autumn |KARL JACOBS X FEMALE OC|

~walk~

autumn 2013

it was a cool autumn morning, the air was crisp and chilly. karl and claire walked side by side through the woods. just minutes earlier luke and jess had been with them but decided it was too cold to continue, so they went back. claire and karl decided to stay out longer.

the thought of this thrilled 11-year-old claire. her feelings for karl were still going strong, and the prospect of getting some alone time with him was exciting to her.

"you look really cold." karl pointed out. "you sure you don't wanna head back?"

the truth: claire was, in fact, freezing. she had on only a thin sweater (a mistake) and was trying to hide the fact that she was shivering. even though she was cold, she would never pass up the chance to spend some alone time with karl.

the stupid things people will do for their crushes.

"no, i'm good." claire lied.

karl eyed her again. he stared at her for a moment and visibly made a decision. "here." he said, unzipping his coat and shrugging it off. "i have a really warm sweater underneath. you can use my jacket."

claire felt suddenly guilty. "are you sure? i don't want you to be cold."

"yes, i'm sure." he insisted.

claire pulled on the too-big jacket and hugged it tight against her. it smelt like him.

"thanks karl." she said, smiling up at him.

they walked a little longer and decided to sit down for a bit. claire sat as close to him as she could without seeming too obvious. there was something about him that drew her in. she couldn't name it or explain it, but she had always been drawn to him.

they sat on a fallen log and talked for a while. karl made her laugh the whole time, his giggle so contagious. they talked about tv shows and video games.

"who's your favourite one direction member?" claire asked him.

"i don't think i know them well enough." he replied. "describe them to me."

claire smiled. "niall horan is the one with the blonde hair. he's really funny and sweet."

"okay. who else?"

"zayn is a little more shy, but he can be really funny too. and he has a great voice. he sings most of the high notes in their songs."

karl nodded, concentrating.

"harry and louis are best friends and they're super funny together. they're definitely my favourite, but i think i like louis better. then liam is the sensible one, i guess."

"got it." karl said. he tilted his head and thought about it. "i think niall is my favourite." he decided.

"that's a great choice."

"do you like anyone?" karl asked so suddenly that claire hardly processed the question at first.

her heart skipped a beat and she became very nervous. ". . . umm. do you?"

karl didn't look at her. "yes, i do."

"well, so do i."

"who?" he asked, somewhat eagerly.

claire panicked. she wasn't ready for him to know, she wanted to keep it a secret. and what if he didn't like her back? what if he told jess and luke and they made fun of her for the rest of their lives? what if things got really awkward between them? claire decided the risk was too high and that she wouldn't tell him.

claire looked at him with a teasing grin. "louis tomlinson."

karl furrowed his brows. "is that the one direction guy?"

"yes." claire smiled triumphantly, relieved to have an easy out on the question he had asked.

"claire, that doesn't count. i meant someone you know personally-"

before he could finish, claire sprung up and began walking. "come on, let's keep going."

karl followed, not pressing the question any further. 

claire was glad her secret was still safe. karl said he likes someone, she thought. but what were the chances it was her who he liked? very low, she decided.

so for now, claire would be content with being friends with karl. she didn't want to ruin anything if he liked another girl.

little did she know, karl did like claire. and he was just about to finally tell her.