America x Reader - Ocean Avenue 2

"Man, I can't believe we're seniors, dude! S.E.N.I.O.R-"
"I know how to spell it, Al," you laughed.
Alfred hummed, as he walked down the street, beside you. "Dude, I mean, seriously, the sun's up, the day's warm, winter's gonna be over...wait, dude, does that mean that we're going to college after summer?" The look on his face was of pure shock, making you laugh even more wildly.
"Yes, Alfred Jones, yes. You're a senior. You've been a senior for almost the past year, and after summer break, you're going to be a college freshman – is there anything more to say?"
"Wait!"
You stopped walking, suddenly. "Wait...what?"
"So...we might not see each other again, after all this?"
"Not if we go to the same college."
"Yeah...but what if we don't?" Alfred's eyes were wide, with so many emotions...and they weren't just the superficial ones, either. He seemed genuinely shocked, alarmed...and maybe even frightened...
"Al...are you okay?" You asked, slightly concerned.
"[Name]...I've been meaning to ask you something..." he trailed off, glancing upwards at you.
"Go on," you encouraged him, after he remained silent for a while.
"I know...it's still kinda...well, I mean, it IS a while away, but...would you go to the prom with me?"
"Would I go..." It took a while for your mind to process what your best friend since childhood had just asked you. Yes, you both were friends...very close friends, in fact. Yes, both of you had had different dates, and relationships, none of which had lasted. Yes, most people tended to assume wrongly that you both were a couple. Despite the deterring situation, however, you had come to be undeniably attracted to him. It was, perhaps, the mutual respect that had been built over the years between both of you, coupled with the fact that you truly appreciated his positive traits and, by now, had become used to his negative ones.

"...you're not joking, are you?"
"Why would I joke about something like this?" Suddenly, he moved forward, taking your hands in his own. "[Name]...I was going to ask you later, but I felt like...well, I don't know, but it just felt like 'now or never' to me, but-"
"Yes."
"-but I don't know how you feel, so-"
"I said yes, Al."
"-so I kinda wanted to wait a bit, y'know, to see if anyone else was gonna ask, or-"
"ALFRED! I'LL GO WITH YOU TO PROM!"

Alfred froze, comprehending the information himself.

---

Late at night, you received a text.
Wanna meet me at the beach off Cherry Street?

It wasn't uncommon – you had been sneaking out of your home to spend the night just chatting away with Alfred for ages. Now that you were old enough, it wasn't quite "crawl-out-the-window", granted, because your parents trusted you, but it wasn't legitimate "study-group" work, either.

So why were you blushing at this particular text?

It was probably that little text heart, ending the text.

Wanna meet me at the beach off Cherry Street?
<3

---

There's a place on the corner of Cherry Street,
We would walk on the beach in our bare feet,
We were both 18, and it felt so right,
Sleeping all day, staying up all night.