Something Beautiful.

"So like this?" I ask, my fingers awkwardly pressing down on the strings. After about a hundred times of screwing up, I'm confident I have my fingers in the right position this time. I smile at my accomplishment and look up into my dad's face, my grin quickly falling at his exasperated look and sigh.

"No, Shane." My dad shakes his head and picks up his own guitar giving me yet another example on how to hold my fingers. "Like this. It's simple, just press down lightly and strum." My dad's fingers move effortlessly as he beings playing a song. Him playing guitar looks as easy as it is for me to breathe, maybe easier. I can see why my mom fell for him. Hell, if any guy tried to serenade me while playing like that I'd be all over it. Then again, that's kind of why I'm trying to learn. Noah already likes me. That's a given, he's my boyfriend. But if I learn to play maybe he'll sing for me again, and I'd love to hear that voice again.

"Okay," I say after my dad stops, peering at me expectantly. "I think I've got it this time. Like this?" I reposition my fingers as best I can to match what I can remember of how he showed me. I strum the strings and a sharp sound pierces my ear, a sound so far from what the came from my father's guitar I groan in defeat and my dad shakes with laughter. "Whatever. I give up!"

"Come on Shane, it's not that bad," my dad gasps as he tries to control his laughter. I glare coolly at him and take my guitar strap off, gently setting the guitar back in it's place at the end of a row of five guitars. How my dad got so good at guitar, I'll never know. This whole room is filled with guitar and music stuff and with my luck I'll never be able to use it. "Okay," he says after he regains composure. "You were right last night. You do suck!" I roll my eyes and throw a random shirt I see laying on a shelf at him, causing him to break into another fit of giggles. My dad is so immature.

I stand to leave, silently fuming. I didn't run this morning because I had a headache but I promised my mom I would make sure my dad was wide awake before I left for school, and because of my extreme amount of free time produced by me not running, I decided a quick guitar lesson would wake him up. Laughing at my expense has apparently woken him up, but it's not what I had planned. All of this because I couldn't play one little note. Or was it a chord? Hell, I'm hopeless.

"You're awake like I promised mom I'd make sure of. Now quit laughing at me and put some clothes on for work," I say over my shoulder as I walk out of my dad's music room and down the hall to my bedroom.

It's Friday. Finally. I look around my room and gather my stuff to put in my backpack, assuring myself I can get through one more day of classes before the weekend. Not that I'm really sure why I get so excited for the weekend. Honestly, we never do much except lounge around the White's game room and play video games. Yeah, there's the occasional sleep over at my house or Jules's, but more often than not we end up at the Whites because of said game room. This time last week I was excited for Halloween, but now I'm just excited to get out of school.

Some junior boy named Mark is supposed to be having a huge party that is the talk of the school, but of course I'm not going. Jules and I don't generally party and neither do Nick or Noah, so it all works out. I've been to a couple of parties, but I don't see the fun in them really, so this isn't a party I'll be going to. All I've heard walking down the halls this week is "Mark's party this", "Mark's party that", and "Last year at Mark's party". I don't really mind it, but sometimes I feel like there's a circle of people who are cool and know everything that's happening, and then there's a circle of my friends that's placed like five feet from the other circle. I don't know I've ever even spoken to this Mark figure.

The buzz of my phone pulls me out of my thoughts and I curiously cross my room to my dresser wondering who's texting me before school. For some reason I don't understand the text is from Noah. I'll see him at school in like fifteen minutes, and it's out of character for him to text me this early. I open the text and my face breaks into a small smile.

Can you pick me up for school? Nick didn't wake up on time and he's going to be late:/

Pick him up for school? Of course I'll pick my beautiful boyfriend up for school. I send him a quick message back and grab my stuff to get ready to leave, stopping abruptly in the living room when I find my dad asleep on the couch, still in his boxers. Rolling my eyes at him I go to the kitchen and grab two travel mugs, filling one with coffee for me and one with hot coco for Noah.

I push my father off the couch to wake him up again, reminding him he'll be late for work if he waits any longer, and open the door to let Tiger back inside as I walk to my truck. A minute later I'm waiting outside of the White's house wishing I had listened to my dad and gotten something with a better heater than my truck. It's freezing tits outside and not much better inside the cab of my truck. I sip my coffee slowly as I wait, relishing the feeling of warmth spreading outward from my stomach.

Soon enough Noah comes out the front door with his backpack thrown over his shoulder and a confident smile on his face. He's become more and more confident this past week since I asked him to be my boyfriend and when he opens the door he greets me with a gentle kiss on the lips instead of a hello, and the quick press of his lips on mine does more to wake me up than the whole mug of coffee I have in my hand.

Noah becoming more confident isn't the only thing that's been changing this week though. The tense air between Madison and Jules no longer exists, which I've taken to mean Noah talked to her and she's going to give him a chance, but Noah won't tell me the details of their conversation. Any time I've asked he's scolded me for prying and claimed he has a best friend confidentiality agreement to uphold. Not even kissing him and asking has helped; all that's gotten me is a light hit across the chest and a laugh. Honestly the details don't matter, I'd just like to know them. All that matters is that Madison has been blushing when Jules uses pick up lines on her, not snapping back at him, and get this, she's been thanking him for the compliments.

It's totally different behavior for her but it makes me happy, and Jules is more captivated than ever by her, showering her with compliments nearly every time he opens his mouth. She seems like she really needs the compliments this week too. She's not the normal Madison I've grown to know and love. She's been really downcast and quiet this week for some reason, and not even Noah knows what's wrong with her. She looks almost like she's getting sick or something, but Jules seems to be helping with how she's feeling, so it's a win win situation all around.

"Good morning," I say quietly with a smile as Noah's lips leave mine and he smiles back at me, his face still mere inches from mine. I lean forward again and press our lips together one more time before he pulls back and sits in the passenger seat, buckling himself up. The two kisses were entirely too short for my liking, and I can't help but want to pull him back to me for another kiss but I restrain myself. We have school to get to, and besides, these little kisses are good enough.

"Morning," he replies, taking the hot coco from me and taking a sip of the steaming liquid. "Thanks for picking me up. Nick's a lazy butt and he's gonna be like 30 minutes late probably."

"Anytime. I'd pick you up every single day if you wanted me to," I reply and Noah takes a break from looking through my ipod to look up at me.

"Really?"

"Really," I chuckle. Nick might not like arriving at school by himself every day, but I would love to pick up my boyfriend for school every day. I already take him home most times after our French tutoring, and picking him up would just be an added bonus, just more time to spend with him. I gaze over at him in the feeble morning light and can't help but smiling. The sun's up, but the sky is so overcast it's hard to tell. The whole landscape has a grey tint to it and Noah's cheeks, turned red from his warm drink, stand out among all the neutral colors. He really is beautiful.

A song starts and I recognize the opening sounds as We The Kings's Check Yes Juliet. It sounds like Noah stumbled across the acoustic version, and I feel a sort of calm spread over me that I get every time I listen to music I used to be in love with. I listened to this song over and over and over again when it first came out, and can't remember the last time I played it. Taking one hand off the steering wheel I take Noah's left hand in mine, his cold fingers like an electric shock to my warm hand. This silence we sit in isn't because we don't have anything to say. We sit without saying anything because it's comfortable. I want to tell him how happy I am to see him his morning, but the atmosphere is almost magical and I'm afraid opening my mouth might break the spell everything seems to be under.

Just as I start to think this drive couldn't get any better, Noah's soft voice proves me wrong. "Lace up your shoes, way-o, way-o. Here's how we do: Run baby run, don't ever look back. They'll tear us apart if you give them the chance. Don't tell your heart, don't say we're not meant to be. Run baby run, forever we'll be you and me," Noah sings quietly, continuing on through the rest of the song. I'm captivated again by his voice, and when I look over at him he's gazing quietly out the window, slowly moving to the music. The rest of the way to school I just listen to the rise and fall of his voice, wishing I could close my eyes and remain here for the rest of the day just listening to him sing.

The car ride is entirely too short, and when I pull into my assigned parking place Noah stops and looks at me, his cheeks colored red again, but from embarrassment instead of the hot coco this time. I smile back at him encouragingly and lift our hands, pressing my lips to the back of his. It's such a simple gesture, but it causes Noah to blush deeper and smile. Kind of like he's my Juliet and I'm his Romeo. Okay, that was totally corny. I did not just think that.

"Beautiful," I state, looking into his eyes. Noah's voice, the car ride, everything about this morning was beautiful.

*****

Nick was late. The ISS room where you have to go to get tardy slips is across the hall from my first period, and about half way through class I saw him arrive, looking pretty much normal, aside from an annoyed expression. I can't believe he overselpt.

Now, sitting in fourth period Anatomy and Physiology, it's all I can do to not laugh in his face when he tells us his story. "How do you forget to turn your alarm on?" Jules asks him curiously. "Haven't you been waking up for school for like, thirteen years now?"

"Shut the fuck up Fries," Nick mumbles, and I laugh at the banter between them. It's so adorable and it cracks me up. "I'm just glad I even got here before second period. Although if I was smart I would have waited until after choir to get to school." He shakes his head in disbelief, as if he wishes he had remembered what he had second period before rushing to school.

We sit in silence for a moment, looking at our packets we're supposed to be working on, but we all know they won't get done today. When a teacher gives you homework that's not due for almost a week nobody will use the class period to work on it, especially if that class period falls on a Friday right before lunch.

"Thanks for bringing Noah to school this morning, Shane," Nick says after a moment of staring at his work, causing Jules to raise his eyebrows at me.

"You brought The Ark to school this morning?"

"Well yeah," I say. "It was no problem. He texted me when he realized Nick was going to be late and asked if I'd pick him up on my way so he wouldn't be late too. It was a good morning." I expect Jules to make some smartass comment, but surprisingly he also smiles and grabs a piece of notebook paper, scrawling something quickly across it. As I watch him I realize he's writing a poem. Of course, it's Friday and our poems are due today. Luckily, I already finished mine and made a copy I was to give to Noah today at lunch. Embarrassing as it sounds, the poem is about Noah and I kind of want to give it to him.

"What are you doing?" Nick asks curiously, peering over Jules's shoulder to the page he's writing on.

"The poem assignment due in English today. This weeks was 'write a poem about something that has changed or is changing'. I'm writing about Madison, except Madison as a flower in bloom, slowly opening up." A goofy grin paints Jules's face and I want to feel his forehead to check for a temperature. Sure, I know he's smitten with Madison, but writing a poem about Madison? Writing an extended metaphor about Madison? I didn't even know he knew how to do that.

"Shit, I knew I forgot something!" Nick groans and pulls his backpack to his desk to pull out his English spiral. The kid is really not put together today.

"Speaking of Madison, how's that going?" I ask Jules. I saw him walking her to class earlier today, a smile evident on her face even though she looked like she hadn't slept or eaten all week. Jules holds up a finger telling me to wait, and scribbles a few more lines before replying to me.

"Good. Great, actually. She's actually listening to me. She's actually flirting with me. Shanebear, it's perfect. I think I'm going to ask her on a date."

I stare at my best friend at a loss of words. I'm glad he's happy, but I have a feeling he's jumping into things too fast. Less than a week ago both Noah and Madison were practically sitting on top of me because Jules tried to put his arms around her shoulders. Now he wants to ask her on a date? Aside from the Noah's Ark references Jules keeps using as nicknames for Noah, I think the date might be the worst idea that's ever came from Jules's mouth.

"Woah, woah, woah," I interrupt his daydreams and look to Nick for help. Asking her might lead to his premature death from being turned down so many times. "Less than a week ago she was turning you down, scooting away from you on the couch, and ignoring you 85% of the time. You really think now is a good time to ask? How about you wait another week or two? You don't want to rush it." Jules drops his smile and becomes thoughtful for a moment, disappointment of hitting reality leaking into his expression.

"Yeah, yeah, I guess so. Give her a little more time. You can't force a bloom to open." His face gets dreamy again for a second and I'm tempted to slap him and bring him back to reality, but someone drops a book and Jules jumps, turning his attention back to Nick. "Does that mean we can have a video game marathon at your house, Nick? I mean obviously we're not cool enough to frequent the party scene, and I don't like the idea of a hangover."

"Sure, but I'm gonna kick your ass. Hard. So hard you're going to want to retreat to France." Nick looks totally serious saying this, and the look Jules returns is just as ready for a challenge. Another weekend in the White's game room. Not a bad thing, but maybe after we know Madison likes Jules we can go on a double date. Sure, it would leave Nick at home alone, but I want some couple time with Noah soon.

The two get into an argument over who was going to kick the other one's ass harder, and I zone out, caught in the cross fire of words being exchanged over my desk. A week ago I was nervous, scared Noah wouldn't accept my offer when I asked him to be my boyfriend. Now I don't think I could be happier. It just has to be Jules's turn soon, and maybe eventually Nick could find someone. I smile to myself, thinking of the five of us plus one mystery person hanging out and doing stuff, doing couple-y stuff. The bell finally rings and releases us to lunch, the argument between Jules and Nick still going on around me as we walk down the hall to the lunch room.

*****

"You look beautiful," Jules says with a smile as Madison sits across from him, lightly placing her tray on the table. She looks like shit. Her eyes and nose are slightly red like she's been crying recently and her hair is pulled back into a messy bun, strands falling around her make up free face. She's wearing big sweats and a Tshirt that hangs limply around her tiny frame. She looks sick.

A small smile breaks from her lips as she peers at Jules, and I can see why he wants to ask her on a date sooner than later. She really does seem like she likes him. "Thanks," she says quietly, sighing as she plops down into her chair. Nick asks Jules a question and the two start a conversation, something about the algebra homework they have, wondering if Madison could help with a problem.

"So I have something for you," I say to Noah and pull a folded up piece of paper containing the poem out of my pocket. I can feel myself blushing and I hesitate, wondering if I should give it to him or not.

"What is it?" Noah asks, stretching a hand out to take the paper from me. I place it in his hand expecting him to open it right away so I wouldn't have to explain, but he keeps looking at me, waiting for an answer.

"Well, uh," I stutter, feeling the fire in my cheeks spread to my neck. If Jules and Nick weren't talking to Madison right now there would be no way I could do this. "It's a poem I wrote for English." Silence. Noah stares back at me and I'm mortified. I never should have brought this up. "It's super bad and really embarrassing and I never should have said anything. I-"

"That's so sweet of you," Noah says quietly, cutting across my failed attempt at speech. He slowly unfolds the paper, his eyes scanning the lines, before looking back up at me. He's blushing now too, so I'm not too worried about my blush. I can only imagine what he thought when he read the poem. Honestly, it wasn't that good, but it was about him, and I'm sure that means something to him. I go over the lines again in my head, waiting for him to say something.

"The slow trickle of a stream
The chirping of birds in the morning
New sounds my love, new sounds.
Velvety soft grass tickling your toes
The cool pebbles in the shade
New feeling my love, new feeling.
Beautiful wildflowers
The sun breaking the horizon
New sights my love, new sights.
The city is gone.
New experiences, beautiful, breathtaking scenes.
The guarded wall slowly melts down
With a new warmth filling it's place
Happiness my love, happiness."

"It was beautiful. Thank you." I show him a brilliant smile and reach across the table to take his hand in mine as he tucks the paper away, but of course the little moment we're sharing is shattered.

"Hey lovebirds," Nick calls, "Why don't you rejoin the rest of the world in normal conversation instead of staring passionately into each other's eyes? Jules and Nick mimic us in a totally unrealistic, over exaggerated example of two people staring into each other's eyes, sighing as if they were deeply in love. This gains giggles from Madison but I punch Jules because he's sitting closest to me, mumbling something that I hope sounds like shut the fuck up.

For the rest of lunch We all talk about trivial things, laughing and joking the whole time. I keep focusing back on Madison, trying to figure out what has been wrong with her this week. Her being all quiet and upset came on suddenly. Even before we became friends with her she was more outgoing than this. Something isn't right, I just can't put my finger on what it is.

*****

I finally put my finger on what is wrong right before French. We're walking down the hall way, Noah and Madison between Jules and I, taking our time because we're almost to the room and there's no point in rushing. Jules suddenly stops and swings his backpack around, searching through it quickly before muttering something about leaving his binder on the lunch table and turning around and sprinting the other direction.

"He's such a spaz," Madison mutters with a smile on her face. I see the endearing look in her eyes and take the chance to put in another good word for Jules.

"He is a little crazy, but he's a good guy," I say. Noah squeezes my hand and smiles up at me. I know he's already talked to her about this, but I want her to hear it from Jules best friend too.

"I know he is," she says with a small smile. "I-"

She breaks off in the middle of her sentence as somebody walks by and violently hits their shoulder against hers. A small whimper escapes her lips and Madison casts her eyes downward. A spatter of laughter and giggles sounds around me and I can't believe what I'm hearing. What the hell did Madison ever do to any of these people?

"Too rough for you, you little whore?" someone taunts. I look up and see the girl from French that said Madison shouldn't be allowed to be an aide the first day she came to our French class. Who the fuck did she think she was? I open my mouth to say something to the girl, but before I can say anything the girl to her right speaks.

"No, she likes it rough, remember? It's just that she has to cover her ass when everyone finds out how much of a slut she is. You're such a bitch, Madison." The girl's words drip with malice like Madison has done something to personally attack her. I look over at the two beside me and the sight breaks my heart. Noah's mouth is hanging open and he has one arm around Madison who has tears brimming her eyes and a pained expression on her face.

"Leave her the hell alone," I spit, glaring at the two girls. I know all the teachers are probably still in the Teacher's Lounge waiting as long as they can until they have to come back and teach, but all the shit that goes on right under their noses sickens me. For some reason the attacks on Madison are especially malicious today, and it makes me wonder if they have been all week. It would explain her looking like she just cried, but why the insults are this bad is unknown to me.

"You've sunk so low," another girl says. The whole hall is at a stand still now, everyone holding their breath and waiting for something to break the tension. "Hanging out with fags and looking to them for protection. You're pitiful."

I'm shaking with anger. I take a deep breath, ready to punch the shit out of the next person that says something, but I calm myself as much as I can and place a hand on both Noah and Madison's shoulders, pushing on them lightly in the direction of our classroom. As we move the tension dies down in the hallway and people go back to whispered conversation, others moving to get to their classes as well.

"I bet you'd be fun," a guy ahead of us calls. "You should come over tomorrow night. I'll show you what rough is. If you want to know what it's like, I can show you just how hard - " I look up to see who's talking, but before I can discern the voice from the crowd his speech is cut off and the one who was speaking is thrown up against a wall. Jules, who must have been making his way back to us, has the speaker pinned against some lockers. The guy displays a shocked expression and the hall becomes deathly silent again, everyone waiting for a fight to break out.

"You shut the fuck up, now." Jules growls lowly, "You and everyone else better leave my girl the hell alone, understand? If I hear another word about you saying anything about Madison or laying a finger on her I will beat the shit out of you. How dare you think you're so much better than everyone else. How dare you speak to her like that. All you are is a fucking pussy." Jules drops the arm that had the guy pinned against the lockers, but the look of contempt burning in his eyes doesn't leave. "Now get your ass to class."

The guy stares at Jules for a moment longer, before straightening his shirt and turning on his heel, headed in the opposite direction, throwing a "next time, asshole, you'll have yourself a fight" over his shoulder. People around us are still staring looking from Madison to Jules and back again. He called her his girl. That's got to have everyone thinking. Madison included.

She's staring up at Jules with an unreadable expression on her face and Jules gazes back, trying to slow his breathing. I'm looking at Madison, waiting for her to say something, or flee the scene, or burst out in tears, but none of these things happen. The silence stretches on but nobody moves. Finally, Jules takes a step in Madison's direction, starting to speak.

"I -" he begins, but is quickly cut off by Madison doing the last thing I would have expected. She doesn't cry, she doesn't leave, she doesn't yell, she doesn't even speak. Backpack dropped on the ground and forgotten, Madison jumps at Jules, who catches her out of automatic reaction as she throws her arms around his neck and pulls his face towards hers, smashing their lips together.