Everything Has Changed

Chapter 9

Few more days passed, the New Year's Eve came. Sportacus invited Jessica over for the night. Now he didn't care if his friends will find out. In fact, he was planning to tell them today.

He was walking down the street when he met Mariah, Pixel's girlfriend.

"Good morning, Mariah!" he greeted her.

"Oh, good morning, Sportacus! Where are you heading to?" she asked.

"To the grocery store, I need to get some things for tonight..." he told her.

"Really? I'm just coming from there!" she laughed.

"But wait, for tonight? You mean, you have a date for tonight?" she asked.

"Yes, I do. In fact, you all know her." He simply said.

"Wait a minute... Is it Jessica?"

"Yes." He sighed, "It is Jessica, but please don't tell the others, I want to them myself." He told her.

"No, of course I won't, I get it. But I just to say that I kinda knew that you guys are together..." she told him.

"Oh, you did?" he asked confused.

"Yes, I mean, you two were really close that I started to suspect. But you guys make a really cute couple, though. I don't care what the others will think, I'm really happy for you two." She smiled.

"Thank you Mariah. I just need to hope that everyone will understand like you."

*****

At home, around 9pm, Jessica arrived.

Sportacus hadn't seen her after Christmas, but he managed to invite her over the phone for the New Year's Eve. He had prepared a romantic dinner for the night, and hoped to finally find a way with her about how tell his friends they are together. But there was something that ruined the night. At least for him.

"Oh god, you have to teach me how to cook like this! This is just too great!" she told him and laughed.

"Yes, we should do it one time..." he quietly said.

"Sportacus, is everything alright? You seem a little down." She asked worried.

"Oh? No, no, I'm fine." He tried his best to smile.

"Sportacus." She glared at him, knowing he's lying.

"Ok, ok, I'll tell you. I received a letter from Stephanie's parents." He told her.

"And why is disturbing you so much?" she asked. He sighed.

"Because they wrote in it that they didn't want anything to do with me or with Joshua." He sadly told her. He could definitely see the shock on her face.

"They what?!" she was making clear she was hearing right, and he nodded.

"Oh my god, how could they do that? So now what, Joshua won't have any grandparents?" she said as she remembered that Sportacus told her once that both of his parents died long ago.

"I really don't know. I never thought they would something like that." He said and she came and sat next to him.

"You know what? I think I got a new resolution for the new year." She told him.

"Really? What is it?" he asked.

"To make you and Joshua the happiest I can." She smiled and kissed him.

"I'm 100% sure it'll work." He smiled and kissed her once again.

"How about we'll forget about everything and get ready for midnight?" she suggested and simply nodded.