my best friend's friend // cody ko - noel miller

chapter fourteen

        now everything was connecting in cody's head. that's why noel asked him and faelecia to not date each other. that's why noel took her out after he stood her up. and that's why he's sobbing. cody glanced at his best friend, who was still napping. he felt sympathy for him. cody was also worried for faelecia, his feelings were still there for her, but he was just too stubborn to admit them. he looked over at noel, who was snoring, his mouth open.

"guys..." kelsey popped her head out of the corner. cody looked at her and immediately shook noel awake. when noel saw kelsey, his eyes grew along with his pupils. "she's awake."

noel emerged from his seat and sped walked to the room she was in. kelsey and cody were walking normally, but noel was too worried and had to see her right away. he cringed at the sight. his best friend laid in a bed, a feeding tube going through her nose, an iv needle shoved in her hand a clip on her finger. cody walked in and sat down in a chair beside noel, which was placed in front of the bed. noel was quick to grab a hold of her hand. she was still pale, and that concerned noel.

"is it normal that she still looks like this?" he asked the nurse. she nodded and walked over to her.

"she should be pale for a bit, but with the iv and feeding tube, she should be getting colour real soon." she informed. noel knot his eyebrows and sighed. tears were starting to fall from his eyes.

"why's she asleep? is she passed out? in a coma?" kelsey smiled at noel, hoping it would calm him down.

"no, she's just asleep. starvation and dehydration take a toll on your brain. she needs rest," kelsey walked out of the room and closed the door behind her. noel couldn't contain himself, and started to sob.

"i can't believe this! i can't believe we got so mad at her that we caused her to do this!" his voice broke with every word, and he used his free hand to wipe away his tears.

"noel, you have to stop blaming yourself. we did get mad at her but she also did things that weren't fair to us. like sleeping with you on my date night..." cody grumbled, though noel heard every word.

"can you fuck off with that?! why does it even make you so mad man?! you're the one who bailed on her, i'm the one who cheered her up!" noel fought back. cody rolled his eyes and leaned back in his chair.

"you fucked her on the first date. on my first date with her!" noel held on to her hand a little tighter.

"it was a mutual decision, bro! and i didn't screw her, i made love to her." noel protested, only causing cody to scoff.

"what's the difference?!"

"the difference is that i embraced her beauty! i embraced her personality! i made her feel like a queen! i didn't use her! i was gentle because i love her!" cody grinned once he cracked noel. but noel didn't stop, he went off.

"i've loved her since i was a sophomore in high school! she's all i think about, she's who i want to be with! she's my fucking everything cody. and the fact that you planned a date with her and didn't show crushes not only her, but me. seeing her in pain kills me, and seeing her like this is indescribable!" noel took a deep breath and buried his face back in his hands. he let out soft whimpers as he started to cry again.

"wow man, i knew you loved her but... i never knew you were in love with her." cody then took a moment to think. he still liked her, but it was obvious he wasn't comparable to noel. he bit his lip in concentration, it was like a punch in the gut. he wasn't gonna lose his best friend to fight over a girl he knows wouldn't want to date him.

"i-i think i'm gonna take a breather..." cody said, getting up and walking to the door. noel gave him an "im sorry" look before he walked out of the door. while noel stayed and made sure faelecia was okay, cody looked for kelsey. it was clear that he caught her eye and the only way he was going to get over her was to try for someone else. when he found her, he smiled, tapping her on the shoulder. she turned around and smiled at him.

"is she okay? did you come here to get me for her?" she asked him, concern falling in her tone. cody shook his head no, scratched the back of his neck and gave her a cheeky smile.

"actually, i came here to talk to you, just for fun. but only if you have the time..." kelsey looked into his eyes and smiled.

"of course i do, where do you wanna talk?" she smiled at him, causing butterflies to flutter in his stomach.

"we can sit in those chairs outside of her room, just in case she wakes up..." cody suggested, very shy around the nurse. she found it adorable.

"that sounds lovely, let's go!" they both walked to the room and sat on the chairs, initiating conversation.

"so, is that you're girlfriend in there?" she asked, mostly just for clarification.

"no no no! uhh, she's just a close friend of mine. although i'm pretty sure her and noel are going to get together." kelsey nodded and threw her leg on top of her other one, revealing a bit more of her leg. cody couldn't help but stare, although he restrained himself  well. he didn't want kelsey thinking he was a creep.

"oh, so you're single?" she laughed, only hoping her would answer with,

"yes, i am actually." she nodded with a smile. she found cody super attractive. she was hoping he'd come talk to her, and now that he did, she realized how nice of a guy he is. they kept small talk going until they were in deep conversation and invested in each other.

meanwhile, noel was still in the room, watching faelecia. he had stopped sobbing but couldn't help the guilt he felt. he should of been nicer to her, he shouldn't of yelled at her, he shouldn't of left her when she said she needed him. it was all in the heat of the moment. as he pulled out his phone to check the time, he decided now would be a good time to confess his feelings, sort of as a practice.

"faelecia, from the bottom of my heart, i think you should know that there's no other person i want to spend my life with. you bring me so much joy and make every day better. i am so in love with you, with everything you do, and i hope when you wake up that you can forgive me for my shitty acts. i was a complete asshole..." he couldn't help but cry again as he held onto her small hand with his two big ones. they wrapped around perfectly, making noel even more convinced they were meant to be together.

"hmm..." faelecia groaned, stirring in her bed and taking a deep breath.

"oh my god! are you waking up?!" noel got up and opened the door, seeing cody and kelsey sitting right there. he didn't bother to make a comment about them, he alerted kelsey about faelecia. they both rushed in as she sat down where cody was previously sitting. noel went back to holding her hand.

"yep, she's for sure getting up, but it might take her a while. and for her paleness, it seems she's getting a little bit more colour." noel smiled and wiped away his tears, although they were being replaced with tears of joy. he was so anxious to see her beautiful blue eyes open, that he could hardly contain himself. her eyes fluttered open and they first person she laid eyes on was noel. he smiled and started rubbing her hand with his. she opened her mouth but nothing came out. noel leaned in closer, anticipating what she was going to say. cody and kelsey stood back now, watching noel and faelecia intensively.

"noel..." she moaned in pain, closing her eyes to help deal with it.

"yes? i'm right here, you can tell me anything..." she saw that he as tear stained, wondering if it was because of her.

"i love you too..."