ᴛᴏᴏ ᴀғʀᴀɪᴅ ᴛᴏ ʟᴏᴠᴇ ʜᴇʀ

"You don’t know what goes on in anyone’s life but your own. And when you mess with one part of a person’s life, you’re not messing with just that part. Unfortunately, you can’t be that precise and selective. When you mess with one part of a person’s life, you’re messing with their entire life. Everything affects everything."

[helmetc-blog]

it’s a typical friday evening for the duo. the town’s small and the list of activities to do within it is even smaller so it’s no wonder they’ve found themselves roaming around the mall, poking fun at the middle aged women speed-walking in their sketchers as some form of cheap exercise. “ huh ? ” an onslaught of bribery catches an ear and aly’s suddenly being sucked into her worst nightmare: a black hole of kiosk workers. underpaid and hungry for commission, they’re relentless for a sale and aly’s usually the first one to refuse their service. one can only own so many hair straighteners or remote control helicopters, you know ? “ his sarcasm is so hard to read sometimes, isn’t it ? ” rapt hues hone in on an advertisement. FREE COUPLES MASSAGE. DETAILS WITHIN. perhaps she’s a bit of a scam artist but who would turn down an opportunity like this ? “ we’re going on six months. ” shoulders clumsily bump against the other as aly reaches to intertwine their fingers. “ i don’t think the puppy love phase is ever going to end. ” a squeeze is administered to dylan’s paw, a nonverbal cue for him to go along with the theatrics. “ isn’t that right, babe ? ”

his mouth wants to shout ‘wait! what?’ but his brain knows better. aly’s grip on his hand is letting him know that she’s attempting one of her infamous plans. he’s not new to her ways and so he knows to keep his mouth shut and go along with whatever ordeal she has conjured up. “oh. yep.” he’s still stunned. although not admitted, the girl made his heart race while even doing the most innocent and friendly things. now that she has her hand wrapped around his, it’s getting a little harder to breathe. he had only ever imagined her calling him her boyfriend in his dreams. “i don’t see it stopping anytime soon. she’s a real catch.” he knows this is all an act for her. they’re words that she’s only saying to get something for free but he can’t help but soak in the bliss. hoping his composure is still place, he looks at the kiosk saleswoman. “is your massage promotion still running?” he returns her squeeze to let aly know that’s game for playing along. 

[helmetc-blog]

"oh no,” he quickly responds to the woman running the kiosk booth. “we’re not dating.” the question startled dylan and it was obvious from the way his cheeks were flushing with a deep red. this wasn’t an uncommon occurrence though. aly had been mistaken for his girlfriend a number of times and it was more of a compliment than anything. 

[helmetc-blog]

did any of my 10 followers miss me

[helmetc-blog]

over 90% of all communication is strictly nonverbal and hannah’s only adding to the statistic. she’ll keep a tight lip but in return, flood her features with a look that speaks a thousand words. it’s soft and sardonic – an appearance that suggests that even in defeat, she’d somehow still hold an inkling of success. the back and forth with clay never left much room for anything other than victory. unlike most of the population of liberty high school, his presence never left her feeling drained. if anything, blurting the nickname “helmet” between every class period only revitalized her. “ they do, indeed. it’s probably like comic-con but with a lot less power ranger costumes and a lot more lab coats, ” she states matter-of-factly. mirroring clay’s actions, she clocks out and heads to the back of the crestmont. the toe cap of her shoe presses against the exit, jarring the door open. “ between intermission ? why does that sound like some nerdy innuendo ? ” enamel on full display, she crosses her upper limbs and surveys her surroundings before embarking on the walk home. 

“ wait, ” he says with his lips spread into a grin. “ what do you know about comic con ? ” one of their very first conversations dealt with how big of a nerd clay was and how clueless hannah seemed to that whole realm. it only sparked his interest when she brought up the convention. if she had actually been to it, it was just another reason for her to be his dream girl. “ oh - i. ” now walking alongside his bike, he grips the handle firmly in reaction to hannah’s innuendo comment. if he was like any other teenage boy, he would have used the opportunity to flirt with her but he wasn’t going to blow his cover yet. admittedly, he had flirted with her before but it wasn't exactly intentional. it's questionable that clay even knows how to. “ probably because you have the mind of a 12 year old boy. ” his continues on their path, following hannah side by side.  " get your mind out of the gutter, hannah," he muses.

[helmetc-blog]

small talk was never hannah’s forte. hell, is it anyones ? it’s doubtful that ears perk when the weather’s mentioned and obligatory “how are you’s” are awfully boring when it feels like the only acceptable response comes in the form of three or less syllables. hannah would impose an excuse before she ever let a conversation dull down to head nods and awkward throat clearings. exchanging opinions on movies was another thing though. pick apart someone’s taste in film and you’re basically picking apart their brain. bonus points if your brain is attached to a body belonging to clay jensen. she’d hardly verbalize it but his company felt good. the type of good that made you forget how awful your day had been just long enough to rationalize opinions on space jam. in the fashion of a stick-up, a set of paws raise into the air ; palms facing the boy in front of her as if she’s surrendering. “fine, fine. you win this one.” lower limbs take two strides backwards as she pivots on her heels. navigating behind the counter, she locks the glass that’s encasing overpriced airheads and milk duds before cradling the keys in her front pocket. nimble digits then reach to unclasp the bow tie adorning her neck. “ something like that. my parents went to some pharmacy convention. want to come over and watch ghostbusters ? ” 

“the one and only hannah baker is admitting defeat?” clay would finish his sentence with the words ‘pinch me’ but he knows good and well that the girl would take him up on the offer so instead he sports a prideful smile. glancing at the clock, he notes that it’s nearing the end of both of their shifts and he finishes up wiping down the sticky residue on the counter. watching hannah, he wasn’t prepared for the inquiry that was about to leave her lips. his features drop his smile as he swallows harshly as if he’s choking down her request. “ pharmacy convention? they actually have those?” he attempts to keep his cool but it’s hard to avoid sweaty palms when the girl you’ve become fond of is inviting you over.. alone. “oh, um, yeah.” as if he was going to say no. “yeah,” he repeats once more. “maybe i can show you those cat pictures between intermission.” he finally regains a portion of his composure and makes his way to the back to punch his timecard.

[helmetc-blog]

orbs  take  a  roll  and  she’s  offering  him  up  the   whites  of  her  eyes  with  a  quick  oscillation. “  waste  your  time  ?  that’s  awfully  harsh.  i’ll  have  you  know  his  cameo  in  space jam  was  unbeatable.  ”  monet’s  signature  hot  chocolate ,  unwavering  sarcasm ,  after  school  trips  to  the  local  liquor  store  to  only  buy  peanut  filled  candy  bars  ;  hannah’s got  a  seemingly  never  ending  list  of  favorites  but  not  a  single  beloved  item  could  top  her  overwhelming  fondness  for  bantering  with  clay  until  they  were  both  working  on  their  premature  wrinkle  lines. “  yeah  and that  reason  being  that  the  crestmont  only  shows  the  latest  releases.  they  should  really  look  into  having  a  throwback  night.  we’d  be  stuck  at  the  box  office  with  tickets  coming  out  of  our  ears.  ”  dodging  the  mountain  dew  soaked  cloth  being  flung  her  way,  hannah  forklifts  her  frame  from  a  kneeling  position. “  on  second  thought,  maybe  we  should  keep  that  idea  to  ourselves.  ”  as  much  as  she  loved  free  popcorn  and  cinemas,  minimum  wage  wasn’t  enticing  enough  for  that  amount  of  overtime. “  what  are  you  doing  tonight  anyway  ?  researching  more  human-like  cats  ?  ”

“come on, hannah. space jam isn’t a fair argument.” his eyes squint as if he is judging her for even making the statement. “michael jordan was also in space jam. does that make him a good actor? no. they were just both lucky to star in it,” he combats. clay was a movie buff and it was no coincidence that he worked at the local movie theatre. “they really should. imagine a star wars night. the place would be packed and i’d go missing in the back to leave you to deal with all of it.” he is teasing, of course. the smile spread across his face makes that known. his grin quickly dissipates when hannah asks about his future plans though. what was her motive? he didn’t want to get his hopes up but if she wanted to hang out, he definitely wasn’t going to say no. “maybe i am, huh.” he tilts his head with raised eyebrows. “why? were you wanting more bill murray facts?”

[radiicn]

               “  so  i  was  using  the  computer  in  the  back  office  and  the  recent  search  history  said  ‘fun  facts  about  bill  murray ’  and  ‘ cats  that  look  like  people .’”  the  black  cotton  of  a  work  uniform  shrouds  hannah’s  kneecap  as  it  greets  the  popcorn-littered  carpet  of  the  crestmont.  five  hours  into  a  draining  shift  at  the  movie  theatre  and  she’s  got  nothing  better  to  do  than  amuse  herself  by  poking  a  little  fun  at  the  only  other  person  working  the  weekend  with  her. “  but  don’t  worry.  i  cleared  it  for  you.  you  owe  me  one,  helmet.  ”

[helmetc-blog]

whenever hannah started her sentences with anecdotes, clay perked up. the girl was always chalk full of stories and opinions.. and he shamelessly loved hearing all of them. intently listening, his face contorted into an instant smile. of course she’s teasing him. what else would he expect? clenching his eyes, he shakes his head before tossing a rag towards his coworker. “real funny, hannah. you really think i’d waste my time on bill murray trivia?” he honestly wouldn’t even put it past himself but that’s beside the point. “we’ve never had a ghostbusters movie night here for a reason.”