Everything I Never Told You ( Conan Gray )

LXXXII. Plot Twist

"How many people have you dated before me?" Conan asked suddenly. 

"So, it's serious now, huh," Heath said, looking at him. He looked mildly bemused as to why he would ask that. 

"I just wanna know," he shrugged over Heath's chest where his head was. 

"I have been on seven dates with girls that all ended very badly. No kidding. One of them ended in me being slapped because I asked for ex-boyfriend's number-"

"Wait, why would you ask that?!" Conan blurted, controlling the urge to laugh. Heath didn't seem to find it funny. "'Hey, I know I just met you and stuff but I can't help but feel strongly about- the fact that you might me get your ex-boyfriend's number.'" 

"I did get it, though," Heath said, his glinting with a brief bit of amusement, when Conan looked up. "It wasn't a complete loss but I didn't have the courage to text him and by the time I worked up the nerve, he had moved out and I liked someone else."

"Julian?"

"Yeah, him," Heath said, not sad but happily, like some old man talking about the good old days. "I suppressed my feelings for him because I  didn't think I would get the scholarship. I was official with Caroline once."

"Caroline calls you her awakening," Conan blurted and immediately regretted it. God, it a little sounded offensive. She realized she didn't like men when she dated Heath? Yikes. Well, she never liked men so it wasn't particularly about him. But what if he didn't like him saying that? He checked his expression. It seemed...okay.

"She was mine so..." His voice trailed and Conan laughed. "The feelings were mutual. Actually, there were no feelings involved."

"Is this trauma discussion supposed to be funny?"

"How about you tell me about your terrible dates and find out?" Heath said, the smile clear in his voice. 

"My worst date wasn't even a date," said Conan. "I guess I can't even call it a date then. I told my band guitarist Robin that I wanted to discuss some stuff. She came and she literally looked like she had just woken up and I felt overdressed. Before I could even say anything she literally said this: Hey Conan, can we not eat here? My ex-girlfriend works here and I swear to fucking god she might poison me."

Heath laughed lightly, almost a light giggle. "Finish it."

"I just gave the dumbest look ever. I was so shocked because she never mentioned she liked girls. I guess you don't really put that on your resume. I still had the faintest hope that she might be bi or something or at least into weird guys. She wasn't."

"Did she ever find out?"

"No and if she did, she would probably tease me even when my kids have kids of their own," he said grimly. 

"Wanna know something funny?" he asked. He seemed like he was laughing on the inside. "The girl I asked for her ex-boyfriend's number? It was Alina and-."

"She slapped you?" Conan spoke in surprise, wondering why he found that funny. 

"That's not the funny part," he said as if reading his thoughts. "The guy whose number I wanted was you."

Plot twist.

"But I never dated Alina," Conan said and then realized that there was something bigger in his words. "You had a crush on ME?! In high schoOL?!"

"I did have a crush on you. I though you liked and her were clearly dating," Heath admitted and Conan looked at him to check if he were joking. He wasn't. It was the truth. Heath liked him in high school. "I thought you were cute and I liked you hair a lot. I almost sent you a first text reading: hey, what hair products do you use? The only reason I hung around Alina was you, Conan. I hoped that someday you would at least say hi with a smile on your face, instead of a frown." 

"This is so eye opening," Conan said, his head spinning with the information. He regretted being mean to him. He had once tried to get him to quit gym and said a lot of crap about him to Alina. God, he felt ashamed of all the shit he had pulled for Alina who he didn't even like anymore. "Did you seriously like me?"

"I watched all of your YouTube videos in school. I think that's where it started. I tried to get a guy in the office department your schedule to match mine, like at least four common classes."

Conan felt a burst of serotonin to know he had tried so hard, yet a rush of disappointment that he had hated him because Alina liked him. 

"You stopped uploading after a while and I started dating Julian. I completely forgot about you until you texted me that day." Heath spoke with a bit of sadness in his voice. 

"I am so glad I did," Conan said. "I am still stoked you liked me."

"I am too," Heath laughed, his voice filled with pleasure. 

"I was always so mean to you," Conan said, feeling a sense of guilt though his previous sentence was not supposed to be offensive. "I hate myself."

"No," he said, with a bit of force. "You were great person. That's why liked you. And wanting me dead? I honestly wanted Alina dead because you liked her."

"It's weird how the tables turn," the other said, reaching out to kiss him. Heath leaned down, catching his lips with his own. 

"Music?" he asked, putting in an earpod in his own ear. 

"Yes, please," he said. 

"You're a terrible singer," Conan laughed as he sung along to the music. Sometimes he wondered if he did that to make him laugh or if he was actually that bad. He smiled wider and continued butchering the song. If Conan were to talk to his younger self, he would have said, 'Why would you date someone who is butchering an Adele song?' Yes, Heath did not have a chance in singing but his cute facial expressions, his terrible high notes and notably adorable voice that sucked at singing was...

He is not perfect. No wonder I am in love with him.

"We can't all be winners. You sound ethereal." Heath paused.  

"Validation was needed," said Conan and kissed him for the millionth time.