No Such Thing As A Hollywood Ending

chapter 13

Lucy sat stiffly on the bus next to Henry, her fingers nervously tapping against her knee. She had been waiting for the right moment to bring up the blue box, the one with the strange packets Henry had given her for Christmas. Now seemed as good a time as any, with the two of them alone and no distractions.

"Henry," she began, her voice hesitant, "I've been meaning to ask you about that box you gave me. What are those packets? What are they for?"

Henry turned to her, his expression casual, but there was a glint of something more in his eyes. He didn't answer right away, instead responding with his own question. "You remember our first date?"

Lucy's heart clenched at the mention of it, her hands curling into fists. *How could I forget?* The memories of that night at the movies—the awkwardness, the way she had tried to push things too far, too fast—still haunted her. She regretted it every day.

"Yeah," she said quietly, looking away. "I remember."

Henry didn't seem to notice the tension in her voice or the way she was clenching her fists. Instead, he continued with a calm tone that made Lucy's stomach twist. "I've been thinking about that," he said. "I mean, it seemed like you wanted to take things further that night."

Lucy's face flushed instantly, the heat rising from her neck to her cheeks. She opened her mouth to protest, to explain that it hadn't been like that, that she hadn't meant to make him uncomfortable. But before she could get a single word out, Henry spoke again.

"And... I'd like to try something like that," he said, his voice careful, but direct. "If we talk about it first."

Lucy's heart skipped a beat, her breath catching in her throat as the realization hit her like a wave. The blue box. The packets inside. Her mind whirled, piecing everything together in a rush of embarrassment and disbelief.

*Oh my god.* Her eyes widened as she realized what those packets were.

Condoms.

Her face turned a deep shade of red, and she could feel the heat radiating from her cheeks. She stared down at her lap, her hands gripping her knees tightly as the weight of Henry's words sank in. He wanted to have sex with her. He had gotten her *condoms* as a Christmas present.

The thought made her head spin. This was Henry. The boy she had been awkwardly navigating a friendship-turned-romance with, the boy who barely understood social cues half the time. And now... this?

She glanced over at Henry, who was watching her closely, clearly waiting for her response. He wasn't pressuring her—at least not intentionally. He was just being honest, in the way Henry always was. And that somehow made this whole situation even more complicated.

Lucy's mouth felt dry as she tried to find the right words. She hadn't expected this. Not from Henry. And yet, a part of her had wanted their relationship to go further—she couldn't deny that. But now that the possibility was out in the open, she didn't know how to respond.

"I..." Lucy started, then trailed off, unsure of what to say. She could feel her heart pounding in her chest, her thoughts tangled in a mess of confusion and embarrassment.

Henry seemed to sense her hesitation. "We don't have to do anything right away," he said softly. "I just thought... maybe we could talk about it. Figure it out together."

Lucy nodded, still too flustered to form a coherent sentence. She was grateful, at least, that Henry wasn't pushing her for an immediate answer. But the fact that this was even a conversation they were having now made her feel like she was in over her head.

*What do I say?* she wondered, her mind racing. *What do I even want?*

She looked back at Henry, who was patiently waiting for her to respond, and she knew she had to say something. But all she could manage was a small, nervous laugh, her face still bright red.

"Henry," she said, her voice shaky, "this is... this is a lot to take in."

Henry smiled a little, his expression softening. "I know. It's okay."

Lucy took a deep breath, trying to calm the whirlwind of emotions inside her. This wasn't something she could figure out right now, not here, on a bus. But she knew one thing for sure—she needed to talk to Henry about it, really talk to him, without the confusion and the awkwardness getting in the way.

"Maybe we can talk more later," she said, finally managing to meet his gaze. "I just... I need to think about this."

Henry nodded, understanding. "Yeah. Whenever you're ready."

As the bus continued down the road, Lucy leaned back in her seat, still feeling the heat of embarrassment lingering on her skin. This wasn't how she'd imagined their relationship would go, but here they were. And now, she had to figure out what came next.