+BURST+ (Inanimate Insanity) (REWRITE)

~ Zippers ~

【ＬｏａｄｉｎｇＣｈａｐｔｅｒ．．．】
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It's December now, the snow flurries fall outside of my frosty window, building up on the sill. The weekend brings an excuse to not leave the house, but I've never been too afraid of the cold. I swap out my usual baseball cap for a beanie, and layer my varsity jacket over a red knit sweater my grandma made for me. My last name is embroidered in shiny white thread on the back of the jacket, reflecting back at me, Ruthsfield. I open my bedroom door, bat in hand and backpack sitting firmly on my shoulders. My shoes thump against the stairs and I head to the front door.

"Don't go catching a cold, son!" I hear my mother call out from the living room.

"I won't, ma'!"

"And be back by dinner!"

I turn the doorknob, a gust of cold air hitting my face, "Ok!"

My shoes grip to the freshly shoveled concrete. I open my car door, a fleeting jealousy of people who have remote start washes over me as I sink into the seat, the inside being as cold as the outside. Turning the key in the ignition, the engine sputters to a start, taking a bit longer than usual due to the cold. I decide to idle for a bit, letting the car warm up. I pull my phone out, my hands shaking momentarily with thought before hitting the send button;

Me: Hey, Nickel!

Me: I hope you're doing better, I'm driving out to the field to practice my pitching if you want to come with?

He had been sulking ever since that football game last week, only ever responding in short messages and not leaving his home as much. That, in combination with what Suitcase told me, with the thought that he was hiding a part of himself from me, made me concerned. Honestly, I'm more worried than I'd like to admit.

Me: Let me know in 5 minutes or so, we could get lunch while we're out?

I wait, staring at the screen, bouncing my leg up and down impatiently. Finally, after a few minutes, he texts back

Nickel: it's so fucking cold out

Nickel: you're crazy

Me: Well you can't stay inside all day for a week straight, man. It's not good for your brain.

Me: You should come with me :)

Nickel: i'll ride with you but i'm not getting out of the car.

Me: Good enough! Be there in 5!

Nickel: idk if i can bundle up in 5 but we'll see

I sigh in amusement at that, shifting the car into reverse and backing out of my driveway. The ride there is a bit hectic with the snowy roads, I notice a car, I think it might be Pickle's old Prius, that's wedged into a mound of snow. I slow down to catch a glimpse and, sure enough, there he is shoveling away at it with a sour look on his face, along with Bomb, while Cheesy is on the phone in the backseat, occasionally leaning out to take a picture of the other two, seems like he's cracking jokes about the situation. The spectacle had me idling nearby, before I heard a car honk behind me, and I quickly started driving again. After a few more minutes of driving, the road changes to gravel and I pull to the curb closest to Nickel's house.

Me: I'm here!

Nickel: couple more mins

Me: Ok no worries!

I pull the sun visor down and look at the mirror, lifting up the edge of my beanie and adjusting my hair away from my eyes. After a while, I see a gray-coated shape out of the corner of my eye. Nickel closes the front door to his house behind him, wearing an open silver puffer jacket with a dusty blue hoodie underneath, the hood covering his hair. Heavy boots grip the snowy driveway as he approaches.

He opens the door, leaning down to make eye contact, "This fucking zipper keeps getting stuck."

"That's what was taking so long, huh?"

"I gave up," he laughed, sliding into the passenger seat. Things felt normal so far. Good.

"Well the car is warm so you should be fine until we get there," I turn the steering wheel to the right lane, "You can play some music if you want."

"Totally wasn't itching to put something on," he grinned for a moment, plugging the cord into his phone and scrolling for a moment before a familiar, wintery tune crackled out of the sound system.

"...You're playing holiday music?"

"What, do you not feel festive?" Nickel joked, and I turned my gaze for a moment to look at him, but underneath the grin there was a hint of anxiety that I wouldn't have noticed just a few weeks ago. His mouth crinkled up in an awkward way, and his eyes darted from mine to his legs.

I flick my eyes back to the road, "No, no, you just never... never seemed like the 'jolly' type before, y'know?"

"Oh, yeah," he sighed, letting the chorus go by, and I quietly hum along, but just a little off-key. He continues, "I'm usually not but... I don't know, this one song is different somehow."

"I get it, I like this one too, it reminds me of those school holiday parties in 3rd grade or so."

"Duuuude, those were so great," he laughed, "cheap pizza, premade cookies, and puppy chow!"

"Nickel I hate to say it but... they are called muddy buddies," I tease, "the recipe on the Chex box calls them muddy buddies," and he lets out a groan.

"Shut up, it's puppy chow, don't be a corporate shill."

"Fine, whatever you say Jeffs," I turn the car into the parking lot of the school's combination soccer-football-baseball field, "We're here!"

I reach for the ignition, but Nickel stops me, "Hey you read my text, I am not getting out of this car, it's freezing out."

"Well maybe if you zipped your coat up the whole way, you'd be fine?" I gesture to his clothes.

"It's not zipping up the whole way dude, I told you!"

"Here, let me see," I unbuckle my seatbelt and lean over the center armrest, grabbing the two ends of his jacket. I hear Nickel suck in a breath, slowly moving his hands out of the way as I fiddle with the zipper, finding the piece of fabric that it got caught on, and moving it out of the way. Zipping the jacket up to his neck, I lean back in satisfaction, "There, fixed it!"

When I look up at Nickel, though, he stares at me with wide, frosty blue eyes, and his mouth in a tight line. I pause, remembering my conversations with Suitcase a few days ago, unsure if I should mention that I now know this part of him that he hid from me, that he's safe with me. But, do I truly know this missing piece if he never tells me on his own? Is he... does he feel safe with me? I swallow, wondering if I crossed a boundary when he glances down a bit past my nose, then meeting my eyes again before turning away and choking out a quick cough, "yeah, thanks."

"Hey, are you ok?" I tilt my head to try to look at his face more.

"I'm fine," he says, crossing his arms.

"...will you come out to the field with me now?" I say, and he turns his gaze back to me with his eyebrows furrowed.

I give him a goofy smile, and he sighs, "Ugh, fine. You're unbelievable."

"Hell yeah!" 

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+Word Count: 1240 +
【Ｓｈｕｔｔｉｎｇ　ｄｏｗｎ．．．】