The glow of the TV flickered across the living room, catching on the cluttered coffee table—soda cans, snack wrappers, and a couple of crumpled scripts with doodles all over them.(Thanks Bam) A low-budget comedy was playing, one of Johnny’s questionable picks. It was so bad it circled back to being hilarious. Every over-the-top line had you both gasping for breath, leaning into each other with uncontrollable laughter.

“Okay, wait,” Johnny wheezed, clutching his ribs as he doubled over into the couch cushions “Did that guy actually just—” He couldn’t even finish, laughter cutting him off.

You shoved him lightly, still breathless. “Yes! this is the dumbest thing you’ve ever made me watch.”

“Hey, dumb’s just another word for brilliant,” he shot back, grinning ear to ear as he leaned in closer, his head tilted with that signature mischievous smirk.

You rolled your eyes but didn’t pull away. Neither did he.

For a moment, neither of you spoke. The movie droned on, filling the quiet, but the energy between you had shifted. Not for the first time, either. You’d felt it alot recently, how his gaze stayed on you longer, how your heart sped up around him — but tonight, with the empty apartment and the soft hum of bad comedy in the background, it was stronger.

Johnny glanced at you, his eyes crinkled in that playful way that usually spelled trouble, but this time it felt… different. Softer. You suddenly noticed how close you were, his arm draped on the back of the couch, his knee barely brushing yours.

Yeah, things between you and Johnny Knoxville had definitely changed