childhood bully | ambrollins

Chapter Eighteen

"Seth, get in!" Roman yells and honked his horn to get my attention.

I was walking to school when Roman approached me with his car.

"Why?" I stare at him blankly.

"I figured you'd want a ride to school." He answers.

I shrug and get in.

He watches me put my seatbelt on and then he starts driving.

"Are you okay?" He asks and I give him a weird look.

"Why wouldn't I be?"

"You haven't been talking to me lately, at all." Roman says, "Are you mad at me or something?"

I immediately realize how I've been ignoring Roman so much. He's my best friend and I should be telling him everything that's going on but I didn't.

"I'm not mad at you Roman. And I'm okay, better than okay." I tell him and he raises his eyebrow, "I went back to my mothers house, we had a long talk and made up."

"No way, that's great! I'm so glad everything worked out." Roman smiles and I can tell he's genuinely happy for me.

"Thanks man." I smile back.

"And Dean..." Roman starts.

"What about Dean?" My head whips and faces him.

"How are you guys doing? Sasha told me you had a few ups and downs." Roman says.

Of course Sasha told him.

"We did, but we are fine now." I shrug, "It's weird."

"What's weird?" Roman asks.

"I've only known Dean for what...a week? I know so much about him already and I trust him with everything I have." I say and Roman listens silently. "I've just never had that instant bond like that before and it's weird but cool."

"It is cool, I wish I had that. It's like you're soulmates in a way." Roman says and I chuckle at his choice of words.

"Soulmates?" I repeat, "That's a weird way of putting it."

"No it isn't, it's true. You two were meant to find each other and were meant to be friends." He continues, "I just hope he doesn't replace me as your best friend."

"He's not." I roll my eyes.
~~~~~~~~
Dean and I presented our polar opposites project and got the highest grade in our class.

"Are you sure you guys didn't cheat?" Our classmate, Becky Lynch asked.

"We didn't, we just bonded really well." Dean laughs and wraps his arm around my shoulder.

"So did Charlotte and I, we should've gotten a better grade." Becky rolls her eyes.

"You guys didn't get a bad mark though." I try to make her feel better but it doesn't work.

She rolls her eyes again and drags Charlotte out the room with her.
Dean and I look at each other and laugh once they were gone.

Becky always got triggered when she didn't get the best grade in class.

"So, you aren't going to ditch me for your friends now that our projects over?" I joke but Dean doesn't laugh.

"What? I'd never do that." Dean says, "You're my friend now, remember?"

I smile softly.

"And..." He steps closer to me and whispers in my ear, "I like you way more than my other friends."

"I'm flattered...but they aren't very hard to beat." I make a point.

"True." He smiles, "But in all honesty...you're like my favourite person in the world right now."

My heart swells and I try to hold back my smile.

"I'm sorry...did that sound weird?" He laughs nervously.

"Nah, you're my favourite person too." I smile and he smiles back.

"So...baby boy." He says and I smile at the nickname, "Want to get lunch with me in the cafeteria?"

This is the first time Dean was offering to hang out with me during school.

"Are you talking to me?" I pretend to be shocked, "But what about your friends?"

"They can go fuck themselves if they have a problem with it." He shrugs and I laugh at the answer.

"Sounds good." I say and link arms with him as we walk to lunch.