The Remains Of My Wasted Youth.

I wasn't sure how things were going to play about between me and Zack after what had happened between us last night, be he seemed to be his usual self in the morning. We had pancakes and then spent the day just messing around. And by messing around, I mean that we spent the day playing a bunch of old school video games and jamming.

"ALEX! YOU CHEATED!" Zack screeched at me and jumped on me, knocking the controller out of my hands. He rolled me over and I squealed as his weight pinned my body down.

"G'roff me," I mumbled. "Squishing me."

Zack rolled over again, pulling me on top of him and holding his hands against the sensitive spaces just above my hips. Just the slight pressure of his finger tips had me holding back giggles.

"You're tickling me, Zack," I cried, and he dug his fingers into my side, causing me to squeal and start kicking and thrashing around. "I give up, I give up, I was cheating. But let me go, let me go, please," I shrieked, laughing so hard that the tears had started rolling down my cheeks. "Please, Zack, please."

He stopped, but didn't let me go. I laid trapped against his chest. "Mmm, Zack, you smell good," I murmured, and then turned red when he grinned at me.

"I'm glad you approve," he said, and ran a hand up and over my back and legs. "You smell pretty good too, Gaskarth." He nipped at my neck playfully and I pretended to be insulted and jumped off him, sitting on the couch instead.

Our game, Road Rage, was paused in front of us but I'd lost interest in the game. It had been fun at first until I realized that Zack had actually been raised with these games too and could beat me without even really trying. I'd tried sucking up to him, but he'd just laughed me off. He was as big of a kid as I was but he still took his games seriously.

Zack joined me on the couch and curled into me. "I'm bored, Jacky, what do you want to do?"

You. The thought was louder that I'd imagined and I couldn't help but turning red. It was true, though. I was super aware of Zack's body pressing against mine, I was aware of his every breath and his every move. Even with what had happened between us last night, I wasn't ready to admit the depth of my feelings for this kid sitting beside me. Instead, I just curled into him, wrapping an arm around him and feeling him, warm and hard against my side. I couldn't resist every urge, now could I?

"Let's watch a movie," I suggested sleepily.

"Okay," he agreed. "As long as it's anything other than Home Alone. That's Jack's favorite movie and he forces us to watch it at least once a month with him. I think I know all of the words to all of the Home Alone movies by now. Hell, last year, we went on vacation with him and guess where he took us? The damn Home Alone house." Zack smiled at me. "So no Home Alone."

I laughed. I had no problems picturing bouncy, energetic, puppy dog Jack batting his eyes and forcing his two best friends to sit and watch his favorite movie with him a hundred times over. I shook my head and chuckled slightly.

"What?" Zack asked, curious.

"Nothing," I said, but then explained anyway. "I just feel like I've gotten to know you guys so well in such a short amount of time. I mean, I have no problem at all imagining Jack pleading you guys with his big brown puppy eyes until you give in and watch his favorite movie with him for the fifteen thousandth time."

"Jack's big brown puppy eyes, huh? Sounds to me like someone has a thing for Jack's eyes," Zack teased with a big smile. "Maybe I should call Jack, he can come over and force you to watch home alone with him."

"Sounds to me like someone's jealous," I replied just as teasingly. "I like your eyes too, Zack. But if you insist on calling Jack, I really wouldn't mind. I like company."

"I'm not jealous!" Zack's answer was a little too quick to make me believe that he wasn't at all jealous. As if to prove a point, he pulled out his cell phone and made a call. After speaking a few minutes, he told me that Jack and Rian would be over in a few minutes.

I smiled. "Yay, friends!"

Zack pouted. "And what am I?"

I leaned into him, my face inches from his. "I'm not sure what you are yet, Zack Merrick. But you're special, very special." I touched my nose to his and licked my lips, seeing his eyes follow my tongue as it moved.

Zack broke away from me then but the huge smile on his face left me with butterflies. "I forgot to tell you, Lex, Ri and Jack are bringing over another friend of ours for you to meet. He's a tough cookie - doesn't approve of very many people, so if you get his approval, I'll be surprised."

My jaw dropped. "Zack, you can't do that to me!" Instantly, a bunch of thoughts flew through my head. What if he didn't approve of me? Of me and Zack? Of gay people? Of - I squelched my thoughts and looked down at myself. And then I jumped up in horror.

"I have to take a shower!" I squeaked, and ran up the stairs. I pulled a bunch of clothes out of my drawers. I had no idea what to wear, and shirts and pants went flying every which way before I finally decided on the very last thing in my closet.

I spent an eternity in the shower because I didn't want to have to go downstairs and meet this 'tough cookie' that was coming to my house when I didn't even know him. I scowled in the mirrow and dried my hair. I slipped into my clothes of choice, and then walked down the stairs. I heard voices coming from the kitchen and walked slowly towards them.

The four boys were sitting around my kitchen table. Rian and Zack were talking. Rian was wearing glittery shorts and a tank top while Jack was dressed in some crazy shirt that he'd probably designed himself - with a pink pig with wings on it, no less. I rolled my eyes at them and then looked at the fourth boy - the one I didn't know.

I gave him a few years older than us. He was good looking, that much was undeniable. He had dark, slightly spiked hair and dark eyes and a lip piercing. Damn, lip piercings looked good on guys. He seemed tall, not as tall as Jack but still tall. He was dressed in a dark shirt and pants. Dark colors looked good on him.

Zack looked up and caught me staring. He came over and slung an arm around me. "Don't spend too much time looking at Flyzik, babe. I might get jealous."

I turned red, either because of the term of endearment or because he'd just let everyone know that I'd been checking out the new guy sitting in the kitchen.

"I wasn't checking him out," I muttered. "I was just looking at him."

The guy in question finally looked up, and a huge smile light up his face. "MICKEY MOUSE? Guys, he's wearing a Mickey Mouse shirt. How could you not tell me that he liked Mickey Mouse?" Next thing I knew, I was being tackled into a hug by the taller boy.

When he let go, he smiled at me. "I'm James Matthew Flyzik. Call me James or Matthew and I'll kill you. I go by Matt, most of the time Flyzik, and half the time asshole. I'm 19, I've known these idiots for two years, and by the looks of it, you're going to be my new best friend."

Everyone laughed and I grinned, happy to be surrounded with a bunch of friendly people.

"Matt's obsessed with Mickey Mouse," Jack said in a teasing voice. "He has thousands of stuffed Mickey Mouse's at his apartment, he has cups and plates with Mickey Mouse on them, he even has a Mickey Mouse towel that he dries off with after every shower."

Matt flushed. "And Jack has posters of Home Alone plastered all over his room and owns at least 5 copies of each of the Home Alone movies and probably sleeps with a doll that looks just like Kevin McAllister."

Jack lunged at Matt then, and Matt took off running down the hall and up the stairs. Rian leaned against the counter beside me and Zack.

"They're probably going to destroy your house," he said. "Just a warning."

I shook my head ruefully. "That's okay. I like Matt, he's pretty cool. And so much for not getting his approval, huh, Zack?" I shot a teasing glance at Zack and he flushed.

Rian laughed. "Matt, not approve of someone? Maybe if you burned a Mickey Mouse in front of him, but -"

"Who's burning a Mickey Mouse?" Matt said, sliding to a halt before us.

We shook our heads at him. "No one, Matt, no one."

"Good," he said, and then took off running again as Jack came tearing through the kitchen. We listened as Jack apparently caught up to Matt - we heard a thump and some rolling and grumbling.

"They'd be cute together," I mused, and Zack and Rian grinned at me. Apparently they thought the same thing.

None of us heard the door open or noticed my parents' car until they came in the room, their eyes brimming with disapproval.

"Alex, we support the fact that you have friends and you want to have fun but is it necessary for them to be rolling all over the living room and -"

My mom's voice trailed off when she walked into the kitchen and saw me standing there leaning into Zack and talking to Rian. Her eyes widened and her hands flew to her throat. She didn't seem to know what to say. She attempted to speak but her words didn't come out and in the end she just called for my father.

My father took just one look at me and Zack.

"OUT! Everybody, out!"