Soft Hearts | In A Heartbeat Fanfiction

4: im still not over this fandom

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That was strange, Jonathan thought as he left the cafeteria for his fourth class. Sherwin had barely spoken a word during science and left for the bathroom before lunch, then never showed up. That was certainly weird, especially since he disappeared after school the day before. Jon had the feeling that there was something his ginger friend wasn't telling him.

English class was as agonizing as ever. Instead of listening to Mrs. Williams lecture them on rhetorical devices, Jonathan started to doodle on his notes. His pencil carefully shaped a baseball onto the paper. And another one. And another. It was pretty much the only thing he knew how to draw, given that it was his favorite sport.

Suddenly, Mrs. Williams let out a loud cough to get his attention. She looked at him expectantly, as if she just asked him a question. Jon glanced at the board and saw the rhetoric diagram sketched there, and he decided to wing it.

"Uhh, pathos?" he guessed, praying that he didn't just make a fool of himself. Mrs. Williams nodded, seemingly satisfied.

"Yes, that is one of the three major branches of rhetoric, but what I wanted was logos. Pathos is the appeal to emotion, not logic," the teacher corrected him. Well, it could have been worse, he figured, turning back to his notebook. He almost jumped in surprise. Doodled around the margins were several, sloppy hearts. Had he drawn those without even realizing?

Blushing slightly, Jonathan quickly erased them before anyone saw. When the bell rang, he grabbed his stuff and raced out of the room like a bullet.

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After fifth period, Jonathan couldn't wait to go home. It had been such a long day. When he remembered Sherwin's odd behavior, he picked up his pace and headed towards the edge of the school grounds where they usually met up. Before he even exited the building, though, someone tapped his shoulder and he turned around. Kylee Pratt stood there, smirking, holding his book in her hand. Damn, he'd left it behind in his last class with her.

Jonathan reached out to take it, but she pulled her arm back, giggling. "What do you want, Kylee?" he questioned, trying to act nonchalant. He really needed to leave, but if she knew he was impatient, she'd just keep him longer.

"Just wanted to see if you were busy this weekend," she replied sweetly. "That new horror movie's showing at the cinema tomorrow. Ginny was gonna go with me, but she chickened out." Jonathan wanted to say yes. He'd been hoping to see When A Stranger Calls ever since he first heard of it, but he knew his mom would never be able to afford tickets.

But, going to a movie with Kylee? He'd rather be abducted by aliens.

"Sorry, I can't. Got a science project to work on," Jonathan told her with a shrug. She gave him a pout, then handed him his book and walked out the front doors. Sighing, he pocketed the book and jogged to the place Sherwin usually waited. And like yesterday, he was nowhere to be seen.

Now Jonathan was starting to worry. Did he do something wrong? Was Sherwin okay? He started walking, getting faster with each step. After having walked with his friend enough times, he knew where his house was. They needed to talk.

Fifteen minutes passed, and Jon was standing on the front porch of a two-story, squarish home on a narrow street. A small, round doorbell sat next to the screen, but as his hand went up to press it, the door was suddenly opened. A round woman with bushy, orange hair stood there grinning, and two freckly dimples showed at the corners of her mouth. Yup, this was definitely Sherwin's mom.

"Hi, there! Are you here for Sherwin?" she asked excitedly. Jonathan nodded nervously, and briskly wondered if Sherwin had ever been visited by anyone from their school before. Then he mentally kicked himself for thinking that. That's just rude, Jon.

A small, curious face peeked out from behind Sherwin's mom. It belonged to a tiny girl with short hair, whose eyes widened at seeing Jonathan. "Who's that?" she asked her mother.

"One of Sherwin's friends. Can you go get your brother, sweetie?" The girl bounded off and disappeared around a corner. Sherwin's mom beckoned Jonathan inside. "So, what's your name?" she asked, closing the front door behind them with a click.

"Jonathan," he responded, sticking out his right hand. She awed at him and shook it, calling him "such a gentleman," then offered him a seat in the living room. Not long after he sat down, Sherwin's confused face rounded the hallway corner. Upon seeing Jonathan placed on the couch, he turned bright pink.

"Uh, w-what are you doing here, Jonathan?" Sherwin questioned, his mouth twisted awkwardly. Standing up, Jon brushed off his pants and replied,

"I wanted to ask you about the science project we were assigned today, but you kinda disappeared off the face of the Earth for a while." By now, Sherwin's cheeks were almost as red as his hair, but Jon could tell he was trying to act casual.

"Oh, uh, sure. Whatd'ya need?"

Sherwin's mom took this moment to yell from the kitchen. "Why don't you show your friend around, Sherwin?" she suggested loudly. Sherwin made a weird face and gestured for Jonathan to follow him upstairs.

On the second story, there was a small hallway that led to two bedrooms and a bathroom. Sherwin opened the door on the left, and Jon stepped tentatively through the frame into his friend's room. On the opposite side of the door was a large window with light green curtains. Various action figures were positioned on the windowsill, and a couple had fallen onto the desk below. To the left was a tall bookcase stacked to the brim with comics, novels, and sketchpads. A small, wooden bed with striped covers sat in the right corner, its sheets lopsided.

"Sorry, it's kinda messy. Wasn't expecting company," Sherwin mumbled as he hastily picked up a few articles of clothing and tossed them in his closet. Jonathan smiled.

"I like it in here," he said warmly, looking out the window into the backyard. A tabby cat was dozing in the grass, obviously enjoying the afternoon sunlight. "That your cat?"

"Nah, she's just a stray who likes to come around here sometimes," Sherwin answered, joining him at the window. "We feed her, and she lets us pet her." They stood there for a couple moments, then Jonathan turned to face Sherwin.

"Look," he started, "I didn't actually come here about homework." Sherwin refused to look at him, instead focusing his gaze at the cat outside. "Whatever's going on with you lately, you can tell me, Sherwin."

Sherwin exhaled. Why did he sound so tired?

"I'm sorry, I've been trying, alright? What more do you want me to do?" he asked, finally turning around. Jonathan raised an eyebrow.

"What are you talking about?" he questioned.

"Dante talked to me yesterday. He told me what you said to him. I get it, okay? I'll leave you alone."

"Dude, what? I never said anything like that to him!" Jonathan was shocked. Dante, one of his best friends, had told Sherwin that he hated him?

"R-really?" Sherwin blinked, and for the first time in a couple days, his expression relaxed into a small smile. "I thought you were annoyed at me or something." Jonathan shook his head, still outraged.

"No, never," he said, looking at Sherwin's wide eyes. So that's why he'd been so distant lately...

Sherwin gulped and glanced away, and Jon realized he must have been staring at him. "Sorry," he apologized. "Well, I guess...I should go now. Have a good weekend."

Jonathan waved and left, walking downstairs, through the living room and out the front door of Sherwin's house.

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