the winter i turned intelligent: chapter 13 (pt. 2)

Important Note from Dreamy Plots & Story Talks: This story contains suggestive language and sexual content and is only suitable for readers that are 18+.

Chapter 13 part 2:

Belly’s POV:

Even though movie marathons were traditions for us at this point, we hadn’t had one in the longest time. They first started when we were all in high school. Jeremiah, Conrad, and I looked forward to them each summer. Yesterday marked the first day of spring where we all decided to spend Jeremiah’s last day here before his internship rewatching a bunch of musicals, starting with High School Musical.

Staying up past 2 am wasn’t the smartest idea considering Jeremiah’s flight was at 8 am, and we had to get up around 5 am. But at the same time, every second laughing alongside them both made it completely worth it. And somehow we made it to the airport just in time for his flight.  

Conrad helped Jeremiah with his luggage once we made it to the drop-off area. “Make sure you don’t get on the wrong flight.”

Jeremiah scoffed, “With less than 3 hours of sleep? Not a chance.”

After they were done teasing each other, I wasted no time. My lips met his with fear of how I’d manage the next few months without seeing him every day. I added once the kiss broke, “Be safe.”

He kissed my cheek, “I will. I love you Bells.”

And with that there wasn’t anything else necessary left to add. It would have made it even more difficult to say goodbye.

Conrad and Jeremiah hugged each other tightly, and it almost made me cry. Before Conrad turned on the car’s engine, I turned towards the window in hopes of seeing Jeremiah one last time, but he had already left.

Conrad could tell that I was feeling a little down when he suggested, “Wanna go to that pastry place we got cookies from last night?”

I almost didn’t hear him from everything else that was on my mind, “Yeah. Okay.” It sounded nice, but I wasn’t really hungry.

Although as soon as we got there and I took my first bite of my blueberry chocolate muffin, I was happy that we were here.  

After taking a sip of his coffee, Conrad’s words threw me off guard, “Belly, I’ve been wanting to talk to you about something.”

I hesitantly replied unsure of what he wanted to discuss, “Is everything okay?”

He replied quickly, “Yeah. Everything’s fine. I didn’t realize that I never apologized to you about everything that went down with Natasha.”

I interrupted, “Oh. It’s no big deal. Don’t worry about it.”

He added, “Still. I definitely projected previous feelings onto our conversation. And I didn’t mean to. I’m sorry.”

“I forgive you. Thank you for talking to me about it.” It made me feel better even though I wasn’t expecting his apology. 

The next morning, I biked to my favorite park by the beach, the same one where Jeremiah and I had our first date right before my senior year began. It was sunnier than yesterday, and the flowers were in full bloom. As I opened the book that I brought along with me, the flowers that surrounded me reminded me so much of the ones next to us that day. I couldn’t help but reminisce on one of my favorite days ever.

Four Summers Ago:

Why was I this nervous around my best friend? We had kissed a few times already. But the fact that this would be our official first date brought me both nerves and butterflies at the same time.  

Jeremiah’s cologne with notes of musk and citrus was one that I didn’t notice on him before. And it wasn’t just that. I started noticing qualities and characteristics about him that I was surprised I hadn’t seen before.

I think he must have been nervous too when he asked me, “Strawberry or blueberry?” He was referring to the cupcakes he got from a local bakery for us.

“I thought you knew blueberry’s my favorite?” I teased.

“Uh. Right. No, I did. I do. I was just making sure.” I could hear the nerves in his voice, and it comforted me knowing that he cared about this just as much as I did.

I took a bite of my cucumber sandwich and added, “If anyone would know that about me, it’s you.”

He took in a deep breath as his smile grew before moving in close enough where I could feel his heartbeat. I almost couldn’t tell who’s was beating faster. As we smiled into the kiss slowly, his nose bumped into mine. I didn’t expect to laugh as much as I did. He shook his head in both laughter and frustration, “We’ve done this before. Why am I so nervous?”

I was relieved he admitted it out loud. I agreed, “You’re nervous? You have no idea how nervous I am.”

He nervously smiled, “It’s a good thing we’re nervous together then.”

We laid down on our pastel green blanket moments before sunset. As we drew shapes in the clouds, Jeremiah’s hand brushed against mine when I asked, “What does that look like to you?”

He tried his best to study the cloud, “A shoe?”

“A shoe?” I mocked, “That’s definitely a hat.”

He explained through slight laughter, “What part of that looks like a hat? Besides, look, there’s the shoelaces.”

I giggled, “What shoelaces? That’s the ribbon for the hat.” His laughter grew louder, and mine followed suit.

“It’s a shoe that transformed into a pretty hat with a nice ribbon,” He eloquently phrased. 

“That was very poetic Jere.”

“You think so?” He playfully replied.

“I think I really like you,” I confessed sincerely.

“Could you please repeat that? I need to make sure I wasn’t just imagining,” He teased.

I pulled him in closer as the sun faded into the horizon.  

Back to Present Day / Two Months Later: 

Jeremiah and I tried our best to FaceTime each other at least twice a week. The time zone was challenging to schedule around only because of his internship schedule. But we made it work because we wanted to.

It had been over a week since our last call though since I had midterms to study for. Which was why I didn’t waste any time to answer now. I greeted him, “Surprise!” Hazel was sitting beside me and started barking loud enough where I couldn’t hear his or my own voice.  

As her barking and our laughter subsided, he replied, “Hey babe,” and then he added, “I can’t believe how loud her barking is now. Or is it just the reception?” He laughed.  

“Probably a little bit of both. I honestly don’t know who misses you more. Me or her,” I smiled through the fuzzy screen.  

He sighed, “Don’t remind me. At this point, I’m counting down the minutes until I’m back. I miss you both like crazy.”

“Are you still enjoying the program?” I asked.

He clarified, “Yeah, it’s been a great experience. I’ve learned a lot. But I could really go for a blueberry cupcake right about now.” 

I giggled, “I’ll be sure to bring you some at the airport.”

“You’re the best. Thank you.”

I was so excited to see Jeremiah that I didn’t realize he was quite dressed up. He was wearing a navy coat, a white dress shirt, and his hair looked more pushed back than usual. Now I missed him even more if that was even possible.

I asked in confusion, “Are you wearing a suit?”

He looked at his outfit and laughed, “Yeah. I figured if you can’t be here, why not make it a virtual date?”

My eyes grew wide, “Why didn’t you tell me before? I would have dressed up. Actually. Let me go change.”

“Don’t worry. You look beautiful.”

“No. I want to.” I ran and found the first relatively fancy outfit that I could find. It was a peach strapless sundress. “Okay. I’m back. I know this is more for the daytime, but I didn’t want to waste any time.”

Judging by the way he was biting down on his bottom lip, he was happy with the dress I chose. He added, “You know that’s my favorite sundress on you?”

“Really? I never knew you liked this one. You always took it off fairly quickly.”

He tried to hold back his laughter as he gave me a smug grin, “So that’s the conclusion that you made from that? Interesting.”

“It’s too early for this. Now I’m going to be distracted the rest of the day,” I playfully complained.

“Should I remind you that you’re the one that started it?” He narrowed his eyes at me. 

“Did I?” I faked confusion. But as much as I was excited to spend this time with him, I had to admit that I felt a little bad knowing how late it was for him right now. I voiced my concern, “I’m sorry I couldn’t talk earlier. We can end the call early if you want.”

“Belly. No, it’s fine. I’m awake,” He added but then yawned shortly after.

“You just literally proved my point. I can tell you’re tired. Don’t worry. We can talk tomorrow if you’re free.”

“You know what? I’m going to go make some coffee. I’ll be right back.” 

“Jere!” I called as he got up. But it was too late. He already left.

A few minutes later, he returned with a large mug, “I’m already wide awake. Promise. Let’s play a game.”

“A game?” I had to give him credit. I found it all the more endearing knowing how much effort he was putting into this. “What were you thinking?”

As he drank his coffee he added, “How about charades?”

“How are we going to do that?” 

“Easy,” He got up and started first.  

I joked, “You’re wearing a suit, and I’m wearing a sundress on a FaceTime call with different time zones, and now we’re playing charades? What the fuck is even happening right now?” 

He pretended to be shocked, “And it’s my favorite night in months already.”

It was my favorite too. At some point during the game, I laughed so hard that I almost forgot how we weren’t really in the same room. It sure felt that way for a second though. Now I was counting down the minutes until he’d actually be back in this room.

To this day, I was still blown away by how thoughtful he was. It wasn’t just the time zone difference. It was evident to me that he had a long day already and still wanted to make time for me. For us.

I was reminded by this again once he fell asleep shortly after the game finished when we were still on the call.

The Following Week:

I went back to the same spot in the park to read during the afternoon. It made me feel closer to him. The words scattered across the pages in my book were just as irrelevant to me as they were before.

I was surprised when I felt Jeremiah braiding my hair, something he’d do when I felt anxious. I sighed at the comfort of his fingers brushing through my hair that was warmed by the sun rays. I felt his lips kiss my ear, and I gasped at the familiar sensation before he whispered, “I missed you.” 

But he wasn’t here. He was still in London.  

And this was just a daydream. One I was reminded by when a violet flower stumbled onto the front cover of my book amidst the melancholy of this spring. That would luckily be over soon enough just in time for summer...