Made For • ZDH & JMRF *DISCONTINUED*

Chapter 28 : Strangers Again (draft)

Jonah blinked twice and stared at me blankly. His expression was hard to read until he knitted his brows, looked at me from head to toe, and opened his mouth to speak up.

"... did someone spike your drink at the dance.. cause I-you-" He stopped himself to take in a deep breath. Suddenly he seemed hesitant and a little nervous. "What I'm trying to say is, are you drunk by any chance?"

I shook my head slowly. "No..."

"Are you high... at all?" He questioned, pursing his lips.

"No.."

"Are you just really sleep deprived-"

"Jonah, for f*ck's sake, no, no, and no. I'm completely fine and sober. I was just wondering if you could stay.." I chuckled as I placed my left hand on his shoulder. Jonah began to blush softly and gave me a cheeky smile. Meeting his eyes, I said to him, "Stop staring at me like that- what's on your mind?" He let out a quiet chuckle as he glanced at his feet which only caused him to smile even more when he looked back up at me. "Jonah, just tell me already."

"Well it's just that... I didn't think that we'd be moving to third base this soon.." He snickered delightedly before I gave him a light slap across his face along with a glare. Of course, with Jonah being Jonah, it only made him laugh even more.

"You're absolutely disgusting, you know that right?" I glanced at him, astonished. He looked back at me with a spark of amusement in his eyes.

"Pffft look at yourself, I seem to be regaling you. And hey, you never said no to it-"

"Jonah, no, just come inside!" We both laughed. He followed me inside and slipped off his shoes after shutting the door softly behind him. His head turned both left and right as he scanned the living room.

"I can take the couch." Jonah spoke up.

"..sorry, what?"

"I'm saying that as your boyfriend now, I-"

I cut him off before he could finish what he was trying to say. "Jonah, stop that."

He lifted his eyebrows, revealing the smallest smile barely stretching across his face. "Stop what exactly?"

"Stop emphasizing the word boyfriend, I'm pretty sure you and I both know already that you are." I remarked.

"Well it's not my fault I'm still finding it hard to believe that you actually said yes.." He mumbled under his breath, just loud enough for me to make it out.

I rolled my eyes. "Also, your not going to sleep on the couch. There are four mattresses in this house and three of them are available."

"What about the fourth one? Why can't I just sleep there? I bet that bed is the comfiest out of all of them." He grinned, taking a few steps forward, shortening the distance between us.

"Haha, nice try. You can take the guest bedroom that's next to mine instead." I smiled.

"Alright, alright. I get it." He nodded and followed me up the stairs and then stopped when we got in front of the bedrooms. "Sky?"

"Mmhmm?" I turned to face him.

He walked up to me and placed both of his hands on my sides. Slowly, he leaned in to place a soft kiss on top of my head and whispered,

"Goodnight, beautiful."

-

The following morning, Jonah seemed to already be awake when I woke up. He seemed to be in the bathroom, leaving me to have to wait for him to be done so I could go in. I knocked softly on the door a few times and when that didn't work, knocked a bit louder and more aggressively.

At last, the door swung open and there stood Jonah, facing me as he brushed his teeth in nothing but his boxers. His hair was messy and doing it's own thing but it still looked perfect and attractive. He had two tattoos, neither of which I knew of. One was of some type of bird on his left shoulder and the other one was of a detailed sun just below his right shoulder. I couldn't help but let my eyes linger down his bare chest to see his abs and then even further down, to his lower abdomen, where his v-line was chiseled out. There he had on a pair of form-fitting white Calvins. Everything was flawlessly defined and no doubt, it was hella sexy and impressive.

I must've been staring for a bit too long, long enough for Jonah to notice because he took his toothbrush out of his mouth and cleared his throat.

"Are you gonna say something or are you just gonna stand and admire me? 'Cause it sounded like you were dying of the zombie apocalypse out there but now you're as quiet as a mouse." He smirked, putting his toothbrush away and splashing his face with water. His voice had an early morning rasp to it, making it sound a bit deeper than usual.

Me, not knowing how to reply, said the first thing that came to mind. "Where did you get a toothbrush from?"

Jonah chuckled. "Of course, that's the first thing you say to me- good morning to you too Skylar. I found the toothbrush within a pack that was in that drawer over there." He stated, pointing towards the back of the bathroom. As he dried his face off, my eyes drifted back down to his chest and torso, involuntarily.

Look away, look away, look away Skylar- he's gonna notice.

"Honey, you're still staring." He gleamed, shutting the bathroom door and walking back into the guest bedroom.

I stood there still, trying to take in what I had just witnessed. Yeah, he was cute, but he was even cuter when he wasn't trying to be. The messy hair, the shirtless body, the raspy voice. It all seemed hard to believe. Sure, girls end up with their dream guys in fairytales all the time, but not in real life. It felt new but exciting.

You're in trouble Skylar... biggg trouble...

-

Almost a month had gone by since the homecoming dance. November had begun, the tree branches were beginning to become bare, and people had started leaving their homes with light jackets on. My mother was back home to stay for the whole month and Jonah and I were taking things slow.

We went on some dates but most nights he would come over and we would just stay in my room, eat loads of junk food, cuddle under the blanket, and binge watch shows and movies. We were both comfortable with each other for the most part and... happy.

It being a month after homecoming also meant it being a month since I had last spoken to Zach. Since that night, I tried every single day to talk to him. I tried messaging him, and tried to get him to notice me. But it feels like we're just strangers again.

Even though Emma will always have a special place in my heart, since she transferred schools, Zach has been my best friend. He's supported me, been there for me to help get through class, made fun of me, and has cared for me. And it's scary- it's scary to think that you're best friend is becoming a stranger.

He's been coming to school most days but for the first three days after the night of the dance, he didn't show up. Instead of sitting with me at the picnic bench in the courtyard, he's been sitting with his group of friends at lunch and has been ignoring me during our one class together. Sometimes you would spot him in the hallways actually conversing with Madison, which has weird written all over it because as one of his best friends, I know what he thinks of her. I know him- I know who he is as a person.

But it doesn't feel like that anymore.