12 Nights of Christmas (Jake x Johnnie)

Night Eight

True to his word, Jake came over the following night. The second I opened my door, he pulled me into his arms. He started off by just hugging me tightly. He held on for too long though, and then he turned his head. He looked me in the eyes for a moment. One of his hands cupped my cheek. Before I could stop him, he closed the distance between our lips. He kissed me softly, sweetly. It was over before I could make an effort to kiss him back. "Merry Christmas," he told me again. "Can you believe it's only a few days away?"

"I can." I nodded slowly. We still hadn't moved that far away, the distance very intimate.

"I got my present today. I loved it, the skateboard was perfect." He smiled. "It's nice to see you." I chuckled.

"I can see you're enthusiastic."

"Was the kiss too much?"

"A little warning next time." I rubbed the back of my neck. "But it wasn't bad."

"I couldn't help myself. You just looked so damn kissable." His lip quirked up. "And you still do. You're in a better mood today."

"I am in a better mood," I nodded in agreement. "It hasn't been too bad today."

"Well, that's good." He pointed inside. "It's really cold out here. Can I come inside?" I stepped aside, gesturing for him to enter. 

"How cold exactly is it? You grew up in Cincinnati. We're in southern California." I crossed my arms suspiciously as I closed the door. "Or did you just want an excuse to kiss me again?" 

Jake chuckled, pulling me in his arms again. "No, if I was gonna do that, I'd tell you that it's still cold. Why don't you help me warm up? The power might go out." He touched our lips together again. This time, I kissed back. I couldn't help it -- Jake was really starting to grow on me. "See? You feel it, too." He ran his fingers through my hair. I sighed at the sweetness of his touch. "I wanna take care of you. I wanna be your protector."

"Protect me from what?"

"Your demons. I'll help you fight them off. Isn't that all you've ever wanted? Don't you want for someone to love you. Someone to fall asleep in the arms of and wake up next to. The kind of reassurance that you have a reason in this world to go on." He squeezed me. "I wanna be that someone."

"Jake, it's really too much. We've barely even gone out on a date."

"Dates are for people who don't know each other. We've known each other for years. I can still take you out, but I need to know." He looked at me, the way his eyes were filled with so much innocence scared me a little. "I need to know if you feel the same way."

"Have you ever thought that love is a lot like drugs?"

His brow furrowed. "How?"

"We use it and abuse it because it makes us feel good. In the end, it only ends up hurting us."

"You're dodging the question."

I tugged on his hair. "Stick around, and I'll tell you on Christmas."