Fools Fall

17- Sam

Sam

"FaceTime me when you're home. I wanna fall asleep next to you," I told my boyfriend as I leaned against my front door while he lingered on my front porch.

Sometimes we'd FaceTime each other at night and I'd fall asleep listening to Noah's breathing. To some, that might've sounded a bit obsessive or maybe even weird. But sleeping while on FaceTime with Noah was the second best way to sleep. First being physically next to him, obviously.

Noah granted me that small, precious smile of his before he leaned in to press a gentle kiss to my lips. I couldn't help the smile that formed on my face, I had to bite my lip to keep me from grinning too much. Noah's fingers gripped my chin and tilted my face up, "You know biting your lip drives me crazy." I really grinned at that and maybe even let out a giggle. I felt butterflies in my stomach. Noah chuckled then let go of me. "Goodnight, Sam. I'll call you," he confirmed

"Goodnight. I love you."

"I love you too," he called from halfway down the pavement. I watched him get in his car and start it up- gave him a small wave- and he drove away.

I sighed and shut my front door once I stepped fully inside.

"I love the way he gets you to smile." I looked up to find my mother watching me from the living room. "He makes your whole day," she commented.

"Mm, he makes my whole world," I corrected dreamily and lovestruck (or maybe whipped, but I didn't care).

My mom smiled, "Good; that's how it should be when you love someone. You and Haven make my whole world."

"What about dad?" I questioned as I laid down on the couch and placed my head on my mother's lap. She stroked the hair that fell on my forehead.

"Eh, I guess him too," she joked and I chuckled. Then in a serious tone my mother spoke, "I love that you love him and he loves you, but I hope you love yourself as well. More so than Noah." I looked up at her quizzically and she elaborated, "I see the way you are when you two are apart. You get so down and in your head with all these insecurities. So much anxiety, I don't know where that came from. You were always so confident."

She wasn't being harsh or judgmental, but genuinely concerned and a little confused as to why I'd feel that way. So all I responded with was me whispering, "it's hard." Maybe I was making mine and Noah's situation harder than it really was, but I couldn't stop myself from overthinking and feeling those negative emotions when we're apart.

"I know, baby. Your worry is valid, but you shouldn't let it consume you. Noah adores you. So much. When he's away you need to focus on you. Your schoolwork and things that make you happy outside of Noah."

I stayed quiet for a minute as I let her words sink in. I didn't think I knew anything outside of Noah. I wasn't lying when I said he makes my whole world. Without Noah, my world isn't anything. I'd have nothing.

And that was when I realized my mother was completely right. "I need to find a hobby," I finally said and my mom laughed.

"Yes, you do. Now, are we continuing Euphoria? Because I'm too invested even though I think it's absolutely ridiculous they're teenagers."

*

"You sure he said that? 'Cause- and this isn't me taking his side- but you tend to remember things wrong when you get black out drunk," Carter spoke as we walked down the hall of Crestfield High.

"Yes!" I exclaimed and honestly felt a little hurt that my best friend didn't believe me. Okay, maybe I wasn't a hundred percent sure, but, "I sear, Jude said 'out of sight, out of mind' and he was obviously talking about Noah forgetting about me."

I had told Carter about the Halloween party and how Jude was feeling up my boyfriend. The conversation put me in a sour mood and it was only nine am.

"Okay, so did you tell Noah?"

I scoffed, "Yeah right. He'd say the same shit as you; that my drunk mind made it up out of jealousy."

"Hey," Carter stopped me from walking and made me face him. "I did not say that," he said firmly. "But, remember that time you thought Jason said he hated you while you were drunk and you cried the next day, but he never said that?"

Carter's referring to a party we all went to that past summer. I don't remember the party because I got too drunk, but I did cry the next day thinking one of Noah's best friends hated me. Jason never said he hated me. So yeah, sometimes my mind played tricks on me while I was drunk. "I knew you were going to bring that up," I muttered.

"But, that's fucked up if Jude did say that. And honestly, I could see it if he really was handsy with Noah all night."

I frowned. There was a heavy weight in my stomach; fifty pounds of jealousy and another fifty pounds of anxiety weighing me down. Then I thought about what my mom had said to me the night before. I looked up at Carter, "Wanna join a club with me?"

Carter looked at me like I was crazy before he burst out laughing, "that was a joke, right?"

I hit his arm, "shut up. Please? I need something to distract my mind before I go psycho over Jude. Join a club with me," I begged.

"Yeah, I think the fuck not," Carter dismissed and walked away from me.

We joined art club. Not that we were any good at art, but the art teacher was really cool and we got to make stuff out of clay. I looked to my right to see what Carter had come up with.

"Please don't tell me you're making a vagina," I spoke to Carter with disappointment lacing my tone.

He raised an eyebrow in question and examined his sculpture. "It's supposed to be a rose, shithead."

I laughed, "That is not a rose," and he shoved me, but not enough to have me falling off my stool, luckily.

"Yeah? And what the hell are you creating?" He asked me.

I grinned down as I admired my animal sculpture, "it's my cat, DJ." I only had the head started, but it wasn't looking too bad. "I'm making it for Noah."

Carter was rolling his eyes when I glanced at him, "we joined this stupid club to get your mind off of Noah."

I slumped in my stool and looked back at my cat head made out of clay. "Maybe we should pick a different club."

**
AHHHH I felt so bad that y'all were confused about Fools Fall and I didn't even notice!!! So, because of that, a chapter early Ah ahahaha😅😅

Fools Fall will have about 30ish chapters. It will be shorter than the 1st and 3rd book, but not this short haha

Again, sorry about the confusion #embarrassing

Anyway, thank you for reading!!

-Xoxo, Bert