Jonnor - A Tale of Self-Discovery and Friendship

Can't Sleep

12:43 AM

Connor has lost count of how many times he has checked his phone for a message from his friend. It wasn't like Jude to leave him waiting for a response in their text conversations and Connor was beginning to get worried, until he heard his phone vibrate. He immediately scrambled to grab it and frowned slightly once he read it was from Taylor.

Taylor: "Hey, what's up? You ok? I didn't see your message until now"
Connor: "Do you know where Jude might be?"
Taylor: "No, why?"
Connor: "I haven't heard from him after dinner and I guess I'm just worried"
Taylor: "I know you two have a thing for each other, you don't need to hide it from me dude. I'm sure he's fine, maybe he just fell asleep. You need to do the same"
Connor: "I don't know what you're talking about, we're just friends. But I guess I'll try and fall asleep. I'll see you tomorrow?"
Taylor: "Sure, goodnight"
Connor: "Gn"

1:34 AM

Connor still couldn't sleep. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't close his eyes until he read words typed by Jude's fingers. Though he was still unsure of his exact feelings for him, he was overwhelmed with concern and could only think of the worst. Connor has always been pessimistic ever since his parents split up, and he didn't exactly know why. He saw it coming and wasn't exactly that upset once it did happen. But nonetheless, whenever something stressful occurred, his doubt was in the forefront of his focus and it was difficult from him to shake it.

To ease some of his tension, he began to scroll through Instagram and searched through all related photos to #bestfriend. Interestingly enough after going through a few pages, he saw an old photo of them while they presented their RNA/DNA project to the class, both grinning from ear to ear with pride. Connor smirked at once seeing Jude in his favorite green sweatshirt. He couldn't remember any part of that project except getting to know Jude better, finding solace in a person that doesn't judge him or really anyone for that matter. He enjoyed them playing video games, laying in the grass joking about random stuff, and especially when they were able to just be in each other's presence. Whether that meant words were used or not, Connor thoroughly enjoyed being around Jude. Then all of a sudden, Jude texted him and he went into a panic.

Jude: "Connor"
Connor: "OMG are you ok?"
Jude: "I'm outside your house, can I talk to you?"
Connor: "I'll be right out"

Connor was just overall confused. Didn't know why Jude came to see him so late, didn't know whether to be upset he didn't text back or relieved he was still alive, and now he just tried to focus on being as silent as possible when opening his window to slip out and onto his tree branch.

Connor has always been very agile and strong. The years in all sports his dad could throw him into did Connor great justice and though only 14 years old, he had a very toned physique many guys his age admired and were jealous of. Though he knows he is quite athletic, Connor has always been very conservative as far as showing it off to his friends, especially Jude. He's been unsure of how he'd respond to stuff like that; he knows Jude doesn't care too much about looks, it's all about the personality with him.

As he gets to the lowest branch of the tree and catches Jude's eye, he jumps off gracefully, landing a few inches away from Jude. As soon as Connor's feet touch the ground, Jude throws himself at him, his arms wrapped fully around him, sobbing lightly into his chest. Connor enjoys feeling Jude's warm body up against him, but is conflicted because he knows Jude doesn't cry often, so something must definitely be wrong. As soon as he lowers his gaze, he notices some blood on Jude's ear, seeming fresh from whatever happened earlier in the night. Once he took his right hand to examine this, Jude loosened his grip and backed up slightly.

"What's this from Jude? What happened?" Connor grimly asked. "Co...con...Connor..." Jude could barely speak. "I'm scared." And then Jude just unleashed all of the apparent stress he had built into Connor's shoulder in the form of tears.