An Eventful Summer (Jonah & Lily, M)

[Skylacticon]

Hey.  So this happens shortly after 'Time's A-Wasted, Go', around the earlier time when the band member's are still in university. This will likely be a two-parter. Hope you enjoy. xxx

-

🍅🌿🧳👒🐞

 

 

“This is absolutely ridiculous…”

 

Jonah was standing in front of a mirror at one end of the dining room, fussing with his hair. The door to the bathroom opened, and Allison emerged, nearly colliding with him. Lily peeked through the screen door, shifting from watching Hunter try to grill onions. She was thinking he should’ve used aluminum foil, because the stringy layers were slipping through the grill bars.

 

“What’s the matter?” Allison asked, stepping over. She seemed to be the perfect height for where the mirror was hung, while Jonah was slightly hunching, trying to untangle his gnarly hair with a brush.

 

“It’s just gone all frizzy…”

 

“It looks fine.”

 

“It has… more knots than a necklace with genuine pearls…”

 

“This is why he writes most of our lyrics,” Hunter mused casually.

 

“Here, let me.”

 

Lily caught Allison grinning at her in the mirror as she snuck another glance Jonah’s way. Lily’s face pulled into something less than subtle - then her gaze returned to the smoking grill. Allison began to gently separate the top half of Jonah’s hair from the bottom half with the brush.

 

“Ow,” Jonah winced.

 

“Sorry.”

 

“Hunter, shut the door, or the bugs’ll get in," he requested.

 

“Why? We’ve got you, daddy long legs.”

 

“Fucking hell,” With a chunk of his hair in the brush, he attempted to shoot a look back.

 

Allison tried not to laugh. “Stay still.”

 

The past couple of days had been awfully warm and humid. Lily had been enjoying showing off some new clothes she’d bought recently from her share of their recent earnings. Summer dresses and tops she'd been eyeing, just in time for their current situation - unfortunately, the air conditioning at the cottage had stopped working. Jonah was highly apologetic, although the group wasn’t too bothered, glad have somewhere to stay and hang out while the festival was going. Outside, the evenings were nice and cool. Perfect for a barbecue.

 

“Babe?” Hunter yelled from outside.

 

“Yes, doll?” Jonah winced, as Allison still seemed to be trying to tame his hair.

 

Allison grinned. “Yeah?” she responded, without looking up.

 

“How many burgers do you want?”

 

“Uh, two please,” she replied. “There. You look great.” Allison put down the brush.

 

Jonah looked at himself in the mirror, his dark, frizzy hair pulled into a half up half down style. Some curly little strands framed his thin face. He sighed softly, raising a hand to touch the neat ponytail at the back of his head. “Wow, you really managed to… sort of fix it.”

 

“No sweat,” Allison patted his shoulder.

 

Lily pretended not to be listening, secretly enamoured with the humid weather’s effects. She hadn’t seen Jonah’s hair get so curly before, and something about his qualms with it was rather… cute, really.

 

“Hey,” Jonah’s soft voice appeared at her side, as he and Allison came outside. He glanced over, taking in the smell of the grilling burgers and smoke.

 

“Hey,” Lily greeted, getting to see his handsome, unruly hair again as she looked up casually. “You okay?”

 

“Yeah,” he sighed, leaning his hand on one of the patio chairs as Allison joined Lily at the table. “Just Dekanawida becoming airborne, and…” his slender nose scrunched up a little, as he squinted against the gentle rays of the setting sun. “Deciding to style me for the banquet.”

 

Lily’s lips quirked into a humoured grin. “Well, ein prosit,” she murmured, earning a quick glance back from him, boyish and charming. Sometimes his speech could take an outlandish, poetic turn at any given moment, then at the next minute-

 

“What in fuck’s name is happening here?” Jonah ventured softly, walking over to the grill, the top part strewn with ribbons of red onion. He began to roll up the sleeves of his thin beige button down, turning as the wind lightly tussled his hair. 

 

“Yeah, I should’ve used tin foil.” Hunter glanced up at Jonah. “Jeez, you’re like Monica in that one episode.”

 

“I know, *snff!*” Jonah leaned on the banister of the deck, watching Hunter try to transfer the cooked onions, then decided to prep the veggie burgers while the beef ones were still cooking.

 

On the table were bowls of chopped up vegetables that Lily had prepared: tomatoes, lettuce, and fresh onions. She reached over and ate a piece of tomato, which was cool and refreshing. Over at the grill, Jonah was chuckling softly as Hunter tried and failed to move some pieces of onion into a bowl.

 

“Dude,” Jonah shook his head. He sniffled and laughed. He put down the bag of veggie burgers on the side table of the grill, and raised a forearm to rub at his nose.

 

If it hadn’t been so warm inside, Lily knew that Jonah might have wanted to avoid eating on the deck. He was already sniffling, glancing around for things to do - feebly trying to avoid rubbing his reddening nose with his hands. He stood still for a moment, eyeing the prepped ingredients.

 

“Anyone want their bread toasted?” he offered.

 

“I do,” said Allison. She took the clear plastic bag of burger buns and retrieved two, as Lily said she wanted hers toasted as well. Lily took an empty plate from the table and Allison put the bread on top.

 

Jonah reached out to grab the plate from Lily, but paused and turned his head away to sneeze. “d’EEISSCHH!!-unhh, *snrff!*” Lily looked up. Jonah was blinking rapidly and muttering to excuse himself. “Sorry, oof,” he lifted his bicep to wipe his teary eyes on his sleeve.

 

“Bless you,” Lily said softly, lowering the plate a little with a gentle grin. Jonah looked away, his brows wrinkling a little. “…You okay?”

 

His body turned, as his nose gave another ticklish twinge. His eyebrows furrowed with irritation, and he froze, squinting in the direction of the evening sun. His fair skin glowed in the warm hues of light, and revealed organically, was the rosy pink colour of his inflamed, allergic nose.

 

He nodded after a bit. “Yeah, no, I just- I have to-“

 

After two or three seconds, Jonah’s face pinched into an itchy scowl, and he pitched forward into his elbow with another sneeze. “iyY’EEISSCHHIEWW!!! Oh god,” he muttered, blinking dazedly as his long form straightened.

 

“Bless you!”

 

“Goodness, I… hyY’ESSCHHIEWW!!! …*sdrff!* Agh...” Jonah stumbled slightly with that sudden third, and sniffled a few times, quite wetly.

 

“Let me get that,” Hunter held out a hand, and Lily gave him the plate with the buns.

 

Jonah kept sniffling thickly, retreating to one side of the deck as Hunter put the sliced bread on the grill. He leaned against the wooden railing, at first taking a breather and waiting to see if might sneeze again. Holding a soft cloth he’d pulled from his pocket, he pressed the knuckle of his index finger hard against his nose in a hard swipe. After a few moments, he turned around to face the railing, leaning a hand atop it as his frame shuddered with another sneeze, muffled into the hanky.

 

“hdD’SSCHHIEWW!!”

 

“Bless you,” Allison chirped.

 

“USSCHHIEWW!!”

 

“Bless you,” called Lily.

 

Jonah snuffled hard, and gave a soft, guttural groan. He turned around and leaned back on the banister, his gaze flushed and teary-eyed. He pinched the hanky to his nose and blew, brief but wet-sounding.

 

“You okay?” Hunter gently punched Jonah’s shoulder with the tongs in his hand.

 

Jonah sniffled. “Ugh, yeah, *snrf!*”

 

“Allergies?”

 

“Yeah,” he sighed. “Actually no, it’s your onions,” he teased dryly. Hunter scoffed a chuckle. “*snrff!* So bad, I’m cryin’…”

 

As he straightened again and lowered his hands, Lily glanced over at him, feeling sympathy. Jonah watched Hunter grill from a safe distance, sniffling thickly. Spots of soft sunlight were cast on him from through the trees, showing the soft outline of his curls, dancing across his poor, flushed nose.

 

Eventually he came over to the table and sat down, next to Lily. They exchanged gentle grins. Lily’s gaze drifted shyly in the direction of the grill. After a short while of listening to the sizzling accompanied by Hunter whistling, she turned to look at Jonah, who was leaning back in his seat. His gaze seemed to be zoned out on the forest behind the house. Hunter came over to give Allison her toasted burger bun, with a veggie patty atop the bottom slice.

 

“Wanna move inside?” Lily suggested softly, her voice low.

 

“Mb?” Jonah blinked. He cleared his throat gently, his eyes moving downward. “Maybe,” he breathed. He sniffled softly, but thickly, and glanced around. “I might enjoy the fresh air for a bit,” he thought aloud, and leaned forward to rest his elbows on the table.

 

Lily grinned vaguely. “Sure?” she asked, with a touch of sweetness.

 

“Yeah… for a little while.” Jonah turned and connected his gaze. A look flashed across his tea-coloured eyes, his lips pulling into a teasing smirk. It left Lily speechless, a bit flustered as he disconnected his gaze and casually leaned his arms forward on the table. Hunter handed him a plate with a toasted burger bun and patty. “Thank you, sir.”

 

“No worries. Ma’am,” he slid a plate with the same thing in front of Lily.

 

“Thank you,” Lily took the plate with a smile, and looked over at the bowls of toppings.

 

“You’re welcome.” Hunter went back over to the grill to serve his own burger.

 

“It’s nice, getting to do this, *snrff!*” Jonah said, soft enough that only Lily could hear.

 

She felt a gentle fondness for him as he proceeded to dress his hamburger, drizzling the store brand chipotle sauce in fancy zigzags. Her hand found his beneath the table, and his long fingers closed around hers in a gentle squeeze. A vague grin rested on Lily’s face, lasting after they’d retrieved their hands. She reached for the mayonnaise, then stacked lettuce and tomato on her burger.

 

-

 

Lily’s back hit the wall with a soft thump next to the fridge. “Okay, but-“ Her head slowly leaned back as Jonah’s lips kept going, kissing along her neck. “This time, don’t-“ The next breath was rather manual.

 

“Yeah?” Jonah drew back a little. One of his big hands was planted on her shoulder, the other on her side. His left thumb gently skimmed beneath the hem of her cropped tee, along the base of her ribcage, making her insides flutter.

 

“Don’t forget,” with their faces inches apart, she gently kissed his lips. His mossy brown eyes gazed into hers, like she was the only thing that existed in that moment. “The medicine.”

 

“Hm?” he breathed, as if the words had been like a breeze that lightly swept by his face.

 

Lily laughed softly. “Honey, the medicine,” she repeated.

 

“Oh, yeah,” he replied. Still, his sweet eyes gazed down at her, practically cornered by the fridge. He lifted one of his hands to brush a curly lock of hair from his face.

 

Lily stayed there, her back still against the wall, her face inches apart from Jonah, who was stubborn and sweaty and too distracted to turn his attention to the medicine cabinet. She liked where she was, though. As she stared at the chest hair peeking out from his half-buttoned shirt, at the silver chain around his neck, she was with him in whatever this limbo was. Not the end, not indulging. Just seeing.

 

The back door opened.

 

“Not sure if that counts as rock, but sure,” Hunter was telling Allison.

 

Lily blinked, her hands beginning to lower from Jonah’s shoulders. Jonah straightened and cleared his throat. By the time Hunter’s thunking footsteps reached the kitchen, Jonah was casually reaching for a pack of Benadryl, holding it to read the label like a magazine as if he hadn’t memorized the directions a dozen years ago.

 

“Hey man. Feel any better?”

 

“Oh yeah,” Jonah exhaled, the satisfaction clear. As Hunter turned his back to put some plates in the sink, Jonah shot a grin Lily’s way, and she winked.

 

“That’s good.” Hunter began to wash the dishes by hand, and Lily could hear Allison bringing things in from outside. “Thanks for trusting me with the grill.”

 

“Thank you for using it, chef.”

 

“Sorry about the onions,” Hunter said, sliding a plate into the drying rack.

 

“Oh, it’s ok. I’ll clean it tomorrow,” Jonah said coolly, placing the Benadryl down on the counter. Then his breath caught, and his brow furrowed as he turned away to let out a booming sneeze, harsh and rather sobering. “hrr’AASSCHHIOO!!”

 

Hunter jumped. “Jesus, bless you…”

 

Lily had slipped away to help Allison bring things inside. She grabbed the big bowl and bag of potato chips, glancing at the grill to see if anything had been left behind.

 

“That took while, did you have to kiss him to make him take the damn meds?” Allison thought aloud, rolling the other bag of chips closed.

 

“Uh,” Lily stacked one half-finished bowl of chips into an empty one. “Yeah, something to that effect,” she replied matter-of-factly.

 

“Alright, Lily!” Allison nudged her, with a grin that made Lily laugh.

 

“Would you relax?” she chuckled.

 

“It was the hair, wasn’t it?” Allison guessed, still wearing that funny grin. Lily jabbed her in the side with her fingers.

 

“W- eh, shut up,” Lily garbled, feeling heat rise to her cheeks as she went to bring the things inside. Allison chuckled as Lily gently swung the bag of remaining burger buns at her arm.

 

-

 

The summer had been rather eventful so far. There had been car rides filled with pumping bass, and days where Lily sat on the dock by the lake while the others swam. And there had been days when Lily’s eyes would skim across a crowded room to find Jonah, who on multiple occasions, was already looking at her. On the kitchen windowsill at the cottage, there were two new small terra cotta pots with thriving aloe vera. In the bedroom where she slept, she’d found soft, folded comforters, and a hot water bottle hidden in the chest of drawers. Sometimes on occasion, she’d find a tiny plucked daisy atop the writing desk.

 

Something Lily wasn’t sure Jonah knew about was how thin the ceiling might have been between the second floor and the attic. Some nights, her ears would pick up on something beyond the chirping crickets, the gentle rustle of wind in the trees. Sometimes there would be the muffled plucking of an acoustic guitar, and the faint sound of a voice that sounded like the lead of a church choir. Those nights, Lily would lie in bed, scorning the volume of the ladder to the attic, scorning her ability to be swept away so easily.

 

She hadn’t said anything about it to him, for fear that he’d stop. It lulled her to sleep each night, and in the morning, she was often greeted by the sound of his sneezing.

 

Although the fact that he might not have known how the sound carried - it might have been true, as tonight, he seemed to be bearing the consequences of being outside for most of the day.

 

“‘RR'USSCHHIUHhh!! *sngk!*” Sixteen. “dt’CHIEWW!!-’CHIEWW!!-chieww!!” Seventeen, eighteen, nineteen… “HRR'AASSCHHIOOO!!!” Twenty. Good god.

 

The room she was staying in happened to be directly below the area in the attic where the mattress was. He’d been at it for a while now. She couldn’t imagine how exhausting it must have been, to sneeze that many times in a row. But despite her inner dialogue, despite any comforting assumption she’d made that it had finally stopped…

 

“haAD’SSCHIEWW!!!”

 

He just kept sneezing.

 

“-d'ISSCHHhh!!”

 

Lily had known that Jonah had bad allergies, but he rarely complained about how bad. She lay there in silence, staring up at the ceiling. After a moment, she wondered if that was it. Then,

 

“EEEEISSCHHIUHHh!!!”

 

How naive. She pictured him sitting up on the bed,

 

“-’ISSCHHiuh!!”

 

In his grey, fitting tank top…

 

“-isschhiuhh!!”

 

The guy himself really wasn’t that loud, but when he had to sneeze,

 

“HaAAD'TCHIEWW!!!”

 

He really sneezed. Like, Wilhelm-scream-meets-allergy-season sneezed.

 

“-HAAEEISSCHHIEWW!! *snnrgk! sngk*”

 

Twenty-seven. The poor guy. Lily blinked and laid on her side, trying to focus on the dim image of the bookshelf across the room. She could hear quiet, but honking blows, and felt even more sorry - the congestion must have sucked. Then, she heard some noisy sniffles. Then, “-'USSCHH!!-ioo *snngk!*” Twenty-eight.

 

Lily sighed and rolled onto her back again. She thought about going to check on him. Although- she didn’t want him to feel embarrassed. She paused shyly, her eyes moving to gaze in the direction of the bedroom door.

 

“d’EEISSCHHhh!!”

 

Screw embarrassment. How was breathing through all that?

 

"-iHdt'CHIEWW!!"

 

Lily figured that Hunter and Allison might not have been close enough to hear it. She quietly got out of bed. Another harsh-sounding, muffled sneeze came from above, as she went to her bedroom door. She stepped out into the hall.

 

Great, she thought with an inward sigh, seeing that the hatch to the attic was actually closed. She stepped back into her room and grabbed her phone.

 

‘Hey’, she hit send, and kept typing while she still had the courage. ‘You gonna live?’

 

Fuck. Lily laid back on the bed, nervously running her hands over her face. She hoped it wouldn’t embarrass him too much. Some dots appeared on his side of the chat.

 

Then, from above, a resigned-sounding- “hHieyY’ESSSCHHIEWWw!!!”

 

The dots appeared again, and Lily sat up. ‘Questionable’. Lily sighed. He began to type again. ‘I'm really sorry’.

 

Lily’s fingers started typing fast. ‘Don’t be, honestly’. She paused, then, ‘Is there anything I can do to help?’

 

For a few minutes, he didn’t respond. Silence hung up above, and Lily was nervous again, both wanting to help and not wanting to overstep. Then-

 

‘I left something on the counter downstairs’. ‘Could you maybe grab it for me “ESSCHHIOO-!!” please?’

 

Lily was already getting to her feet. ‘Sure.’ ‘What’s it look like?’

 

‘Small round green thing’.

 

Huh. Lily lifted her eyes from her phone and looked around thoughtfully. As if now was the time to be cryptic.

 

“eeiht’CHIEWW!!”

 

Well, she could do that. Small round green thing. Probably some type of medication. ‘👍🏼’.

 

‘Tysm’.

 

Trying to lighten her footsteps, Lily headed downstairs and into the kitchen. The counter wasn’t exactly cluttered, but it was a long surface. In the dim light, she saw something about half the size of the palm of her hand, a round cylindrical object. Jonah’s nasal spray. She snapped a photo of it, confirming with Jonah if it was the correct item.

 

That was affirmative. Lily slipped it into the pocket of her shorts, and her phone into the other. She quietly went to the cupboard and removed a mug, and filled it with ice cold water from the faucet.

 

As she started back up the steps, she heard another harsh, muffled sneeze from above. “AASSCHHIEWW!!”

 

Lily detoured into the empty bathroom on the second floor. There were towels on the rack by the shower, ones that were for hand drying. On the shelf, she found a folded washcloth. It looked clean, so she stuffed it into her pocket.

 

‘Got it’, she texted him, lingering by the hatch to the attic. ‘Is it ok if I come up?’

 

“hrRR’AASSCHHIOO-!!!" Oh boy. “huHd'ISSCHHIEWW!!-isschieww!!” Lily waited, then- “h-hdts'ZZSSCHHIEWW!!”

 

Lily's hand flew up to touch the hanging thin rope that pulled down the hatch with the ladder.

 

“-ESCHH!!-ieww...”

 

Ow. Lily’s fingers closed around the rope, as she winced a little. Thankfully, a pause followed, and it wasn’t until a good nine seconds later that Jonah texted back: ‘Pls yes'.

 

Lily let out a soft sigh and glanced up. She’d probably only let down the ladder to the attic once or twice in all her stays at this cottage. She knew that it made noise whenever someone climbed up or down, and it was a heavy object, that unfolded down from the ceiling. But also, he’d said please.

 

The hatch pulled down fairly easily, and the next task was to unfold the ladder. Very conscious that Allison and Hunter were in the room down the hall, Lily trusted her strength and pulled the folded part of the ladder down over her head, and steadily onto the floor. Wow, she’d done it.

 

The sound of his sneezing was clearer with the attic hatch lowered. It took her longer than usual to come up, as the ladder really was quite noisy when put to use, and she was also carrying a mug of water in one hand.

 

“RRSSCHHhh!!!” That one sounded muffled into something. “HRRSSCHH!!-unhh…*snrg*”

 

Close to the top, Lily placed the mug on the attic floor and climbed up into the room. She spotted Jonah’s dark, hunched frame sitting on the side of the bed, facing away from the ladder.

 

“Jooonah,” she called softly, as she crossed the room.

 

As she came closer, his exhaustion became more apparent. His wild hair was now tied back in a bun, and he was wearing his grey wife beater and pale blue thin pyjama pants. The grey fabric tightening over the valley between his shoulder blades was darkening with sweat. It was pretty warm up in the highest part of the house. He didn’t have to say anything, although it appeared he might have wanted to, if he could.

 

“Howdy,” Lily greeted delicately, putting the mug down on the dresser next to the window.

 

“Hey,” he mustered hoarsely. His voice made Lily’s heart sink a little.

 

As he looked over shyly, the glow of the moon lit his poor, reddened features with a softness Lily might have been able to describe if she hadn’t been feeling so deeply for him. Instead, there was the digital clock on the dresser that read 12:37AM. And there was the way his deeply red nostrils wrinkled as he sniffled, whistling and congested, and the way his sore, glassy eyes kept drifting downward. There were the shorter, loose ringlets of dark frizzy hair that framed his face, and the way he touched his trimmed beard, a thing he did when he was thinking or stressed. Or in this situation, simply tired.

 

There was also the violent jerking of his shoulders, as he swiftly pressed a large, folded handkerchief over the lower half of his face with one hand, and a desperate, throaty vocalization- “EEEISSCHHIEWWw!!! *snnrgk!* Mmnh….”

 

“Bless you.”

 

Jonah’s ragged breathing filled the next brief pause, the hanky lowering as if that could’ve been satisfactory. But as Lily inferred, the slow breaths crumbled into some itchy coughs, and he turned away to bark another rapid, ticklish fit of four in the cloth. “aaAH’ESSCHIU!!-Esschiu!!-EESCHhieww!! -ischh!!”

 

“Bless you,” she purred, putting a gentle hand on his thigh.

 

Lily waited as he rubbed the abundance of cloth against his relentlessly ticklish nose. Her hand moved to his shoulder and stroked the warm surface of his skin with her thumb. Taking advantage of the pause, she retrieved the nasal spray from her pocket. Gently, she touched his forearm, which to her surprise, seemed to cease the rubbing. Jonah drew in another noisy sniffle, and swiped at his teary eyes with his wrist. When his hands lowered, she gently reached for the one that was empty, and slipped the nasal spray into his fingers. Jonah glanced down at it with soft eyes. His bleary gaze drifted back up to meet Lily's.

Edited June 26 by Skylacticon

[Sparklesparkle84]

Yuuuuussssss, another chapter!!  

I really enjoy these stories of when they are at the cottage. Its just sweet, the 4 of them interacting, being a band of friends. (and a band  ) 

The best part of this story: Lily and Jonah bonding. Them kissing, and then Lily helping Jonah with his allergy attack for the first time ❤️👏  Maybe she will spend her fist night with him, helping him with his allergies. 

I have so may ideas for these guys, like, maybe Jonah having a bad allergy attack at the festival, or when they go out to the village or lake,  more sneezy nights, maybe some allergic holdbacks from our sneezy man,  band practice not going so well with Jonahs allergies joining the party. And some cuddles for poor Jonah. ❤️

Always looking forward to the next chapter. These are a joy 🤗

[AntheaHolmes]

Oh, this is so nice. I really enjoyed reading it. Lovely. 

[dwaekki]

Omg yes I already can't wait to see what happens next, I think this is may be the sneeziest Jonahs ever been and I'm absolutely here for it 

[Privatedancer]

I love all of the Jonah and Lilly stories but this may be my favorite.  The budding romance, miserable allergic Jonah, and Lily unable to control herself from caring for him. I can’t wait for more - love both the hurt/comfort and the friends to lovers tropes.  

[Skylacticon]

Hey, thanks for the sweet comments! ☺️ I'm really enjoying writing these two. Just a couple of things -

So sorry about any mistakes with my English just in general, sometimes I'll miss words or type the wrong ones, and I tend to catch it afterward, whoops.

Second, just a word about the plot so far in all of these separate fics - As I tend to hop back in forth in time with these two, you may notice the odd inconsistency, which I tend to want to avoid - for example, the more I write this, the more the plot of the first fic, 'For Her', seems further out because of how Lily reacts. The thing about the Jonah & Lily series is that it was originally heavily inspired by Hozier and romantic themes that were more exaggerated than realistic (hence all the music recs lol), but then the style became more malleable the more I wrote of them and as they became their own characters. So I appreciate you bearing with me as I figure it out. If it helps, consider series with varying generations or ancient myths that are innately the same but differ in various tellings. Just had to get that out. TLDR; sorry for inconsistencies, these two were born of romantic ideology rather than a full-scale plot. But they're SO fun to write. 🫣

Thanks again. Second part to this still in progress. 🤎

[Sparklesparkle84]

I am enjoying your stories so much, I dont realize if there any mistakes 😜  They dont affect anything, so dont worry ❤️ 

I have not been so attached to two characters for many years. These two guys are just precious. I cant wait for more stories. Theres so many different stories that can be told about them. 

I have a question: Jonah is inspired by Hozier, so does he have a Irish accent, or any accent? XD Is Lily inspired by anyone? 

It would be so cool to have fanart of these two  

Excited for the next part, as always  

[Skylacticon]

On 6/26/2024 at 10:06 PM, Sparklesparkle84 said:

does he have a Irish accent, or any accent? XD Is Lily inspired by anyone? 

You could certainly imagine it, if you'd like. 😉 I suppose Lily might be inspired by the lover in some of the more delicate songs, like 'Work Song' or 'I, Carrion'. She's developed into her own character in my eyes, but was originally written to be his SO.

I better post this before I go feral. I hope y'all are having a good day.

 

Part 2:

-

🪵🧺🤎🚪🧸

 

 

“Thagk you,” Jonah whispered.

 

“Of course.”

 

A few seconds passed, as Jonah hazily attempted to collect himself. His feelings of insecurity, that had just been trampled by more urgent and responsible decisions. The embarrassment was beginning to resurface, meaning he was fine enough to feel something other than shortness of breath or dizziness. There was burning heat in his cheeks and his forehead. And a less than comfortable amount of sweat, and snot.

 

“*snnrk*… *hsngk!* Ub, I- hihh!” He could barely start to speak, when his red nose gave an impatient twitch, and he straightened. Quickly, he raised the cloth and sneezed twice, quite unable to restrain their vigor. “haAAEESSHHIEWW!!-EEISSCHHIUE-!!” He snuffled and groaned softly into his handkerchief.

 

“Bless you,” Lily said lightly, somewhere beside him as he sniffled thickly. Her voice was so kind, even if he could barely bring himself to look at her. “Here-“ The mattress rose as Lily reached for the tissue box on the nightstand, and gently placed it next to him on the bed. “Blow your nose, hon.”

 

“*hsnrk!*….” Jonah looked down at the nasal spray in his hand, then the box of tissues between him and Lily. His flushed nose crinkled with another thick sniffle, a habitual effort that was more noisy than effective.

 

He let out a weak sigh through his mouth. The day had been long, and hot, and his infernal eyes and nose wouldn’t stop itching. His ears had even began to feel gritty.

 

Jonah put the handkerchief and nasal spray down next to him on the bed. Doing as he was told, he pulled a pair of tissues from the box. He paused a bit as he raised the tissues. If Lily had been able to hear him all this time, perhaps it would be pointless to feel too shy to blow his nose.

 

It wasn’t like he hadn’t done it before - but it would be loud, and wet, not likely the sort of instance where doing it gently would make it quieter. In the silence of the night, it made it seem more mortifying.

 

He felt a reflexive urge to stand, to walk away. To where? His head felt so heavy, and god, he couldn’t tell her to go. Either way, he was going to sneeze again, and it would be painful to try to restrain, and he desperately needed to blow his nose, but it was just too quiet for him to stand the idea of it. But he had to get over himself. It was his fault anyway, and he had been keeping her awake. He could do this at least, and perhaps she’d go back to bed, and-

 

His rattling train of thought was halted as he heard a light tap, and the sound of plastic sliding and clattering onto the wooden floor. A stack of CD cases he’d left by the foot of the bed had been knocked over.

 

“Oops,” Lily breathed. “Sorry,” she turned to flash him a soft, apologetic smile, before getting up and kneeling to rearrange the stack. There was a warmth in her gaze as their eyes connected.

 

Jonah blinked. He could’ve said something. He could’ve said ‘That’s okay. I haven’t listened to those in years, and they really belonged to my dad, who gave them to me one day unprompted and I haven’t gotten around to sorting them away…’ But he just stared for a moment. Watching the back of her white tank top patterned with tiny blue flowers, and her ponytail, swaying as she moved. Lily collected the CD’s one by one, letting the plastic clack together, but still being careful.

 

Jonah took a breath through parted lips, and exhaled wearily. He realized that his heart was pounding. Okay, relax. What a sad state to be in, what a vile way to think of someone so kind, and how irrelevant all that thought must be… Just blow your damn nose, you wretched thing.

 

With necessity, he raised the tissues and gave into a long, gushing nose blow, quickly soaking them through. Lily heard two more tissues being pulled from the box. He kept blowing until he was no longer able to, panting slightly between each exhale.

 

He tossed the soggy tissues into a bin by the nightstand, and made a sore attempt to clear his throat. Lily’s eyes flickered towards his weary figure, as she’d gathered most of the CD cases, putting them in shorter stacks next to the foot of the bed.

 

“Bryan Adams?” she said, grinning a little.

 

Jonah felt very aware of how his shirt was sticking to him. Lily stood at a distance, holding a CD case and looking it over. With a blank stare, he mustered a croaky response.

 

“Yeah.” He watched as she did another scan of the floor, to see if she missed anything. “Dideties jabs.”

 

Lily had to raise her eyes look at him again. “Nineties Bryan Adams?” She turned the case in her hand. “Fearless? Before The Night Is Over?”

 

Jonah huffed a soft laugh, which made him cough. It pained his sore sinuses, causing his nose to run again. “Baybe dot the best- *g’hm!* role bodel... *snnrk!*”

 

“Well, it's edgier than his newer stuff - a lil more hippy dippy," she chuckled. "Remember that TV show that covered a bunch of popular songs?”

 

“Uhh… Vaguely,” he breathed, his eyelashes fluttering. The urge came too fast to cover, and he ducked his head away. “iyY’EEISSCHHhh!! -ISSCHHIUHh!! *snnrgk!* Unh…”

 

“Bless you.”

 

“*snngk! Thagk you. I… *snrk!* I recall the sla’der.” Each word was like an uphill climb. Two thousands trivia. Panted breaths of warm, stuffy air. Lily’s silhouette in front of the window.

 

Jonah picked up the nasal spray in his lap, and fidgeted with it slightly as he saw Lily slowly turn toward him in his peripheral vision.

 

“You should take it,” Lily said softly, looking over with caring eyes, playing with the end of her ponytail.

 

“I will.” His eyes held this stony sort of look, more shy than stubborn.

 

Although, mind-reading wasn’t a human capability. “I…” Lily’s voice had stiffened slightly. Jonah forced himself to make eye contact, his knee bouncing with the stirring of old reflexes. “I can go, if that would make you feel-“

 

“Ndo,” Jonah heard himself say. He couldn’t see Lily’s eyes well while they were in shadow, but he stared in her direction. His lips were parted for a moment, then shut, as he couldn’t seem to form words. His gaze fell, while Lily’s flicked over his weary form.

 

She stayed put. “I won’t look,” she offered.

 

Jonah’s Adam’s apple bobbed with a hard swallow. He hadn’t meant to snap at her. But he hadn’t expected her offer to leave to sound so reluctant, either. His eyes stung. As Lily pivoted, Jonah took in a shaky breath, and let it out, his expression starting to crumble. He put a hand over his eyes, and let it fall to his lap, having to take another breath.

 

“Sorry…” he whispered, his voice smaller than she’d ever heard it. “I’b sorry.”

 

“Jonah, it’s okay, it’s…” Lily wasn’t sure what he was apologizing for. For a devastating moment, it sounded as if he wasn’t necessarily talking to her.

 

She wanted to turn around. But she said she wouldn’t. She stared at the opposite wall and wrapped her arms around herself. The mattress creaked as Jonah turned, and Lily heard the click of a plastic cap being removed.

 

“I’m right here, okay?” she said gently.

 

She heard Jonah cough, and sniffle a couple more times. “Okay.”

 

More tissues were pulled from the box, and another wet, slightly honking blow could be heard. Then, two soft puffs, and an itchy cough. Jonah took in a long, whistling sniff - and sighed.

 

“You know… that was how I heard Cloud Nine for the first time,” Lily began in a gentle, casual tone. “From one of their commercials.”

 

Jonah was blinking teary eyes. He cleared his throat gently, his breath pausing altogether as his nose prickled with an overwhelming urge to sneeze. He rose and stumbled to quickly set the green bottle on the dresser, making Lily turn to look at him again.

 

His expression was involuntarily contorting, his eyebrows bending into an agonizing look of confusion. It looked almost painful, the way he didn’t even try to lift the handkerchief before quickly raising a hand to pinch his red nose hard. What came next seemed to be the actual painful part.

 

“nN’xXGKK!! -NN’gxXGCKkt!!-ahh… hEIHhh??”

 

“Bless you. Ooh,” Lily reached over to touch his shoulder. She sat down beside him, and moved the tissue box back onto the nightstand.

 

As his form pitched forward involuntarily, his attention shifted to the feel of her hand on his shoulder, and the softness of her voice. Jonah turned his face away. The deep aggravation of the itch was overwhelming, taking control of his breath and violently surging the power of the next few inevitable sneezes.

 

“hd’xXRGCkk!!-ah, hUHd’gxXCK!!-unhh, *snnrgk!* hiH! hiehh! HIEHHd’CHXGN-n'gktt!!-chXGKT!! -d’Unhhh… *sdrff*”

 

“Bless you,” Lily was still next him, murmuring softly.

 

Jonah cautiously lowered his hand, and sucked in a wet sniffle. Still facing away from Lily, he blinked through a film of tears and reached for his handkerchief at his side. Another noisy, whistling sniffle graced the silence, as he wiped his nose.

 

“Better?” Lily asked softly, after a few seconds of steady breathing.

 

Jonah’s chin lowered slightly, and he snuffled thickly again. “*snrff!*… *ahemm~*…” His chin raised. “Cloud Dide was covered by Show Choir?” he muttered.

 

Lily let out a soft chuckle. She reached over to brush back a curly piece of his hair, and leaned in to kiss his cheek.

 

“Jonah, honey… Are- Are you okay?” she asked him in a lower register.

 

Jonah sniffled thickly. The silence alone seemed to have its own weight. As his swollen, glassy eyes lifted, it seemed in all the words he knew, and all the ways he knew how to form them, perhaps there might have been an explanation. A sad, tired sort of crease formed between his brows as his eyes fell shut, and his free hand came up to touch his face. Shame - settling unevenly in his long, exhausted form, his knee still bouncing, his eyes avoiding her.

 

“Sorry,” he rasped. “I…” His eyes fell shut. “Yeah.”

 

“It’s alright. Look, I’m right here,” She put a hand on his forearm. “It’s just me,” she said calmly, over the low chorus of crickets outside.

 

After another few seconds, she decided to abandon her question, and tried for an easier one. “How’s the breathing? Better?”

 

“Yeah.”

 

“Good.”

 

A gentle breeze rustled through the leaves of the trees outside the window, as the two sat quietly on the edge of the bed. Lily still had a bit of nervous energy, but she was glad that he seemed to be feeling a bit better. Jonah took another inhale, and let it out in a huff. He appeared more nervous, but frustrated with himself for it, a counterintuitive cycle. Whatever built these reflexes - they looked tough to fight, but he had, enough to ask her to stay.

 

Jonah swallowed and let his hand lower. His sore eyes had opened, gazing softly at the wooden floor. He felt Lily’s thumb move over the back of his forearm.

 

“*hsnrrg!* ‘b dot supposed to blow by dose, I’b sorry,” Jonah provided weakly, after another uncomfortably wet-sounding sniffle.

 

“That’s okay.”

 

“Ted bidutes, or so… *snnrgk!*”

 

“Okay,” Lily breathed, her voice delicate. “You must be hot.” Jonah glanced up as Lily touched his forehead.

 

“‘b dot sick,” he exhaled, his voice soft but the words weathered at the edges.

 

“Oh, I know,” she responded. She patted his hand before gently pulling away.

 

Jonah felt the mattress rise as she got up.

 

“So… What happened?” she asked gently. “Earlier you seemed…” Well, perhaps ‘fine’ wasn’t the word. “A little better, but-“

 

“I, ub…” Jonah lifted a hand and put it over his eyes. He gave a soft, dry scoff, making Lily turn around. “*hsnnrgk!* I opened the wi’dow.”

 

Lily stared at him, holding the mug of cold water. “Opened the window?”

 

“*snnrgk!* Yeah, I…” Jonah lowered his hand and sniffed. “I was feeli’g sort of fide, relatively, a’d Hudter closed the hatch as a joke, but… *sddrff!* Ugh… *snrk!* It got hot. So…”

 

“So why didn’t you tell him to open it?” Lily came back over and sat down next to him on the bed. She pulled the washcloth from her pocket and folded it.

 

“I heard Allisod calli’g hib, a’d…”

 

“It’s cold water,” Lily breathed, as his eyes fixed on the mug.

 

Jonah’s expression broke into a weary grin, as she wet the cloth, and after squeezing the water out, held it against his forehead.

 

“That feel good?” Lily asked with a gentle smile.

 

Of all the reasons a person could cry - Jonah could tick off three different ones in the past ten minutes.

 

“Yeah,” Jonah whispered. Lily pulled the cloth away to wet it again. He sucked in another drenched sniffle. “*sdrf!* It was a dumb bistake...”

 

“You wanna move downstairs?” Lily suggested, her voice delicate.

 

Jonah sniffled again, wetly. He didn’t want to move at all. Although the heat was making him feel a bit dizzy, and it was hard enough to breathe given his overreacting system. The fog seemed to lighten a bit, as Lily touched the cool cloth to his skin again.

 

“I wadt it to be December… *sngk!*” Jonah’s sore eyes fell shut. “I wadt to show you how…” His brow furrowed, and he turned away to let out an itchy, audibly wet sneeze. “haAD’ZZSSCHHIUHhh!!! *hsdrff!* ‘Scuse be, oh by gooddess… *snnrgk!*”

 

“Bless you.”

 

Jonah sniffled liquidly and raised the hanky to wipe his nose. Lily could hear it as he gave it a few hard, squelching rubs. “Ugh,” he winced. “Wadt to show you how bad I ab at skati’g...” He coughed a weary chuckle, and sniffled hard again.

 

“Yeah?” Lily offered a tiny, sympathetic grin, following his hoarse banter.

 

“Yeah…”

 

When he lowered the handkerchief, Lily raised the wet cloth to his temple. A tender feeling was swelling inside of her. Being with him was like living in a poem. It felt wonderful, and light, and at the same time crushingly devastating, and that made her long for him even more.

 

“*sddrff!* hh… Lily, I’b…” he huffed softly, his eyelids fluttering. Lily drew back her hand with the cloth, as Jonah turned away, lifting the handkerchief. “hhd-? hD’zZSSCHHIEWW!!! -rrRR’SSCHHIEWW!! hHihh? hyY’ESSCHHIEWW!!! …*hsnngk!*”

 

“Bless you,” Lily lightly ran her hand over his thigh.

 

“*snnrgk!* S-Sorry, hihh-??” He panted, as his head tilted back. His breath was scissoring in his throat, climbing in pitch. “It just doesd’t… -hieHh?? HAAiyY'EEISSCHHIEWWW!!! *hsnNNRK!* Ohh…”

 

Lily watched as he sat quietly for a moment, his sore, teary eyes blinking. “You okay?”

 

“*hsnnrgk!*” Jonah blinked. Then, huskily, “Doe, hold od.”

 

He turned away and gave into another blasting, gurgling blow, not caring if ten minutes had passed or not. Afterward, there was another whistling sniffle, and the low sound of him clearing his throat. The following sigh seemed to carry the slightest sign of relief, softening some of the tension in Lily’s shoulders.

 

“Do you want to come to my room?” Lily breathed, dipping the cloth in the water and squeezing it with her fingers.

 

Jonah blinked and peeked over.

 

“If- If you’d be comfortable with that, or…” Lily added quickly, still wringing the cloth with one hand. “Because I know a thing or two about heatstroke, and, well- O-Or I could move downstairs, and maybe you-“

 

Jonah leaned in and kissed her cheek. Lily stopped squeezing the soggy cloth.

 

“Your roob sou’ds fide.” he breathed. Lily connected his warm gaze. “Although, I should ward you, *sdrf!* I sdore like a debod.”

 

The tension broke, and Lily grinned a little, reaching out again to press the cloth against his temple. “Can’t say I was unaware,” she said gently.

 

Jonah wheezed a small chuckle. Lily pulled back the cloth and dropped it in the mug. His eyes still followed her, words hanging there in the air like glow in the dark stars, invisible, unreachable.

 

“I’b uh… I’b just going to change by shirt.”

 

“Okay.”

 

Jonah rose from the bed and passed the window to get to his suitcase, beginning to peel off his grey tank top. He used a dry part of it to wipe the back of his neck, and caught Lily staring at him. Her eyes were fixed on his right side, the lower part of his ribs. On the ridges, his skin was tattooed with black lettering, in a language Lily couldn’t understand. She’d noticed it before, but had never asked what it meant.

 

“Dod’t look dowd,” he said softly, putting the damp shirt in his laundry bag.

 

“Hm?” Lily’s gaze immediately shifted up to meet his eyes, which were looking back softly.

 

“It says ‘Dod’t look dowd’,” Jonah repeated. He came back over and took the nasal spray from the top of the chest of drawers. He pocketed it, and leaned over to kiss Lily on the forehead.

 

Her expression softened into a curious, affectionate grin. “In what language?”

 

“Gaeilge,” Jonah breathed. He pulled a loose white tank top from his suitcase and pulled it over his head. “Irish.”

 

Lily beamed gently.

 

“Whed by gra’ddad died, I flew back for the fuderal. He was a songwriter way before by dad hit the charts, a’d everyode towd kdew hib.” Jonah stood by the window, his eyes shining in the moonlight. He seemed to tell this story in a fond way, the life returning to his voice. “So by cousids decided,” he began again softly, his hands in the pockets of his pyjama pants. “We each choose a lyric. That was mine.”

 

Lily gazed at him. “I like it.”

 

Jonah’s eyes found hers in the moonlit dark. His lips pulled into a gentle grin.

 

The ladder creaked louder under Jonah’s weight than it did beneath Lily’s. As his feet hit the wooden floor with a gentle thump, she looked up at him with a giddy smile. She took his hand and led him to the bedroom on the left side of the second floor landing. The door creaked a little and clicked shut. Lily let out a tiny squeal as she felt Jonah’s big arms wrap around her, and lift her off the ground. He lowered her onto the bed, where she rolled onto her back, watching him climb on to join her. When he did, she put a hand on his hairy chin and kissed his lips. Their lips met again, as long as his blocked nose would allow, and then he laid down beside her, his feet hanging over the low footboard of the bed. As Lily curled up next to him on her side, he wrapped an arm around her, and she tucked her face into his chest.

 

“It’s like this a lot,” Jonah said huskily, his thumb, gently grazing along her arm.

 

“Hm?” Lily lifted her chin.

 

“Spri’g and subber,” Jonah breathed.

 

“What? Hay fever? I know,” Lily laid her head back down on his chest.

 

“You kdow?”

 

“I mean, I don’t know… from having it. As a little kid, I had asthma, but…”

 

“What?”

 

“You’re going to sneeze.”

 

“Shush. But what?”

 

Lily grinned. “My youngest sister, Tash, seems to have it pretty bad. And anyway, in our house…”

 

“hurRR’AAASSCHIEWW!!” Jonah turned his head as far away as he could, but his frame still shuddered beneath Lily’s cheek.

 

“Jeez,” she giggled, and put a hand gently on his stomach. “Bless you.”

 

“Sorry,” he said quickly, his hand finding hers as he straightened. “*sdrff!* Ughh…”

 

“It’s okay,” Lily cuddled against him, as he lifted his hands to wipe his eyes. “I was gonna say, barely anyone sleeps at normal times in our house. We’re like… a city.”

 

“How mady siblings do you have agaid?”

 

“Four.”

 

“Four? ”

 

“Yeah. Stop rubbing your eyes-“

 

“Mff,” Jonah groaned softly, and his hands lowered. “I cad barely handle ode sister, let alode four…”

 

“Well, then I came here, and lived alone, and then I met you guys…”

 

“You do have this, like, biddle child edergy.”

 

“Thank you?”

 

“Allisod is like, the older sister.”

 

“And you’re the pesky, tall, younger brother…”

 

“I’b actually the oldest.”

 

“Yeah?”

 

“Barch.”

 

“Oh yeah…”

 

“A’d, I’b godda sdeeze agaid.”

 

“Then sneeze.”

 

“eh’hHt-! Unhh… *sndrff!* God’s sakes…”

 

“That means - Is Hunter the-“

 

“huHdt’EEISSCHHh-!! *hsdrff!* Agh, excuse be…” His body jerked with another of his harsh, itchy sneezes, which seemed fairly restrained. “Sorry.”

 

“Bless you,” she murmured, and brushed her fingers over his side.

 

“*snrf!* Thagk you,” his voice was softer, sounding a little winded.

 

“That mean’s Hunter’s the baby. If it’s you, me, Allison- he’s November, is he not?”

 

“*sngk!* I thigk so.”

 

“Anyway…”

 

“Adyway. So, baybe you kdow. Baybe you’re ki’der to be thad, people I’ve kdowd, *sdrff!* It’s just…”

 

Lily peeked up again at Jonah as he said this casually, his beautiful, sore eyes staring blankly at the ceiling. She shifted onto her stomach. She realized that up until tonight, Jonah had always seemed like he’d known exactly what to say at a given moment. There was an empty silence as she felt the warmth of his body lying next to her. Not veiled with the same sort of stomach-churning shame as before, perhaps a touch- but he seemed more relaxed, in a sad way, which made her worry.

 

“Yeah?” she breathed.

 

He exhaled. “And forgive be, I dod’t bead for this to be…”

 

“What?”

 

“It’s just, this isd’t how I ibagined our first dight together,” he said softly, and rested the backs of his hands over his eyes.

 

Lily smiled. She tilted and leaned her head on Jonah’s chest. “…Yeah?”

 

“Yeah,” he croaked, his face still hidden.

 

Lily listened to the faint thumping of his heart beneath his ribs, and let her gaze drift over to the other side of the room. “…So you’ve imagined it?”

 

Jonah’s hands lowered. “Well, yeah…” he said softly. “*snf* If I’d the courage, and perhaps a working AC,” he mumbled. “Mbaybe sobe beds that worked… Perhaps I’d have beed the ode to…”

 

A tiny grin spread on Lily’s face. She shifted back around, and laid on her side to cuddle up next to him again. “Oh, like I had all the bravery in the world.”

 

Jonah’s arm wrapped around her again, and she felt him kiss the top of her head. “But there’s sobethi’g, I dod’t kdow... rob- *sddrff!* ro-bad-tic, Christ…” he pronounced nasally, and decided to roll with it. Lily beamed and buried her face in the cloth of his shirt, feeling the bass-y rumble of his gentle laughter. “…about heroics…”

 

Lily’s frame descended with a soft exhale. Maybe he did know exactly what to say. Her face emerged. “Well, what if this wasn’t our only chance?”

 

“*snnff* .…I’d like that.”

 

A calm, silent beat followed.

 

“You say heroics like you don’t literally do everything around here,” Lily added. A soft hum gently vibrated in his chest. “Housing us. Feeding us. Being a genius at audio tech.”

 

“Whed your dad is Dead A’dersod, you pick up od a few thi’gs…”

 

“Not to mention how generous and kind you are… Those are things you deserve too, Jonah.”

 

He was quiet for a bit. After a few seconds, his chest fell with a slow exhale, and he sniffled.

 

“If it’s okay,” Lily whispered, gazing softly across the room at the bookshelf, her cheek still rested against him. “I can stick around. It’s not so much kindness, as… being unafraid.”

 

“Are you scared?”

 

She didn’t want to lie. “A little. Are you?”

 

Jonah swallowed. “Terrified.” He whispered it into the still darkness, his body unmoving.

 

“Then, just…” She found his hand and gently wrapped her fingers around it. “Feel the way I breathe, next to you. And… try to match the rhythm, if you can.”

 

“I thigk I can do that,” Jonah said quietly. Then he let out a nervous huff, like the ghost of a laugh. “Hush,” his big hand squeezed hers. “Not so fast.”

 

Lily chuckled and briefly pressed her face into his shirt. “Sorry.”

 

“It’s okay,” he exhaled. “It goes like…”

 

-

 

 

The old masterpiece of solid mahogany was heavier than the guitars Lily was used to playing. A weathered Les Paul, the wood showing at the edges, simple and reliable, a thing that could produce magic in the right hands. There it sat, in Lily’s lap. The heat of mid-July wasn’t the only thing that made her palms feel sweaty. Sometimes there was nothing worse than a smooth neck of a guitar and hands that were too careful. But to believe it was just a guitar, perhaps, would help a little. Just a thing of beauty.

 

“It’s B bidor - first, without the biddle, like this. Then you take your biddle and ring finger, *snrf!* and slide it - yeah, you got it.”

 

It would only take a few minutes before Lily felt a familiar twinge in the nerves of her hand, attempting acrobatics on the frets, causing the joints to feel fuzzy.

 

“Oh. You okay?” Jonah paused and asked softly, his hands freezing on the acoustic in his lap.

 

“Yeah.”

 

“Happened again?”

 

“Yeah. Sorry,” She shook out her left hand, hoping the sparking feeling would dissipate.

 

“It’s okay,” Jonah chuckled. He sniffled and let his posture loosen.

 

“Maybe it’s better if you do it,” Lily suggested, with a sad smile.

 

Jonah’s expression softened as his hands took position again, eyes looking down at the strings. He sniffled again, absently, his gaze wandering as he toyed with the first chord that led into the solo. His gentle, shining eyes drifted back toward Lily, who was moving her left hand in circles at the wrist. Softly, he cleared his throat, and let his hands move away from the guitar.

 

“Here,” he breathed, his voice low and husky.

 

As he held out one of his big hands with the palm facing up, Lily put her hand on top of his. With his other hand, he ran it firmly over the back of hers, moving from the knuckles and down to her wrist, then up again in a round motion.

 

“How’s your throat?” Lily asked gently.

 

Jonah smiled. He’d begun to massage her palm, applying pressure to different areas with his thumb. “It’s so good, hodestly,” he croaked. Lily’s lips quirked in a sympathetic grin. “Dah. *sdrf!* It’s… *ahem!* still sore,” he admitted softly.

 

“Is the tea helping?”

 

“*hsnrff!* Yeah.” Jonah drew back his hands and sniffled, the sound congested and weak. His eyes were still pink and swollen. As he sat around quietly for most of the morning, they reflected the green forest hues that were illuminated outside the cottage windows, perpetually weary.

 

Lily strummed a chord. A - the first one in the main progression of the song. As Jonah reached for his handkerchief again, snuffling and blinking, she attempted the solo. The fingers on her left hand seemed to get it.

 

Some soft, stuttering honks could be heard beneath the plucked notes, as he gave another attempt to clear his dripping nose. He emerged from the cloth with a sigh, and a whistling sniffle, his nose still deeply red in hue and too inflamed to breathe through.

 

In her peripheral vision, Jonah ran his fingers through his hair. The teaspoon slid against the rim of the ceramic mug as he took another sip of tea. Lily kept playing. A bit clumsily, perhaps not having the same finesse as Jonah’s skilled, longer fingers - but with an adjusted speed, it took the shape of the melody.

 

“I thigk you got it,” Jonah said, a moment after she’d stopped.

 

“Almost,” Lily breathed. She tucked a hand over the body of the beaten, black Les Paul, and got to her knees, then shuffled forward to kiss him on the forehead.

 

“Are you goi’g with Ally and Hudter to the village?” he asked quietly, as she sat back down.

 

“I don’t know. It’s hot today.”

 

“It’s hotter idside,” Jonah said, with a soft, wheezy chuckle.

 

“Well, if I do…” She watched his tired expression as he rested his head atop an arm on the body of the acoustic guitar. “I’ll bring back hummus. Chips. Maybe some ice cream.”

 

Jonah’s sore eyes blinked. “Bed a’d Jerry’s?”

 

“Yeah,” Lily said softly. She pulled the guitar upright by the neck and placed it on the stand by the couch. “Cherry Garcia. That’s what you like, right?”

 

Jonah raised his head. In a small, hopeful voice, “Yeah.”

 

“You can lie down,” she suggested, her voice just as soft.

 

“I always dap, though. Baybe…”

 

“I know why you nap, it’s because you’re tired,” Jonah sighed and tilted his head. Lily leaned in and left a soft, opportune kiss on his neck. “When you wake up, I’ll be back,” she brushed a stray lock of curly hair from his face as his head straightened. “And who knows, maybe I’ll be better at the solo.”

 

Jonah chuckled softly. “Is that right?”

 

“Maybe. We’ll see.” Lily grinned.

 

~🤍

[Catsgotyourtounge]

OMG I LOVE THISSS

[dwaekki]

Jonah is too cute 😭

[Sparklesparkle84]

This was a wonderful read. I think its one of my favorites. 

Seeing these two build their relationship is just so good. I love how he ends up in Lilys bed, the adorable guys ❤️ 

As always, looking so forward to the next chapter  

[Skylacticon]

Hey! So glad that y'all liked this, thanks for reading and leaving such nice comments. ☺️

Here's some illustrations I did for this fic: https://imgur.com/a/eventful-summer-EStFhBq

xx

[Sparklesparkle84]

On 7/4/2024 at 7:36 PM, Skylacticon said:

Hey! So glad that y'all liked this, thanks for reading and leaving such nice comments. ☺️

Here's some illustrations I did for this fic: https://imgur.com/a/eventful-summer-EStFhBq

xx

This is SO cool. Its so neat to have a little illustration to compliment a amazing story ❤️  Gives a great insight to the setting of the story. 

Cant wait to see more, I love it! ❤️  Thanks!