Andrew and I stopped for ice cream before we headed to Elle's place, which was mainly my idea because I was still reluctant to leave. That evening flew by quickly. I guess time truly did fly when you were having fun. If only I could stop it and stay out with just him a little longer.

I lost count of how much I had smiled during that evening with him. To me, Andrew was like a walking ball of positive energy and happiness and if I were within his perimeter, I could transform into a person I never knew existed.

It was tiring to be likable and to have to constantly keep up with people. I low-key wanted all of them to see my bad sides and not only the good ones. All this time I tried to be the perfect version of myself, so much I forgot to actually be myself.

Everybody knew nobody was born perfect and mistakes are an unavoidable aspect of life yet it didn't stop people out there from being judgmental and so quick to cancel others like some people are not allowed to make mistakes anymore at all.

It was the main reason I was so afraid to speak and share what I think. It made me feel like I would be disowned and discredited by society, afraid of how much backlash I would receive if I was wrong.

Growing up, my Dad had often reminded me that I was put on this earth for the sole purpose of being the greatest. I was expected to think for myself that the world sees me as the ideal man who has his shit together.

He got me into football when I was really young and by the age of 5, I'd mastered the art of throwing a perfect spiral. As I got a little older, Dad taught me how to box, and at the same time, he made me go to the gym for strength and muscle building. He wanted me to be fit and ready when the time comes for the tryouts.

Dad said I couldn't afford to make stupid mistakes due to our family's economic status but it still didn't stop him from giving me preferential treatment. Dad wanted me to have a super perfect life so he did everything he could to make that happen.

Dad and Mom worked extra jobs and extra shifts to pay for my schools, no matter how expensive the tuition fees were, they would make sure I get the best education. On my sixteenth birthday, they managed to come up with some money to buy me a Wrangler so that I could drive to school and practices.

Mom was always an overly proud parent that even if I attained the slightest achievement, she would brag about it to everyone she could think of. At first, it felt good to be appreciated. As time went on, the feeling quickly faded, and I was beginning to realize that her nature has made a huge repercussion on me. It put pressure on me to succeed. I had become more intense over time, demanding perfection from myself because I fear of disappointing her.

When I first met Elle, she struck me as the kind of person who was quite forward. I was immediately impressed by her boldness after she practically walked up to me and Andrew and introduced herself to us, told me I was cute, and asked me out on a date then and there. I remembered being dumbfounded at the time, I had said yes. I guess the fact that she was remarkably beautiful and confident could have influenced my decision to go out with her.

One date became two, four, six, and eventually, we started dating. My parents were delighted to learn about the news which wasn't really a surprise to me because they had been bugging me about it ever since I first brought her into our house. I had gotten the same reaction from everybody in school and we apparently became the couple they would look up to.

It took me about six months to figure out that dating Elle was quite literally as exhausting as people-pleasing. She would constantly remind me how to act right, what to wear to look more presentable for her social media posts, who to be friends with to gain status and popularity, and some other influencer bullshit which I would be damned if I ever give a flying fuck about.

People probably said I should count my blessings and just be grateful. But to me, that's very subjective. What you treasure might be irrelevant to someone else so it's unfair for anyone to be told to be grateful. It was never wrong to want more for myself. I wanted to live my truest life, I wanted to be in spaces where I could be myself - where I'm loved, and overall be happy and the only person who could provide me with all that, was Andrew. We have been best friends for a long time and not once did he ever make me feel pressured or judged.

It took me a second to realize Andrew was waving his hand in front of my face. He was now sitting on my Jeep's hood with an ice cream cone in his other hand.

"Your ice cream cone is dripping, lick it quick," he told me in a rushed voice.

I had no clue how long I had been spaced out to even realize my ice cream was slowly melting down so, I prevented that by biting into it. Andrew bit his lip, keeping his own chuckle as he pointed to the corner of his mouth. He seemed to be not aware there was a smudge of ice cream on his upper lip.

"17 years old and still doesn't know how to eat ice cream right," Andrew teased with a grin while handing me a napkin.

"Not sure if you're the one to talk," I countered and dabbed my mouth before I gestured to his. "You got a little something over there."

At that, his hand instantly came up to his lips and wiped the stain away. "Oh God, that's embarrassing."

"That's cool. Nobody is supposed to be good at everything," I said to him, smiling.

"Yeah, but it makes me feel like a toddler," he admitted sheepishly.

"Why?" I wondered as I leaned against the Jeep.

"Because they don't know how to eat ice cream," he reasoned seriously.

"If you don't know how to eat ice cream you can always stick to sausage –" I burst out laughing before I could stop myself.

Andrew narrowed his eyes icily. "So childish."

"I didn't mean to," I said between my laugh, hoping the tears at the edge of my eyes had gone unseen.

"You're a bad liar," he grumbled and licked his ice cream some more.

I shot him a wink before saying, "Or you could learn from the expert."

"I don't think you're qualified enough to call yourself the ice cream licking expert," he answered in a monotone voice.

I shook my head and feigned an offended look. "Oh my God, you want me to show you?"

I raised my ice cream cone to his eye level and started to lick off the sweet, letting the tip of my tongue swirl over the top then trailing down to the side to catch the drips that were melting down. All the while looking at him.

Andrew sat rigidly still, only his brown eyes following the motion of my tongue. A slight line appeared between his brows as he scrutinized my act. His breath hitched as his cheeks grew red, the boy appeared to be battling himself internally.

"Can you stop doing that?" he said almost angry. "Please."

"You don't like my skill?" I asked back with a snort, feeling amused by his reaction.

Wordlessly, Andrew got down from the hood, turned his back on me, and walked towards a bench. I saw him take another bite of his cone before he pitched it into a nearby trash can. He stood there for what felt like minutes, then he heavily sighed looking down at his feet. When he returned, he let out another sigh soon as he learned that my cone wasn't finished yet.

Andrew was behaving weirdly so I gave him the upward nod of the chin. "You alright?"

"Just finish your ice cream so we can go," he huffed and climbed into the Jeep.

Hearing his grumble I wasted no time getting into the driver's seat. "Damn, what crawled up your butt?"

Fortunately, Andrew was spared from having to answer because suddenly my phone started to ring in my pocket. I knew who was calling and I knew why she was calling. Andrew and I exchanged long and knowing glances until he told me to pick up the call.

I answered and before I could even put the phone to my ear I heard her sharp voice shouting from the other line. "Where the hell are you guys?"

"We got caught up. Be there in fifteen minutes, alright, babe?" I assured her with a soft chuckle, hoping that would provide at least some comfort to ease her anger.

"You better be, or else," Elle warned then hung up without letting me say another word.

Andrew was staring at me the whole time and he had this look on his face like he was trying to look intimidating but he really couldn't make the right expression.

"Babe," he drawled out the word in a mocking way.

"What?" I laughed in return. "Don't tell me you're jealous."

"Whatever," he muttered as he leaned his head back on the headrest and turned his face the other way.

My gaze flicked down briefly to his arm which was resting on the center console and I took a chance to reach over and slip my hand into his. Andrew didn't pull away nor did he turn to look at me at all. Even so, he wrapped his fingers around mine and held them with a loose grip.

!