THE BOYS OF SUMMER

 

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

 

 

 

Chris took a deep breath.

He had actually dreamed of this moment for quite a while.

He knew what he wanted to say.

He just had to make sure that he delivered it perfectly.

“A-All of my life, I've been alone,” he shakily began.

Now that the moment was here, he felt awkward saying the words.

They just sounded stupid to him now.

But he said them anyway.

“Even when you guys were around, you weren't,” he continued. “You never talked to me, you never... you never even looked at me most of the time.”

On cue, both of his parents turned their previously wandering eyes towards him.

Chris took another deep breath.

“I didn't know any other kids before I started school, and then...”

Chris slightly shook his head.

“I've never had any friends,” he said in a quiet voice.

“Oh, please, you have had plenty of friends,” his mother scoffed.

“No, I haven't,” Chris insisted. “The only friend I've ever had is Jonny.”

His mother made a face.

“And Jonny is very important to me. I can't help the way I feel about him,” he said.

“The way you feel?” Chris's father asked. “You know, you people have yet to explain to me what is happening.”

Chris looked at his father for a moment.

Then he ducked his head.

“Jonny and I were kissing when mum walked into the tent,” Chris mumbled.

“Oh. I see,” his father replied after some time.

He didn't say anything else.

But he also didn't seem to be as livid as Chris's mother, which Chris figured was a good thing.

“Excuse me?” a quiet voice said, interrupting the silence that had fallen on the three.

Chris turned to see Jonny standing behind him.

“I just wanted to, um...” he nervously began.

Then he took a few steps forward and stood next to Chris.

“To ask you not to be so harsh to Chris,” he finished. “Because, you know, he's changed- he's still changing, and that can't be easy.”

“It's a little late in your teenage years to be blaming change, don't you think?” Chris's mother said.

Jonny quickly, but politely, shook his head.

“From the time that I've known Chris, he's gone from... this spoiled, arrogant brat who only wanted to talk to me because I wouldn't talk to him... Is that right?” he asked Chris.

Chris laughed a little and said, “Yeah.”

Jonny smiled halfheartedly.

“To a really sweet boy,” he continued, “who only wants to talk to me because I will talk to him. And I'll listen.”

Chris looked at Jonny, and as he did so, his bottom lip began to tremble.

He tried to stop it, but he couldn't.

He slowly looked back to his parents.

His eyes were shining.

“Please, don't take him away from me,” he said, his voice cracking.

As he turned to Jonny, Chris leaped forward and wrapped his arms around the other boy.

And Jonny did the same.

 

 

THE BOYS OF SUMMER

 

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

 

 

 

For a few minutes, the boys stayed standing with their arms around each other.

“Chris, Jonny,” Chris's father began.

Chris turned his head a little.

“Why don't you two go back to the tent,” he said. “Get some rest.”

Reluctantly, they both pulled away.

And walked towards the tent, hand in hand.

Jonny said something to Chris and Chris laughed loudly.

Once they were far enough into the distance, Chris's father looked to his wife.

“Chris has a point, you know,” he quietly said.

“He does?” she asked.

“We've neglected him,” he said. “Has there ever been a time where we actually paid him any attention?”

“We always pay him attention, all he's ever received is attention,” she argued. “In fact, maybe too much attention. Now he thinks that he's all-powerful or something. And anyway, we've always given him what he wants.”

Chris's father shook his head.

“How do you know that?” he asked. “We never asked him what he wanted.”

“We didn't have to!!” she exclaimed. “He always made it quite clear whenever he wanted some new toy or whatever.”

After sighing deeply, he ran a hand over his face.

“There is so much more to life- to happiness, than just material goods... or trophy wives,” he quietly said.

She shot him a bewildered look.

“And I really should have realized this a long time ago. Maybe then I wouldn't feel so guilty now.”

His wife still stared at him, eyes wide and eyebrows drawn together.

“What are you saying??” she asked in a high-pitched voice.

“I'm saying,” he calmly began, “that I want a divorce.”

Her mouth fell open and she shrieked.

But he was unfazed.

“And we should leave Chris alone- well, no, that was the problem to begin with, wasn't it?” he said, shaking his head. “What I mean is we should let him be happy, and if Jonny makes him happy, then so be it.”

“Divorce?” she shakily repeated. “W-Why?”

“Because I don't think that we want the same things anymore,” he told her.

“Oh, God, are you gay, too?” she sneered. “I swear, if you are-”

“No, no,” he said. “When I was a kid, growing up, I always wanted this kind of lifestyle. Money fascinated me. But now that I have it... it's just not the same. It's nice, yeah, but it's not what I really want.”

She looked at him with slight disbelief.

“You, on the other hand, eat, sleep, and breathe money,” he continued. “I wouldn't be surprised if your DNA was just a line of dollar signs strung together.”

She tried to ignore her husband's insults.

She folded her arms across her chest.

“I don't see how that means we should divorce,” she grumbled.

“Please, you'll end up getting half,” he said. “That should more than satisfy even you.”

“But I love you!” she protested. “And I know you love me!”

“Maybe I did,” he said, with a slight shrug of his shoulder, “but not now.”

 

 

THE BOYS OF SUMMER

 

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

 

 

 

“I hope you're happy,” Chris's mother said to her son as they and Chris's father clamored into the car. “You just always have to get your way, don't you? No matter what the consequences.”

Chris raised an eyebrow.

“What are you talking about?” he asked as he buckled his seatbelt.

“We'll talk when we get back to the house,” his father told him.

Chris shrugged and looked out the window.

He could see Jonny and his family getting into their own car.

He smiled and waved at Jonny.

Jonny waved back.

Chris heard his mother make a disgusted noise.

But he just ignored it.

He had decided that he wasn't going to care what his mother thought from then on.

It was only right, since she obviously didn't care what he thought.

 

 

Twenty minutes later, the car pulled up to the luxurious home.

Chris's father had told them that they should go inside and chat before they worried about bringing things in from the car.

Chris was fine with that.

Chris's mother huffed and grumbled all the way inside.

Then, once inside, they sat at the dining table.

Chris sat on one side.

His parents sat on the other.

“Chris, your mother and I are splitting up,” his father quickly and bluntly said.

Chris looked a little surprised.

He raised his eyebrows.

“Really?” he asked.

He was a bit unsure of how to feel.

He figured that it had probably been coming for a while.

His parents never really were the type of couple that seemed fit for each other.

But he had also never expected them to not be together.

Judging by his father's rough childhood growing up to poor farmer parents, Chris had just assumed that his father would put up with any sort of problems in his life.

That did seem unfair, now that he thought about it.

Chris wanted to be happy, and he wanted his parents to appreciate that.

He should appreciate whatever it was that made his parents happy.

Of course, his mother looked far from happy.

But Chris was still quite angry with her, so it didn't matter to him.

And he got the feeling that she blamed it on him.

He was mostly convinced when she bitterly said, “Your recent rebellion seems to have enlightened your father.”

Then after the talk seemed to have ended, she stormed out of the room, claiming that she was going to the spa because she needed to relax.

“Yeah, she does,” Chris's father quietly retorted.

Chris laughed a little.

His father looked up at him.

“I'm glad you found someone to make you happy, Chris,” he said. “Don't listen to what your mother says.”

“That was already my plan,” Chris replied.

Then he looked down at the table and traced an imaginary pattern with his finger.

“You're really OK with it?” he softly asked.

“Hey, who am I to judge?” his father replied.

Chris looked up questioningly.

“What... do you mean, like, you've...?” Chris vaguely asked.

His father shrugged.

“You know, we're all young at some point,” he said. “We all have drunken nights every now and then... or several nights in a row.”

He brought his hand to his mouth and coughed.

“Don't tell your mother,” he added. “I'd rather be divorced than a widower.”

Chris laughed again, and that's when it hit him.

He had just connected with his father for the first time.

It was a nice feeling.

 

 

The Best Years Of Your Life

Chapter Twenty Nine: Judgement Day.

 

 

 

 

"Jonny...do you want breakfast?" Chris asked as their eyes opened almost simultaneously.

 

"No...thanks" Jonny replied, smiling before grabbing hold of Chris' hand. Smelling it and feeling it, he didn't have to say the three little words to Chris that he was hoping to hear.

 

"I love you" Chris said, kissing Jonny on the head. "Do you need any help...y'know, getting into your chair?"

 

"No, I'll just lay here for a bit, you got get your breakfast" Jonny said, grinning before Chris grinned back and walked out of the room.

 

Jonny looked around the room, staring at Chris' many pictures. A few of them were of half naked women. Jonny couldn't help but stare and wonder.

 

-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

 

"Good morning" Al said, smiling as Chris walked out of his room and closed the door behind him.

 

"Morning" Chris said.

 

"So...you and Jonny, it's serious now, isn't it?" Al said, yawning.

 

"It sure is" Chris said, feeling uncomfortable. "So, are you coming to the talent show?" Chris asked, trying to change the subject.

 

"I'm going with Mum, I wouldn't miss it for the world. Good luck" Al said, tapping Chris on the shoulder before running downstairs.

 

Chris paused for a second at the top of the stairs and just stared. He stared at the photo on the wall of himself, his brothers and his parents. He couldn't help but smile.

 

For several moments he just stared there- staring before unhooking the photo from the wall and just putting it down on the landing and running down stairs.

 

|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-

 

"Chris" Jane said, staring hard into Chris' eyes. He knew something was wrong. "Jonny's Dad has rung- he's coming over now"

 

 

 

THE BOYS OF SUMMER

 

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

 

 

 

A year later, it was only Chris and his father returning to their summer home.

The divorce had been finalized, and Chris's mother had run off to find a new rich husband.

At least, that's what Chris figured she was doing.

She hadn't even tried to fight for custody.

But Chris was completely OK with that.

During the school year he tried to phone Jonny almost every day.

They would talk for at least an hour.

Or Chris would talk, and Jonny would listen.

Occasionally he would say something.

But mostly he was happy to sit there and let Chris talk like a loon.

Sometimes Chris would talk about his day at school.

Sometimes he would plan what he and Jonny were going to do the following summer.

It seemed to make the time pass quicker this way.

Even if their plans were ridiculously far-fetched.

Like they would rent a unicorn and ride around in the woods.

Or they would get a bunch of rope and climb up to each other's rooms every night.

There were some feasible ideas as well.

Chris suggested they go out one night, like a real date.

Jonny liked that idea.

So they picked a day at random.

Chris suggested August 3rd.

It was actually their one year anniversary.

He wasn't sure if Jonny remembered that, though, so he claimed it was merely a random pick.

Jonny knew.

And he smiled at the thought of Chris trying to be secretly romantic.

The day they finally got to see each other again in person was almost torturous.

Chris had never longed for anything as badly before.

Especially the last week before he and his father left for the summer.

So as soon as he saw Jonny, he ran into the other boy's arms.

And they just stood for a while, embracing each other.

Neither of them said a word.

And neither of them needed to.

 

 

THE BOYS OF SUMMER

 

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

 

 

 

“Jonny, I think this is a good spot to sit,” Chris said, grabbing the blanket from the basket on his arm.

He set the basket down on the ground and laid out the blanket.

Then he put his hands on his hips and admired his work.

“Yeah,” he said, “perfect.”

Then suddenly he felt strong arms wrap around his waist from behind.

And Jonny kissed him on the cheek.

He rested his chin on Chris's shoulder.

For a few moments they were silent.

“Can we eat now?” Jonny asked. “I'm starving.”

Chris smiled at him.

“Of course we can,” he said. “But you have to let go of me first.”

“Are you sure about that?” Jonny deviously asked.

Chris shot him a look, basically daring Jonny to even try.

And the next thing he knew, he was in the air.

Jonny carried him over a few feet.

Then he quickly sat down and pulled Chris with him.

Chris landed on Jonny's legs, and Jonny winced in pain.

But his plan had otherwise worked.

His arms were still around Chris.

“OK,” he said, “now make me a sandwich.”

“Hmm...” Chris said, lifting a hand to his chin.

He looked ponderously into the distance for a while.

“I don't think so,” he finally said.

Jonny put on a sad face with big eyes.

Even though it was more of Chris's thing.

“Please?” he quietly said.

Chris stared at him for a few seconds.

Then he laughed a little.

“You're so cute,” Chris said, “I love you.”

As he realized what he said, his smile began to fade.

Jonny was looking at him with an unidentifiable expression.

“You love me?” Jonny quietly asked him.

“Apparently,” Chris replied in a low voice.

His heart felt like it was beating a million times a second.

“Good, because I love you, too,” Jonny whispered.

Chris sighed with relief.

And he leaned forward a little to kiss Jonny.

“But if you really did love me,” Jonny said, “you would make me a sandwich.”

Chris slowly shook his head.

“I've got a much better idea,” he said.

And his hand slipped under his own leg and in between Jonny's.

Jonny gasped a little.

“Well, that is a good idea,” he shakily replied. “Although I can't say I know much about... you know. The both of us being boys and all.”

“Well, Jonny, we are in the middle of a deserted meadow-ish thing,” Chris began, “and our parents are out golfing for the day. We have plenty of time to figure it out, I think.”

They boys silently stared at each other.

It seemed as though Chris was expecting some sort of answer from Jonny.

He felt the hem of his shirt move just a bit.

And Jonny's hand crawled over his bare stomach.

Chris took it as a wonderful answer.

 

 

 

CHAPTER NINETEEN

 

 

 

Jonny took a deep breath.

He tried to move his gaze, but he couldn't.

“Chris, maybe you should put some clothes on now,” he suggested.

Chris was stretched out on the blanket.

All of his clothes were still on the ground beside him.

“You know, I could,” he said. “But I don't really feel like it. Plus, I don't want to get an ugly tan line, sheesh.”

“We're in the shade, it's not like you're getting any sun at all,” Jonny said.

“Oh, Jonny, you're so modest,” Chris said.

He laughed shortly, then sat up.

A sudden darkness had fallen upon him.

“You don't... you don't regret it, do you?” he fearfully asked.

“That? Definitely not,” Jonny said with a laugh. “I'm sorry. If you really want, keep your clothes off.”

“No, now that you mention it, I am feeling a little uncomfortable,” Chris said.

He quickly looked at their surroundings.

“I mean,” he continued, “I wouldn't want some creepy old guy walking and seeing me.”

“Creepy old guy?” Jonny repeated.

“Yeah, yeah,” Chris said.

He turned back to Jonny.

“Or, you know, a creepy old woman,” he shrugged.

Then he reached behind him and grabbed his boxers.

“And anyone who is not creepy or old?” Jonny asked.

Chris looked to him, but he said nothing.

He slid his boxers on, letting the waistband snap against his hips.

He crawled over to where Jonny was sitting.

“They wouldn't look,” he explained, “because they would know that if they did, you wouldn't be afraid to kick their asses, right?”

Jonny looked at Chris.

He twisted his mouth and drew his eyebrows close together.

“I don't know that I would be able to if it was a girl,” he said. “Actually, you really think I could kick anyone's ass?”

“Jonny,” Chris slowly began.

He reached his hand out and placed it gently on Jonny's chest.

“After what I've seen you do today, I'm pretty convinced you can do anything,” he said.

Jonny lifted his own hand and placed it over Chris's.

“I think,” he said in a hushed voice, “that you may need to bring your view of me down a notch. It's not like you did anything less.”

“Right,” Chris said, and suddenly he was much closer to Jonny. “But I can do anything.”

“Oh, yeah, I forgot,” Jonny softly laughed.

They both leaned in and met somewhere in the middle.

Chris slid his hand around from Jonny's chest to the small bit under Jonny's shoulder blade.

He used his other arm for support.

Jonny took both of his hands off the ground and let them rest on Chris's jawline.

Then something popped up in Chris's mind.

Something that he had often worried about, especially in the most recent weeks.

Eventually this summer would end, and there would only be one more left.

They would soon be adults, and there was no telling what would happen to them then.

Chris tried not to think about it.

He tried to just concentrate on Jonny.

It took a surprisingly short amount of time for Chris to stop thinking about the end of summer.

Because right then, in that exact moment, it felt like summer would never end.

 

 

THE BOYS OF SUMMER

 

CHAPTER TWENTY

 

 

 

Chris quickly turned the key in the ignition.

His eyes lit up.

It was the first time he had ever driven without his father.

Jonny was in the passenger seat.

He watched as Chris excitedly started the car, like a little kid on Christmas morning.

He had no clue where Chris was taking him.

He had asked several times, but had yet to receive a start answer.

Chris would tell him, “We're going somewhere special, Jon.”

Or, “You'll see!”

Then he would space out for a second, and laugh.

As if he were trying to torture Jonny with his knowledge.

But his acts were in vain.

Jonny didn't really care where they were going, only that he would be going somewhere with Chris.

They could have been going into the middle of a battle scene for all he cared.

He had felt this way for a while, but ever since that day in the meadow he decided that he would let Chris take him absolutely anywhere.

Chris wasn't taking him to just any old place, as his hints had suggested.

It wasn't exactly special, though, but it was definitely something Chris had put a lot of thought into.

They were driving for at least thirty minutes before Chris began to realize where it was he was going.

He had never really been to much of the town, despite the many years he had visited.

But he found his way eventually.

The car stopped outside of a nice-looking building.

Chris got out of the car, and he told Jonny not to move.

He ran to the other side and opened Jonny's door.

“OK, now you can move,” he said.

Jonny smiled at him as he stood up.

Chris held his arm out, and Jonny linked it with his own.

As they walked up to the building, Chris made sure to lock the car.

Everything had to be perfect, and so there was no way he was going to give anyone an easier way to steal his car and leave them stranded.

Inside was the most upscale restaurant Jonny had ever seen.

He could tell just from the mat in front of the door that whatever Chris had planned for them was going to cost a fortune.

Had they both not come from rich families, that may have been a problem.

It may have weighed on Jonny's conscience a little.

As it was, though, money was never an obstacle for either of them.

And so it was not at all unusual when Jonny caught Chris slipping the waiter a large bill so they could get a good table in a relatively short amount of time.

It actually made him feel a bit proud that Chris was trying to do all he could to impress Jonny.

Even though he didn't need to.

 

 

THE BOYS OF SUMMER

 

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

 

 

 

Chris stared down at his nearly empty plate.

He was frowning a little, though he was completely unaware of it.

Jonny, on the other hand, had noticed it.

“Chris, what's up?” he asked.

Chris lifted his eyes.

His heart lurched to see the concern in Jonny's eyes.

“There was something I wanted to talk to you about tonight,” Chris said.

He looked back down at his plate.

“We'll be going back soon,” he continued. “In a few weeks, my father and I will be leaving, you and your parents will be leaving. Then we'll be separated again.”

“Just for the school year,” Jonny said, in what sounded like a reassuring tone. “We managed it last year. And then summer will come, and we'll be together again.”

“And then what?” Chris asked.

It was obvious from the following silence that he had caught Jonny off-guard with the question.

He looked up.

“What comes after next summer, Jonny?” he asked. “We'll be our own people. Doing our own things.”

Jonny set his eyes on Chris for a while.

Chris could tell that Jonny was trying to come up with something encouraging.

He didn't look like he was too successful.

“So we will,” he said in a low voice.

“Are you going to university?” Chris asked him.

“I don't know. Probably,” Jonny meagerly shrugged. “Maybe we could go to the same university?”

“Maybe...” Chris sighed.

He tried, he really tried, to hold onto that one hopeful idea.

But he just couldn't do it.

“Oh, Jonny, what if we don't get into the same university?” he whined.

He didn't mean to sound so unpleasant, but he couldn't help it.

An idea seemed to come to Jonny.

Much quicker than his failed words of reassurance.

“What if we don't go at all, then? What if, say, you and I take a year or two off,” he suggested.

A dreamy sort of air drifted over Chris's eyes.

“We could travel,” Chris quietly added. “We could go anywhere we want- everywhere we want.”

“Yes, yes,” Jonny happily agreed, nodding. “And, well, then we'll always be...”

Even through his dreaminess, Chris spoke as well, and at the same time they both said, “Together.”

“We won't have to worry about when the summer ends,” Jonny added.

“Jonny, this is going to be so wonderful,” Chris said.

He reached across the table and grabbed Jonny's hands.

Jonny smiled back at him, but not wholeheartedly.

“You think our parents will go for it?” he asked with uncertainty.

Chris thought about it for a few moments.

“My dad said... whatever makes me happy... so he should be OK with it...” Chris said. “Right?”

“I hope so,” Jonny said.

 

 

THE BOYS OF SUMMER

 

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

 

 

 

“You want to do what?” Jonny's father asked.

He and the boys, along with Jonny's mother and Chris's father, were standing on the sidewalk in between the two houses.

The boys had rushed to speak with their parents while they were all still in one place.

Chris had just finished explaining his and Jonny's plan.

“Take a year off,” Jonny nervously said. “But wouldn't that be good? Chris and I could travel and see a few places and get some experience.”

Jonny's father turned to his wife.

“What do you think about all of this?” he asked her.

“Well, I think it sounds very romantic,” she said with a tiny smile. “I'm sure the boys would do fine on their own.”

He turned back to the boys.

“And what do you plan on doing after that year is over?” he asked. “Do you intend on furthering your education? It really would be best for you to get some sort of degree, you know.”

“I'll go to uni, sure,” Jonny said. “I just think it would be nice to... you know, postpone it.”

Jonny's father continued to stare at his son and Chris.

He sighed several times.

With nothing better to do in the silence, Jonny lifted his arm and placed it around Chris's shoulder.

Chris smiled at him.

Suddenly there was a slight coughing noise from behind Jonny's mother as Chris's father cleared his throat.

“If I might speak for a moment,” he politely began, “I would just like to tell you boys that I'm completely on board with this.”

Chris smiled even wider.

He knew his father would come through for him.

“Thank you, dad,” he said.

His father nodded his response.

Jonny's father looked over his shoulder for a moment.

His wife gently placed her hand on his arm.

She gave him a sort of loving look.

“All right,” he said, his gaze still on his wife. “I suppose it wouldn't hurt to give you two a year.”

Slowly he turned back to Chris and Jonny.

But it was basically pointless to do so.

By that point they were already almost making out.

“Oh, get a room,” Jonny's father said.

Chris pulled away, laughing softly.

Jonny's father widened his eyes a little.

“On second thought, don't get a room,” he said. “You're a bit young for that...”

Both boys looked to Jonny's father.

Then they turned back to each other and shared a knowing glance.

 

 

 

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

 

 

 

“Do you have all your things?” Jonny asked Chris.

Chris looked again at the content of the trunk of the car.

His eyes scanned over ever single bag, both his and Jonny's.

“Yeah, it's all here,” he said. “You have your stuff, then?”

“Mm-hmm,” Jonny said.

Chris slammed the trunk down and turned to Jonny.

He smiled brightly.

“Can you believe we've already been together for two years?” he asked.

“It's crazy, yeah,” Jonny agreed.

“Can you believe we're going to be by ourselves for another year?” Chris asked.

“We're gonna have some amazing times,” Jonny quietly said.

He stepped closer to Chris, until there was hardly any space between them.

“And we can start tonight,” he whispered.

“That sounds wonderful,” Chris mischievously replied.

He reached out to pull Jonny's waist up against his.

His fingers hooked onto the waistband of Jonny's jeans.

“Now that I think about it,” Chris softly said, “tonight seems so far away. I'm not sure I can make it that long.”

Jonny opened his mouth to reply.

Chris was going to shut him up with a kiss.

But they were both prevented from doing so.

“Boys!” Jonny's father called out.

He was rushing from the house towards the car.

Chris sighed as he pulled his hand back.

Jonny quickly spun around.

“Yes, dad?” he asked.

“I just wanted to wish you both a safe trip,” he said. “And if you encounter any problems, don't be afraid to call. Your mother and I are glad to help, no matter what.”

“Thanks, dad,” Jonny said, smiling.

The three of them stood silently for a while.

“Well, I suppose I should let you to get going, then,” Jonny's father said. “See you... sometime in the future.”

“Tell mum I said bye,” Jonny said, nodding a little.

Jonny's father smiled kindly, then without another word returned to the house.

Once he was out of sight, Jonny turned to Chris again and kissed him with a great deal of passion.

“It's just you and me now, Chris,” he beamed.

They shared another quick kiss before entering the car.

Jonny was driving for the first day.

That night they would stay in a hotel.

Then the next day they would officially begin their trip.

Chris watched Jonny drive for a while.

The very idea that he and Jonny were now traveling on their own was a strange concept.

Yet he felt an immense sort of excitement.

He and Jonny were no longer boys.

And it was no longer summer.

But their lives were only just beginning.

 

 

THE END

 

 

:blush:

 

-

-

 

Part 1

 

 

Ten minutes late. Shit.

 

You'd think that wouldn't be such a problem, since I was only headed to the cafeteria for lunch, but you don't know what my school is like. It's either be there when the bell rings, or good luck finding a seat. The idiots who created the schedules around here don't know what they're doing, and so it seems that they've put far too many students into this one lunch period. Just this lunch period, which also happens to be mine. Figures.

 

Ten minutes late, all because of my maths teacher (when do we really use sine and cosine in life?). I was definitely going to be eating outside. At least it was still relatively warm today, the autumn air a bit cool, but manageable.

 

It took another five minutes to actually get my food. Having to navigate through the maze of chairs to find the exit, I was deathly afraid of someone sitting back in the chair and bumping into me, making me drop my tray. I've maneuvered around this place enough times to know how to dodge tables and chairs successfully, though.

 

About ten feet away from the doors, my eyes caught a glimpse of something- an empty seat. Could it really be? I stopped and started walking in that direction just in case, because if it really was an empty seat then there wouldn't be much time left before someone else took it.

 

“Excuse me,” I said to the curly-haired kid sitting next to what really was an empty seat. He looked up at me, and for a second I was shocked by just how blue his eyes were. But I quickly regained my thoughts, and continued, “Is anyone sitting here?”

 

“No,” he answered in a deep and quiet voice. I wondered briefly how I had never seen this kid before.

 

“Well, do you mind if I sit here?”

 

“Go ahead,” he said with a shrug. It seemed like a nice gesture, but he only sounded apathetic. If I had had any other choice, I wouldn't have sat with him. But I didn't, so I set my tray down on the table and took the chair.

 

It really started to bother me that I didn't know this kid. Every other face in the overcrowded room was familiar to me but this one, and it was almost like my special thing was being taken away from me. I decided to get to the bottom of things.

 

“How come I haven't seen you around here before?” I asked him. He looked at me blankly at first, then as if I should have known everything about him.

 

“I... just moved here. This is my first day,” he replied, and I felt bad for some reason. I've only ever gone to one school my entire life, so I can only imagine how hard it must be to be thrust into a jungle of teenagers with no clue who's who or what's what. I smiled at him.

 

“Welcome to the jungle, then. I'm Jonny.”

 

“I'm Chris,” he softly said, then he turned away and looked down at the table. In front of him was a container of salad, something I assume he brought from home, because they never give us any healthy food at my school.

 

“Good choice,” I told him, pointing to the salad. “The food here is awful.”

 

“Oh. Yeah, I...” Chris flicked through the lettuce with his fork. He did not seem like a happy kid at all. Why was I even talking to him? “Well, I'm not really allowed to eat anything unless my mum okays it first.”

 

“That's rough. How old are you?”

 

“I'm seventeen,” he said, and it sounded like he was offended. I felt bad again.

 

“Is your mum, like, really controlling, then?” He looked up at me, a hint of anger still splashed across his face, but it soon faded. Instead of answering, he just nodded his head. “Well, at least she cares.”

 

And that was where the conversation died. But I did see Chris in several of my other classes, and he and I talked some more.

 

It turns out that Chris was the oldest of five, the first-born son to a pair of middle-aged, not-so-wealthy, but generally nice people. Chris's mum liked to keep tabs on him at all times, so even during school he would have to call her to check in.

 

I got to listen to one of the calls as he and I were walking down the hallway. It involved a lot of “Uh huh”s and “I'm fine”s. It must be a total drag having to do that several times every single day. I did not envy him.

 

The next day he wasn't in school, but I didn't think much of it. I felt strangely lonely, though, despite the fact that he and I had only met the day before, and I had plenty of other friends- people I had known since I was a baby- who were actually there. It just wasn't the same, I guess. I had wanted to find out more about him.

 

The day after that he was there. I discovered that he was actually in a few of my classes earlier in the day as well. Chris told me that he'd had a doctor's appointment in some city quite a long distance from here, which was the cause of his absence.

 

“How was it?” I asked him. He looked a little surprised at first, like why would I care? But eventually he decided to tell me.

 

“It was... all right,” he said. “You know, I'm doing pretty well. My mum was very pleased,” he added with a laugh. I smiled back at him, though before long he was frowning again. It made me want to cringe. “You know, she's still... um... well, she still worries. It's nothing new.”

 

 

 

Part 2

 

 

“You're failing, Jon,” she said, her hands clasped on the desk in front of her. As if I didn't already know that.

 

“What's your point?” I muttered. School had ended already, at least five minutes ago. I shouldn't have been there.

 

“My point, Jon,” she began, throwing my name in yet again because it has that much more of an effect on me, “is that you need to start working harder, applying yourself, because if you don't pass this quarter it's a sure-fire bet that you won't survive the rest of the year, and you need this class to graduate. You do intend on graduating, don't you?”

 

“Yeah.” I hate it when adults pull that kind of thing. Of course I intend on graduating. Who doesn't?

 

“Then I suggest you get your act together.” She looked at me pointedly for a few moments, lips pursed. She could tell that I was starting to feel bad.

 

It's not that I cared about maths. In fact, I couldn't care less about maths. But, as much as I hated to admit it, even to myself, Mrs. Lee had gotten to me with that graduation bit. First of all, I would have despised being forced to return to this bloody building for another year, but most importantly- well, I couldn't let my parents down like that.

 

My father was a businessman, usually away on some trip, and so he never really knew what was going on in my life. It had always been that way for me. He would definitely be really pissed if I was held back. My mother, on the other hand, basically raised me herself, with pretty much the only help from my father being money. I couldn't say the same, but I know that I was probably the most important thing in the world to her. She would just be absolutely devastated, and there was no way that I could do that to her.

 

“Yes, ma'am,” I said to Mrs. Lee, and I shifted on my feet a bit. I really wanted to leave. She sat back in her chair a little, and I could tell that the meeting was at least close to ending.

 

“I think it might be best for you to stay for extra help, until you bring your grade up. Starting tomorrow, shall we say? Does that sound good to you?”

 

There really was nothing else I could say in response to her, so I agreed. Another hour of my day wasted. At least it's better than a year.

 

“Please, Jon,” she said to me as her finals words before my departure. “I know you're not a stupid kid. You just need to start caring a little.”

 

I wasn't going to let her know it, but she was definitely right. Or maybe she did know. Maybe she could see right through me. She had been teaching for thirty years, after all. I'm sure she had dealt with plenty of other students like me.

 

Only one minute later I was out of that room, bolting down the hallway towards my locker. I hadn't gotten the chance to stop there before I went to see Mrs. Lee. I threw all my books in and left (I didn't take anything home, because I knew I wasn't going to do my homework anyway), heading as quickly as I could for the doors. I had it running through my head that my mum had probably been waiting for a while for me, and she would ask what the hold up was about, and I would have to either tell her the awful truth- which I would actually have to do anyway, since she would want to know what I had to start staying after for- or lie to her. And it is physically impossible for me to lie to my mum.

 

I walked outside of the school and looked for my ride home. A few feet away I noticed Chris, sitting with his head resting in his hand. That's what it looked like, anyway. Since I hadn't found my mum yet, and I could have used a distraction from all the stress in my life, I decided to sit with him.

 

“Hey.” He looked up at me, his fingers lingering over a small area of his neck.

 

“Hey,” he repeated with a smile. He dropped his arm down into his lap.

 

“So, what are you doing down here?” I asked him. He frowned at me for a few seconds, then waved his hand in the air.

 

“Oh, I just needed to rest.” He shrugged his shoulders. “So I sat down.”

 

“Are you waiting for your parents or something?”

 

“No. I'm walking home,” he breezily said. His eyes diverted my gaze, almost like there was something he wasn't telling me. I'm sure there was lots that he wasn't telling me; we had only met a few days prior, after all.

 

“Your mum is all right with you walking home?” I asked, a tad incredulous. “She doesn't, like, freak about it?”

 

Chris laughed a little. “No, actually, it's one of the only things she thinks is safe for me.”

 

At that moment I thought that his mum must have been crazy, but of course I didn't tell him that. I didn't say anything, actually, because my own mother had pulled up alongside us before I got the chance.

 

It must have shown on my face that I had to leave, because Chris smiled at me and said, “See you tomorrow.”

 

I smiled back, but for some reason I couldn't bring myself to use words. It felt like I had stopped breathing for a while, though I was certain that my lungs had been hard at work as always. I slid into my mum's car, and as we pulled away I looked back at Chris. He had returned his hand to his neck, staring down at the pavement with a bored expression. I kinda wished he had looked up at me.

 

 

The Best Years Of Your Life

Chapter Thirty: A Different Life

 

 

 

 

"What the hell, mum? Jonny won't want to see his Dad!" Chris exclaimed. Jane shook her head.

 

There was a knock at the door.

 

Chris turned around and slowly walked to the door and opened it- it was Jonny's dad.

 

"Paul" Chris said, as they stood staring at each other.

 

"I just want to speak with Jonny and get this all sorted out" Paul replied, smiling and trying to walk in.

 

"I don't think he wants to see you" Chris said, sympathetically.

 

"Why not? I have done nothing wrong! We left on good terms" Paul said, getting angrier.

 

"He just wants to start a new life with me and my mum!" Chris replied, smiling.

 

"What? What? He's my son!" Paul exclaimed, pushing past Chris, knocking him to the floor.

 

Paul looked up the stairs. Jonny was at the top in his wheelchair.

 

"You're almost as bad as Chris' Dad" Jonny proclaimed.

 

"You don't mean that...son, let's just sort all of this out. I'm a victim in all of this, just like you and Chris' mum" Paul said, holding out his hand and starting to walk upstairs. "You look like you need some help getting down these stairs"

 

"You don't have to go with him, Jonny" Chris said.

 

"But I want to Chris" Jonny said, his father now beside him. "Do you mind if we just have a chat in your room, Chris?"

 

"Not al all" Chris replied, sighing and turning to his mother while Jonny and his father retired to the bedroom for a chat.

 

||||||||||||||||||||

 

"I don't care about you being gay Jonny, I really don't" Paul said, closing the door behind him. "Why don't you want to be with me? Why don't you want to be with your father?"

 

"I want a fresh start" Jonny replied.

 

"But you need a Dad- everyone needs a Dad" Paul said, smiling.

 

Jonny sighed. "So, you respect me for who I am. Who I want to be with- Chris"

 

"You're becoming an adult Jonny, you should be starting to make your own decisions" Paul said.

 

Jonny now had the most respect for his Father he has ever had.

 

Bursting into tears, Jonny stared hard into his Father's eyes. "I don't want to lose you Dad, you know I don't want that!"

 

"Then why are you being like this?" Paul replied, comforting his son.

 

"Because" Jonny said, wiping tears from his eyes. "I'm scared. I'm scared of what to come. I'm not an adult, not even close. I need a Dad, of course I do, I think- I don't know"

 

"Oh...son" Paul said, grasping his sons hands.

 

"I'm never going to walk again" Jonny exclaimed. "I hate it! I hate it! I hate it! Why me? Why do I always get the bad luck?"

 

"Life's not fair, is it?" Paul said, sighing. "I've just lost my wife and have just got close to losing my son as well!"

 

"You'd never lose me" Jonny replied, holding his Dad's hands tightly.

 

"It's funny" Paul said, smirking. "They say that your school years are the best years of your life!"

 

"I don't listen to people. You've got to make your own decisions and observations in life" Jonny said. "That's why I don't care! I don't care that I'm gay, I'm not ashamed! I want my own life, not having to deal with people like my mum!"

 

"And you never will have to" Paul replied.

 

"Dad" Jonny said, staring into his father's eyes again. "Come and live here with us"

 

"I don't know if I can, Jonny" Paul said.

 

"Of course you can" Jonny said. "Can't he, Chris?" Jonny said, looking to the doorway where Chris, Al and their mother were standing.

 

"Of course you can" Chris replied, walking over to shake Paul's hand.

 

"He's part of the family now" Jane said, smiling.

 

"So" Paul said, not sure of what to say. "What do we do now?"

 

"Do you want to go to a talent contest?" Jonny asked.

 

 

 

SOLD

 

 

 

CHAPTER 1

 

"Here is your tuxedo," Chris said, handing the sleek dark bag to Guy.

Guy frowned at him and shook his head.

"I told I wasn't participating in this ridiculous idea," he said.

Chris took a heavy breath.

"I know..damn Guy...just take the bag. You still have to attend the auction even if you aren't willing to participate."

Guy looked at him suspiciously.

"Don't think you are going to talk me in to it," he said, narrowing his pretty eyes.

"I'm not," Chris said, "I don't care. All the big money will be spent on me anyway."

Jonny cleared his throat.

Will burst out laughing.

Chris looked at them both.

"You don't think any one will be one me?" he asked.

Jonny smiled but didn't say anything.

"Well, Chris maybe someone will bid on you if you don't wear those sneakers with your tux," Will suggested.

"What's wrong with my shoes?" Chris asked, looking down at the bright white footwear.

Will shook his head.

"This is such a neanderthal way to raise money," Guy said.

"Get off your high moral ground," Chris snapped, "Money for the kids is good. No matter how it is raised."

"Yeah I bet the people whose ancestors were slaves wouldn't think so," Guy said.

 

Chris was fidgeting around nervously.

Looking at the other candidates for the Bachelor Auction.

"He's so not great," he said, looking across the back dressing area.

Jonny looked in the same direction.

He laughed.

"He is a model for Armani," Jonny told him.

Chris crossed his arms and stuck out his bottom lip.

I could be an Armani model if I wanted to be," he said.

Will burst out laughing.

Chris flashed his blue eyes at him.

"Shut up Will," he said.

Jonny took a deep breath as a new group of men entered the room.

"That's Ashley Cole," he said to Will.

Will turned around quickly to look at the football star.

"He's not single," Chris said in a catty tone.

"He might be before long," Jonny said.

Chris looked at him in a strange way.

But then his mind went back to its usual place.

And his usual topic.

How he looked.

"Jonny.....what if no one bids on me??" he asked nervously.

Jonny took a step back.

His bright green eyes lighting up just a little more.

As they traveled up and down the length of Chris' slender body.

"Don't worry," he said, "They won't be able to resist."

Chris smiled softly.

"Really?? You aren't just saying that are you?" he asked.

"I would pay lots of money for a date with you," Jonny said.

His face turning a slight pink as he realized what he had just said.

"Thanks Jon," Chris said, "You always know how to make me feel better. You are the best friend ever."

Jonny nodded to himself.

"Yeah," he thought, "Just a friend."

<span style="font-weight:bold;">

CHAPTER 2</span>

 

The slender woman with the perfectly flawless makeup stepped up to the microphone.

Her sequined dress sparkling in the lights.

The deeply plunging neckline caught the eye of every one in the room.

"Well ladies," she said, in a sultry voice, "This is the time of the evening that you have all been waiting for. A chance to buy yourself a date with some gorgeous and talented men."

A chorus of catcalls and claps came from the room.

Backstage Chris looked at Jonny.

A little bit of fear showing in his eyes.

"Those women sound crazed," he said, nervously.

"Why do you think Guy refused to participate?" Will asked, "Women are a ruthless sex. Men always get a bad rap for behaving like cave men but women....women are twice as bad."

"You are next," a woman hissed at Jonny.

Jonny looked at Chris with a helpless expression.

The woman grabbed Jonny by the arm.

Dragging him away.

""It's like watching your best friends be carried off to feed the lions," Chris said.

Will laughed.

"You aren't far from the truth," he agreed.

 

Guy was standing in the back of the room.

A champagne glass in his left hand.

He was smiling in an amused way.

Two women were engaged in a heavy bidding war for Will.

A blonde with too much makeup in a bright blue dress.

And a red head wearing too little of a black dress.

"Five thousand pounds," the blonde said.

Everyone in the room looked at the red head.

"Six thousand pounds," she said, in a husky voice.

The crowd collectively turned to the blonde.

She took a deep breath.

Causing her ample bosom to move up and down.

She glanced at the slight redhead.

"Ten thousand pounds," she said.

Raising one eyebrow.

As if daring the redhead to bid higher.

Guy had just taken a drink of champagne.

He spit it all over his sleeve.

"Kind of ridiculous, huh?" a voice said, beside him.

Guy was trying to brush the alcohol off the tuxedo before it stained the fabric.

And he had to pay for it.

A hand offered him a white linen handkerchief.

"Thanks," Guy said, without looking up.

A loud round of applause sounded.

"What happened?" Guy asked.

"I think the little redhead won," the man told him.

Guy laughed.

"Chris will have a fit," he said.

"Is Chris his girlfriend?" the man asked.

Guy shook his head.

"Chris is our friend. He will be pissed that Will was worth so much."

 

<span style="font-weight:bold;">

CHAPTER 3</span>

 

The gorgeous woman was at the microphone again.

"Thank you all so much for your generous bids. These lovely gentlemen certainly are lucky to have such attractive dates. And well, it's obvious that the ladies will benefit.Isn't that right ladies?"

She winked and clapped happily.

Another round of applause followed her.

"And of course we all know that the real winners are the kids," she said, "Now let's all have a good time."

Another woman in a clingy black dress tapped her on the shoulder.

She whispered something into her ear.

A look of total surprise slipped across the woman's face.

She giggled a little.

And then whispered to the woman in black.

They quickly motioned to another unseen woman.

The unseen woman joined them at the microphone.

They appeared to be having a discussion.

"What's going on?" Will asked the little redhead.

"I don't know," she said.

"Perhaps they are questioning your sanity at bidding such an outrageous amount for me," he quipped.

She smiled.

"I was prepared to pay much more," she said.

Will blushed a little.

"Really?" he asked.

"Yes, I just wanted to meet you. We don't have to go on a date if you don't want," she told him.

Will looked at her for a moment.

"No," he said, "I would like to go on a date with you."

She smiled shyly.

"I've never bought a man before," she said, "I should be scandalized. But I rather found it glorious."

She laughed a little.

Covering her pouty red lips with a small hand.

"Excuse me," the gorgeous woman emcee said, as she tapped on the microphone.

Everyone stopped talking and looked toward her.

"We have quite an unusual issue here," she was saying, "But the committee members and I have discussed it and we feel like it is okay. For a lark. For some fun. At this dull old charity event."

She looked out at the audience to see any reactions.

"We have received a bid of one hundred thousand pounds for a particular gentlemen."

Gasps and other noises of surprises could be heard all around the room.

Followed by a chorus of mumbles and whispers.

Everyone looked around at everyone else.

Trying to figure out who was so prized.

The woman knew her audience.

She waited while the whispers turned into a buzz.

"Who is it?" the redhead asked Will.

"Probably Chris," he said.

"Who would bid that much for him?" she asked.

Will laughed.

"Why Jonny would bid that much in a second," Will said.

"We should let you know that it is a silent bid," the woman was explaining, "Sort of like a secret."

More whispers and mumbles.

"Shall we accept it?" she asked the audience.

Applause quickly broke out.

"Well okay," she said, in a flirty way.

She turned around and took the envelope from the woman in black.

"This is a certified check for the total amount," she said, holding it up.

"Who is it for?" someone shouted.

Expressing the impatience of all the people in the room.

"It is a bid for a date with that handsome gentleman in the back of the room," she said, pointing toward Guy.

Everyone turned to look at him.

"It's a bid for Guy Berryman."

 

 

 

Part 3

 

 

My mum had kindly informed me that I would not be able to get a ride home from her after school the next day, because she had something else to do at that time. I didn't bother asking what, because I didn't feel like there was a purpose in asking. It wouldn't have changed anything.

 

I just shrugged, said, “OK,” and went off into my room. It was pretty late, and I had nothing better to do, so I decided to just go to sleep. I laid my head against the pillow and closed my eyes, but my brain just wouldn't stop working. I kept thinking about earlier that afternoon, sitting outside of the school, and the image of Chris smiling was burned into my eyelids, no matter how many times I tried to think of something else.

 

Then it wasn't just his smile, but his long, elegant fingers lightly brushing against the smooth skin stretched over his graceful neck. That look in his bright blue eyes (I swear it wasn't there when I was actually living the moment, but then again, it had to be, why would I imagine something like that?) made my insides twist. It all seemed too real, yet so far from reality. Chris never looked at me like that.

 

I woke up the next morning feeling very odd. I must have stopped thinking about Chris long enough to fall asleep, but then I thought about it, and I remembered there being an awful lot of Chris in my dreams. Or maybe it was only one long dream. I forgot every detail about it apart from Chris's grinning visage. And hands, there was something about hands.

 

But I didn't bother trying to recollect anything else. I didn't feel right. Even my mum noticed.

 

“What's wrong, button?” she asked, waving her hand in front of my face as she leaned across the table. I pulled my focus back to the table, where I noticed that my hand was tightly grasping the fork that was still stabbed into the eggs on my plate. I didn't feel much like eating.

 

“I don't know,” I said. I set the fork down and crossed my arms over my stomach. It wasn't nausea, just an unsettling feeling in the pit of my stomach. And in my chest.

 

My mum swooped around the table, and seconds later I felt her hand over my forehead. “Are you sick?”

 

“I don't think so. I'm just... I don't know.” I shrugged, my arms still wrapped around my abdomen. “I guess I just had a really weird dream or something, but I can't remember it.”

 

“All right, well, you just take it easy, OK?” Her hand ruffled my hair, but almost immediately smoothed it down afterward. Then she walked away, towards the door, and she grabbed her keys off the hook on the wall. “I should be back around six tonight, in time to make dinner. All right?”

 

“Yeah, that's fine.”

 

“Have a good day, button. I love you,” she said with her one hand on the doorknob, and the other she used to blow a kiss.

 

“I love you, too, mum.” She smiled and left, making sure to close the door tight behind her. I sighed and left for the other room. There was no point in even trying to eat anything, and anyway I had to get ready for school.

 

All day I was wishing that I could have been at home. It was especially bad whenever I saw Chris, which was quite often. Well, when I saw him I didn't mind being where I was, but the feeling was much worse, much stronger.

 

Although time had crawled by, the end of the day arrived surprisingly quick. I was so glad to be done with Mrs. Lee and all of her overbearing teaching.

 

With a lack of a ride home, I was forced to walk. As I watched my feet glide along the pavement of the back roads without sidewalks, I thought about Chris again and how he had walked home the day before. I wondered if that was normal for him, to just walk home everyday. And I wondered how far away he lived. It must have been tiring.

 

Almost as if he could hear my thoughts, I looked up and suddenly Chris was there. He was just there, standing completely still on the edge of the road, eyes closed. It was a bit strange, I thought.

 

“Your mum let's you hang out around these parts?” I called to him. He opened his eyes and looked up at me, a bit confused. So, I decided to explain further. “I mean, this isn't exactly the nicest neighborhood.”

 

In fact, it was one of- if not the worst neighborhood in town. There were always at least one or two crimes a month, sometimes a week. And I swear, someone was murdered there once. If Chris's mum was so overprotective, I'd have thought she wouldn't let him out of the house at all, let alone allow him to wander through such dangerous turf.

 

Then, for a few agonizing seconds, he looked at me with an almost hurt expression. I worried that I had done something wrong, and my suspicions were confirmed when he lifted his arm, pointed ashamedly to the rundown building behind him, and said in a low voice, “This is my house.”

 

Realizing that I seemed to have offended him, I fumbled for an apology. The words were there, right in my head- Oh, I'm sorry! I didn't mean- but instead I just acted apathetic, almost. “Oh. Cool.”

 

Chris appeared to be skeptical of my reaction, but eventually he just accepted it. “Yeah, it's cool all right... Do you wanna... come inside, hang out or whatever?” He shrugged a shoulder, twisted his mouth up and stared at the ground. And there was that weird sensation again.

 

“Yeah, sure.” I'd basically forgotten about going home, but my mum wouldn't even have been there for another few hours anyway. He smiled at me, turned around, and lead me across the overgrown lawn and into his house.

 

 

 

Part 4

 

 

“Chris, you're back inside already?” a gentle, womanly voice called from the other room as Chris and I walked over the threshold. Within seconds the source of the voice was hovering over Chris, and the resemblance between the two gave me the impression that this must be his mother. She certainly did seem protective.

 

“Yeah, well, Jonny's here,” Chris gestured to me, “and I thought he might like to come inside for a bit. If that's all right,” he quietly added.

 

“It's all right as long as you're OK, dear,” she said. She lifted her hand and placed her palm against Chris's cheek. “You look a little pale.”

 

“I'm just a little tired,” Chris nonchalantly said. “But I'm OK.”

 

“You took your pills?” she asked him, and he nodded. She frowned at him a little. I felt strangely out of place (or maybe it wasn't so strange). And I also kinda wished that her hand was mine. What was wrong with me? “Maybe you should go have a lie down, dear. Just rest for a bit.”

 

“Yes, mum.” She smiled halfheartedly, leaned forward to place a kiss on his forehead, then left. It was almost sweet that she cared for him so much.

 

Chris and I went into his room, where he proceeded to lie on his bed, and I sat in a chair that had been carelessly shoved into the corner. Of course, I moved it so I was sitting closer to him.

 

“So, Jonny,” he began, his head resting on his arms, “tell me something.”

 

“What do you want to know?” I asked.

 

“Anything,” Chris replied. “Everything. I want to know everything about you. Start with the day you were born. You probably don't remember that. Start with the first birthday you can remember.”

 

I laughed a little, for no real reason, and nodded my head. “All right. I think... my fifth birthday is the first one I can remember. But I'm not sure... that's the one I'll tell you about, at least. So, it was my birthday, which is conveniently also my parent's anniversary. My dad was home- he's usually out on business trips- though I really think he was home for the anniversary and not my birthday. But he was still there either way.”

 

It all came flooding back to me, as if I were living the entire thing again. I was so small back then. I could remember waking up to what seemed like an empty house. I walked into my parents room first, eager to open my presents, and no one was there. Then I went to the living room, and again nothing. Ten minutes later, I still couldn't find my parents. I almost started panicking.

 

But then I looked out in the yard, and they were out there, standing around a giant box. I threw open the front door and bolted towards them. They must have noticed, because they started laughing, and my mum picked me up as I ran by and she set me on top of the box.

 

“How do you like your present, button?” she asked, the smile still stretched wide across her face. “The cardboard's pretty sturdy, so it should last you a while.”

 

“Mum!!!” I yelled, and she tried to look serious.

 

“What?”

 

“You can't just get me a box for my birthday!!”

 

“Actually, kiddo, we can,” my dad said. “And we did.”

 

I narrowed my eyes at them, folded my arms across my chest in the pouting sort of way that little kids do. For a while we stayed like that, my parents staring at me and trying to act oblivious. Then my dad finally rolled his eyes.

 

“I suppose you could have a look inside of the box, if you really want,” he said. I reached my arms out excitedly, and he grabbed me and set me back on the ground. Then I turned and jumped on the box and tried to rip it open, but it didn't work because the flaps were taped down, and I could hardly reach the top of it anyway.

 

My dad told me to calm down, but of course I was going to do everything but that. He opened the box for me, but I couldn't see inside of it because I was so small.

 

“Oh, yeah, there's nothing in here,” he said, shaking his head. I actually got pretty angry at that point. I demanded to see for myself, and so my dad picked me up and held me over the top.

 

“That's not empty!!!!” I shouted. Inside of the box was a shiny, brand-new black and blue bicycle. I was so excited. My parents laughed again, but I ignored them. All I could think about was that bike, and how awesome my life had just become.

 

“Of course, I didn't actually learn to ride the bike without training wheels until I was eight,” I told Chris. “But I was still so happy about it. My mum had told me that it was my dad's idea...”

 

As a bolt of sadness suddenly shot through me, I looked up to see that Chris's eyes were closed, his chest steadily rising and falling. I smiled in spite of myself and decided that it was probably time for me to go home.

 

Chris's mum was in the kitchen when I walked through. She looked up at me and smiled.

 

“Hey... Jonny, right?”

 

“Yeah,” I replied. “Uh, Chris is asleep now, so I'm just gonna... be heading home.”

 

“Oh, all right,” she said. “Thank you, Jonny. And have a lovely evening.”

 

“You too.” I smiled back at her, then walked away. Before I left, I got to thinking that if I had someone as special as Chris, I would probably do as much as I could to protect him, too. But I shook my head- what the hell was I thinking?

 

 

Chapter 1: "The more I talk about it, the less I do control"

 

 

I hit the alarm clock that was going off.

I didn’t want to get up.

But I had a flight that I had to catch from London to New York City.

I looked out my window and saw that the sun hadn’t even come up yet.

I rolled over and swung my legs off to the side of my bed. I rubbed my eyes and stretched as I got up and head for the bathroom. I started the shower and jumped in. The water was a little cooler than normal, but I made it like that to wake me up a bit more.

I looked at the clock and realized I would be late if I didn’t get out soon.

I finished up, sighed and turned off the water.

I towel dried my hair, did my makeup and got dressed. I was very excited about my outfit that I picked out for today. It was a floral dress that I had just gotten from H&M the other day! I threw on a brown jacket, because I knew it was always colder on airplanes and slipped into my sandals. I grabbed my bag and put my cell phone, camera and ipod in it. I grabbed my laptop case which was on my kitchen counter. I took my luggage and headed towards my door.

I walked out of my apartment and towards the street where I waved down a taxi. He got out and put my bag in the trunk, as I climbed in the backseat.

“Where to?” said the taxi driver as he looked at my through the rear view mirror.

“Heathrow please.”

“What airline?”

“Delta, International flight.”

“Sure thing.”

“Thank you.” I said with a smile as I saw him smile back at me.

I looked up out of the window at all of the buildings going by. I noticed how the sun was starting to rise.

When we finally reached the airport, I got out of the cab and paid the man after he got my luggage out of the trunk.

“Have a safe flight!” he said to me as he headed back into his taxi.

I nodded and said thank you as I began to walk inside.

I rolled my bag up to the counter and checked it. The lady was actually nice this time, last time I was here they gave me a hard time about it because their computers were all messed up. I guess it pays to have an early flight, nearly no one was there. I continued on to the security check point.

I hated having to go through this, because they made me take off my rings and earrings.

Once I was cleared I walked over to the waiting area.

I walked up to the counter and saw a flight attendant behind it.

“Hi, can I help you?” she asked as she noticed I was standing there.

“Yes, I’m flying by myself today, and I was wondering if I could have a window seat, if that wouldn’t be a problem?” I said nicely.

“I’ll see what I can do, name please?”

“Erin Winters.”

She typed a bunch of things into the computer and finally looked up at me.

“Will 3D be okay? It’s on the right of the plane, still in business class and it’s a window seat.”

“Yes! That would be lovely, thank you so much,” I looked at her nametag, “Jessica!”

She smiled and printed me out a new ticket.

I walked over to a seat and sat down. I put my ipod on and checked my phone.

I was in the middle of texting my best friend when a woman came up to me and asked me if I was Erin Winters. I’m surprised that she recognized me, I was wearing glasses and my hair was wavy. I nodded and smiled back at her.

“My daughter is a huge fan of yours, I usually wouldn’t do this because I don’t want to intrude or anything, but do you think you would be able to sign this CD for her?” she asked nicely.

“Oh, trust me it’s no problem, I think I have a sharpie somewhere…” I went digging in my bag and finally found one.

“What’s her name?”

“Heather!”

I signed the CD and handed it back to the woman. We chatted for a bit before they started calling seats. We said goodbye and I boarded the plane. I put my laptop case on the floor under the seat in front of me as I pushed my seat back and relaxed.

 

 

Chapter 2: "As the winter winds littered London with lonely hearts, oh the warmth in your eyes swept me into your arms."

 

 

I was distracted by a tall man that was struggling to put a bag in the overhead carrier above my seat.

There were about five or six men in front of him that were taking their seats. I didn’t recognize them waiting for the plane.

I got up and squeezed out of my seat to help him.

I pushed the other bag over a little bit more and turned his bag around so that it was sideways and it fit right in. I smiled up at him and he just stared at me like something was stuck in my teeth.

I gave him an odd look and squeezed back into my seat.

I looked forward, took out a book and began reading, I could still see him and one of his friends out of the corner of my eyes. He nudged him and whispered something in his ear, but I couldn’t hear it. Then they both sat down, occupying the two vacant seats next to me. The mysterious man that I helped with his bags wound up sitting directly next to me.

“We have just closed to doors, and we are ready for take off! Please take your seats and buckle your seat belts. We will be playing the safety video in just a few minutes. Please turn off all electronic devices such as ipods, laptops, cell phones and portable DVD players.” The flight attendant said over the speaker.

I took my headphones out again and turned off my ipod and cell phone.

The guy that I helped before was doing the same thing.

“Umm… Hi.”

When I looked him in the eyes; he grabbed the brim of his hat, and pulled it down to shade his face.

“Hi.” I said with a little giggle. I tried not to laugh, but I just couldn’t help but notice how handsome he was. I didn’t really get a good look at him before.

“Thanks for helping me out back there.” He said with a small smirk.

“Oh, no problem, it seemed like you were having a bit of trouble there.”

Just then the plane started moving, and then stopped.

“There are server weather conditions over the Atlantic Ocean; we will be on the runway for another hour or so. We’re sorry for the delay.”

“Fuck!” we both said at the same time.

We looked at each other and shyly looked away.

“Well, anyway, what’s your name?” he asked.

“Erin, Erin Winters, what’s your name?”

“You mean, the Erin Winters?”

I tucked my hair behind my ears and smiled.

“Yes,” I said with a laugh, “I haven’t gotten recognized a lot lately.”

“Yeah, I was going to say, you changed your hair color! I would have recognized you if you still had the black hair, but I must say, the brown looks really nice. I’m Chris by the way, Chris Martin” he smiled friendly as he reached out and shook my hand.

“You mean, the Chris Martin?”

He pulled his hat off to show short, curly, dirty blondish hair, and big bright blue eyes.

“Oh my God, I love your band! How come I didn’t even recognize you before?” I said as I peeked next to him and saw someone reading a book.

“Well, we’re just both bad at recognizing people I guess,” He shrugged, “This is Guy next to me, and the others are behind us.”

“Woah, that’s seriously so cool. It’s really an honor to meet you!” I said with a cheesy smile.

We talked for two hours straight after that. I couldn’t even begin to tell you what we talked about. Music, Movies, T.V., Radio, Magazines, Books, and everything else, basically we found out each other’s interests very fast, and actually came to the conclusion that we have a lot in common.

Every time I talked, I could feel him staring at me and really paying attention; which was really nice actually.

 

 

 

 

Chapter 3: "Now my feet won't touch the ground."

 

 

“We will be taking off in about another two hours. We’re sorry for the delay, but Newark airport is currently closed.”

Everyone on the plane sighed and started getting upset. Chris and I were fine though; we just ordered another glass of wine and kept talking. Just then my stomach growled. I hadn’t eaten anything since last night; I was going to get a bagel on the plane, but because we haven’t taken off yet, they hadn’t started breakfast.

Chris heard this. “Are you hungry?”

“Yeah, I haven’t really eaten anything since last night, I wasn’t expecting to wait this long to take off.”

He reached into his bag that was under the seat in front of him. He looked through it and came back up empty handed.

He turned around to the seat behind him. “Jonny,” he asked another guy in a hat reading a book, “do you have that bagel that I got earlier this morning?”

Jonny looked in a bag that was next to him and grabbed a poppy seed bagel and handed it to Chris.

“Thanks man.”

Jonny nodded and smiled at Chris.

“Here you go.” He said shyly as he placed the bagel on the arm rest between us.

Since this was business class, the arm rests, were like mini tables and all.

I looked at him. “You really don’t have to give this to me; I know you’re probably hungry too.”

But he insisted on giving it to me. I reasoned with him, and told him that we should split it.

He agreed to that and I opened up the package and ripped the bagel in half.

While I was taking a bite, he said “I really like your dress; it’s very pretty on you.”

I almost choked on my bagel, instead, I blushed a little.

“Thank you. I got it from my favorite store a few days ago.”

“Well I think it was a good investment.” He said with a smile as he bit into his bagel.

When we finished he asked me why I’m going to Newark?

“I’m actually going into the city. I have to meet with a few different people and record some things. Then I have three photo shoots scheduled this week, they also have this guy following me around taking pictures of me in my ‘everyday life’. I guess he’s going to follow me like hanging out with people and recording and things. I don’t really mind though, because I know the kid, he’s really nice and chill. Then I have an interview on Tuesday next week with NME. Then I get to just chill out for a little while in the second greatest city in the world.” I said as I sipped my wine and smiled back at him.

“Wow, you’re really busy. We’re just going there to record some of our album. The whole thing is that none of our instruments are going to be there until Friday. So we have about five days to kill. I think we should get together and go out to grab lunch or coffee sometime; I can properly introduce you to the rest of the band and things,” he said nervously, “but only if that’s okay with you.”

I got butterflies in my stomach.

I snapped out of it quickly though, he’s just a friend.

“Yeah, that would be great actually. I’d love to!” I said happily as I looked at him smile back at me; satisfied with my answer.

We chatted for another hour and then the flight attendant finally got on the speaker, “Newark Airport has been reopened and we will be taking off in five minutes, please take your seats and buckle your seatbelts.” Everyone on the plane cheered, because most of them were drunk now.

It was a kind of bittersweet thing for me though… I didn’t want to leave because I was enjoying talking to Chris so much. He was so easy to talk to.

I was starting to feel a little drunk by now and I think Chris was too.

When we were finally up in the air, I kept squinting because my ears were popping like crazy.

 

 

Chapter 4: "Tell me your secrets, and ask me your questions. Oh let's go back to the start."

 

 

They hurt like hell too.

“Take this.” He said as he offered me a piece of gum.

“Thanks! I forgot to buy some this morning.”

I yawned and stretched as I started to feel sleepy.

“How long is this flight again…?” I said as I leaned back into my seat.

“Seven hours. I know it’s a while, but it goes really fast, especially since I have someone to talk to.” He said nicely.

I smiled at him and I could feel myself blushing.

I quickly looked past him to catch the flight attendants attention and order us more drinks.

She soon came back with two more glasses of wine.

Chris grabbed them both and handed one to me.

After drinking for a little while, Chris cleared his throat.

“Are you still seeing that Andrew Vanwyngarden guy that you were going out with for a while?”

He asked as he played with his glass in his hands.

I looked at him and put my drink down.

“Um.. no, I’m not… it’s kind of a long boring story.”

“Well I have 7 hours.”

“I figured you would say that.” I said as I laughed and began to tell my story.

I told him how Andrew and I were really happy together, we were both doing really well, and we had everything basically. One day when we were both leaving to go out, he walked out of the house first, and then I went to follow. I saw that he had left his Cell phone on the kitchen counter. I grabbed it quickly and ran out the door to meet him. I zipped up my coat because it was raining and put my hood on. I was rushing so much that I dropped his phone and the backlight went on. I saw that he had a message from someone named Jackie. I usually don’t snoop around in things but when I read the message that she sent him, I almost collapsed on the stairs. It was something along the lines of “Last night was fun baby, I’m so tired from everything we did, and you definitely blew my mind completely. I’ll see you tonight again love xoxo ;)”

I didn’t know what to say. I walked outside and saw him waiting for me in front of his car.

I stopped when I was about two feet away from him and held the cell phone up to his face, with tears running down my cheeks. It was raining and my hood had flown off from the wind. I stood there in the rain crying, and he tried to make excuses. I knew he was out last night, but I thought he was with his band hanging out, because they had a show tonight.

I didn’t say a word the whole time he was trying to reassure me he wasn’t cheating.

I just handed him the cell phone quietly and gave him back the engagement ring. I walked inside and he tried to follow me but I locked the door and just sat on my bed crying. He tried calling, knocking on the door and leaving messages. I just ignored him.

After that I packed up all of his stuff, everything he had given me and put it in boxes. I dropped it off one day at Ben’s house, his best friend, and that’s that.

I could see the anger in Chris’s eyes as I told him this.

“He tries calling me every now and then, but I never answer. I don’t want anything to do with him…”

I could feel my eyes starting to get watery.

“I never knew that’s what happened…” he said silently as he sipped his wine again.

“Shit happens.” I replied as I chugged the rest of my wine.

I ordered another one.

“You don’t deserve to have stuff like that happen to you. You’re an absolutely stunning, amazing, lovely, interesting, kind, funny young woman. You don’t deserve it one bit.” He said as he leaned in a bit closer to me and placed his hand on mine.

My heart skipped a beat, and I think he noticed this because he pulled away quickly and used his hand to put up his sleeves.

 

 

 

Part 5

 

 

Every day for the next week I walked home after school, because every day my mum had other things to do. I had a sneaking suspicions that those things may have been... well, people, but I tried not to dwell on it too much.

 

As a result, I often ended up just hanging out with Chris until it was time to return home. We mostly just sat in his yard and talked, which was nice. Towards the end of the week, I actually started to look forward to spending time with him.

 

“Hi, Jonny,” he said as I walked nearer, almost like he had been expecting me. Maybe he had been. The thought of him waiting for me gave me that weird feeling again. It had been happening even more often nowadays.

 

“Hi, Chris,” I replied. He walked over to where I was, grinning from ear to ear, and I had half a mind to grab him right then and-

 

“How was studying?” he asked, stopped a few feet in front of me. I tried to focus, looked at the ground, and shrugged.

 

“You know, same as always.”

 

“Boring as hell?” Chris asked, with a hint of laughter in his voice. I smiled and looked up at him.

 

“Yeah.” Then suddenly I had developed a plan, and I was silently deciding whether or not to execute it. That was when my vocal chords took over. “Do you wanna go for a walk?”

 

“Sure,” Chris replied as he nodded his head. “Where to?”

 

Even though I did have it all planned out, I thought for a few seconds. It was not only to give the illusion that I was coming up with this as I went along, but also to try to convince myself not to go through with this. I had to stop acting so strange all the time.

 

“Follow me,” I said, unable to hold myself back. I started walking past Chris, though he was right beside me the entire way. There was this really nice overlook sort of thing not too far from Chris's house that I had gone to almost every day of the last summer. It was really beautiful; Chris would definitely love it.

 

It took a few minutes to walk just to the beginning of the trail at the side of the road. It wasn't really much of a trail, though, because about five feet in, there was a cliff that would nearly have prevented anyone from going any further. But I had climbed it plenty of times, and it really wasn't that difficult. With Chris standing just behind me, I reached out to grab onto a bit of jutting rock and lifted my foot onto one of the lower rocks.

 

“Wait, Jonny,” Chris said. I let go of the rocks and turned around to see Chris looking up with a very scared expression. “How are we gonna get up there?”

 

“Well, we have to climb,” I told him. “It's not really hard, though, and I can stay back and let you go first, if you want.”

 

Chris shook his head. “I-I can't.”

 

“What?” I think I laughed a little, which I immediately felt bad about. “It's just a-”

 

“Jonny, you don't understand,” he said pressingly, with his hand over his chest and a most apologetic look on his face, “I can't. I'm sorry.”

 

I took a few steps closer to him, and in a reassuring tone said, “Hey, it's OK.” He looked up at me, and I could tell that he really did feel bad about it.

 

He shrugged his shoulders. “I know somewhere else we could go.”

 

“All right.” He smiled knowing that he hadn't exactly ruined my plans, though as we began walking away I realized that my plans definitely couldn't work now. The overlook would have been so perfect, and I was definitely a pro at climbing up that cliff- but why was I trying to impress Chris? That's just ridiculous.

 

Another few minutes down the road, we came upon another trail. Although it was pretty narrow, I opted to walk alongside Chris rather than behind him for some reason. Every now and then I would kinda bump into him or brush up against his arm. He didn't seem to mind.

 

Then he abruptly stopped walking, and I almost ran into him again. He held out his arms and said, “This is it.”

 

I realized then that my eyes had been glued to the back of his neck. I pulled them away and looked around; it was actually even nicer than the overlook. We were standing on the rocky shore of a small lake, surrounded my giant, towering trees and a few bushes here and there. Chris started walking again, towards a few larger rocks with smooth tops, perfect for sitting. I was sat down beside him in an instant, and as he turned and noticed that I was so close he smiled. It was only a brief smile, but it was... nice.

 

“I walk here a lot,” Chris said, staring out into the lake. “I mean, I've only lived around here for a few weeks, but I think I've spent most of that time here. And in school, of course. And in my room,” he quietly added.

 

“It's really tough, huh? That your mum is so overprotective,” I said. Chris looked over at me with an expression of concern, but all I was really paying attention to was how blue his eyes were. They were really blue.

 

“That's actually, um, something I wanted to talk to you about.” I raised my eyebrows in response, because I honestly wasn't paying attention well enough to vocalize a proper reply. It was like I was in some sort of trance, and it felt weird, but almost exciting at the same time. Seriously, what was wrong with me? “Uh...”

 

Chris stood up and took a few steps, facing the lake. I quickly followed him. “What is it?”

 

Chris sighed, then turned to me. I stood still, waiting for Chris to tell me whatever it was that he had to say.

 

 

1

 

Part 6

 

 

Chris was silent for quite a long time. I could see his eyes start to water, his eyebrows tightly drawn together. I grew almost afraid of what he was going to tell me.

 

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw his hand move. I kept my gaze on his face, but I couldn't help noticing when he started to lift his shirt. My heart started to beat a little faster; it must have been from the fear. I was definitely afraid that something was seriously wrong.

 

Then he was watching me cautiously, standing there with his bare torso exposed. I quickly looked down at the shirt in his hand, then back up his chest. Right in the middle was a long line, a scar. I stared at it for what was probably a really long time before my brain started to work.

 

“Chris...” I had no idea how to finish, or even really start the statement or question or whatever it was supposed to be, but our eyes met again, and Chris seemed to know what I was thinking. He looked rather uncomfortable and self-conscious, though I couldn't say I blamed him.

 

“Ever since I was born, I've had heart p-problems,” he said. “For most of my life, I've been able to just control it with meds.”

 

I wanted to say something, anything, but I was totally speechless. It was almost unfair that this had happened to him, to Chris, the nicest person I had ever known apart from my mum. I wanted to throw my head back and scream “NO!” into the air, I wanted to find some way to make him better, but as I watched him pull another shaky breath into his lungs, I realized that all I really wanted to do was-

 

“But about six months ago I had to have surgery. It wasn't exactly bad, but... you know, my mum will let me do even less now. Which is understandable,” he quietly said. For a few minutes I tried to think of how exactly to react. My mind was like a jumbled mess right now.

 

“Is that why you couldn't... you know, before, with the rocks?” I finally asked. I felt like it was a stupid question with a pretty obvious answer, but it was the best I could come up with.

 

“Yeah. It's actually also why we moved here.” Chris lowered his head, and subsequently his voice. “We weren't exactly poor, but my parents had to pay for the surgery themselves, and even with both of them working it was too much. So they sold our house, and we moved to the cardboard box we live in now.”

 

He sounded ashamed, like he thought it was his fault or something. I wanted to reach out, pull him close and tell him that it was OK, but I couldn't move. “How come you never said anything before?”

 

Chris looked up at me and shook his head. “I realized when we moved here that I could start clean. No one would ever know unless I told them. It was a nice thought, because it seems like whenever anyone finds out all they want to do is tell me to take it easy and ask what they can do for me.” Chris held up his shirt-free hand. “Don't get me wrong, I appreciate that people are so willing to help me, I just wish that I didn't need them to, you know?”

 

“I understand,” I said, even though I knew I couldn't possibly begin to understand what a life such as that was like. I'm not sure that either of us moved, but somehow it seemed like we were closer than we were before. Without even thinking, I raised my hand, and words just spilled from my mouth. “Do you mind i-if I...”

 

“Go ahead,” Chris said, as if my request wasn't absolutely the weirdest thing ever. Then I thought that maybe none of my feelings had been so weird. Chris was certainly acting like it was normal.

 

So I ran my fingers gently down the scar on Chris's chest. It was rough, but the skin around it was so smooth. Though I was watching my hand trail down Chris's skin, I could feel his eyes attached to me. Eventually the scar ended, but like some sort of machine the electricity in my fingers kept my hand going, down Chris's abdomen and over his rib cage.

 

Then my hand was on his back, bringing him closer, and his arms were draped around my shoulders. Our lips met somewhere in the middle, and though I hadn't had much experience in this sort of area, it all seemed so natural. My heart practically exploded in my chest as I felt Chris's tongue with my own, and after a short while it was obvious that the same had happened to him.

 

It was almost like a stabbing sort of pain that I experienced when Chris pulled away rather quickly. But I soon realized what was happening, Chris before me, panting with his eyes closed.

 

“Jonny-” he said, but suddenly whatever he was going to say was overthrown by a bout of anger. His eyes flew open, irises now a scary dark blue, and as he fumbled for words to express his frustration he threw his shirt to the ground. He himself soon followed, as he buckled his legs and buried his head in his hands as he sat on the rocky surface of the ground.

 

I sat down beside him, and moments later he lifted his head, laying two fingers over a spot on his neck. I realized then that he must have been taking his pulse. Although I knew that it could potentially be more harm than help, I slid my hand to Chris's back in an attempt to comfort him. He immediately complied, leaning into my chest and laying his head on my shoulder.

 

“I'm sorry,” he tiredly whispered. I took my other hand and ran it through the curls resting at the top of his head.

 

“Don't be,” I told him. At that moment I nearly hated myself for pretending that I didn't have rather strong feelings for Chris, because not only did I think he could have used someone in the position that I was now to fill, but also because even after a few minutes I had never really been happy like this before in any of my seventeen years on this planet. I couldn't believe I had been missing out for nothing.

 

 

Chapter 5:"Lend me your hand, and we'll conquer them all. But lend me your heart, and I'll just let you fall..."

 

“Well thank you, but I don’t know… its difficult being in the spotlight. I can’t tell you how much I got followed after they found out I called off the engagement. They still never found the whole truth, you know, that he was cheating. I never told anyone that actually, except for my absolute best friend. I don’t think he’s told anyone either.” I played with my napkin on the tray in front of me.

“How’s your love life? Aren’t you married to Gwyneth Paltrow?” I asked, completely forgetting about that prior to asking him.

He looked at me and answered, “Well, we are going through a divorce right now, no one knows it’s happening though, other than my band mates.” He studied the ring on his finger and took it off and put it in his pocket.

“I actually don’t need this on my hand anymore.”

He seemed hurt about it though.

“Did you love her…?” I asked quietly.

“I thought I did. But I just couldn’t say ‘I love you’ anymore to her, and mean it. We became really distant, since we almost never see each other, and we just fell out of love. It’s not a bitter divorce, we just both want each other to be happy.” He explained.

“No, I understand. That’s good then, you know, that the feelings are mutual and you aren’t hurt…”

“Well, I’m not really hurt, because it kind of just happened over a long period of time. We didn’t have much in common though, I think that’s one of the reasons we didn’t last longer.” He continued, “We lasted pretty long for ‘Hollywood relationships’ though.” He said with a laugh.

“Yeah, I know Andrew and I were together for a few years too. I still don’t know what I did wrong.”

He leaned in close to me.

“Erin, don’t ever think that you did anything wrong. You didn’t cheat on him, he cheated on you. He’s the one that’s wrong, not you. Don’t ever forget that.”

I looked up to meet his eyes staring down at me.

I can’t believe I’m about to say this but I feel like kissing him.

It’s like one of those movie moments, where time slows down and a cheesy romantic song comes on from the eighties.

Yeah, that was happening to me right now.

I couldn’t do it though.

“I guess you’re right…” I said as I broke eye contact and backed away before I wound up kissing him.

“I think I’m going to take a nap.” I said as I closed my tray ahead of me and leaned back in my chair.

He reached up and turned off the reading lights for our seats. Guy was passed out by now so he took his book out of his hands and put it in his bag on the floor.

“Here take my blanket.” He said as he opened up the plastic case and covered me with it.

I smiled at him and adjusted my pillow so that I could see him while I was leaning back.

“Thank you, do you have one though?” I asked.

“I’ll just ask the flight attendant for one. You can rest.” He said as he pushed the call button up above him. The attendant came quickly and got him a blanket.

I watched as he opened it and spread it over Guy.

Aww, I said to myself, that’s one of the sweetest thing’s I have ever seen anyone do.

I lifted up the blanket and spread it so that he had part and I had part.

“You really don’t have to do that!” he said shyly.

“Of course I do, don’t be silly.” I replied as I shut my eyes.

I could feel him looking at me though. Like you know when you have that feeling that someone is looking at you?

Yeah, that was happening to me right now.

But I didn’t mind, I liked it, I liked him.

In order to share the blanket, we had to move closer to each other, so I leaned more towards him. I eventually was leaning on his shoulder, and he didn’t mind.

He wound up resting his head on top of mine.

I was so comfortable I fell asleep within what seemed like minutes.

I was later awoken by a bit of turbulence and I realized that Chris had been woken up also.

“We are experiencing minor turbulence, the fasten seatbelt sign has been turned on.”

The seats started shaking and it sent me into panic mode.

“Oh my God, I hate flying so much.” I said as I shifted around in my seat.

Chris leaned over, placed his arm around my shoulder and brought me towards him.

“It’ll be fine. Here.” He lifted up the arm rests that were between us so that there was nothing in between us so that there was more space.

I looked up at him and I scooted a little closer.

He smiled as he held me close to him. He seemed a little nervous though.

“We’re just friends, friends comfort friends all of the time.” I thought to myself.

He smelt very lovely though.

It was dark on the plane now, and mostly everyone was sleeping.

We stayed like this for the rest of the flight, talking and just staying like that.

It was very comfortable too.