a/n: Watch the video on the side, it's really good and even though it has nothing to do with the chapter (mainly), it will deffo spark your interest. :)

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[Zach's POV]

I had a good birthday.

It was just good, not brilliant. I mean, it was going brilliantly but there were a few downsides.

Coming back home in a silent two hour journey from the football stadium was probably the worst of it, a part of me felt as though I've become more closer to Jace and we've become better friends but another part has this irk, thinking Jace no longer trusts me.

I nearly had a heart attack sauntering into the kitchen with my Arsenal shirt. Everyone (but my dear brother) stood round a cake and yelled 'Happy Birthday!' to me. It was freaking scary, let me tell you that.

I blew the candles out, thanking everyone and then we sat down in front of the television watching Neverland, one of my most favourite movies. Liam joined us but sat next to Molly, who was well away from me.

I liked small things like this; the whole family gathered round and chilling out. It felt really good and made a great almost-end to my birthday- we can't forget the cake for dessert now can we? Or the fact that my mum made my favourite meal for dinner. A very heavy meal at that.

I went up to my room after that, announcing that I felt tired.

I sat on my desk chair, clutching my hurting stomach. The heavy lunch mixed with a pretty heavy dinner was really taking a toll on me. I wondered how Jace took it I mean, that guy could eat. The milkshake itself was heavy but he had that along with mozzarella sticks and a double cheeseburger.

Just the thought of him made me feel... I don't know how I felt actually. One part of me only felt lust for him, my teeny-tiny crush was now turning into more than that. I was no longer crushing on him like a little school girl but instead, more that I've ever felt for anyone. It was way more than a crush, way more. Another part of me felt irritated that we couldn't be together- not when we're polar opposites.

Opposites.

Just imagine the hate we'd receive being together. The people at my school school were open minded, well

majority of the people were. It wasn't as if being gay was frowned up on here, the only thing that was frowned upon at Kingston High were the lower classes on the social hierarchy. The outcasts, Emo's, nerds and such.

People like me did not mix with people like Jace.

I was so overwhelmed with emotions that I was tearing up. Jace was messing with my head without even being here with me and I didn't know whether I liked it or not. I just needed to take a while to get my head around everything.

Tears slipped down my cheek and I reached over to turn my bedside lamp on so that it lit up a little more than half of my room.

Suddenly, sitting down on my bed felt uncomfortable. My hands trembled as did my legs, I needed to stand up, I needed to do something with my hands... I went across the room, picking up my Physics textbooks and throwing them across the room.

It felt good.

My hands went round to the back of my head and gripped my hair, doing so caused some relief for my fingers that were once again, trembling.

A set of footsteps were heard getting closer to my room and I ran to the door to lock it before they could get in. A series of knocks and yelling were heard, they echoed in my ears. Everything was way too loud right now.

I needed to be alone. I needed to be alone because otherwise, I might hospitalize someone.

My mind was a whirlwind of emotions: Realisation, anger, heartbreak, fear, exhaustion, lonliness. I didn't even have a reason to most of them, I just felt what I felt.

Questions bounced around in my head, unanswerable questions.

Why did my place on the social hierachy of the school have to make such a huge dent in my relationship with Jace? Why?

Why do I feel rejected?

Why did Jace have to crush on somebody else?

Why does Liam not want to talk to me if he's okay with Molly?

Why did I have to like Jace so fucking much?

Why did Jace have to be so damn perfect all the time? He was too perfect for me, I knew it.

I went back to my desk and picked up my schoolbag, throwing it on the opposite side of the room. It caused a huge thud as it hit the wall and fell to the foor, causing all of its contents to spew out. I heard Female voices screaming through my door, telling me to stop it and to calm down and take deep breaths.

How could I possibly calm down at a time like this?

I gripped my hair once again, not once wincing at the pain of my iron grip but instead at the pain I felt inside me.

I tried to take deep breaths but I just couldn't, I was too far in to my most angriest of thoughts.

Was I being pathetic? I probably was but who even cares right now?

Was I being a girl by crying? Nope.

My fingers stook violently in my hair and I clenched my hands. My nails were poking the palm of my hand and it knew it would hurt like a bitch.

No, I was not an 'emo' I did not embrace or endure pain, but at this moment, I couldn't feel the it, not when I had far too many other things to worry about.

I looked down at my attire and slid off the football shirt, throwing it aside. Too many depressing thoughts.

I felt like shouting for no particular reason, I was quiet all this time, the only sounds were my sobs and all the objects being thrown at the wall.

I heard more knocks on the door and more people. It seemed that everyone was now at my door trying to get me to chill the fuck out.

I bet Liam wasn't there though.

I bet he was damn pleased with himself for whatever twisted reason.

I cried even more thinking about my crappy brother, all this time, I've been trying to not let my annoyance of Liam get to me. I was trying to hold it in. He literally tore me apart but with a click of his fingers, he could piece me together again, it was the fact he didn't want to. It was true, I did like Liam more than Jace. Liam was affecting me more than Jace was by far.

I grabbed another item, a trophy, and threw it against the wall. I heard glass smashing from the impact and wondered which of my trophies were made of glass.

None.

I walked up to the smashed glass and inspected it using the little light from the bedside table lamp and saw two male heads, kissing. I quickly recognised the item as the present mum gave me only this morning and knocked my fists against the wall.

My ever so caring, ever so supportive mum gave me that present.

And now it's smashed. This only made me angrier. I was angry at myself for doing such a thing.

If Jace was here he'd say something like 'Well done, Einstein'.

I regretted thinking about him after that thought because it caused me to take out the draw of my bedside table and throw the whole thing on the floor. It was the only thing closest to me that was throwable but not smashable and it made the loudest noise.

"Zach." Liam yelled through the door.

"Zach." I heard his voice again.

"Please open the door, please." He begged. Oh my idiotic, good-for-nothing brother.

I walked the small distance to the door but made no move to unlock it. I sat on the floor, near the shattered glass and leaned against it.

"Zach, open up." Liam tried again, sounding exhausted and irritated.

"Why?" I yelled. "Why should I open the fucking door for a traitor like you?"

There was a moment of silence before I heard his voice again. "Lets talk yeah?"

I wiped some tears from my face but more just fell down my cheeks, it was no use getting rid of them. "Who else is there?"

"Everyone but if you want, I'll tell them to go."

I agreed and I heard him telling everyone to leave. I unlocked the door, seeing him sat cross legged on the floor with his back to me. He hastily turned his head, seeing me then standing up to pull me in to a hug.

This was so weird.

He was hugging me.

I hugged back of course, rejuvenating in the feeling but then felt anger course through me and shoved him away from me with a harsh force. He stumbled back but caught himself using the door frame before he could fall.

"Come on, don't be like that." He sighed and walked into my room, eyes widening at the huge mess. I pushed him back before he could step on the glass and dragged him around it.

I remained silent, still sobbing.

"I wasn't trying to be a traitor, let me explain, ok?"

I gulped, attempting to stop my tears but it was no use. As well as crying, I was hiccuping from crying too much.

"It's a shock to me, alright? A huge fucking shock." He made large, weird hand movements, emphasising said shock. "I'm not homophobic or anything, hell no. Our parents raised us better than that, didn't they?"

I nodded, thinking about how good our parents really are and how much I truly loved them. Some people weren't so lucky. The thought of my mum caused more tears to escape; I smashed the present and now I was filled with regret, guilt, sorrow and more anger.

My hands shook violently again but I continued to listen to Liam instead of throwing something.

"I always spoke t' you about girls and shit, you were pretty much the only person who would give me an honest opinion." He continued.

"But," HIC, "y-y-you have lots o-of," HIC, "F-f-friends." I stammered.

"I probably would've punched them if their opinion was different to mine because they like slutty girls." He let out a small laugh. "I appreciate your opinion more than theirs."

"Who am I going to talk to about girls now that you're gay? It was a surprise to me, that is all, Zach. Understand that, alright?" He stared into my eyes.

I nodded and looked away from them and down to my shaking hands that were in my lap.

"Punch me." he suddenly said louder than everything else he had said.

"W-what?"

"Punch me, please. I beg you, do it." He closed his eyes as I stood up and lifted my fist up, ready to punch the bastard.

My fist collided with the right side of his face, immediately sending pain through my hands due to how freaking hard his jaw is. He gripped the side of his face and winced.

"Good, coulda' done better though." He commented and stood up.

I frowned at him, not that I wasn't frowning the whole time before. My anger for him diminished, I had the wrong side of the stick the entire time but could you blame me when all he did was act as if he didn't want to know me?

"Wanna go downstairs?" He asked and I nodded, breathing in deeply and exhaling a massive amount of air. I was deprived of air the whole time with my anger boiling.

As shit as I felt comparing myself to Jace, I had the support of Liam right now, and it was very much needed.

Jace may be on the other side of the social heirachy of Kingston high, he may be smarter than me, better than me and able to eat more than I could in a day, he was the one I wanted, he could literally make me swoon (yep, that's Jace for you alright) and love had no boundaries, neither did whatever I felt for him.

I don't love him just yet, but I'm seventy percent there, I'm sure of it. I just really really like him.

He just doesn't know it yet.

Or at least I hope so.

If i wanted to get with Jace, I will do just that, even if he's that kind of person to hang in the computer rooms at lunchtime playing Minecraft while I'm the type of person to join a sports club or whatever.

"Dude, stop zoning out." Liam groaned and waved his hand frantically in my view.

"Sorry." Hic. Dammit, I thought those were gone.

I grabbed a t-shirt, remembering that I had taken mine off before. I wiped my wet face with it before throwing it over my head.

We walked down the stairs in silence, side by side. Mum was waiting at the bottom with the twins. Though, the twins weren't right by the foot of the stairs like mum was but they were trying to hide behind the door of the living room so I doubt my mum noticed.

I pulled her into a huge bear hug, my arms wrapped around her waist and I practically fell to the floor. I was dragging her down too.

"I-I-I'm so sor-r-ry." I cried. "I smashed that-" Hic "p-p-present."

She hoisted my up by my arms so that I would stop dragging her down the floor, she was a little old to be bending down to the floor swiftly. "Don't worry about it, I can get another." she cooed and ran her fingers through my hair. My arms were wrapped around her waist and she was shorter than me so my knees were slightly bent.

"I love you." I breathed. I really was so thankful for having such great parents, really. She returned the geature by kissing my cheek and prying my arms off her before I break her fragile body with my overly tight hug.

Trisha and Molly both gave me reassuring smiles and nods as I walked in to the kitchen to quench my thirst. I was shaking all over and I could barely walk straight.

That was so punny.

Oh wait, more puns.

I grabbed a tumbler glass out of the glass cupboard and poured myself some water. My nose scrunched up at the fact that there was no taste. I was never a water fan.

Molly walked in the kitchen with Trisha, my dad and Liam, who now held an ice pack to his cheek. I stared at them blankly, expecting them to laugh at me for acting like a child with temper tantrums.

"You doing better?" Molly asked.

"Yeah, just a lot of unanswered questions that are unanswerable." I sighed.

She nodded and pursed her lips. Trisha was quiet, It was expected of her anyway, I mean, I wouldn't know what to say if I was in her positon.

You see? I don't even know how to cheer myself up right now.

All I could think was: What an eventful birthday.

It was a good birthday to be honest, I did manage to steal four kisses from Jace, including before I stepped out the car to go inside my house.

I was glad I stole them.

I really hoped he felt the same way.