How to Fall in Love in Three Easy Steps

Chapter 14

It was the first Monday in history that Jack had ever been excited for. Ever since Alex had come into his life, school mornings had become a little better, since Jack knew that he could see the idiot he had fallen for. Somehow, throughout the night, he got to thinking about Alex and started to miss him, even if he had seen him three hours beforehand. It was like Alex was a drug to Jack, making him forget about all the silly stresses in Jack's life. When Jack was really alone, the thought of drugs was always present in his mind. Deep down, he was still addicted, and was only staying away because of distractions. It was a terrifying idea to comprehend, that without Alex, Jack might have been shooting up right at this second.

It was a dark and dreary morning, rain hitting the roof softly and the wind blowing hard against the windows. The time was 5:58, which was extremely early for Jack, but for some reason, he couldn't get back to sleep. His mind raced with thoughts of schoolwork he had yet to finish and all the classes he had missed. And Alex might have crossed his mind once or twice.

Sluggishly, Jack threw on clothes and stomped out the door, towards the bathroom. He was almost too tired to stand, but he still couldn't get the excitement out of his mind. It had been almost a month since he'd felt this way about school mornings.

Although Jack had forgiven Alex for what he had done, it still stung, somewhere deep within him. Jack knew for a fact that he would never be able to fully get over the harsh words that Alex had spit out on him. It was like a stab to his stomach; even though the wound had healed, a scar still remained. He felt silly to hold a grudge over this, but he was trying his hardest to let go and it just wasn't working. The words were stuck under Jack's skin for good, and who knew how long it would take him to get them out, like a splinter.

The relationship between Jack and Alex was complicated, and Jack was still unsure whether he could consider Alex his boyfriend or just someone he made out with a lot. Considering Alex had once had problems with homosexuals, Jack was worried whether Alex was ready for a committed relationship with another guy, or if he just wanted to fool around all the time.

Jack's head began to ache as thoughts zipped around in his mind. It was too early to be having deep thoughts about how Jack's relationship with Alex was doomed and was bound to go to shit, and Jack was far too tired for it.

As Jack reached the bathroom, he prayed that his relationship with Alex wouldn't go to shit.

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First period went by slowly, as well as second. By the time third period came around, Jack was antsy. His first two teachers had created him back coldly, obviously not pleased with him missing class for the last month. He had shown up every once in a while, but had never paid any attention. The dark cloud of stress from all the work he had missed loomed over him. When he thought of how much he had actually missed of his senior year, he felt physical pain in his stomach, and he had urges to crawl back into bed and never leave. If he had to repeat this school year, it would just be even more of a burden. And if he didn't move on, how would he ever see Alex again?

Mr. Cormac gave Jack a cool stare as he shuffled into the room, his eyes staring down at the floor, trying to avert his teacher's glare.

"Good to have you back, Jack. It's only been one full month of missed class. I'm surprised you haven't been kicked out of this school yet."

"I am sorry, sir," Jack mumbled as he collapsed down into his seat.

Literally a second later, Alex sat down next to Jack, and leaned over slightly towards him, almost like he was about to kiss Jack's cheek. He froze in midair, trying not to make it completely obvious. Alex changed course and leaned towards Jack ear and whispered, "I was about to kiss you until I realized where we were."