Table 15

Chapter 29

I felt a cold hand on my shoulder, softly shaking me awake. I slowly opened my eyes. Mark's smiling face greeted me. His dark hair was messed up; one strand had fallen haphazardly across his nose. I couldn't help but grin at how adorable it was.

"Good morning, sunshine," he teased quietly. I rubbed my eyes and stretched. "G'mornin' Marky," I mumbled groggily.

I opened my eyes a little more and took in my surroundings. Mark was laying beside me in my bed, shirtless. I looked around the room. My pants were strewn over the T.V., and Mark's shirt covered the lamp in the corner. The rest of our clothes were thrown wildly around the room. My eyes widened in surprise. I shot up, and looked around again.

"Mark, did you-?" I asked. He nodded calmly. "And I-?" He nodded again. "So we-?"

"Yes, Jack," he responded, sitting up beside me. I leaned back against my head board, running a hand through my hair. Cautiously, I peeked under the covers. My face flushed red, and I quickly covered up again.

Mark chuckled and planted a soft kiss on my cheek. "I'll go make us breakfast," he said with a grin. I ran my hand through my messy hair again, still in shock. "I'm gonna have to clean the sheets," I muttered.

Chuckling more as he rolled out of bed, Mark picked up his underwear off the floor and pulled them on. "Yeah, that's what happens," he said, turning back to me with a smirk. "Jack, why are you so surprised? You made the first move,"

My eyes widened again. "I-I did?" I stuttered. Mark nodded, raising an eyebrow slightly. A smile started to form across my face as memories came flooding back. I lept out of bed and jumped at him.

"I made the first move!" I exclaimed happily. "We really did it, and I made the first move!" I gave him a big hug and burrowed my face into his neck.

"I always thought you'd be the one to make the first move," I exclaimed as I pulled away. Mark chuckled, "But I didn't. Jack, I'm proud of you," he said softly. He pushed his soft lips against mine for a sweet moment, before pulling away and smiling at me.

"I did. I really did," I said calmly, giving him another long hug. Mark patted my bare back awkwardly. He glanced down briefly, his cheeks turning bright red, before looking up again. He whispered, "You're still naked," into my ear, causing me to jump back, and pull the sheets over my lower half. My cheeks flushed red and I flashed him an awkward smile.

"S-so I am," I stuttered. "I'll just go change," I pointed to the bathroom and started to make my way there. I tripped on the sheet and fell, face first, onto the bed. Mark tried to stifle his amusement, but fell back on the bed beside me, clutching his stomach as he laughed. I chuckled slightly, before rolling onto my back and bursting into laughter right beside him.

----

"Here you go, Mr. First Move," he said, handing me a cup of fresh coffee with a peck on the cheek. I thanked him, taking pride in my new nickname. After our giggling fit, I took a brief shower and changed into some comfortable clothes. I threw the dirty sheets into the wash and remade our bed.

I took a cheerful sip of my coffee. Mark had made us breakfast burritos and coffee with my favorite beans to celebrate our first night together, as a couple. He sat down across from me with a content smile on his face. He had put on a shirt, but insisted on staying pantless. I didn't object to this.

"You've gotta shower after this," I reminded him, taking my first bite of the delicious breakfast. The soft, fluffy eggs nearly melted in my mouth. He was such a good cook! Mark chuckled, "Yeah, I know. But then what," he asked through a sip of his coffee.

I shrugged, "I dunno. We could play video games, for fun this time," I suggested. Mark nodded as he took a bite of his burrito.

"Or...we could watch a movie, or go for a walk around town," I continued. Mark covered his mouth courteously, "A walk sounds nice. How are your legs?" He asked.

My legs were still extremely sore from yesterday. I have never ran so much in my life! I really didn't want to go for even more exercise today. Why the hell did I even bring it up? "Maybe...we shouldn't go for a walk," I advised, chuckling lightly.

"Alright, how about we visit Melly?" He suggested. For the first time all morning, the brunette popped back into my head. God, I hope she's alright. As concerned as I was about her, I really just wanted to hang out with Mark today. I knew she was safe at her house, and she would call us if she needed anything.

I shook my head slowly, "We'll call her later and see how she feels. I really just want to hang out with you," I replied. He smiled gratefully, and took my hand. "Sounds good to me," He said calmly.

"Then how about we just hang out here," I said. Mark nodded, smiling softly. "I'd like that. The videos we recorded the other day are set to upload today. I have to edit the ones we recorded yesterday though," he said, letting go of my hand so he could take another bite from his burrito. He wiped a bit of hot sauce off his cheek with a napkin.

"I haven't recorded anything for tomorrow, so I'll probably do that while you shower," I said, finishing off my coffee with a soft smile. Mark nodded through a mouthful of ham and scrambled egg. "In the meantime, I'll upload a video I recorded a couple days ago in case I stayed with you again," I said with a small grin.

"You pre-recorded a video so you could hang out with me?" He asked. I nodded, chuckling, "I have 2 days worth of videos ready in case that happened, but I only use them if I don't get a chance to record,"

Mark leaned across the table and kissed me. "You're really something," he said, smiling softly. I smiled back, "Thank you, I know," I teased.

I finished my burrito and took my dishes to the sink. Mark handed me his empty plate as well before he stood up and stretched. "I'm gonna shower now, Mr. First Move," he said playfully. I smiled at him and watched him leave. As he passed me on his way to the bathroom, I pulled him closer.

He whipped his head around in surprise, and I planted a kiss on his lips. "Love you, Markimoo," I murmured. He smiled and kissed my neck. "Love you too, Jackarooney," He whispered. I let him go and he turned towards the bathroom with a wave.

I lingered for a moment before heading to my recording room. I cast a loving glance over my shoulder at the pantsless man. I finally did it..., I thought to myself. I glowed with pride as I sat down at my computer. I pulled up a game to play and set up my recording.

I adjusted my hat on my head, and pulled on my headphones, taking a deep breath to focus myself. Well done, Jack. You've finally concurred your fear. I thought happily, before hitting the record button. The fear of failure.

----

Melly had reported the girl and her henchmen to the principal, and they were suspended from school for 4 weeks. We all wished they had gotten expelled, but thankfully they never bothered her again after that. Not to long after that, she met someone special, and they are currently approaching their 2 year anniversary as boyfriend and girlfriend.

Mark and I eventually came out to our fans. Of course, we told Melly first, after she introduced us to her boyfriend. A large majority of our fans were more than happy that we had finally hooked up, especially Melly. We were greeted with a lot of hate, as with any 'celebrity' couples. We shrugged off their spiteful comments, though some where to harsh to ignore. Mark was always there to comfort me when they were too hateful.

I still work at the Other Side Café and Bar. YouTube had finally realized that I was one of their fastest growing channels, and stepped up my pay to match Mark's. I mostly work at the Other Side for sentimental reasons now a days. I always enjoy bumping into fans there every once and a while. Mark often comes in on my breaks and we have lunch together. Sometimes Melly will join us.

Things are looking up for all of us. I don't regret a thing that has happened. Well, except for that time when we went on a double date with Melly and her boyfriend and ended up embarrassing myself during karaoke. I will never live that down. Mark won't let me.

Still, I can hardly believe it's been nearly 3 years now since I made the first move. Mark had long since abandoned that silly nickname. He came up with an even better one for me, one we can both share: "my fiancé".