Re: [Outside the Rec Center.]
Okay, Noah was confused. A jag of nerves came into being, and he didn't know if it was his or Holly's. "I am being honest! It does sound good." It did. He was into it. Not, like, so into it, he'd miss it if he didn't get it. But, there was something about having Holly tell a room of horny dudes (who could do nothing more than type) that Noah had him, that Noah liked. "You mean me saying 'okay' at your backpedal on the backpedal? I can't tell if you're saying it because you want to actually try it or because you feel like you have to." And, okay, yes, Noah was jealous of Jack. I mean, Holly did what he did for money, and Jack had money, apparently. That was something Noah absolutely couldn't offer and he knew it. And then to hear that Jack had been sabotaging him, even without meaning to, well, obviously he didn't like it. He did sound bitter. Sorry, Holly. But Noah rolled away from most negative emotions quickly. He didn't hold onto them. "My opinion on if roleplaying things is boring?" He knew what things. Thanks, brain. "The anonymous thing? It wouldn't be boring, dude. I'm not going to get bored."
Noah could tell he'd done something, but he didn't get that it was his skepticism. He didn't often have negative reactions and he didn't get that it was when he did that Holly struggled. It'd happened earlier on the phone too, but he wasn't thinking about that. He was trying to answer the question about how it could hurt for him like it might Holly, but Holly was batting aside his concerns and rolling his eyes. "I know he isn't. Sorry." Noah had manners enough to at least look sheepish. He looked through his lashes, a lot like a little boy. The puppy dog eyes weren't purposeful manipulation, dude. It was just how his face looked. Still, one type of earnestness traded for another as Holly told Noah he was different. He would've smiled, but Holly felt like he might fly the coop if he did. "And it's scary." That seemed to sum it up.
"No, I get it." Noah put his hands up for half a second in mock surrender, before they moved back to Holly, and he shifted a little. "You're right. I get it. Just... I just mean, it's not, like, a place to meet people. But, I guess... maybe that doesn't matter. Because it's not the point." He glanced at Holly, like maybe Holly would tell him. Instead, Holly just rolled panic him into him. "Whoa, whoa—" Noah started to speak, even as Holly was offering him platitudes and practicality, and he reached for the dude just before he started pushing up and off. "No, no, no, wait, wait, wait." Noah tried to catch the front of that jacket, if nothing else, feeling the bump of Holly's head against the top of the car. "Ow. Stop. Come here. Shut up, come here."