Before I Ever Met You: A Euphoria Book~(Nate and Jules)

1 2 - So Happy I Could Die

NATE

There's a known fact in the animal kingdom that when the prey of a certain animal notices the predator nearby, they give off fear pheromones that only seem to attract the predator even more towards the act of devouring it.

This could have been said about Jules as I saw her facade crack slightly in front of me as we stood across from each other at the counter of my job. Except instead of me wanting to physically eat her, I wanted to ravage her sexually.

It's been said by so many different people that I'm an intense guy; that somehow or another my aura gives off this vibe that I am calculated and a man who is conniving or cruelly cold. I wouldn't say that I am that person, but damn I love the fact that I am able to fool you all so well with my persona that has served me well all these years! Yet the truth remains: the intensity is true.

And it was good to see that Jules also possessed these qualities: I saw the way she practically froze Rue in place with her eyes and crooked mouth, and I thought how truly sexy that was to see.

"What can I do for you ladies?" I asked with a slightly smug demeanor.

"Check us out, Nate. Since when did you start working here?" Rue asked, as Jules continued to look straight at me as if she were tryna pop the lock to a safe with a paper clip.

"About a month ago." I answered her question.

"Cool." was all Jules said as she handed me the money for the transaction, but not without our fingertips touching.

ZAP...

It felt like electricity mixed with ice: the combination of two venoms at one time between two creatures who were truly poisonous to everyone and everything around them.

It was, to say the least, a true gale force of nature.

"Uh, can I get a bag for that?" Jules asked me.

"Yeah, uh, sure." I stammered for the first time, which is something I can assure all of you that I never fucking do.

Jules smiled at me with a strange expression: it was as if she were enjoying trying to make me crack yet deploying a form of coy innocence to mask her motive.

Rue, evidently not enjoying this awkward moment, was straight up;

"Uh, Jules, let's go. Fez wants me to swing by. See ya..." She said in a very uncomfortable tone.

Jules smiled as she walked away, her work evidently being completed and a sense of satisfaction creeping over her...and gnawing away at me in the process.

I just hoped she knew who she was up against if this was exactly what I thought it was...

Because Nate Jacobs never fucking loses a fight.

JULES

I couldn't believe it.

I managed to crack Nate Jacobs with a single interaction.

And here I was this entire time thinking Nate was this formidable foe...

Hah, bitch please.

"Yo, what the fuck happened back there? Nate totally cracked on you." Rue piped up, as if she read my mind.

"Yeah, I know right? I do NOT see what Maddy sees in him." I replied.

"That's either good news for her, or that was a straight up diss at her. Either way, man, you got to him. Good for you." Rue laughed as if she were happy for her own reasons.

I couldn't wait to tell Tyler how I made this dude look, and then as if on cue he messaged me

ShyGuy118: i didn't know you liked record stores.

SHIT

Me: ???

"Rue oh my god....Tyler saw us at the record store!" I exclaimed.

"Dude, for real?" She asked me back, as if this made her uneasy.

"Yeah. He's typing right now." I smiled as I put my phone back in my pocket.

"That totally doesn't creep me out." Rue answered.

"I mean, felt...but I wish he'd at least said hi to me or something." I answered, slightly annoyed now that I thought of this.

"I mean, have you considered the idea that he may not be who he says he is?" Rue fired back.

"What do you mean?"  I asked with a confused smile.

"I mean, what if there's no Tyler? What if it's all a ruse and it's someone else trying to get to you?" She asked me, concern clearly in her voice.

"That's why I'm thinking of meeting him one day soon. But right now I feel like I don't want to think about him anymore. So let's go celebrate my victory over Nate!" I laughed out loud as I started to run and Rue began to chase after me.

I was picking up a very strange vibe in the energy around me, and something pointed to the fact that maybe Rue hadn't just said that out of concern for me and my well-being.

Maybe she had said that out of some sort of crush on me?

I wouldn't be upset if she was into me. I had dated girls before. I mean, it's not like a trans person can only like the opposite of the gender they transitioned into; the words "love is love" weren't made without a reason to say them. Yet at the same time, I didn't know how to feel about that, should it be the truth and I was right.

I didn't feel like adding Rue, my favorite person in the world who I did care about, into the ever-growing list of my mistakes.

Mistakes in cars and in hotel rooms...

Mistakes in gas station bathrooms and in parks late at night...

Mistakes that involved me cutting all ties with my mom...

Mistakes that caused me and my dad to argue, to throw up boundaries and limits to my freedoms....

Ever constant mistakes....

And Rue was not the type to be considered a mistake. She may have made a few, but she was not a mistake.

But dating her without mutual feelings? That might be...the biggest mistake ever.

And I didn't want to chance it.