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   Sorry for the wait everyone. I just got a new computer so I've been busy setting that up and also preparing for spring term. Thank you to everyone for being patient and I hope you all enjoy this chapter. 

The picture above is of a young Alex Pettyfer who I chose to play Brody. 

~*~*~

Chapter Two

Brody Hamilton was definitely persistent.

Throughout the next two weeks Brody would leave different candies for Liam to find on their desk in math. In the mornings he would be waiting for Liam in front of his locker with a hot chocolate in hand (Brody learned that Liam hated coffee, but loved hot chocolate earlier the prior week).

He was certainly bringing out all the stops, and Liam had to admit, his resolve was weakening. Liz still didn't completely trust him, a part of her probably never would. But Liam honestly couldn't help it. Brody was cute, funny, nice, and way out of his league, but for some reason he liked him.

That next Tuesday – two weeks after he began leaving things for him – Liam walked into his math class to find a stack of books on his desk. Cautiously he walked over picking the books up on their sides to read the titles: White Oleander, Daisy Miller, and The Name of a Rose. Liam smiled at the "flowers" in his hand.

"I see you did your homework," Liam commented to Brody who stood behind him.

"Yeah, my little sister watched it with me. I took lots of notes," he replied smartly.

"I'm sure you did," Liam said softly. "The Age of Adaline is my favorite movie after all."

"Say yes," Brody repeated.

With a firm shake of his head, Liam said, "No."

"Why?" He asked.

"Well first of all my best friend hates you-"

Brody piped in, "She doesn't even know me."

Liam continued, "Also I'm not just some naïve ninth grader, Brody. I know about the things you've done and the people you've dated. I've heard the rumors."

"What's that saying, 'Don't judge a book by its cover'?" Liam ignored his point.

Before anything else could be said the teacher walked in signaling for them to sit down. Quietly, Brody said, "Look a lot of the stuff you've probably heard is just that rumors. If any of them are true then it's because of the mistakes I made when I was trying to figure out who I was. Don't judge me on who I used to be when I was straight. Judge me now. Judge me on the guy I am who really likes you and would like to be given a chance."

His hazel eyes turned to meet Brody's green.

"Mr. Parker. Mr. Hamilton." Both of their heads whipped toward their teacher, Ms. Foster. "Is there something you'd like to share with the class?"

Liam's cheeks burned with embarrassment as the class stared at them. They both should their heads and apologized to her.

"Good, now pay attention," she recommended. "This will be on the test next week."

He sighed with relief when she turned back to the board.

A movement caught his eye forcing his attention to Brody. He was writing something on a spare piece of paper. Soon enough the sheet was set down in front of him with four words and one question mark written on it.

Go out with me?

Liam's breath caught in his throat as he studied the paper. A part of him truly did want to go out on a date with Brody and see where it goes. They got along great and did seem to have a connection. Only what would Liz say. She certainly wouldn't be happy. She would be forever worried about him getting hurt.

She didn't trust Brody and that obviously wouldn't be changing anytime soon.

It wasn't like he could lie to her. Could he? Could he seriously keep Brody a secret from her? He wasn't the best liar, but under these circumstances he may have to be. Perhaps he and Brody would go on the date and it would be a total flop. Then he could tell Liz and it wouldn't be a lie. It would be more of an experiment. They could get past that.

It wasn't a date. It was an experiment.

Picking up his pen, Liam wrote one word on the paper in front of them.

Yes.

~*~*~

Brody picked him up bright and early that following Saturday morning. The air was cool and crisp identifying it as a fall morning in the heart of Oregon. Luckily for Liam, Brody had informed him about what to wear the day before. Jeans, boots, and warm clothing aren't exactly the nicest clothes he had in his possession, but he'd rather not have to change later on.

So there he was climbing into the big Chevy truck that Brody owned. It was one of the older models and also had quite a bit of dirt on it, but he seemed to handle it well.

"What exactly is the plan for today?" Liam asked curiously.

Brody smiled at the question. "Well we're going back to my house and we'll be having some fun outdoors today." His answer was vague which didn't exactly please Liam.

"Okay, and what exactly will we be doing outside?" He asked again clarifying.

This time Brody smirked at his curiosity. "You'll just have to wait and see."

Liam huffed a little annoyed for not getting the answer he wanted. Turning to the window he watched the landscape pass him as they drove. Oregon is a very diverse state. There were the big and vibrant cities, the small towns, the touristy beach spots, even a lot of wooded areas. The Willamette Valley, the area that they happen to live in, is just about in the middle of everything. It's a big farming community, but it also happens to be an hour away from both Portland, and any of the nearby beach towns. The state capital, Salem, is like 15-20 minutes away from their small town as well.

At the moment they seemed to be going just slightly out of town into the countryside where more of the farms and ranches sat. Soon enough Brody took them off of the main road and onto a dirt one. They drove for another couple of minutes before they pulled up to an older looking farm house. The house was pretty big in his opinion and there was also a wraparound porch. It was a big white house with red shutters and Liam could even see a matching barn in the back.

Before the truck even stopped moving several dogs ran up to greet them. The dogs bombarded them before they were even out of the truck. There were three in total. The biggest dog was a black and white Great Dane with a blue collar on. The next was a yellow lab with a pink collar. Finally the last dog was a small, short-haired, dapple dachshund, and strangely enough he seemed to be the leader of the pack.

Brody laughed and scolded them as they attempted to jump on him. He pointed them out and began to introduce them. "The Great Dane is Charlie we found him on the side of the main road when he was a puppy. We put up fliers and ads in the newspapers and around town for months. Finally we admitted defeat and decided to keep him. The lab is Iris. Iris had been my dad's anniversary gift to my mom several years ago." He laughed as he took in the dachshund before him. He picked him up, "Now this little guy was found at the humane society. For some reason nobody wanted him and he was a few days away from being euthanized. We fell in love and adopted him on the spot, and for being the smallest dog out of the bunch he prefers to think of himself as the biggest."

"What's his name?" Liam asked petting him.

"Chance." Brody put him back on the ground beside the other dogs and took Liam's hand in his. "Come on. We're gonna have some fun."

Ignoring his hesitance, Liam followed Brody. He was lead past his house and over to the barn. As he opened the doors Liam expected to find animals inside, but quite the opposite. There were no animals inside the barn, but instead something else.

"Quads," Liam said more to himself then to Brody. "You want me to drive a quad."

He hasn't even ridden a quad before let alone drove one. His sister used to go with her friends all the time. Leslie said it was the best thing she ever experienced, but he personally never saw the point. What was so fun about speeding around on a potential death trap?

Brody chuckled at the expression on his face. "Don't worry you won't be driving," he explained. "I will drive. You can ride on the back. I wouldn't make a first-timer drive a quad. That wouldn't be the best idea."

A mixture of nerves and anxiety seemed to course through him. "I'm not so sure," Liam admitted. Brody's face seemed to fall at his words so he added, "It just . . . It seems dangerous."

Nodding, he said, "It can be if you have an inexperienced driver, but Liam I have been driving quads since I was a kid. It's okay. You will be okay. Trust me."

Trust him. That was easier said than done.

Still slightly reluctant, Liam nodded. "Okay, we can give it a try."

Liam could help but smile as a grin broke out on Brody's face. So he set to work. Brody went to a metal trunk that sat against one of the walls in the barn and dug out two sets of helmets, goggles, and gloves. He helped Liam strap on his helmet securely since he's never done it before and then climbed on the quad. Once Brody was on he had Liam climb on the back behind him. Careful to show him where to keep him legs and hands he made sure that they were both secure.

Blushing, Liam couldn't help but feel a little weird at the closeness between them. He's never been this physically close to another boy before. Brody started the quad and soon enough they were off driving at a very fast speed. Liam had never been happier to admit to being wrong. Riding on the back of that quad . . . it was like being in another world. The speed was amazing. His stomach flipped from the speed at first, but soon enough that became the best part.

Brody drove the quad into the woods behind the house. Luckily he stuck to the trail fairly well so they wouldn't get lost. He navigated it really well but he's probably ridden back their dozens of times. Liam's adrenaline soured as they drove in and out of the trees. They were having so much fun that he hadn't even noticed that Brody was driving up onto a hill.

Once they reached the top of the hill Brody brought the quad to a stop and turned it off. Jumping off, Liam took a few steps forward unable to tare his eyes away. The sight was amazing. The woods were spread out below him and a bit farther from that was Brody's house and barn. It was more than that though. Rolling hills were spread out around them. Other houses and barns were visible, but only as small specks.

"This view is amazing," he said.

Brody smiled joining him. "Yeah, it's my favorite place in the whole world. It's also my hiding place so, uh, don't tell anyone." They both laughed. Brody took Liam's hand and pulled him over to one of the trees on the hill. At the base of the trunk sat a picnic basket.

Liam smiled at the sight before him. "You made us a picnic?"

It was obvious that Brody was slightly embarrassed, but he hid it well. "Well my mom helped," he admitted quietly. "Anyway, let's eat." Brody's embarrassment was almost cute so Liam sat down and joined him.

Either Brody or his mom was really good at cooking, because the food was amazing. Inside the basket was fried chicken, homemade macaroni and cheese, fruit salad, steamed vegetables, and last but not least, homemade chocolate chip cookies for desert. Liam was officially jealous that he wasn't eating like this every day.

"So are you glad you said yes?" Brody asked cheekily.

Liam laughed and answered with a smile, "Yes. I'm glad I agreed to it."

Matching his smile, Brody said, "Good. Does that mean you'll be planning the date next time?"

His smile faltered slightly. "Yeah, that's no problem."

"What's wrong?" Brody asked.

"Nothing it's just . . . Liz doesn't know I went on this date with you," Liam admitted sheepishly.

"Ah," he nodded in understanding, "and you'd rather we kept it a secret?" he caught on.

"It wouldn't be for long," Liam jumped it. "I promise. It's only until I find a way to tell her."

"It's no problem. Only as long as you're comfortable," Brody told him.

"Are you sure?"

He nodded.

Liam smiled again at his confirmation. He should be happy. His experiment was a success and he's even willing to keep quiet about it so Liz wouldn't find out. The only thing was . .. why did he suddenly feel something in the pit of his stomach? It was almost as if he expected something to go wrong. Liam pushed the thought aside. Nothing would go wrong . . . at least he hoped not.

~*~*~

I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter. The next one will probably be up in the next week or so.      

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