The Nerd and The Frog

Boy in the Woods

It took a few seconds for things to properly register in Alan's mind after hearing Daniel speak. He actually wasn't too sure he heard him correctly, blinking a few times as he slowly came to his senses. "I'm... I'm sorry. Could you repeat that?" Alan stated, refusing to believe what he heard, as he was certain his mind was being delusional.

Daniel, sitting where he was and making direct eye contact as he kept a rather calm expression, spoke once again. "I said that I like you, Alan Wilson."

This time it came clearly and Alan felt as if the world had stopped for just a moment, everything else seeming to fade into the background as he stared back at Daniel. He was at a loss of words, not seeming to be able to form a simple sentence. A wave of emotions ran through him, unable to contain them as they showed across his face. A mixture of shock, confusion, joy, and fear came and went as everything had finally settled and he was able to accept what Daniel had just proclaimed. At that moment, the only thing Alan was able to do was smile in relief, but then shed tears immediately after, covering his face in his hands.

"W-what did I do? Did I say something wrong? Why are you crying?" Daniel asked, not expecting such a reaction as he quickly slid across the bench, reaching to carefully grab onto Alan's wrists. He could actually feel Alan's body shaking when he touched him, growing even more concerned.

"I'm.... I'm so happy..." Alan said between deep breaths, trying to calm himself down as he spoke into his hands.

"Goodness, Moogle... " Daniel said with a sigh, gently pulling Alan's hands away from his face. "I thought I said something bad..."

"Sorry... I just... I didn't know what you were going to say. I was scared..." Alan admitted with a soft laugh, wiping his face with a hand. "Last time this happened, it... it ended so damn badly..."

"How do you think I felt saying that?" Daniel said with a laugh of his own. "It was... hard. This is the first time I've admitted to liking someone, especially someone I've liked for a while."

Alan frowned, looking up at Daniel. "For a while? What do you mean by that?"

Daniel cleared his throat softly, averting his gaze elsewhere, however he gently held onto Alan's hand as he spoke. "It's... complicated, really."

"I got all morning." Alan teased with a smirk, only to see Daniel laugh.

"Well... I'll admit, that when we were in my car and I asked to see you without your glasses, I was immediately into you." Daniel exclaimed as he leaned back onto the bench, his gaze drifting off towards the fountain. "But, I recalled what Thomas told me about you being straight when I got your number from him, so I wasn't going to get myself into an odd situation. That, and I wasn't  really interested at that time. It wasn't until the car ride that I found myself attracted to you."

"Was it... because you didn't find me attractive... due to my glasses or nerdy style?" Alan asked, hesitantly.

Daniel shook his head to deny that statement. "That wasn't it... again, it's complicated."

Alan had to tell himself to not speak anymore, as he was trying to understand how all of this came together.

"When you mentioned that time, my mind immediately recognized you." Daniel replied. "I remember you from that time when we were little. That time... that you mentioned in the hospital."

Everything came together in Alan's mind when he heard those words, those emotions from before slowly starting to resurface. "Wait... wait a minute... you mean to tell me, you've liked me since the first time we ever met?"

Daniel kept his gaze on the fountain, but it was clear that he was rather embarrassed as his face began to slowly turn red as he stayed silent.

"This is... this is unreal." Alan stated, not helping but to laugh in joy and disbelief. "Daniel... I don't understand. Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"I didn't know your name, Alan. That, and I wasn't entirely sure it really was you. That time we met, it was just the two of us in the woods. You were pretty damn hysterical because you were lost and you couldn't see anything. We never found your glasses that day and I only remembered your face without glasses. You're a totally different person without glasses." Daniel spoke with sincerity. "Do you remember when you told me at my house that you actually used to live near here when you were younger?"

Alan nodded quickly, recalling the conversation.

"Do you recall me asking about when you lived here? Around what time frame or grade?" Daniel asked, looking over to Alan as he did so.

"I... do." Alan answered, slowly beginning to piece things together.

"It hit me then that it was you. You were that little boy that I found lost and crying in the woods near my house." Daniel spoke with a smile. "That little boy that I ended up randomly kissing..."

"...because you were trying to get me to stop crying and that was the only way you knew how to do it." Alan added with a smile of his own, his cheeks not helping but to redden in color as he did so.

"Hey, I saw it on TV, ok?" Daniel joked lightly.

"I mean... it worked. I certainly shut up." Alan replied with a laugh.

"Looking back on it now, that was totally out of line and wrong of me. I did not get your consent to do that and I am truly sorry." Daniel stated, a serious look on his face as he did so.

"I forgive you, Daniel. Seriously. Not gonna lie, it helped me realize that I was into boys." Alan teased, only to see Daniel give a look of guilt. "It's fine! I know... you meant me no harm, really. I know you were just trying to help. An odd way to try and help, but you meant no ill will, so I forgive you." he proclaimed, squeezing Daniel's hand as he did so.

"When I took you back out to the main road outside of the woods, your group of friends had come running up to you and pretty much took you home immediately. So, I never got your name, or knew where you lived." Daniel continued. "I remember one of them asking how I found you, and I told them you were just crying in the middle of the woods. That's it."

"I think... your mom called out for you before we left and you ran off after that. So, I... remembered your name. Granted, I'm nearsighted as hell, so when your face was close to mine, I could clearly see you. So... I mean... I was crushing pretty hard after that." Alan admitted with a shrug. "But, you didn't remember or recognize me after that, so I just assumed you forgot about me."

"I'm... really sorry. I feel pretty horrible about that." Daniel replied, holding onto Alan's hand tightly. "All I could recall was what you looked like without glasses..."

"It's ok. Now that I know that I'm a completely different person without them, I should just stop wearing them." Alan proclaimed with a smile.

"So... what... what do we do from here?" Daniel asked, curious.

"I... don't know. I mean... that's something we need to discuss more." Alan spoke, uncertain of what to do next.

"Well... I have to tell someone that I'm not going to homecoming with them." Daniel stated with a small sigh, pulling out his phone.

It was then that Alan realized that Mika was waiting to hear back from Daniel, as she asked him to take her to homecoming. Without warning, Alan reached over and grabbed Daniel's phone from his hand. "Hang on there, Tidus!" Alan yelled, holding the phone tightly. "Don't do that just yet."

"The hell, Moogle?" Daniel asked, perplexed.

"Long story, Daniel. It's a very long story... but I'm going to need you to trust me on this." Alan replied, before he handed him back his phone. "By the way... can I talk to your mom?"