The Hopeful, The Hardheaded and the Homework

Chapter 40 : Perhaps Just a Little Bit of Change? : Olive

A lot of people might have said it was creepy and dark and more than a little bit morbid but Enoch's picture would find pride of place on Olive's wall without question. There was a certain, Burton-esque charm to the bones and the literal heart they held in them that was unique and very Enoch that it was one of the truest gifts he could have given her. She loved him for that. He had the capacity to surprise her when she least expected it and, while he had looked incredibly embarrassed about it while she was looking at it, Olive could not have appreciated it more.

Enoch just shrugged it off after a minute as if it hadn't happened at all, after adamantly denying that it was not because it was Valentine's Day. Olive completely believed that and in a way was glad for it, it wasn't out of some sense of obligation that Enoch would never have given in to anyway.
She could feel awkwardness practically radiating from every fibre of Enoch's being when she hugged him and let him go but all the same, could have sworn there was a little smile on his face just a second before he kissed her back. He had been awkward and uncomfortable from the moment he'd stepped into the house, knowing that at least one of her parents was present and having only really met them on one other occasion. But then, she'd rarely seen him relaxed even in his own home. As the night went on though from that moment it was like a great weight had been lifted from both of them and Enoch seemed more comfortable being closer to her again. Or maybe it was just because it was dark and even if her mother walked past she wasn't likely to stop and keep an eye on them like her dad would certainly have done.

Olive didn't even remember the end of the movie after that, only that there had been footsteps on the stairs and down the hallway and they had both moved apart and pressed play on the remote so quickly anyone would have missed it in a blink. Enoch had definitely been smirking then, and Olive fondly refolding the sheet of paper easily into its folds. Olive must have fallen asleep. She didn't know exactly when, only that she began to miss seconds and minutes of plot in strange places and jerking awake again with any loud shot or slam supposed to jump scare the viewer. Then everything was a hazy mix of dream and reality where she couldn't quite tell if she was awake enough to tell whether the press of someone's lips on the side of her head was a dream or really happening. The next thing she was most aware of was waking up on her side on the couch, with the blanket thrown over her and Enoch gone. Of course he had. He wouldn't have thought about waking her up to say goodbye when he preferred to get away quietly anyway. She wished he had woken her up, then she could have at least said goodbye but as it had been her whole idea in the first place and Enoch hadn't been particularly comfortable with it, she couldn't entirely blame him for wanting to steal away. Even so...no. No she wasn't going to let that bother her by any means, not when otherwise she was extremely happy.

It couldn't have been long ago, her father still wasn't home as Olive pushed herself up to sit and stifled a yawn. How silly. She'd all but made Enoch agree to do something and gone and fallen asleep on him. Quite literally on him, she remembered putting her head on his shoulder and being glad he hadn't tensed up and moved over. She checked her phone and gave up on stifling the yawn that insisted on escaping. Enoch hadn't messaged her to say he'd gone and she wasn't surprised. It wasn't too late, and at any rate Enoch struck her as a night owl for sure. So she messaged him instead.

I'm sorry I fell asleep! I'm glad you came and thank you! J

Butterflies started to flutter around in her stomach again like they always did when she pressed send. After a while, she would have thought they would go away the more she got used to texting Enoch. After all, he only replied maybe forty percent of the time anyway, and almost never right away. But no, it still happened every time she hit send on a message to him, a pleasant sort of nervous feeling would flutter inside her and a little, happy smile would giddily creep across her face like she couldn't stop it. She liked that feeling sometimes. It felt right, and not just like a giddy school girl with a crush. She liked that Enoch had that effect on her, just talking to him put a smile on her face even if she knew there would be no answer in return.