𝐌𝐀𝐒𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐌𝐈𝐍𝐃, jeremiah fisher

sixteen. rapunzel, rapunzel

Everyone turns to stare at us. Cursing under my breath, I drag him over to the employee room which is, thankfully, empty.

"Can you ever not be dramatic?"

Steven continues to look awestruck. "You just told me you kissed the guy you've been in love with for years and you expect me to act like it's just another fucking day in the neighborhood?"

I scoff but can't help the smile that falls across my lips.

"What happened after?" he questions curiously.

I shrug. "My dad called me and then Jeremiah left."

Steven raises his eyebrows. "So you guys didn't talk about it?"

"I was planning on talking to him today. I'm going to tell him."

He looks confused. "Tell him what?"

"That I like him, dumbass."

He lets out another ungodly screech.

I punch his shoulder.

"Ow! What the fuck, Rose!"

"You deserve it. I swear I'm going to be deaf by twenty if you keep this up."

His annoyance doesn't last long. He jumps up and down and squeals like a little kid who was allowed to eat dessert before dinner.

"Finally! I've been waiting for this for fucking ages, Rosie. You got this!"

I smile. "Thanks, Stevie."

He nudges my arm. "Pretty sure he'll be here in about ten-ish minutes. He told me he'd be only half an hour late."

I nod. "Got it. Thanks."

He sniffles and wipes away a fake tear. "My little girl is all grown up."

"Oh, shut up."

We laugh and then someone comes in and tells us we have to get back to work. After we wave goodbye, we head in opposite directions.

I wait nearly twenty minutes before I finally spot Jeremiah out of the corner of my eye. Trying not to make it too obvious, I stare at him walking over to the lockers. He disappears through the door, and that's when my heart rate spikes.

I'm going to be confessing soon. Fuck. I'm more nervous than I thought I would be, but what else would I have expected? I've kept these feelings locked inside my heart, trapped in a box with the key thrown into a deep ocean. And now I'm diving into the depths of those waves to retrieve the key and open up that box.

I'm so consumed by my own anxiety that I don't notice the footsteps approaching me. A shadow falls over me, and I quickly turn around. Not realizing the space between us, my head bumps into a solid chest. Warm hands land on my shoulders in comfort.

"You okay?"

I lean back, staring up into ocean blue eyes. I swallow.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

I step back. His hands fall from my shoulders. He rubs the back of his neck while I clear my throat.

"Can we talk about the other day?" he asks awkwardly, not quite looking at me.

I nod. "Yeah, I was just about to bring it up."

His tongue darts out to wet his lips as he thinks about something. I open my mouth to finally tell him how I feel, but his words cut me off.

"I'm sorry."

I furrow my eyebrows. I don't like where this is going.

"I shouldn't have kissed you like that," he continues, my heart breaking more and more with each word. "I just got so caught up in the heat of the moment, and I think you did too. I shouldn't have initiated that, and I'm so sorry, Autumn."