, uncertain why he suddenly felt uncomfortable.

"No need to be nervous, love," Zoe giggled, putting down the menus she had brought for the group.

"He's my roommate, so I invited him along," Landon replied.

Gabby nodded, her eyes still fixated on the anxious boy seated beside Jake. Though, her stare was nothing but polite; a smile graced both her eyes and smile, looking at Caiden.

"Take a minute with your menus, loves, but anything to drink first?" Zoe questioned, pen in hand and prepared to write.

Once the lot of friends had given their drink orders to Zoe, Gabby reminded them of the 'special', as if it had changed in sixteen years. Either way, the group listened intently, feeling at home around the restaurant's owner.

"So, you were saying they almost closed down?" Caiden was more interested in listening to Jake's voice than the actual backstory, but all the same he asked.

"Yeah..." Jake nodded, his eyes turning towards the boy beside him, "We ran in for some hot chocolate, coffee, or tea; anything really, as we were soaked and freezing. Gabby greeted us, showed us to a table, and took our orders," Jake took a breath, his hands moving with his mouth, animatedly.

"Zoe was about twelve or thirteen at the time, and was helping her mom run the place, while Arthur was working the kitchen," a confused look dressed Caiden's face, listening to the new name Jake had mentioned.

"Arthur was Gabby's husband," Jake replied to the confusion Caiden held, "He died about three years ago."

"Wow, I'm sorry," Caiden apologized, unsure of who he was speaking to.

"He was a good guy, and he really tried to keep this place afloat when we arrived that day." Jake continued.

"I remember we were told not to get too comfortable, as this was gonna be our first and last meal in this restaurant, and that once the rain would stop, we would be seeing this place close down," Taylor joined in on his story, with the others focused.

"You guys never mentioned this before," Jenna worded her thoughts.

"Truth is, we never asked," Bailey answered her.

Caiden took it all in, waiting on the edge of his seat for the rest, when Jake read his mind, continuing, "So, my dad asked what Gabby meant by that, and Tay and I were like five or six at the time; we didn't understand any of this."

"Yeah, and after she explained how they were spending more than they were making, our parents decided to help out, and basically invested in this place," Taylor had this look in her eyes, as if she was reliving it all.

"And then Kyle took care of the marketing and advertising aspect, while Ezra, you, and I were busy eating fries." Jake laughed, picturing the three of them as kids seated in the middle table of the eatery, throwing ketchup at each other.

"So, you're part owner?" Caiden asked, intrigued by the entire story.

"Well, no and yes," Jake chuckled in reply. "It took about two years, but Gabby and Arthur paid our parents back for the investment. Kyle, however, still markets and advertises the business. But, with all this, Gabby wrote all of our names as shareholders or something like that."

"Need another minute?" Zoe's voice had the boys break out of the staring contest they didn't know they were having.

Handing the lot their drinks, the friends shook their heads. Taylor began with her order, and so on. It was several minutes later when Zoe looked over at Jake, awaiting his order.

"Uhh... Buffalo wings with ranch, please," Jake smiled at the waitress, earning himself a nod.

"Oh, and fries for the table!"

Zoe laughed, "I got those already being cooked, love."

"I'll have the pizza burger, please," Caiden followed, his eyes scanning the front of the menu.

Jake felt a hint of guilt, realizing he had been the reason Caiden didn't get the chance to peruse the menu. But what Jake didn't know was that Caiden was ready to stick with just the milkshake he had ordered before, if that meant gazing into hazel eyes.

****

Lunch consisted of stealing glances between the boy with the raven hair and the curly haired lad. Laughs and jokes were shared throughout their lunch; the group of nine had created new memories, ready to spend the rest of the day by the lake, and maybe throw a party later that night.

Caiden couldn't help but feel saddened without Ava and Eli and had a thought of maybe asking them to drive by that night, but he knew the two were already booked.

He decided he would call to catch up on their lives that night or in the morning.

Jake could tell the boy in the white t had been in deep in thought, and it almost looked like it had been hurting Caiden. His body was leaning against Jake's SUV, and Jake was taking it all in.

The others were still inside talking between themselves and Zoe, catching her up on the past month or so, and what was new in their lives.

Jake hadn't realized before how tall Caiden was; his legs went on forever and in all honesty, Jake was a sucker for long legs.

Taking a few steps towards Caiden, Jake ended up with his side to the car, facing the breath thief.

"You know, Jake, I've always been told staring isn't polite," Caiden's voice snapped Jake back to earth.

"I was also always taught that playing with yourself in public isn't polite," Jake retorted, his eyes fixated on Caiden pulling on his belt.

"How about playing with others, then?" Jake felt a lump in his throat, as Caiden took one step closer to the hazel eyed boy, their noses barely touching.

"I don't see any toys," the hazel eyed boy shrugged, trying to sound sure of himself, his fingers playing with themselves.

"Clearly you like playing with your fingers," Caiden's voice got deeper, his lips almost brushing against Jake. "Although, I have a toy you'd like."

Jake could feel himself slowly dissolving from the sound of the boy's voice, and the hunger in his eyes, but had close to no time to compose himself. The group made their way towards the cars, leaving Jake and Caiden breathless panting.

"Jake, I am way too full to drive," Landon threw the keys to the SUV owner, but was intercepted by the raven haired boy.

"I got it, Landon," Jake mentally thanked Caiden for letting him get himself together.

"So, I'll get in with Mike and Jenna and I'll see you at the house," Landon threw up a peace sign.

On the other hand, Jake felt a pang of hurt in his chest, confused on how easily the other boy was able to compose himself, while inside Jake had been battling his emotions.

How was it impacting Jake so strongly, but Caiden could effortlessly brush it off?

The other cars had already driven away, leaving the two alone, once again. Jake got into the passenger's seat, his mind racing against him.

He was sure he was about to lose this competition.

"Ignore it," Caiden spoke, getting in the seat beside Jake.

Putting the keys in the ignition, Caiden could feel his heartbeat speeding with a deep desire to link his free hand with Jake's.

It was as if some sort of magnetic field had the two drawn to one another.

Sliding on his seatbelt, Jake couldn't help but study Caiden's profile; he was exquisite and Jake wished he could kiss him, maybe nip on his jaw, and listen to his sounds.

Caiden could feel eyes on him, and he didn't mind being admired, usually, but for some odd reason this boy had him overthinking and over feeling.

"Huh?" Jake shook his head in confusion, finally registering what Caiden said.

"Your mind, or whatever it is causing that butt on your face," the raven haired lad pointed at Jake's nose.

"Butt on my face?" Jake laughed, grabbing the finger away from his face.

"Yeah, you know? The ugliness of it all," Caiden laughed, his finger moving in circles, still captured by Jake.

"I am not ugly, dude," Jake retorted, confidently. Letting go of the other boy's finger, Jake watched Caiden link their hands together.

"You really enjoy playing with fingers, huh?" Caiden finally parked the car, his hands still interlocked with Jake's.

"Not if they're dry; you could really use some lotion," Jake scoffed, trying not to think of how sexy Caiden's voice was sounding.

"What about toys? What's your favorite?" Caiden turned to Jake, his eyes screaming with lust.

"I don't mind a ring..." Jake barely whispered, "Pop, though that's candy, isn't it?" Jake mimicked the desired look the raven haired lad had.

An attempt to pull his hand away failed, as Caiden held on tighter. Jake wanted to state that in order to exit the vehicle, they had to break the lock that held them.

But, clearly that wasn't a priority.

Unknowingly, Jake reached into his pocket, clicking the small gadget. A slight moan echoed throughout the car, causing Jake's pants to tighten. The voice was music to Jake's ears, and he needed more.

Caiden's eyes were filled with hunger, glaring deep into hazel eyes. "You're playing with fire, Jake."

"Good thing I don't burn easily, Caiden," It was Jake's turn to leave the boy speechless, untying their hands, and making his way towards the house and up the stairs.

Click. Click