Liam rolled in bed, mentally blaming himself for leaving his text notifications on so loud. Not only did it ring so loudly, it rang loudly twice.  Still sleepy, he got up to pick his phone to silence it from any future disturbance. He picked it, swiped it open to reveal text messages from Steve. Stevie: Happy Birthday, Liam!! Stevie: Hoping this year brings you all the happiness this world has to offer that you deserve!  Right. It was his birthday. He laughed at himself for forgetting, his laughter quickly becoming a smile as he read through the messages again. It was to think Steve remembered his birthday when even him didn’t remember.  Liam: Thanks. Steve’s reply was immediate. Stevie: You’re welcome! Stevie: I was afraid you’d be asleep 

  By seven am, Steve was already at Liam's.  Liam was also ready. Dressed in a black sweater and dark jeans, he was waiting outside with his bag next to him. Steve arrived and they bid Liam's mum goodbye then left. The ride to school was cheerful, both having sandwiches Steve made for breakfast and talking about music and food. "Hiiiiii," Jasmine excitedly said as she spotted them at school. "Great. We're all going." "Yeah." Replies were mumbled and in unison. "Come on let's go," she linked arms with both of them. "I heard the bus would be moving in about fifteen minutes. Let's get our name tags now." They got their name tags, Liam and Steve helping each other put it on. They then headed outside to where the rest of the students were. "Do you know if Nick would be coming too?" Liam asked Jasmine, looking around him. 

"School's closed for a week!" The unexpected announcement give life to a positive response from the crowd. It was like music to their ears to hear school was going to be locked. It was a Monday morning and they were ready to leave. Liam had spent the previous night in silence, going to bed immediately after shutting Jasmine up. He was positive Nick was avoiding him as much as he was- he didn't sleep in the tent that night. Liam was avoiding Steve and he knew it. He packed his bags and left to wait by the bus alone. When it was time to get into the bus, he got in and sat in the farthest seat. Liam caught Steve walking into the bus and he immediately shifted his gaze. Immediately, he shut his eyes and rested his head on the window. "Liam?" He recognized the voice and knew it was best to not acknowledge it. Shutting his eyes even tighter, he ignored Steve's voic

Empty houses, shut doors and tears soaked pillows. Liam had never been that glad his mum was out of town for a business trip. Not caring about how much the Uber was going to charge him for ordering so late, he ordered a Uber from Trevor's place and was able to get home in about thirty minutes.  On getting home, he locked the doors, turned off all the nights and headed to his room. Tears filled his eyes as he climbed his bed, pulling his duvets close to him.  He was hurt. He was in so much pain he almost felt like his heart couldn't handle it. His biggest fear finally came true and he had no one but himself to blame.  His phone vibrated in his pocket and he wiggled to take it out. It was a call from Steve. With even more tears rolling down his cheeks, he declined the call. Steve obviously wasn't getting the message that Liam didn't want to talk to him as he kept on

Bye, mum!"    Liam dashed out the house, his backpack on his shoulder. He was late and Steve was outside already waiting for him.   After a week, school was finally open. The past one week had gone by with him and Steve being around each other. When they weren't texting each other, Steve was at Liam's whiling away time.    It felt different. They were both around each other comfortably with no fear. Jasmine had warned Steve to not break Liam's heart, Trevor asking Liam to do the same. Their friends were aware of their relationship and their parents were in support of it- it was just perfect.   "Good morning, babe," Steve said, watching Liam opened the door and get in.    "Hey, good morning," Liam smiled at him, dropping his backpack in the back seat. "I'm not too late, am i?"   "You are."   "Oops," Liam bit his lip, pulling