No Such Thing As A Hollywood Ending

chapter 19

Henry and Lucy sat in their usual spot by the piano in the cafeteria, the faint hum of chatter and clatter filling the air around them. But today, the usual comfort of their quiet corner felt heavier, more charged, as if the weight of their recent decisions hung in the air between them.

Henry shifted uncomfortably on the bench, his eyes fixed on the piano keys but not really seeing them. He had been thinking about it non-stop ever since that night. Things between him and Lucy had moved forward, and while a part of him was exhilarated, another part couldn't shake the uneasy feeling gnawing at his mind.

"Lucy," he started, his voice hesitant, "about what we did..."

Lucy looked up from her phone, sensing the seriousness in his tone. She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and leaned in, giving him her full attention.

"It felt amazing," Henry continued, his cheeks turning slightly pink, "but I don't know. I've been overthinking it, I guess. I just... I don't want to mess things up between us. I don't want to scare you away or make things weird."

Lucy's heart softened as she listened to him. It was so like Henry to worry about things like this—about pushing her away or doing something wrong. She reached out, gently placing her hand on his arm.

"Henry," she began softly, "you're not scaring me away at all."

He looked up at her, the concern still evident in his eyes, and she smiled at him reassuringly.

"Remember why we even started talking about this?" Lucy asked, her voice calm but with a hint of warmth. "It was because of what happened on our first date... the movie theatre thing." She paused, glancing down at the piano for a moment as she recalled that awkward night. "I was so worried that I had scared you away."

Henry frowned slightly. "You thought you scared me away?"

Lucy nodded, biting her lip. "Yeah... I freaked out that night after what happened, and I thought you'd never want to talk to me again. I was embarrassed, confused, and I didn't know how to deal with it. That's why you brought up... you know, talking about things before we do them, making sure we were both on the same page."

Henry blinked, clearly taken aback. "I didn't realize you felt that way."

Lucy laughed softly, shaking her head. "Oh, Henry, of course I did. I thought I'd ruined everything between us. That's why we had that talk after—because it was clear that despite that night you didn't want our relationship to fall apart, and I-I am happy that you would still want to be with me. I'm sure you were so scared when I tried that thing at the theatre I-I am surprised you still wanted me after that."

She looked at him earnestly, her expression serious but kind. "The point of what I'm saying is that I'm in this with you. The good, the bad, and the downright awkward, as long as you're in it too."

Henry's shoulders seemed to relax at her words, the tension in his face easing just a little. He still looked uncertain, but there was relief in his eyes as well.

"I just... I care about you a lot," he said quietly. "I don't want to mess this up."

Lucy squeezed his arm, offering him a soft smile. "You're not messing anything up, Henry. We're figuring this out together, and it's not always going to be perfect. But that's okay."

For a moment, they sat in silence, the weight of their conversation hanging in the air but feeling less oppressive now. Henry looked at her, really looked at her, and saw that she wasn't scared or pulling away. She was there, beside him, just as committed to making things work as he was.

He finally nodded, a small smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. "Okay... we'll figure it out."

Lucy grinned, her heart swelling with affection for him. "Yeah, we will."

Lucy suddenly sat up straighter as she remembered something. "Oh Henry, I wanted to talk to you about something I want to do. I want to start a restaurant and I thought you could maybe help."

"of course I'd try to help you. what do we need?"

"well, it's going to be hard to start up without some money. But my dad won't help me out with that. I'm not sure what to do."

"I don't know how to help you with the money stuff, but I could help with other things."

Lucy pulled out a stack of papers from her bag. "I thought you might be excited about this. my dad owns a publishing company, that's part of why he's so rich." She hands Henry the papers which turns out to be an offer for one of his books, "but I've been talking to people around school, and after reading the first chapter of this book they had agreed that they want this book to be published. and they sent letters to the company telling them that they really want this book to be published."

"the company agreed?"

"the company would be stupid not to. apparently someone posted it online and thousands of people from this state alone are flooding the company's mail with letters saying they should, some of them even threatening to boycott any other books by this company until they did."

"Wow, I don't know what to say."

Lucy wrapped her arms around henry in a big hug. "Just say yes. sign the paper and this book, will be published. You're going to have a book published I'm so excited and proud of you!" 

Henry signed the paper and this was the start of their plans for Lucy's restaurant. They both were ready to try and navigate that idea together.