FLASHBACK CHAPTER! This chapter is mostly a flashback but, towards the end, becomes a full chapter! ENJOYXX! Also, Never Gonna Give You Up by Rick Astley came out in 1987 so I'm using that for this chapter. Prepare for the already known rick roll! Thanks Obama-erm, uh, Thanks Regan!

Listen to

Total Eclipse of the Heart by: Bonnie Tyler

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Chapter 5

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November 13, 1987

Jeremy's POV

It's finally my sixteenth birthday party. I'd also like to consider this party as 'Congratulations on making it passed your fifth night without getting mauled party to badly' party. Why?

Besides, those animatronic fucks haven't killed me yet.

I emphasize the yet because as far as I'm concerned I'm still an employee. Nightshift.

Forever as far as I'm concerned.

Tonight I'm getting my overtime paycheck though, so, that's an upside. I guess...?

Anyway, I'm kinda excited about the party.

We were having it in my house.

I invited all my friends.

I've made a substantial amount throughout my school years. All ranging from freshmen to seniors. Most of them had been at my tenth birthday party, which was still hazy. I did remember, however, Mike nearly ruining the party by being his childish self.

Also long as he didn't show up, I'd be fine!

"Happy birthday, Jeremy."

My heart stopped. My face heated up. He actually came.

NO! Not Mike! My crush.

Talon Rowans. He was a grade ahead of me and was one of my best friends. At least I'd like to think that. I had mentioned to others my love and affection towards Talon, but they all laughed and suggested that I just stick with...Mike. Ew.

"I-uh, heh heh. T-thanks, Talon." I smiled sheepishly making him chuckle.

The party had started about two hours ago and Talon and I were thoroughly engaged in small talk amongst our click of friends. I was opening a few gifts here and there.

Many people showed. I was a little surprised that everyone I invited came.

Then my mother made her way over to me.

"Hi, sweetie! Are you having a good time?" She asked sweetly. I smiled and gave her a hug. "Yup!" I was now taller than her. She sighed. "Jerebear, I don't like the fact that your towering over me."

My friends laughed.

I was never embarrassed by my parents.

A flash of light was shown our way followed by a click noise. "Fred!" I whined. Fred had managed to snap a picture.

"Aha! That's a great one! I might just stick this in the family photo album." He grinned.

He was a great dad to me. Mine was a douchebag. But Fred was everything a son could want in a father. I'm just glad that my mother had met him when she did.

"Oh, Jeremy~" One of my friends, her name was Shiloh, sing songed. I excused myself from my parents and friends and walked over to her. "Yeah?"

"You're BFF is here!"

Before I could question her like usual, a fourteen year old walked through the front door.

"Happy birthday, Jeremy!" Fuck.

Mike wandered inside with his annoying grin. He was a relatively chubby kid. His attire for my party consisted of a flannel with black slacks and converse hightops.

"Why are you here?" I asked in a mean tone.

My mom must have been behind me. "Ahem." She coughed in a correcting tone. I rolled my eyes. "Thank you, Mike." I drone out.

Mike's smile falters.

"Here." He says shyly before handing me a small, rectangular box. I plucked it from his grasp with a growl. Mike flinched but kept his smile up.

I nodded.

Mike coughed awkwardly. "So..."

"Jeremy, everyone is wai-oh, hi, Mike." Talon came up behind me and slugged my arm while greeting Mike.

Mike didn't like Talon. Mostly because I actually liked Talon more than a friend.

"Hi, Talon." He smiled through gritted teeth. Talon just grinned back and looked back at me. "We're all planning on playing some games." Like High School games. Such as Spin the Bottle and Seven Minutes in Heaven. I smirked and followed in suit while Mike lingered somewhere behind us. When we re-entered the living room, everyone got semi quiet. "Happy Birthday, Sweetheart!" My mom said with her sweet grin as she and Fred headed out for the remainder of the evening. I blushed in minor embarrassment as a few friends decided to snicker. I huffed and plopped on the floor. "Alright guys, gather round." I motioned for everyone to sit in a circle. Talon on my right, and Shiloh on my left.

Mike and Shiloh were great friends, much to my horror. She was probably the only person who actually liked him.

That's the only sense of remorse I have for Mike. He has no friends and is bullied on more than one occasion.

"Mike! C'mere!" She called out to him.

He was standing with his shoulder propping him up against the the doorway to the living room. He took extra precaution in walking over to Shiloh. She scooted away from me. Now, the youngest kid at this party was in between me and my literal life line. He was tense.

Freshman usually are when they go to parties for the upper classmen.

He was mindlessly picking away at the sole of his shoe while crossing his legs. I was snapped into reality by the sound of my friends egging me to spin the bottle first. I did but it landed on another close friend of mine, Molly.

Molly spun the bottle, having to kiss Jake, Jake to his girlfriend Sonya, Sonya to Shiloh, Shiloh to Mike-wait.

"Since you're like a brother to me..." She pecked his cheek.

Mike looked frantically around, hoping to god that it wasn't his turn. For some odd reason, I didn't want him to embarrass himself, so I snatched the bottle and spun it. "Erm, Jeremy. It was the weird kids turn." Jake snorted.

I looked towards Mike who seemed all too flustered.

"Let's just do something else." Since we were all still in the circle, I grinned an evil grin. The lights were dimmed. "Seven Minutes in Heaven."

My friends whooped and hollered.

Shiloh looked down at Mike and gave him a loving punch in the arm. "You'll be fine." Was what I heard her say.

Playing this game gave me the golden opportunity to confess my feelings to Talon through the simplicity of a seven minutes trapped in a closet with one another. Creepy? Yes. But how else am I supposed to confess I love him? By actually telling him? Please.

"Alright. Who's going to be the first victim?" I asked scanning the crowd.

"You should go first, Jeremy." One of my friends commented. I blushed and stood. "God, what am I getting myself into?" That's not the first time this week I've said that.

I shut the closet door and grabbed the blindfold from my back pocket. As I wrapped it around my head, I couldn't stop myself from smiling like an idiot that they were going to send in Talon. It was by pure luck, though. We had kept the bottle out so we could choose who was going into the closet with the blindfolded person.

I heard faint giggles and comments coming from outside. I also heard 'Never Gonna Give You Jo's being played softly as background music.

My heart raced as fast as it possibly could when the closet door crept open. It was shut softly.

I heard shuffling coming from only inches away.

Before I knew it, my lips connected with who I hoped to be Talon. Hope being the keyword. I knew the culprit was a boy due to the fact that they had somewhat strong shoulders and their voice was deeper than the girls at the party.

I breathed in the scent and-wait.

Uh-oh.

I slowly disconnected my lips and removed my blindfold.

There, staring shamefully at the ground, sat the culprit. Those bastards. I should've know that out of everyone, they'd force me to kiss him.

My scowl was more than enough evidence to prove I was pissed. "Why the fuck are you in here?" I seethe. Mike swallowed thickly and tried to find a reasonable answer. Right bow, he was the absolute last person I'd wanted to see. "W-well Talon was chosen. But-"

"WHAT?!" I shouted in disbelief.

Mike cringed and bit his lip. "They rigged me, Jeremy! I swear I begged them to let Talon go but he was the one who shoved me in here-!"

"Then WHY IN THE FUCKING HELL DID YOU KISS ME IF YOU WERE FORCED INSIDE HERE?!"

"BECAUSE I KNEW THIS WAS THE ONLY CHANCE I'D GET TO DO IT, JEREMY! YOU KNOW HOW YOU FEEL ABOUT TALON? I HAVE TO GO THROUGH THAT PAIN EVERY SINGLE DAY! KNOWING THAT NO MATTER WHAT I DO I'LL NEVER BE GOOD ENOUGH FOR YOU!"

...no.

I felt my heart ache something terrible.

Mike's eyes were filled to the brim with tears. I finally realized how he felt...he's the me as I am to Talon. Come to think of it, Talon was only here because...because he was Shiloh's older brother...

I stare at Mike with wide eyes.

We say nothing.

"Mike." I break the silence. His face grows dark. His scowl was firm. I set my lips in a straight line as I reach out and wrap him in a hug.

All I knew was we couldn't be together. Never.

...

PRESENT DAY

1993

I gather my belongings from the office and am about to walk out when I accidentally run into someone. "Oof!"

"Oh, geez, Jeremy! I'm sorry."

It's only Mike.

"It's fine, Mike. Are you okay?" I ask while rubbing the pain from my head. Mike chuckled awkwardly and held a hand out to help me up. "I'm fine." He hauls me from the ground but pulls to hard. My body is sent flying into his.

Erm...this is interesting.

Mike flushed a dark crimson color; unconsciously holding me close to him. My right hand grips his arm while my left was glued to his chest. He had a nice build on him...where he was big in the muscle aspect was where I lacked. I wasn't scrawny but I wasn't that built either...anyway.

"Uh, hehe, s-sorry about, erm." He stammered.

I gave a light laugh. "It's, uh, it's fine."

He slowly released me.

His facial features permanently etched in my mind.

"Have a good night, Mike. Be careful." I pat his shoulder and walk out of the office. Hopefully he has a good night.

I wouldn't let myself become the Talon Rowans I once longed for. I'd be the Jeremy Fitzgerald Mike longed for...I can't believe that I'm falling in love with the dork...

...

THAt awkward moment when you can't do flashbacks right nor can you contain your excitement when it comes to shippings #swaggymistakesbruh I also found TONS of grammar errors in the previous chapters buuut I'm writing on my phone/Kindle soooo I HOPED YOU GUYS LIKE THE STORY SO FAR! Much LOVE!