Completely Unexpected - 1. Chapter 1 - Shoebox

"Nick, wake up! You can't be late again!" I rubbed my eyes and started feeling my bed for my glasses, finally finding them under my pillow. The alarm clock read 7:40 am.

"Oh god.."

I opened the blinds and stared outside. Today seems like a good day. It's the second week of school, and it feels like it's alright.

Yeah, life's alright. I guess? "I can't believe we broke up.. I don't know what to think. I should be sad, but.. I guess it wasn't a very healthy relationship..." I mumbled while making my way to the bathroom, down the hall.

"Nick! Hurry up!" My mom sung. She always sounds happy, makes me smile.

"I'm up, Ma! I'll be down in a sec!!"

"Okay!" She sang, even louder than the first time. I looked in the mirror and gave myself a toothy grin. I could be cute. I could be handsome and popular.. If I wasn't so damn scared I guess. Why does stuff like that matter so much in high school? Why does it matter if I'm gay or not? It's just a part of me.. like ignorance is a part of every heteronormative asshole.

I brushed my teeth, put in my contacts, and checked myself out in the mirror. I have longish blonde hair, and I think it looks pretty good? Though my brown roots are totally coming out, so it looks kind of messy... I was only blessed with one dimple, but I guess that's cute enough to distract from the rest of my face and acne. I'm almost six feet tall, minus a couple inches... And I'm so thin, it's kind of scary... I'm just a big, steaming pile of..

"Ten minutes until you're late, again!.. Nick!"

I ran into my room and slipped on a pair of, probably clean, jeans and a plain light blue hoodie. "I'm coming, I'm coming!" I assured as I made my way downstairs and into the kitchen. My mom had made breakfast for Lucy and herself. Knowing that I'd probably be late, she handed me a banana and toast. "Why don't I get the scrambled eggs and bacon?"

Luce stuck her tongue out at me and threw a piece of cereal at me, like a true toddler would. "Nicky!" She started speaking gibberish and stuffed her face with more cereal.

"Yeah well, maybe you'd get actual food if you woke up as early as Luce does. She wakes me up every morning, at 6 am, just so she can get her hands on some applesauce. Why not get solid goals, like her?" Mom teased and took a sip from her mug, which read 'Greatest Mom'. She really was. I remember when she first got her daycare business started up and running. We were low on money after dad passed away, and her night shifts at the diner weren't really enough to keep up with bills and food, so she started Diana's Darling Daycare. It took a bit, but she turned Dad's old office into a play area for kids. I'm happy she has something else to take her mind off Dad, it just makes me sad to see her work so hard.

"Oh I have solid goals!" I responded but didn't really have any examples to back me up...

"Well make one of them a diploma and get to class!," She patted my head and practically shoved me out the door. I grabbed my bike and rode to school, barely making it on time. You'd think that living this close, I wouldn't be as late as I am..

"On time today, I see. Good morning, Mr. Davis." Mrs. Carter snorted out from behind her desk, gesturing towards my seat. First period was the only period I despised; but today, I hated it twice as much. Why? Well, I was outed last year, so you can imagine how I feel. It's as if the entire world was looking at me under a microscope. What kind of gay are you? Are you the girl, or the guy? Does this mean you have a crush on me? In reality, no one really knows I exist, but I can still feel anxious, so don't judge me.

As Mrs. Carter started lecturing on the importance of syllabic stress and patterns in poetry, I gazed out the window, looking at the clouds. They seemed unusually whiter and fluffier today, soaring above us. I could only ever dream of flying like that.

I was watching a bird peck at the ground when a tall guy caught my eye. He looked cold and annoyed, his hands in his pockets and ear buds in his ears. He was walking up the steps to enter the school and looked about my age, but I had never seen him before. "Must be new.." I accidentally muttered aloud.

"And what do you think about Emily Dickinson, Mr. Davis?" She slammed her foot on the ground, snapping me out of my thoughts.

"Emily Dickinson?" I sat there, awkwardly.. "Well, she was just so sad.."

---

English was a pain. Thank God I have a free period next; I walked out of the classroom and made my way to the front office, where I had to sign out before leaving. "Good morning Ms. Howell," I smiled at Principal Ross's secretary and wrote my name on the sign out sheet when Ross's door opened.

"Elliott, if you could wait outside for a moment. I have to look at the list of.. Oh, Nick! Just the guy I wanted to see," I smiled sheepishly, noticing the cute guy Principal Ross just brought into the hallway. He was the same guy I saw outside, but looking at him now, he was definitely a lot hotter up close.

"Good morning, Principal Ross," I went in for a handshake, but he pulled me into a tight hug and patted my back.

"What are you up to right now? You have a free period, right?"

"Well.. Yes haha," I nervously scratched the back of my head.

"Do you think you could be Elliott's Rose-Buddy for the week? He just moved here and doesn't really know Rose Hill, so you'd be doing a nice thing." He pushed him towards me and stepped right back into his office. "I knew you'd say yes haha. Now, I need to go call the wife, so have a good day!" And he slammed the door shut.

I stood there awkwardly, hating the fact that he did this... again.

"Hey, I'm Elliott Guinn," When he smiled, his face lit up and I couldn't help but smile back. "Thanks for doing this haha."

"Well we're all new at some point in our lives, right? I don't mind helping out," I smiled awkwardly and helped him find his locker. "So you have a few days leniency, being new and all. Do you have your schedule on you?" I couldn't look at him, his eyes were too pretty of a brown...

"Uh, yeah." He checked his pockets in a hurry, but couldn't find it. "Must be in my backpack, give me a sec..." He sat on the floor and looked through his things.

"Nah dude, it's like the fucking bitch hated me before she even met me. What the fuck is that, right?" A group of jocks turned the corner, meeting us. Before I could even think, I flinched and prepared to be thrown against the wall.

"Nicky, Nicky! Bro, what's up," They pushed me onto the ground, completely missing Elliott. "No-Dick Nick get a pair yet? You fucking fag," They surrounded me and waited for an answer, but I didn't say anything. I looked at the ground, knowing what was coming next. Jackson came up from behind the group and looked down at me, not really looking at me in the eyes.

"Hey Jackson..." I looked up from the ground, hoping to meet his eyes, but his just stared at the ground. After a tiny moment of silence, he opened his mouth.

"Don't talk to me, fag," He finally met my eyes. They were filled with so much hate, I couldn't help but shiver. "Ready t o get thrown into the fucking dumpster, bitch?"

"Why don't you guys just fuck off!" Caught off guard, we all looked a few feet over, to find a now standing and enraged Elliott, with his fists clenched.

"Who the fuck are you, pretty boy?" Harry Lloyd smirked, taking a step towards him.

"Elliott Guinn, your new fucking quarterback. Who the fuck are you?" Elliott walked up to Harry, towering over the only guy at school who was even shorter than me. Elliott's demeanor made him flinch. Even Jackson was slightly taken aback, but walked up to him, meeting his stare. "And you?"

"Jackson Krell, the quarterback for the Rose Hill Knights."

"Yeah well not for long bitch, now back the fuck up and leave us alone."

"Don't threaten me." He spit at him, but Elliott's expression didn't change. He looked like he was ready to fight, but Jackson was smarter than that. He had his boys follow him out, turning around only to look at me for a second, then left.

"Wow." I sighed under my breath. Elliott relaxed and turned back into the nice guy that I'd met just a few moments before, reaching his hand out to help me up. "That was incredible.."

"I just hate shit like that. You'd think people like that don't exist, but then you see crap like that."

"Uh huh," I stared at him. He was so scary... but he made my heart skip a beat. He pulled a paper out of his backpack and smiled.

"My schedule, sir." He handed it to me, pulling his backpack back on. "Think you could show me to the football coach's office when we're done?"

"Uh huh." Voice cracking, I slowly nodded.

---

"Coach Gibb's Office is down the hall to the left from here." I smiled, handing him his schedule back and holding the door open for him. "I hope that you enjoyed this tour, if you liked this video please leave a like and comment, share and subscribe." I joked around, but his silence made me cringe.

"Thanks dude." He smiled, lighting up his face and mine. "It means a lot. Do you think we could sit together for lunch?"

"Sure, just find me? I usually sit with a few friends by the glass doors and big windows, you won't miss it."

"Awesome, see ya later then," He winked at me, and I lost it! Consider me head over heels! We parted ways, sadly.. But, checking the time, I was almost going to be late for my geography class, so I booked it, relaxing when I was greeted by an old substitute and his photo album of cats.

"Nick Davis," He checked the attendance sheet and I took my seat by the window. I love subs, they never do anything so I can just stare outside and think about whatever's on my mind, which I guess now is Elliott. Elliott Guinn. The name alone gives me goosebumps. He looked like he works out, which makes sense if he's a football player. He called me dude... So he's probably straight. He's too hot, not to be. That's alright I guess.

Looking out the window, I could see the jocks that bullied me earlier, sitting under a tree by the track field. Harry was laughing at something that Eric Wilson had said. Danny Lopez was listening to music, falling asleep. And Jackson.. Well, he was staring into the sky. He looked like he was trying to solve the world's hardest equation or trying to figure out what the purpose of life is. I miss him. I miss when he would sleepover every night and we'd stay up talking about stars and planets and how small we were compared to them. I even miss when he would go on and on about Marianna Gomez's boobs and legs. I didn't really like that particular subject of conversation, but I loved hearing him talk. I loved him. But that's over now.

My mind went on to think about my Dad's accident.. Mom, Jackson and I decided to have extra-spicy tacos for dinner, excited for Mexican goodness. Dad had just left to the airport, on his way to Illinois to meet a big-time client. He was nervous leaving, after a week had passed and Lucy hadn't been born yet, but Mom reassured him that if he missed it, she would take plenty of pictures. And so, with a smile, he left us with our spices and went on his way; But, just a couple hours later, my mom cried out that the baby was coming. Neither of us had a driver's license, but Jackson took the wheel while I comforted my mom. I called my dad to let him know what was going on, meanwhile hoping that Jackson wouldn't crash, and heard him say that he was turning around. We got to the hospital just in time, as my mom started sweating and breathing loudly. They took her in, but kept us waiting outside with a nurse, unsure what to do with us.

We waited for about an hour, hoping to get a call from my dad, saying that he was here, but instead, we were greeted with yelling and flashing lights from the emergency entrance. A man had been on the road when a drunk driver missed a stop sign. Both drivers were heavily injured, neither lived to see the next day. My heart sank. Somehow, I knew that man.. The man who died on September 3rd, 2016 at 9:07pm, was my dad. We were devastated. Jackson was by my side that entire month, sleeping over practically every night. We weren't ever going to be the same.

"Nick?"

"Huh..?" I looked up to see Sienna Jones staring down at me, with her beautiful brown eyes. She was standing there, waiting for me to get up.

"Boy, you were supposed to walk with me after your class." I looked around noticing class had ended and Sienna made her way over from her class. "I know you're not gonna make me wait all day for you to get up. Your girl is hungry, and you know how I get when I'm hungry." She started tapping her foot, threatening to hit me with her purse. "Boy!"

"I know, I know." I rolled my eyes, picking up my bag with a groan.

"Don't sass me! Jared's saving our table, so you know a girl or two already stole our seats."

"Oh fuck, you're right. That can't happen, I invited someone to sit with us."

She made a face. "Is he cute?" She laughed as we started towards the cafeteria. I gave her a look and she screeched. "Ah! Girl, you know I'm ready for a man!" She stuck her tongue out and chuckled. Pulling her phone out, she searched for any pictures she could find of him online. "Guinn? Are you sure it wasn't Quinn?"

"That's not him, but he's cute too.." I stuck my tongue out, copying her and getting a sassy eye roll from her.

"Nicky, you little hoe. Ohhh! Oh! I found him! He really is hot, think he's straight?" She questioned.

"I'm no.."

"Oh he is, look at his ex!.. She's so hot, wow." She handed me her phone, opening the door to a loud and bustling cafeteria. Wow, the girl with Elliott really was hot. She looked as tall as me, but with really big boobs and cuter hair. She was definitely a cheerleader, and she dropped a heart in the comment section. My breath stopped for a second, but I picked myself up again.

He wasn't even that hot.. But he's so nice. I guess, I just feel disappointed. Gay guys are supposed to all be beautiful, bursting rainbows, right? I wear hoodies and go to gym class to sit and hope I'm not called on to play. I'm not sassy like Sienna, and I can't really do girl talk. What kind of gay am I? I'm basically still a virgin.. mostly.

We took the food to our regular table, greeting our friends Jared Hughes and Amber Harding. "Hey guys, how's your Monday?" She smiled and gestured to the seats in front of them.

"Good how about yours?" I sat down with Sienna, both of us looking equally confused.

"Jared, why aren't there any girls around you? I know it's like the second week of the semester, but not even any freshmen? That's just sad.." Sienna sipped on her tea and bit into her burger.

"You guys make me sound like a whore.." he looked up, pleadingly, but we just looked at each other and shrugged. "I'm not a whore!" We laughed so hard, Sienna snorted and started to choke.

"Oh my god!" Amber started cackling when a familiar set of eyes caught my attention. Elliott was waved towards us, so I jabbed Sienna's side to get her to calm down. She gave me her stink eye, but when she saw why, she checked her reflection in a hurry!

"Hey Elliott! This is Sienna, Jared and Amber. They're pretty cool people," I smiled, gesturing towards the empty seat in front of me. Elliott politely greeted them and sat down.

"Pretty cool people? Who the hell even says that? Where was 'this is my beautiful, goddess of a friend Sienna. Please proceed to worship, at your own risk' huh?" She went to kick me under the table, but ended up kicking Jared.

"Dude, chill out! I know I'm hot Nick, but you don't need to literally hit on me!" he wiggled his eyebrows and winked at me, but I laughed at him. "What, baby? You know you can't resist me." He started making "kissy faces" at me, but I laughed again and looked over at Elliott.

Zoning out, I started thinking about him. The sun was hitting his face so perfectly. His cheeks were so rosy and cute. And his smile was warm and inviting. He didn't seem like a regular jock.. Though, I definitely would've believed it had today not happened. He looked like he could knock every one of those guys out. I envied that. I wish I had a body like that. I wish I could be so tall, and so buff, I could give one look and intimidate anyone.

"Sure, I'd love to." Elliott Smiled.

"Huh?" I snapped back into reality, trying to understand what just happened.

"Awesome, it's a date." Amber was smiling just as brightly as Elliott was. I'm upset! What just happened!?

"Sienna, mind coming with me? I want more soda."

"Sure." She shrugged.

"What just happened? Did Elliott just agree to go on a date? What?"

"Chill out, Nick. She invited us to a party at her place, Friday night." Sienna smirked when I sighed in relief. "But..."

"But?"

"But he did mention how he had to run some errands beforehand, so she insisted that she come with," She smirked even wider, "so she could help out where she can."

"That hoe!"

"Hey, Amber's our girl. She asked him out first, fair and square. Besides, he's straight remember?"

"Yeah, I know.. It's just.. You know?"

"I know. It's like when you told me you and Ja.."

"Sienna, please don't.. Say his name." I looked at my empty cup and started refilling it.

"Well, I was just gonna say, it sucks that you're gay." She smiled and rubbed my shoulder. "It sucks that every damn time I like a guy, he's a fucking gay..," she muttered, "but I made peace with it, so can you." We started our way back to the table where only Jared, in disappointment, sat. Apparently, Elliott and Amber hit it off so well, she's helping him find his next class. How.. fantastic.

---

I only got more and more anxious as the day went on. All I could think about was Amber and Elliott hanging out, and I know that he's straight and I shouldn't think about it, but I couldn't help it. He was just so chivalrous. It was amazing seeing him stand up to all the people that give me shit everyday. School let out at about 4:30 pm, so Sienna and I went to the mall for a bit to buy some clothes for the party. We left at about 7:00 pm and she drove me back home. On the way back, she talked about how excited she was for Friday.

To clear up any confusion about my friends, here's some information. Sienna's been in my life since the sixth grade, and she stated that she had a crush on me. I turned her down, confessing that I didn't think I liked girls and eventually, she was okay with it. We became friends then. She's always been a bit conceited and sassy, but she's grown so much as person since then. As a junior in high school, she's a lot less self-absorbed and even goes out of her way to show that she cares about people. She's blunt and demanding, but I think it works well for a quiet, shy guy like me? She's my best friend now, and I couldn't ask for a better one.

Amber's been our friend since about the same time, but never was as close with us as we were with each other. She was always really pretty, so she spent a lot of time with the boys trying to tie her down; But her looks weren't the only things they were interested in. As much as I hate to admit it, she's probably the nicest girl I know; always has been. Even now that her chest size rocketed into the double-D's, she'd much rather spend her time caring for the needy than doing whatever else regular teens do.

Jared? Well, he's actually an even newer edition to our circle. Jared used to be a complete jock, but tore his ACL and fractured too many parts of his body to continue. While trying to get Sienna's phone number, she told him that he'd have a better shot if he turned out to be gay, so he gave up. When he saw Amber, he fell in love, so he started hanging around us, but she never really realized he had a thing for her. Now, he's become our friend, but it definitely took some time.

I walked upstairs and into my room, taking off my hoodie and jeans. I sat in bed and looked at the pictures on my mirror. The first one I saw was of a time that Amber, Jared, Sienna and I went to the carnival and took a selfie on the ferris wheel. It was a fun day. I had so much cotton candy, by the end of the night, I was throwing up pink sugar. Just under that was a torn up picture of Sienna, Amber and me at someone's pool. My heart started to ache. I reached under my bed, feeling for a small shoebox. When I found it, I opened it up to see the rest of that picture. Jackson's smiling face was in it. He had invited us to his house for his birthday. Close friends only, we took a dip in the pool and had hotdogs and burgers afterwards.

Jackson? I guess I forgot to mention him earlier, though I don't really consider him a friend anymore. There a lot to say about him.. Just... We were really close.

"Nick, I'm calling in sick for work. I'm feeling like we should binge some TV!" My mom called out.The doorbell rang. "Oh... Someone came to see you! Go ahead, sweetie."

"Who..?" My door creaked open, and my heart leaped out of my chest.

"Hey.. Nick." He looked at the ground, nervously biting his lip and clenching his fists.

"... Hey, Jackson."