-number neighbor-

23 - a girl a gay and a they

my eyes widened. that was certainly not the answer i had been expecting.

"you- you liked him?" i questioned slowly.

he lets out a dry laugh, "was it not obvious? i've known him since second grade. i was bound to catch feelings along the way."

delilah lets go of my hand and slowly walks over to jakes. picking it up and giving it a light squeeze.

"does he know?" they asked quietly. not wanting to push to far.

after a moment he says, "yea, yea i told him last year."

i paused, giving him a moment, "and what did he say?"

"what you'd expect. that he was straight. unfortunately enough for me. but that he didn't care. not one bit."

he pauses for a minute, "he's a great guy. doesn't care who i like, whether it's guys girl, or a fucking fox animation."

"why are you telling me this?" i asked, "i only met you a few days ago."

he gives me a soft smile, "beaches i know your a good person ava. and i know that you like him. you deserve someone like him. someone who can make you happy."

"but i can't. i'm not strong enough to go through a rejection again. mentally i'd be fucked to say the least."

"but that's the thing ava, you know how he let me down, as your phrasing it?"

"how?" i asked skeptically.

he chuckled, "i believe his exact words were something along the lines of, you know i love you man, but i just can't love you like that. it's mentally impossible. not that i blame you of course for liking me. i mean, have you met me?"

"he didn't care i liked him, he was just glad to have me as a friend. we never lost contact, and i'm still friends with him. and you could be too."

he waits a moment,

"ava if you tell him, nothing will change. either you get a boyfriend, or you keep a friendship. there's no wrong options here. you have nothing to lose."

i sighed. thinking it over.

"and how exactly, would i go about telling him?" i asked slowly.

delilahs face lit up with a smile. "ok! this is where i come in"

i was sitting on the edge of my bed, my head in my hands, when delilah came over to me. they knelt down in front of me, and grabbed my fire arms, pulling my arms away from my face, forcing me to look her in the eye.

"do it your own way. make it speacial to you. don't do what other people do, be your own person. because you ava," she smiles, "are beautiful. and special. and an amazing person. any person who breaks your heart with have a very nasty day. courtesy of me."

i let out a laugh, and feel back down into my bed. looking up at my ceiling covered in a bunch of random shit. it speaks to me.

"delilah, thank you." i say in the most genuine tone i could muster.

"any time love," they say softly.