tyler's point of view
at lunch on monday, i recount the events of my spring break in a hushed conversation with sydney and emily.
sydney wipes a few fake tears once she gets past her shock and her mouth isn't hanging open in disbelief anymore.
"i am so happy for you, t," she says, smiling wide at me. "my little slut has grown up so fast." she giggles.
"it was one thing to kiss him or hang out with him, but how am i supposed to go to class knowing you guys fucked? that part did not process when you texted us. i am going to have to see this man in like twenty minutes. jesus christ." emily shakes her head, her cheeks flushed from the topic of sex in general.
"emily, shut up." sydney laughs, still lighthearted. "we see your boyfriend around school all the time!"
"it's different..." emily sighs dramatically, pretending to be upset.
"i don't have to talk about that stuff anymore if you don't want me to, but i will say i am very happy and it's going really well," i tell them.
"we support you, ty-guy. emily is just awkward." sydney reaches across the table to pat my cheek gently.
"yes, exactly," emily agrees.
"i love you guys. you have to stay supportive until we get married so i'm not at the altar alone. i already have no family." i nudge emily in the side with my elbow.
"okay, but you can only use the no family card one more time this week." emily pretends to glare at me but a smile cracks her facade easily.
"deal."
"and you have to throw away our trash," sydney adds, sliding hers toward me.
"don't i always?" i say, already gathering it all.
i stand and take our trash and then say goodbye to sydney, who hugs me tightly.
"i'm proud of you. and i'm happy for you," she says, patting my back before pulling away. "i'll see you both later."
when emily and i are on our own route to class, i slow down and wait for her to match my pace as we cross the cafeteria.
"look, em, if it really makes you uncomfortable, i can start, like... not talking about it. really," i offer.
the last thing i want is for any of this to have a negative impact on my friendships. sydney and emily are so, so important to me and i hate the idea of making them uncomfortable.
"no, ty, i love seeing you happy. i promise. we graduate in a few months and i won't feel so awkward then anyway. i'm sorry if i've made you feel like you can't talk to me," she says, a small, apologetic smile on her face.
"you don't have to apologize. you know i love you," i tell her.
"i know. i love you too," she returns.
we walk into josh's classroom a moment later and emily nods to him.
"hey, mr. dun," she says, her smile now close-lipped and a bit more awkward than usual.
"good afternoon, emily, tyler." he smiles back, warm and welcoming as always.
the classroom fills slowly and once we're all seated, josh stands in front of his desk, leaning back onto it slightly.
"it's nice to see you all again," he starts. "did everyone have a good break? anyone do anything interesting?"
a few people answer but i can't be bothered to pay attention. we're in the home stretch now with only a couple months left until graduation. i probably won't see many of these people after that. i don't really care what they did over spring break.
"well, i'm glad the general consensus is that break was good. i hope everyone got plenty of rest and all that nice stuff. there's only a few weeks left and we have two assignments before your final. the due dates are on the board in case you've forgotten. i know i'm not your only class and that you've likely got other tests you need to study for more than mine. so, use this time how you see fit. that's pretty much how the rest of the semester will go, but we can start watching movies on fridays or something if you guys want?
"i've got a lot going on in my other classes, but you guys are seniors. as much crap as teachers here like to talk about how strict college professors are and all that, i promise you'll be fine. most of you anyway."
the class laughs at his joke and he seems proud of himself for it, which i find adorable.
"i'm kidding, i'm kidding. i'm just saying, try not to stress too much. finish up this year strong and go forth and conquer, or whatever i'm supposed to say."
i decide to spend my time reading a book i stole from josh's because he said it was one of his favorites. i don't have any unfinished assignments and i study pretty much every day anyway.
i feel my phone buzz in my pocket and take it out to see who texted me. i'm not surprised when i see it's josh.
josh: is that my book?
tyler: yes. i'm borrowing it (without permission).
josh: so you stole it?
tyler: nooo, i borrowed it (without telling you).
josh: i'm just messing with you, babyboy. you know i don't care. how are you liking it?
tyler: i just wanted to see what the fuss was about. it's alright so far.
josh: it has a shit ending.
tyler: then why is it your favorite..?
josh: you'll have to read it and see
tyler: that was very mr. dun of you to say
josh: is that a bad thing? i am still literally your teacher and we are actively in class right now.
tyler: not a bad thing. you're good at what you do. but if we're in class, shouldn't we not be texting?
josh: meh. i just wanted to talk to you. staring at my phone makes it easier to not stare at you the whole time.
tyler: maybe i'll stare at you instead then.
josh: no-
after i read the last message, i look up at him. he looks up to meet my eyes after a few seconds when he realizes i'm not going to text him back. i can tell he's trying to hold back a smile, but he can't help the slight blush rising to his cheeks.
i bite my lip to try and keep from laughing and break the contact to text him again.
tyler: looks like i made you blush over there, mr. dun.
josh: hush. you blush all the time!
tyler: yeah, but it's cute when you do it. i just look dumb.
josh: absolutely not.
tyler: i miss you
josh: im right here?
tyler: noo you know what i mean :( i want to hug you and kiss you and sit on your lap and play with your hair
josh: you could come over tonight?
tyler: i work :/
josh: later this week?
tyler: wouldn't miss it for the world <3
(an: filler chapter this time! the next one is. not. i wrote that note when i originally wrote this chapter and i have no idea what the next one is about. anyway. we're caught up again! thank you for your patience! 10 chapters left.)
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clementine // joshler
Fanfiction"i don't need anyone. i just need everyone and then some." - in which tyler is a senior in high-school who's been living on his own for two years and josh is a teacher fresh out of college who's just gotten out of a four-year relationship. - #1 in t...
