Soft Hearts | In A Heartbeat Fanfiction

18: NASA PEEPO

•••

On the bus, there was only one empty seat available for them, right in the middle. Sherwin released Jonathan's hand and avoided the other students' stares.

"What's he doing here?" "That kid's never ridden the bus before." "Why's he sitting next to Jon?" They continued to whisper until the bus started up again, and their regular loud chatter resumed. Sherwin had thankfully sat near the window, so he could look outside instead of at Jonathan, who had a protective arm over his shoulders.

"You don't have to do that," Sherwin told him, feeling tense. He was already teased enough for being gay. But he wouldn't ruin Jon's life, too.

"I'm not gonna let them try anything," Jonathan spoke, his voice low. Sherwin could see the brunette staring down anyone who even glanced their way. "They won't mess with you as long as I'm here."

Sherwin fiddled with this thumbs. "What about when you're not here? You can't always hover over me in the hallways and during class. We-we have our separate schedules."

Jonathan turned to him with an expression of mixed guilt and determination in his blue eyes. "You just have to let me know if anyone's giving you trouble," he said quietly.

Sherwin gulped. "Just...I just...don't want anyone to know." He looked down, blinking back tears. "You don't know what it's like," he whispered, voice cracking. Jonathan hesitated, then sighed and lifted his arm off and scooted further away. Sherwin never felt more alone.

The bus is almost at the school, he noted as they approached. As the sky grew brighter, lights appeared around the corner, and Newgate Junior High rose to meet them. Screeching to a halt, the bus puffed and hissed, then finally came to rest. "See y'all after school," the bus driver said to them as he opened the doors. Everyone filed out one by one. Sherwin hated being squeezed into a line next to all the others, touching elbows and jostling legs. He hoped he never had to ride the bus again.

When they reached the school building, Jon paused and awkwardly waved at Sherwin. "I guess I'll see you third period?"

"Yeah," Sherwin said, shuffling his feet. Other students picked their way around the two of them as they stood there at the base of the stairs. Jonathan looked as if he wanted to hug him goodbye, but just smiled instead and strode off to his class. Sherwin sighed, then went to first period.

As soon as he walked inside the classroom, a volley of whispers erupted between students, and they leaned towards each others' desks while glancing at him. Sherwin's face turned red as he walked to his seat. He tried to figure out what they were saying, but could only hear his name. When he sat down, the bell rang and everyone stopped talking as Miss Kelly cleared her throat.

"Let's get out our flashcards from yesterday. We'll be adding some new vocabulary terms to study for the test this Friday," she instructed, and Sherwin complied. His mind wouldn't stay on topic, though. He didn't want to think of the War of 1812; he wanted to daydream about Jonathan.

Sherwin was in the middle of writing the definition of "James Madison" when a folded up index card landed on his desk. He looked around to see who threw it, but everyone was working intently on their notes. Carefully, he opened it, only to inhale sharply in shock. Coughing, he pocketed the note and resumed writing, trying to forget what he had just read.

•••

In science class, Jonathan pelted Sherwin with questions as soon as he sat down. "Did anyone bother you? Are you okay? Did Dante do something again?"

Sherwin just quietly pulled out the crumpled note from his pocket and handed it over. Jonathan looked at it for a full minute, his face contorting into anger and surprise. As he placed the note back into Sherwin's hand, Sherwin could feel the emotion radiating from his friend's body like a furnace. "Who wrote that?" Jon asked, his eyebrows furrowed. "How do they know?"

Sherwin ran his hands through his curly hair and shrugged. "I have no clue. But we can't...we have to be..." he trailed off.

"I know," Jonathan said defeatedly. Sherwin looked at the index card again, just to make sure it wasn't some sort of prank, or that his eyes weren't playing tricks on him.

I have evidence, the note read. If I see your faggot ass around Jon again, both of you are going to regret it.

A lump formed in Sherwin's throat. No, this was definitely real. And they were about to play a dangerous game.

•••

I don't do author's notes very often, but I just wanna say that this is the first chapter I've written for this book that actually had me in tears.
Also, I want to see y'all guess who passed Sherwin the note! And hint: it's probably not who you're thinking. Use other chapters for clues if you want.