No idea why I'm suddenly obsessed with this song again but the song for this chapter is: Crystalised by the XX

Thank you so much to everyone sending in covers for this story! They're all so incredible! And thank you for the well wishes. I'm still really sick but slowly getting better :-)

Cover by: Ssstevey - thank you so much! <3

The walls of the house are shaking when I enter. The air is stale with perfume, body odour and alcohol. I weave my way through sweaty bodies and loud conversations. I feel the vibrations from the music move up my body as I head to the kitchen.

Jake is propped up on the kitchen island, a can of rum in one hand, a cigarette in his other. Two girls who I don't know are hanging off him. I barely even look up as I reach into the cooler bag that Grant brought, withdrawing two drinks.

"Got a light?" Jake asks and I know it's just an excuse to get my attention.

"Nope," I reply, as Rhett hovers by the kitchen doorway, looking adorably nervous and only a dash out of place.

I raise a can in his direction, to show I got him one. I don't look back to Jake as I walk out with Rhett. I lead him away from the crowd and out the back. The night air has a frosty bite to it, so most people are inside where it's warm.

"Thanks," he says as he takes the can from me.

"Easier to talk out here," I unnecessarily explain before taking a sip.

"Agreed."

Two girls come stumbling out onto the porch, holding each other up. My eyes register that the blonde ponytail belongs to Alice.

"Hi boys!" her friend shrieks at us with a giggle, before running down the steps.

"Cal," Alice smiles, before wrapping her long arms around me. She plants a sloppy kiss on my cheek, before darting after her friend.

"Girlfriend?" Rhett asks awkwardly, looking uncomfortable.

I scratch my head. "Er, no." I try to look back at him but my eyes suddenly can't go higher than the floor. "Um. I'm not... well..."

"Not into girls?" he whispers.

And suddenly, my eyes are on his. "Well, yeah. Pretty much."

Rhett nods. "Cool. Me either."

A smile fights its way onto my mouth. "Cool."

"I'm pretty awkward with all of this," Rhett laughs. "If you can't tell."

"Don't worry, me too. I'm not really 'out' yet."

"I kind of am. My friends know but it's not really school-wide knowledge, yet."

"Kind of a similar situation to me, then."

"Hey, I just want to say thanks for standing up for me today, when that guy tackled me."

That guy. Jake.

"Sure," I shrug. "It was a cheap shot."

"Cal!" A voice yells out through the back door. "You're up!"

I glance to the sound, before looking back at Rhett. "Want to come inside and meet my friends?"

"Okay."

I lead Rhett inside, towards the beer pong table that's been set up. Thomas and Grant are at one end, with two girls downing their drinks on the other.

"You're up to verse the champions!" Thomas grins. "Hey man," he suddenly says, realising I'm not alone.

"Hey," Rhett says politely.

"Rhett, this is Grant and Thomas," I introduce them and Grant is beaming when he shakes his hand. I ignore his suggestive looks as we take our side of the table.

"You know how to play?" I ask.

"Watch and learn," Rhett grins back, picking up the pink pong ball.

The cups are filled with our drinks and the game is ready to commence within a minute or two.

With an efficient flick of his wrist, Rhett sends the ball straight into our opponent's cup.

"Nice," I compliment in surprise.

"Not just a pretty face," he jokes.

"Clearly," I smile.

I already knew I was pretty good at this game but with Rhett on my side, we eliminate the team within minutes.

"You're going to be crawling home tonight," I tease Grant who skulls his fourth drink.

"Seems like it," he grunts.

I turn to Rhett. "Where did your friends end up?"

He points to the two boys he arrived with, both of them with a girl. I nod.

"Cool, they're keeping themselves entertained, then."

"Looks that way."

Grant, being the competitive player he is, demands a rematch. During the game, I take a moment to appreciate how easily Rhett just fits. He gets along with everyone, keeps up with our drinking and most importantly: is just as sarcastic as we are.

"I'm going to the bathroom; you cool here for a minute?" I ask.

"Yep," Rhett replies.

I'm washing my hands in the sink when the door opens. I exhale. I'm not surprised, at all, that Jake has followed me.

"Nice play," he says. "You get my attention. It worked. You can send him home now."

I shake my head. "Wow. Can you be any more conceited?"

"We have to stop meeting like this," he jokes as he walks towards me.

"Jake, don't," I side-step him. "We're done, remember?"

"That's just us, Cal. We say dumb shit but we don't mean it."

"Maybe we do."

He grabs my hand and I wrench it away.

"Cal," he frowns, reaching for me again. "What's wrong?"

"You know what's wrong. Go find someone else to entertain you. I'm withdrawing my application."

I storm out of the bathroom. The door flies open straight after me. Rhett's eyes go over my shoulder and his smile dims, before he looks back at me.

"You okay?" he asks.

I wave my hand towards Jake, who is standing there, looking extremely pissed off and annoyingly hot. "That is a boat load of fucking drama but it's not my drama anymore."

"Okay."

"Do you want to go?" I ask. "For a walk, or something?"

Rhett nods. "Sure, let me just tell my friends."

"You're not fucking leaving with him," Jake snaps at me, whirling me around so that I face him.

"Careful now, you might draw a crowd," I taunt him. "Wouldn't want people to think you actually care, right?"

If steam could come out of his ears, right now, it would be.

"Don't," his voice drops, losing the stubbornness it had a moment ago. "Please."

Rhett returns with two more cans of drink for the road. He glances to Jake for a second.

"Ready?" he asks.

I look to Jake, running my tongue across my teeth. "More than ever."

***

"So, there's history with my tackler," Rhett says with a soft laugh.

"Yeah, a little bit. It's complicated. My sister is dating his brother."

"Ah."

"Anyway, that's not important," I shrug, taking a long mouthful and digging my free hand into my jacket pocket. Thinking about Jake is a real mood killer for me and I don't need that right now. "How's Tintenbar High? A good school?"

"So-so. I've got a good group of friends and all but I can't wait to move somewhere a bit bigger. Somewhere with more opportunities."

"Definitely."

"Do you know what you want to do after school?" Rhett asks and I'm not sure which one of us is the reason but the distance between us collapses and our arms brush.

"I'd like to get into the medical field. Thinking paramedics or maybe something like dentistry. I don't know."

"Wow. That's cool. I can't figure out what I want to do. My dad's pushing me to do economics and he generally gets what he wants."

"You have to think about what you want, though," I point out. "You're the one who has to live it."

"Wise words, Cal." His cheeks colour. "Callum, sorry."

"Everyone calls me Cal, it's cool."

"What about you? What does your dad want you to do?" Rhett asks obliviously. "Dad's are mental. They're great, obviously, but they can put so much pressure on you."

"My dad died a few years ago."

Rhett stops abruptly, his shoes squeaking against the cement. The harsh wind slaps us suddenly as we stare at each other.

"Sorry. I had no idea."

"It's fine."

"How?" he asks quietly.

I scratch the back of my neck. I haven't had to talk about this for so long. Everyone around here remembers.

"Remember that fire three years ago?"

Rhett's eyes widen. "At the election?"

I nod.

"Dude... I'm sorry."

"Thanks."

It's silent as we walk. For some reason, I'm feeling uncharacteristically down all of a sudden. I'm not sure if it's the talk of my father or Jake or just maybe everything.

"I didn't mean to kill the mood," Rhett says awkwardly.

"Oh, you didn't. I'm sorry," I rub my face. "I'm really keen to hang out, though. Maybe we could get dinner one night this week?"

"Yeah?" he asks with a smile. "That sounds great."

"So, tell me something about yourself." I say.

"Well, I live in Tintenbar with my parents and my two annoying, younger sisters. We have a cat named Garry and no, I did not name him. When I'm not playing footy, I teach tennis."

"Tennis? Cool," I hug my jacket around myself. "I used to play a little but I haven't for ages."

"Well, if you're ever keen to get back out there, let me know."

"Will do."

"What about you?"

"It's just my Ma and I at home now, my sister is living in Westcom, becoming a Vet. Oh, and there's Charlie, our dog. He's the real man of the house," I grin.

"I would love to have a dog but Brady is allergic," he sighs. "My sister." He adds when I raise my eyebrows.

Our arms make contact again but this time, Rhett's warm fingers wrap around mine. I smile and squeeze his hand. It's so simple but so nice to just hold hands with someone in public. Sure, there's no one around, but we're not locked away where no one can see us. It's refreshing.

The standard iPhone ringtone begins to blare and I automatically reach for my pocket, before realising Rhett's phone is the one ringing.

I check my own phone while Rhett takes the call for a minute.

"Hey, sorry, that was my mum. I have to go. Thanks for inviting me tonight, I really appreciate it. I'm looking forward to dinner."

"Everything okay?"

"Um," he says with a noticeable pause. "It will be. I'll message you?"

"Sure," I nod.

He reaches out and we awkwardly hug. I want to hang on longer because he's so warm but I don't. He gives me a lope-sided smile, before taking off at a jog. I watch him retreat for a few moments, before finishing my can and heading home.

Ma's car isn't in the driveway when I get there. It's not until I'm at the steps that I realise Jake is sitting on my front porch, rubbing his hands together.

"Hey," he says quietly. "Where's your friend?"

"Left," I reply.

"We need to talk," Jake says as I walk past him. My fingers feel numb as I unlock the front door.

"I don't want to talk."

"I need you, Cal."

I don't even glance back. I simply leave the door open and walk inside.

After a moment, I hear him enter behind me.

---------------------

Thoughts?

For those of you who love to read, check out the post I made about my story Downright Delinquents getting turned into a Chapter Interactive game - there's a chance to win some gems! If the story goes well, they might end up wanting to turn this story into one too, which would be amazing. Imagine seeing Jake and Cal!

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