Brian's POV
The last few days with Jess have been some of the best days of my life. We spent the entire weekend together. I finally had my best friend back. Someone I could joke, laugh, and have fun with. But having her as my girlfriend meant that I could finally show her how much she's always meant to me. When she first kissed me, we had this instant chemistry, like we should've been doing this the whole time. And when I read her letter to me that next day, I felt confident that she finally felt the same way about me.
I didn't realize that we would become so close, almost immediately. I expected that there would've been an adjustment period, while we adapted to this new stage in our relationship. But that couldn't have been further from the truth. From the moment she first kissed me, I've felt a strong connection between us. The two of us had craved each other for so long that we comfortably fell into the relationship, without needing time to adapt. We couldn't keep our hands off each other and I was happy to shower her with affection like she's never experienced before.
When Sal came to visit that next morning, I forgot that we had plans to write together. There were so many other things going on, that it just slipped my mind. Jess was clearly embarrassed because we hadn't talked about how we were going to tell people. But I didn't mind that Sal knew because he's always pushed me to tell Jess how I feel. He was rooting for us. But so were a lot of people, including my parents. They would always pester me, asking when I was going to settle down and date a nice girl. They would ask why didn't I just date Jess, as if it was so easy.
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Sal and I drove to set together that day. He was the only one who knew about my relationship with Jess. I had asked him not to tell the others because I wanted to share it myself. When we got to set, we greeted the crew and started chatting about our weekend.
"How was your weekend boys?" Joe asked.
"Pretty good," I answered modestly, while Sal gave me this evil look.
"Pretty good? I'd say you had a VERY good weekend," Sal told them.
"What happened? Did you get laid?" Murr asked. I think sex is the only thing the ferret thinks about.
"Maybe," I answered coyly.
"Nice. You pick up some chick at a bar?" Murr asked, since that's normally how it happens for me.
"Nope, just someone I know," I told them.
"He finally fucked Jess and now they're together," Sal blurted out.
"Sal? I thought he talked about this?" I asked him. I wanted to be the one to share it with everyone. I was just having a little fun stringing them along.
"Dude, I can't with you two. It's been five years. Do you really want to drag this out any longer?" Sal asked.
"Wait. Jessica? As in Jessica Calaway, the girl you've been hopelessly in love with for five years?" Joe asked, just to be perfectly clear.
"Well, it's not so hopeless anymore," I told them.
"Really? How was it?" Murray asked, referring to the sex.
Normally I would brag about my sexual escapades, but this time was different. Jess wasn't just some random girl I hooked up with from a bar. Sure, the sex with Jess was incredible. She's the best sex I've ever had because we had such a strong chemistry together. But I wasn't about to tell the guys all of this. I preferred to keep that aspect of my relationship to myself.
"Is that all you can think about? She's not just sex, she's my girlfriend," I told them, proudly.
"How did this even happen?" Joe asked, somewhat surprised.
The guys always knew my feelings for Jess. I wasn't very good at hiding it, especially from three of my best friends. But the last thing they knew was that Jess and I were barely speaking. So, I updated them everything that happened over the last few days. I told them all about our argument, Jess getting drunk, and us finally revealing our feelings for one another.
"Well good for you, man. Glad you finally got her. Took you long enough," Joe said, slightly teasing me.
"Yeah, buddy. I've never seen you smile this much," Sal said.
"Congrats, bud," Murray said.
"Thanks, guys. I don't think I've ever been this happy," I told them.
I thanked them all, and we all had a group hug. Through all the teasing, I knew the guys were truly happy for me. When it really came down to it, I knew that I could always count on them.
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When I got home from set that day, Jess and I decided that we should probably tell our family about our relationship. I knew that I should call my parents since they had always been rooting for us.
My parents had the reaction I expected. They were happy that I've finally settled down, with someone they approve of. My parents love Jess, but how could they not? But my parents weren't the ones I was worried about.
"I should probably call my dad. I haven't spoken to him in a while anyway. I've been feeling kind of guilty about it," Jess told me.
"Do you think he'll be happy about us?" I asked her nervously.
There was something about her dad that always felt intimidating to me. Maybe it's because he's a cop, and he has a gun. Or maybe it's because he's always seemed very protective of her since she's his baby girl. He's probably always felt like he had to look out for her, especially after her mother died. I felt like as her boyfriend, I was now the one who needed to protect Jess.
"I don't think you have anything to worry about," she told me.
She began dialing, putting the phone on speaker so we could both hear. As the phone rang my heart started beating faster and faster, trying to anticipate how he would react.
"Jessica, how are you?" her dad answered.
"I'm good, dad. I'm sorry it's been so long since I've called," Jess apologized.
"Oh, that's okay. I understand that you have a busy life. So tell me, what's new with you?" he asked.
Jess looked over at me and smiled, squeezing my hand.
"Well, actually I called to tell you that I have a boyfriend now," she told her father.
"Wow, really? It's been a while, hasn't it? Since college?" he asked.
I couldn't help but laugh at how blunt her dad was, but I tried to contain myself. I didn't know the full extent of her dating history. All Jess told me that it had been a while since she'd been with a guy.
"Yes, dad, it has been a long time," Jess confirmed. She playfully punched me in the arm, trying to get me to stop laughing.
"What's he like?" her dad asked.
"Well, actually. You've met him..." Jess started to say.
"Oh, is it that Brian guy, the one that used to be a fireman?" her dad immediately asked.
I was a little shocked when he said my name right away. I didn't know if that was a good thing or a bad thing. I had met her dad a few times, the first being at Thanksgiving a few years ago. I didn't know what he would think about me dating Jess, but I guess I was about to find out.
"Yes, dad. It's Brian," Jess confirmed. She looked over at me, with a huge smile on her face.
"Oh, good. I always liked him. What took you so long?" her dad asked, which made me laugh even more. It was clear where Jess got her bluntness from.
I desperately wanted his approval, so it was such a relief to hear that he actually liked me.
"The timing was just right dad," she told him.
"That boy has always been in love with you. I could see it in his eyes when he talked about you," he said.
I guess I was never doing a good job of hiding my love for Jess from anyone. Not that it mattered now that we were actually together.
After we told our family, I felt comfortable enough to talk about Jess publicly. I mentioned her on Tell 'Em Steve Dave and talked about how happy I was that we were finally together. Right after the episode came out, I posted a picture of Jess on my Instagram, proclaiming my love for her. It felt like I was bragging, but I didn't care. I had waited so long to be with Jess, that I didn't mind telling the whole world about our relationship.
I was so excited to talk about our relationship and proud to tell the whole world that she was all mine. Everyone I told in my life was happy for me and extremely supportive of our relationship. They knew how much Jess meant to me. And I think everyone could see how much we were in love. People always told me that my face and eyes lit up when I talked about her. But I never considered that not everyone in the world would be so supportive of us being together. Or in reality, they wouldn't be supportive of me having a girlfriend at all, no matter who she was.
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Jess and I had planned a simple, quiet night together. Just the two of us. She always offered to cook, but this time I decided to bring home dinner, so she wouldn't have to go through the trouble.
When I arrived at her house, I rang the bell just to be polite, but there was no answer. I rang and knocked a few more times, but the result was the same. I didn't think anything of it at first. I figured maybe she was just in the shower or doing something where she couldn't hear the bell ringing. So, I took the key she had given me long before our relationship started, and I opened the door myself.
"Jess, I'm here. Where are you, sweetheart?" I called out.
She didn't respond, but I heard a noise coming from the kitchen, so I followed the sound. I immediately dropped everything when I saw Jess sitting on her kitchen floor, sobbing uncontrollably. I kneeled down next to her and tried to figure out what was wrong.
"Jessica, sweetie, what happened? Are you hurt?" I asked.
Jess opened her mouth to answer, but she couldn't speak. She was hyperventilating from crying so much, and she couldn't articulate why she was so upset. I looked up and down her whole body, trying to see if she had bruises or any kind of marks. I thought maybe she had fallen and hurt herself.
"Read..." was all she could say through the tears, as she pointed to the cell phone in front of her.
I picked it up and read some of the comments people were leaving on Instagram. I was disgusted to read these things about the woman I love, from people that didn't know either of us.
Ugly.
Fat.
Gold digger.
Whore.
"They were friends for a while. She's only dating him now because the show is successful."
"Why is he even with her? He could do so much better."
"She's just using him."
"Jessica, sweetheart. Listen to me. You can't believe what these people say. They don't matter. They don't what they're talking about," I tried to tell her.
"You... You don't believe these things about me, do you?" she asked me, through tears.
"Of course not. None of this is true," I assured her. I pulled her in close, and she rested her head as she sobbed into my chest.
I was infuriated to know that some random people on the internet had hurt my girl so much. She didn't deserve this treatment. The thing that angered me the most was that these comments were coming from people who called themselves "fans" of the show. And it broke my heart to know that, even for a second, Jess started to believe these things too.
"I... I tried to be strong and not listen, Brian. But they're so mean... It's too much," she cried.
"Baby, I know it's hard but you can't pay attention to these people. As long as you and I know the truth, nothing else matters," I told her.
"I know you're right. I'm sorry, I just got so overwhelmed with it all," she said. Her tears were finally slowing down, and her breathing was getting back to normal.
"You don't have to apologize. I get it. It's hard to read negative comments. But just know that none of them matter, because I love you," I assured her while giving her a loving kiss on the forehead.
"Thank you, Brian. I love you too," she told me, and I finally saw her smile.
"And don't worry, I'll take care of this," I promised her.
I knew I had to set some of my so-called "fans" straight. I knew how Jess felt. I've read comments about myself that hurt. People often making comments about my weight or my hair throughout the course of the show. When the show began, it hurt me, but I've gotten used to it. Now I just blew it off, but I couldn't just sit back and take it when it came to Jess. She was everything to me, and I had to protect her. I never wanted anyone, or anything, to hurt her. It tore me apart to see her be so upset over these comments. I could never figure out how some people could be so evil, especially towards someone they haven't even met.
I had already posted a few pics of Jess here and there, on my social media. I was so proud that she was finally mine. And I couldn't help but post pictures of my beautiful girlfriend. I posted this message on my Instagram, along with a candid picture I took of Jess, looking gorgeous as always.
I swear, 99% of the fans we interact with are lovely people. But the other 1% of you need to hear me on this. I've been reading some comments about Jessica that are simply untrue. They are pure lies, that are just meant to hurt her. But they're hurting me too. It upsets me to read all these mean things about the woman I love. And if these people were true fans, they would realize that these comments are just hurtful. I'm not really sure what these comments are trying to accomplish, but I'm begging them to stop. I put myself out there by being on TV. I'll take all the criticism you can throw at me. I signed up for it, but she didn't. Please leave my girl out of this. She doesn't deserve any of this hate. When you write a mean comment, consider the person's feelings on the other end. I love Jess more than anything in the world, and there's nothing that will change that.
A/N: I just saw that this story reached over 2K reads. Thank you to everyone that has read and liked it so far!