Particles | Chris O'Neill

>five<

If you haven't seen It yet, you should! It's really good. There aren't any spoilers to speak of in this chapter, but the first scene is described. I saw it the other day and I'm still shaking from the jumpscares.

y/n's POV

The next morning, I decide to try a little harder to look nice. We planned to get dinner and see the movie, so I have an excuse. I try to push away the thought of it being more about wanting to look nice for Chris, but I continue to fail.

I wonder if he'd like this shirt or this sweater... I think to myself as I scan through my closet. After much deliberation, I decide on a black and white striped shirt with roses embroidered on the sleeves. I pair it with a classic pair of jeans. I swipe on a pale mauve nail polish and put in a pair of simple stud earrings. After scanning the finished outfit in the mirror, I pick up my fancier purse and slip on my Birkenstocks before heading out the door.

When I arrive at the office, the day goes pretty normally. I spend way too much time finding the perfect picture of Cinderella's Castle for a new Disney article, and I drink way too much coffee. At lunch, I sit with Chris, Ross, and Dan, and we shoot the shit over a shared bag of Doritos.

When the time comes for the work day to be over, I pack up my things and wait for the others. I'm driving one car and Ryan is driving another. Matt, and Julian end up in Ryan's car, while Chris and Ding Dong ride with me. The entire way to dinner, I'm stealing glances at Chris in my rear view mirror. He's staring out the window, and the late afternoon sun is making his beautiful grey eyes stand out.

Once we're at dinner, we all cram into a booth that's clearly way too small for us. I'm squished between Chris and Matt, and I laugh at the view I have of Ryan and Julian trying to squeeze on either side of Ding Dong.

Chris's POV

Being squeezed in a booth with y/n is not something I knew I was okay with until it happened. Her arm is touching mine and her thigh is pressed up against mine. I scoot as close to the wall as I can, but I don't make a huge attempt to not touch y/n. I liked the feeling of her leg against mine. I couldn't help but wonder if the other people in the restaurant thought we were together, based on how close together we were in the booth.

"Hey, Chris, switch with me," Ryan says from across the table. Even if it wasn't for y/n sitting next to me, I wouldn't want to switch. I'm already squeezed against the wall.

"No, dude, I'm already against the wall," I say.

"I'll switch," Matt says. The two of them trade places. Y/n and I are squished closer together now that Ryan's joined our booth. I look over at the two skeletons and Julian across the table and laugh at how Julian looks like he's in heaven.

All through dinner, I steal glances at y/n. She keeps cracking jokes that make me wheeze like Julian with laughter. Whenever she shifts in her seat, I feel heat rise to my face. Am I really letting a girl fuck me up so badly?

Y/n finishes only half of her dinner. I ask if she wants a box, and she shakes her head. She starts searching her bag to pay, but comes up with nothing.

"Oh, shit," she says.

"What?" Ryan asks from beside her.

"I forgot my fucking wallet!"She exclaims. "I'm gonna see if it's in the car." She starts scooting closer to Ryan, but I put my hand on her shoulder and reach for my own wallet.

"Don't worry," I say, pulling out another $10 bill. "I'll pay for you."

"Chris, noooo," she says in response. "Let me just go see if it's in the car." I stop her again, this time daring to pat her leg.

"Y/n, yessss." I put the $10 on the table.

"You're the best little autismo ever," she replies, putting her head on my shoulder for a moment. I can't help but hear Ryan huff from the other side of y/n.

After dinner, we head to the movie theater. I pay for her ticket after we discover her wallet isn't in the car either. I make every attempt to sit next to y/n, but somehow when we get into the theater, she ends up between Ding Dong and Matt. I'm sitting on the end, but there are several open seats beside me.

"I'm gonna go to the bathroom before the movie starts," I hear y/n say. She gets up and scoots past me. The theater we're at doesn't have a ton of leg room, so when y/n walks past, she has to turn. She turns in such a way that puts me in perfect eye contact with her butt. Even though she's wearing jeans, they're tight enough so I can see the faint outline of her underwear.

"God, why don't you just stare directly at her butt?" Ding Dong asks from beside me.

"Shut the fuck up!" I say in return, only half joking.

"Well I was kinda putting my ass right in his face," she says, blushing. I feel bad for obviously embarrassing her.

"It's fine," I say, offering her a smile.

She walks down the stairs and out the theater door. The movie starts before she comes back, so I try to squeeze myself into the tiny seat when I see her climbing up the stairs.

"Shit," she says when she gets to our row. Instead of climbing back over me and Ding Dong, she just sits on the end next to me. I try to hold back a smile, but it doesn't work.

"Stop smiling, you asshole," she says with a giggle, "that little kid is about to be demolished."

"I know, I love it when kids die," I reply, hoping it hides the fact that I'm just happy she's near me.

We all watch the movie in silence for a while. Then y/n and I start quietly making jokes, talking low enough so only we can hear. I love having her lips so close to my ear when she leans in. As much as I don't want to admit it, it makes the blood rush to the lower half of my body.

Suddenly, in the middle of one of her jokes, there's a jump scare like no other. She jumps out of her seat and throws her arms around my arm that's resting on the armrest between us. She hides her face in my arm, too. I chuckle at how cute she looks all curled up in the seat next to me. As I look at her body, I realize how small she is. She isn't skinny, necessarily, but she's small. She can't be taller than 5'2. She still can fit her feet under her in the chair so she can curl up into a ball in the tiny theater seat.

"You okay? I ask, pressing my cheek to hers to whisper in her ear. Once she calms down, she nods and sits back in her original position. Her arm is still touching mine, though. I smile and cherish every second her soft skin is touching mine.

I'm gonna try to write as much as I can today- I'm babysitting all day & the family doesn't have wifi. Prayers are welcome.