When the credits rolled and the lights came on, my fingers were white with how tight I’d been clutching him. He tried prying my hands off him, but it was no use. My grip was like a steel vise and nothing could tear me away.
“Damn, Sierra. If I’d known it would take a scary movie to get you to feel my muscles up, I’d have made you watch a Friday the 13th or The Exorcist a long time ago.”
Okay, so maybe nothing could tear me away except that. My hands unlocked and I jumped up, looking down at him accusingly.
“I was not feeling you up!” I protested.
He chuckled as we rose and made our way out of the theater.
“You know how I feel about ghosts. Add in a creepy little kid and I’m done.”
His laughter was infectious as we got into my mom’s van, and informing Mom of my fears, causing her to laugh at my torment right along with him. I crossed my arms and huffed, ignoring both of them the whole way home. I was still scowling at him when we said our goodnights.
When I climbed into my bed, all I could see were the eerie ghosts. I was thoroughly freaked out, and the last thing I wanted was a sleepless night right before the first day of school. Next year, I was going to make Jeremy watch the cheesiest love fest ever.
Tink. Tink. Tink.
I pulled the covers over my head, squeezed my eyes shut, and started saying a bunch of Hail Marys. Or, well, what I thought were Hail Marys.
Tink. Tink. Tink.
Then a louder knock sounded and I realized it was coming from my window. That could only mean one thing. At least, I hoped it did. With hopeful trepidation, I slipped out of bed, peered out my window, and found Jeremy standing there. I quickly lifted the window.
“What are you doing?” I asked in a hushed tone, hoping not to wake my parents.
He held one had behind his back and ran the other through his messy hair. “Couldn’t sleep. And I felt bad that I made you watch a scary movie late at night. So I brought this over. Thought we could watch it.”
He held up a copy of The Fox and the Hound. I tried hard not to smile, but it was no use. I already was. So, without hesitation, I pushed the window up farther and stood back so he could climb in. Then I took the movie and put it in before settling next to him on the bed. He was already comfortable in just basketball shorts and a T-shirt.
“You have to be quiet,” I warned him, nodding towards my locked door. “I’ll get in so much trouble if they find you in here this late at night.”
He scoffed. “Your parents love me.”
“My parents love you during the daylight and not in their little girl’s bed with the door locked.”
He sat up and frowned at me. “I can leave if you want…” he said, trailing off and not sounding all that thrilled at the idea.
“No, it’s fine. I’m glad you’re here. I was getting a little freaked out, so this will definitely help.”
He grinned wickedly, and I instantly knew what he was thinking.
“You’re going to whisper about seeing dead people all the time now, aren’t you?” I groaned.
“Only when you least expect it,” he teased, his fingers finding my hair. “Now, be quiet and watch the movie.”
I rolled my eyes but did just that. I had to admit it did make me feel better, and I quickly forgot all about Bruce Willis and that creepy little kid. By the end of the movie, I was feeling more weepy than scared, and that’s when a drop of moisture hit my cheek.
What the heck?
I looked up to see a wet trail running down Jeremy’s cheek. He was blinking rapidly, as if he were trying to get something out of his eye. I shifted until I was resting my arm on his chest and peering up into his eyes.
Eyes that were looking everywhere in the room except at me.
“Jeremy?” I whispered, but I got no response. “Oh my gosh. Are you…are you crying?”
He sniffled in answer. After unsuccessfully trying to muffle my giggles, I heard a low growl and found myself flipped onto my back with Jeremy hovering over me. His face was illuminated by the glow of the television, and my breath hitched as I reached up and wiped the droplets off his cheek. It was entirely too endearing to see how the movie still affected him after we’d watched it five hundred times over the last seven years.
“It’s not funny, Sierra,” he whisper-hissed. The outrage on his face melted my insides. “How could she let Tod go like that? It’s so unfair. I don’t care if he was technically a fox—he was still a domesticated animal, for Christ’s sake! He shouldn’t have been allowed in the wild by himself! There are too many predators out there, and he won’t be able to fend for himself.”
He had this argument every time we watched the movie. Not that I could blame him. It seemed cruel that Tod had been forced to be separated from the only family he’d ever known—and his best friend.
“I think Tod was okay in the end,” I told Jeremy, smiling up at him. “He and Copper will always have their memories, and even if they’re apart, in their hearts, they’ll always be the best of friends. No matter what.”
“It still sucks. I don’t want to call you Tod anymore,” he grumbled adorably.
I laughed. He did this every time. “Too late. I’m Tod. You’re Copper. We’ll just have to make sure we have a different outcome, okay?”
“Remind me why we keep watching this movie,” he said, shaking his head.
“Because we’re gluttons for punishment?”
His eyes clouded over into an unreadable expression. Before I could decipher it, he plopped down onto the bed next to me. Then he took my hand and started toying with my fingers.
“I really did miss you this summer,” he whispered, and I closed my eyes, squeezing them shut, wishing something more were behind those words.
I shut the television off, descending us into darkness. We’d never spent the night in my bedroom alone, but somehow, I knew Jeremy wasn’t leaving.
Placing my arm around his waist, I cuddled up to him. “I missed you, too.”
His chin rested on the top of my head, which rose and fell with his chest. “Promise me something, Sierra,” he said, sounding far too serious.
I blinked twice. “Anything,” I responded, knowing full well that, if he asked me to fly to the moon, I would do it in a heartbeat.
“Promise me you’ll never leave. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
My eyes burned with hot tears. It was a promise I wanted to keep. It was a promise that would break my heart one day. But I didn’t care. It was a promise I would make over and over again.
I nodded against his chest. “Of course, Jeremy. I’ll never leave,” I promised.
It was also a promise I didn’t ask him to return.
When I woke up the next morning, Jeremy was already gone. Butterflies were swirling around in my stomach the whole time I was getting ready for school, and I wondered what my sophomore year was going to bring me.
“I’m so excited!” Lexi gushed as we got our lunches ready. “High school boys!”
Mom shook her head at my boy-crazy sister. I was definitely going to have to look out for her when it came to the upperclassmen. With stars in her eyes, she continued to gush to Jenna when we all met up outside for our carpool gang.
Jeremy made a show of rolling his eyes at Chris and Jenna, who were holding hands, then mimicked a gagging motion. I snickered even though I wasn’t feeling all that cheerful. This year, we only had two classes together. It was going to be weird not seeing him all day every day, but I told myself it was probably a good thing. I’d decided I needed to branch out and try to fight my feelings for him.
By the end of the first week of school, I felt like I’d barely seen Jeremy.