FOUR WAITING

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c. June 1994

     "You and that Sam kid have been hanging out a lot recently," a friend of Jeremiah's, her name was Diana, commented on the last day of sophomore year. She had a point in her statement. Jeremiah and Sam Wilson had become fast friends, faster than most people realized. No one knew what was really going on, of course. How could they? Something like that happening in a small town? They'd be crucified.

Jeremiah didn't mean for anything to happen with Sam. He didn't care about Sam being attracted to boys, he just hadn't planned on finding himself so intrigued by that idea, let alone feeling the same things. Nothing was serious, nothing could be, not yet. Still, his mind often drifted back to the first time he kissed Sam. To an outsider, it wasn't anything special. Two boys sitting on the couch in Jeremiah's basement watching a movie. He could hardly remember what the film even was. It might have been When Harry Met Sally or was it Jaws? Jeremiah wasn't sure. Maybe it was because he had been so utterly enthralled by the way Sam looked in the dark with nothing but the flickering lights of the film reflecting on his expressions. Jeremiah wishes he knew what overtook him, but in the darkness of the basement he had brought their lips together with a curiosity and fascination he could not contain. Sam had been receptive... more than that. He had been eager like he too had been counting their bated breaths waiting to find out which one of them was going to make the first move.

"Yeah, I suppose we have gotten fairly close," Jeremiah returned her statement with a shrug as they sat on the brick half-walls of the entrance to their school, the last time they would leave this campus as underclassmen. Jeremiah was a long way from grown-up, though, even as everyone steamed with excitement over the new title of upperclassmen as they were two months away from their junior year. "He's a cool guy, you should get to know him. It'd be more fun if we all got along."

Diana shrugged, "I don't like to really associate with those people, I mean, have you seen where he lives?"

"He lives in the same damn town we do, Diana," Jeremiah forced a casual smile onto his face, "Besides, you know better than to judge someone like him, it's 1994, the world is changing."

If only she knew that kind of people Jeremiah and Sam really were. It was exhilarating to exist just below her nose like that, even if it was equally terrifying. What he and Sam had was new and small and he had no idea what any of it meant, but he knew that so far, it made him feel more alive than anything in this small town ever had.

Diana just scoffed at this, offering an easy laugh as the girl pulled her long blonde hair behind her ears, "I don't know, the company you keep says a lot about you, you know?"

"And what does my company say about you, then, Diana?" Jeremiah tested, not knowing why the way she was speaking irked him so much. He had to be careful to not give too much away or else she might start to question why he had gotten so defensive. "Because a girl who is only friends with the boys on the football team says far more about you than it does about me if you really think about it."

"What are you trying to say?" Diana gasped, looking offended at his statement which had pretty much been his goal. If she was going to say awful things, it was only fair she expects them in return. He had only known Sam for a month or so, but even so, he would fiercely defend him for reasons he still wasn't sure of. Maybe it was because it was the right thing to do, but he had never thought of it before. He ought to have been, but in the small town they lived in, normal was too comfortable. People like Sam who came and messed with the normal were usually targets of harsh words such as Diana's, but it was only now that Jeremiah had realized he had no business throwing stones when he could be a target at any unforeseen moment.

"I'm trying to say that if anyone's gonna be watching their mouth around here, it should probably be you," the blond boy shrugged as he hopped off the brick wall, "You know, Sam has never once had a bad word to say about you."

He walked away, not allowing her the space to say anything else, but he had a feeling this wouldn't affect them too much. Besides the team, Diana and Sam really were his only real friends. There was nothing wrong with that, though. Jeremiah was awfully content with the state of his life at the moment, especially when he knew there would be more moments like the one in his basement. He walked over to the bike rack where Sam was already waiting for him. Of course, Sam was always waiting for him.

"What took you so long?" Sam asked with a beaming smile that Jeremiah admittedly found beautiful -- he had yet to muster the courage to say those words out loud, though. "It's hot out here, sheesh."

"Always complaining, aren't you just happy to see me?" Jeremiah met his smile with one of his own, unlocking his bike as the two boys got ready to head to Jeremiah's house. What Jeremiah was mostly looking forward to was this. A summer of beautiful smiles, basement movies, bated breaths. Jeremiah had a feeling Sam was going to change his life -- Hell, he already had.

"You know I am," Sam muttered, a sentence just for the two of them to hear. The two got on their bikes and in a louder voice, Sam exclaimed, "Race ya!"

The boy took off before Jeremiah even knew what was happening and the boy cursed before hopping on his own bike and trying his best to catch up. However, as they rode through the neighborhood, Sam stopped and let Jeremiah catch up. Even if it meant he lost the race, he would wait for Jeremiah. He always waited.

yes I remembered this story existed, no don't ask me how long ago the last update was thank you for tuning in