⇾ 𝐍𝐎𝐓 𝐅𝐀𝐃𝐄 𝐀𝐖𝐀𝐘 | 𝐂𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐜 𝐑𝐨𝐜𝐤 𝐈𝐦𝐚𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬

Another Sick Twist of Events (M. Nesmith)

1959

You'd been best friends with Michael Nesmith since you had moved to Texas in first grade. Mike had been your first friend after the terrifying event. You'd shown up crying and Mike was the only person that came to comfort you. He'd shown you around all day and introduced you to his friends too. He'd made you feel like everything was going to be alright. And it was, in the end.

You'd never felt anything romantic for him, really. He'd always just been your best friend. As you'd grown older, you'd remained friends, despite what everyone had expected, but you now had other friends too.

They always teased you about Mike. They always pointed out silly things he did that made them think he had taken a fancy to you. You dismissed it every time, saying that was absurd.

You were starting high school this year. Your older sister told you that people changed in high school and that made you worry about your friendship with Mike. Would he forget you?

You often voiced your concern for the upcoming school year to him and he always put a hand on your shoulder and told you everything was going to be alright. He'd always done this. You stressed about everything and he was always there to tell you everything was okay. It was routine; meant to be.

As the year began, you found yourself feeling more and more alone with each passing day. Mike had only one class with you: drama. You both had lunch together before that. You barely had anyone in your other classes. You found yourself hating the atmosphere more every moment.

In another sick twist of events, something had changed with Mike. Maybe it was your wild mind playing a pesky trick on you, but it seemed that every time you saw him, your heart gave a little lovesick flutter.

"Hey, y/n!" Mike, along with his friend, Charlie, sat down across the table from you at lunch.

Mike had an apple in his right hand, dressed in a patterned button-up shirt paired with some plain jeans. He had a beanie tucked in his left hand. Hats weren't allowed in the school building.

"Hey, Mike," you said with a happy smile, thankful to see a familiar class. Charlie had a lunch tray that boasted only a small bowl of ice cream and a sandwich of some sort.

I didn't have a lunch. I never ate lunch here. I didn't like the school's food and never had enough time in the mornings to bring anything. That was okay with me. I didn't mind.

Mike didn't like it. He always found a way to try and get me to eat something. I always insisted it was fine, but he never bought into it. He was too kind-hearted to let me starve in peace.

Today, he took the bowl of ice cream off the tray and slid it across the table towards me, pulling a spoon from his pocket. I reached out quickly to catch the dish before it went crashing to the floor and shook my head at him unbelievingly. He extended the spoon to me with a lopsided grin. "Eat," he said teasingly.

I rolled my eyes before taking the spoon from his hand and unwrapping the plastic it was encased in. I leaned my head against my hand as I took a small bite. "I told you not to think about me," I grumbled.

"But you like it?" Charlie asked with a knowing smile.

"You're in on it too?" I asked incredulously.

He shrugged. "I'm just along for the ride."

As you kept picking at the ice cream, you heard Charlie tell Mike that he was going to find some other friends, and a moment later, he was gone. You looked up sheepishly and saw Mike staring at you with a dopey, smug smile on his face.

"What're you staring at?" you asked amusedly.

"You," he answered bluntly and you looked down quickly, blushing.

"Why's that?" you squeaked.

"Because you're eating the food even though you don't want to."

You frowned. "Only because you want me to."

"I like you," he said suddenly, looking down when he realized what he'd just said. You didn't say anything. You were too stunned to think straight. "Would you ever come down to the drive-in with me?" he then asked awkwardly.

After another moment of stunned silence, you broke into a wide smile.

"Of course I would like to," you responded confidently and his head shot up, a smile prominently placed on it.