#cc!mcyt

Y/n POV

"Thanks, Liz," I thanked my friend as I got out of her car. "I'll text you tomorrow or so okay?" I was staying at my brother's at least for tonight. He had invited me over since we don't get to see each other that often, so it was nice. There was one problem tho.

"Of course, also, do you really think you can hide. You're wearing a scarf in the middle of summer," she pointed out.

"I know, I know! But you know I don't wear - a lot of - make-up, I don't have foundation, and your skin tone is very different from mine."

"I know, all I'm trying to say is that you should just tell him, okay? Now have fun! See you later!" With that, she drives off leaving me in front of the apartment building. I sigh, pulling at the scarf around my neck a little bit, feeling so sweaty already. Not sure if it was because of the scarf or my nerves peaking. Swinging my overnight bag over my shoulder I walk to the panel by the door, looking for number 201. I ring the bell patiently waiting for someone to open the door. It could be one of three people.

"Hello?" George's voice came through, uncertain.

"Hey, it's Y/n, could you let me in please, it's hot as hell out here," I tell him and I hear him scream through the apartment 'Y/n's here!' before he presses the buzzer.

"See you in a bit!" He says before I can hear him put the phone back on the horn. I open the door and walk through, straight to the elevator. It was so much cooler inside! I press the button and wait for the elevator to come down. I stand back a little when it arrives, not wanting to be in the way of anyone who could come out.

"Hey babe," is the first thing I hear when the elevator doors open. My eyes widen as I look up at Nick in surprise. He walks over to me, pecking my lips quickly, then taking my bag.

"Wha- why would you come down?" I ask confused but follow him into the elevator.

"Because I wanted to see you before Clay," he says like it's obvious. "When he's there I can't do this," he wraps his arm around my waist, pulling me closer placing his heavenly soft lips on mine. The kiss is soft and gentle, which comes as a surprise to me but I enjoy it nonetheless. After a short while he pulls away, I stare into his gorgeous eyes a blush on my face.

"Yeah well, you're gonna have to deal with it, just like me," I tell him and shove him a bit away. "Because of you I have to wear a fucking scarf in summer," he chuckles at that, shaking his head, a smirk on his lips.

"I might have to take advantage of that scarf and create some more before I can't," he starts coming back over, but I push him back while giggling.

"Don't even think about it! I am fucking sweating!" We finally reach the 20th floor and Nick opens the only door on said floor. Yes, Clay, George and Nick owned a penthouse and it was fucking beautiful. It had 2 floors and the first floor was basically an open floor plan.

"I don't know if you brought any swimwear, but we're out on the balcony by the pool," Nick says as he closes the door behind us. He took off his shirt as we walked through the apartment and I try so hard not to look.

"I did, but you and I both know that I can't take off this scarf," I tell him with a pointed look. He chuckled, dumping my bag on the couch in the living room.

"Oops," he says turning around to stick his tongue out at me. I roll my eyes and watch him run to the balcony, the glass doors wide open, and jumps straight into the pool. Clay getting splashed as he managed to land right next to the man relaxing on a blow-up mattress.

"WHAT!" Clay instantly yells and I can't help but giggle loudly at my brothers startled expression.

"I'm sure you needed some cold water on you," I tell him as I walk outside and sit with George at the table that is covered with a big beach umbrella.

"Ha ha, very funny," Clay fake laughs. "Why don't you come in, see how you like the cold."

"Nah, I think I'm good," I chuckle, I watch as Clay and Nick start play fighting in the water. A bright smile gracing my lips. 'God, if only'.

"Y/n, it's like one of the hottest days yet, why are you wearing a scarf?" George asks after a while, probably having battled himself about asking or not beforehand.

"I- I get cold... easily," I try to lie tho it's obvious. I can tell he doesn't believe me but decides to drop the subject for now. Thank goodness for that. I turn, looking at Nick and sent him a glare, not that he noticed.

If you haven't caught on yet, Nick is my boyfriend. Has been for a bit over a month now. Clay doesn't know this and we both want to keep it that way, at least for a little while longer. We like each other very much, but just in case it doesn't end up working out. I don't want Clay to have to worry about it. Along with the fact that he would probably smack Nick the moment he knew he had laid his hands on me. I like Nick a lot and I don't plan on letting that idiot go any time soon but I also don't want to ruin their friendship. Especially since I know how protective Clay is of me as his younger sister.

Nick had been over at my place yesterday and left a few very noticeable hickeys on me. I had gotten pretty used to them, hell, I loved them if I was being honest. Made me feel loved and to me, it just showed how possessive he was over me. It made me blush just thinking about it.

"You're staring at Nick for an awfully long time there, Y/n," George whispers, startling me out of my daydream.

"I am not, I don't know what you're on about," I tell him but I can tell he doesn't believe me from the smirk playing on his lips.

"Hmm, yeah, okay, sure," he smirks, sending a wink my way. 'Wait! Does he know!?'. "Yes I do know, do you honestly think Nick could keep it to himself for this long?"

"I-" I sigh and shake my head. "I guess not," you knew how excited Nick could get. I just pray to god he hadn't told Clay anything. Then again, if he knew I would have known by now.

"Anyways, you know he'll find out sooner or later," he says, gesturing with his head to Clay. "You might wanna tell him before he finds out."

"I know," I sigh and look away from George.

"Alright, what pizzas do you guys want?" Clay asks and he drops his ass down on the chair next to me. Nick sat in front of me, George next to him. It was now past 7 in the evening, the sun now luckily having moved behind the apartment building so we had at least some shadow and it was slowly cooling down.

"Can I have BBQ Chicken and Bacon?" I ask giving him pouty lips, not that I needed too but he chuckled anyways. He added it to the order also adding his own, Nicks and Georges.

"Alright, they should be here in tops 30 mins," he announces, placing his phone down on the table so we can all see the app as it shows us what Dominos is doing with the order. "Now, sister dearest, mind telling me why you're wearing a scarf?" Woah, straight to the point, huh? He props his elbow on the table, leaning his head on his hand.

"I am just cold," I try to sound as convincing as possible. But he obviously sees straight through me.

"Hmm, yeah I don't believe it," he says shaking his head. 'Okay, now what? I guess I could just show him and not tell him who made them? Ugh, well here goes nothing I guess'.

"Okay, fine, I'm not cold," I sigh and with a bit of hesitation I take the scarf off. From the corner of my eye, I can see Nick trying to hold back a smirk as his hickeys on my skin slowly come into view.

"Y/N! WHAT!" Clay instantly bursts out in overprotectiveness. "Who do I need to beat!"

"Calm down, you don't need to beat anyone," I tell him, rolling my eyes.

"Fine, I'll just have a nice talk with them, so who?"

"It's no one important, just some guy at a friends party," I lie as I look down at my lap. As long as I don't look at him he can't tell I'm lying, right? I look up slightly at Nick who, looks back at me, and is biting his lip. Probably just as scared about telling Clay the truth as I am. I will be begging on my knees just to make sure Clay wouldn't smack Nick just over a few bruises on my neck. "Please just let it go, I am fine okay?" Just then the bell rings, Clay mutters a fine and goes to answer the door.

"I don't get why you guys can't just tell him," George states when he's sure Clay is out of ear shot.

"Did you not see how he just reacted?" I ask him like it's obvious. "I am sorry, but I would rather not have him smack Nick in the face over hickeys."

"Look, George, I wanna tell him," Nick starts, sighing slightly. "And I don't mind if he hits because I know he is protective of, Y/n, but we're both scared it will change the friendship we have."

"Alright fine, but don't you think it's better that he hears it from you instead of finding it out himself?" The question leaves both Nick and me silent. I glance at him with a defeated look, knowing that George is right.

Eating is slightly awkward after that, but we still talk and joke around a bit. Soon enough it's 11 ish and I'm in the guest bedroom by myself. Sat in the middle of the bed, legs crossed and face in my hands. I am so mad at myself for not being able to tell my own brother what's really going on. He deserves to know, but what if it ruins his friendship with Nick! I don't want that to happen. I don't want that guilt. I hear two knocks on the door, knowing it's Nick, I answer yeah, not moving from my position.

"Hey," Nick says quietly as he enters the room, closing the door behind him. He walks over to the bed and sits down next to me. Gently taking my hands away from my face. "Look, I know we planned on waiting," he says while he wraps his arm around my waist and pulls me closer. My head falling onto his shoulder as soon as I'm close enough to do so. "But I think we should tell him."

"I know," I pout slightly but he's quick to bend forward and take it away with a soft lingering peck. A small smile gracing my lips when he pulls away. "I am sorry in advance."

"Eh, it will be fine," he chuckles softly. "Might get punched, but I'm sure I can deal with it."

"Should we tell him tomorrow?"

"Yeah, I think we should," he sighs slightly and I can tell he's at least a little bit scared. He turns to look at me again placing his lips on mine again. I smile into the kiss, wrapping my arms around his neck. His hands lay gently, yet tightly on my hips. "No matter the outcome tomorrow, I am not letting you slip away that easily," he says once we pull way, our foreheads pressed together.

"Good, cause the same goes to you," I smirk, nuzzling his nose with mine sweetly. "I like you too much to just let you go."

After one more goodnight kiss, he leaves the room to go to his own. Agreeing to tell him when we see him first thing tomorrow morning. I would have preferred it if he stayed, so we could cuddle, but I knew we couldn't risk Clay walking in and finding out that way. So with a sigh, I settle into bed and try my best to sleep. I mostly end up staring at the ceiling as all types of scenarios of tomorrow run through my mind. Grabbing the pillow from beside me I shove it in my face. 'Just sleep!' I tell my mind.

Morning comes quicker than I thought, the light coming in through the window waking me up gently. Today is the day. With a big yawn, I sit up and stretch. I look around the room for a sec before my eyes settle on my bag. Climbing out of bed I grab a simple pair of shorts (no, not short shorts, how in the hell is that comfortable anyway?) along with a plain white v neck shirt. I swiftly change my underwear and bra, jumping into the clean clothes and then make my way out of the bedroom. Going into the bathroom, I leave the door open as I brush my teeth with the spare toothbrush Clay had bought for me months ago.

"Morning," Nick says as he walks in, he had his own bathroom - lucky him - but it kinda became routine for him to join me whenever I was here. I sent him an awkward smile while brushing my teeth through the mirror. He grins, walking up behind me and wrapping his arms around my waist. His head gently resting on my shoulder as he still looked tired.  "You nervous?" He asks softly, I nod before tapping his arm. He lets go of me so I can spit and rinse.

"I am, do you know if he's awake yet?" I ask as we leave the bathroom, walking towards the kitchen. "What time is it anyways?"

"Uhm, about to be 10 I think, and I have no clue. It is Friday tho, could be going grocery shopping," he answers opening up a cupboard, taking out two bowls. I go and grab the milk carton from the nearly empty fridge, setting it down next to Nick as he fills both bowls with cereal. I hop on the counter sitting on the corner, right next to him.

"Thank you," I smile when he hands me my bowl along with a spoon. He comes closer standing between my legs as we both eat in silence for a bit. "Do you think he'll react differently because he knows you?"

"I am not sure, I hope it gives me some type of immunity but I wouldn't be surprised if I would still get a scolding from him," he answers. Setting down his bowl and taking mine from me he moves closer. Wrapping his arms around my waist he sighs excessively when his head leans on my shoulder. I smile softly, pecking the top of his head, wrapping my arms around his shoulders.

"I'm sure it will be okay in the end," I squeeze him a little, getting a chuckle from him. Moving his head, I feel his lips connect to my neck. My cheeks immediately heating up with a blush. "Nick-!" I whisper yell as he starts leaving gentle kisses all over my neck.

"Shh, just let me have this," he shushes me, going back to littering my neck with kisses, sucking every now and then. I knew exactly why he was doing this. He was nervous, he needed a distraction and right now, sucking hickeys was the best distraction. I bite my bottom lip, trying not to moan, just in case one of the two others living in this apartment would hear it. It just always felt so good when he did this. He was so gentle with it, yet rough when he would bite my skin. After a while I gently pull the hair on the back of his head, getting the hint he pulls away from my neck. I look into his gorgeous eyes for a second, before closing my own and connecting our lips in a sweet kiss. Wrapping my arms tighter around his neck, deepening the kiss. His tongue playing with mine in a teasing manner.

A sudden thud and objects rolling over the floor makes us jump and pull away from each other. There in the doorway stood Clay and George, I could see the latter roll his eyes as he walked in and placed his bags on the island.

"You're kidding," is surprisingly the first thing that comes out of Clay's mouth. When no one answers he shakes his head. "You know what, get out of the kitchen. I- I need to think," Nick is quick to pull me out of the kitchen. I look back in shock. Now, this was definitely not how I was expecting him to respond. We end up on the balcony sitting at the table in the shade.

"Well, there goes the plan of just telling him," Nick says in defeat.

"I guess so," I mumble, playing with his fingers nervously. "I don't know what will happen now."

"Me neither, but I think it's going to be alright," his phone dings. "George is talking with him while they're putting the groceries away," he informs me.

Third POV

"How did I not realize?" Clay mutters as he put all the fridge items away. "Did you know?" He asks George who is packing away in the storage closet. A sigh coming from said closet confirms his suspicion.

"Look, I haven't known for long, basically a week at most," George tells the somewhat angered older brother. "But I know for a fact Nick likes her very much."

"She's my little sister-"

"I know, but you know Nick. He would never hurt her on purpose," leaning his head against the fridge door, Clay bangs his head on it once. George chuckling at the sight. "Y/n is also old enough to make her own decisions, alright?"

"Ugh, I know," with a frustrated sigh he walks over to a pillar leaning against it, looking out to the balcony where the couple sat. Y/n had a bright smile on her face as the two talked. Nicks hand holding hers, his thumb stroking comfortingly on the back of her hand. "Is it bad that I hate that they look cute," George laughs, clapping his hand on Clay's shoulder.

"That's brotherhood for ya I guess," with one more sigh, Clay starts walking towards the balcony. George following behind him. Y/n's eyes widen when she notices the two walking over.

"Look, Clay, we were gonna tell you," she says and clay could hear the fear in her voice.

"It's okay," he tells her, sitting down beside her.

"Really?" Nick asked unsure if this was real.

"Yes, but I swear, if you hurt my sister, you're actually gonna get smacked," Clay chuckles as Nick pulls Y/n into his embrace, her back against his chest. Giving her a gentle peck on the cheek, and Clay can't help but be happy for his little sister and best friend. They looked so happy together. He for sure knew Nick was a whole lot better than any other person Y/n had dated before him. Not that there were a lot, but they were dicks nonetheless. "Just please, don't cover her in hickeys too much, cause I do not wanna see that," A blush instantly forms on Y/n's cheeks as she shrinks into Nicks embrace.

"I am sorry, I'll do my best to hold back," Nick says with a smirk on his lips.

"Thank you, Clay."

11 months later - Y/n POV

"Are you sure, Clay and George will be gone the entire weekend?" I ask Nick as soon as we enter the apartment.

"Yes I'm sure, now I actually get to spent alone time with you babe," he says tickling my sides as he pushes me into the bathroom. "Now go change, I'll be in the pool when you're ready!" With that, he runs off to the pool.

"Idiot," I chuckle closing the door to the bathroom. I swiftly change into my bathing suit pulling on the edges feeling just the tiniest bit self-conscious.

After a little pep talk to myself, I make my way to the balcony. Looking from behind a pillar I notice Nick in the water, floating on his back with his eyes closed. With a grin, I run for the pool and jump in right next to him.

"Oh, you're gonna get it," Nick says as soon as I reach the surface. I giggle, squealing when I get splashed with water. Diving underwater I swim away from Nick. "Oh no you don't," Nick chuckles swimming after me. Hands take hold of my waist, stopping me from swimming any further. Nick turns me around, bringing us up from the water. "Gotcha," giggling I wrap my arms around his neck.

"God I missed you," I tell him, playing with his wet hair. We hadn't seen each other for two weeks as both of us had been busy, but we were sure to keep this weekend free for our first year anniversary.

"I missed you too," leaning in he gives me a gentle peck. Moving is slowly to the edge of the pool. "Hmm, I think that neck of yours is a bit too clear for me," he smirks instantly diving for my neck. I squeal feeling his lips layer kisses upon kisses. Sucking and biting on my skin making me moan scratching my nails on his back at the amazing feeling. We had gone pretty far already over the past few months but it still felt new and so exciting every time. I wrap my legs around his middle, squeezing him tight. Biting just below my jaw he makes his way up, kissing his way to my lips. We stare into each other's eyes breaking contact every once and a while to deliver lingering pecks.

"I love you," I whisper sincerely, my brain wants me to look away in case of rejection but I will myself to keep staring into his beautiful eyes. I can see shock shoot over his face but it's quickly replaced with a gentle smile. Leaning forward he connects our lips, the kiss filled with passion making me almost forget he didn't say it back. It gives a tiny pinch of pain in my heart, but I tell myself it's alright. He could just not be ready to tell me and I need to accept that.

That night we end up on the couch watching a movie, tho I wasn't really watching. I cuddled into Nick's chest, him gently stroking my back as he tries to gently lull me to sleep. When I'm close to falling asleep he quietly whispers four words to me, making me grin just slight as to not give away I was actually awake.

"I love you too."