It All Started with a Beanie

(35)

"Parsons?" I call out as I enter the open doorway. A small gasp escapes my lips as I look around at the walls. The once colorful space was covered with black marks; none of the old paintings could be recognized.

"Beanie?" He turns towards me. He sits on the floor with his knees to his chest. His arms sit atop his knees, his head resting on his arms. I continue my walk towards him and as I get closer, I notice his eyes. The once gorgeous green had been diluted and full of emotions; I almost didn't recognize him.

I lower myself beside him, not saying anything. My gaze stays on him but he doesn't look at me.

"Parsons..." His head slowly turns in my direction and I notice the void of sadness in his eyes. Within seconds, I'm cradling him in my arms as he cries. My heart aches at the sound of him crying but I hold it together and comfort him. For minutes, I just hold him. He stops crying but doesn't move. My hands move to his hair and I start playing with it. I feel his grip tighten on my sides and I realize how close we really are.

He pulls away and I find myself forming a pout on my lips but quickly discard the reaction. He looks upwards and wipes his face. He leans his head towards the roof and my eyes stay locked on him.

"Do you want to talk about it?" I ask. My eyes scan his face, waiting for a reaction.

"My dad called me." He closes his eyes and takes in a deep breath. "He was drunk and I didn't understand half of what he was saying. He was rambling about his job and life but it all was a mess. I asked him what he wanted and his attitude changed immediately. He started coming at me, telling me how bad of a son was and how ungrateful I was. I didn't care what he was saying because I knew it was all a lie but then he started talking bad about Mum and I went off. I called him out on all the shit he put us through and he just hung up in the middle of it." He sighs. His hands reach up to his face and comb through his hair before resting behind his neck. "I then kind of zoned out and ended up here. Before I knew it, I had destroyed all my work. Well, almost all." His eyes trail to the spot where I spray painted the last time I was here.

"Why didn't you cover that spot up too?" I ask curiously.

"I couldn't bring myself to do it. I hadn't created it and I felt like if I did, I would be hurting you and you don't deserve to be hurt just because I am."

My heart flutters at the thought of him not wanting to hurt me but I shove the giddy feelings down. Right now he needs me and I need to push my emotions aside and focus on him.

My eyes roam the room and an idea pops into my head. "Stand up." I say as I raise myself off the floor. My hand reaches out to him, a smile playing on my lips.

"What for?" He asks, placing his hand in mine without hesitation.

"We're going to fix this." He holds confusion on his face. I lead us to the bag of spray paint cans and pick up a can with a light blue color on it and place it in his hand.

"Beanie, these murals are ruined. There's no way in saving them." He shakes his head, rejecting the can.

"There are still remnants of the old paintings but just because you can't revive the old doesn't mean you can't create something new." I give him a reassuring smile and place the can in his hand before picking up one of my own. I move to a space in the wall and just begin imagining what I can paint before shaking up the bottle and placing my idea on the wall. It takes a few seconds but I hear the shaking of the can and watch as Parsons chooses a spot further down the wall from me and begins spray painting.

I smile as he tongue sits between his lip, his eyebrows slightly furrowed, as he remains concentrated.

For what seemed like only a short time--actually two hours--we had been fixing what had been destroyed. I stuck to drawing stick figures and really bad drawings of flowers but Parsons created beautiful drawings. I stood in awe as I looked around the room. What was once broken and destroyed had been renewed; the room looked better and more lively than before.

As I admire the new artwork, I feel a pair of arms wrap around my waist form behind. I tense at the unexpected touch but relax as I recognize the familiar touch. I sigh and melt into his touch, leaning my head into his chest.

"You scared me these past couple days." I close my eyes and just let myself feel safe in his embrace. "No one had heard from you. I was worried." My voice grew soft as I continued to speak.

"I'm sorry, love. I didn't mean to worry you." My breath hitches as his words flow into my ear, his mouth only centimeters from my ear. I can feel the smirk radiating off his lips as he catches my change in breathing. 

No one has ever had this affect on me.

He has so much control over me right now.

He releases his hold temporarily to turn me towards him. I look down at the ground, attempting to hide my blush.

"Beanie..." His fingers gently grab my chin and he lifts my head upwards. My nerves get the best of me and I don't dare to look into his eyes, knowing I will melt the second I do. "Look at me." He speaks with a gentle tone and I find myself looking into his eyes. His fingers move from under my chin to the side of my face. I lean into his touch and a smile rises onto his perfect lips. His body head moves closer to mine and I find myself doing the same.

Our lips collide and the fireworks go off. The familiar feeling of electricity moves through me like second nature and I welcome the surge of energy. My mind goes blank and the only thing I can focus on is his lips. I relish in the warmth he provides and indulge in the taste. His minty breathe seeps into my mouth and I welcome the taste.

The kiss continues for what seemed like forever and I hated the feeling of his lips parting from mine. His hands trail down my arms until they find my hands. His fingers slowly weave between mine until our fingers are connected. With both stare into each other's eyes, smiles on both of our lips.

"Thank you." He says, his voice soft and quiet.

"For what?"

"For being here." 

"Always." I smile up at him, honesty seeping through my words. 

Now that Parsons and I had gotten close, I never want things to change between us. I had never felt like this for anyone. He was different and I hoped once he knew, he would stay. I want him to stay.