Long Time No See

"I'm not going to see you for a week." Leslie said sadly.

"But just think of how much we're going to see each other after that." he smiled and Leslie lay her head on his shoulder. He rested his head on top of hers and Leslie sighed. "What's up?" he asked gently.

"I'm scared, Jonny." she whispered. He pulled her legs up onto his and kissed her head reassuringly, waiting for her to finish. "I've never been on my own, without my parents to call on. I've been in this town my entire life..."

"I went through the exact same thing when I left home," Jonathan explained. "Except I had to do it alone. You've got me for as long as you'll take me." He smiled.

Leslie cuddled into his chest and he nuzzled his face in her hair. They sat like that for a few minutes, then Leslie sat up. He looked at her questioningly, and she kissed him before he could say anything else.

"I'm going to bed." Jonathan followed her upstairs and when she finished in the bathroom, she found him lying with his eyes closed on her bed.

"Hey Toewser, don't you have your own bed? Or a house to go to?" Leslie giggled as Jon's eyes shot open and he looked at her innocently.

"I was planning to leave after making sure my girlfriend had fallen to sleep peacefully. But it seems she doesn't like me here while she's falling asleep..." he raised an eyebrow and Leslie crawled into bed beside him.

"Well," she paused. "I'd prefer for you to stay all night, but you have this little thing called a flight to catch at 5 am."

"I could miss it," Jon grinned. Leslie gave him a look and his face turned serious. "You'll be with me in a week."

"I could come see you at the airpo-" He silenced her with a kiss.

"It's at 5:00 am, I don't think so. I'll see you in a week." He repeated. He stood up and Leslie lay back against her pillows, gazing at him. "Bye, you." He leaned down and kissed her softly before turning off her light and closing the door.

***

A week later, after a tearful goodbye to her parents, Leslie nervously boarded the plane to Chicago. As she sat in her seat by the window, she looked out at her home, Manitoba, and sighed. This was not going to be easy. She spent the plane ride watching movies and trying to get some sleep. She woke - after a restless sleep of about a half hour - to the pilot announcing landing, and glanced out the window. Wow, she thought. Big difference from Winnipeg.

A half hour later, after everyone had exited the plane and Leslie had gotten her bags, she walked out into the busy airport and felt instantly claustrophobic. She looked around anxiously, trying to find a familiar face among the crowd. She was starting to panic when she saw him, waving. She instantly felt better and dropped her bags, running towards him. She squeezed her eyes shut as he wrapped his warm, strong arms around her.

"I missed you." she whispered.

"I missed you too." he whispered into her hair as he hugged her again. "But you might miss your bags too if they get stolen."

Oh, yeah. She blushed, and he followed her back to where she had dropped her bags.

On their way out of the airport, a few people stopped and asked Jonathan for an autograph. When they winked and asked who she was, Jon quickly replied with, "my best friend from university." Leslie felt slightly hurt at that, but didn't protest. She simply smiled and waited patiently as he finished signing.

When they broke away from the crowd, Leslie followed Jon to his car and placed her bags in the trunk. He opened the door for her before jogging over to the drivers side.

Leslie stared at the window as Jon got in the car. As soon as the door closed, Leslie felt his hand on her arm and she turned to face him, surprised. His expression was apologetic as he spoke. "I'm sorry." he intertwined their fingers. "I didn't get a chance to ask you if you wanted to go public with this... With us."

"Why wouldn't I?" she questioned.

Jon shook his head. "If people know we're together, it will be PUBLIC. As in, the world will know."

Leslie still didn't quite understand. "So? Unless you're embarrassed by me-"

"No." he said firmly. "Never. But there will be criticism and girls will hate you."

Leslie smiled a bit. "You think highly of yourself."

He laughed and shook his head. "I didn't mean it like th-"

"Don't worry, Jonny. I just wish you had told me before I decided to come..." she tried to joke, but the expression on his face instantly made her feel bad. Hd let go of her hand and rubbed his forehead.

"I didn't realize it would change anything." he said quietly.

Leslie's hand shot out and took his hand again. "No, no, Jon... I was trying to joke, but it clearly wasn't funny... I'm sorry." she paused and squeezed his hand. "There is nowhere I'd rather be than here with you," she whispered. When he didn't turn to look at her, she turned his face towards hers with her hand. "Nowhere," she repeated. She searched his eyes and he surprised her by kissing her. Her hand dropped from his face and she smiled.

"How did I go a week without that?"

Jon smiled, shaking his head as he started the car. "Let's head to my - our apartment."

Leslie smiled at him and nodded, but couldn't fight the nerves. She was about to be sharing an apartment with a boy she had been dating for a little over a month. Sure, the situation was different, but it still made her nervous.

As they pulled up to the high-rise apartment building, Leslie's eyes scanned the windows, wondering which one belonged to Jon. She got out and grabbed one of her suitcases, while Jon grabbed the other, reaching for her hand with his free one. He brought it up to his mouth and kissed her hand before leading her into the lobby.

They reached the 10th floor and they walked down the hallway. Jon stopped at a door and pulled out his key, pushing open the door and revealing his apartment.

It wasn't as big as Leslie had expected, but it was definitely bigger than normal apartments. The walls were bare, and the floor was hardwood. It was cozy and it was nice. Leslie turned to where Jonathan was waiting for her reaction.

She put her bag down and wrapped her arms around his neck, burying her face in his shoulder. "I love it."

"Good."

Leslie looked up at him. "This is crazy, you know that?"

Jonathan brushed a piece of hair out of her eyes and nodded. "I know."

Leslie laughed and pulled away so she could look around.