Beep beep beeeeep!

Jodi hit the horn for what seemed like the hundredth time. She impatiently tapped her short, unpainted nails on the steering wheel as she threw another menacing scowl at Eric Rent's open window.

"What the hell is taking him so long?" She muttered to herself, brows furrowing in annoyance. "I swear, if we're tardy again…" She ripped her angry glare away from Eric's window and directed it towards the small digital clock on the dashboard that read: 7:53 AM.

7 minutes.

Lovely.

Even if he magically appeared right then and there seated in the car, dressed and ready for school, Jodi knew they would never make it in time before the morning bell rings, signaling the start of first period. She wanted to get to school early today to finish cramming her History essay which is, to her great dismay, obviously no longer a possibility. She let out an exasperated sigh. Guess I'll have to skip lunch break. She frowned at the thought, knowing Eric was to blame.

She pulled out her keys from the ignition before opening the door and stepping out of her car. Jodi couldn't wait anymore. She walked towards the Rents' front door, grumbling under her breath. She knocked a few times as she tried to replace her annoyed, angry expression with a kinder one which proved to be quite a challenge. She just managed to form a small smile when the door opened, revealing a tall, slender woman who seemed to be a little past her mid-forties.

"Good morning, Mrs. Rent."

"Oh! Jodi, dear!" Mrs. Rent's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "I heard you honk your horn just a few moments ago. Is something wrong?" She asked, wiping her hands on her apron.

"Uh, well… Yeah… Eric still hasn't come out yet and we're kind of already late for school," Jodi explained, rubbing the back of her neck as she did so.

At the mention of Eric's name, Mrs. Rent's slim frame went rigid and her lips fell into a tight line. "Why don't you come in? Eric's still probably upstairs." She opened the door wider as Jodi stepped inside their home.

Jodi breathed in the aroma of bacon and freshly brewed coffee, reminding her of the lunch she will be deprived of later. She glanced at the kitchen doorway longingly. She hoped she could grab a few bites of breakfast before they left.

Mrs. Rent closed the front door behind her and made towards the kitchen, leaving Jodi standing in the foyer. The house was rather big; a glass chandelier hung on the high ceiling above her as she stood on a large oriental rug that covered the glossy marble floor. The windows were draped with long velvet curtains that were drawn to the side, allowing sunlight to filter through and reflect off the shiny floor. The place glowed with grandeur as Jodi basked in its splendor.

This was her second home. She had spent the majority of her childhood under this roof. So much so that she was eventually considered a part of the family. As spacious and grand as it was, she still felt a reassuring coziness in its slightly empty atmosphere.

She decided to go up to Eric's room, walking briskly towards the stairs that led to all the bedrooms. She stopped when she saw Dr. Rent in the living room sitting on the couch, newspaper in his hands and reading glasses lightly resting on the bridge of his nose.

The room was adorned with Victorian furniture, mirroring the magnificence of the foyer. The couch that was currently occupied by Dr. Rent, sat by a large window, a few fancy armchairs arranged across from it. A coffee table was placed in between the furniture and an antique lamp set upon it.

Jodi entered the room. "Hello, Dr. Rent," she greeted with a smile, giving him a small wave.

He looked up from the paper, smiling back at the familiar voice. "Jodi," a confused expression began to form, adding more lines to his aging face. "No school today?"

"We do. I just came to pick up..uhh…" She hesitated. She knew the response she would get from a certain word that was about to come out of her mouth. "To pick up Eric. He still hasn't come down from his room yet." She explained, no longer meeting his gaze, setting it instead on the cushions beside him.

All emotion faded from Dr. Rent's face, leaving it blank and empty. He brought his eyes back down to his paper and sent a stiff nod at the section he was reading. Jodi took it as his reply.

She turned to exit the room and went back to walking in the direction of the stairs. It had been like this ever since Eric came out of the closet five years ago. And ever since, his parents only felt great disappointment towards him. To them, he was just a child they happened to have and certainly not a son who was accustomed to their love and learned to love them in return, a son who expected acceptance and support. Jodi frowned in disgust as she pondered this.

After his shocking revelation, Mr. and Mrs. Rent wanted Eric to move to Arizona and live with his Aunt Molly where he will be "provided with better education" which, to Jodi's opinion, was tantamount to kicking him out of the house and out of the family. It was Eric's older sister, Sara, who convinced their parents to keep him there.

Jodi climbed up the stairs and walked up to a door on the left side of the hallway. She knew Eric never locked his door but decided to respect his privacy. She knocked softly. No answer came from the other side so she knocked again, louder this time. She waited, leaning on her right foot, patience wearing thin. After a few minutes of nothing, she gritted her teeth in annoyance and pounded her fist against the dark mahogany door.

"Eric! We're late!" She yelled at the wooden surface. She grimaced at it, silently fuming. She grabbed the doorknob and turned it. Jodi barged in the bedroom and discovered Eric deep in slumber, tangled in his blankets. Her gaze suddenly softened as she watched his peaceful expression, his dark hair all mussed up, sticking out at different directions.

She rolled her eyes as she breathed out a sigh. She approached the queen-sized bed and grabbed the ends of blankets that were wrapped like a cocoon around him. She smirked evilly before pulling the fabric as hard as she possibly could. She expected him to spin out and fall on the other side of the bed, her main objective being to cause him pain. But the blankets didn't come off. Instead, Eric still sandwiched in the bedspread, fell on her side of the bed knocking her down along with him.

"AGH!"

Epic fail, indeed.

"OW! What the hell!" Eric, finally awake, struggled in his covers, trying to disentangle himself.

Jodi stood up easily, wincing as she rubbed a sore spot on her back. "You're the one who should be what-the-hell ed at! Do you have any idea what time it is?" She turned to scowl at him.

But without warning, her eyes widened as she found a half-naked Eric getting up from the floor. The upper half, NOT the lower half. Minds out of the gutter, people.

She quickly turned around, flushing red in embarrassment.

"Hurry up and get dressed. We've already missed first period!" She crossed her arms angrily at the wall, still blushing.

Eric groaned as he scratched his abdomen. He glanced at Jodi who was facing the wall, confused as to why she was looking at it intently. It hit him when he looked down at his bare chest. He rolled his eyes at her back. He opened his cabinet and grabbed some clothes.

"Do we have to go to school today? Can't we just skip?" He complained groggily, struggling to keep his eyes open as he put a shirt on.

"NO. I have to submit my History essay today. Mr. Rickman will fail me if I don't," she retorted.

Eric scoffed, feigning curiosity, "Well, now, whose fault is that, I wonder?" He shoved his feet in his Converse.

Jodi spun around, a glare across her face. "I'm not the one who didn't wake up on time," she poked an accusing finger at Eric's chest.

Eric took a step back, raising his hands up in surrender. "Whatever. Let's just go."

They went downstairs and grabbed a few pieces of bacon before stepping out of the house.

Jodi got in her car, munching the bacon in her mouth. She turned her keys in the ignition, looking at the passenger seat that Eric always sat in. She frowned when she didn't find him there. She felt her anger boil up inside her.

!

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" His deep annoyed voice yelled from the front door.

Eric stepped into view; his tousled dark hair lightly touched his eyebrows and his smile, which contained the tiniest gap between his two front teeth, reached his smoldering brown eyes.

Huh, no wonder he receives no animosity from his little clique. The jocks must be in love with him or something.

Jodi closed my eyes in annoyance, fuming. "Get in the car, Eric." She said through gritted teeth.

He started towards the car, which caught me her surprise. He isn't exactly the most obedient.

Her surprise was gone as quickly as it came.

Eric was running in slow motion, dramatically flailing his arms, then drawled out a "Jooooddeeeeeee!" in a low and gargled voice. She rolled her eyes and turned the key in the ignition. Jodi revved the engine. He froze in his running position. A mischievous smile played on her lips. "Bye, Neo."

She stepped on the gas ever so slightly, causing the convertible to jolt forward but caught it with the brakes as soon as it went past a foot. The movement got Eric's attention; he immediately fell for the short prank and ran towards the car, his expression forced into worry and panic.

Jodi fell into guffaws of laughter as Eric hopped into the passenger seat, a frown on his usually perfect face. "You- shoulda- seen- face- priceless!" She tried to explain in between chortles, brushing away the tears forming in her eyes.

"It is NOT funny." He muttered as he ran his hand through his already messy hair, a gesture that made the hearts of women melt. Maybe even guys. Ew.

"Can we just go, please?" He snapped, grimacing at my outburst. She grabbed her chest, trying to catch her breath.

© Copyright by it'sallgoodfun

Eric stared out the window the whole ride to school, still annoyed by the little prank I played on him. I lightly chuckled at his childish behavior. He scowled at me then went back to the seemingly interesting window.

Eric is just like any other guy indulging in the hormonal, crazy, nonsensical roller coaster ride we call "high school". Scratch that, Eric is just like any other hotguy in the aforementioned roller coaster entitled "high school". He lives among the football apes and the bimbos, a species obsessed with social class and mirrors. A species we are all too familiar with known as the Populars.

Don't assume he is hiding his sexuality because he is actually very openly gay. His striking good looks, strong build, and self-confidence shields him from bullies and their taunts. Eric has sorta been their great leader since dinosaurs roamed the planet so he is quite accepted by the school.

Indeed, he is one extremelylucky homo.

So, yeah, basically he's a handsome guy that acts just like the everyday handsome guy except for the fact that he is attracted to the same sex. Not that he's shown any interest.

"So, Eric, any boyfriends you're not telling me about?" Jodi joked. She was the only person who ever brought the subject up without hesitation.

"Uh, no." He replied indifferently, not taking away his eyes from the window.

She glanced at his slouched figure.

"Want me to set you up or something?" She offered as she parked in Remington High's parking lot.

He rolled his eyes at this. "No, Jodi. My sexiness and "setting up" just don't go together" He said, with a pained expression as if she had insulted him. She raised her eyebrows at him as they walked towards the entrance of the school.

Jodi sent an evil smirk towards Eric's back and raised her karate-experienced fist. "Why you conceited little…" Her strong fist collided with small of his back as a satisfied smile played on her lips.

What? No grunt? She frowned, crossing her arms across her chest.

Eric froze then slowly turned around, his brown eyes sparkled with amusement and a scary "oh-no-you-didn't" grin. Suddenly she was hanging over his shoulder, upside-down. She was thankful was wearing jeans and a belt.

Stupid muscular bod.

"Eric!" Jodi screamed, desperately hitting his back. "Put. Me. DOWN!" He merely chuckled, shaking his head slightly. She flushed as students began peeking out their classrooms. Some of them started whispering:

"Hey, isn't that Eric… Eric… Something?"

"Oh my god, Eric Rent! He is sooo hot!"

"He's gay"

Sigh"What a waste. We could have had a future."

"Get your asses back to class!" I snapped at the annoying freshmen as we passed their classroom.

Eric continued to walk towards my third period classroom, English. He flashed his adorable smile at a teacher that was going to tell us off. And instantly, she stopped in her tracks and fell into a dazed trance, giggling like a teenage girl.

Finally, he gently put her down in front of Mr. Greene's classroom. Jodi saw through the tinted window of the door that class had already started. She cast a scowl at Eric

"Now, be good a wittle giwl and behave in cwass, okay sweetie?" He said, pouting his lips and speaking to her like she was a six year old. Before she could retort he swooped down and lightly kissed her forehead. Heat flooded her face as he walked away. She quickly shook it off.

"Homo!" She yelled at his retreating back, an annoyed expression etched upon her face.

Eric waved his hand without looking back then he was gone.

She rolled her eyes then entered the classroom.

© Copyright by it'sallgoodfun

A/N: Finally updated! What do ya think? I envy Jodi. I've always wanted a gay best friend. :/ HAHA, oh well. Hope you enjoyed it! Leave a review, your feedback make my day. :)

See you on the next update! :D