Our Safeguard

Chapter 41

Chapter 41

~Nolan~

       "Wanna go to my prom with me?" I asked Jerome as I continued working on one of my new paintings. I have quite a few paintings that I had started but haven't yet finished, so I knew I shouldn't start a new one, but I couldn't help it.

       Jerome stopped eating the takeout he ordered as he looked at me with furrowed eyebrows. "Isn't your prom for another four months?"

       I huffed. "Wow, I guess you don't want to go to prom with me. Whatever."

       Jerome laughed slightly. "Nolan, of course I want to go with you. I kind of assumed you would want me to go with you. I'm just wondering why you're asking me now and not closer to the prom's date?"

       I shrugged. "Dunno. Probably because I've been thinking of prom lately. The second semester is starting soon, which means it's my last semester of high school. I can't wait to get out of there."

       "How has school been going for you recently?" Jerome asked. "You haven't really talked about it."

       "It's... Fine," I said. "Nothing really bad has been happening except for Joel still trying to talk to me. He just doesn't get that I don't want anything to do with someone who tried breaking me and my boyfriend up."

       "There was some hesitance at the beginning," Jerome pointed out. "Are you sure everything is fine?"

       I stayed silent for a few moments as I continued picking. Truthfully, it had been fine for the most part. It's just that sometimes, I really don't like being there. No one had been bothering me, so I assume it was just because of the memories I had of my first year at the school.

       Jerome decided to move so he was sitting down beside me, despite it probably not being a smart idea to eat by all the paint fumes. I didn't think he cared, though. "So...?"

       "It really is fine," I said. "But there's just some days I don't feel like going. Bad memories and all that. I'm sure I'm not the only one who's excited to be done with school. You know, I bet Alan's teachers are more excited than me."

       "Is he really that bad of a student?" Jerome asked.

       "I wouldn't say he's bad," I said. "He's not disruptive or anything. Just not that bright." My stomach growled a bit, so I put my paintbrush down and move to where the takeout was.

       Jerome moved back there. "I'm starting to think we need to get some chairs in this part of the studio."

       "Why?" I asked. "We have chairs and a couch in the office."

       "Yeah, but we're always to lazy to move there to eat when we have food. We always end up eating on the floor."

       "I know what would get us to move to the office."

       Jerome snorted. "Nolan, I know what you're going to say, and that would just make you move to the office. You're the one who uses sex as motivation."

       I pouted. "So you don't like having sex with me?"

       "You're very bad at comprehension sometimes," Jerome said. "I said you use sex as a motivation for literally anything. I don't, but that doesn't mean I don't like having sex with you."

       "So you want to have sex right now?"

       "Once again, you're horrible at comprehension."

       "So... Is that a no?"

       "It's a no for now, a possibly for later. Finish eating first, then work on your painting."

       I wasn't actually up for sex now, surprisingly, so it wasn't a big deal that Jerome said no. I mean, it wasn't ever a big deal. If he wasn't in the mood to have sex, I didn't want to pressure him into it. He was patient with me when I went through my depression stages.

       And us being a couple didn't mean we always had to say yes to sex.

       When I finished eating, I went back to working on my painting. I hoped I could get far on this one and still have some inspiration when I get back to it another day. Unless I finished it today, but I didn't know it I would. Recently, I tended to get very distracted while trying to paint.

       I couldn't even get into the zone I normally get in where I couldn't register any sounds happening around me. It would take a long time for someone to get my attention normally but now, Jerome could just say my name and I would look at him.

       Part of me think it was because I was worried about starting to study art at university. Sure, I got accepted, but that didn't mean that I was always going to do well in my classes. What if I did absolutely horribly? What if I couldn't finish a painting in time? What if I accidentally send in a nude painting of Jerome, even though I didn't have a nude painting for him? 

       My overreacting mind was always such a pleasant thing.

       Like all the other paintings, I didn't think I could finish this one. I soon felt like I was out of inspiration, so I started gathering my paintbrushes to wash. "You're done for the day?" Jerome asked.

       I nodded. "Yeah, I don't think I can paint anymore." I looked at my current painting, then at all the other abandoned painting before sighing heavily. "I hope this doesn't keep up. I have so many incomplete paintings."

       "There's no rush to finish them," Jerome said, helping me bring the paintbrushes to the bathroom sink to wash. "It would be better to finish them when you have inspiration than just finishing it for the sake of finishing it."

       "I guess you're right," I said. "It just sucks feeling so empty on inspiration. I need to find some, hopefully before I start university."

       "You've got a lot of time for that," Jerome said. "But if you need help finding inspiration, you can always come to me." I was about to say something, but Jerome beat me to it. "No, you can't use sex as inspiration."

       "Awe."

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horny nolan. that is all.

horny nolan and reno would get a long very well. they would definitely bond and think of ways they can tease their boyfriends lol.