SAM

Like a lost little puppy, Sam walked in after his sister at her heels, so close that when she stopped, he bumped his nose into her shoulder. Margaret was hanging off the arm of her best friends, Barbie who they picked on the way. They were both as tall as Sam in heels and smelled like different varieties of fruit at the supermarket. The school gymnasium was blasting with Christmas music, assaulting Sam's eyes with all the green, reds, and golds. It was a mix of ugly sweaters and nicely dressed teens with disgruntled teachers that definitely had better things to do somewhere else, but they were trapped her.

Last Christmas played as Sam stepped through the flecks of glitter littering the floor and he immediately regretted every decision he made today.

"Okay." Margaret clapped her hands together, twirling around to Sam. "What do you want to do first? Grab some food or drink or do you want me to introduce you to Thomas first?"

"I texted the guys," Barbie said, her nose pressed against her cellphone screen. She was a mystery to Sam with her strawberry blonde hair cut to shreds with kitchen scissors to make a homemade wolf-cut, but her dress was lacey and white, but she also wore converse, but she also had black nail polish and an actual tattoo her mother let her get this year. He could never pin her down. He wanted to study her like a new fish found at the bottom of the ocean.

"They're already here," Barbie explained. "Chad has a flask of vodka."

"Sam?" His sister asked again.

Glancing around, Sam pursed his lips. "Honestly, I'm trying to decide what would be the best thing to kill myself with. Maybe one of those ugly fake icicles or maybe the star on top of the tree—"

Barbie snorted, but Margaret put all her aggression of seventeen painful years with Sam to punch him in the arm hard enough that he thought it might explode off his tendons. "Ow!" Sam whined and nursed his pounding arm. He could feel the bloom of a bruise already and whirled a look of hurt at his sister. "Watch it! You're wearing rings."

"Can't you be normal!" Whenever Margaret yelled at Sam, he thought he was seeing his mother and she was just one yank of his ear away from sending him to bed with no dinner. "For once in your life!"

Sam's brilliant rebuttal was to pout and rub his arm some more. He whispered, "Sorry. Yes. I'll be good."

With a snicker, Barbie shook her head and said, "They're coming over."

She didn't even look up.

But Sam looked around and swallowed a groan when he spotted a few of Margaret's friends, waving them down. It was the usual suspects Chad, Toby, and Kevin with their girlfriends and their girlfriends' friends. Margaret always came with a small stampede.

"What's up? Maggie!" Chad greeted her with a side hug. He was hunk of a man, built like an ox with a shorn head and an actually well-fitted blue suit. When he smiled, it revealed his cute little tooth gap.

"And it's Hayes, what's up man?" Chad lifted his hand, faking Sam out like it was going to be a high five, but Chad yanked him into a quick bro hug that knocked the wind out of him. This was the side of the jock spectrum that referred to everyone by their last name if you were a dude.

"How's it going?" Sam asked, holding back his flinch.

"Aw, nothing much man. Hey," He said, reaching back for another guy, who was built the same way, tall, lean, and with a little muscle on him. Sam was instantly jealous that this stranger got to keep his glasses on tonight and was further fascinated by his black fade that was longer dreads on top that were bleached a honey color.

"This is my man, Thomas." Chad slapped both hands on Thomas's shoulders, massaging them like he was getting his buddy ready for a fight.

Thomas walked up, taller than the rest with warm brown skin and by looking at him, Sam could tell this guy took care of himself. That he was a stickler for detail by the way his red glasses matched the small notes of red in his outfit, by the shine of his shoes, and the roll of his shoulders.

"Nice to meet you," Thomas said in his baritone and something inside of Sam fluttered.

"Uh, hi—" Sam's voice cracked, and he had to clear his throat and start again. "Hi."

He did not wake up this morning expecting this.

#

NED

5:50PM

Ned had the unfortunate chance of catching the two girls at the other table looking at him again. Over the past twenty minutes, Ned came to realize they were on a date and very much in love. Mocking him. These girls were holding hands, wearing matching bracelets, and laughing at each other's jokes like love was somehow the easiest accomplishment in the world.

They both darted their eyes away from Ned as soon as he noticed them and then, not so subtly whispered to each other.

Ned glanced at his phone. The coffee in front of him sat half drunk and it grew older by the minute. His phone is still silent. No one was posting anymore. Having too much fun in their real lives to be bothered.

"Do you think he's getting stood up?" The redhead asked in what she must've thought was a whisper but was really more of a stage whisper so the entire audience of the coffee shop could hear it. A few more people glanced his way.

Ned dropped his head on the table. Griffin was just late. They got along well enough for him to at least shoot Ned a text. He was at least worth a half-ass apology and some excuse. He'd take anything: stomach flu, plans with family, or even his cat was on fire.

Sitting back up, Ned put his coat back on and started refreshing Instagram over and over, until there was something new.

#

SAM

"Sorry," Sam started, which was already a terrible way to start any conversation. Margaret and the others were bumping and grinding on the dance floor now that they were finally playing something other than a Christmas song. Sam would rather throw himself through a window than dance with the sweaty horde of horny teens, so he asked Thomas if he wanted to grab a drink instead. Chad slipped Thomas the flask of vodka with a thumbs up.

Now, Thomas splashed at least a shot (Sam wasn't sure) into his cup. They were sitting on the bleachers, watching the party go by instead of participating in it. "For the sudden..." Sam's hands circled around as he struggled to find the words.

"Date," Thomas said to him.

Sam flushed. "Right." He took a sip of his spiked drink and was surprised by how little he hated it. A warmth spilled down his throat and filled his belly. "It must look so desperate and weird, especially coming from Maggie Hayes's nerdy brother."

Seemingly unperturbed, Thomas took a drink and leaned back. He oozed casual as if a tornado touching down in the middle of the gym wouldn't even bother him. There was something quiet about him. Sam wasn't used to it. "Is that what you put on your business cards?"

"Right next to my number: 1-800-get-a-life."

Thomas smirked and it just hurt worse that this could be so easy with someone Sam just met than anyone else. Absolutely anyone else.

"It certainly piqued my interest. I like weird."

"You're in luck. I have buckets of it."

Thomas laughed again. "Why then? Why have Maggie set us up if you feel weird about it?"

His dark brown eyes looked into Sam's, and he felt like slamming the door to his thoughts shut. Any sureness he had burned to a crisp and Sam stared into his drink that couldn't possibly judge him. He admitted, "It's dumb. I was just trying to bug a friend of mine."

"A friend?" Thomas snorted and that smug little smirk of his stayed put. He wore it like his favorite sweater. "You don't go on a date with some other person just to bug a friend."

Sam's eyes lingered on Thomas. They just stared at each other until Sam broke the silence. "I'm not a very honest person and I'm kind of tired of feeling anything at all."

Sam looked up at the ceiling, knowing exactly everything his parents would want him to do. They'd want him to tell a teacher that the other kids were drinking. They'd want him to come home right away with his sister. But what did Sam want? He didn't want the right thing to do. He wanted to do the bad thing. 

The first bad idea that came to Sam's head flew out of his mouth, "Do you wanna just go somewhere and make out?" 

That smirk Thomas had curled into a wicked grin. "Yes." He nodded, pushing himself up and slipped his hand into Sam's. It was so warm and it'd been so long since he touched another person's skin that wasn't someone in his family that this touch felt electrified. Sam's heart was beating faster now as his words caught back up to him.

He met Maggie's eyes from across the gym and she drew a question mark with her face. Sam shot her a thumbs up, before quickly looking away. This was a game of chicken and he didn't want to stop. In the back of his head, he remembered her saying something about rebellion. Rebellion sounded good right about now.

#

NED

6:15PM

Ned pressed his forehead into the table and wondered if he could sell his soul to be given the ability to disappear. Everything in this café was suddenly too loud and too crowded with people. Even the smell of coffee tasted sour in the back of his throat. He dug his forehead deeper, trying to make a crater.

Once, when Ned was a kid, he went to a haunted house with Lena and her family. He got so scared, he actually threw up, but he didn't want to bother Lena's parents with it, so he kept it in his mouth through the entire event.

It wasn't until they walked outside and some guy with a chainsaw came running after them that Ned spewed. It got all over the grass, his clothes, and the chainsaw guy's shoes.

Right now.

It felt a lot like back then.

"That guy definitely got stood up."

#

SAM

Sam's initial assessment of Thomas was more correct than Sam expected. Thomas was still all about the details, even down to the way he slipped his hand from Sam's jaw to the back of his head. He led the way and Sam tilted his head, opened his mouth, and breathed in, following Thomas's moves as if they were performing a round robin. Finally, he got to play Ginger Rogers to Fred Astaire. He just wished something dreamier was playing and not Rockin' Around the Christmas tree.

He imagined some ballroom with a stringed orchestra and a whole room of awed onlookers. Instead, Sam was in the last stall in the men's bathroom outside his high school gymnasium. Sam gasped between another kiss and Thomas's lips missed his mouth, pecking his chin and that didn't stop the guy. Thomas's lips did a detour down his neck and the backs of Sam's arms and legs were littered with goosebumps.

Brain off.

Queer gaze on.

Sam pressed his lips together as he bubbled with the anxiety of anybody coming in here to spot a four-legged person in the last stall. It was all happening so fast, and he couldn't pump the breaks. For the first time in months, Sam felt like he cut his strings and he could be free to fall. Wind in his hair. The sky and clouds all around him. A rush. A thrill.

A feeling like flying.

"You're a soccer player, right?" Sam asked, flushed at the sound of his voice. It was breathless. Unlike him at all. "Are you sure you didn't letter in kissing?"

Thomas chuckled, kissing Sam once more before muttering something like, "I'm so glad I cancel my previous plans. This is so much better."

"Thomas, wow. I didn't realize I was so special."

He laughed again and Sam felt like he was really on a roll. "You know, if we're gonna be making out, you should really call me by my first name."

Falling always felt like flying until you hit the ground.

Sam quirked his brow, staring down at the boy in-between his hands. This guy smiled wickedly and announced, "My name's actually Griffin. Griffin Thomas."

Sam froze as he watched in painful slow motion as Griffin fucking Thomas leaned in for another kiss. His blood ran ice cold, ice chips cutting the lining of his body. Sam pushed Griffin's (fucking Griffin fucking Thomas) chest and looked at him again as if for the first time. "You wouldn't be the sam Griffin going on a date with Ned Flowers tonight, would you?"

Please be wrong, Sam begged. Please, please be wrong.

The side of Griffin's lips pulled. "Yeah, actually. Do you know Ned?"

Sam's heart popped. That implosion his sister was talking about had finally happened with nothing but wreckage all around him. The world was caving in and the only thing Sam could do was be crushed by it.

"Get out of the stall."

"What?"

Sam's lungs shriveled into raisons as he stumbled back, and he slammed his head into the stall. In one motion, Griffin leapt up with his hands up in surrender. Sam fumbled with the lock and as soon as it opened, Griffin was out, and Sam quickly slammed it shut.

"Sam?" Griffin spoke on the outside. "Are you okay?"

Sam whined, backing up to the toilet and plopping down with his head in his hands. He really didn't expect this when he woke up this morning. 

AUTHOR'S NOTE

LOL. Stuff like this is why I write books. It's so much fun to write (SORRY NED. You'll be fine, I swear). Let me know what you think about the reveal! Ned's date is with Sam! And what did you think about Griffin? 

Don't forget to leave a comment and tell me what you think? What's your opinion on ugly Christmas sweaters? 

(And did anyone catch who those girls were???)