The Letter Tom is at the bleachers fifteen minutes before he’s meant to arrive. In hindsight, that probably belied his reluctance to be there in the first place. Summers' lingering late-day heat makes him regret his punctuality almost instantly, though. Great. Now he’s going to be nervous and sweaty. Since he’s given himself ample time to think, Tom wonders (a little despondently) what he did to garner the affections of a self-proclaimed ‘secret admirer’ in the first place. And, more to the point: he wonders how he can stop doing whatever he did to catch their eye so he can ensure he never has to relive this experience. In truth, he wishes his anonymous crush was a lot more emphatic about the ‘secret’ part of the ‘secret admirer’ moniker. That way, he wouldn’t be all the way out here after school on a Friday afternoon, underneath the bleachers framing the hockey pitch - just to respond to a love letter. He fiddles with the letter in question, folded into four squares and placed inside his pants pocket. He’d debated whether he should return it the night before. It felt sort of insensitive, especially since he was going to reject the author, but keeping the note seemed just as embarrassing. He certainly wasn’t going to throw it away like Mike had suggested - that would be cruel. “It’s just going to end up in the trash, anyway,” Mike had reasoned when Tom had frantically informed him and Noah of his predicament yesterday, after he’d discovered the letter slipped in between the slats of his locker, “What, do you think she’s going to keep it? Like a memento of her first heartbreak? Come on, man.” That wasn’t all Mike had had to say on the matter, although he didn’t offer advice so much as complain on Tom’s behalf: “Seriously, what a pain. Why couldn’t she have just texted you or something? Like, hello! Get with the twenty-first century, please!” “Well, I think it’s sweet,” was Noah’s input. (He’d always been the nicest of their trio), “Also, we don’t know if it’s a girl. The letter’s just signed ‘your secret admirer.’” “Oh please - look at the handwriting!” After that, the conversation quickly devolved into Mike and Noah bickering, which hadn’t actually been helpful. It’s now two minutes until the dreaded hour. Tom briefly wonders if he should offer an explanation, if it would make his admirer feel better knowing Tom can’t accept their affections because he likes someone else. Mostly, Tom just prays it’ll be over fast. “Tom?” The voice comes from behind him, but the surprise isn’t what makes Tom jump; it’s because the voice sounds... familiar.Heart pounding, not even daring to hope, Tom whirls around to see - “Nick?!” It is. It’s Nick, flushed and bashful. For a moment, Tom just stares, not really believing his eyes.Then, a huge smile breaks
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