Effortless

Forty-two

"I know that you aren't five years old but it reminded me of you." I chuckled awkwardly. I held the hand of the bear and turned it upward which showed the tiny heart on its palm. "See how on its hand it says 'I love hugs'?"

"Well I do love hugs, so, accurate." Javi blinked softly as he gave the bear a bear hug. "I love the gift, Eli. So much."

I kneeled onto the bed in front of him, the weight of my body resting on my hands which were balled into fists. He was still holding it like his life depended on it.

"Really? I thought you would but I wasn't too sure. I've always liked teddy bears because they're so fluffy and soft. They're always there when you need them because they never go anywhere. Obviously that's because they're inanimate objects, but still. And... I don't know, I just like them." I took a small breath. "I realize that I'm rambling about fucking teddy bears and that this is pretty cheesy. I just thought you should understand why I wanted to give it to you."

Javi was biting the inside of his cheek as he listened to me. When I finished speaking he didn't say anything and simply continued watching me with a small smirk.

I scratched my forehead. "What is it?"

He tilted his head to the side. "You're really cute, you know that?"

I shrugged to which he laughed. He leaned in and kissed me softly, the bear weirdly squished between us as he did. Afterward, he picked up the bear again and held it in front of him.

"What should we name you?" Javi asked the bear. He gave it a moment of thought. "You choose, Eli. Should we name her Everest or Fallon?"

"It's your teddy bear, but I like Fallon."

He pouted dramatically. "But I like Everest more."

Suppressing a silly grin, I said, "I like Everest too."

His eyes flickered to mine and then the bear again. He squinted at it and nodded sharply. "Her name is Fallon Everest."

"First and middle name?"

"Nope, both are her first name." Javi hugged the bear again. "Cool bears have two names as their first name."

Afterward, he sat Fallon Everst down next to us so that he could grab the box behind his bed. It was apparently my birthday present which I did not realize he was getting for me. He apologized for it being late and said that the delivery service had been slacking all holiday season. I didn't mind; I was still surprised that he had gotten me another gift.

Javier got me my own helmet to wear on his motorcycle. He said that we could ride it whenever I wanted to, no questions asked. He had no idea just how grateful I was for the meaning that went into the things he picked out for me. They were always so personalized and it made me feel special. He made me feel special.

-

School started up two weeks after that and we were back into the normal routine of things. Now we were officially in the home stretch of our senior year of high school. Everything mattered now, at least that was what everyone kept saying. It was about to be over so we needed to make the most of what time we had left.

It was also acceptance and rejection letter season. Students were crying in the hallways as they opened the email on their phones and read the 'We regret to inform you' that college had sent them. Others jumped with joy and excitement because they did not receive that email. They were telling everyone what colleges they were accepted into and made it an even bigger deal if they were offered scholarships.