`` the world still t u r n s., naaate.

[nathanael scott]

HE WAS SHOCKED BY HER QUESTION. Okay, so it was only a few moments ago that he thought he should say something about Heather. It was only a few moments ago that he wanted Noelle to ask him about it. He felt bad for what he did, honestly, but he had got through two years (okay, maybe less than that) of his life pretending it didn’t exist. It was easier when he thought Noelle was still in Texas but now that he knew she was here, studying in the same school as him and staying in the same building… maybe it was better to let it out.

Nate couldn’t think of a way to put it nicely without, well, hurting her. But maybe he ought to give her the benefit of the doubt. It had been so long; maybe she didn’t care anymore. “Well,” he said nervously, retracting his arm from around her shoulder. “I just didn’t feel comfortable with all that engagement talk.” He grimaced. “And I guess Heather understood.”

[noelle murray]

“I just didn’t feel comfortable with all that engagement talk.”

In that moment Noelle felt rather embarrassed, especially since it was her mother idea all along. Her parents were high school sweethearts that got married immediately after graduation and ever since they had pressured Noelle to do the same. Although, the whole blame shouldn’t be put on them. When Noelle brought the engagement talk up, she didn’t really mind the whole idea and it seemed harmless. “Why didn’t you just tell me?” She asked with a sombre expression on her face, even though he couldn’t see it.

Regardless what he would have done back then it probably would have hurt her, however just telling her about how he felt would have been ten times better than to hook up with Heather out of all people.

“The worse thing though is that Heather wasn’t even pretty” Noelle exclaimed sincerely and laughed quickly. She still had the mind of an immature and shallow teenager at times, and this was definitely one of those occasions. Now when she knew why, it all felt much better and she had a feeling she could stop dwell about it all when they’d get out of the elevator. If they would ever get out of the elevator. “Shouldn’t your friend be here soon?” She asked him and waited for his reply.

[nathanael scott]

NATE DIDN’T KNOW HOW TO ANSWER HER.

Why didn’t he tell her? Well, simple. He hated hurting Noelle, but above all, he loathed confrontations. In a way, he had been relieved when Noelle caught him and Heather making out under the stands; That way, everything was “out in the open” (at least that was how he felt) and he didn’t have to go through the lengthy explanations to break up with her.

He resisted the urge to chuckle. “Okay, maybe her face wasn’t that good to look at,” Nate admitted, raising his eyebrow, “but other parts of her body are.” He shrugged. “You know high school boys.”

The lights in the elevator flickered on then in reply to Noelle’s question. Thank God. Nate stood up and offered his hand to Noelle to help her up. “Looks like we don’t need him anymore,” he commented, dusting his pants just as the elevator whirled back into action.