Class dismissed, Heart Enlisted [JesBible]

9 [A Splash of Reality]

As the sun dipped below the horizon, Bible and Jes stood in the backyard, tension thick in the air like summer humidity. What was supposed to be a laid-back evening had quickly devolved into yet another squabble, and both of them were feeling the strain of their unexpected arrangement.

“Why did you have to show up like that?” Bible snapped, arms crossed tightly over his chest. His face was flushed with irritation, and he was barely holding it together. “You could have at least warned me that I’d be stuck with my future husband. It would have made this whole situation a lot less... ridiculous.”

Jes leaned against the poolside railing, the corner of his mouth quirking up in that infuriating way he had. “Oh, please. You think I had any say in this mess? My granddad just decided I’d be part of the package deal. Just like you.”

“Don’t act like you’re the victim here!” Bible retorted, frustration bubbling over. “You have no idea what it’s like to be trapped in a situation you didn’t choose!”

Jes rolled his eyes. “Really? Look who’s throwing a tantrum. You’re the one crying about it.”

The heat of anger surged through Bible, and he took a step back, trying to shake off the weight of the moment. But the slickness of the wet ground betrayed him. As he lost his footing, the world tilted, and he felt gravity take charge.

Time slowed as he toppled backward, arms flailing. The splash echoed, a dramatic note in the otherwise calm evening, sending ripples across the pool’s surface. For a heartbeat, all sound ceased, replaced by the rush of water and the surreal quiet of shock.

Jes blinked, the smirk wiped clean from his face. His heart raced, pumping adrenaline through his veins as he rushed to the edge of the pool. “Bible!”

As the reality of the situation sank in, panic clawed at Jes’s chest. He dove in, slicing through the water like a lifeguard on a mission. Bible thrashed helplessly below the surface, his eyes wide with fear, bubbles escaping his lips as he struggled to find air.

“Grab my arm!” Jes shouted, but his voice was swallowed by the water. Bible flailed, disoriented, lost in a sea of his own terror.

In a swift, fluid motion, Jes reached out, fingers wrapping around Bible’s wrist, yanking him upward. The world exploded back into sound as they broke the surface. Bible gasped for air, and Jes held him close, urgency coursing through him.

But the chaos didn’t end there. Bible’s eyes brimmed with tears, and the fear of drowning turned into a flood of emotions. He cried out, the mix of panic and frustration crashing over him like the waves of the pool.

The playful banter that had defined their earlier interactions vanished, leaving a palpable intensity hanging in the air. Jes, his heart pounding, couldn’t find the right words to comfort Bible. Instead, he held him tight, the closeness bridging the emotional chasm between them.

Silence enveloped them, save for the soft lapping of water against the pool's edge. The fading sunlight cast golden hues across the surface, creating an ethereal glow that wrapped around them like a comforting blanket. Jes could feel Bible's trembling, his sobs slowly fading as they floated together, suspended in that moment.

With each heartbeat, the distance between them shrank. Bible clung to Jes, vulnerability washing over him like the cool water around them. In that suspended reality, they were just two souls, caught in a web of emotions neither fully understood.

Jes’s grip tightened as he cradled Bible, the warmth of their bodies creating a cocoon against the chill of the evening. The weight of the world outside faded, leaving only the two of them in the glow of the sunset. Unspoken words hung in the air, heavy with meaning. They didn’t need to say anything; the moment spoke volumes, a silent understanding that shifted the ground beneath them.

As the last rays of sunlight slipped away, leaving behind a blanket of twilight, the two of them remained there, wrapped in each other’s presence, navigating the waters of their unexpected connection.