Brad & Nick

chapter twenty: the end of a good thing

Brad's limo pulled in around two in the morning. I would have known that if I hadn't passed out in the basement. I woke up several hours later, with drool on the side of my face, on top of Lucas' futon to the sound of Brad's voice, which sounded like an orchestra to my pounding head. I pulled the covers over my head, trying to block out Brad, but it was useless. He clearly hadn't had a lot to drink last night or else he wouldn't be yelling at the top of his lungs at me so early in the morning.

"Brad," I mumbled, my throat dry. "Shhhh."

"Did you just shush me?" Brad snorted. " You're in my brother's bed, and you're shushing me. Don't tell me that you're hung-over."

I went silent. Technically, I wasn't telling him. Therefore, he couldn't be mad.

"Let him sleep it off," I heard Lucas say to Brad. "He wouldn't have this problem if he was better at beer pong. So how was prom last night?"

"Prom was prom," Brad snorted. "Why do you care?"

"Just trying to make conversation," Lucas replied innocently. "Don't get your panties in a bunch."

"Fuck off Lucas," Brad scoffed, directing all of his rage back towards me. "Nick? Get up. Come on. We're going upstairs."

I groaned as Brad threw Lucas's blankets off of me. Could he be anymore angrier? Jeez. I didn't move a muscle. There was no way I was getting up. I was too tired and I was too hung-over. Brad would just have to get over it. Just like that, Brad slid his arms underneath my back, and lifted me up right out of Lucas's futon like the fucking lug he is. If I weren't so hung-over, I would have protested more. But next thing I knew, I was lying in Brad's bed, groaning about how it reeked.

"Your bed smells," I groaned half-asleep. "I'm going to throw up."

"It doesn't smell," Brad sighed hopping in next to me. "I don't know what your talking about."

"Yes it does, Brad," I said smelling his pillow. "It smells like – "

Gardenia's. That's what it smelled like. Cheap ass perfume. But not just any cheap ass perfume, the same kind that Georgina wears. I could feel my stomach twisting in knots at the thought of her lying in bed right where I was several hours earlier. Her lying on her back, moaning, as Brad drunkenly pounds her until he is satisfied.

"Georgina was here, wasn't she?" I muttered rolling out of Brad's bed. "It smells like her in here and all over your sheets. And don't tell me that I'm fucking paranoid, Brad."

Brad groaned. "She was drunk and she crashed her. I slept on the floor, which is more than I can say for you. I mean after I explicitly told you not to hang out with Lucas, and I find you passed out on his futon with a hangover. What am I supposed to think?"

"Jeez Brad," I muttered. "What? Did you want me to stay home alone, while your having a great time with Georgina at prom? All I did was see a show, and then hang out with him and the band after. He let me crash. That's it, you can even ask him."

"That's it?" Brad smirked balling his hands up. "Please. Don't lie to me, Nick. I know he tried something on you. He wouldn't be him – if he didn't try."

I rolled my eyes. "I mean yeah sure – he tried to come on to me. But I told him we were dating, and he stopped as soon as I said it."

Brad's eyes opened wide. "I knew it! This is exactly why I didn't want you hanging out with him! Fucking Lucas. I swear to God – I'm going to kick his ass."

"Brad, calm down," I huffed. "It was nothing. He didn't know."

"Bullshit," Brad snorted slamming his hand against his desk. "I told him we were dating. I fucking told him a couple of weeks ago, and the bastard still tried. Fucking cunt."

I rolled my eyes. "Just like Georgina has been trying for weeks. Don't even try to act like she didn't try to have sex with you last night."

Brad's face turned red, as he cleared his throat. I narrowed my eyes at him, stopping him before he even opened his mouth because I knew whatever he was going to say was going to be a lie.

"She was drunk," Brad protested.

"So was Lucas," I snorted. "I bet you even got hard, didn't you?"

Brad shook his head. "No I didn't. I was way too drunk for that. But I wouldn't have anyways because we're dating."

"This is a fucking joke," I snorted running my fingers through my hair. "We're a joke, Brad. We shouldn't be dating each other. I knew this was a fucking terrible idea from the get go. I shouldn't have listened to you. You act on impulse – I don't do that."

Brad bit his lip. "No, don't say that Nick. Look! Forget it. Forget it, okay. I'm not mad. Nothing happened. Nothing happened between you and Lucas, and nothing happened between me and Georgina. See argument over!"

Before I could say anything, Brad pulled me into him, and pressed his lips against mine, squeezing me tightly in his arms. I rolled my eyes as he pulled on my lower lip with his teeth.

"Don't break up with me," Brad said in between kisses. "You're all I think about – Don't you know that by now? Even when I was at prom, all I could think about was you, and how much I couldn't wait for us to go together senior year looking fine in our tuxedo's. Me wearing an all black one with a white tie and you wearing an all white one with a black tie."

I rolled my eyes. "Well you've got this all planned out, don't you? Brad, I want to trust you. I want this to work. Believe me – But it's hard. Be honest with me for a second – If we weren't a thing, would you have slept with Georgina last night?"

Brad groaned. "Of course I would have if we weren't together. You already know that. But we are together, and that's why I didn't."

"Brad, I just want things to be simple again," I sighed. "I don't want to have to worry about girls like Georgina. I think for the sake our relationship, we should just go back to being friends before one of us gets hurt."

"I disagree," Brad snorted without hesitation. "I don't want to break-up. It's stupid to end things just because you're afraid of getting hurt. If that's the case, then you should just be single forever, Nick, and never date anyone. There's a potential of getting hurt in every relationship. So why do you really want to break up, Nick? So you can fuck Lucas?"

Everything always comes back to Lucas.

"No," I groaned. "I don't want to fuck Lucas. I'm breaking up with you because you're clearly attracted Georgina, and I'm tired of competing with her. You took her to prom, Brad. She could have had anyone. You let her spend the night, when you could have easily dropped her off home. You like her, Brad. As hard as you are trying not to, you can't help it. So I'm going to make it easier for you, okay. We're over, Brad."

"That's not true," Brad tried to explain, following me as I walked out of his bedroom. "Nicholas. I – Don't do this. Okay? Nick."

He couldn't understand it now. He probably would hate me for this, but I'd rather him hate me then pretend he really wanted to be with me. Brad liked the unattainable. Knowing that he couldn't have Georgina made it all that much more appealing to him. He would say whatever to make me happy. That's not what I wanted. What I wanted was for Brad to be honest from the beginning.

Brad was a great liar. But what Brad didn't know was how perceptive I was. Brad may not have slept with Georgina, but that didn't mean he hadn't tried. He had clearly passed out before they actually got to the dirty deed. I saw the latex-free condoms on his bedside table. Brad didn't have latex allergy and I didn't either. That was the only sign I needed to end things.

"Fine, Nick," he yelled out to me from his front door. "If we're through, then we are done for good. Don't ever call me again."

I was done with Brad. He was done with me.