First Impressions

‘It’s going to be a good day’, Jack thinks when he opens his eyes. The sun is shining through the window and he doesn’t feel any effects from the beer he had last night (as he expected). The most important reason for thinking this, however, is the fact that his arms are wrapped around Alex affectionately as he’s sleeping. Jack smiles.

Alex’s eyelids flutter, and Jack smiles even more. “Morning, baby,” he says, and Alex’s eyes get wide.

“Did you just call me… baby?”

The good feeling is gone now, and Jack bites his lip. “Uh… yeah…I think I did…”

“Oh…” Jack is expecting Alex to be angry, pissed off… but he gets the opposite reaction. “Is that going to be an everyday thing?”

“What?” Jack asks, completely stunned. He was expecting something more along the lines of ‘get the fuck away from me’.

“You calling me ‘baby’. I like it…”

“You do?”

Instead of verbally answering, Alex sits up and moves so he’s in Jack’s lap. “I like you. A lot.”

Jack stares. ‘I like you. A lot’ rings through his brain and it’s 30 seconds later when he comprehends it.

“Wait, seriously?” He asks, maybe a little bit too loudly, because Alex holds his head with a pained look.

“Don’t talk so loud.”

“Sorry…”

“I’ve liked you for a while, Jack… Like, since before I went out with Martin in 8th grade.”

“Then why did you go out with Martin?”

“Because I didn’t think you were gay… Until recently. I don’t know what it was, but I could just tell all of a sudden that you were.”

Alex speaks quietly and Jack has to strain to hear him.

“So… where does this put us?”

Jack slowly rubs his hands up and down Alex’s arms and Alex shrugs. “It’s up to you.”

“What do you mean?”

“I know what I want. I want to be in a relationship with you.” The words cause Jack’s heart to skip a beat. “But, if you don’t want to be, or you think that it’ll ruin our friendship, then that’s fine. I’m not going to force you into it.”

“I don’t… I want you, Alex.”

“You want me how?”

“I want you to … to be my boyfriend…”

The word ‘boyfriend’ sounds weird to him. He’d never really thought he’d have a boyfriend. But, if his boyfriend is Alex, he’s not about to complain.

“Are you being for real right now?”

“Of course,” Jack says, and he leans up and plants a kiss on Alex’s lips.

He’s not sure, but he thinks that this could be the best day of his life.

**

“There’s a slight problem…” Jack says. He’s sitting in Alex’s car in the school parking lot about 10 minutes before homeroom. They’re going to be late if they don’t hurry.

“…A problem?”

“I’m not ready for people to know.”

Alex drops Jack’s hand and bites his bottom lip. “Why…?”

“I’m just… not. I have to like… mentally prepare myself for that.”

“Oh… fine.”

Alex doesn’t say another word. He opens his door, grabs his backpack and leaves.