Chapter Text
The buzz of your phone broke you out of your trance, eyes darting from the computer down to your cell phone. You were so caught up in your work that you barely even paid attention to it, but these days you weren't getting many messages from anyone besides your friends.
everything alright?
You freeze, eyes scanning over your screen. You looked up from your desk and around the room, seeing your coworkers in their own world, before reaching for your phone. You stared at the text from Nicholas.
Why was he texting you? You're sure Noah's already told him what happened. There wasn't a reason for him to be texting you, anyways. Sure, you had gotten along whenever you'd come over to see Noah, and maybe you'd consider him a friend at one point, seeing as he has your number, but he was Noah's friend first. Best friend. Shouldn't it be a part of Bro Code or something to not reach out to your best friends ex?
You frown as another text comes through.
haven't heard from you in awhile.
has he not told you we broke up lol?
Just the thought of Noah made your stomach turn and you sat your phone back down on your desk, a sigh leaving you. It's been about two months since you and Noah had broken up. It was a 6 month situationship at best, according to Noah, but you had figured it was moving towards something more serious. Especially when you both stopped seeing other people. Guess you thought wrong.
You peer over at your phone as it buzzes again.
no, he told me. just wanted to check in because we haven't spoken lol
i thought we were friends 😭
...that was a joke, by the way. you're not obligated to tell me anything ofc but i did think we were friends. lol
Your brows raise at that and you quickly reach for your phone again, thumbs moving across the screen.
you still consider us friends?
The typing bubble pops up immediately.
of course?
even after your best friend broke up with me?
...are we supposed to stop being friends just because of noah?
idk
isn't it like bro code or something?
LMFAO i don't think so?
i mean. you guys weren't that serious, right? i think this is different.
Ouch, you think, brows furrowing.
i thought we were getting serious but. lol. guess not.
r eally?
yeah. i wasn't seeing anyone else, and neither was he. i thought it was *exclusive* or whatever.
noah obviously didn't think so lmfao
it was just fucking frustrating because i really liked him. and thought it could be something, you know?
You press send without thinking, heart thudding against your chest once you realize it went through. Complaining to Nicholas about his own best friend is probably not the best thing to do, you realize, and you text him again.
sorry. You‘re literally his friend, i should not be complaining to you lol.
don’t apologize. i don’t mind you talking about it.
tbh i figured he did something along those lines. it’s not at all surprising.
You stare at your phone, brows furrowing at Nicholas' text. What did he mean by that? And… Was he agreeing with you? That was odd, and something inside of you turned, but before you could type out what you wanted to say your boss' voice filled the room.
"Don't forget our meeting in 10, guys!"
Your eyes snap up from your desk to your boss' office and your shoulders slouched. The meeting hadn't been on your mind at all, and you knew you had to cut this conversation with Nicholas short in order to prepare for it. You sigh, thumbs moving across your screen.
i'm at work and have a meeting soon, but do you care to talk later? i haven't really talked to anyone about this and... it's kind of nice letting it out not gonna lie lol
His reply comes a few minutes later.
if you want, i can call you around 6 tonight if that's alright? i have some things to finish today but i should be free by then.
Call? For some reason that makes you nervous, your fingers twitching and stomach turning. You hadn't spoken to Nicholas in a few months, and the thought of hearing his voice has your skin buzzing. Weird. You don't have time to reply, instead reacting to his message with a thumbs up and gathering your things for the meeting.
...
A shower, a set of comfy clothes, your favorite blanket, and a bowl of ramen later, you had almost forgotten about your expected phone call with Nicholas by the time you rested on the couch after work. Too engrossed in your shows, you nearly jump out of your seat when you hear your phone rang from beside you. Your quickened heartbeat relaxes for a split second when you see it's just Nicholas, but speeds up again when you realize he actually called you.
You stare at your phone as you let it ring once, twice, and then a third time before finally pressing answer.
"Hello?"
"Hey." Nicholas' soft voice fills your ears. "Sorry it took me a while to get back to you, I got distracted."
"It's fine," You say from around your thumb, it somehow finding its way to your mouth as you nervously chew on it. "I kind of didn't really expect you to call."
"Seriously?" He sounds shocked, like it doesn't make sense why you would think that. "I told you I would."
"I know, just..." You shrug, then blush when you remember he can't see you. "This is weird, right? You calling your best friend's ex to listen to them complain about said best friend."
He's silent on the other end before saying, "Listen. We're still friends, correct? Friends check in on each other. Plus... I'm kind of on your side. What he did was fucked up. I told him that."
"You told him?"
"Mhm." Nicholas hums, and you hear the sound of a door shutting in the background. You hear some shuffling and the sound of him groaning quietly, and you suspect he's in his bedroom, lying down. "I called him an idiot for you, don't worry."
You laugh, surprised, pulling your blanket further up your body.
"You didn't have to do that."
"No, I did." He's laughing now. "He needed to be told that what he did was wrong.”
"He probably didn't like that."
Nicholas sighs on the other end. "He sure fucking didn't."
"Is he mad at you?" You say after a few beats of silence, your lips slowly tugging down into a frown.
"For what?"
"For talking to me?" You grumble, pulling a string of fabric out of your blanket. "And for agreeing that what he did was fucked up?"
"Uh..." Nicholas clears his throat. "He doesn't really know that I reached out to you. Yet. This was weeks ago when I called him out on his shit." He pauses. "But yeah, he was pissed that I told him it was fucked up."
You go silent, not sure how to respond. You feel odd, like there's a weight on your chest, almost like... sadness. You knew how hard-headed Noah could be and how it was hard for him to get over his pride, so having one of his best friend's call him out on how he treated you was sure to piss him off. Though, a part of you was hoping maybe he'd tell Nicholas he regretted it all, regretted the way he treated you, but there was none of that.
"Still there?"
Too lost in your thoughts you don't realize how long you've gone silent, and your cheeks flush out of embarrassment.
"Oh, yeah. Sorry. Just thinking."
"About?"
"I don't know..." You sigh. "Just how stupid I feel being upset over a guy who's angrier that someone called him out than what he actually did to me. It's embarrassing."
"No, it's not-"
You cut him off. "Yes, it is. It's really fucking embarrassing. I thought we were serious, fucking exclusive, only to find out he looked at our entire relationship the complete opposite." You have to catch your breath, shoulders deflating. "He called me a situationship, Nicholas. Like it was just some fucking fling to keep him occupied because he was bored."
Nicholas doesn't say anything, and to be honest, you don't blame him. If you were on the other end you're not sure what you would say either. It just angered you, this whole thing. You thought you had found someone, maybe not exactly the one, but maybe someone you wouldn't mind getting serious with.
"I just," You continue on, filter long gone. "Sometimes I wanna get back at him, you know? Hurt him like he hurt me."
Nicholas is quiet on the other end and bringing your hand up to chew on your thumb again, nerves growing even more. Maybe you had said too much, complained too much, and he's probably annoyed. He probably regrets telling you that you could complain and that he didn't mind.
"Listen..." Nicholas starts and you're fully expecting him to be upset with you. "This might sound crazy, and tell me if it is, but I think I know how you can get back at him."
You freeze.
"What?"
"Noah's my best friend, and I love him, but we grew up together. I know how he is." You hear him sigh on the other end. "It was shitty to lead you on and to make you think it was more than it actually was. I'm not going to sugar coat it."
"Well, we already know that but what's so crazy about it?"
"You didn't let me finish." He huffs out a laugh, and something inside your belly flutters. "The more I think about it the crazier it sounds but... it might not make him hurt like you are, but it'll definitely make him mad."
This interests you, and you find yourself sitting up on the couch. "Oh? Go on."
"Um..." He clears his throat. "Noah gets incredibly jealous and I know he wouldn't know what to do if he saw you with someone else."
"But I'm not." You say with a pout. He laughs again.
"Right." He pauses. "But what if he thought you were?"
"Okay..." You say slowly. It does sound like a good idea, but how would you pull it off? You had nobody to fill in for you. "How would I go about that? There's not exactly anyone jumping at the chance to fake date me."
"That's where the crazy part comes in," He sounds nervous and you can't help but find it almost adorable, the way his voice gets softer as his nerves settle in. "He'd lose his fucking mind if the person you were seeing was someone he knew. A friend of his." Another pause. "...Maybe even a best friend."
Realization dawns on you and you can't help the way your lips part, a gasp slipping from your lips. "Nicholas Ryan."
"Hear me out!” You close your mouth. "Just imagine how pissed he'd get. He wouldn't know what to do. It'd eat at him forever."
You let his words finally sink in, the proposition closeting around your mind. It was crazy, absolutely fucking insane but… it didn’t sound so bad. It actually sounded kind of genius. What bet way could you get back at him if not… fake-date his best friend? You knew Noah and you knew just how bad he’d handle this, and the thought made your body shake in excitement.
“Alright.” You say finally, lips stretching into a smile. “Exactly how would we do this?”
“Well…” Nicholas pauses on the other end, letting out a nervous chuckle. “We’d just try to make him believe we were actually together.”
“Like… hang out at the house and act like we’re going on dates?”
“If you want. Whatever you’re comfortable with.”
You go silent for a moment. “...And you think it’ll work?”
“I know it’ll work.” Nicholas says matter-of-factly.
You lean back against the couch and think over your option for a moment. You really had nothing to lose, either Noah will get upset or you’ll get no reaction at all.
“Fuck it. Let’s do it.”
You could practically hear the smile in Nicholas’ voice when he replied with a “Hell yeah,” and your belly fluttered, flipping and turning at the thought of you doing this. It was childish, sure, but you didn’t care. You wanted to get Noah riled up and you knew this was the only way to do it.
You and Nicholas talked over some details before you settled on coming over later that week and then you’d go from there. Later that night when you settled into bed, you felt lighter than you had in weeks, sleep finding you easily.
...
You took a deep breath as you put your car in park and leaned your forehead against your steering wheel. You had been nervous the entire drive over and even drove in complete silence, trying to gather your thoughts. They were too jumbled, you could barely even think straight. Was this a good idea? You turn your head to stare at the house, one you had grown used to months ago, and you feel the pit in your stomach growing.
This was a terrible idea, you think. You should just put your car in reverse and get the hell out of here, because you're sure your plan wouldn't work. How would it? There's no way Noah would believe you and Nicholas were a thing, you were a terrible actor. Could you really convince Noah that you were actually with Nicholas?
Your phone buzzes in the seat beside you and you huff out a sigh, reaching for it.
let me know when you're here. he's just watching a movie with bryan and jolly right now.
is it too late to back out? idk if i can do this.
You press send before even thinking, pressing your forehead back against the steering wheel. Another text comes through.
it's your choice. i'm cool with whatever, as long as you're comfortable.
i got your back.
For some reason that has your chest blooming in heat. Your eyes flutter shut as you think over your choices, Nicholas' words looming in your mind, and you let out a sigh. I got your back.
meet me at the door? i'm coming up now.
All you get in a response is Nicholas reacting to your message with a heart, but that's enough to calm your nerves and even bring a small smile to your face. You pull the mirror down one last second to give yourself a once over, fixing your hair, and then you're opening the door. You take your time walking up to their house, eyes scanning over your surroundings to see if anything has changed. Nothing has, and it brings some sort of comfort to you.
Before you can even raise a hand to knock at the door, the handle is twisting and you're met with soft eyes and a smile.
"Hey."
You stand there, dumbfounded for a moment, as your eyes scan over Nicholas' face. You can hear someone speaking in the background, along with a movie playing, and you have to swallow down the nerves that are threatening to come back.
"Hi." You say quietly and give Nicholas a shy smile. He looks behind him before stepping out, closing the door.
"Are you sure you're okay with this?" He asks, face clouded with concern. His lips purse into a pout as he looks down at you. "I don't want you doing this if you're having second thoughts."
You shake your head. "I'm okay. I would've left already if I was that scared."
His frown only deepens.
"I don't want you feeling like you have to do this. It's a crazy idea. I can understand why you'd be afraid."
His concern for you only makes the heat in your chest expand, feeling it all the way down to the tips of your fingers. He was so worried about how you felt about all of this, wanting to make sure you were comfortable... it was all new to you. It's not like Noah never cared about how you felt, but this was a different feeling. Nicholas was different. You swallow again, reaching out to place a hand on Nicholas' arm.
"This is a crazy idea, but it's one I agreed to." You see him look down at your hand on his arm before looking at you again, and you give him another smile. "I want to do this. Plus, you got my back. Remember?"
This makes him smile, albeit small, and he nods. "Hell yeah I do."
You stare at him for a beat, smile never wavering before clapping your hands together. “Alright. Let’s do this.”
He opens the door and lets you in first, and you hear Noah before you see him. His voice has you pausing in the hallway, lips dipping into a frown, and you barely notice Nicholas behind you. You jump slightly at the feel of Nicholas' hand against your back as he guides the two of you to the living room. Your stomach turns reveling in the fact Noah has to see you, with Nicholas, because this was the only way to his room.
"Just follow my lead." Nicholas murmurs against your ear and you try to ignore the way your body shivers, heat exploding throughout you.
You nod.
The second you enter the living room all eyes are on you, and you don't miss the way all the boys do a double take. Both Jolly and Bryan stare at you in enjoyment, lips curled, and you can't help but smile back, sending them a wave. Noah’s face is blank, but you don’t miss the way his eyes narrow at the sight of you and Nicholas together.
"Well, well, well." Bryan's grin only grows and his eyes dart between you, Nicholas, and Noah. "Long time no see."
"Where the hell have you been?" Jolly asks and Bryan chuckles beside him.
They know exactly where you've been, but the fact they still asked with Noah in the room has your smile widening. Especially with how his face is now turned into a scowl.
"Oh, you know." You shrug. "Around."
“With Ruffilo?” Jolly questions, his brows raising. You give another shrug, your cheeks heating up.
“Wouldn’t you like to know.” Nicholas teases, the hand that was on your back now sliding down to rest on your hip. Noah’s eyes follow the movement. You notice, and so does Nicholas, and his hand drops from your hip to circle around your own. “We’re gonna be upstairs if you need me.”
Jolly whistles. “With everyone home? That’s brave, Nick.”
You can’t help but blush, head dipping down to hide it and Nicholas laughs out, “Fuck you.”
“Dude, shut up.” Noah snaps at Jolly. You look up at that, brows furrowing to find Noah already staring at you. “Since when were you guys friends?”
You frown as the anger begins to build inside of you, his tone immediately setting something off. It was so… accusatory. As if you had done something wrong – which you hadn’t.
“Dude-“ Nicholas starts, but you cut him off.
“We’ve always been friends.” You bite out. “Maybe if you’d paid attention before, you would’ve known that already.”
The room goes silent after that and you take a deep breath, trying to calm yourself down. You look up at Nicholas.
“Can we go now?” You ask quietly, but just loud enough for everyone to hear. He gives you a small smile and nods, facing his friends again.
“Text me if you need me,” He says while starting to tug you towards the stairs, “but don’t need me.”
Jolly and Bryan laugh but Noah remains silent, lips pressed together as he fumes in his seat. Nicholas' hand in yours feels heavy, especially now with the way you m know Noah's staring at your intertwined fingers. Nicholas gives you a supportive squeeze and gently pulls you with him, making his way up the stairs.
"When did this happen?" Noah follows after the two of you and you press your lips together, eyes rolling.
"Like it matters?" You mumble, turning to look back at him. "We weren't serious. I can see whoever I want to."
"So, you chose my best friend?"
"I didn't choose anyone, Noah." You groan and stop at the top of the stairs, Nicholas still tugging at your hand. You don’t miss the way Noah is glaring at his best friend behind you. "Not everything is about you."
This has him stopping on the bottom step, looking at you as if you’ve just wounded him before turning into anger at the sound of Jolly and Bryan erupting into ooooh’s. You know a few months ago you would’ve doubled down and apologized, but right now all you want to do is laugh. It felt good making him feel bad, as crazy as it sounded, and the second you reach Nicholas’ room you feel as if you’ve finally made it to the end of the race.
The hard part is over.
You finally let out the breath you had been holding when Nicholas shut the door. He leans forward, pressing his ear to the door for a moment before taking a step back and looking over at you, his lips tugging up into a smirk.
"He's still out there." He whispered, just loud enough for you to hear. "He looked so fucking pissed, dude."
You have to press your hand against your mouth, trying to muffle the giggles that threaten to spill. You feel like a kid, pulling a stupid prank on your friend on the playground, but you can't help how exciting it feels. You wonder just how pissed Noah is, thinking that his ex or whatever you were to him moved on... to his best friend.
"Did you see the look on his face when you grabbed my hand?" You press your lips together and let your eyes shut, taking a deep breath to stop your laughter. "Holy shit. That was priceless."
“I’m definitely gonna get chewed out for this but it’s so worth it.”
Nicholas makes his way over to his bed and flops down onto it, laughing to himself and he doesn't bother holding it back. You follow his lead, sitting down beside him as you finally let your own giggle release, falling onto your back. The two of you lay there, giggling like children, and you hadn't even realized all the tension that was once in your body has fully vanished.
Call yourself hateful, but it felt good to see the look on Noah's face. To see him so upset. You're not sure if he was exactly hurt in the same way that you were, but you knew he was pissed. That's enough for you. It also felt good to just laugh, something you haven't done in a while, and you turn your head to look at Nicholas. He's still laughing, face scrunched in amusement and that same warm feeling in your chest comes back.
"Thank you." You hum quietly, and Nicholas' laughter dies out. He turns his head to look at you and he smiles, bright and big.
"Of course." He mumbles. "I got your back. Remember?"
He echoes your words back to you and this makes you smile, hand reaching out for his own that laid on the bed. You find that it feels easy to intertwine your fingers with his and you give his hand a squeeze. He returns it back.
"What do we do now?" You question after a moment, hand slipping from his. You swear you see his face fall for a split second.
He sits up then, running a hand through his hair. "Well. We let him believe whatever he wants about what we're doing in here and..." He gives you a shrug, grinning down at you. "We hang out, I guess. Watch a movie or something."
You nod at his words, resting your hands against your stomach,
“Sounds good to me.”
And so, you do. He puts on a show he'd been watching recently, an anime that you didn't know the name of, and the two of you laid side by side as the episode played. You had watched a few anime’s with Noah when you two were together, but you never really found yourself getting into them. You're not sure what's different this time around, but you find yourself asking Nicholas questions every so often. You ask about the plot which he happily obliged, going into great detail about them.
It was nice, you think. You quickly realized you liked hearing him talk. His voice was soft, but low. It had a very calming tone to it, one that always put you at ease. You think you could sit and listen to Nicholas talk for hours and never get bored.
One episode turned into two, and two episodes turn into four, and before you know it, it’s already dark outside.
“Shit. What time is it?” Nicholas says beside you, reaching for his phone. You turned to look at him, eyes widening when you realized just how close the two of you had gotten in the few hours you’d spent here.
A part of you felt the need to be even closer. You shake it off, sitting up on his bed and stretching out your limbs as Nicholas spoke again.
“Dude, it’s literally nine o’clock.”
“It didn’t even feel that long.” You watch as he rolls off his bed, stretching, before looking down at you. “Sorry I kept you here so long. Once I get started on a show I can’t stop.”
“It’s okay. I actually really liked it.” You say earnestly, standing up from the bed. He smiles.
“Yeah?”
“Of course.”
“We’ll have to finish the next episode the next time you come over then, if you want.”
For some reason the words next time has your body heating up, skin buzzing with something you can’t exactly place. You smile up at him.
“I’m down.”
He waits for as you grab your things and the two of you make your way back downstairs. It’s much quieter than it had been earlier, but Noah and Jolly were still on the couch, but they had switched places at some point. You don’t bother glancing at Noah, though you feel his glare, and send a wave to Jolly.
“Leaving already?” Jolly says, a playful pout slipping onto his lips.
“Don’t worry, I’ll be back.” You hear Noah snort, and you take a chance to glance at him, seeing the boy roll his eyes. You have to stop yourself from smirking.
You got him.
“You better.” Jolly’s eyes move to Nicholas. “Next time don’t hog her, man. Let her come out and say hi or something.”
“I make no promises.” Nicholas teases, placing his hand against the small of your back. Your skin prickles in goosebumps at the feeling and you find yourself leaning into his touch.
Jolly laughs but sends you both off with a wave, Noah’s eyes following you until you’re out of sight and by the door.
You let out the breath you had been holding.
“Doing alright?” Nicholas mumbles. You nod and try to give him a reassuring smile.
“Yeah, I’m fine.” You speak. “Thank you for doing this again, you really didn’t have to.”
"Hey, what are friends for? Also, it was literally my idea.” Nicholas murmurs, smiling down at you. “… Text me when you get home?”
You've already forgotten about Noah in the living room, most likely trying to eavesdrop on your conversation, too busy finding yourself getting lost in Nicholas' eyes. You nod.
"Of course."
His smile widens, which you didn't think was possible, and he leans forward to brush his lips against your forehead. You freeze, eyes widening at the action. You had talked about making it believable on the phone, but you didn't expect him to go this far. You also didn't expect to like the feeling of his lips against your skin as much as you did.
You both whisper your goodbyes, and you find yourself back in your car, hands gripping the steering wheel.
That went a lot easier than you thought.
...
This goes on for a few weeks.
You come over a few times a week to hang out, sometimes in Nicholas' room and sometimes in the living room when Jolly begs you two to join him and Noah for a movie. The first time was awkward, and you knew Jolly only did it to be an ass, but after a while it stopped being so awkward and started to become... normal.
Noah didn’t speak to you, and according to Nicholas he didn’t speak to him either for a good two weeks. He’d only ever glare at the two of you during your movie nights or when you both made your way upstairs, and at first you loved it. You loved that you got under his skin so much that every time you were around, he was seething. It made you feel good, as crazy as it sounds.
Eventually, though, you stopped caring.
You don’t know when it happened, or when you stopped coming over to piss off Noah, but it happened. You and Nicholas started hanging out more, even outside of the house, and you found yourself enjoying his company more than you ever thought you would. You were starting to anticipate his texts, and even his calls, your belly erupting in butterflies every time you saw his name flash across your screen.
Some crazy part of you thinks that maybe Nicholas had stopped caring too.
Even in the quiet of his room where no one else was around, he was always touching you. Arm wrapped around you as you curled into his side, fingers twisting and twirling in your hair as you two finished another episode of his – and yours – current favorite anime. Sometimes he’d be the one curled up against you, his head resting against your stomach as you laid out on his bed, listening to him talk about why Episode 3 was the best out of the prequels.
It didn’t shock you too much when you finally sat down with your thoughts about everything – Nicholas, Noah, yourself – and with the help of your friends, you came to the conclusion that you weren’t pretending anymore. You had feelings for Nicholas, and the thought was equally terrifying and exciting in every way.
You find yourself back at the front door after spending a few hours there and Nicholas is already leaning down to press a kiss to your forehead, like he always does when you leave. Your eyes flutter shut and you lean into the feeling, letting yourself enjoy it for once, and you lift your head up. He pulls back, briefly, and your eyes open to stare into his.
You can feel Noah's eyes on you both, the first time he has in weeks, but for some reason you can’t find it in yourself to care all that much. Nicholas gives you a gentle smile and you can't help but let your eyes drop to his lips, before gazing back up. He catches it, brows furrowing and head tilting, and you lean up again.
"You should kiss me." You whisper, eyes darting back to his lips.
He swallows. "What?"
"Noah's watching." You whisper again. "We gotta make it believable, right?"
You watch as he blinks from your eyes down to your lips. He does it a few times, staring at you in silence, and you know that he knows. Noah doesn’t care anymore, even though he’s watching. Nicholas knows you’ve already made it as believable as you could, but he still goes along with it. Your breath catches in your throat when you feel him reach up and tuck a piece of hair behind your ear before leaning down, forehead pressing against yours.
"...Yeah. You're right. We do." He breathes out and you physically shake at the feeling of his breath ghosting your lips.
You don't move at first, and neither does he, and you let your eyes flutter shut as your fingers come to circle around the flannel that hung off of him. Your fingers curl around the material the second he leans forward, capturing your lips with his. Both hands come up now to cup your face, Nicholas' thumbs brushing over your cheeks, and you'd have half a mind to be embarrassed by the sound that escapes you, but you're too caught up in him.
Nicholas is the first to pull away, but you don't move, you don't even open your eyes. You can hear your heart thudding against your chest, and you have to take a deep breath to try and calm yourself down. His hands still cup your cheeks, and he tilts your head forward slightly, pressing yet another tender kiss to your forehead.
"Text me when you get home."
You don't miss the waver in his voice, and you finally open your eyes to look up at him. You see something in his eyes shift, something much softer than you've ever seen, and it makes your heart flutter. You give him a small nod and try not to frown when his hands fall from your face. You drop your hands from his flannel, and he gives you a smile, but there's something behind it.
You think about it (and his lips) the entire drive home.