Soft Hearts | In A Heartbeat Fanfiction

16: TLDR: sherwin freaking out

•••

Jonathan kissed me.

Sherwin stared at his bedroom wall, tracing hearts on the plaster with his finger.

Jonathan kissed me.

He rolled onto his back, turning his gaze to the ceiling fan slowly revolving above. Dust particles floated in rays of sunlight streaming from his window.

Jonathan kissed me.

Inhaling, Sherwin grabbed his hair and tugged it over his face, then let it spring back into place.

Jonathan kissed me.

It was the only coherent thought he could manage after the previous night; even after twelve hours, he was still freaking out. Flipping onto his stomach, he face-planted into his pillow. He wanted to scream, to make the kind of guttural noise you'd hear from a rampaging King Kong. But all that came out was a muffled, "Aaaaaaaagh."

Last night's events replayed over and over in his mind. Pond. Bench. Stars. Walking. Kiss. Embrace. Gone.

Sherwin reached up to touch the spot where Jon's lips had been, right at the corner of his own mouth, partly on his left cheek. It had been the softest touch he'd ever felt, but he could feel it tingling there still. Why didn't I kiss him back? Sherwin inwardly scolded himself. He'd just awkwardly hugged Jonathan and left. Maybe it would have been too fast.

Eventually, Sherwin got up from his bed and went downstairs to eat breakfast. It was only late Sunday morning, and he couldn't wait for school the next Monday.

•••

Sherwin didn't get to talk to Jonathan until third period, and when he walked into the classroom, his heart soared to see him again. As he approached their table, Jon spotted him and smiled sweetly. Internally screaming, Sherwin took his seat and tried not to blush, but he couldn't help it.

"Hey," Jonathan greeted, putting down his book. "How was your weekend?"

"It was good," Sherwin squeaked. "Y-you?" He tapped his fingers on the sides of his chair to release his excitement.

"I had a pretty great time," Jon said, smirking. "We should hang out again sometime. Maybe...after school?"

"T-today?"

"Yeah."

Sherwin nodded, barely containing himself. I need to calm down, he thought, and pulled out his spiral as the bell rang.

Sherwin spent whole period unable to focus on Mr. Gregg's lecture, and it didn't help that Jonathan kept writing him little notes on his work. "Tea or hot cocoa?" one asked. Sherwin had raised an eyebrow and replied with "hot cocoa I guess". Another one had asked his favorite movie. He had no clue why Jon wanted to know this information, but found it somewhat intriguing anyway.

Later, they had met again in the hallway before fifth period, but Jonathan just slipped a note in Sherwin's hand and walked off. When he got to Mrs. Williams' class, he unfolded it.

Hey Pumpkin, I can't walk you home today. Got somewhere to be. But if your parents say you can, meet me around 4 at my place?

Sherwin was really starting to like the nickname, now. Every time someone called him "pumpkin head" or "pumpkin face" in the halls, it would just make him smile as he continued walking.

Mrs. Williams droned on and on about Edgar Allen Poe, and Sherwin would have fallen asleep had he not been anticipating the time he got to go home. Finally, after an hour and a half of agonizing poetry, the bell rang. Zooming out of his seat, Sherwin left the school building and almost ran to his house.

When he entered, his breath caught in his throat to hear shouting in the living room. Creeping around the corner, he peeked through the doorway. Bobby was on the couch with something in his hand while their mom and dad stood over him.

"Get that out of this house!" Sherwin's mom screamed, trying to take whatever his brother was holding.

"Dude, I paid big time for this!" Bobby growled. "You can't just toss it out!" Their dad raised his eyebrows.

"Don't you dare speak to your mother like that," he warned, and Bobby just rolled his eyes.

"I'm almost an adult now, stop bossing me aroun-"

"GET OUT!" his mother screeched, and Bobby jumped from his spot and stormed past them both, almost knocking Sherwin over on his way out.

"A little doobie never hurt anyone," his brother muttered before the front door shut behind him. Sherwin turned to face his parents, who were both staring at him.

"Oh, honey," his mom whispered sadly, and ran over and hugged Sherwin. "I am so sorry you had to hear that." His dad took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes. Sherwin wasn't sure what they had been arguing about with Bobby, but he hated it all the same.

"Guys?" he questioned, slightly breaking away. "Is...now a bad time to ask about something?" His dad shook his head.

"No, go ahead, sonny. It's okay," he assured him.

"Is it alright if I go to my friend's house?" Sherwin looked at his mom, and she sniffed.

"Aw, of course. And if you really want to, you can spend the night there, too," she answered, wiping her face with her sleeve. "I wouldn't blame you." Sherwin thanked her and headed up to his room to get ready.

•••

At four o'clock sharp, Sherwin stood up on his toes and rang the doorbell of Jonathan's house. Nothing happened. He pressed the button again. Then, giving up, he banged his cold knuckles on the screen door, causing it to rattle. It only took a split second for Jonathan to answer. He grinned at the sight of Sherwin, who stood there shivering in the November wind.

"Come in!" he invited, taking Sherwin's hand and bringing him inside. "Gosh, you're freezing." Jon sat him down on a small sofa and handed him a steaming mug of hot chocolate. Sherwin smiled. So this is what he had been up to.

"Thanks," he said, and hesitated, then lightly pecked him on the cheek. Now it was Jonathan's turn to blush. He turned and grabbed something off the coffee table.

"Look what I rented," he said proudly, waving a video cassette. It was Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. Sherwin almost spilled his cocoa.

"You didn't!" he exclaimed, and Jonathan just grinned, putting it into the cassette player and settling down next to Sherwin. "Wait...where're your parents, Jon?"

"My mom's at work," he responded simply. Sherwin looked at his friend curiously for a moment. When Jon avoided his gaze, the ginger sighed and scooted closer, resting his head on Jon's shoulder as the movie began to play.

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