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[sub][color=darkgray]A [@smarty0114] & [@GhostMami] Collab
Featuring: JD & Noah
Location: The Hardy-Piccoli Manor[/color][/sub]
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[indent][color=lightgray]JD winced at his father’s words, spoken behind his back as he walked away. That whole interaction made his stomach hurt. Jesus, fuck, why did they have to be like that? How did they BOTH find out right away… it’s not like this was Dixon’s intention. He didn’t [i]plan[/i] to kiss Noah until it was already happening, so how in the fuck did the universe find it fitting to have both of his parents know already? JD stole a glance backwards to see if his new friend had taken the out he had offered and if he was following along.

He was. Good. JD breathed a sigh of relief. Out of the viper’s pit and into the fire. Speaking of… what were they supposed to do now? He’d saved the lamb from the slaughter, but he couldn’t take him back to his room after what happened the last time… could he? No... Maybe. [color=0073d8][b]“Ermm…”[/b][/color] The mental conflict made itself known by the uncomfortable noise that JD made. Shit, quick recovery time. [color=0073d8][b]“So… what’d you think?”[/b][/color] Oof, did he want to know the answer to that? It was just the first thing that came to mind. [color=0073d8][b]“You did, uh, good.”[/b][/color] He was aimlessly walking down the hallway at this point, avoiding the staircase leading to the floor where his room is. 

[color=7eff9a][b]“Oh, uh, thank you,”[/b][/color] Noah said, nervous laughter slipping past his lips. JD standing before him, his green hair bright as ever, sent Noah’s stomach tumbling over itself. His hand found the back of his neck, where he rubbed the skin there in an attempt to distract himself from the absurd amount of awkward he’d gotten himself into. [color=7eff9a][b]“You’re parents are like, really cool. They remind me of my uncle. He’s kinda crazy like that too,”[/b][/color] Noah said, glancing up at JD’s eyes. His face went red when he realized what he’d said, and he quickly went to correct himself, his words catching as he stammered through them. [color=7eff9a][b]“Well, like, not crazy. Just, different. They don’t ride the same wavelength that everybody else does.”[/b][/color]

Dixon turned back to face Noah as he spoke. The nervous expression and fierce blush on his face softened JD’s own anxieties. Noah wasn’t judging them, he was terrified, and it was kind of cute. JD smiled, [color=0073d8][b]“Nah, you were right the first time, they’re kinda crazy.”[/b][/color] He hoped that was as reassuring as it was meant to be. [color=0073d8][b]“They def don’t ride the same wavelength as everyone else… none of us do.”[/b][/color] It would be a lie and a disservice to not include himself among their ranks. The apple didn’t fall far from the trees and all that. [color=0073d8][b]“But you don’t either, do you?”[/b][/color] He didn’t, and that’s what JD liked about him. Noah was weird too.

Noah laughed. No, he definitely didn’t ride the same wavelength as everyone else. [color=7eff9a][b]“No, I don’t think I do,”[/b][/color] he said, smiling. It was simultaneously strange, and exhilarating to be around someone who got him like that. Katie was crazy in her own way, but at the end of the day, she was still Katie Callaghan. She was captivating and cool, and she could never really grasp what it was like to be him. JD though, for the first time ever, made him feel like there was someone else who understood what it was like to be a freak.

[color=7eff9a][b]“So like, about earlier…”[/b][/color] Noah trailed off but his meaning was clear. What the hell had that kiss meant? Did JD like him? Were they just friends with benefits now? Or was it something more? Possibilities ran through his head, chasing each other like a dog chases its tail. Where could this go? Where did he even want it to go?

[color=0073d8][b]“Good.”[/b][/color] JD had responded when Noah agreed with the wavelength sentiment. The next thing he said, however, brought forth a sharp intake of air from the emo. Ah, there it was, the question of the hour. What about [i]earlier[/i]? How was he supposed to respond to that? How could he explain why he jumped down the kid’s throat just because he had his hands in his hair. JD didn’t understand it himself, really. Feeling a bit like an animal backed into a corner, he responded quickly and harshly. [color=0073d8][b]“What about it?”[/b][/color] Oh, yikes… that was unintentionally mean. Dixon cleared his throat uncomfortably and tried that again with a softer tone. [color=0073d8][b]“What… about it?”[/b][/color]

Noah stared at JD, chewing his lip. What would Katie do, what would Katie do? Probably be straightforward. Katie was always straightforward, while Noah was always beating around the bush. He wished for a moment that he was a turtle. Turtles could just go into their shell when shit got weird, but he was a human, and humans very unfortunately did not have shells. [color=7eff9a][b]“Nothing. It was just… I liked it.”[/b][/color] Noah’s eyes found his shoes, his courage spent by that sentence. It was as if he was teetering on the edge of a cliff, trying desperately not to fall off into the abyss that was, “JD thinks I’m a freaking weirdo.”

[color=0073d8][b]“Good.”[/b][/color] JD replied again simply, his tone far more neutral now. In all of his internal ramblings, he had never once considered if Noah liked being kissed. He just assumed that he had, clearly through confidence inherited from his revolutionary parents. Dixon watched the other boys reactions, his ever-permanent blush, the submissive way he stared at his shoes. It awakened that almost predatory lust he had felt earlier and, acting on impulse, he leaned forward and forced Noah’s face back upward with another kiss. JD kissed him until he backed Noah up against a wall and then stopped with a smirk. [color=0073d8][b]“Good. You’ll be my dirty little secret then. ‘Cept from them…”[/b][/color] JD nodded towards the direction of the kitchen. [color=0073d8][b]“They already know. Mom’s a psychic witch and dad… well, you know.”[/b][/color]

Noah grinned, despite the awkward memory of their interrupted kiss. He didn’t care that he was JD’s dirty little secret. At least he was his. He leaned forward, his lips interlocking with JD’s again because wow, he’d only been kissed twice but it was really starting to grow on him. It was as if everything before had been black and white, and now, colors were bursting from the seams, colors he hadn’t even known existed. It was electric and explosive and in every way, magical. Pulling away, his lips curled into a smile. [color=7eff9a][b]“I like that. A lot.”[/b][/color]

[color=0073d8][b]“Not even Katie, promise?”[/b][/color] The smoldering way that JD looked at him through his eyelashes as he asked that was nothing short of manipulative. But it had to be. [color=0073d8][b]“I don’t like people knowing my business, or anything about me really, and we both know she’s got a big mouth.”[/b][/color] More than just that, JD was not prepared for the world (see also: BHHS) to know about his… confused sexuality. [color=0073d8][b]“You’ll only get more if you can keep it a secret.”[/b][/color]

How could he say no, when JD was looking at him like that? Did he want to tell Katie? His brain thought he did, but other parts of him were not so certain and those other parts were currently leading the charge. [color=7eff9a][b]“Okay. Promise,”[/b][/color] Noah said. For the first time in what felt like forever, he had something that made him really and truly happy. He wasn’t about to throw it away. Suddenly, every stupid romantic comedy he’d watched with Katie made sense. With JD standing in front of him, looking like [i]that[/i], he was pretty sure he’d jump in front of a train for the green haired musician. 

This response pleased him. JD smiled, [color=0073d8][b]“Good boy.”[/b][/color] he said as he turned to keep walking. This was going to be okay, sneaking around and enjoying each others company. Neither of them were very popular, they could keep things quiet and under the radar. This was… good. Very good. [color=0073d8][b]“C’mon, I’ll show you the rest of the house before dinner comes.”[/b][/color][/color][/indent]