1960s // jally one shots

2!

this takes place in modern times bc it can.

prompt : "well, that's tragic."

"i swear to actual god this kid needs to stop," i mumbled as i stared gravely at my phone screen that was flashing johnny's name for the third time in the past two hours. my thumb lingered over the green answer button for a few seconds before it quickly switched to the decline and i pressed it without thinking. the boy was starting to get on my nerves with all this calling. if i'm out with a friend, he should just text me, not interrupt me by making my phone ring every two seconds. i've told him that before.

"who's it?" steve asked as he plopped another potato chip in his mouth. his eyebrows were raised at me, and he was biting his lip like he was genuinely curious about who was so obsessed with me.

"johnny," i said, shaking my head as i stuffed my phone into my back pocket, where i hoped for it to stay. his name still felt weird to say, it was still new and fresh and i wasn't used to the way it felt on my tongue.

"ah, ya boy toy?" a smirk formed on his face, making his eyes crinkle, and in all honesty, if i didn't have a boyfriend, i'd say he was hot. the smile slowly disappeared as he remembered i've been declining the calls so something probably wrong. "why ya declinin'? somethin' happen?" his words were suddenly laced with concern and not curiosity like before. i almost laughed at him, he should know that if something bad was happening i wouldn't let it show. i would causally decline the calls and act like nothing was happening.

"nothin' bad," i said and gave a reassuring smile, "and, uh, he's not my boy toy. boyfriend. we don't do sex. he's not that good in b- whatever, never mind." i wiped my hands on my jeans. "but, yeah, nothing's wrong. he's just- it's annoying. him calling all the time, ya know? not that i don't like him. he's great. just clingy." i rambled on, stopping myself when i saw steve's semi-confused expression.

"it's cus he loves ya." my best friend looked up at me and cocked his head to the right. he was sitting on the ground, criss cross, with his elbows pressed up against the front of my bed, whilst i was standing with my back against my bedroom wall, right by the door frame. there wasn't much space to 'hang' in my room. the twin bed took up more than half of the space and the other part was devoted to my dresser and my desk.

i scoffed. johnny didn't love me. no one i've dated in my 17 years of living has ever loved me. and they tell me that too. when things get nasty, when i walk away, they make sure i know how worthless i was to them. they just think i'm cute or a good fuck. i'm pretty, not lovable.

"shut up steve, he doesn't. and you don't even talk to the son of a bitch. or know anything about love, for that matter. so just, so just shut up." i shook my head, slowly.

"then why's he so clingy," he bit his lip, "huh?" his fingers were laced into my carpet now, tangled into the thread.

"i don't know, steve," i sighed. "christ, can we just like, not talk about this right now?" i nearly snapped at him. my fingers were pinching the bridge of my nose, avoiding eye contact with steve because a sudden rush of anger was flowing through me. i just didn't wanna talk about johnny right now, that's one of the reasons i was ignoring him.

steve used to be friends with johnny. back in high school- before steve dropped out and before johnny became selectively mute. they were pretty close, i guess. but after they stopped going to the same school, they drifted apart. they didn't live by each other anymore, and steve just became a completely different person when he met evie. but, other than the guy in front of me, none of my friends have ever met the boy. which is more than okay with me. i'm not necessarily ashamed of him, he's just different. different than the boy's i'm used to dating. the boys my friends know.