#beckett x nate

[callmewhenyougetthis-a]

@invsiblestrings // beckett x nate

He wasn't supposed to be smoking, and certainly not on school grounds, but the funny thing about things he wasn't supposed to be doing was that he did them anyway. And, on nights like prom, when everybody was too busy dancing (or chaperoning) to pay attention to who was breaking the rules, Beckett could sneak out to the football field, jump the fence, and sit at the bleachers. That was what he did tonight.

This sorta thing can ruin your lungs, boy.

You wanna be coughin' up a lung while you're in the pocket?

His father's and coach's words echoed in his mind with every drag he took. Cigarettes were especially bad for athletes, but he wasn't really going to be an athlete anymore. Come fall, he was going to be on a truck or on a plane somewhere, headed off to war. And everyone smoked there, right? They didn't throw the pigskin back and forth or worry about playing in front of college scouts. He had to get in that mindset that everything he'd ever worked for was going away, and the smoking helped that sort of thing—and helped him come to terms that this was what he decided for himself.

He heard clanking behind him—it sounded like someone found his conspicuous hiding spot—so he glanced over his shoulder and saw none other than Nate. A snicker left his lips before he looked forward again, the football field beautiful at night with all the big overhead lights shining down on it.

"If you're wonderin' where I got these from, I stole 'em from you."

[mutatedangels-a]

Two Chicks Café was the best place to get breakfast in town, and Beckett and Nate had gone to it ever since they were kids. There wasn't really anywhere else to go to get a good breakfast—the eggs at Connie's were too greasy and Hillside stopped serving breakfast when they were in middle school. The thing was, even though Two Chicks had Beckett's favorite pancakes, it had everybody else's favorite thing. And on Easter weekend, you could find just about everybody in town there.

The place was hopping, their waitress—Darcy from high school who got pregnant and didn't have a baby bump now, who told the two boys that her toddler was being watched by Mrs. Weaver at home—bouncing between tables. Besides the little story she told about her kid, Beckett was glad Darcy didn't ask about the two. He was sure he'd get in all the catching up he needed from the man who sat across from him who wore both a sorry-ass and prideful look on his face.

"Don't worry about payin'," Beckett told him, sipping on his coffee. "My ma gave me some money to spend at home."

He'd managed not to ask too much about it when they were driving in the truck, but the blonde couldn't hold his tongue anymore at this point. "The rookie ain't tell me much," he said, referring to his best friend's arrest. It was a lie. The cop told him what happened. He just wanted to see if Nate would tell him the truth, and what version of the story he'd tell. Would it be self-serving or honest? "What happened, Nate?"

"Fucking hell," he spat as they entered the parking lot outside the police station and the sun attempted to fry him on sight. He'd thought the fluorescents and their incessant buzzing had been bad for his brewing hangover, but this was honestly uncalled for. "What happened to April showers or some shit?" he huffed, easily finding his way to Beck's familiar pick up and letting himself in the passenger side. Some things were the same, at least. He slapped the sun visor down with more effort than was necessary and found himself casting a sideways, apologetic look in his friend's direction. No need to take it out on the truck.

"Yeah, I could eat," he agreed. His mother would be at the church for at least another hour shaking hands and praising God, so if he went home now, he could probably sneak in unnoticed. But whatever peace that bought him wouldn't last, and besides, his best friend was here. All knight in shining armor, of course, but that was just Beckett for you. He fished his wallet out of his jeans pocket, peered incredulously inside, and remembered he'd spent whatever money he had getting himself into jail and thus had none to get him out of it, nor to repay his friend whatever it had cost him to spring him loose.

"Don't suppose Jesus paid my debts today, huh?" he asked, figuring he'd keep the Easter jokes coming until he ran dry. He was usually better than this, but the poinding in his head was making it hard to find the best quips. "Breakfast is on me." That $20 in there could cover it. Probably. Besides, Beck was some sort of hero now. He heard it all the time. That Boyer turned out real fine. Or Beckett send another letter home to his mama this week. I heard he graduated top of his class at basic. Hell, someone would probably spot him at the diner and pay the tab. Wouldn't that be grand.

[barringtonishigh]

begging for cobra starship and the academy is requests, also fall out boy <3

[writermuses]

@marimelwrites

[mutatedangels-a]

below the cut you'll find the threads i was able to track from my old blog! if our thread's not on this list, please know that i still want to write with you - i'd just rather start fresh or wanna continue but forgot. on the flipside, if our thread is on this list, i'd like to continue it if i owe you (or at least, the pairing!) - but you're welcome to drop it if you'd like!

either way, there's never any rush from me for you to respond, and also don't feel obliged to write with me right now! we can always pick something up another time. if you do notice our thread's missing from this list and you'd like to continue writing together, just message me!

@carp3diems - nancy x sawyer, the wild bunch

@blndsided - jeremiah x angel, palmer x luna, soleil x sid, eli x abigail (bowlofpeaches)

@wynterlanding - una x landon

@invsiblestrings - ford x claire, nate x beckett

@packagecfgirlyevil - jody x brinley, soap x stella, charlotte x kirk

@waveofstars - julian x chey, lizzie x connor, peyton x renee, eli x lennon, una x ophelia

@blindspct - una x dante, ford x greta

@wintcrstcrfall - soap x marcella, johanna x eli

@hungryyheart - lizzie x conrad (bowlofpeaches)

@andurmine - eli x nadia, perry x grey

@mysteryoflovc - sid x jody, mekhi x ben

@ruinedtendencies - astrid x jamie

@evcrlasting - chris x gabe, beacon x aisha

@rxnatx - daisy x eli, lorenzo x soleil

@daisyxmuses - jesse x billie

@spideysmuses - felicity x felix, beckett x maxine

@incalescentia - twyla x ??, peridot x noah

@saccharinesomethings - emily x ??

@princessbxtch-rps - soleil x noelle, shane x monroe (bowlofpeaches)

i thiiink that's everyone i have an active thread with?? phew!

[themomsandthecity]

180+ Cute Baby Boy Names

Brainstorming baby names can be one of the most fun (and important) aspects of planning for the arrival of your little one, but it can also feel really overwhelming. If you don't have certain requirements, like wanting a name that runs in the family, the possibilities can seem endless. Our names are the first thing tied to our identities, and we know how daunting that sounds - so we're here to ease you of any stress you have on your hunt for cute baby boy names. Choosing a cute boy name that will be equally fitting for an adorable infant and the adult he grows into can be a challenge, which is why we compiled this list of cute, unique boy names. You're sure to find an option that flow well with your last name or other kids' names among the cute names for boys we rounded up here. You might even find two that you like to help you out with a middle name option. (Oh, and if you want options for cute girls' names, we have you covered for that too, with our list of cute girl names.) Cute Names For Boys A Abe, Addison, Adrian, Aiden, Amir, Amos, Ansel, Archie, Ari, Arlo, Asher, Atticus, August, Austin, Avery, Axel B Beau, Beckett, Bentley, Benicio, Benito, Benjamin, Billy, Bishop, Blake, Bodhi, Briggs, Brody, Brooks C Caleb, Campbell, Carter, Caspian, Charlie, Cody, Colby, Cole, Colton, Cooper, Crew, Crosby, Cruz D Dallas, Dash, Dawson, Dax, Deacon, Declan, Diego, Dillan, Donovan, Dorian, Duke, Dustin, Dylan E Easton, Eden, Eli, Elias, Elliott, Emerson, Emmett, Ender, Enrique, Enzo, Everest, Ewan, Ezra F Felipe, Finley, Finn, Fletcher, Ford, Frankie G Gabriel, Gage, Gavin, Graham, Grant, Gray, Greyson, Griffin, Gus Related: 117 Unique Names For Girls That Are Both Rare and Timeless H Harley, Henry, Hudson, Hugh, Hurley I Ian, Idris, Ira, Isaac, Isaiah J Jacob, Jack, Jaime, Jasper, Jaxon, Jayden, Jett, Jude, Julian K Kai, Khalil, Kingsley, Knox L Larkin, Leo, Liam, Logan, Luke M Mason, Maverick, Max, Memphis, Miles, Milo, Morris N Nate, Neo, Nico, Noah, Noe, Nolan O Oden, Oliver, Omari, Oscar, Otis, Owen P Percy, Peyton, Phoenix, Pierce, Porter Q Quest, Quentin, Quincy, Quinn Related: 50 Adorable and Meaningful Names For Baby Boys in 2022 R Remy, Rein, Rhett, Rhys, Roman, Ronin, Rowan, Ryan, Ryder S Samuel, Sawyer, Santiago, Sebastian, Shane, Silas T Tate, Theodore, Titan, Tobias, Toby, Trenton U Uri, Uriah, Uriel, Ulysses, Usher, Uwe V Valentino, Van, Virgil W Walker, Wesley, Wren, Wrenynn, Wyatt X Xander, Xavi, Xavier Y Yasir, Yates, Yonah, York, Yunis, Yuri Z Zachary, Zaiden, Zander, Zane https://www.popsugar.com/family/Cute-Boy-Names-43713664?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=tumblr

[callmewhenyougetthis-a]

Beckett was just as relieved as the other seemed when the decision came to blow the rest of prom night off and have their own night of fun. It might break the hearts of their dates, but it was nothing they couldn't get over; a little bit of booze and dancing would surely make them forget the boys' whereabouts.

"I was gonna kick your ass if you forgot the Straub," he chuckled. "Let's go."

-

Once they were long gone from the school, Beckett rolled his window down in Nate's truck and breathed in the fresh, cold air. It was otherwise hot all year round in this town, but there were certain times of the day—like right before morning and a few hours into the evening—that the temperature actually brought a chill to the blond's spine. A welcome one, at that.

He reached over to turn the volume down of whatever song Nate had been blasting, and glanced over at the driver himself. "Listen," he said, "I wasn't gonna mention it but. My ma's been up my ass about asking you. You gon' be at my go-away party on the 20th?" Two Saturdays from now. "She noticed your ma ain't send her RSVP yet."

Nate winning and Beck bragging would be a nice role reversal for once, seeing as usually Beckett was the one with all the real accolades while Nathaniel was 90% bravado. Still, he liked his friend's suggestion even better, and he inhaled deeply before straightening up at the spine and pulling his tie to hang loose at the neck.

"Now you're using your head," he enthused, clapping the man on one shoulder in agreement. "I've got a case of Straub in the truck, and every cop in town is gonna be at this high school for the rest of the night. Wanna go for a ride?" It was Nate's turn to supply the ideas, though his always tended to have a bit more edge.

Nothing sounded worse to him than walking back into that gym, accepting a plastic crown in front of a bunch of fake people, and then wasting his time trying to get Shelby to put out when her best friend had made it a lot easier last weekend.

[invsiblestringswrites]

nate & beckett continued from here. @sweetsoftplentyrhythm

Half Nate's cash went to putting diesel in his gas-guzzler of a truck, and the other half went to beer, but on nights like this, he felt like all of that was money well spent. He'd gotten a bit lost - not on the back roads that he'd been driving his entire life, but rather in his own head - wondering if everything was all about to change, and not for the better. In a town that had been frozen for a lifetime, the thought was unsettling.

And Beckett's line of questioning gave him a sick sense that he was right to be worried. He leaned back in his seat, his only hand on the steering wheel gripping a little tighter than was necessary.

"Oh, I'm sure my mom'll be there, and she'll bring the girls." Of his two younger sisters, Emily Grace idolized Beck and Evie tolerated him better than she tolerated most people, but either way, it was a testament to the fact that no one could resist the charms of Beckett Boyer. Except maybe his little brother Cole, who seemed to hate everybody but the trees like some weird little Lorax. His mom had bene hounding him about the RSVP, too, but didn't want to give a headcount until she knew for sure who was going, and Nate kept pretending he hadn't received his work schedule yet.

He realized he hadn't fully answered Beck's question, but. He didn't know what to say. "Are you sure about all this? 'Cos I'm sure there's still time. Or.. or we could go to Canada or something. Plenty of people travel after graduation. They call it a gap year or some shit. They can't come after you if you go to Canada. I saw it on The Handmaid's Tale. Well, Evie did. She told me about it."

[invsiblestringswrites]

Figures. I guess I just do. Well. Nate Fairfax had never known what he was meant to do. Not with his frozen future, not with his chaotic present, not with the past he'd rather forget. Hell, half the time he didn't know when he was meant to shut his mouth or keep his hands to himself. And he seized Beck's hand at that - freezing it on his shoulder - begging the universe or God whoever the hell listened to the prayers of no good eighteen-year-old second-string running backs to just freeze this moment.

He kissed him. He didn't think about it. (He never did.) But it felt like the only thing to do with his mouth, his hands, his need to be part of a person who'd been a second skin for years and who now was on the verge of shedding Nate for good. If he was destined to be left behind, he at least wouldn't be forgotten. 

@loveandyouandroses

Beckett dangled his hand from the handlebar on the side of Nate's car, all too familiar with the way this part of the road was barely paved. He soaked in the sounds: the crunching of rocks and sand under Nate's tires as they slowed down, the faint hooting of an owl nearby, the breeze blowing through the trees hanging above the creek. They were the sounds of home. Even the sound of silence was comforting as Nate's car came to a stop.

He looked forward just as the other did, not sure what to tell him to make things better. They had hardly talked about it, if ever, but Beckett knew Nate wasn't happy that he was leaving. A pang of guilt hit him as he realized he didn't even give his best friend the opportunity to plead his case for him to stay. One day Beckett just made the decision and everyone else was supposed to swallow it.

Breaking the silence, he glanced over at Nate and said, "I guess I just do." It was the first time he really got to look at the other tonight. He couldn't help but chuckle, reaching over and fixing Nate's crooked boutonniere. His hand lingered on Nate's shoulder. "You'll be all right, Nate. It'll be like I wadn't even gone. With my luck, they'll prolly send me back for having some freak genetic defect, like... bad eyes."

[mutatedangels-a]

Beckett was equal parts worried and annoyed, though the latter was growing ever larger as he sensed the other's usual arrogance was at an all-time high. He knew Nate tended to live his life helter skelter, but he never imagined he'd end up in jail. And so early in Beckett's absence, too. It made sense now, what people told Beckett before he left: What's that Nate boy gonna do without you?

He sighed. "Yeah, man, I paid your bail. Prolly should'a left you in here for a couple more hours, do you some good." And he added: "Well, at least I ain't got a stick in my ass behind bars." A snicker left his lips as he patted the metal, gesturing for the other to get up off his knees.

A few seconds later, the cop on duty unlocked Nate's cell, his keys clanking against the metal. It really was like in the movies Beckett had watched.

"See ya next week," the burly cop remarked, judgment palpable in his gaze as the two boys passed by. Beckett wasted no time shoving Nate as they walked with just enough force to make him wobble. He muttered something about how he can't believe you made me do this shit. But it wasn't so serious.

-

Out in the sunshine, the blue-eyed boy couldn't help but squint at the big yellow yolk in the sky. He pulled out a pack of cigarettes from his back pocket, picking one out for him and his best friend.

"You hungry? Can't imagine you wanna be home right now."

Beckett's old pick-up truck was parked in front of the station. He foresaw the Fairfaxes berating Nate upon his return and guilt simmered in his stomach. They would tell Beckett he shouldn't have picked Nate up in such a hurry, and Beckett wouldn't know what to say to that. They talked a lot in church about forgiveness and all, and it felt backwards to strand him.

It was amazing how much - yet how little - could change in a year. Nate still drove the same shitty Ram, still occupied the third room off the second floor hallway in his mother's house, still drank with all the same kids every Friday night. It was just that most of those people now went to the junior college the other five days of the week, if they hadn't escaped the zip code altogether. Life moved a little too slow in those small hours between weekends.

So Nate should be forgiven if he took things a little too far last night. The usual crew had been joined by all the brainiacs who'd come home from their fancy universities for the Easter weekend. And, well, they'd managed to turn all that water into wine and all that wine into bad decisions. Praise the Lord.

Liz Fairfax had bailed him out the first time he'd ended up in here about six months ago, but when he'd called her last night, there'd been no answer. Despite a house full of people he knew were home.

"My saviour," he drawled, raising his head up from the metal cot at the sight of Beckett. He even dropped to his knees for dramatic effect, his hands clasping together more fervently than any Bible thumper down at the First Baptist. "Please tell me you paid my sins and my bail. I'm sorry for having all the fun without you. It's just that I didn't know if the stick in your ass was part of the uniform, or if it was going to be permanent." Let's see if his best friend could still bite back.

[lemmeknowimreal]

It was a tricky way to talk about the subject of Beckett leaving, but he didn't know another way he could get to discussing such a thing with Nate. If it took mental gymnastics, then he supposed that's what he would do. The last thing he wanted was for the two of them to part ways for an indefinite amount of time with things unsaid (but he was feeling more and more like that might have been what fate had in store for them).

He'd just known the other long enough to recognize there was something that Nate wasn't saying. Or something that he was avoiding talking about. A barbecue with booze and good food was right up Nate's alley, he thought; he'd otherwise jump at the invitation if it wasn't signifying Beckett's departure.

Nate's mom, yes—and his sisters, too. He'd anticipated on those three being there, and his own mom was excited about the whole thing. But Nate purposely left out whether he was going. And that filled up Beckett's cup of patience just a bit more.

He decided to keep quiet about it for now, and instead follow Nate's lead on the conversation. Scrunching his nose, he glanced at the other as he drove. "Shit, you know I ain't seen Handmaid's Tale yet, so I don't got a clue what you're talkin' about," he chuckled. "But... man, I don't know. I just think... this is the right thing to do for me. I wadn't ever meant to go to college or be like the rest of everybody.

"But if I can be part of something bigger where they need people like me—" strong, healthy, with the right protective senses— "then I wanna do that. The world'll have plenty of other doctors or authors or whatever else I could've done, and they'll prolly end up better than me. But I figure not everybody's meant to do what I'm doing."

nate & beckett continued from here. @sweetsoftplentyrhythm

Half Nate's cash went to putting diesel in his gas-guzzler of a truck, and the other half went to beer, but on nights like this, he felt like all of that was money well spent. He'd gotten a bit lost - not on the back roads that he'd been driving his entire life, but rather in his own head - wondering if everything was all about to change, and not for the better. In a town that had been frozen for a lifetime, the thought was unsettling.

And Beckett's line of questioning gave him a sick sense that he was right to be worried. He leaned back in his seat, his only hand on the steering wheel gripping a little tighter than was necessary.

"Oh, I'm sure my mom'll be there, and she'll bring the girls." Of his two younger sisters, Emily Grace idolized Beck and Evie tolerated him better than she tolerated most people, but either way, it was a testament to the fact that no one could resist the charms of Beckett Boyer. Except maybe his little brother Cole, who seemed to hate everybody but the trees like some weird little Lorax. His mom had bene hounding him about the RSVP, too, but didn't want to give a headcount until she knew for sure who was going, and Nate kept pretending he hadn't received his work schedule yet.

He realized he hadn't fully answered Beck's question, but. He didn't know what to say. "Are you sure about all this? 'Cos I'm sure there's still time. Or.. or we could go to Canada or something. Plenty of people travel after graduation. They call it a gap year or some shit. They can't come after you if you go to Canada. I saw it on The Handmaid's Tale. Well, Evie did. She told me about it."

[mutatedangels-a]

-

"Hey, I been lookin' for you,"

Beckett walked through the otherwise empty hallway, each bed behind bars vacant except for the one at about halfway through—the one that contained his best friend. Once he saw Nate, he breathed a sigh of relief. At least he was in one piece, even if he was in jail.

It had been about a year or so since Beckett was deployed and left town. He was back for a spring break of sorts, a chance for the bootcamp kids to head home for Easter festivities. He'd been home for less than 24 hours. His day started at church, where as he was leaving, he was told the news of where his sandbox buddy had been staying since the night before. How sacrilegious to let Beckett sit through a whole mass when he would've rather been bailing Nate out.

He rested a forearm up against the cold, painted-over bars, looking into them to try and catch a better glimpse at Nate. He wondered if he could even recognize him: Bootcamp Beckett was clean-cut and clean-shaven, no longer donning that signature and sometimes greasy head of long blonde hair. But he hoped his voice and tone were familiar. "You throw one helluva comeback party, you know that?"

He knew his best friend. Knew him, like he knew the way home blindfolded or drunk, like he knew all the words to the Springsteen album his mom played to clean the house on Saturday mornings, like he knew how to complete a pass or fumble a heart. So he didn't take the man's pulling away as a rejection. Not in the way he probably should, anyway. Because he knew Beckett felt it too, just like he knew that it didn't matter at all anyway.

"Yeah, yeah, I know," he brushed off, leaning his head back against the driver's side window and closing his eyes, letting the crisp cold of the pane leech all the color from his face. It should've felt sobering, but it was having the opposite effect.

"You'll have to get used to it. Not many girls where you're going. Ones who'll open their legs for you, anyway." He doubted that last part very much, but it was his job to give Beck shit. He could lie and say that Beck was the first man he'd kissed, but that wasn't true. They never talked about it. Nate had his secrets, even from his best friend. But this wasn't like that, anyway. This wasn't like anything. And if there would only ever be the one time, here in his pickup truck on prom night right before the whole world was scheduled to go to shit, then that was alright.

[mutatedangels-a]

He was expecting a smart ass phrase, maybe something more venomous shot back at him. Instead, Beckett was kissed. And the moment felt like three things at once: the world cracking open underneath his feet, a thunderclap ringing in his ears, time stopping. His initial confusion slipped away in a breath; his hand, somewhat awkward but determined, reached up from Nate's shoulder to the back of his stubborn head, as if keeping him there also meant keeping his grip on everything around him.

The kiss broke his heart as much as it saved him. He didn't need a reason to stay home, another person to disappoint. But it also felt as if Beckett had discovered a part of himself that laid dormant before Nate, his best friend, his right hand, kissed him.

It was sudden and fast and knocked the breath out of Beckett like a tackle he wasn't expecting. After a few moments, though, now he was calming down. The desperate kiss almost turned into a make out before Beckett pulled away, lips parting, that confusion hitting him again. "Nate..."

Figures. I guess I just do. Well. Nate Fairfax had never known what he was meant to do. Not with his frozen future, not with his chaotic present, not with the past he'd rather forget. Hell, half the time he didn't know when he was meant to shut his mouth or keep his hands to himself. And he seized Beck's hand at that - freezing it on his shoulder - begging the universe or God whoever the hell listened to the prayers of no good eighteen-year-old second-string running backs to just freeze this moment.

He kissed him. He didn't think about it. (He never did.) But it felt like the only thing to do with his mouth, his hands, his need to be part of a person who'd been a second skin for years and who now was on the verge of shedding Nate for good. If he was destined to be left behind, he at least wouldn't be forgotten. 

@loveandyouandroses

[lemmeknowimreal]

Beckett dangled his hand from the handlebar on the side of Nate's car, all too familiar with the way this part of the road was barely paved. He soaked in the sounds: the crunching of rocks and sand under Nate's tires as they slowed down, the faint hooting of an owl nearby, the breeze blowing through the trees hanging above the creek. They were the sounds of home. Even the sound of silence was comforting as Nate's car came to a stop.

He looked forward just as the other did, not sure what to tell him to make things better. They had hardly talked about it, if ever, but Beckett knew Nate wasn't happy that he was leaving. A pang of guilt hit him as he realized he didn't even give his best friend the opportunity to plead his case for him to stay. One day Beckett just made the decision and everyone else was supposed to swallow it.

Breaking the silence, he glanced over at Nate and said, "I guess I just do." It was the first time he really got to look at the other tonight. He couldn't help but chuckle, reaching over and fixing Nate's crooked boutonniere. His hand lingered on Nate's shoulder. "You'll be all right, Nate. It'll be like I wadn't even gone. With my luck, they'll prolly send me back for having some freak genetic defect, like... bad eyes."

Ever the diplomat, Beck's spiel didn't come as much of a surprise to his best friend. As Nate's mother would say, that boy could sell oceanfront property in Arizona. "You could be in their commercials, talking like that," Nate teased, his tires slowing over the gravel as his amber headlights bobbed up and down over the uneven road, shining more out of habit than help at this point. Beck could easily be the new Uncle Sam - All American, blonde, in perfect shape, and impossible not to love. It was maddening.

"How.. how do you know that's what you're meant to do?" he added, a touch quieter now, but still audible since his tires had now come to a stop by the creek bed. It seemed Nathaniel Fairfax wasn't meant for much, as his teachers and neighbors routinely reminded him. He threw his truck in park but kept looking ahead as if expecting something to jump out in front of them. The world didn't seem so certain these days. He supposed people like Beck were supposed to be the ones keeping them safe or some shit. But he didn't need a soldier to save him from this town, nor from himself.

[callmewhenyougetthis-a]

"I pay my dues just like you, boy."

Beckett didn't hesitate to scoff at Nathaniel's melodrama, though he knew there was a layer of truth in his words. It was just that he wouldn't use the term "steal," really, for the sake of brevity; things just happened to fall in Beckett's lap with a sort of luck that Nathaniel wasn't blessed with or maybe had yet to see. The blond couldn't control it if the girls they both liked happened to only like one of them (and that one always happened to be Beckett), or if they both tended to get in trouble but Nathaniel brought his trouble outside of detention and onto the streets.

He sighed, letting Nathaniel nick a cigarette from him. But he was right—the cigarettes were Nathaniel's, anyway. The idea of winning Prom King made him cringe.

"Nah, I think it's gonna be you," Beckett remarked teasingly. "But you'll just let me take the crown to basic so I can have somethin' to brag about for once." He blew smoke out into the air, and it floated away gray into the night. "The more and more I think 'bout it, the worse it all sounds. Used to think it was gonna be so fun, but Chelsea—" his date— "made it all about what fuckin' color tie I was gonna wear so it matched perfectly with her corsage." He rolled his eyes.

"How 'bout we just ditch the whole damn thing?"

He should be inside. They both should be. This was supposed to be one of the most important nights of their lives or some shit like that. At the very minimum, he was trying not to blow it with Shelby Meyer because he was pretty certain she planned to go all the way tonight, which was a lot more meaningful to her than him but he couldn't let that show. Yet despite all that was on the line, her he was. Hunting down the one person missing from that overcrowded gym ten minutes to midnight.

"You steal everything from me. Smokes. Girls. Happiness." No one ever accused Nathaniel of lacking in the drama department. Besides, Nate stole plenty in return. Usually homework answers.

He climbed onto the bleachers, choosing a seat directly behind his best friend. It felt a little easier to be one row above him, to not be face to face. There was a lot he didn't want to face right now.

"One of us is about to win Prom King," he reminded, leaning forward to nab one of his own cigarettes from the pack and light it, using his free hand to shield against the slight wind nipping at them this high up. "I hope it's you. You can take the crown with you to basic to remember us all by."

[invsiblestringswrites]

Darcy came by with a pot of coffee that was clearly watered down, but at least it was hot, and he filled his mug up and didn't bother with cream or sugar before sipping it. It would go down a lot better with a finger of whiskey in it, but he didn't have anything on him and the holier-than-thou look on Beck's face told him it wasn't a good time to ask and see if the other man did.

Time to piece together the night before. The coffee helped, and even if he knew he probably shouldn't, he smirked as the details came back to him. "Me and Mikey and them went drinking out by the Reynolds's," he explained, using his hands to gesture like he was just recounting the facts of his day. "And Mikey said I'd never worked a day in my life, and I said I sure did, and matter of fact I used to work for the Reynolds's in the summers and shit, and he said no way I could ever be good enough for hard labor like that unless I was on the chain gang, and I said I'd prove it, dipshit, and I bet they still keep the combine key in the cow shed."

He paused to take his plate from Darcy, flashing her a wink and a smile despite his black eye and hangover sweats. "And anyway, I was halfway done bringing in the Reynolds's eastern field when I got a little carried away with the combine and went through their fence and into Mikey's truck." By accident, though he'd later claim that was all part of the plan to prove that asshole wrong. "They say that's a DUI and a PI and a hit and run, but I say that's all a stretch."

Two Chicks Café was the best place to get breakfast in town, and Beckett and Nate had gone to it ever since they were kids. There wasn't really anywhere else to go to get a good breakfast—the eggs at Connie's were too greasy and Hillside stopped serving breakfast when they were in middle school. The thing was, even though Two Chicks had Beckett's favorite pancakes, it had everybody else's favorite thing. And on Easter weekend, you could find just about everybody in town there.

The place was hopping, their waitress—Darcy from high school who got pregnant and didn't have a baby bump now, who told the two boys that her toddler was being watched by Mrs. Weaver at home—bouncing between tables. Besides the little story she told about her kid, Beckett was glad Darcy didn't ask about the two. He was sure he'd get in all the catching up he needed from the man who sat across from him who wore both a sorry-ass and prideful look on his face.

"Don't worry about payin'," Beckett told him, sipping on his coffee. "My ma gave me some money to spend at home."

He'd managed not to ask too much about it when they were driving in the truck, but the blonde couldn't hold his tongue anymore at this point. "The rookie ain't tell me much," he said, referring to his best friend's arrest. It was a lie. The cop told him what happened. He just wanted to see if Nate would tell him the truth, and what version of the story he'd tell. Would it be self-serving or honest? "What happened, Nate?"