Mel tries not to be too obvious when she stares, but it's difficult.
He's just so cute! And handsome and… agh!
How did I get so lucky? She thinks as she watches her boyfriend doing homework over facetime. They've been dating since they got back from the island and are still going strong. They're about half way through their senior year, and they've already talked about trying to stay together during college.
(She's going to New York, to a small private art school, on scholarship. He's staying here and hopefully picking up a few community college classes. He doesn't really have the money, since he'll have to move out of foster care at the end of the year too, but he's saving to hopefully get a degree.)
"I can feel you watching me," Jackson says, his eyes still on the notebook in front of him.
She blushes as he looks up and gives her a smile.
"Sorry," she squeaks, embarrassed to be caught and that she still gets so flustered, after all this time.
"It's okay babe," he says easily, going back to his homework. Someone says something in the background and he takes out his one earbud to hear them better.
It must be his foster mom, Mel thinks as she waits for him to finish talking to her. I wonder…
"Are your earbuds hooked up to the phone?" She asks. Sometimes he'll listen to music while they work, it helps him focus weirdly enough. She doesn't get a response, but his foster mom seems to have left the room again.
"Wink if you can hear me," she says now. He's working again, but hasn't put his earbuds back in. He doesn't respond, and she doesn't hear anything else in the background.
Now's my chance!
She's been wanting to say it for a while, but every time she's going to she gets too nervous. If he doesn't say it back… She doesn't know what she'll do. But this is perfect! She can practice saying it while actually seeing him, but without the consequences! A test run.
"I love you," Mel says, watching his face.
Jackson glances up, then picks up an earbud and holds it up to his ear. "What was that?"
"Nothing," Mel says with a small smile. She knows she's blushing again, but hopefully he won't question it. He watches her for a moment longer, then shrugs and puts his earbuds down again.
She goes back to the homework, feeling pretty pleased with herself. Now if only she can work up the courage to-
"I love you too," he says. She whips her head up to stare at him through the phone. Wordlessly he holds up his CD player, which his earbuds are clearly plugged into.
"Oh my gosh," she squeaks out, putting her hands to her cheeks. "You heard me?"
He winks, a slight smirk on his face.
"Oh my gosh, oh my- I have to go!" She exclaims.
"Mel-" He starts, but she quickly ends the call before he can say anything.
"Oh my gosh!" She says again, flopping down onto her bed and covering her face with both hands.
I just said I love you to my boyfriend!
…And he said it back.
"He said it back!" She says, sitting bolt upright again. "He loves me!"
Her happiness quickly turns back to panic. "And I hung up on him!"
Mel hops up and hurries back over to her desk, sitting down again. She quickly smoothes down her hair, hoping she doesn't look as ruffled as she feels. She calls him back, the screen still up from their call that ended only minutes before.
He answers quickly, looking amused.
"Hey babe," he says.
"Hey," she says, taking a deep breath. "Sorry for hanging up on you. I was just, um… Flustered?"
"Its okay," Jackson chuckles.
"…Did you mean it?" Mel can't help but ask.
"I wouldn't have said it if I didn't," he says steadily, and she believes him. He's not that kind of guy.
"Okay, good," she says with a smile. They settle down and get back to doing their math homework. Idly, she chews on the end of her pencil, trying to do a calculation in her head. She's completely oblivious to her boyfriend watching her.
"Did you?"
"Hm? Did I what?" she asks distractedly.
"Did you mean what you said?" he asks, and he sounds strangely vulnerable. He doesn't allow himself to be so open usually, but with her it's like he can't help it.
She meets his gaze and can see that he's actually nervous.
"I love you, Cody Jackson," Melissa says with a soft smile. He visibly relaxes, the tension draining from his shoulders. "And I mean that."
"I love you too, Melissa Wu."