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𝗥𝗜𝗦𝗞

CHAPTER TWENTY
think I know where you belong
(think I know it's with me)

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REAL LIFE

"DO YOU WANT to go somewhere?"

Mary Jane, who was laying on her stomach on Ellum's bed, looked up from how she had been writing in her journal. Ellum had been sitting at his PC setup, typing away (probably planning lobbies, knowing him.) It was still a bit early in the morning, the house still and quiet. Including the room — they had spoken some soft words to each other when Mary Jane had come in, still in her pajamas and her glasses, but other than that it was quiet.

Ever since Tina's birthday party — as if it was different prior to that — they had sought each other out to just spend time with each other. Before, it was to get to know each other. Now, it was the same, yet very different. This time, it was looks shared with meaning and no more holding back. The past couple of days, Mary Jane had felt like she was on top of the world. In between stolen kisses and lingering gazes and everything else that came with whatever she was with Ellum, Mary Jane just still couldn't believe this was happening still. Something she had imagined in her head since April had finally come true.

Turns out it wasn't the wrong thing. This thing was so, so right.

"I'll go somewhere," Mary Jane agreed, closing her journal and putting all of her focus on the boy in front of her. She actually wanted to say I'll go anywhere you go, but that seemed a bit too vulnerable for something that was only a couple of days old. "Do you want me see if the others are awake?"

"No," Ellum said quickly before clearing his throat, making Mary Jane blink in surprise. "I mean — I mean no. I was hoping, well . . . I was hoping that it would just be you and me."

She stared at him for a moment before she finally got what he meant. Instantly, she smiled softly at him, her heart racing against her chest and her stomach feeling fluttery. Mary Jane pushed herself up to sit upright, adjusting the large t-shirt she was wearing (that may or may not have been his, she will not admit.)

Mary Jane tilted her head slightly. "Josh, are you asking me—"

"Yes," Ellum cut in, his cheeks splashing a light shade of pink. "Yes, I am."

"You didn't let me finish my question."

"But I think I know what you were going to ask."

"Maybe," Mary Jane voiced, her eyes (she could assume) full of stars. "But I'd like to hear you say it."

Ellum turned around fully in his chair to face her. "Is it weird to say I'm nervous? Have I ever told you you make me nervous?"

"No, you haven't. But, if it's any consolation, you make me crazy nervous." She raised her eyebrows a bit. "If you're afraid I'm going to say no, don't be."

"So you say yes?"

"Hypothetically," Mary Jane responded. "But only if you ask me."

Ellum took a deep breath. "MJane . . . will you go on a date with me?"

Mary Jane instantly brightened up, even fixing her posture. "Yes, Josh. I would love to go on a date with you." She checked the time on her phone real quick. "Can you give me, like, twenty minutes to get ready? And where are we going?"

"Yeah, for sure," Ellum agreed. "And . . . coffee and a walk?"

"Say less. I love coffee." She stood up from the bed, grabbing her journal and phone, and walking up to him. Mary Jane placed a hand on the side of his face, a small smile spreading across her lips as he looked up at her and leaned into her hand. "That wasn't so hard, was it?"

"Hey." Ellum poked the side of her stomach, making her giggle slightly. "Don't make fun of me."

"Only joking, baby," Mary Jane said, her smile growing even wider when his face got pinker from the term of endearment. "I'll meet you by the front door in twenty minutes."

Ellum nodded. Mary Jane then leaned down, pressing a kiss right onto his cheek. She ran her thumb across his skin for a moment before letting go. Mary Jane kept their gazes locked for a moment as she took a step backwards, and then she turned herself around and walked out the door. Once she got into the hallway, she hugged her journal to her chest and scurried away in the direction of Tina's room.

(It was much like how Lexi Howard practically skipped down the hallway when her play got approved. She really wasn't different from her character at all.)

Which is exactly how Mary Jane found herself on a Wednesday in a café some time later, some place they had Ubered to in downtown Los Angeles that Ellum had found. She had put on a casual outfit yet still painted her lips the classic red, because obviously. Her and Ellum had listened to music in the car together as always, their hands sitting very very close to each other. Now, it was the same situation. They were waiting in line for coffee, and their arms were brushing together, yet neither of them took the leap yet.

"I told you last time we got coffee I would pay for next time," Mary Jane announced over the chatter of the café. "Does this count as next time?"

Ellum scoffed. "Absolutely not. This is a date that I asked you on."

She sighed and rolled her eyes — fondly, might she add. "Fine." They moved up a bit, now being next in line. "Next time for sure."

"Keep telling yourself that, darling."

Darling. Darling. Darling. That word, especially said in his British accent, rang throughout her brain. He hadn't called her that before, only really sticking to MJane. Maybe he decided to step it up since she called him baby before, but she wasn't for sure. Whatever it was, all Mary Jane knew is that she wanted to hear him call her that forever.

Mary Jane was about to respond, only for her phone to light up with a call. She looked down at it, only to see it was from Luna. Mary Jane hit the red button, ending the call, before turning her attention back to Ellum. However, the second she did that, her phone lit up again, from another call from Luna. Mary Jane sighed and went to end the call again, only for Ellum to place a hand on her wrist. She paused, looking up at him.

"Go answer her," Ellum said.

Mary Jane blinked. "You sure? This is—"

"A date, I'm aware. But we have all day, and you know she's persistent." He gave her a look. "MJane, seriously. It's fine. Answer. I'll order and wait for our drinks."

She sighed. "Thank you. I'll turn my phone off for the rest of the time after."

Before she could really register what she was doing, Mary Jane pressed up onto her toes and planted a kiss to the underside of his jaw. She then walked out of the coffee shop and back outside, squinting slightly from the bright California summer sun. Mary Jane called Luna back, lifting it up to her ear. Luna instantly answered, not even letting the dial tone ring.

"MJ!" Luna exclaimed.

"The hell do you want?" Mary Jane asked.

"Well, hello to you too. My goodness, I am so very sorry that I'm calling to see where you ran off to."

"Lunes." She glanced back for a second through the window to see Ellum walking from the register over to the pickup side, clearly having ordered already. "I'm on a date right now, and you're calling me over and over."

"WHAT?" Luna practically shouted, making Mary Jane jump in surprise. "You're on a date? With Ellum?"

"Who else would I be on a date with, Luna?" Mary Jane argued lightly.

"Okay, no, you right. My bad. But what the hell are you doing talking to me? Go on your date."

"Well, I'm trying, but you wouldn't stop calling me."

"Then I'm hanging up," Luna voiced. "Bye, have fun, see you soon, make good choices!"

The call went silent. Mary Jane let out a deep breath, staring down at her phone for a second. God, she loved Luna Hayes. She then turned her phone all the way off, just like she promised Ellum, and put it in her bag. Just as she did so, the door to the café opened again. Mary Jane looked up, a grin appearing on her face as the human personification of sunshine stepped out into the sunshine. He was holding two drinks in his hands and had his gaze set straight on her.

Ellum offered her drink out to her. "For you."

She accepted it. "Thank you." Mary Jane looked up at him fully. "I'm really sorry about her. She wanted to know where I was, but instantly hung up the second I told her we were on a date. But I did turn my phone off, because I would like to focus on you."

He looked down at the ground shyly. "I told you it's fine, but I appreciate the sentiment — and I appreciate you." And, finally, Ellum extended his hand out to her. "Let's go for a walk, shall we?"

Mary Jane nodded, slipping her hand into his — and, as always, it felt just right. "We shall." She moved forwards, starting their walk down the streets of downtown LA. "Thank you for ordering and paying."

"It's no big deal."

"You said the same thing last time, and it is a big deal. At least to me. It's the little things that mean a lot." She took a sip of her coffee, reveling in the sweetness of it for a second. "How'd you find this place, anyways? It's good."

"I was looking up places in LA to take you," Ellum announced, interlocking their fingers together absentmindedly. "There's so much to do, but I wanted to find something that you liked. And I know you like coffee."

"You did research for me?" Mary Jane questioned, bumping her shoulder against his arm.

"I'd do a lot for you. Including . . ." Ellum trailed off for a moment before clearing his throat. "Look at your coffee cup. Closely."

Mary Jane's eyebrows knit in confusion as she stopped in her tracks. She held up her coffee cup to her face inspecting it for a second. At first, all she could see was the coffee shop's logo on her cup, yet as she turned it, she saw Sharpie — more Sharpie than what was probably needed to just write a single name. Her eyebrows narrowed in concentration as she turned the cup more to see what was written.

And right on the side, scribbled in handwriting that Mary Jane recognized as Ellum's, were the words Will you be my girlfriend? ♡

She could've sworn she felt her heart stop. Maybe she had been fine with not putting a label on anything the past couple of days, but having the title of girlfriend and actually confirming what they were had been in the back of her mind. Just knowing that Ellum had been feeling the exact same way made her mind spin just a bit. She slowly looked up from her coffee cup up to him to see him staring at her expectantly, looking a bit hesitant.

Mary Jane squeezed his hand. "Has anyone ever told you that you're absolutely adorable?"

"No, not really," Ellum admitted.

"Because you are. Like, very much so. That was the cutest thing I've ever seen." She ran her thumb across his knuckles. "If you think my answer is anything other than yes, you're insane."

"So, you're saying . . ."

"Yes, Josh," Mary Jane stated. "I'm saying yes. Yes, I will be your girlfriend."

And then he smiled, which was bright enough to light up the entire town. Mary Jane let out a small laugh and pressed up onto her toes, signaling what she wanted. Ellum took a step closer to her and leaned down, pressing their lips together in a kiss that sealed everything.

＊*•♥̩͙•̩̩͙*˚˚*•♥̩͙•̩̩͙*˚＊＊*•̩̩͙♥̩͙•̩̩͙*˚˚*•̩̩͙♥•̩̩͙*˚＊

TWITTER

Mary Jane Brooks maryjane • 1h
there's something about the sunshine babyyyyyy

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luna 🌙 lunahayes • 1h
sunshine girl :')

💬220 🔁2,455 ❤️19,230

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mercy username • 1h
did you not take this picture? WHO TOOK THIS PICTURE?

💬10 🔁7 ❤️57

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Mary Jane Brooks maryjane • 1h
I ADORE you

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Foolish Gamers FoolishGamers • 1h
I'd love some croffee

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lia! username • 1h
croffee?

💬3 🔁9 ❤️15

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<3 username • 1h
the vocal stim of adding r's to words has too taken over my life

💬25 🔁98 ❤️154

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Mary Jane Brooks maryjane • 1h
okay

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karl :) KarlJacobs_• 1h
I don't like coffee don't get me some

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britt :D username • 1h
hey karl

💬1 🔁4 ❤️18

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Mary Jane Brooks maryjane • 1h
I wasn't planning on it anyways

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loser username • 1h
STAND ON BUSINESS MJ HELL YEAH

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Nolan Hansen Nolan • 1h
I thought you were supposed to come home days ago

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#1 august stan username • 1h
oh? she was supposed to leave la? and she's not? which could mean anything

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Mary Jane Brooks maryjane • 1h
I cancelled my flight because I didn't want to see you

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missing lexi howard username • 1h
damn

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RAE Valkyrae • 1h
the prettiest girl in all of the land!!!

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molls username • 1h
I LOVE THEIR FRIENDSHIP STOPPPPP

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Mary Jane Brooks maryjane • 1h
OH RAE 🫶🏻

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annie username • 1h
crying forever honestly

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Josh Ellum EllumYT • 1h
something about it, indeed

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love is love username • 1h
? what

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Mary Jane Brooks maryjane • 1h
😊

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addison username • 1h
hm . . . this is . . . something.

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daya | seeing luna! username • 1h
something for sure. I'm thinking

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-ˏˋ ✩✩✩ ˊˎ-

10 more chapters 🧍🏼‍♀️ this is scary NOOOO

should I write bonuses . . . maybe I should