Chapter Text
"I love you."
"You should go."
*Six Months Earlier*
BEEP. BEEP. BEEP.
There it is again. That godforsaken noise. My truest enemy.
BEEP. BEEP. BEEP.
Ugh, can't I just have five more minutes? Or hours? Or years? How about centuries? Centuries would be nice. I could be just like Rip Van Winkle. Instead they'd call me 'Rip Van Tobin.' Or maybe 'Tobin Van Heath'? Hmmm... 'Rip Tobs Van Powell Winkle-Heath'...the third. Ok, now that's just ridiculous. I really need to get more sleep. Oh yeah, sleep. Maybe if I just pull this pillow over my head and pretend I don't hear my alarm I won't have to get up. After all, if an alarm clock goes off in the middle of the woods and no one's there to hear it, did it actually go off?
Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump.
What's that noise? I was just starting to drift off again. Who the hell would dare disturb me from my blissful slumber? Just as I begin contemplating ways to tune out this new annoying disruption, I begin to come-to a little more. When I hear the familiar squeak of the hatch at the base of my floor swinging open with nothing less than hurricane wind force, I know exactly who it is. And I know that I'm about to be scolded for the millionth time in my life.
"Tobin, what are you still doing in bed? Don't you realize that you have school today? You promised me last night that you would get up early enough so that you could show Amandine around the school before classes start. If you don't leave in the next twenty minutes, I just don't see how that can happen -"
"Alright, mom. I'm up, I'm up" I groan as I pull the pillow from over my head and glance over at the alarm clock on my night stand. I quickly disarm it so that I won't have to listen to that irritating noise for at least another 24 hours. If only I could do the same with my mother's incessant nagging. Ever since she got that district superintendent job five years ago, she's had a perpetual stick up her ass. And not to mention her desire to make my life as boring and rigid as possible. It's like the woman doesn't have a single chill bone in her body. I honestly wonder if we're even truly related. If Perry had any say in the matter, she'd insist that I was adopted. Well actually she has. From the ages of four to six she actually convinced me that mom and dad decided to take me in because they felt bad that my alien parents abandoned me on this planet. I figured out she was lying after watching a documentary about extraterrestrial beings on the Discovery Channel (They said that there wasn't any known existence of alien life within the galaxy, much to my surprise.). Still, to Perry's credit, her little fib wasn't all that unbelievable. I've always been the odd one out in this family. Katie was a straight A student with a flawless GPA. Perry is basically the sweet heart of this small, superficial town. I'm pretty sure the only person within the city limits that has any kind of problem with her is me. And then there's Jeffery. The golden boy because, well, he's the only boy. And the youngest, so he has two things going for him. Two more things than I do, anyway. Sometimes I feel like I'm just the family disappointment. By the way my mom is rolling her eyes at me right now, I'd say that's a fair claim to make. But oh well, every family has to have one, right? Who else would make the other siblings look like blessings sent from the Lord himself?
"Tobin, I'm serious. Breakfast is getting cold and I want to make sure that Amandine has everything she needs before the two of you head out" my mom commands, even going so far as to wag her finger at me. God, I hate it when she does that. What am I, five? "I expect you to be downstairs in ten minutes."
"Do you one better" I slyly challenge as I look her directly in the eye, "I'll be down in nine." My mother huffs with apparent annoyance as she climbs back down the ladder and closes the hatch door above her as she does. If I get anything from my mom, it's our shared need to always want the last word. Sometimes I think I ware her down to the point where even that part of her fades away. I'll admit that I can be difficult, but so can she.
I toss the covers from my body as I move to rise from my bed. I don't really want to break my warm, cozy blanket cocoon, but I don't really want to deal with anymore of my mom's wrath this morning either. Sometimes you just have to cut your losses. As I make it to my feet, it isn't a second later before I smack my head on one of the low-hanging beams attached to the ceiling of my cramped 'room'. I had a real room once, a fairly decent one on the main floor of our ranch-style home. But then my mom decided to bring a French foreign-exchange student into our home. She said it was because she wanted the school district to see her commitment to international relations and the accepting/diverse nature of the town's schools, but I knew that was just superintendent bullshit for 'Tobin's failed entry-level French twice so I'm getting her a French tutor.' I'm the smudge in my mother's nearly perfect record at raising academically-ept children, and I know for certain that it pisses her off to no end. Anyway, Amandine arrived to Palos Verdes a few weeks ago and obviously she needed a room to sleep in. My options were either share a room with Perry (which she ever-so-graciously detested), or make a room for myself in the attic. The choice was a no-brainer. I would rather walk across one hundred yards of hot coals barefoot that share a room with Perry again. When Katie moved away to college, I thought I was set with a spacious room all to myself. However I guess mommy-dearest couldn't allow me such luxury.
I pull a pair of sweatpants from my dresser and a loose-fitting T-shirt from my closet and get dressed, not even bothering to swap out the sports bra that I slept in for a fresh one. Then I make my way down the ladder of my tiny lodging and stroll into the bathroom. Much to my pleasure, Perry and Jeff are no where to be found, so I enjoy the bathroom to myself. After brushing my teeth, splashing some water on my face, and running a brush through my hair, I walk down the hallway and enter the kitchen. There I find Perry, Jeff, and Mandy sitting around the table, leaving one empty seat for me. I slide into the vacant chair as my mom fusses with dishes at the counter. It seems that I've arrived too late to attend family breakfast, so I snatch an apple from the center of the table and begin munching at it while the others nibble at the remaining piles of scrambled eggs on their plates. Most of Jeffery's food sits forgotten as he plays some shooting game on his phone, his face scrunched in concentration. Perry uses the reflective screen of her phone to inspect the state of her makeup after having eaten breakfast.
"Don't worry, Per. You still have a face" I quip, unable to deny myself the opportunity to take a jab at my prissy sister. She glares at me from just above her phone.
"At least I have a face that people actually like to look at" she spits back before returning her eyes back to her own reflection. I just take another bite of my apple and chuckle. It's a good thing that I stopped letting my sister's superficial comments about my appearance affect me years ago. It also helps that I've made out with my fair share of cute girls since then, so her passive-aggressive comment has no merit whatsoever.
"Could you two please be civil?" mom scolds from across the kitchen, vigorously scrubbing at the cooked-on eggs along the edge of the frying pan.
"Tell that to dog face over here, I don't think she's ever known what's like to actually be a decent human-being" Perry fires, doing her best to reapply a healthy coat of lip gloss to her lips without going out of the lines. Only she has gone over the line, just not a literal one. I finish eating my apple and rise from my seat as an idea pops into my head. As I make my way over to the garbage to dispose of my apple core, I pause beside Perry and let out a loud belch directly next to her ear. She let's out a disgusted squeal and spins around in her chair.
"You made me mess up my lip gloss you repulsive slob!" Perry screams, steam all but whistling out of her ears. I just smirk and shrug. What else did she expect me to do?
"Perry! Tobin! That's enough!" mom commands, throwing her own menacing glare in both of our directions. Perry and I exchange a look and tell each other that we both need to stop if we want to survive long enough to see another day. Just as mom calms down and releases us from her death stare, Jeff does the unthinkable.
"Motherfucker!" he angrily exclaims as he slams her phone against the table, apparently losing whatever game he was playing moments ago. All three of us siblings widen our eyes at the outburst. Jeffery freezes as he realizes his own mistake. That poor kid, he's too young to die.
"Jeffery Heath!" my mother explodes, nearly shattering the ceramic plate in her hands as she does. Oh boy, he's in for it now. If there's one thing my mother will not tolerate, it's cursing, especially at the dining table. "You've just lost your phone for a week. Now go wait outside until your ride gets here." Jeffery sulks as he slowly rises and hands his phone to mom. He grabs his backpack from beside the front door and makes a quick exit, my mom watching him through narrowed eyes the whole way. Lost his phone for a week? That's it? Seriously? Had that been me, I would've been locked in my room without any contact with the outside world for at least a month. Maybe two. Must be nice to be the golden boy.
I hear a clang on the other side of the room and notice Mandy staring down at the ground. She must've dropped her fork. Soon enough, her eyes are on me and she gestures to the drawer beside me.
"Can I have fork?" she asks in her broken English. I nod and reach into the drawer and grab a fork when an amusing thought crosses my mind.
"You want a fork?" I ask, holding up the fork and shaking it slightly for Mandy to see. She nods and I smile. "You see, Mandy, here in America, when we ask for a fork we say 'fork you'."
"Oh" Mandy replies, looking slightly confused but deciding to trust me anyway, "Tobin, fork you?" I let out a chuckle and hand Mandy the eating utensil. I think I even hear Perry snort from behind her phone. Mandy takes the fork while still looking perplexed. My mom rolls her eyes. I glance at the clock and decide to speak up again before she has another chance to reprimand me for my behavior.
"Alright, Mandy, I think it's time we hit the road" I announce, electing to make a prompt exit so I can finally be free of my mom's judgement.
"Hit the road?" Mandy repeats, stumped by the language barrier and my use of an idiom. That's right, I gotta remember to not do that.
"She means get and the car and leave the house" mom clarifies, talking to Mandy slowly and taking extra precaution the enunciate clearly every individual word. Come on mom, she's not a toddler.
"Oh!" Mandy returns, realization hitting her, "We go school now?" I smile as she stands from her seat and grabs her book bag.
"Yeah" I confirm with a smile, "We go school."
The drive to Palos Verdes High is mostly quiet except for the times when Mandy asks me questions about the traffic signs and I try my best to explain them. For the few short weeks that I've known her, I've discovered that she isn't actually all that bad. I'll admit that at first I wasn't too happy with the idea of having a stranger in my house, much less one that would take my room, but Mandy's been growing on me lately. I thought I would have to babysit her and wait on her hand and feet, but really she's just been really chill and asks a few questions from time-to-time. I even found out that she plays soccer, so there's a good chance that we'll be teammates later in the spring. Who knows, she might one day become my favorite sibling.
As we pull into the school parking lot, I take a deep breath before hopping out of my jeep and grabbing my backpack from the back seat. Winter break went by far too quickly, and I'm not exactly looking forward to sitting in a desk for eight hours a day, five days a week for the next several months. Although it will be good to see all my friends again. I was kind of a hermit over break, electing to stay inside, wrapped up in a warm blanket and sleep my stress away. I've missed my group of rag-tag compadres.
After walking Mandy around the hallways and showing her how her locker works, I'm a little surprised when she decides that she'll go her own way from here. I bid her farewell and head for my own locker on the second floor. Once I arrive in front of my locker, it takes me a second to remember my combination. Ok, my birthday is the 28th. I spin the dial clockwise towards the 28th dash on the lock. My soccer number is 17. I spin the dial counter clockwise to the seventeenth dash. And how many goals did I score last season?...Oh yeah, 9. I spin the dial clockwise once more and smile triumphantly to myself as I hear the lock click. I swing open my locker door and stare at the books collecting dust from within it. This sucks.
"Those are called books, Harry. You might want to read them" a familiar voice calls from just over my shoulder. I turn around and smile at my blonde and quick-witted friend.
"Thanks, Harry. Good to know" I smile back before she grins and pulls me in for a hug. We have weird nicknames for each other, I know, but that's one of the best parts about being friends with Allie Long. She's funny and is always willing to crack a joke. One of the things that we both have in common is that we are hardly ever serious. Our most recent nickname stems from me being forced to live in the attic. Allie thought it made me seem like Harry Potter. I only started calling her Harry as well because I couldn't think of anything else (Ron or Hermione just didn't seem right). So we're both Harry now.
"Long time no see, buddy. You do know that texting is a thing, right?" Allie teases once she finally releases me from her embrace.
"It is? Must've slipped my mind" I shrug.
"Yeah, well, it better not slip your mind again" Allie fake-threatens as she gives my shoulder a good shove. As I pretend to be hurt from Allie's forceful shove, I see Cheney approaching out of the corner of my eye.
"Allie, that's no way to treat your friend. Tobin's fragile, remember?" Cheney announces as she joins me and Allie. Allie looks as confused by Cheney's comment as I am.
"How am I fragile?" I ask, puzzled but certain that Cheney is getting at something.
"Well when I texted you and told you that you should get out of your house more, you didn't reply to me for two weeks. I didn't realize you were so easily offended" Cheney replies in a teasing tone. I let out a sigh as both of my friends insist on giving me a hard time.
"Alright, I'm sorry I didn't text you guys. I just wanted to sleep for two weeks. Also I had to help out with the new foreign exchanged student" I return, kind of feeling bad now for neglecting my friends over break. The truth is I just wanted to chill and lay low. I love my friends, but they always want to plan something whenever we hang out and sometimes I just don't feel up to it. Sometimes spending an entire day in bed sounds more appealing than walking around the mall for hours at a time.
"'Help out with the new foreign exchange student', huh?" Allie questions as she wiggles her eyebrows up and down. "I think I understand why you didn't want to leave home now."
"Allie, no. It's not like that" I quickly return, trying to nip this in the bud before my friends decide to run with it and make this a thing. However I can tell my quick reaction only makes things worse.
"Is that so, Tobin? You're pretty quick to deny it. Is she unattractive or something?" Allie continues, seemingly amused by ruffling my feathers.
"No, she's pretty, but it's not like that -" I try again, only to have Allie pounce on my words.
"Oh, so you think she's pretty" Allie jokes, poking at my side. I swat her arm away, growing a little agitated at this point.
"Allie, come on" I warn as I readjust the straps of my backpack on my shoulders.
"Did you draw her like one of your French girls?" Allie teases some more, now laughing at her own stupid Titanic reference. I clench my jaw, opting not to say anything else and give Allie more material to work with.
"Alright, Allie, I think Tobin's had enough" Cheney intervenes. I glance over to Cheney and offer her an appreciative smile when her eyes meet mine. Lauren Cheney has always been the merciful one. She always seems to be really in-tune with other people's feelings and knows when they reach their limit. She cares about people, and she's just someone who's genuinely kind-hearted. I've never once heard her say anything bad about anyone else. Not once. She gives everyone a fair chance and is able to look past people's flaws. I've admired that characteristic of hers since the day I met her. The world would be a better place if more of us were like Lauren Cheney.
"Look, all I'm saying is that we live in a small town and there aren't a lot of prospects out there for good old Tobs over here" Allie explains. Cheney shoots her a warning look, but I just shrug it off. Allie didn't mean anything by that, only that I'm gay and there aren't very many other lady-loving-ladies around these parts. I can count on one hand how many gay people go to this school, and they're either men or are in very committed relationships. Allie speaks the truth, there isn't a lot of opportunity to meet a girl that might actually like me back. At least not in Palos Verdes, anyway.
As a silence falls over myself as I am reminded of my lack of success in the love department, I can feel somebody else approaching from the left. I continuing staring at my feet, sulking, until I feel a warm hand on my arm.
"Why the long face? Everything okay?" a gentle voice consoles from beside me. I pick my head up, instantly knowing that voice. A smile falls on my lips when I see Christen Press standing beside me.
"Yeah" I return, already feeling better now that Christen is here, "Just talking about my failed love life." Christen's eyes soften at my admission. She squeezes my arm slightly and lets it linger there for a moment. It's comforting, like just being in contact with her anchors me down so that my mind can't go anywhere it shouldn't. Christen's had this calming effect on me for as long as I've known her. In fact she was the first friend I made in Palos Verdes when my family moved here when I was in the seventh grade. I was a pretty awkward kid back then. So was she. I remember sitting all alone at the lunch table that first day in my new school. I remember feeling lonely and sad, and thinking that no one would like me. I was on the verge of tears. But then a girl sat down next to me and offered me half of her peanut butter and jelly sandwich without saying a word. I took it, and we both shared a pair a brace-faced smiles. From that day on, Christen has been my best friend and little has changed between us. The only difference between then and now is that Christen blossomed and I remained the superintendent's daughter. She's popular, gorgeous, smart, captain of the soccer team, the junior class chairperson for the school board, and basically loved by everyone. I on the other hand, well, like I said, I'm the superintendent's daughter and that only does so much for your reputation. Teachers find me underwhelming in the classroom and students worry that I'll be a nark a run back to mommy if there's ever a problem. I've worked hard to shed those expectations, but it's hard to escape them completely. Basically at the end of the day, I always wonder what it was that made Christen decide to be my friend. Sometimes I wonder why she still wants to be my friend. She could be friends with literally anyone of her choosing, so why me? What makes me so worthy of her friendship?
"Come on, Tobs. You don't have a failed love life" Cheney denies, looking me sternly in the eye as if trying to convince me of the opposite of the truth.
"You're right" I sigh, "I have a nonexistent one." Christen pulls my arm and gets me to look her square in the eye.
"Any girl would be lucky to have you" she urges. I scoff, even though the intensity of her stare in unwavering. She's almost convincing.
"But not any girl would want me" I return. This isn't exactly the conversation I wanted to have to start off my day. If I'm honest, it's kind of bumming me out. I get that my friends mean well, but until they actually come up with someone who genuinely wants to be with me, I'm having a hard time believing them. How can I believe in something with out any proof?
"The right girl would want you" Christen counters, certainty in her voice. She looks me in the eye but glances away after a moment, like she's said something she shouldn't have. I'm confused for a second but then I realize that Christen must know that the 'right girl' is strictly hypothetical, that's why she can't try to convince me any further. After all, Christen's been the one by my side when my flings of the past crashed and burned after only a few weeks at a time. She was the only person I confided in when things didn't work out between me and a girl. Each time I thought I had 'the right girl' within my grasp, she'd slip away. Christen knows that 'the right girl' isn't anywhere around here. I've searched, and I've failed to find her. Maybe she just doesn't exist.
The bell rings and for the first time in my entire life, I'm kind of grateful for class to begin.
Mid-January
It's only been a few weeks since school started up again and my mind is already numb from all the homework. I just don't understand why high school teachers decide to pile it all on, especially when we're trying to get used to being back at school again. I mean seriously, I spend eight hours at school everyday and you're going to assign three-to-four hours worth of additional homework every night? It's like working a fucking double shift, except you don't get paid for your work, and you forget everything you 'learned' a week later. It seems so pointless and unnecessary.
I finally decide to grab my skateboard and blow off some steam outside. After all, my homework will still be there when I get back. I carefully make my way down my ladder and tiptoe briskly down the hallway. Once I make it to the front door undetected, I slowly crack the door open and slip through the opening. I breathe a breath of relief once I've made it outside. Had my mom caught me, she'd no doubt give me the third degree about whether my homework was done or not. As I place my board on the pavement and kick off with my left foot, I contemplate where I should go. The constant rumble of my wheels against the cement already has me in better spirits than I was just moments ago in my cooped-up room. I could go visit my dad at work. He owns a bar downtown and I hardly ever see him because he works nights. Or I could drop by Allie's and see if she's up for a bite to eat. Wait no, she and Cheney went shopping to find deals on dresses for Spring Fling. I don't know why they're even bothering with that now considering the dance is still several months away, but oh well, let them do as they please. I guess Christen's place it is. I'm sure Mama Press has something homemade in the oven, and Christen never minds when I just stop by. I've been doing it for years, you would think I'm practically a member of the Press family by now. Christen's always telling me that Morena and Khaleesi like me better than Channing anyway. Alright, I'll just send her a text and see if she's home.
Tobin: Hey I snuck out of capitivity, you home?
Christen: Yeah I just got back from Student Council, we can hang out in the basement and watch a movie if you want
Tobin: You know me well :)
Christen: I know you the wellest ;)
I chuckle to myself as I read Christen's text. She really does know me better than anyone. I have no idea how, but it's like she always knows exactly what I need at any given time. If I'm sad and I need a shoulder to cry on, she's there. If I'm being hangry and rude, she gives me a snack. Hell if I were hospitalized with an unknown condition, she'd know what medicine to treat me with to make me better again. She gets me better than anyone else, and I'm lucky enough to call her my best friend.
As I turn down the streets leading closer and closer to Christen's house, I find myself getting more and more excited to spend time with her. She's constantly on the move, yet she always has time for me. It's never boring hanging out with Christen. She's like a ray of sunshine and her good moods are contagious. She makes the cheesiest jokes and has the cutest little laugh ever. That's the best kind of company.
Only a few blocks away from Christen's house, I notice a giant moving truck and people walking to and fro between the truck and the house, lugging around heavy boxes as they do. I didn't realize that the house that's been on the market for a good two years now finally sold. It's a nice house, and most likely didn't sell because it was far too over-priced. Either the seller dropped the price, or somebody with money is moving into this neighborhood. I mean, to be fair, this is Palos Verdes and a good amount of us do enjoy a life of privilege, but still, a McMansion isn't something that's just bought with mere pocket change and your grandma's inheritance. Whoever's moving-in has got to be important. I slow down a little bit as I approach the house. There are mostly moving company workers in jumpsuits littered across the lawn, but near the back of the truck there is a girl talking to one with a clipboard and gesturing in the general vicinity of the newly purchased house. As I roll closer, I can tell that she looks to be about my age. She glances down at the clip board in the worker's hand. When she must hear the rumble of my skateboard approaching, she looks up in my direction and I'm met with some of the bluest eyes that I've ever seen. Seriously, I'm 99.9% sure that you could swim in them. Her gaze paralyzes me, and my heart all but stops within my chest. Wow this girl is beautiful.
As I continue staring into her memorizing eyes, I notice they widen slightly as my skateboard is just about to pass the truck. What's that about? Does she find me attractive or something? But before I can think anything else, I notice her mouthing something to me. I'm too entranced by her to actually register what she's saying, but I soon find out. Not a moment later, I collide with a worker carrying two boxes of household objects. Before I know it I'm laying flat on the pavement while my skateboard rams into the curb further down the street. Watch out. The girl was telling me to watch out.
I groan as I try to lean up and prop myself on my elbows. I dazedly take in the scene around me. The worker I collided with is also lying on his back and we're both covered in a healthy layer of dispersed packing peanuts. A few of the workers run over to the man to see if he's alright. I almost laugh to myself that no one bothers to come check on me, until I realize that someone has.
"Oh my god, are you alright?" a slightly raspy, yet gentle voice asks as it approaches from behind me. I turn my head slightly over my shoulder to see who the voice could belong to when I notice the girl with the blue eyes kneel down by my side. My voice catches in my throat, so I just nod and gingerly try to sit up even more. I'm mortified at what just happened, embarrassment pulsing through my veins as I realize that I just wiped out in front of this really pretty girl. How I'll ever be able to live with myself past today will be a mystery. "Whoa, be careful, take your time getting up" the girl offers as I visibly struggle to regain my wits. I look in front of me and realize that the other guy is already on his feet and attempting to clean up the mess. A part of me is relieved that I apparently received more of the brunt of the impact than he did. Although another part of me is jealous that he's already regained his mobility and is able to walk away from this embarrassing situation. I'm able to bring myself to my knees, but soon I feel myself being lifted up by more than my own will. I glance to the side and notice the girl's hand's pulling me up by both of my arms. She's stronger than she looks, I'll give her that.
"Thanks" I'm finally able to mutter once I'm on my feet again. I try to busy myself as much as possible with brushing the styrofoam bits of packing peanuts off of my clothes and body, my best attempt to avoid her eyes. However unfortunately for me, the girl has the exact same idea and soon I feel her fingertips brush against the base of my hairline. My eyes immediately shoot up at the contact. As I look into hers, I notice that they're fixed on my hair as she tries to free some of the packing peanuts from it. She smiles contently after a few moments, seemingly proud of her ability to groom me free of polystyrene product. Her eyes meet mine again and I almost wince at just how piercing they are. "Uhm, thanks" I ramble out again.
"You already said that" she smiles, finally untangling her fingers from my hair.
"Oh yeah, I guess I did" I nervously chuckle, earning a seemingly earnest one from the girl.
"Are you always this nervous when meeting someone new, or is it just because you ran into Steve over there?" she asks with amusement in her voice. I try my hardest not to blush, so I glance over to Steve to give myself a moment to regain my composer. I just get this nervous when a pretty girl smiles at me like that.
"Steve's a brick wall, that must be it" I answer, hoping to redeem myself with a little bit of humor. It works. She laughs again and a wave a relief flows through me. It's music to my ears.
"You're funny" she proclaims with a smile that reaches her eyes. "You got a name, funny girl?"
"Tobin Heath" I reply, feeling the nervousness bubble up in my stomach again. She called me funny? She thinks I'm funny? Is that a good thing? Does this mean she likes me?
"I'm Alex Morgan" the girl returns, with a smile. "It's nice to meet you, Tobin Heath." She remembered my name! Oh wait, that's because I literally just introduced myself. Wow I'm dumb. Get it together, dummy.
"It's nice to meet you too, Alex Morgan" I respond as coolly as possible. Her name rolls right off the tongue.
"You don't happen to go to Palos Verdes High, do you?" Alex asks as the workers are once again in their rhythm of unloading the truck, walking in every direction around the two of us.
"I do, actually" I promptly respond, earning another smile from Alex. "Why do you ask?"
"I'll be starting there in a few days" Alex responds, gesturing to the house behind her. "My family just moved here from Diamond Bar."
"Cool" I nod, trying to think of what else to say to this captivating girl in front of me. "You know, I was the new kid here not too long ago as well. Maybe I could show you around sometime?" Alex nods and smiles gratefully.
"Yeah" she sweetly returns, "I'd like that."
"Cool" I lamely mutter again. Then both Alex and I open our mouths to say something next.
"I said that already"/ "You said that already" we both say at the same time. We share a laugh before I feel my phone rumble in my pocket and I remember that there's somewhere that I need to be.
"I'll see you around?" I ask as I begin backpedaling towards the direction of my beaten up skateboard.
"See you around" Alex echoes with a smile before turning back to the work going on in the yard.
Once I get to my skateboard, I flip it over on the road and mount it once again. I set off on a slow speed towards Christen's house as I fish my phone out of my pocket and read my most recent text.
Christen: My mom wants to know if you want to stay for dinner. She's making your favorite :)
When I arrive at Christen's there's no shaking the smile away from my lips. I prop my skateboard against the front of the house and let myself in through the front door. Christen's mom is the first person I see as I enter the kitchen.
"Hey Mama Press" I greet as she looks up from the food she's preparing on the kitchen island. She smiles as soon as she sees me.
"Tobin!" she cheers, abandoning the food and quickly walking around the island to pull me in for a hug. I hug her back just as enthusiastically. Christen definitely gets her 'sunshine-ness' from her mother. "I hope you're hungry!" she exclaims as she pulls away, walking back over to her cutting board and beginning to chop herbs for her world famous lasagna.
"I'm always hungry" I return with a chuckle.
"Does Christen know you're here yet?" Christen's mom asks as I lean against the door frame of the kitchen and watch her prepare ingredients for dinner.
"Probably not" I shrug, "I just walked in."
"Christen!" her mom calls towards the stairwell, before returning to her work. Within seconds I can hear the sound of footsteps descending down the stairs. Not a moment later I spot Christen on the other side of the kitchen, her two dogs following close behind. Her face lights up when she sees me.
"Hey, Tobs" she greets warmly as she begins to walk over in my direction. I kneel to the ground to greet both of the wiggly dogs in front of me as they dart in front of Christen. As I do, I can feel the air brush against my scraped kneecap as the new rip in my jeans becomes visible. Christen's eyes locate the tare right away and her happy expression melts into one of immediate concern. "What happened?" she asks as she arrives in front of me and tries to get a closer look at my knee.
"I wiped out on my skateboard on the way here" I nonchalantly admit, not wanting to make a big deal about it as I still continue to recover from how embarrassing that was.
"You're hurt" Christen mumbles morosely as her seemingly pained eyes meet mine once again.
"I'm fine. It's just a scrape" I dismiss, paying more attention to the dogs eagerly licking my face that my dinged-up knee. However, Christen doesn't seem so convinced as she pulls me up by my wrists and begins leading me down the hallway towards the closest bathroom. "What are you doing?" I ask, confused as to what exactly is going on. She doesn't speak again until we arrive into the bathroom and she grabs my waist and places me on top of the counter of the vanity. I quite literally feel swept off my feet.
"We have to clean your knee" Christen instructs, slightly distracted as she fiddles around the medicine cabinet for some cotton patches and band-aids.
"Honestly, I think I'll live" I chuckle, this whole situation becoming humorous. I try to slide myself off of the counter, but Christen returns to my side and pushes me back. "You're persistent, you know that?"
"I'm not letting you get an infection just because you want to act all tough" Christen returns determinedly as she runs a cotton patch under the cool water running from the faucet.
"Who says I'm acting?" I return as she applies some soap to the now damp cotton patch and then adds soap to it. She offers me a knowing wordless look and maintains eye contact as she applies the cotton patch to my knee. I close my eyes and yelp.
"Right. Definitely not acting" Christen teases with a smile as I crack me eyes open again. I've never been great with pain or blood, I'll admit that much, but only Christen knows to what extent. I usually try to put on a brave face for everyone else, but there's no fooling Christen, she knows when I'm in pain. And when I'm too proud it admit it. "If you're good you can have a lollipop after I finish cleaning you up."
"Ok, smartass. Just make it quick" I command, my pride slightly bruised. She smiles back at me, seemingly delighted by the reaction she's getting out of me. It's not often I'm in a position where I can't do something for myself, she must find it amusing. The next time she applies a freshly soaped up cotton patch to my knee, I nearly kick her in the stomach. Talk about a knee-jerk reaction.
"Tobin, sit still!" she reprimands, giving me a stern look after backing away just in time to avoid my foot.
"I'm trying!" I retort throwing my hands up in surrender. "You know I can't help it." She gives me a skeptical look before she looks back at my knee. Just as she's about to try to clean it again, I purposely flinch my leg, causing her to jump. Now it's my turn to have a little fun. She glances at me again, unamused as I have to bite my lip to prevent myself from laughing. "Ok, ok, that time was on purpose. It's just that the look on your face is priceless."
"You want to do this yourself?" Christen offers, trying to hand me the slightly bloody cotton patch in her hand. I know it's my own blood, but that doesn't make it any less gross.
"I'm sorry, I won't do it again" I relent, looking anywhere but at that gross piece of cotton. Christen shakes her head at my squeamishness and disposes of the cotton patch before preparing a new one.
"You better not, you big baby" she warns before turning towards me once again. This time she grabs hold of both of my knees and spreads them apart. Then she stands sideways between my legs starts cleaning my wound again. She's closer to me now, and I don't think she realizes she's put herself in a borderline intimate position. That's the hard part about having straight friends, sometimes they don't realize when they do something that could be dangerous if there was mutual attraction there. Not like I have feelings for Christen or anything, she's my best friend and definitely not interested, but it's still a little awkward. I try to tell myself that I'm being ridiculous and to just relax while Christen does me this favor. But then I fidget without even meaning to. Christen must think that I've just flinched again, so she wordlessly places a hand just above my knee to keep it in place. For some reason this sends chills through my body. She must sense my sudden discomfort because after a moment she looks up at me with regretful eyes.
"Am I hurting you?" she asks, worry laced in her voice. Immediately I feel bad. Just because my stupid mind wandered off to somewhere it shouldn't, Christen feels guilty. And now I feel guilty.
"No, you're fine" I shake my head, "I'm just weak." Christen stares into my eyes for a moment longer and nods before directing her gaze back to my knee.
"Just let me know if it hurts, alright?" she returns and I nod. "So what made you fall off of your skateboard in the first place? I've seen you ride that thing a million times, it's practically a part of you." My heart rate picks up again as I think back to the incident earlier. Back to Alex and her striking blue eyes.
"I was distracted" I mumble debating on if I should tell Christen about this girl yet or not. I mean, she may have just been being polite. I may never even see her at school anyway.
"By what?" she asks, nearly finished up with my knee.
"Honest answer? A pretty girl" I reply, somewhat shyly. Christen's always skeptical whenever I discover a new cute girl. I know she just wants to protect me, but it can be hard for me to bring up girls to Christen sometimes for fear of her telling me why they're bad news. The worst part is that she's usually right about them. Her hand stills on my knee for just a moment before she clears her throat and replies.
"Who was she?" Christen asks, her tone flat and aloof. See? I'm probably already boring her with this.
"Uh, her name was Alex. She just moved here and she said she's going to go to our school. She was really nice to me after I crashed into one of her movers. Even helped me pick some of the packing peanuts out of my hair" I explain, soon finding myself rambling and my mind going back to our little interaction. Alex was super nice. But was that polite nice, or flirty nice? Or am I reading too much into this? But what if it's fate sending me 'the right girl' after all? I mean, she's definitely my type. Nice, pretty, confident, seemingly athletic. What if this moment is the start of something big for me?
"Was she cute?" Christen asks, reaching across my body to grab the band-aids she left on the opposite side of the vanity. Hell yeah she was cute!
"Yeah, she was alright" I coolly reply, not wanting to sound like a creep.
"Cuter than me?" Christen innocently asks as she generously places a few band-aids on my freshly cleaned kneecap.
"That's impossible" I smile, earning a similar one from Christen, "No one's cuter than you. You're the cutest."
"You think?" Christen questions shyly, rubbing her hand over the bandages to make sure that they're secure on my skin.
"Of coarse. I'd have to be blind not to think that" I admit, being honest in my answer. In truth, Christen is probably the prettiest girl I know. She looks up at me and smiles again. It's hard not to get a warm fuzzy feeling when Christen smiles at you, she just has that affect on people. "There isn't a guy out there that would be able to resist you." Her smile falters for a second before she looks at me again.
"Well there isn't a girl out there that would be able to resist you either" she says as she locks eyes with me. Is that her way of telling me that I have a shot with Alex? Does she really think it could happen? I'm a little shocked that Christen would tell me that without even meeting Alex herself, but I guess she just has that much faith in me. I smile and she casts her eyes back down at my knee. "Alright, you're all cleaned up" she announces. I happily slide off the counter while she puts everything away and washes her hands.
"Thanks, Christen. What would I do if I didn't have you to patch me up all the time?" I ask rhetorically as she dries her hands on one of the towels hanging from the wall.
"I don't know, probably get an infection. Die of Cholera" Christen returns with a solid poker face. I can't help but laugh.
"Gee, that sure sounds like a shitty way to go." My comment causes Christen to laugh as she joins me outside the bathroom.
"Well, I guess that just means that our lives would be pretty shitty without each other in them" Christen shrugs as we both head back towards the kitchen, the smell of warm cheese and marinara sauce already filling our noses.
"I couldn't agree more."
End of January
I swear this fucking month will never end. My classes are so boring and I feel like this semester is going by as slow as molassses. Soccer season is still a few months away and I don't want to even think about how many days stand between me and spring break. Sitting through French right now is no walk in the park either. Mandy's been trying to help me study at home, but nothing's really sticking. Funny, that's where molasses would really come in handy. I understand that 'Bonjour' means 'Hello' and 'Au Revoir' means 'Goodbye', but other than that, I'm not getting much else. I wish this school didn't have a foreign language requirement. It's not my fault I didn't start learning until middle school while everyone else here started in elementary. Well, I guess learning is kind of a generous word. Maybe 'attempting' would be more appropriate.
I glance over at Mandy while Monsieur Jocques writes a bunch of jibberish on the board. She's playing around on her phone, not paying one bit of attention to our teacher. It's kind of ridiculous that she's in this class to be honest. This is like kindergarten for her. But our school has a dumb rule about not being able to take upper level classes until you've passed the introductory ones, so she's trapped in this nightmare of a class with me. As Monsieur Talks Too Much blabbers on and on at the front of the room, I feel myself nodding off. That is until the door creaks open and Monsieur pauses his teachings. In walks a familiar face, and my heart drops when I see those eyes. It's Alex. But what is she doing in this classroom? And where as she been for the past few weeks?
"Bonjour" she mutters as she waves to the teacher.
"Ah! Bounjour!" he excitedly returns, "You must be our new student!"
"Oui" Alex nods, staying calm amidst Monsieur's animatedness.
"Bienvenue dans notre classe! Asseyez-vous partout où vous voulez" he instructs. I have no idea what he's saying, but Alex seems to understand just fine.
"Merci, je le ferai" Alex responds before walking down the aisle beside mine and taking a seat directly next to me.
"Bonjour" she greets me with a warm smile just as Monsieur turns back to the whiteboard. "Je ne savais pas que vous parlez français." I have no idea what she just said, so I decide to just wing it.
"Uhhh...It's crepe to see you again, too." Alex bows her head in laughter as I can hear Mandy snickering on my other side. Sure I look dumb, but at least I made Alex laugh.
Maybe this semester won't be so dreadful after all.