The Bird and the Worm

((Brian’s POV))

I stared through the screen as though we weren’t separated by three thousand miles, and I bit my lip as I came to that realization.

“Brian,” she said softly, offering the gentlest smile I’d ever seen. Her eyes were twinkling again, and they so much resembled the way they’d been at the café that my breath hitched a little in my throat before returning to normal. “Not many guys take my breath away like you do.” I saw the flush of red overtake her cheeks, and a small smile overtook my features. She said something about my smile being flawless, and I nearly scoffed. Her opinion of me was much too high. “You know that? Every time I even think about kissing you or touching you, I get this stupid red in my face and-“

Someone in the background interrupted her. She offered me a short smile, and I sighed. Her friend, the one that had practically set us up, distracted her attention, and Heather herself was crossing her arms, huffing and rolling her eyes a lot. Her eyes looked a lot different than they had a second ago, and her voice was slowly growing louder and louder. She got off the bed, probably so that I wouldn’t have to see her like this, and her friend tried to calm her down in the background.

Then suddenly, there was a phone conversation going on, and Heather had left the room. I could barely hear her voice now, and I laced my hands together over my abs as I waited for her.

“-but why didn’t you tell Dad?” “No, Mom, nothing has changed in the few minutes I’ve been home…what? I thought you…” “You were supposed to be on my side. You were supposed to help me- no, Mom, you can’t just do this to me right now.” “I’m talking to him at the moment, that’s why, and you’re really cutting into his time.” “Mom, I-“ Her voice, now sounding really shaken, seemed so close yet really far away, and I couldn’t believe this. “I’m marrying him, whether you and Dad like it or not.” “Back together? Oh good. I’m so glad he’s won you over.” “But my side, Mom, what about that, huh? I don’t want to be alone again.” “Brian is my fiancé. Brian is everything right now. And guess what. He’s in fucking Florida, just as miserable as I am. So don’t try to sell me that ‘but your father’s back, so I’m milking him for all it’s worth’ bullshit.” She’d never sounded like this before. “No. As long as you’re being like this, you are decidedly not invited.”

After that, she said something to Gina about taking the phone, and she crawled back onto her bed, pulling the laptop back to where it had been before.

“Jesus, Heather, I thought you’d…”

“So did I,” she said softly, her eyes red, the twinkle gone, just like that. I reached out, like I could touch her or something, and rested my hand on the screen. “I wish you were here, Brian, I really do.”

“Heather?”

She sniffled and wiped her eyes. “Yeah?”

“Why don’t…you know what. Forget what your mother wants. Forget what your father convinced her in a very short amount of time. Just…”

“Just…?”

My eyes flashed up to meet hers, and she seemed to be on the same wavelength. “Marry me,” I breathed, and the words came out like a foreign language, kicking and screaming all the way. Her eyes widened, and her gaze flickered to her left hand.

“But…”

“When I get back, it’ll be five months and…”

“Brian.”

“-you’ll be living with me anyways-“

“Brian.”

“-and I love you a lot, and-“

“Brian.”

I fell silent.

“Did you just propose to me?”

I nodded.

“But you’ve known me for three days.”

I smiled. “Actually, in a way, I’ve known you since you sent in that video. And I-“

“Love me.” The words came out as though she was astonished, like she didn’t believe me, no matter what.

“Didn’t you believe me when I said ‘anything’?”

“Brian-“

“Marry me.”

Her cheeks flushed with the familiar red, and even though her eyes were still filled to the brim with tears, they still shone in ways Michelle’s never had, and I touched my hand to the screen. She reached for me, too, and it was almost as though our palms met. She seemed to be studying me for a moment, watching me, checking me for lies, but after a moment, she whispered, “Okay.” Her fingertips curled slightly against the screen. “Yes. Whatever.”

Just another bird chasing a worm.

“The second you’re back, after you give me that kiss.”

In the background- “Heather? Another phone call.” She offered me a soft smile.

“I have to go,” she said softly, and then she leaned forward and pressed her lips to the screen. I bit my lip. “I swear I’ll be on the same time tomorrow, if that’s what you want.” I nodded. “Okay. G’bye Brian. I love you.” A smile, and then the screen went black.

……At least that was what should have happened. That was what I would have loved to have said, but when Heather climbed back onto the bed, her eyes still slightly red, and pulled the laptop back to its previous position, I knew that ‘marry me’ wasn’t an option. The scene in my head was right- I’d only known her for three days, and that was not enough for something like that. We’d gotten past all the hard stops- the people that ‘mattered’ knew we were together, regardless of what they thought we were up to- and now, we just had to get closer so that we could stand to live together in five months.

I touched my hand to the screen, curling my fingers against whatever it was that the screen was made of, and she did the same. It was almost as though our palms met. I shivered with the wave of déjà vu that was only there to force me to do something I would most likely end up regretting.

((Heather’s POV))

“Brian?” He sighed, and his eyes couldn’t turn themselves away from the screen. “Are you okay?”

Another sigh, and he ran his other hand through his hair, the one on the screen slowly sliding. With a skipping heartbeat, I wished that I could catch it, but I realized that this was only a webcam conversation, and I stopped myself from falling forward onto something that wasn’t him. “Yeah, I guess. I just don’t like seeing you like this.”

“This?” I scoffed, wiping quickly and efficiently at my eyes, ignoring the fact that they were probably still a little red. “You should’ve seen me when I moved out.” I offered a small smile, hoping he’d laugh just a little at my attempt to be funny, but I only received a short smile in return, and I knew it was forced.

“You know what I mean,” he said softly. My stomach churned a little- I couldn’t help but keep thinking back to the way he’d made me feel backstage three days ago. “I still think your mother’s wrong, Heather. I mean, I know you went out and talked to her earlier, but…she just doesn’t get it. She doesn’t get you.”

“And you do?”

He half-smiled. “Yeah.” A short laugh followed that one word. “Enough to know that you’re just trying to be happy.” The smile grew slightly, and this time, it looked more sincere, like he was coming on to something, figuring the drama out. “Do you think you get me?” he questioned.
I shook my head.

“You don’t think so, huh,” he said with a small chuckle, and I gave him the warmest smile I could manage- I could see the way it affected him when his smile changed once again.
“Just another bird chasing a worm, right?”

He shook his head. “No. Not entirely.” I quirked an eyebrow at him. “I kind of like this worm…it doesn’t look like she’s going anywhere for a while. Not until I can hold her again, at least.” The warmth of his smile kept me from saying something that would probably have seriously wounded his ego, and at that point, I just wanted him to be right there so that we could be much more personal. Computers didn’t allow for much intimacy.

Somebody spoke to him in the background, and the voice was soft, very unlike Gina’s grand entrances. I heard a few words pass his lips, and he nodded a few times, his eyes flickering over to me for a second while his smile continued to grow.

He was only distracted for a few moments, and then the soft voice disappeared. “Sorry about that. Vengeance just needed to talk about something.” I nodded. “No inquiries?”

I shook my head, smiling slightly. “Nah, it didn’t seem like it was something I needed to know. Besides, I’m not feeling ridiculously curious enough to pry into other conversations. Otherwise, I would have been staring you down intensely through this little majigger here.” I tapped the webcam a few times, and he just gave me the same smile as before. “What? Should I be curious?”

No sigh, no shaking of the head. Now, thanks to his listlessness, I was curious. Just the same smile as ever, those pearly white teeth grinning at me like I was the coolest and most important thing he’d ever seen, and then he simply murmured, “I love you.” He spoke as though I’d changed his world. That wasn’t fair. The smile on his lips and the way his eyes twinkled, well Jesus Christ, it was like he was ready to ask me to marry him or something, and we’d known each other for three days.

It wasn’t fair. I wasn't supposed to feel this way about him, and he wasn't supposed to feel this way about me. We'd kissed. Big deal. We'd had sex on his bunk because that was the only place we had privacy. Big deal. Why was I the one he'd decided to love? I knew I was nothing special. My mother had spent eighteen years making sure I knew that, despite the fact that she was not the only one affected by my father leaving time and time again.

"Brian?"

"Yeah?"

"Why me?" He raised an eyebrow. "I mean, I know why you chose my video and I think I know why you pretty much did everything I wanted without a single word of complaint, but...love wasn't on my list, you know?"

He laughed slightly. "Is that what you're worried about?" I bit my lip. "Honestly, I don't know why it had to be you, but...you came along at the right time, and, well...one second was all it took." One kiss. I guess he was right, though.

"I miss you, kiddo." I smiled. "I have to go, though. I love you, alright?"

I smiled. "I love you too," I said softly. "Be on tomorrow." He nodded. "Sleep well, Brian."

"You too." There was a short smile, and then the webcam conversation was over. The screen went blank, and I closed my webcam, closed the messaging system, and then shut my laptop. "You too." I sighed, and then I slipped out of my bed, picking up my cellphone and staring at the wallpaper.

"Heather? Are you okay?"

I nodded as I seated myself on the couch, keeping my gaze on the television screen, biting my lip as a tear fell. "A lot of things are being thrown at me, that's all."

"Yeah, I know, but at least Gates seems to want to be there for you." She smiled. "Or should we call him Brian?" I shot a glare in her direction. "Alright. Hot stuff seems to be attached to you, so be happy for that. Your mother, well. I don't know her that well, but you don't have to let her run your life, you know?" I nodded again. "Now. Are we going to watch a movie with a ridiculously hot man in it, or am I going to have to beat some normal hormones into your unfairly scrawny ass?"

"Thanks, Gina."

"You bet, bitch, but now you owe me." I sighed. "Is Zacky still single?" I raised a questioning eyebrow. "You know what." She pressed the play button with obvious frustration. "Hot guitarist plus my bed doesn't seem so bad, and you should try it, too."

I sighed again, reaching for a fistful of popcorn and popping a few pieces into my mouth. Gina would never change.