𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐁𝐄𝐋𝐎𝐍𝐆 𝐖𝐈𝐓𝐇 𝐌𝐄 ⋆. 𐙚 ˚

──── chapter ten; sleepovers

𝐀 𝐅𝐄𝐖 𝐇𝐎𝐔𝐑𝐒 𝐋𝐀𝐓𝐄𝐑 the tension from earlier seemed to go away. by the time naomi and ivy came back downstairs, nathan and walker were settled in the living room, a movie playing on the tv — something funny and loud enough to drown out the awkwardness that had hung in the air earlier.

nathan was sprawled across the couch, ivy sitting cross-legged on the floor beside him, tossing popcorn in the air and trying to catch it with her mouth. walker sat at the end of the couch, close enough to be part of the group but still keeping distance. naomi ended up beside him, and somehow — without really meaning to — they started talking.

"so new york, huh?" naomi said, her voice quiet enough that only walker could hear.

"yeah," he replied, his fingers tapping lightly against his knee. "it's... different here."

"different good or different bad?"

walker glanced at her, a small smile tugging at his lips. "depends on the day. today? not so bad. arcade was fun."

naomi tilted her head, studying him for a moment. "you're weird."

walker laughed softly. 

they kept talking — about new york, about ridgewood high, about how nathan was a terrible driver according to naomi. their words flowed easily, like they had been friends for longer than just a few weeks. every now and then, ivy would throw in a comment or nathan would make a sarcastic remark, but mostly it was just them — walker and naomi — falling into an easy rhythm.

at some point, naomi's parents came downstairs, dressed up like they were heading somewhere nice. her mom smiled warmly at the group. "we're going out with ivy's parents," she said, grabbing her purse. "it's late already, almost 11 — do you guys want to just stay over?"

ivy's face lit up. "my parents are going out too, so i'm good."

naomi's dad looked at walker. "what about you, son?"

walker quickly pulled his phone out, texting his mom. a few seconds later, the screen lit up with a simple "okay, be good." he showed it to naomi's parents. "she said yes."

"perfect," naomi's mom said, then glanced around the room. "wait... omi, wasn't trey here earlier?"

there was a beat of silence before nathan — never one to miss an opportunity — snorted. "he left."

"yeah, uh... he had to go," naomi added, a little too quickly.

ivy pressed her lips together, clearly trying not to laugh.

naomi's dad raised a brow. "hmm. alright then. just remember —" he looked pointedly at all of them "— boys and girls sleep separately. 2 rooms. we don't play that."

"we know, dad," naomi groaned, her face heating up.

as soon as the front door shut behind them, the group erupted into laughter.

"we don't play that," nathan mimicked, his voice deeper. "bro, they think we're about to throw a whole party or something."

ivy wiped a tear from her eye. "they act like we're all about to make out asoon as they leave."

naomi just shook her head, still laughing. walker chuckled along, feeling — for the first time in a while — like he was part of something.

by the time the clock hit one a.m., the movie credits were rolling, and everyone was a little too wired to sleep. nate, being nate, had the bright idea to go to mcdonald's.

"bro, i'm starving," he said, already grabbing his car keys.

"when are you not? you don't even have your license, and doordash is like closed" naomi pointed out.

"technicality," nathan replied. "who's coming?"

of course, they all went.

the drive to mcdonald's was chaotic in the best way. ivy and nathan sat up front, arguing over what music to play—ivy kept skipping songs halfway through while nathan kept threatening to pull over and make her walk. walker and naomi in the back, close but not too close, the air between them lighter now, more comfortable.

"you hungry?" walker asked, his voice quiet compared to the playful bickering in the front.

naomi turned to him, a soft smile tugging at her lips. "starving," she admitted. "i didn't eat much earlier. at the arcade."

"yeah, i noticed." walker shrugged, playing with the hem of his hoodie. "i mean—not in a weird way but. ok yea ill shut up."

she laughed a little. "guess i was distracted."

he didn't ask by what—or who—but the words hung between them.

the mcdonald's drive-thru was practically empty at that hour, the neon lights casting a soft glow they pulled into the drive-thru, and nathan leaned out the window, starting to order.

"can i get, like, five mcflurries?" he said, leaning halfway out the window. "and thennnn, i get twenty nuggets, two large fries—oh, and a mcchicken," he said, looking at ivy like he was daring her to say something.

ivy raised an eyebrow. "you really think were gonna eat all that?"

"no," nathan grinned. "that's just my order. what do you guys want?"

naomi laughed, "fatasssssss, can i get uhm, 10 piece nugget, a caramel frappe, a large fry, and bbq sauce. and by the way, youre paying my dear older bother."

nathan rolled his eyes. "this ho gonna make me broke, walker what do u want?"

"uhhh i just want fries and a sprite." walker said.

"you are so basic, " ivy teased, scrolling through her phone.

the group pulled over, parking so ivy and nathan could go inside to ask for something ivy had seen on tiktok. leaving naomi and walker in the car by themselves. 

naomi breathed softly, sitting in the backseat beside walker. their shoulders were almost touching, and the quiet hum of the car felt... comfortable.

walker glanced at naomi. "you okay?"

she blinked, like she hadn't expected the question. "yeah. why?"

walker tilted his head. "are you sure?"

there was something about the way he asked—gentle but steady—that made her throat tighten.

"just... earlier. with trey," he said carefully. "you seemed kinda... mad."

naomi sighed, leaning her head back against the seat. "that's an understatement."

walker didn't push, but his silence told her he was listening.

"he's just..." she trailed off, searching for the words. "he gets like that sometimes. like, jealous for no reason. and i get it — kinda — but also, it's exhausting." 

walker nodded slowly. "sounds like it."

"it's whatever," naomi said, but there was a hint of sadness in her voice.

"he always wants to control everything, you know?" she continued, her voice dropping even lower. "like, he gets so jealous for no reason. and tonight—it was just embarrassing."

walker's jaw tensed. "it wasn't your fault."

naomi's eyes met his. "it felt like it was."

before walker could respond, nathan shouted, "food's here!" and handed back the bags, making omi roll her eyes as ivy threw ketchup packets on her lap

once they parked in the drive way at home, everyone started digging in, the car filled with the crinkle of paper bags and the smell of fries.

"you want some?" naomi offered, holding out her nuggets to walker.

he smiled. "only if you take some of my fries."

she laughed. "deal."

from the front seat, nathan made a fake gagging sound. "are you guys sharing? that's, like, next level friendship."

"shut up, nathan," naomi said, but there was no real bite to her words.

ivy leaned her head against the window, watching them with a sly smile. "okkkkok."

walker's ears turned red, but he just focused on drinking his sprite.

as the night dragged on, the conversation bounced from one topic to the next—school drama, the upcoming game, even a ridiculous debate about which fast food place had the best fries. but somehow, every time naomi and walker spoke, the world seemed to shrink down to just them.

and in the soft glow of the car's interior lights, naomi realized—maybe walker didnt have to be just her brothers quiet friend from new york.

maybe he could be her friend too.