The short walk down the east corridor and out into the quad had become ingrained into Oscar's daily routine.

The brunette boy made his way down the poster-lined hall, with a certain purpose in his step, as the patter of his shoes on the hard laminate floor echoed quietly behind him. With a light push he opened the blue double doors that sat at the end of the hall, and stepped into the light that shone down on the concrete quad.

The quad was a sea of picnic tables and bustling high school students. Some eating, some studying, and some definitely ditching class. Several yards away from Oscar sat a picnic table that was currently being occupied by the likes of Kim, Jamie, and, not surprisingly, Noah.

Jamie's now-faded, purple hair was tucked into a neat bun that rested on her head. Her bright-red glasses hung loosely on her nose, revealing her slightly slanted eyes, and she wore a vivid yellow cardigan that only accentuated her small frame.

Jamie was sat next to Kim on the bench, who appeared to be lost in thought, writing something in a notebook. Her olive-colored jacket rested on the table beside them. She had taken it off to unveil a pastel pink tank top, no doubt worn to combat the increasing spring heat.

Noah sat opposite the girls, on the other side of the picnic table. His blond hair was hidden by a backwards facing NY Yankees cap, and draped over his shoulders was the denim jacket that Oscar himself had worn several weeks ago. Noah was indulged in his lunch, which consisted of a turkey sub on rye, and yet another salad.

Oscar closed the distance between him and his friends and joined them at the table. He slung the black backpack strap from his shoulder and set the bag down on the bench, before swinging his right leg over and sitting comfortably next to Noah.

"Hey guys," he said, heartily.

Kim looked up from her book and beamed, "Hey, Os."

"Hi!" chimed in Jamie.

Noah, with a mouth full of turkey, shot Oscar a loving look. He swallowed quickly and laughed, "Hey, babe."

"Hey,"Oscar said, leaning forward to place a light kiss on the corner of Noah's mouth.

"Oh my god, get a room!" Jamie joked. "Not all of us have boyfriends you know!"

Kim put her arm around Jamie's narrow shoulder saying, "Aww, I'm sure I can find someone for you if you want. Damen has a lot of cute friends."

Jamie uncrossed her arms, "Nah, I'm good. I'll find someone someday," she said.

Kim turned her attention to the boys sitting in front of her. "Well I think you guys are adorable."

Noah's smile widened. "Yeah, me too," he said.

Jamie's phone that laid on the wooden table in front of her suddenly vibrated. She lifted it and the smile immediately fell from her face. "Oh shit. I was supposed to meet with Mrs. Willson to talk about my exam scores."

She quickly rose from the table and gathered her bags, "See you guys, I gotta run."

"Okay, bye!" said the three friends in chorus, Kim waving her goodbye.

Suddenly, Noah closed the container that once held his salad and shoved it into his open backpack. He then crumpled the sandwich wrapper into his palm, and stood from the table. He swung his bag onto his back and said, "Yeah, I gotta run too. This term papers been killing me, I really need to work on it."

Oscar brought his hand to Noah's wrist and gave it a firm squeeze. "See you later?" he asked.

"Definitely," said Noah, before walking toward the entrance of the school.

"Bye, Noah!" Kim called after him. The blond boy turned and gave one final wave.

Once Noah had disappeared through the double doors, Oscar turned to face Kim. The awkward tension that hung in the atmosphere was undeniable.

Oscar began, "So...how have things been with Damen?"

Kim exhaled and the pressure between the two seemed to lessen. "Well," she said, "things have been great, honestly. He came to dinner with my moms' the other night, and I think they really liked him. I'm supposed to meet his parents in a couple weeks, so that's exciting. Honestly I don't know why I never gave him a fair chance before. He's turned out to be a really great guy. I think... I think we're happy."

A smile washed over her that Oscar knew all too well. It was the same smile that he wore when talking to his mom about Noah, or talking to Noah's mom about Noah, or when talking to Noah on the phone, or when texting Noah goodnight. It was the same smile that always found it's way to Oscar's face when he woke up in the middle of the night laying on Noah's chest.

Oscar finally said, "That's so great, Kim. I'm really happy for you."

"Thanks, Os. I'm happy for you too." She paused. "But, I have missed hanging out with you. It just seems like you've been really busy lately. I know I've been busy too, but I mean, I don't know..." She trailed off.

Oscar placed a reassuring hand on hers, "No, I get it. I've missed spending time with you too."

Kim continued, "I just miss when we were young, you know? Sleepovers every weekend, not caring about anything except what cartoons would be on TV in the morning and if your mom would make us pancakes? Everything was so easy." She pulled her hand away from Oscar's, sinking back into herself.

Neither of them spoke for several seconds.

Suddenly Kim said, "Hey, I have an idea. You've heard of that fair that's happening all next weekend? We should go, all of us."

"All of us? You mean me, you..."

"Noah and Damen!" Kim finished the sentence for him.

Oscar had never exactly 'hit it off' with Damen, but they had had a fine time at the movies. Going on a double date with the guy, though?

A familiar worry started to rise from the pit of Oscar's stomach, but this time he pushed it back down. He was not going to miss an opportunity to reconnect with his best friend. After so many months, so many years of doubting their friendship because of the secrets he kept from her and everyone else in his life, Oscar was finally not going to let his fear control him.

"Uh, sure! That sounds, amazing," Oscar breathed out.

The smile returned to Kim's face. "Cool. You sure Noah will be down?" She asked.

"Yeah, I'm sure he won't mind," Oscar answered.

"Great! I'll tell Damen," Kim said, and stood up. "Listen, I've got to get going, but I'll see you later?"

"Yeah, sure," Oscar said, and gave her a small smile.

"Bye."

With Kim gone, the brown haired boy stared down at his hands that rested on the dark stained wood surface.

I really hope Noah likes fairs.

Oscar: hey

Noah: hey

Noah: how was your day?

Oscar: it was fine

Oscar: kim asked if we'd want to go to the fair with her and Damen this weekend? would you be into that?

Noah: yeah, for sure

Noah: sounds fun

Oscar: ok, I'll let her know

Noah: okay, see you tomorrow

Oscar: goodnight

Noah: goodnight 😘

Oscar: dude, thats kinda gay

Oscar: ....

Oscar: goodnight ❤️

Still dressed in his school clothes, Oscar laid back on top of his bed with his phone resting face-down on his stomach. His eyes began to close, as he drifted to sleep.

He was startled by a sudden creaking of his bedroom door and sound of shoes shuffling across the carpet. He opened his eyes and was met with the figure of his father slowly entering the room.

When Matthew noticed Oscar he said, "Oh my bad. Were you asleep? I'll just go," he said, starting to retreat out of the room.

"No Dad, it's fine. I wasn't asleep. Did you need something?" Oscar asked.

Matthew remained at the door frame and said, "Oh, no. I just wanted to chat. Maybe catch up a little?"

Oscar sat up from his resting position on the bed and pat the spot next to him. "Uh sure, take a load off, if you want."

Matthew sauntered over from the door and sat next to Oscar on the mattress, causing it to compress slightly.

"I just know we haven't seen much of each other recently. I was thinking maybe we could go somewhere this weekend. You know, like we used to? Go see a movie or something, I don't know."

"Oh Dad," Oscar said, "that'd be great, but I actually already have plans with some friends. I'm going to the fair with Kim and her boyfriend. Sorry..."

"Boyfriend!? Gosh, I remember when Kim was just a little girl. You know, you kids, have grown up so fast," he put a warm hand on his son's shoulder, "And I am so proud of you. Even if I forget to say it sometimes. You know that, right?"

Oscar, slightly embarrassed, said, "Yeah, Dad alright. I know. I know."

Matthew continued, "So, Kim's got a boyfriend. You going with a girl, perhaps?" he teased.

A twinge of fear ran through Oscar. "Uh, no girl. But Noah's also coming with us." He shot his Dad an awkward smile.

"Oh, well. That's great. I'm sure you'll have fun, and don't you worry, you can hang out with your old man anytime, okay?" Matthew said, making his way back toward the bedroom door.

Oscar said, "Yeah, okay." Still harboring a tiny shred of guilt in his voice.

"Goodnight, Dad."