Jonah Marais
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idea credited to @KryozGaming
I pull into the lot of Logan Paul's apartment complex and shove the gear of my car into park.
Kicked out, I think to myself incredulously. Kicked out?!
In a burst of anger, I throw my hands down on the steering wheel and grip it with all of my strength.
Out of room, he said. Please. You're just not pretty enough for them. You're not funny enough. You don't have enough followers on social media.
I hate crying, but tears still pool in my eyes when the gravity of being kicked out of the Team 10 house finally sets in.
The entire reason I signed and agreed to join the team when they offered me a spot was because I'm trying to get my photography career up and running. I moved here to L.A. for this, only to be kicked out two months later because there's not enough room?
Now, my guarantee of income and housing is completely gone.
What are you going to do?
I let my head fall against the headrest as a tear runs down the length of my face.
Frustrated and upset, I wipe it off roughly before getting out of my car with a huff.
Two minutes later, I bang on the front door of Logan's apartment. I bite my lip as I wait, bouncing on the balls of my feet, trying to hold myself together until the only who can calm me down shows up.
The knob turns and a face appears in the doorway, but it's not Logan.
I almost turn around and sprint down the hallway when I recognize the boy standing in front of me to be none other than Jonah Marais.
We've only met once before, so I'm extremely embarrassed for my face to be contorted with sadness and wet with tears during our second meeting.
Jonah's eyes furrow together in worry.
"(y/n), right? Are you okay?"
That almost makes me let out a rueful laugh since I'm obviously not okay.
"I - uh - need to see Logan," I say as I rub one of my eyes that's once again stinging with tears.
Jonah stares at me with eyes filled with an emotion I can't quite place for a moment longer before he moves backward into the house, signaling me to enter with his hand.
"Of course," he says. "Come on in."
As I walk further into the apartment, I hear the loud and expressive sounds of Logan and what must be the rest of the Why Don't We boys messing around.
"Logan!" Jonah calls when we reach the living room.
"What?"
"Uh... (y/n) needs to talk to you," he says a little quieter than before.
I feel my heart warm slightly because I understand he's trying not to draw attention to me and the state I'm in.
The gentle giant then moves a bit so that I'm in view of the older blond boy. We were friends before he moved from Ohio to here, so when his eyes land on my face, he immediately rushes over to me and gently pulls me into a different room.
I drop to a sitting position on the floor as he closes the door.
"What happened?" he asks when he's sitting in front of me.
I take a deep breath, my eyes trained on the carpet.
"As of today... I'm not apart of Team 10 anymore. Jake officially told me this morning and then kicked me out."
"What?" Logan says, but I know I don't need to repeat what I said because of his seething tone.
I shake my head as my eyes close. All of my thoughts run together and my emotions rise up as all of the anxiety I'm feeling rushes out.
"Where am I supposed to live, Logan? I have no source of income now, no way to make money. I can't just go home to Ohio and throw myself down back into mom and dad's laps! I moved here so I could start my photography business, but that's not even possible now and it's not going to happen and I'm so scared-"
"Hey," Logan says, placing his hand on my shoulder.
I stop rambling and force myself to take another deep breath.
"You are going to be alright. Got it? You're staying here until you've got your feet under you and you're ready to move somewhere else here in L.A. on your own."
"What?! No, Logan-"
"No no's about it," he says firmly. "You're staying here. There's no way in this freaking world that you're giving up what you're obviously supposed to do with your life just because of my brother. You're staying here. Okay?"
I stare into the eyes of my friend for a good twenty seconds before I break.
"Okay. Thank you. So much."
"No problem, (y/n/n). Now, I'm going to have to ask you to get out of the room so that I can call Jake and yell at him."
I make my way into the kitchen and find myself wandering to the fridge. After grabbing a water bottle, I lean against the counter on my elbows, feeling exhausted and emotionally drained.
Minutes later, I sense someone coming up to me from behind, so I turn around so that my back is pressed against the counter.
I look up to see Jonah and my heart skips a beat, though I don't know why. Maybe because everything about him - his personality, kindness, and looks - are intimidating to someone like me.
"Hi," he says as he assumes the same position next to me.
"Hey."
"How are you?" he asks.
That's a normal question in itself, but judging how he saw me mere minutes ago, I understand the underlying meaning.
"Better now. And I'll be fine," I say.
I look up at him to send him a small, reassuring smile, which he returns.
"Well, I'm glad. And I know we haven't known each other for very long at all and this is only our second time meeting, but if you ever need someone to talk to or be there for you, I'm available."
He's right. We don't know each other. But I hear the authenticity of the words he's speaking and I truly do believe he means it.
"Thank you, Jonah," I say, and I mean it wholeheartedly.
He nods and then focuses on the ground with what looks like a slight blush growing on the sides of his face. That surprises me, but I let it go.
I feel as if my mind should be flipping out right now, but I feel an unexplainable sense of peace instead.
I look at Jonah, I look at the boys roughhousing in the living room, I look at the home that will soon become mine, and somehow know that everything's going to be alright.
