The pact

It was six pm when I finally came home again. Me and Vic didn't talk about my self harm after those last words. He did give me a few of his bracelets to cover up my cuts. I didn't want to accept first, but he said that he had lots of them and that it would be another reason for me not to cut anymore so I could give them back to him.
For some reason he exactly knew how to handle me. I was an incredibly complicated person, but he figured me out somehow. My feelings for him were might becoming real. My stomach stirred by just the thought of him.
I hated it. I didn't want to feel anything for him except for friendship, but the harder I fought it, the more it backfired in my face. I needed to think this through. Most of the crushes I had on people were mostly very short and turned out to be not really anything special. Surely that was going to happen with this one as well.
As I walked into the living room, I ignored my parents and Casey sitting on the couch and walked upstairs heading for my room.
I noticed 'hybrid theory' lying on my desk. Casey must've saved it from my mom for me.
I took out the disk and put it into my new radio, I had left my old one in the bus so I didn't have to drag it all the way every time I went there.
Paper cut sounded through the room. It was a good idea to put on that CD, all the lyrics were relating to me.
I went to sit on my bed and laid my head against the wall. I closed my eyes and let the music pierce through my soul, the melody, the lyrics. It was like the rest of the world didn't exist anymore. That was the most beautiful thing about music, it was an escape from reality. And at the same time, it made you think about your own life. It helped to sort out your thoughts.
''Are you okay?'' Casey said as she walked into my room and came to sit next to me.
''Yeah I am, I just needed to get out.'' I said as I pulled my head way from the wall. I honestly didn't want to talk about. I couldn't even look her in the eyes anymore after what she had witnessed.
''You don't have to be ashamed, Luna.'' she said as she laid her head down on my shoulder. ''I'm not afraid of her. I will be here for you no matter what that bitch says to you. I will even fight her if I need to.''
I chuckled, I knew she'd really do it. If Casey was good at something then it was fighting, both verbally as physically. That was a huge con for me, as I was mostly to sensitive to stand up for myself.
''It's okay, Casey.'' I said casually hiding my wrist. ''I'm used to it.''
''Yeah and that's what worrying me.'' She said as she took away her head to face me.
''You shouldn't worry about me, Casey. You have so much on your plate already.'' I said still not looking at her.
''Bullshit, Luna. My problems aren't more important than yours. Why do you always say that?'' she said.
I sighed and looked down at my hands. ''Because I feel like it's true. I don't want to load you with my problems, because I don't want you to worry about me. I feel like I make you worse if I do. I have ruined enough already.''
One step closer started to play as Casey took my hand into her hands and forced me to look at her. ''Stop. Saying. That.''
I felt like I was about to cry again, so I just hugged her in an attempt to end the topic of conversation.
As I let go I said: ''You saved Hybrid Theory for me.'' I grinned.
She giggled. ''Yeah that wasn't easy, though. I think I screamed at your mom for like twenty minutes. I don't think she's really happy with me.''
I laughed. ''you think so?''
''Yeah weird huh?'' She said sarcastically. ''Oh btw, Jaime called. He asked if we wanted to come to Mike's new years eve party this saturday.''
Of course Mike was throwing a party again. I didn't really feel like going though. The last party didn't end well for me. ''I don't know, C...''
''Oh c'mon.'' She said as she grabbed my shoulders and shook me back and forward. ''I really want to go. I can only stay here until Monday and I want to see the boys again.''
Casey was never the biggest party animal either, so I was surprised that she was this enthusiast about it. I mean, when she was at a party she was the life of the party, but she'd rather stay home and watch a movie.
Then it hit me. ''Casey, does this have anything to do with a certain boy called Michael Christopher Fuentes?'' I said and I winked at her.
She turned all red and put her hands in front of her face. ''Maybe...'' she said peaking through her fingers at me.
''OH MY GOD CASEY YOU HAVE A CRUSH.'' I screamed imitating her voice.
She let her hands drop and shot me an annoyed look. ''Shut up, Luna.''
''Don't try to deny it. You're all red.'' I poked in her cheek.
''Okay well crush is a strong word, but he is a potter head, Luna! A potter head! And he's hot as fuck.'' She said smiling like a fool.
I rolled my eyes. She definitely had a crush on him. I knew my best friend. I liked it, though. Casey might be the only girl who could actually handle Mike. I did need to have a serious chat with the lad, though. I'd kill him if he broke her heart.
''And by the way. New years eve is a great excuse to kiss him. According to tradition you have to kiss someone at midnight. I just might be 'accidently' near him.''
She winked at me and I laughed.
But what if I used that excuse too? Not on Mike of course, but on Vic. It would be the perfect way to figure out how I feel about him without actually telling him.
Of course it would be super awkward, but I could just tell him that he was the only one near me at that moment.
''Okay then, let's go.'' I said. I hoped he would be home then.

Casey's POV
The sound of electric guitars filled my ears at December 31th 2000. Around me people were dancing and drinking. It was about half past eleven and I knew I had to find Mike in this crowd soon.
I know, it was stupid of me to kiss a guy who lives at the other side of the world, but I wasn't looking for a relationship anyway. He was just so damn attractive, I at least needed to try.
Luna had just gone to the bathroom, but I knew that she was looking for Vic instead. I wasn't stupid, I had known my best friend for a damn long time and I knew very well that she felt something for Vic. That day in the bus she was constantly blushing and smiling like a fool whenever he said something.
I hoped she could figure herself out and get together with him. He was a good guy and he might be just what she needed. He made her happy.
Then I saw Mike standing at the other side of the room. He saw me too and smiled at me. Butterflies went crazy in my stomach. Damn he was hot.
I smiled back and walked towards him. Luckily he was standing alone. Maybe he was waiting for me? Could it be?
''Any new year's resolutions?'' He asked winking at me. I blushed.
''Yeah, I want to read more.'' I said
''That's very Ravenclaw of you.'' He said. My heart jumped at the Harry Potter reference. God, this boy was perfect.
I laughed. ''Do you have any new year's resolutions?'' I asked blinking my eyes a few times. I could be very seductive if I wanted to, I knew that.
''Only one and that one might become true really fast.'' He said and he came a little closer to me. I knew exactly what he meant. I wasn't going to make this easy on him, though. I wasn't an idiot, I knew what kind of guy he was. Of course, I wanted to kiss him, but he didn't need to know that. He needed to work for it.
''Achieve world peace?'' I said as I casually bit my lip.
He looked surprise at my throwback. Of course he was used to girls just throwing them at him. I mean it made sense. He was charming, popular and hot.
''I'm thinking something a little closer to home.'' He said moving back a little.
''Like eating more pizza? That one can be achieved soon, there's really a shit load of pizza here.'' I said looking at all the pizza boxes that were in piles in the kitchen.
''I'm thinking more something like kissing a pretty girl at midnight.'' He said and I tried my hardest not to blush. I didn't want to think he had me hooked.
I looked around the room ''Uhm, There are lots of gorgeous girls in here. Look at that girl over there-''
''I want you.'' he said not letting me finish his sentence. Now it was his turn to blush. I loved how he was actually kind of shy if he needed to be straight forward like this. The butterflies in my stomach exploded as I realised that he found worth working for.
I leaned in, but at the last second I moved my mouth to his ear whispering: ''Make me want it.'' I could feel the skin of his ear underneath my lips.
I saw how shivers went through his body and I liked how much control I had over him.
He moved his hand to my back gently placing it there and slowly moving me towards him until our bodies were against each other.
My mind went empty as he put his other hand on my cheek slowly moving it to the back of my neck. God he was good at this.
People started to count to midnight. ''10...9...8...7''
He leaned in and obviously wanted me to make the last move.
''6...5...4''
I felt his breath against my lips and I put my arms around his neck.
''3...2...1''
I pulled him nearer and pushed my lips against his. Around us people were cheering and screaming ''happy new year!''. I could hear the fireworks in the background but I wasn't really paying attention.
Our lips were moving perfectly in sync and the kiss was the perfect combination of passionate and soft. I felt how he removed his hand from my cheek and put both his arms around my waist pulling me in further.
I had no idea how many minutes had past when we pulled back. Our foreheads were against each other when he asked: ''So, how was it?''
I smiled. This was one of the best kisses, maybe even the best, I had ever had, but I didn't want to say it out loud, because after today I could never kiss him again. ''You were okay.''
He pulled away looking at me with a insulted face. I laughed. ''Okay that was amazing.'' I said. And he awkwardly smiled and blushed. He looked like a big badass at first sight, but he was actually a shy, dorky boy. I liked it.
I was just thinking of how I wanted to kiss him again as he pulled me in again and started kissing me. After he pulled away he whispered in my ear: ''Happy new year.''
I smiled as I whispered it back to him. I could be in his arms all night.

Luna's POV
It was half past eleven as I was searching the crowd for Vic. I had told Casey that I went to the bathroom, so I hoped I didn't run into her. On my way to the kitchen I saw that I didn't have to worry about her anymore, she was standing with Mike. She had already started her master plan. She was going to be distracted for a while.
I couldn't believe I was actually going to do this. I was going to kiss my best friend. I wanted to run out and not do it, but I knew I had to. I needed to know what my feelings were towards him. I mean, he made me feel safe and he was kind of attractive, okay well very attractive, but did that mean I liked him as more as friends? Part of me told me no, part of me told me yes.
What if he wasn't home? My whole plan would be ruined and this one chance to kiss him without awkwardness would be wasted.
But why wouldn't be home? I mean, it wasn't like he was invited to parties a lot. His parents were also here, so it would be logically that he was here somewhere.
Maybe he had gone to his grandmother again? Or some other family member? No I had to believe that he was here. He had to be.
At ten to twelve I had scanned the living room, kitchen, bathroom, his parents' bedroom, Mike's bedroom, and the upstairs bathroom and there was still no sign of Vic. There was only one room left to check. His room.
As I walked in I expected him to be there, but he wasn't. I even checked behind the door to see if he was hiding behind it.
Where was he? I had looked through the whole house! Had I overlooked him?
I was the only one in the room, so I walked towards the familiar bed with black sheets and sat down on it.
I put my elbows on my knees and my head in my hands. Why was I so sad to not find him? Was this another sign that I had a crush on him?
I screamed inside my own hands. My thoughts were confusing me so much. Why was my mind never clear? Why did I always had to find out how I felt about things instead of just knowing it? I wondered if other people had the same problem as me.
I heard the counting from down stairs and felt defeated.
''10...9...8...7...6...5...4...3...2...1.''
Suddenly I heard cheering from downstairs. I felt incredibly alone. ''Well, Happy new year, Luna.'' I said to myself. ''May 2001 be a better year than 2000''
Then it hit me and I felt stupid for not thinking of it before. He was at the roof. He had told me before that he was there a lot to think and look over the city. I had never been there before, but according to Vic it had an amazing even view even though his house wasn't that tall.
I looked up to the ceiling and saw a hatch. I looked around the room and saw a wooden ladder against his closet. I stood up, picked it up, put it against the hatch and climbed the ladder. I was kind of afraid to fall as it wasn't very stable, but I kept climbing until I reached the hatch and opened it.
I put my head through it and what I saw was amazing. The roof was flat and grey gravel covered it. The roof had an outlook over a big part of the city, the colourful lights of all the skyscrapers and even the sea even though it was very far away. It was even more beautiful because of the colourful fireworks lighting up the sky.
Vic was sitting at the end of the roof with his legs over the edge. His back was towards me, so he didn't see me. I was too late to kiss him, but for some reason I was still nervous when I was walking towards him.
As I was there, I went to sit next to him and made my legs dangling over the edge. He looked up to me surprised. ''Happy new year.'' He said eventually and he smiled.
God, his smile. It made me melt.
''Happy new year.'' I said and I laid my head on his shoulder. We looked at the firework like this for a while, just sitting there, saying nothing.
''I'm honoured that you found me to the best person to spend the first minutes of this year with.'' He said and he put a hand on my hair stroking it.
''I was alone at Christmas and you were there for me. Now you're alone on new year's eve, so I'm here for you.'' I said closing my eyes and I tried to take in this perfect moment. I wanted to remember this forever.
''So we are alone together?'' He said and he took his hand out of my hair to put it around my shoulder. I wanted to tell him the real reason I was here, there was just something blocking me from doing it.
I sighed. ''Yeah we are alone together.'' I said and we sat in silence again for a while.
After a few minutes I asked: ''What did you get for Christmas?''
He chuckled. ''I got tickets for warped tour.'' He sounded excited.
''Oh My God? You're kidding me right?'' I said. I wanted to get up and see his face to see if he was serious, but I didn't want to leave his shoulder.
He laughed. ''Yeah I did. I can't fucking believe it either. My mom said I could take someone with me, but Mike has gotten tickets too, so he'll know about our friendship if invite you...''
''It's okay, Vic. It's not worth ruining our friendship for. But tell me everything when you get back! Who's playing there this year?'' I asked. I was genuinely excited for him.
''Yeah, You'll probably get asked by Mike anyway. But I think a few of the bands that are playing are: Blink-182, good charlotte, H2O, pennywise, simple plan and sum 41. There were more, but these were the ones I remembered.''
I got really excited. I hoped Mike would ask me along. It would be so amazing to see these artists perform live. There was nothing like live music.
''What did you get for Christmas?'' Vic asked me.
''Uhm, a very ugly sweater from my mom which I'll never wear, a new backpack from my dad and 'hybrid theory' from Casey.'' I said.
"Awesome! I love that album! What's your favourite song from it?'' he asked
''Probably in the end.'' I said, I had some special feeling about that song. I don't know why.
Suddenly Vic started silently rapping the first part of the song. ''One thing, I don't know why, it doesn't even matter how hard you try...''
I laughed, he was completely off beat and he stumbled over his own tongue constantly. It didn't seem to stop him, though. He just kept rapping the words.
''It's so unreal, I didn't look out below, watch the time go right out the window...''
And then the chorus came and Vic silently sang it. ''I tried so hard and got so far. But in the end it doesn't even matter. I had to fall to lose it all and in the end it doesn't even matter.''
My mouth fell open. He had the voice of an angel. He sang very quietly, but I could still the soft, sweet sound of his voice. It was unique, but beautiful.
He didn't give me any room to compliment him, though. He was completely in his own world and started with the second rap part. ''things aren't the way they were before, you wouldn't even recognise me anymore. Not that you knew me back then, but it all comes back to me in the end.''
I was still a bit blown away by his singing to pay attention to his shitty rapping. Was he really that good or did I hear it wrong?
Then he started to sing the chorus again, this time a little louder and I knew I heard it right the first time. He sounded amazing.
He stopped there and I had lifted my head of his shoulder. I was looking at him with my mouth open.
He shot me a surprised look. ''Why are you looking at me like that?'' He asked.
''You're voice...It's amazing!'' I almost screamed.
He looked even more confused. ''It is?''
''Yeah! I'm not kidding. You have like the most beautiful voice ever! You never had lessons?'' The surprised expression was still on my face. He shook his head. ''I didn't even know I could sing, I have to trust you on that now.'' He said laughing at my still surprised face.
''Sing the bridge!'' I commanded.
He shyly looked down as he silently began to sing the bridge. ''I've put my trust in you, pushed as far as I can go. For all this, there's only one thing you should know''
He started singing a little louder. ''I've put my trust in you! Pushed as far as I can go! For all this, there's only one thing you should know.''
His voice was kind of raw, but I loved it.
He looked at me waiting for my reaction. I wanted to say something, but I was too enthusiastic so I just squealed and hugged him instead.

Notes

heeyyy guys!!

Oh My Fucking Fuentes, I've got 1000 views!! 1,1k! I can't believe it! I love you all so much!!

I'm also on wattpad now btw! So if you'd rather read it there, go ahead :)

I love these little hints I can leave you guys! Next hint: the next chapter will be called: alone together(probably). So if you want a little sneekpeek of the next chapter, go listen to Fall Out Boy- Alone Togther.

okay, Vote, subscribe and comment (I love ur comments so much!), but only if you want to ;)

xxxx
Nicky

(ps. Ugh my notes are way too long, but idfc)