a/n: so my phone screen stopped working properly and for that reason i'm writing this on my school chromebook...and uhh, i'll copy and paste into wattpad using google docs on my phone. yeah, hooray (?)

Tw: none

linden :)

You were not too sure how you ended up friends with Jay. You couldn't be more different, and you were certainly not one to talk to random people outside of friendly conversation. Yet sometime in seventh grade through an estranged social studies project, the two of you drifted together. By the time you were seniors, you were closer with him than anyone else you knew. It was your last summer together before you went off to different colleges and it was your goal to make the most of it. You spent nearly every day together in June and now the endlessly hot first month of summer had slipped into July. You'd proposed the idea of watching fireworks together for your last fourth of July and although hesitant, both your parents agreed. Now in the car together, you flipped through music channels as the fresh night air gusted in through the open windows.

You let out a breathy sigh of contentment as the car pulled into a parking lot. Your first stop was to get pizza. You both got out and shut the doors behind yourselves, gravitating towards each other as you approached the building. Jay slipped his hand calmly into yours. An unconscious gesture of affection. He was a lot more touchy feely as the years passed and you truly did not mind it.

"The thingy looks kind of like a smiley," You pointed out the sign for the pizza parlor as you both walked in, eliciting a small chuckle from Jay. "Kind of." He mumbled. You felt him brush his thumb across the back of your hand before searching for your order in the pizza pick-up section. You leaned over beside him, searching with your eyes. "Oh, here. This is it, right?"

Jay dipped his head near your shoulder, squinting at the label. "Yeah, that's it." He confirmed. You grabbed the box with a grin, delighted at the warmth seeping through the cardboard and into your fingers. The smell wafted up into your face as you spun on your heel and gleefully, though not literally, hopped off towards the door. Jay followed closely behind, humming a tune as you crossed the parking lot and got back into the car. With the pizza box secured, he drove a little farther then parked in another parking lot. This one had a clear view of where the fireworks would be and there were already people sitting on lawn chairs on the asphalt and laughing loudly. The air hummed with warmth and a happy energy as Jay reached above your heads to push open the sunroof. "Let's sit on the roof-." He huffed as he pulled himself up to sit, legs dangling down into the passenger compartment. You laughed and handed the pizza up to him. He set it behind himself then reached down to help you up. You leaned into him as you wobbled, laughter still sputtering out of you. Jay burst into a peal of giggles, bumping your head with his, "What? What's so funny?" He gripped your hand then twisted around to grab the pizza box and set it on his lap. You shook your head, your cheeks flushing with heat. "I'm just happy."

"Happy." Jay repeated. He smiled, "I'm glad."

"Shut up." You mumbled. Jay snickered, his nose scrunching up as he smiled, "Aw, too cringy for you?"

"Yeah, too much sappy shit." You leaned into his shoulder and flipped open the pizza box with the arm that wasn't pressed up against his side. You reached into the bag slung around your shoulder for hand sanitizer and napkins, setting them neatly in the lid of the box. "You started it." Jay held out his hand for the sanitizer, eyes on the sky as it dipped into darkness. A few stars rose above your heads and the soft roar of laughter and chatter around you quieted in anticipation. You furrowed your eyebrows, rubbing hand sanitizer onto your skin. "It's starting? What's the time?" Jay glanced at you out of the corner of his eye and pulled out his phone, "Exactly 9:30. I think they're starting."

"They probably are." You grabbed for the same slice of pizza as Jay and narrowed your eyes in a teasing glare just as the first firework shot up with sizzling fury and an accompanying bang. You yelped and flinched with your entire body, eyes shooting wide open. Jay steadied the pizza box with one hand and you with the other. He laughed, directing his gaze towards the fireworks before grabbing the slice that you'd failed to secure. He grinned at the expression on your face when you realized what had happened and took a bite of pizza. You rolled your eyes and turned your face up to the explosions of colour.

The pizza was gone before you knew it and you wiped your hands with napkins and rubbed them with hand sanitizer before dropping the pizza box into the car and onto the passenger seat. Jay threw an arm around you as the fireworks fizzled in the sky. His eyes glittered with the blues, reds, golds, greens and purples that sparked in the darkness. You leaned into his body, head securely placed on his shoulder and tucked under his chin. Your stomach twisted with anticipation at what you planned to do during the finale. There was a possibility that you'll screw everything up and your friendship with Jay for the rest of your life. You didn't think you could stand him ignoring you for the rest of the summer but you'd already made the decision to do it and it was too late to change your mind. Once you got something into your head it was final.

Jay squeezed your arm as the air around you rang with the sounds of the fireworks rapidly firing up into the sky for the finale. Your heart hammered in your chest. A light air brushed over your warm skin but the air still managed to feel hot and sticky. Another golden firework fizzled. You twisted where you sat, legs swinging and with one hand cupped Jay's jaw. He stared at you in confusion for a split second, but it happened so fast that by the time you'd smashed your lips to his, there was no room for objection. It lasted a shocking moment, the bangs and sparks and booms of the fireworks filling the air around you. You pulled away with a gasp, an apology sputtering its way past your lips.

Your painful, frantic words were cut off by Jay cupping your face and pressing your lips to his again. Your stomach swum in fear and glee as you nearly slipped off the edge of the sunroof into the car. You gripped at Jay's clothes, pulling him to yourself as his teeth grazed your bottom lip. You reeled back slightly, lips still touching his as you took big breaths of summer air. A slow grin spread across your features as you kissed him shortly again. Jay sighed against your lips, your fingers working up the back of his neck into his soft hair. "I'm going to miss you." You choked out. "So much." He murmured. The crowd around you burst into cheering and applause as the firework show ended. You weren't entirely sure how long you spent clutching each other, your head dropped to his shoulder, but by the time you let go, the parking lot was empty.

You sniffed and wiped at silly tears you hadn't realized were there. Jay laughed, rubbing at your cheeks with his thumbs for you. You did the same for him, smiling when he gently kissed you again. It was almost like he couldn't get enough. You cupped his face tenderly, a sheen of water of your eyes. "I don't want this summer to end." Your voice came out as a fragile whisper. Jay sighed, brushed his lips against your forehead and slipped back down into the car. He carefully tossed the pizza box into the back and held out a hand to help you down. You took it out of courtesy and kissed his knuckles. Jay raised an eyebrow at the motion and you felt yourself flush. Strange that he'd kissed you back and you'd gotten so bold. "Your house or mine?" You asked as you clicked your seatbelt. Jay hummed. "Yours?"

"Sure." You smiled. He started driving and you tilted your head to stare at the faint stars through the sunroof. The force of the air on your face pushed your hair away from your face completely, sometimes sending it fluttering into your mouth. You shut your eyes, taking deep breaths of fresh air. There was a faint taste of smoke on it from the fireworks. When you opened your eyes, the car had slowed and Jay was pulling into your driveway. You reached up and slid the sunroof shut. At the same time, Jay reached over to unbuckle your seatbelt. You raised your eyebrows, confused, and caught him by the shoulders. "Hey?"

Jay furrowed his eyebrows. "Yeah?"

Your breath hitched, voice coming out as barely a whisper.  "I love you."

Jay smiled sadly, unbuckling you and gently bumping his nose to your jaw. "I know. I love you too."

You sighed. "Great time to confess, don't you think? The summer before we leave? We're both idiots."

Jay chuckled softly and practically kicked open his door. "Nothing to do about it now. Let's go." He paused when you both started waking up the driveway. You stopped and glanced back. Jay frowned, "But didn't we already know? How much we care about each other." You snorted a laugh, grabbing his hand and leading him to the door, "Maybe you did, but I thought that you only...loved me platonically."

"Why would we go to prom together otherwise?" He grinned. You threw up your free hand in exasperation as he rang the doorbell. "I'm dense, alright! It could have been platonic."

"And I thought it was platonic because you avoided the kiss that night." He murmured against your ear.

"You tried to kiss me!?" You gasped. Jay laughed, "You really are dense." You jumped slightly in place at the locks clicking as your mother opened the door. She smiled cheerfully, the sweet scent of chocolate following her from the kitchen. You glanced sideways at Jay. He gave you a warm smile, dropping your hand as he greeted your mother. You both slipped off your shoes and settled on the couch with your baby sister in your lap to watch a movie. Your mother joined you later with a plate of fresh brownies and sparkling grape juice.

You leaned into Jay's side, laughing when your sister climbed over both your legs to go cuddle into your mother. Jay threw an arm around you, his eyes set on the children's movie playing on the television. You were too encapsulated by staring at him in awe. When Jay glanced at you, you held his eye contact for a moment before letting your gaze flicker past him to your mother, who was giving you a very suspicious and knowing smile. You stared back at him, eyebrows raised. Jay grinned sadly and it crossed your mind that no matter how much time you spent together, after this summer you would both be half a country away from each other. You quietly promised yourself in that moment that you would make it work, because no matter how melancholy the past few hours had been, they were also the best of your life.