Ralph's aunt came home that evening to see Ralph's head in Jack's lap while he snoozed quietly. Jack was still watching The Munsters while he mindlessly played with Ralph's hair. Anastasia leaned over the back of the couch to speak to Jack so she wouldn't wake her sleeping nephew.
"Are you staying for dinner, Dear?" Anastasia asked Jack quietly.
"If it is okay with you, I'll stay." Jack whispered. "I don't want to impose."
Anastasia smiled warmly at the boy. "You're welcome to stay anytime you please."
"Thank you." He smiled. Anastasia gently squeezed his shoulder and disappeared into the kitchen to make dinner for the three of them. Jack brushed Ralph's hair away from his face. He felt extremely lucky in that moment. He knew they were yet to be in a relationship, but knowing that Ralph trusted him enough to sleep with him made Jack feel like he was on top of the world. He hoped that the date Friday would go over well because if he messed up with Ralph again he didn't know how he would handle it.
"Jack?" A soft voice broke Jack's thoughts. He looked down at Ralph and smiled at his tired expression. "Did my aunt come home?" his voice was breathy and quiet.
"She's cooking supper now." Jack whispered. "You can go back to sleep, it'll be a while." Ralph nodded his head and rolled over, burying his face in Jack's stomach. Jack smiled wide at the fair boy, admiring his adorable quirks. He rested his hand on Ralph's shoulder, the pad of his thumb rubbing the white fabric of his school shirt.
***
The rest of the week seemed to fly by to Ralph and he found himself rushing around his room on Friday with a towel wrapped around his waist as he searched for something decent to wear.
"Ralph, he's going to be here soon, you need to get dressed!" His aunt said as she walked up the stairs. She sighed at the boy and rubbed her forehead.
"Go comb your hair and I'll find clothes for you." She ordered. Ralph nodded his head and turned to go back into his bathroom. His aunt quickly found a white button up shirt and black jeans for Ralph. "Wasn't that hard." She mumbled to herself. She set the clothes on the edge of the sink as the doorbell rung. Ralph groaned to himself and shooed his aunt away so he could dress himself.
Jack stood at the doorstep anxiously tapping his foot against the concrete step. He was wearing a blue flannel buttoned down and loosely tucked into his jeans. He held a white rose in his clammy hand. Ralph's aunt answered the door and he smiled at her.
"Is Ralph ready yet, Ma'am?" Jack asked politely.
"He'll be down in just a moment if you'd like to come in." She stepped aside and let him into her house.
"Did Ralph wait until last minute to get ready, again?" Jack asked. Anastasia chuckled and nodded her head.
"He's quite the procrastinator." She replied. They continued on with their small talk until Ralph came down the stairs in the clothes his aunt picked out for him. Jack smiled at the smaller boy with admiration evident in his features. Ralph smiled back, his dimples indenting his cheeks.
"Ready to go?" Ralph asked.
"Yeah, um this is for you." Jack said handing Ralph the white rose awkwardly. Ralph smiled and accepted it.
"Thank you." He giggled before turning to his aunt and asking her to put it in some water. The two boys left the house, walking along the sidewalk to the diner Jack decided on going to. He was nervous that Ralph wouldn't like going to a diner and would prefer something fancier, but what he didn't know was that Ralph was happy as long as he was with Jack.
Since they already knew most things about each other, they had light conversation about school and other little things. Jack was in the midst of talking about his latest art project when Ralph found himself admiring the little things about his date. The way his eyes lit up when he explained what colors he used and for what reasons, how his smile seemed to grow the more he rambled.
Once they finished with their dinner, the two boys went to a nearby park. There was no one around the park, but they didn't really expect anyone to be because of how late it was in the evening. The sun was almost down completely, casting a shadow over the park. The boys found themselves on the old rusted swing set, gently swinging back and forth. The chains creaked under their weight, filling the air with quiet clanking and squeaking.
Jack started swinging high, Ralph followed his lead. They swung higher and higher as they laughed loudly. They sky had started turning to a phthalocyanine blue and the moon started to show through the darkness, bringing them a bit of light to the pair.
"Jump with me." Jack called.
"No way." Ralph laughed. "We're too high."
"We'll be fine, I swear." Jack said. He swung back. "On three, okay?"
Ralph agreed, going against his better instinct for the first time in a while.
"One,"
The air whistled around them.
"Two,"
They laughed again, white steam coming from their mouths as they exhaled.
"Three!"
The two boys launched themselves from the swing set, falling onto the cold damp grass. They roll onto their backs, laughing childishly at their own actions. They were just an inch apart, their arms almost brushing together.
"Ralph?" Jack asked, looking over at Ralph. Ralph's eyes met Jack's. "Do you think that you'd, maybe, be my boyfriend?" He felt his cheeks heat up. He didn't feel confident asking Ralph this, but he knew he needed to ask him now.
"Sure." Ralph was just as embarrassed as Jack. His face was bright red, but it went unnoticed in the darkness of the night. Jack sighed in relief, feeling like a large weight has been lifted off of his shoulders.
***
Ralph sat in the center of his bed that night, his hair was a mess and his out fit that he wore was thrown sloppily into his hamper. He pulled out his journal and a pen, ready to update what was going on with him and Jack. It had been nearly two weeks since he'd updated it.
He flipped through the pages, occasionally stopping to read a entry or two. He finally flipped to the page he'd left off on, however something caught his eye. There was foreign handwriting in his journal. He looked over the messy print and furrowed his eyebrows. It was at least two pages long, mostly apologizing over and over. He felt his stomach in his throat as he read the last few words.
Yours truly,
Jack
He stared in shock at the book. Jack read his journal, all of it. Ralph couldn't remember when he might have left his journal in the care of Jack. He furrowed his eyebrows as he tried to remember, when it suddenly hit him. He left it with Jack at the beginning of the week by accident.
"Oh no." He gasped as he ran a hand through his hair. He knew. He knew everything since Ralph was fourteen. That was when his aunt had purchased the journal for therapeutic reasons. He wasn't much for explaining what he felt out loud, so he wrote it all down. Now, he regretted it. Jack didn't need to know what he felt constantly, and he definitely didn't need to know of the embarrassing things he was called in the other school's he attended.
He shut the book and put it on his bedside table. He didn't know what to do with himself in that moment. He sat there and stared at the wall trying to come up with a way he would approach the matter. Should he wait? They only just became official, and he didn't want to come off as a crazy boyfriend. Maybe he should give it a week or two before he mentions anything. By then would it matter though? Is it a big deal that he read it? He did invade Ralph's privacy in a way. It was rather rude to just snoop through his personal thoughts.
The hours passed as Ralph sat there debating with himself. The sun had started to rise and there he sat in the same cramped position as the previous night. His muscles were sore and he knew he'd need to stretch them out, but he had no motivation to do such. His aunt had tried to call him for breakfast before she went to work, but Ralph didn't respond. He was so wrapped up in his thoughts that he hadn't even heard her leave.
Jack knew everything, and Ralph didn't want him to.