Always

Chapter 5

My eyes fluttered open as I felt him pull away suddenly. My cheeks burned with embarrassment as I realized that he was clearly not into me in that way. I wanted to die. 

"Hey, uh, so I think I'm gonna go to bed," he said, standing up from the couch. 

"Oh, okay. Yeah, me too," I said awkwardly.

"So, goodnight," he said, and with that he turned around and quickly walked to his room and I heard the door quietly shut. I sank down into the couch. I was mortified. I had ruined any chances I had with him, and now he probably thought I was some desperate freak. 

"Idiot," I muttered under my breath as I made my way back to the guest room. 

I got into bed, pushing Cece over since she was taking up the entire bed. She didn't even wake up, that girl could sleep through anything. I got under the covers and thought about what had just happened. Maybe it wasn't as bad as I was imagining it. Or maybe it was worse. Either way, I had no idea how I was going to face Timmy in the morning.

* * * * * * * * * *

The next morning, I woke up and heard Cece groaning in the bed next to me. 

"Ugh, what happened last night?" she asked, holding her head in her hands.

"Well, let's see. You got super drunk and gave my phone and wallet to a stranger, a guy was harassing me so Timmy punched him, and then he let us stay in his apartment. We are currently in his guest room."

"Wait. Timmy as in Timothée Chalamet?"

"Yep," I said.

"H-how? What? Awesome!" 

"I know," I said with a laugh. "We should probably go home soon, because I have class at 1 and-"

I suddenly realized that she had work today. Her first day. 

"Oh my god Cece you have to get to work! Like, right now!" 

We quickly got up and ran into the living room area, where we saw Timmy sitting at the kitchen island eating a bowl of cereal and reading a newspaper. 

"Oh, hey guys. Good morning!" he said, cheerful as ever. I was so grateful that it wasn't awkward after last night. Who knows, maybe he didn't even remember.

"Hey Timmy, I know this is a lot, and you've already done so much for us, but can I borrow like 20 bucks for cab fare," Cece asked. "I promise I'll pay you back immediately."

"Of course," he said, and he handed her a $20 bill. 

"Thank you so much, you're a life saver!" she said and she ran out the front door.

"It's her first day at her new job today," I explained.

"Ahh, I see," he said. "Do you have somewhere to be?"

"Not at the moment, but if you want I can go home now. You've been so kind, I would hate to be a burden."

"Not at all," he said. "Do you want some breakfast? I only have cereal."

"Cereal sounds great," I replied. He poured me a bowl and handed it to me along with a spoon. 

"So about last night," he began. Oh great, he didn't forget. 

"I'm so sorry about that. I was totally not thinking straight last night."

"It's okay," he said. "It's just that me and my girlfriend of 2 years just split up a few months ago and I'm not ready for anything just yet."

I remembered hearing something about him and Lily-Rose Depp breaking up, but I wasn't sure if it was just a rumor. I guess not. "I totally understand," I said. "I'm sorry about that."

"It's okay," he said. "Every day it gets a little better."

"Yeah, I know what you mean. I was with my boyfriend, James, for all 4 years of high school before we split up when he stayed in California for college and I moved here. It's been hard."

"Wow, 4 years is a long time to be with someone. I can't even imagine how hard that must have been."

"Yeah, but I'm doing better now. Cece's been a huge help, we've been best friends since we were 6."

"I don't know what I would do without my best friend, Jake."

"Wait, is he the Jake from statistics?"

"Oh my god, you've seen that? I'm so embarrassed," he said as his cheeks turned red. He was so adorable. 

"Yeah, it's my favorite video ever." 

We laughed and talked a bit before he stood up and said, "Well I have a meeting in half an hour that I have to get ready for but feel free to stay here as long as you want."

"Okay, I think I have to get going soon anyway," I said. "I would give you my number but I don't have a phone anymore."

"Oh, that's alright. You can come by anytime if you just want to talk or something. I'll be here for you." He smiled and opened his arms. I hugged him. Even though we hadn't known each other for a long time, I felt like I could trust him with anything. Timmy left a little while later, and soon after, I began to walk home. It took a while, but I liked seeing the city anyway. I got home at around 12:30 and I quickly showered and threw on some clothes before heading to class. 

When I got home, Cece was home.

"Hey! How was your first day?" I asked.

"Pretty good," she said. "My job is kinda boring but at least I have one."

"Yeah, I'm proud of you. By the way, you owe me a new phone."

"Oh, no problem I already took care of it." She reached a hand into her bag that was in the chair next to her and pulled out a brand new phone.

"Thanks Cece! That was fast."

"Yeah, I felt really bad so I picked it up on my way home from work. Anyway, how was school?"

"It was good, I like my classes and stuff."

"That's good," Cece said. We talked a bit more about our days before I went to my room and crawled into bed. I was so tired, but my mind wouldn't stop going back to last night and my almost-kiss with Timmy. 

I set up my phone and logged into all my accounts on Instagram, Snapchat, and Twitter. I would still need to get a new number, but at least for now I wasn't completely off the grid.

I was just about to fall asleep when my phone buzzed. It was an Instagram DM. I checked who it was from and did a double take. It was from James.