Part IV - Chapter 22

The ride back to Miles' house was quiet. But I felt as if it was what we needed—just a peacefully silent ride as we held hands.

His hand felt warm. I wanted to hold his hand forever.

When we got back to the house, we let go of each other's hands before climbing out of the car and heading inside. I followed Miles to the living room as we sat on the couch. We still hadn't said anything yet, but I just placed a hand on his shoulder and leaned against him until he was ready to talk.

He sighed and wrapped an arm around me. "Thank you, Cody… I really appreciate you comin' along with me. It means a lot."

I smiled softly as I closed my eyes. "Of course. I'd go anywhere with you."

The two of us just sat there for a while in silence. It wasn't awkward or anything, it actually felt comforting. Whatever he's thinking about, I'll let him think about it. Whether it has to do with her, or with me… I just want to be here for him and whatever it is he's feeling.

After a while, Miles pulled away before gently taking my hand, kissing the back of it as I smiled and slightly blushed. He held my hand against his chest. "I'm really happy I have ya in my life," he said as he looked into my eyes. I couldn't help but get lost in his beautiful brown eyes as he spoke to me. "The time we've spent together these past few months have really changed me, boy. And a lot of it is because of you."

I smiled and felt my heart melting in my chest at his words, giving him an affectionate look. "I'm grateful for you too. I just want to be by your side and support you, always." I took a deep breath, debating with myself if I should tell him I loved him, but I decided against it for the time being. "So, whatever you want to do right now, I'm fine with anything it is, even if you want to be alone."

He shook his head. "No, I want ya to stay… That is, if you want to. I sure would really love your company," he said with a little smile, squeezing my hand that was placed on his chest. "Maybe we could just watch a movie or somethin.'"

I nodded and smiled wider. "Anything you want," I said before moving closer and leaning my head on his shoulder again as my hand stayed against his chest. "I just want to be here for you."

He gently planted a kiss on my forehead before the two of us said nothing more as we just continued to sit together and embrace each other. I was happy with this, I wanted to do whatever it would take to make Miles happy, even if it was doing something as simple as watching a movie with him.

Because after all, I'd do anything for him—I just loved him so much.

---

And so, Miles and I just spent the rest of the day watching some old action movies as I laid my head on his lap while he played with my hair the entire time. We didn't say too much, but that was fine. I wasn't paying much attention to the movie, but it felt so comfortable just laying my head on him while he stroked my hair… I ended up falling asleep, but he gently woke me up after the second movie finished, and said he would make some dinner for us.

So he made some delicious pasta for the two of us. I always liked eating with him, it felt kind of intimate in a way. Almost like we were a real couple where he'd cook dinner for the two of us…

While we were eating, I decided to put down my fork before looking at Miles. "Are you feeling okay?" I asked him gently.

Miles swallowed his food and put down his utensils before wiping his mouth with a napkin. He nodded. "Yeah, I'm feelin' alright," he said, as if he was somewhat still sad over it, but was pushing through. "I'm just really glad I have ya here with me. Seriously, just having you be with me has made this day a lot better."

He reached out a hand for my own, and I gladly gave him mine. My hand was so much smaller and daintier than his, but it felt so right to hold his hand. I wanted to hold his hand forever. "I told you, I'll always be here for you," I said to him sincerely.

He nodded slowly. "I have to tell ya something, boy…" He squeezed my hand and sighed deeply. "I don't know if maybe I'm just crazy, but I feel that I want you to know."

I curiously raised my brows and slightly tilted my head to the side, wondering what it could possibly be. "What is it?"

He took a deep breath, taking a moment to think about if he really wanted to tell me whatever it was or not. "I… I think I love you. There ain't anything I've been passionate about since being discharged from the military, but this love I feel for you, I ain't feel anything like it. It's crazy that a man could ever make me feel this way… But I just wanted to let ya know. I don't just love the sex we have, I've really fallen for you."

I felt my eyes beginning to tear up as my chest felt warm with complete utter love. He finally told me he loves me to my face… "I love you too, Miles… I really love you," I said, placing my other hand on top of the hands we were holding. "You're so perfect, Miles. These past few months that I've known you have changed me and my outlook on life and love. I never thought I'd be able to love again after all the heartbreak I've gone through, but the time I've been with you, my feelings for you blossomed and grew stronger the more we spent time together. I want to be by your side, always… I wish we could just run away and live in our own perfect little world where it's just the two of us."

Miles smiled. "That'd be nice, wouldn't it? Just you n' I… I'm so happy that ya feel the same way." He went silent, taking a moment to think. "I've also been thinkin' 'bout something else lately," he said seriously.

I widened my eyes before wiping my tears. "What is it?"

He exhaled deeply. "Do ya remember when you said I should think about takin' a road trip down to Kansas?"

I nodded before he continued. "I was maybe thinkin' that next Friday, I'd actually like to go take a trip down there for the weekend up until Monday," he said. "I'd really like it if you could come with me, only if ya want to, of course."

I smiled and nodded eagerly. "I would love to. I don't think I have any plans next weekend, but I'll check my schedule just in case. Even if I do have something, I'll cancel it just for this," I said.

Miles chuckled softly. "As long as it ain't anything important. I wouldn't want ya to miss it."

I shook my head. "Nothing could be more important than this trip with you."

We just smiled and gazed into each other's eyes as we continued to hold hands, then finally let go to continue eating. I can't believe Miles wants me to go on a road trip with him to Kansas… A trip with just the two of us sounds amazing.

After we were finished, I said goodnight to Miles, making sure that he was okay before I headed back to Nia and I's apartment. As much as I wanted to stay over for the night, Miles had to get to work early the next day, and this was one of my weekends that I had no shoots or meets, so I planned to just take some time for myself to relax.

So that's what I did for the weekend—I spent my money on a box of coolers and spent my evenings with a drink as I decided to read more of the book Miles gave to me. I would get comfy in my bed and have my source of light be my bedside lamp before getting to reading from where I last left off.

Theodore and Hanna secretly spend a lot of time together during his time in Germany, as Theodore would go see Hanna and spend time with her instead of staying at his assigned post. They taught each other how to actually love again and find a reason to keep going—which is each other. One day, Theodore is ordered by his commanding officer to return to England to be stationed there instead. Theodore doesn't exactly want to leave, and would rather stay in Germany with Hanna—but he knows that he has to follow his orders. Theodore and Hanna meet for the last time and confess their feelings to each other knowing it would most likely be the last time, but are hopeful for the small chance they would meet again someday. They cry and wish each other good fortune in their future endeavours, and Hanna gives Theodore a gift before he leaves; a locket that her brother gave her before he went off to war. There was a line that she said to him that I recognized.

"We'll meet again, don't you worry about that. Wherever you are, I'll be with you. Just look at the stars and know we're underneath the same sky."

I wasn't sure at first where I had recognized it from—but then I finally did remember. It was the same quote that was on Cynthia's gravestone. This book must have meant a lot to both Miles and Cynthia…

And so, Theodore ends up travelling back to England, wearing Hanna's locket on him the entire time. Even when he's back to being depressed and suicidal, he holds the locket and opens it up to see the old picture of Hanna and her family inside—it makes him hopeful for the future that someday he'll see her again.

That was all I had read up until I decided to save it until another time. After I was finished, I left my room to go check my packages that Nia told me were addressed to me. I knew what the packages were—so I was very excited.

I brought all my stuff to my room before practically ripping open the boxes. Inside my packages were the makeup I ordered, the beautiful blonde wig and wig stuff, and some cute new clothes. I bought a lot, but I could afford it all, so why not buy things I want to try?

I decided I would put it all aside for later. I got a new message from Chance, which just said 'call me.'

I rang him up and waited for him to answer, and he picked up almost immediately. "Cody, thanks for calling."

"Yeah, for sure. What's going on?" I asked.

"I've been very impressed with how far you've come since we've started your modeling career. You've made it pretty big in such a short amount of time, that's pretty big. I knew you were the one, kid. You're a star," he praised. "And because of how big you're getting, a representative from Fawn Mills. They want you to be the model for their new cologne. This would be an amazing opportunity for you. People are already talking a lot about the music video, so doing a commercial would really start to get you up there with the elite."

Fawn Mills? Isn't that the super fancy high-end beauty brand? "For real? You know I'd love to go for it."

"Alright. They'll be doing the shoots and filming the commercial next weekend in Chicago—"

Next weekend…? My smile faltered. "Um… Next weekend I've already got plans."

"What could be more important than this, Cody? This opportunity could seriously get you booming in the industry. Not just you, but me too. It would be great for both of us."

"I…" I closed my eyes and sighed. This would be such a great opportunity for both Chance and I, but… I really want to go on this road trip to Kansas with Miles, I thought. Both of these are really important to me. What do I pick? My career, or the man I love…?

I opened my eyes. "I'm sorry, Chance. I can't do it. What I have next weekend is really important to me," I said apologetically. "I know how big this is, but I promise, I'll make it up to you."

"Hey, it's your career, kid. Passing up on an opportunity like this is what I consider to be a dumb choice, but I understand," he said. "I'll let them know you turned it down."

"Alright. Sorry again," I said before he hung up. I put my phone down and sighed before flopping back on my bed to stare up at the ceiling. I really turned down probably one of the biggest opportunities for my career for a road trip with Miles… But in my heart, I know that I made the right choice. It just felt like the right thing to do.

My eyes fluttered closed as I exhaled deeply, thinking about our trip for next Friday. I wonder what I should bring… I need to make a list and then pack accordingly. But I'll worry about that when the day gets closer… For now, I just want to rest and relax.

I adjusted myself on the bed to get into a more comfortable position as I opened up the Posty app to see what was going on. New likes and followers, more messages from group chats I never participate in, of course…

I decided to simply lurk as usual. I looked through the comments on my latest post, seeing what people had to say. Most of the top-voted comments were from other models I've worked with, or from some accounts dedicated to me. Out of curiosity, I decided to check out one of my fanpages, being greeted with a profile named codyvalecutiex, their profile photo being a picture of me from one of my shoots with a halo of hearts edited on my head. I was impressed that they had over ten-thousand followers. Their bio read;

"Fanpage for the gorgeous Cody Vale♡ Follow me for Cody pictures, videos, edits, and facts!"

Sure enough, their page indeed consisted of pictures from my photoshoots, some of my selfies I've posted before, and videos of interviews I've done or candid moments on set. There were even 'fun fact' posts about me—which contained generic information I've already provided to the public before, such as my favourite kind of food, my taste in music, or the fact that I like to explore both men and women's fashion.

They should make a fun fact post that says "Cody fact: Did you know that Cody once had his brother's best friends give him a mixed facial?" Now that would really be a fun fact.

As I lurked their page, seeing the same generic "I love him so much, he's my world ♡" captions felt strange to me—they seemed to admire me so much, yet I'm sure I've never met the person behind this fanpage in real life. They claim to love me, but they barely know anything about me. I doubt they know about my past, from Daniel, to my affair with Julian, to becoming a camboy and fooling around Nathan's friends, to secretly seeing my best friend's father behind her back…

That's when I started thinking about Miles again. Miles loved me, he knew almost everything about me and accepted me for who I was. He didn't care about my celebrity status or anything like that… He cared about me. I smiled to myself with a happy sigh. Oh Miles… I love you so much. I can't wait for us to spend time together next weekend, just the two of us…

I rolled onto my back and closed my eyes, feeling a warm sensation in my chest just thinking about Miles. I really love him. He's so perfect, I almost can't believe a man so incredible inside and out exists. I know that every time I fall in love, it never ends up working out… But I can't help it, Miles took my heart. I love everything about him. I love how much he loves people even if it's hard for him to talk about his feelings, I know he's trying. I love how open-minded he is despite being so stubborn… I've never met anyone quite like him. But I don't think I'd need anyone else if I only had him…

Soon, my phone vibrated in my hand, and I checked it to see that I got a new text message from Miles with a photo attached.

"Hey boy. Came back from a run just now. Found these cute ducks crossing the trail I was going down. Thought you would wanna see."

Attached was a photo of some ducks walking in a line across an open trail. I couldn't help but giggle. That's so cute. Miles doesn't really text in general, so it means a lot that he went out of his way to send this to me. I began to type out a response.

"Thank you for sending me this. ♡ They're so cute! I hope you had a good run. It looks nice outside. Feel free to send me more pictures of anything whenever you want~ ♡"

I knitted my brows and pursed my lips, wondering if that sounded a little too cheesy. Well, I don't care if it does… I'm sure he doesn't mind either. I hit send before leaving the app and going back to browsing social media as I waited for his next text. Sure enough, after a few minutes, I got a text back from him.

"Will do. What are you doing right now?"

I opened up the camera app and held up my phone, reaching my arm out to get as much as I could into the shot. I stuck out my tongue and held up a peace sign as I peeked my eye through my two fingers, showing off the T-shirt and shorts I was wearing before snapping a photo. I opened up the messaging app again before typing out another response.

"I'm just bored, taking some time to just relax for the weekend. What about you?"

I attached the photo of myself to the message before sending it, waiting for his reply once again. After a few minutes, I got a response.

"About to hit the shower. You look really cute."

I felt myself blush just from that simple message. I love it when he calls me cute, I thought to myself as I began to feel myself slipping into subspace. I'm Daddy's cute pretty boy…

"You're going to shower? Without me, Daddy?~"

It was such a bold message that I wondered if it was a bit too forward to send, but I sent it anyway. After waiting for a little bit, I got a text back.

"Wish you were here. But we'll have lots of fun next weekend."

I smiled to myself. I can't wait for our trip together. I wonder how it will go… I know he wants to check out that war museum, but I wonder what else we'll do together in Kansas. I hope we'll get to do a lot of sightseeing, and hopefully we'll get a lot of time alone together…

I softly whimpered as I felt my hand begin to travel down my body, lightly groping my crotch. I hope Miles and I will get a nice hotel room where we can have plenty of sex, almost like we're newlyweds on their honeymoon…

I took a moment to compose myself before I began to type a message back to him. "I don't think I can wait that long. If you're heading for a shower, do you think you could maybe send me a photo? Just a photo of your naked body… I'm feeling a little bit horny~"

Okay, another bold move of mine… But I can't help it, I'm really such a whore for him. He drives me crazy, I thought before going back to softly rubbing myself through my shorts. I waited for a longer while after sending that message, and it made me slightly worry that perhaps I was being a bit too forward.

I continued to just gently palm myself through my clothes while I waited, thinking about what Miles would possibly think of me asking that from him.

I finally received a message back that said "Like this?" With a photo attached that nearly made me start salivating as my eyes popped out of my head.

In the photo was a full body photo of Miles from the neck down to his shins, fully nude as he held his cock in his hand.

Holy fucking shit, I thought to myself. I know how glorious his body is, but seeing a photo of himself like this is so fucking hot.

I slid my shorts and underwear down my legs, reaching over to the nightstand to pump some lotion into my hand. I opened the photo to maximize it to full screen before I began to jerk myself. Fuck, I just want to worship him. I want to run my hands over his shoulders and his strong back to his muscular arms and his sculpted abs, whining about how lucky I am to have such a god of a man for myself…

I stared at that gorgeous cock of his as I continued to stroke myself. I love his dick, I'm so crazy about it…! I want to rub it on my face, taking in the scent of his essence before opening my mouth and pleasing him with my lips, tongue, and throat.

I jerked myself faster, quickly going to the camera app on my phone with my other hand. I began to record a video of myself jacking off while I let out little whimpers and moans. "I love your body, Daddy… Ahh… I just want to touch you and feel you," I whined out in my cute voice. "But I can't right now, so I'll just pleasure myself to this picture of you…"

Even though I hadn't been jerking myself for too long, I already felt myself coming close. I aggressively sped up my hand on my cock, my moans rising in pitch as I knew I would soon reach my orgasm. I squeezed my dick and shut my eyes closed as I felt myself come loose, semen spurting from me as it spilled onto me and my hand.

I looked up into the camera with an innocent look before ending the video. I smirked before putting my phone down and reaching over for the tissues to clean myself. It was a pretty average load I had released, not bad for a quick fap.

After I was finished cleaning up, I pulled my shorts back up before I threw out my tissues and headed for the bathroom to wash my hands.

I washed up in the bathroom sink before looking at myself in the mirror. I would make a beautiful bride, I thought to myself with a little smile. I finished with drying my hands before I went back into my room to get my phone and send the video to Miles.

"Love this picture ♡ Look what you do to me, Daddy! I made a mess because of you~"

I sent the message along with the video before smiling to myself, knowing he would get a wonderful surprise after he was done with his shower. I took my phone with me to the living room before getting comfortable on the couch as I opened Supreme Quest: Legends on my phone. I know what you're probably thinking—what? Well, it's actually a mobile game that both Nathan and Nia recommended to me, and I had to admit, it was fun, and I liked dressing up my female character in cute outfits. I didn't play it too often, but I had nothing better to do, so I figured I could feed my virtual pet and send some rewards to Nia.

I turned my phone into landscape mode before waiting for the game to load. When it finished loading, I began to do the daily quests and do a little bit of 'grinding' as Nia described it.

After a bit of a while of playing, I got a message back from Miles.

"Wow. Such a lovely video. I'll be saving it for later. You're a good boy. Daddy loves you."

I smiled to myself before going back to my game. Sounds like he enjoyed it… I'm very glad. I'm so happy to do anything to be able to make Miles happy. I can't wait to see him next weekend… We're definitely going to have lots of fun together.

---

I must have spent a long time playing, because by the time I knew it, the sun was already setting outside. I exited the game and checked the time, seeing that Nia would probably be home any time soon.

I wondered if I should make dinner, but I wasn't really in the mood to get up and cook. I just wanted to lounge on the couch and continue playing this silly little mobile game. I had to admit, the plot was getting kind of interesting. They really hooked me with the storyline… Now I know what the hype over video games in general was all about.

After playing a bit more, I heard the door unlock and someone coming in, along with the rustling of what I assumed to be paper bags. Nia's home.

"Hey," I called out in greeting, still engrossed in the game. I received a slam of the door in response with a loud, tired sigh from Nia. "Hey," she called back before I heard her walk over. She put down whatever was in her bags on the table before she came up behind me and looked over my shoulder. "Yesss, you're playing it right now? It's awesome, isn't it?"

"I have to admit, it kind of is. I can see why you and my brother like it so much," I said as my party finished off the last enemies. Nia stood back up and walked around the couch to sit, and I moved my legs to make room for her. She sat back and exhaled deeply. "Work was fucking awful today."

I looked over at her. "What happened?"

She shook her head before propping her arm up on the armrest, resting her head against her hand. "Just some stupid work drama bullshit. I can't fucking stand it," she said, clearly irritated. "I stopped by the liquor store on the way home to buy a few drinks, I really fucking need it after the day I had."

I wonder what's got her feeling like this, I thought.

She sat up. "I'm gonna go shower and change first, though. Then we can order some food for dinner as we drink and get fucked, how does that sound?" She asked as she looked at me. She seemed like she really needed it after whatever happened at work, so I nodded. "Yeah, sounds good."

She smiled before getting up. "Cool. I'll be back, then." She headed out of the living room to head to her room as I silently cursed after getting attacked by my opponent in my game. Ugh, screw you, snakesinspaceX! The diamonds are mine!

I heard the bathroom door close before the shower started. Even though I wanted to keep playing, my phone was running out of battery, and I needed to get my charger. I slowly got up from the couch with a stretch before heading to my room to get my phone charger. After getting it, I went back to the living room to plug my phone in to charge it. I curiously looked over at the paper bags on the table before deciding to take a peek at what was inside.

I pulled out two bottles from the first bag, brandy and tequila. I looked in the second bag and saw that it was filled with packs of coolers. Damn, that's definitely more than 'a few drinks.' Even though I've been drinking alcohol a lot more lately, this is still a lot just for one night.

I went to lay back down on the couch and play some more as I waited for Nia to finish and come back. Finally, after Nia was all finished and was dressed in her pajamas with her wet hair down, she joined me on the couch and went into the food delivery app on her phone. "What do you feel like eating? I don't care myself, I'll eat anything as long as it's fucking good."

I shrugged. "I dunno. Whatever you want."

"Alright. You sure?" She asked, and I nodded. "Yeah, anything is okay."

She chuckled. "You never change. Alright, I'm in the mood for Mexican," she said before tapping on her phone as she ordered for us. "Okay, the food should be here in about an hour."

"Cool. So… Do you want to talk about whatever it was that happened at work?" I asked her. I know she probably wouldn't really want to, but I wanted her to know that if she did, I'd be open to listen and help her, even if it's just to lend an ear.

She sighed. "Well, if I'm gonna talk about it, I wanna get some alcohol in my system first," she said before getting up and getting the drinks from the table, bringing them over before placing them on the coffee table in front of the couch. "I'll get some glasses and ice from the kitchen, and we'll start drinking." She went to the kitchen to get what she needed.

I raised my brow curiously. This should be interesting.

---

Nia and I already got through most of the coolers and a little bit of the liquor before she actually started talking about what happened at work. She seemed to want to talk about other things before actually getting to it, such as video games, some stuff that happened during her streams, and her other friends that I didn't know. I liked the coolers, but the taste of hard liquor was definitely something I was still trying to get used to.

"Okay, so… Fucking work," she said before pouring brandy into her glass. She sighed before putting down the bottle. "There's this stupid bitch named Vicky who's my coworker. She's the same age as us, and I swear she hates me because she's jealous that I'm one of the best employees there and the managers like me better than her. Like, I'm just trying to do my fucking job, I don't have time for her drama." She rolled her eyes. "Anyway, there's this one manager, Larry. He's thirty-something and annoying as hell. He has a thing for Vicky, and Vicky knows he'll just let her get away with whatever because he likes her."

"Okay…" I said in response as I listened. Nia drank from her glass before continuing. "So, one of the tasks given to me was to get the box of discount games from the back room and put them all in the discount bin near the entrance. So, Larry steps out of the store for a bit and I get the box from the back and bring it over to the bin. I'm about to get started, but I felt something down there, and I began to kind of panic because I was thinking that I got my period. So I head out of the store and get to the bathroom as quickly as I could, and sure enough, I did get my period. Thank god I checked it as soon as I could, because I didn't bleed through my pants."

Nia must have seen my face twist in disgust at the mention of her period. "Don't give me that look, man… Yes, I'm a girl, I get periods. I don't know why men get so freaked out about menstruation," she said with an eye roll. Well, I can't help it… I don't know anything about female anatomy, it's all just strange to me.

"Anyway, so after I fix that little issue of mine, I get back to the store and see that the box is gone. I saw that Vicky was talking to some customers, so I decided not to bother asking. I was about to check the back room to see if maybe she had brought the box back, but a customer came over to ask me for my assistance, so of course, I attended to that first," she said. "I saw that Larry came back from wherever the hell he was, and he goes into the back room, then comes back out. After I'm done with the customer, he asks me to see him in the back room. I'm like, 'alright…' As soon as we get in the back room, he starts asking me why the box of games is still here and not in the bin. I told him that I brought the box over to the bin and was about to do it, but I had to step out for a bit because of an emergency, but I don't know how the box got back here. He's like, 'you don't have to make up lies just because you're not doing your job.' In my head, I'm like 'man, fuck you.' But of course I didn't say that."

"Damn, I can't believe he would just assume that you were lying," I said as I shook my head before drinking from my own glass. Nia nodded and widened her eyes in agreement as she drank some more. "I'm like, 'I'm not lying, I don't know how the box got back here. Vicky probably brought it back here.' So he calls Vicky over and she's acting all cute and innocent. He asks her if she brought the box back here, and she says no." Nia let out a soft chuckle of disbelief. "The nerve of that cunt! You were the only worker in the store, how the fuck else would it get back here? Anyway, Larry just takes her word for it and lets her go before lecturing me on workplace honesty, and Vicky just gives me a smirk before going back to work."

"What a bitch," I said irritably, feeling kind of pissed for Nia. She nodded. "Right? I fucking hate liars," she said before downing her drink with a sigh. "Honestly, we're fucking coworkers, why would she fucking lie about that? Oh, I know… To get me in shit," she said as she shook her head. "I swear, I can't fucking stand people who lie about me and to me. Dishonest people are so toxic. It's not hard to tell the fucking truth, right?" She asked me before reaching for the tequila bottle.

I felt my stomach tie in a knot hearing her say that. Is it possible she knows that both Miles and I have been hiding our secret relationship from her…?

"Like this girl I knew in high school who was pretending to be my friend but would talk shit about me behind my back," she said as she poured some liquor into her glass. "I can't believe I ever trusted her. I didn't do shit to her but be a good friend, and she does that? Fuck dishonest people, and dishonest friends are even worse. Like seriously, how can people who lie to your face even call themselves your friends?" She put down the bottle and took a sip of her drink.

My heart was beating hard in my chest as I just slowly nodded. "Yeah, I agree for sure…"

"I'm so glad that I have the friends that I have now who I really trust. Especially you, Cody." Nia smiled at me.

I looked away in embarrassment, feeling somewhat shameful that she would say that when I've been hiding such a huge secret from her. "I-I'm not that special…"

"Man, stop. I've told you stuff about me that no one else even knows. You've never judged me or looked at me differently. You're so chill and supportive, and I feel like we can just be ourselves with each other. At least, that's how I feel about you," she said. It seemed that her angry mood took a bit of a shift and she was a bit calmer now. "You're seriously my best friend. Who would've thought the little Christian gay boy who never even had a girl as a friend before me would end up being the person I trust the most?"

I felt my heart breaking a little bit in my chest, the painful knot in my stomach feeling tighter. "Y-yeah…" Is all I said. She really thinks so highly of me and trusts me. And both her father and I have been hiding such a big thing from her, the only thing about me that I don't want her to know.

She sipped her drink again. "Anyway, that whole stupid box fiasco wasn't the only thing that happened at work, let me tell you what else Vicky did…"

Nia continued to drink and went on to rant some more about her bitchy co-worker as I still felt the pain of guilt in my body. I could only concentrate on the thoughts going through my head, the thoughts of how shitty of a best friend I was.

I reached for the bottle of tequila. I'm definitely gonna need some more of this…