Separated by a Screen (And Several Hundred Miles)

Chaper Eight

As soon as I walked out of the school that afternoon, I pulled out my phone and texted him.

@heather_the_feather: you there?

Then, less than a minute later:

@lukewarmcoffee: for you, darling? Always

While I smiled at that, I also got a little freaked out; this knot started to wind up in my stomach, and my hand was shaking ever so slightly. I tried not to get mad at him for that; he didn't know what he was doing to me, he was just trying to be funny. Maybe if I told him...

No. I couldn't do that. Or, at least, not yet. Then I'd just seem rude and pathetic, and I would rather not mess up the only thing remotely close to a friendship that I'd had in years.

@heather_the_feather: how thoughtful of you

@lukewarmcoffee: you're very welcome 😊

@lukewarmcoffee: how was your day?

I almost answered honestly. I even had it typed:

@heather_the_feather: honestly, my day was sucky, as usual, but it's much better now that you're here.

My thumb hovered over the "send" button for a while, but I digressed and sent:

@heather_the_feather: I'm 9001% sure I just failed a calc test but hey I didn't expect anything better

@lukewarmcoffee: calc is just awful, no matter how you think about it

@heather_the_feather: i agree wholeheartedly.

@lukewarmcoffee: I agree more than wholeheartedly

@lukewarmcoffee: I agree with my heart

@lukewarmcoffee: my body

@lukewarmcoffee: my soul

@lukewarmcoffee: my life

@lukewarmcoffee: my everything

@heather_the_feather: so basically, calc is just the bane of all existence?

@lukewarmcoffee: exactly.

@lukewarmcoffee: good to know we understand each other

@heather_the_feather: quite good, indeed

I reached my house and tucked my phone away in my pocket, fishing my keys out of my bag. When I got inside, I had another message:

@lukewarmcoffee: IMPORTANT THING

@lukewarmcoffee: WE SHOULD DO ICE BREAKERS

I laughed to myself.

@heather_the_feather: isn't that a little "elementary school?"

@lukewarmcoffee: Heather, you can never be too old for ice breakers

@lukewarmcoffee: okay, 2 truths one lie GO

I thought for a minute, then typed:

@heather_the_feather: 1. I cut my own hair once when I was little

@heather_the_feather: 2. I'm 5'11"

@heather_the_feather: 3. My first kiss was with someone named Luke.

@lukewarmcoffee: BULLSHIT

@lukewarmcoffee: HIS NAME WAS NOT LUKE

@heather_the_feather: wrrrooooonnggg

@lukewarmcoffee: OH MY GOD PLEASE EXPLAIN

@heather_the_feather: alright, so in tenth grade, I went to a football game with Luke, and then about halfway through, he pulled me under the bleachers and pretty much shoved his tongue down my throat (ew)

@heather_the_feather: me being the naïve and completely inexperienced person I was, I was absolutely twitterpated in the aftermath. He asked me to be his girlfriend and I said yes.

@heather_the_feather: then, 4 months later, he came out and said that the whole thing had been part of a bet he had made with someone, and that he was ending it with me because he wanted to ask out the school slut.

@heather_the_feather: so yeah. No one's bothered with me sense, so my only relationship was a lie.

@lukewarmcoffee: aw, that sucks...

@lukewarmcoffee: are you okay?

@heather_the_feather: oh yeah; it was a long time ago; I'm over it. I've replaced boys with books :D

My shaky hands begged to disagree about how "okay" I was.

@lukewarmcoffee: Heather, I'm being serious.

@lukewarmcoffee: Are you okay?

I wasn't sure I wanted to answer that, so I lied.

@heather_the_feather: oh, yeah; weren't we playing a game?

@lukewarmcoffee: yeah.

@lukewarmcoffee: What was the lie?

Glad that we changed the topic, I let out a relieved breath.

@heather_the_feather:  I'm 5'4" ;-;

@lukewarmcoffee: really??

@lukewarmcoffee: oh my god that is literally adorable

@lukewarmcoffee: like I'm 5'11"ish

@lukewarmcoffee: so when I hug you someday (because I'm calling bullshit when you say you're okay, Heather. I know you're not), I could do that cute thing fictional people do where I like rest my head on top of yours. Then I would just cuddle you until you felt better and were able to tell me what's wrong.

I felt this grin creeping across my face, and for the first time, I felt totally comfortable talking to him. I felt like I had known him for years, only though it had just been a matter of days.

@heather_the_feather: Luke?

@lukewarmcoffee: yeah?

@heather_the_feather: thank you.

I meant it more-than-wholeheartedly.