"Ok, so what's this ingenious plan?" I asked, nervously rubbing my hands together. While I really appreciated the fact that Lewis had accepting me for me, I was still a little wary on involving him in my love life, which was currently falling to pieces. Before he had been dethroned as king of the school (of at least king of the year group), he had been a well renowned womanizer who went through females faster than I went through underwear.

Lewis responded with only a silent grin, causing me to break out into a scowl. Catching my expression, Lee elbowed Lewis in the ribs, and a satisfied smirk slipped onto my face as he emitted a low hiss of pain much like the noise of a can popping open.

"Ow!" he exclaimed, slapping a hand to his now bruised ribs. "That hurt!"

Lee snorted and tossed a parting over hair over her shoulder. "Good. It was meant to."

I had to laugh when she said that, earning a scowl from Lewis. I raised my hands up in surrender, but couldn't stop a few small sniggers escaping.

"Fine, I'll just not help you then," he huffed, folding his arms across his chest in a pout. I swallowed.

"Hey, hey," I laughed nervously. "Don't get too hasty now..."

He smirked, my embarrassed expression apparently magically curing his sore sides. "Yeah. But you owe me bro. Big time."

This time I snorted. "Please. You made first year a living hell for me, mate. I'm still considering this as part of your whole apology, make up thing."

His smug grin immediately dropped and I felt a slight stab of guilt.

"Yeah," he agreed quietly. "Again, sorry about that."

I coughed a little awkwardly. "Yeah. So, uh, what's this wonderful plan you've got?"

His whole expression altered into a wide smile.

"Can't tell you," he told me with a wink, tapping his nose in that mysterious yet annoying way they do in movies. I felt my fine eyebrows slide into a neat frown in response to his antics. Heaving a sigh, I dropped my disappointed gaze to the murky tiles, not particularly interested in the avid whispers of Lee and Lewis.

"Doesn't matter anyway," I said, my voice soft as my eyes raked the cracked walls. "It's not as though I'll be able to make it up to Jay now, can I? 'Hey Jay, I'm sorry for spilling your secret to the whole fucking world... take me back?'!"

I let out a bitter laugh at the end of my despairing sentence, trying to hide my increasing feelings of dejection with some sarcasm. It was my usual defence technique; aside from sarcasm coming as a second nature, it usually worked.

But for some unfathomable reason, it didn't work with them.

Lewis met my gaze with a sympathetic smile and Lee gripped my forearm tightly. My lip formed a weak, quivering smile.

"Right, I've got an idea," Lewis told us eventually, breaking the strange yet not uncomfortable silence. "Lee, take Ash back to my house... I'll meet you guys there in about half an hour, ok?"

I watched him, stunned, as he furtively glanced around the door on the lookout for a teacher, and skirted around the grass, his movements heavy and clumsy. He lurched forward, tripping over his untied laces and face planting the ground with an almighty smash. A quiet snicker escaped my throat and Lee shot me a look that was caught somewhere between a scold and amusement. A crooked grin stretched across my face.

"Come on," I complained, a slight laugh detectable in my voice. "You've gotta admit, that was just a wee bit funny. Even if you do fancy the arse off him... But look at it this way, you get a better view from this angle..."

I ducked just in time to avoid Lee's furious flailing fist.

"You drop another comment like that again," she warned, her voice a low, aggressive hiss, "and I will personally make sure that you won't be having any make-up sex tonight. And not because of Jay..."

My laugh immediately changed to a splutter.

 "What the hell?" I shrieked, my face rapidly flooding a deep shade of crimson. "I'm... I'm a virgin, for fuck's sake! Christ Lee!"

I was still choking on all the possible responses I could have to that frighteningly mortifying statement five minutes later when Lee impatiently hauled me by the collar out the school grounds.

"For crying out loud Lee!" I wailed, trying to wrench myself from her iron grip. Her white knuckles were clenched, my collar and tie both bunched in her fist. "You're- choking- me!"

Shocked, she released me from her hold. "Shit... Shit, Ash, sorry. I swear to God, I only meant to hurt you a little bit."

"Well that's comforting," I croaked, rubbing the raw patches of skin the scraping collar had left. My tie hung loosely around my neck, the blue and silver colours twisted together in a bizarre shape. But I didn't really care.

All I cared about was fixing this mess with Jay.

Lee smiled. "Look, I said I was sorry, ok? Jeez."

"Whatever," I retorted, shoving my hands into my pockets to stop them from shaking. I blindly followed Lee through a maze of identical streets, bordered by identical modern houses. A cool winter breeze whipped the trees, rustling the dusty auburn leaves. November had ended quickly, the cool autumn weather blurring together with the winter chills.

"I hope Lewis's plan doesn't take long," Lee mumbled absently. "I've got Spanish last period, and I really don't wanna skip anything else, 'specially this close to the prelims."

"Shit," I hissed. In between everything that had happened over the past few months with Jay, my parents, and his mum, I hadn't given the preliminary exams much thought. I'd been going over my notes and keeping up with my classwork as per usual, but the thought of exams had just taken a back seat in conjunction with everything else.

"I'm screwed," I whispered, horrified. Lee laughed.

"Oh come on," she teased, slapping me playfully on the back. "You don't mean to say you haven't noticed the huge 'three weeks to prelims' sign up on old McLynche's classroom door, do you?"

I kept silent, my lips pressed into a tight line. This only set Lee off into more giggles.

"That's insane," she laughed, her eyes playfully amused. I smiled half-heartedly, my mood darkening when my thoughts turned to Jay. I'd never been so hung up on anyone before...

Lee nudged my shoulder gently. "Thinking about your boyfriend again?"

I didn't even have the energy to scowl. Instead, I simply tilted my head back, lost in distant memories of Jay and I's first date. It seemed an eternity ago, when we could freely hold hands.

I missed it.

"Yeah..."

Lee bumped into me again, but this time I met her eyes. She was smiling, her hazel eyes shining with understanding, trying to communicate her sympathy and comfort in one small look.

"Know what I think?" she said, hooking her arm through mine. I shrugged, no longer meeting her gaze, instead taking an unnatural interest in a nearby dandelion sneakily strangling a nearby hedge.

"Ash..."

Sighing, I lazily blew a few stray strands of hair from my eyes and looked up into her own. "What?"

"I think," she told me seriously. "That you and Jay... You'll be ok. Heck, I've only known Jay properly for a couple of weeks, but anyone can tell he's besotted with you. I mean, I just thought you guys were really close friends and everything..." Her eyes glittered mischievously. "But obviously not."

I grinned and playfully elbowed her in the ribs, like she had Lewis so many times before.  She grunted, and rubbed her eyes.

"Ow, you bitch," she said, flinching when she poked the soon to be bruised area. "You're not meant to hit girls."

"I'm gay," I retorted, biting my lip. "That rule doesn't apply."

That was the second time I had acknowledged my sexuality out loud.

It felt good.

Lee suddenly took a sharp turn into a tasteful redbrick house with a neatly trimmed garden. Unlike the other stately homes dotting the driveways, this house had a warm welcome feel rather than one of proud majesty. A trellis of pale pink flowers curved around the white painted door and leafy green ivy stretched over the left side of the property, curling around the shiny windows. It looked directly lifted form a story book, the perfect little family cottage.

Had it not been surrounded by a street of cold, lonely looking buildings of course.

"This is Lewis's place?" I asked, my surprise evident in my voice. Lee raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah..." she replied, surveying my expression suspiciously. "Why?"

I shrugged, slightly taken aback by the homey little house. "I dunno. I guess I was just expecting something more..."

"Extravagant?" Lee offered. I shrugged again.

"Yeah. That."

She nodded in agreement. "Yeah, I know how you feel. When I first came here I was kinda taken aback too."

"You've been here before, eh?" I teased, moving my eyebrows suggestively. She shot me a playful scowl.

"Ash, I think you surrendered all rights to dating jokes when you told us you were secretly gay, and dating your best friend."

My features formed a heavy glower. "Shut up."

Laughing, she raised a hand and chapped the door, then entered the house without waiting for a reply. I was slightly shocked by her evident familiarity with the house – how long had Lee and Lewis been close?

Then again, I couldn't really talk. I had been sharing everything, right down to a bed with Jay.

A smiling redhead suddenly blocked my vision and I stumbled backwards, blinking in surprise. The woman grinned, her shocking red lipstick in combination with her pearly white teeth creating a dazzling effect. I fought the urge to hold up my hand to block out the glint.

"Hi Lee," she greeted pleasantly. "Who's your friend?"

Lee grinned and jerked her thumb in my direction. "This is Ash. Ash, this is Sandra, Lewis's foster mum number one."

Sandra let out a chuckle, her laugh light and tinkling. "Yeah. So I suppose Lewis has already told you all about me and Claire then?"

I shrugged uncomfortably. "Eh, yeah. Guess so."

She blinked a few times, obviously taking my discomfort for homophobia.

"Well, erm, if it makes you uncomfortable..."

Lee snorted, completely giving the game away. I could've slapped her.

"Sandra, Ash is gay. For Jay, me and Lewis's other best mate," she explained between breathless giggles. "But they're also so far in the closet that they're finding Christmas presents."

Sandra's thin eyebrows rose a few inches before she took a deep breath and composed herself.

"Oh... Talk about a bad first impression," she joked.

I grinned. Sandra seemed pretty laid back, especially considering that Lee and I were supposed to be in school.

"Oh, sit down pet," she invited, gesturing to a creamy leather sofa opposite a small TV. "I can't believe the news."

She reached forward and unmuted the telly, the room filling with the sounds of a playground. I frowned in confusion.

"School across Scotland have been given the afternoon off as a result of the disastrous leak of prelim papers," read the caption beneath the scrabbling footsteps. My jaw dropped.

"No way," breathed Lee. Sandra nodded.

"Somebody leaked the exam papers," she explained, stone-faced. "They've had to rewrite all the exams, so they've pushed the prelims forward to January."

Lee and I exchanged a relieved glance.

"Oh, that's my shift," Sandra exclaimed, jumping to her feet. "I've gotta go, love. Nice to meet you, Ash. Tell Lewis there's some food in the fridge, and me and Claire will be back around six, ok?"

"Bye Sandra!" Lee chirped brightly. Sandra smiled, before exiting the house, brushing past Lewis, who was just entering...

With a thoroughly confused Jay trailing behind him.

My heart stopped.

My jaw dropped.

My knees quavered.

"Jay!?"

He looked up, his eyes widening when his gaze fell on me.

"Um, hi Ash," he whispered. I stood still, frozen in disbelief.

"Right," Lewis interrupted assertively. "Jay, me and Lee know everything."

I slapped my forehead. Talk about gently dropping the bombshell.

Evidently, Jay shared my thoughts as his face paled.

"Wha... what?" he asked weakly. Lewis smiled triumphantly.

"Ash told us everything, bro," he clarified, folding his arms proudly across his chest.

"And we're totally cool with it," Lee interjected hastily. I could see Jay swallow nervously, and I felt the sudden urge to throw my arms around him.

But I didn't. I was desperate to learn Lewis's master plan.

"You... you came out to them?" Jay asked hesitantly. "For... for me?"

I scowled. "No, because I'm fucking in love with Lewis. Of course I came out for you, you numpty."

He was fighting a smile. "Oh."

I folded my arms, mirroring Lewis's movements but with much less self-assurance and confidence.

"He's been hysterical," Lee butted in. I shrieked.

"What!? No I haven't!"

"He has," Lewis said gravely. I shot him a venom filled glare.

"I haven't!"

"He's been blubbering about how sorry he is-"

"-And how much he loves you-"

"-And how he would do anything for you to take him back-"

"Shut the hell up!" I commanded them, sending them both into an amused silence. Taking a deep breath, I took a few steps forward, trying not to think too much about my actions.

"Look," I said quietly, my voice a monotone. "Jay, I didn't say all that. I swear. But... but I really am sorry. I'm a complete and utter idiot, and I was just trying to defend you, but... But it completely backfired, and I'm really fucking sorry."

I hastily wiped my eyes with the back of my hand and sniffed. I had no idea what I was saying now; the words were just flowing freely.

"And..." My voice cracked. "And I know you want to break up, but I... I don't ok? I think you're fucking fantastic, and I fucking love you to bits, Jay. As stupid and as gay as that sounds... I do. I really fucking do."

And suddenly I swept into a tight embrace, my face squashed against Jay's shoulder.

"Uh..."

"Who said anything about breaking up?" Jay whispered, his voice catching slightly.

"You did!" I accused. "You said 'I just want to be alone right now'! Don't deny it!"

Jay pulled back slightly, his familiar arms still locked around my waist. "Um... Ash?"

I swallowed anxiously, dreading whatever his next words may be. "Yeah?"

"I, um..." He swallowed, mimicking my own edgy movements. "I didn't mean it like that. I just meant I needed some time to think..."

I don't think I've ever been paler.

"Are you fucking kidding me!?" I exploded, burying my mortified face in his shoulder. "You mean I just outed us to our pals and then admitted a bunch of pathetically mushy shit for nothing!?"

Lee and Lewis broke into laughter in the background, but I didn't care. I simply groaned, wallowing in self-pity.

"I can't believe I just said that!" I wailed. "Let's just forget this ever happened..."

Jay's hold tightened around me, squeezing all the remaining air from my lungs.

"No way."

"What?"

Jay simply closed his eyes and leant his chin on my head. "I said, no way. Ash, I know it's, um, not in your personality to be 'mushy' and stuff, but... it's nice to hear it sometimes..."

I licked my lips nervously. "Oh."

He let out a shaky laugh. "Yeah."

I was vaguely aware of Lee squealing "Cute!" in the background. I was vaguely aware of a highly uncomfortable and blushing Lewis dragging her away to God knows where.

But I was very aware of Jay gently placing his fingers at the back of my neck and slowly placing his soft lips on my own.

I responded enthusiastically, leaning up into the kiss, pushing my rough lips against his smooth ones. Even with my eyes squeezed shut I felt him smile against my lips. I took advantage of it by running my tongue against his half open mouth and prying it open fully. Jay let out a deep, throaty moan in appreciation and I blushed.

It was times like this my inexperience really showed.

I clumsily pushed him to the couch, wrapping my legs around his hips and sitting just on abdomen. It took all my willpower, but I managed to tear my lips from his, blushing even more when he whined in protest, then reattached them to his neck.

"Ash..." he whispered breathily. "We're on someone else's couch..."

I continued running my lips against his neck, his jawline. "So?"

He laughed, his throat vibrating against my lips. "You're brilliant."

A soft smile made its way onto my face. "Yeah. I know."

Jay grinned and placed a warm hand on the side of my cheek, pulling me down for another kiss. I pulled away for air a few moments later, dizzy and breathless, and blushing furiously.

It was definitely one of the most heated kisses we'd ever shared.

It was definitely one of the best.

"Um, Ash?" Jay said, blinking his beautiful green eyes innocently. My stomach exploded into an eruption of butterflies.

"Yeah?"

"I... I love you," he whispered, snaking his arms around my waist and pulling me down onto the sofa beside him. I smiled; a wide, content, genuine grin as I sank into the leather beside him.

"I love me too," I joked, laughing as his face paled and he blinked, obviously flustered.

"Oh, relax," I told him, snuggling into his warm arms. "I love you too. Happy?"

He sighed, only holding me tighter. "Yup."

I grinned. "Me too."