Games are only fun until they are no longer a game.

The months came and went; before they knew it, it was close to the holidays. Nora and Milo had become closer to the point that they were inseparable. Nora would walk home with Milo every day and stay for dinner; on top of that, they were the highest ranking when it came to grades on campus. It was going great, but with every high comes a low, whether we want it or not. Jealousy is a horrible thing, especially when the jealous one hurts the one they are jealous of.

It was a cool December when the teacher announced that the class could sit anywhere they wanted. That day, he was trying something different. Milo was sitting with Nora that day. He was wearing blue jeans with a short sleeve over a long-sleeved shirt and a light scarf, and his hair was in a beanie, which seemed to be his go-to lately. Nora noticed, and he and Nora laughed over what had happened that weekend. Nora was wearing a nice long-sleeved shirt with her shoulders exposed and jeans. Her hair was in a bun with a small puff.

"I can't believe my mom showed you a picture of me when I was little. When did she do that?" Milo signed.

Nora smiled. “She took it out when you were taking a nap and said she was getting you back for picking on her on Saturday. When you shook her soda up and waited for her to open it, she told you she would get you back, and she did," Nora signed back, smiling hard.

Milo laughed as he put his hands over his face, "I will get her back, and you are as well for engaging in her evil ways." He signed back to Nora.

Just then, a woman with light pink lipstick on her lips, a powdered face, and tight clothing sat beside Milo and cleared her throat to get his attention. He put his finger up to let Nora know to give him a second. He turned around to look at her.

"May I help you there, Cami"? he said while signing. She smiled and got closer to him.

"Don't you want to ditch that freak and be with a real woman? Milo now laughed at her and turned his attention to Nora.

"Guess she doesn't know. Should I tell her?" He signed to Nora, and Nora shrugged. He now turned back to the young woman. "I am sorry, but I'm undatable," he said and signed she now gets angry with him. "I don't get it. You could have any woman in this classroom, yet you still hang out with the freak. I don't get you. You're sexy; hell, I bet anybody would want to get with you, even sleep with you, yet you deny them. I don't believe that you are undatable. I think you think you're too good for any of us." She yelled as everyone turned their attention to her and Milo.

He inhaled. "Or here is a thought: maybe I have standards, and you just don't cut it. First of all, if you are just in it for my body, I am sorry to disappoint, but I don't go around sleeping with a woman because of her looks. Also, I won't give myself up unless I have a connection with them. Sorry, you didn't make the cut," Milo said and signed, staying calm and collected. She stands up and strikes him in the face. Nora gets up, but Milo puts his hand up to stop her. The Young woman now stormed off.

After class, Milo and Nora headed to his house. Once there, his mother saw his face and sighed, "Milo, what did you do this time? "She signed. He looked at her in shock and started pouting.

"It is the curse of the undatable son," he signed back. Nora shook her head as she took a cookie from a table; Milo now went to the refrigerator and grabbed an apple, returning to sit at the kitchen table next to her.

"You know you upset her. She would have slept with you given a chance." Nora signed and saw Milo bend over like he was going to barf.

"I am undatable because all a girl ever wants to do is sleep with me like I'm their plaything; sorry, I am not interested if I am going to date; it is going to be a girl that is interested in me and my baggage," he signed, then dropped his hands to his side. Nora noticed that he seemed to be in deep thought. She tapped him lightly on the shoulder. He snapped out of it, looking at her with a sad smile.

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"Shall we get started on our project?" He signed and took out his books, looking at Nora; she wanted to know more about what he was thinking but didn't push him.

The next day, Milo texted Nora to let her know that he wouldn't be in class because something had come up, but they would hang out during the holiday break. She texted back, letting him know it was cool, and hoped everything was okay. When she entered the classroom, the atmosphere differed from that without Milo; she felt everyone's hatred toward her and didn't understand why. She didn't do anything wrong. She walked past the woman who had hit on Milo the other day and headed to her table. Once there, the woman approached her with so much hate.

"Why don't you do us all a favor and leave Milo alone? We all know he will be better without you," she said.

Nora understood her, for she talked slowly, and her voice was high enough to understand each word. Nora doesn't say anything, which angers the woman even now. She turned and looked at the class. "See, she is nobody. I heard that her father used to lock her into a closet when he didn't want to be bothered by her."

Sweat formed on Nora's brow, and she fidgets with her phone. She didn't catch each word the woman said, but she did understand the closet and lock clearly. The girl smiled at Nora and then walked away, leaving Nora by herself. Nora starts having a panic attack. She takes her hands and breathes, trying to calm herself down. Once she does, the instructor comes in, and class starts.

After class, Milo let Nora know that he was going to get blood work done and that he would meet her at his house. Nora let him know she would be there soon she knew where the key was. Before Nora could react, she was grabbed by someone from behind and dragged into the nearest closet. It was late, and all the faculty left early, along with everyone else. Her class was the last and one of the latest, so she knew she was one of the last students still around, for everyone was left out earlier. She pounded on the door, crying and hitting the wood so hard that she felt blood from her hands. She went to text Milo but realized that her phone was dead. She forgot to charge it last night and had been talking to Milo on and off all day. As she pounded on the door, she felt the room getting smaller, and she couldn't breathe; she was going to die in this room all because she was the freak who happened to have a hot best friend.

Hours passed, and she heard a voice; it was muffled, and she couldn't figure out who it was. Nora started to pound on the door again. She didn't know if they would hear her, but she was desperate. She was suffocating and had been for a while. The door opened, and she heard a muffled voice, but it was familiar. He now bent down, and she saw that it was Milo. She shook, trying to sign to him, but he grabbed her hands, putting them down, feeling blood on his hands. His look looked like sadness. Nora didn't understand. It wasn't his fault; none of this was his fault.

When Nora woke up, she saw she was in Milo's room. She knew it was his for his room had different shades of blues and greens. He also had bookshelves full of varying manga and literature; she found her hearing aid and put it on as she did when she heard muffled voices in the living room. She carefully opened the door to get a better listen without being noticed. Once in the hallway, she heard Milo and his mom talking.

"I should have been there, Mom. You should have seen what they did to her." He said and signed.

"Milo, you can't go around saving everyone and remember you are undatable, yet you have gotten close to this girl; you can't say you don't care for her." She said and signed back. Nora moved over to the other wall to better see their signing.

"Mom, you know as well as I do that if she ever found out, it would be like last time, "Milo said and signed, now lifting his shorts to show a small device. Nora knew what the device was. She had seen it before; Milo had diabetes. She now saw him put his shorts down, covering the device. "I don't want to be treated differently. I want to enjoy my life as an average person regardless of whether I have diabetes or not. But when some people find out, they treat you differently, like if you have something different to eat, you might die. I don't want that with Nora. Sure, I care about her a lot, but I also don't want to lose her because of my baggage," He said and signed. His mother looked puzzled.

"So, you are just going to keep this from her then?" she asked and signed, questioning, "One day, "she will find out, Milo. Then what?" she asked and signed.

He looked in deep thought. "If and when I have to cross that bridge, I hope and pray that she accepts me and treats me as Milo and not the man with diabetes. He said and signed. He kissed his mother goodnight, and before Nora was caught eavesdropping on a personal conversation, she scurried back to Milo's bedroom and into bed.

Authors note.

This is edited to the best of my abilities. Please don't leave negative comments; if you don't like my story, move along. If you have advice, you are always welcome to advise.