Alright, part 7 is here! Sorry it's late but I think you're going to like this one :)
Untold Futures part 7
The next week was a blur of activity for Thomas. His friendship with Newt grew, despite his tentativeness. Everything Thomas tried to stop his feelings from growing along with it failed. Each time they said goodbye Thomas found himself longing for the hello. Everything around him made him think about Newt. And atop of all this, Thomas had a moral duty to himself to keep his 4.0.
He certainly wasn't complaining though. Thomas loved being able to eat lunch with his two best friends, being part of the chess club, and staying true to his values when it came to school (even if it meant spending all night behind his desk). Newt being a part of two of those things felt like a blessing and a privilege. As if one wrong move could change everything.
That's why on Wednesday when Newt asked if they could meet at Thomas’s house on Thursday instead of Newt's, he consented without hesitation.
“Yeah absolutely! My parents won't be home tomorrow, but I'm sure it's fine!” He smiled.
“Great! It's just my mum is having some co-workers over but I didn't want to cancel our… Chess session,” Newt replied enthusiastically.
“Cool, you're not allergic to cats are you?” Thomas asked.
“No… Do you have a cat?” Newt responded with a raised eyebrow.
“Yeah, haven't I told you?” He laughed.
“I don't think so. I guess I'll meet him or her tomorrow. Bye Tommy!” Newt suddenly waved goodbye before leaving. Now Thomas only had one problem. Newt was coming to his house. Thomas quickly drove home, seeing as the chess meeting was over and he had nothing else to do at the school.
“Hey mom?” Thomas called, walking into the living room of his house when he got there. “I know you guys work tomorrow, but is it ok if Newt comes over after school tomorrow?”
“Yeah hunny. Is he coming over for your chess thing?” She questioned.
“Yup. His mom is having some people over at their apartment so he wanted to do it here instead,” he informed.
“Make sure you clean your bathroom Thomas!” She called after him once he left the room. Thomas went to his room and started his homework. He made sure to finish everything that was due the next day, before looking around his room.
Thomas considered himself a pretty clean person. He never had piles of cloths or corners stuffed with random junk. The one thing he was guilty of was his desk. It was painted with loose papers, books, and pencils. Thomas didn't think they would be in his room, but you could never be too careful.
He set to work, collecting the many pens, pencils, erasers, and sharpeners to store in a cup. He moved the books to his shelf, and desperately tried to make them fit in the limited space. He gave up eventually, and resulted in stacking the left overs on his desk. Lastly he collected the few papers and piled them in a draw, not wanted to actually go through them.
Thomas sighed, moving onto the bathroom across the hall. Once he finished cleaning it to his mother’s standards he scanned the rest of the house. The boy went around straightening up, until his mom called him to dinner. It was a good thing she did, because he was this close to cleaning the windows and mopping the floors. He knew that Newt wouldn't notice anything, but he still felt the need to make the house spotless for this boy. Am I overreacting?
The next day Thomas spent his daydreams on hoping for smooth sailing. Newt seemed excited about finally seeing his home, but he was relaxed about it. As if it was just Newt going to Thomas’s house and not Newt going to Thomas’s house.
It was lunch time and Thomas was in the middle of contemplating what would happen if his mom came home and saw Newt’s motorcycle, when a shadow hovered over him. He looked up from his food to see Gally looming over him.
“Can I help you?” Thomas asked when Gally remained quite.
“Yeah,” he scoffed. “You can tell me what the hell Harriet's doing!” Annoyed, Thomas had no idea how to respond to the strange question without invoking more anger.
“What are you talking about? I haven't even seen Harriet today!” Thomas defended.
“Oh, ok. That's nice and all, except I don't believe you!” Gally yelled, his voice raising in anger.
“Look, I don't know what to tell you,” Thomas said. Before Gally could retaliate Newt stood up in defiance.
“Maybe you should go now Gally. Tommy obviously doesn't know anything,” Newt said calmly.
“Still got your little boy toy protecting you Tommy?” Gally insulted, leaning around Newt to glare at Thomas. Suddenly Newt was putting his hands on Gally’s chest and shoving him back forcefully. The bully stumbled but regained his footing and was about to fight back when Minho was jumping to his feet and standing in between the two teens. Thomas stood up too and pulled Newt back before anything turned into a real fight.
“Gally, time to leave,” Minho ordered cooly. When the boy didn't move he repeated the order. “I said get out of here before I bash your brains in slinthead!” With that Gally stocked off.
“Newt! What was that about!” Thomas yelled once Gally was back inside the school.
“Sorry, just I can't stand that bloody prat! I didn't mean to start a fight or anything,” he sighed, the anger draining from his face. Thomas on the other hand turned red. He keeps defending me.
“Yeah, just be careful around ol’ Captain Gally. He’s easily offended,” Minho informed.
“Right. I wonder what that was all about. Does Gally think you're doing something will Harriet?” The Brit wondered.
“Oh, it's nothing new. Whenever he doesn't see her in the hallway or whatever, he assumes something. Why he always asks me I have no clue. It's not like I'm her only friend!” Thomas answered.
“Well that's barmy! Ah, crazy. He needs to chill!” The blond stated, and the others nodded in agreement.
“And Newt, you seriously don't need to stand up for me like this. He really doesn't bother me. The closer to his good side you can get the better,” Thomas sighed. He didn't need to see the blond get hurt on his behalf.
“He has a good side!” Newt laughed, and it put Thomas at ease.
•••
“So, are you going to actually let me ride up to your house this time?” Newt asked Thomas as they walked to the parking lot after school.
“Yeah, if you can handle the honor of it!” Thomas smiled. They went their separate ways to find their vehicles, and then took off. Newt followed Thomas the short distance on his motorcycle, and pulled into the driveway beside him. Thomas unlocked the front door and they entered into his living room.
“I warn you, once you step in here your cloths will have cat hair on them for an eternity!” The brunet cautioned.
“Oh I don't doubt it, especially because I'm wearing black!” He chucked.
“Why don't we find something to eat, and then we can get started?” Thomas suggested.
“Yeah that sounds great!” The taller boy replied as he looked around the room. Newt sat down on the couch and Thomas went to the kitchen, looking for something to eat. He came back with two apples to a staring contest between Newt and his cat.
“I see you've met Brenda!” He cheered, giving the cat a small pet before sitting down next to Newt.
“She's intense!” The teen commented, gesturing at the furry black and gray cat watching him from across the room.
“Oh, she'll be like that for a while before deciding if she likes you or not,” Thomas stated with a smile.
“So, Tommy. You're so focused on your studies all the time, you must have a plan for university?” Newt questioned.
“Uh, yeah. I've got my heart set on going to college to be an editor or something like that” he replied.
“Wow, that's really great! It's a lot of English classes I bet,” Newt smiled genuinely.
“Yeah, but I like English. So what about you? Any big plans?” Thomas wondered.
“Um, not exactly. School has never been my strong suit. I might go to a community college at most. With my mum and me moving here so recently it's kind of hard to think about it ya know? And then there's the money,” He answered. Thomas was taken aback by this bit of information coming from someone like Newt, but if he wanted someone to talk to Thomas was more than willing to be that person.
“Yeah I get you. You should do whatever feels right at the moment. I'll probably change my mind about editing a few times before college actually gets here,” Thomas responded, and waited to see if Newt was going to continue.
“Yeah I guess. I just don't want to disappoint my mum. She's worked so hard to be a single parent, and I shouldn't give her beef for moving us here. She was never a fan of the bloody motorcycle or the smoking but she put up with it, and now on top of that she's worrying about my grades… Sorry. Sorry for just bloody dumping all of this on you, forget it. Let's get to what we came here to do,” Newt confessed. Thomas was quiet for a moment while he took in everything Newt said. He never really thought about how much Newt had to have gone through, losing his father, and then moving halfway around the world. He always just had this front that he was perfectly fine. I guess everyone has their own faces they put up.
“No, it's ok. I don't mind. I can tell you 100% that your mom is proud of you. You both lost and sacrificed a lot to get here, but you made it,” Thomas let out. They were both quiet while Thomas set up the chess board on the coffee table. They started playing and the mood lightened a bit as Thomas politely corrected Newt’s mistakes, and they joked a little.
After about 30 minutes of playing the emotion filled atmosphere had completely gone and they were able to play without any strange tension in the room. Thomas was only a few moves away from winning the game as he reached to take his knight, which Newt had just killed, off the board. The blond apparently had the same idea, and their hands met at the piece. Thomas’s heart fluttered at the sensation of Newt’s hand on top of his. He expected the hand to disappear, but it didn't, the touch lingering. Thomas stared at their hands and silently demanded that his heart calm down before it pounded its way out of his chest.
He moved his gaze to see Newt staring right back at him with his blue eyes. Thomas expected to see some kind of defiance and competition in them, over who should be the one to move their hand. But there wasn't. Newt flicked his eyes down to Thomas’s mouth, but returned them to his eyes so quickly Thomas would almost say it didn't happen. Then Newt was leaning closer to him and in those few seconds Thomas knew what was going to happen, but he didn't believe it. Newt’s lips met his and connected softly.
Alarms were going off like crazy inside Thomas’s mind and all he could do was sit there. NEWT WAS KISSING HIM! In a matter of seconds the warmth of Newt’s lips was replaced with the cold air.
When Thomas opened his eyes, he didn't remember closing them, the Brit was staring right back at him. Almost expectantly, and waiting for his reaction. Thomas couldn't focus his thoughts enough to say anything. This changed everything. Newt was actually interested in him. Unless it was all a trick, but he refused to believe that. This crush was destined to become nothing more than another high school crush that was forgotten by everyone within a year, but now it had a chance. Thomas could see the panic rising in Newt’s expression when he showed no reaction.
“Oh God. Oh God, I'm s-sorry. I shouldn't have done that. I-I-I thought… I better go,” Newt stuttered calmly. So calmly that Thomas could hear the shaky panic hidden in his voice. Before he knew what was happening the front door was opening and then closing, and Thomas was alone.
What had he done. Newt opened up to him and how did Thomas repay him? By not giving him anything back, making Newt feel alone in their feelings for each other. Thomas sat in the same position on the couch without moving, racking his mind for a way to make everything better. But none of the books he read could prep him for this. He just had to be so stuck in his head all the time that when something actually happened, he messed everything up.
This was nothing like Thomas imagined his first kiss to be like.