Making Fools Of Ourselves

"That must have been really weird," Emma agreed, shaking her head at the thought. "How'd you manage to survive that?" She asked him, her eyes widening slightly at the mere idea. Seventeen was a weird age all around, and having to live with two of them would have been just downright awful. No one should have to live with seventeen year olds unless they were family. "I can get what I need from wherever. It really doesn't matter." Sure, she liked to eat relatively healthy most of the time, but she wasn't going to go out of her way to spend extra on all organic stuff. She could barely afford groceries as it was.

---

"That sounds perfect," Sebastian fired back easily, his smirk threatening to leap off of his face. "Which Lord of the Rings is it? I mean, I love all of them, but Return of the King is easily my favorite," he said, tilting his head as he watched her. "Let's do both. Museum tomorrow afternoon, then movie at night?" He suggested, wanting to rise to the occasion. He didn't bother responding to her last statement, knowing that him blatantly asking her should answer that well enough.

"I didn't hang out there very much," Chris said truthfully. He headed towards Metro once she said she was okay to get food from wherever, thankful they didn't have to go to some fancy ass, expensive specialty store. "The one wasn't too bad, until that... There was a show that she used to watch and she'd scream all the way through the episodes. I don't know what the hell was going on most of the time. The other one was a freak twenty four seven. Yeah, I just avoided it as much as I could. So where did you live for your past few years at the school?"

---

"I don't know which one it is, but yeah," Parker said, nodding slowly. "Yeah that sounds good." She didn't really expect him to want to do both, especially that quickly. She was pretty glad he did though. Who wouldn't want to spend the day with an attractive guy? Crazy people, that's who. And, she guessed, people who weren't into guys. Parker, however, was quite into men so it worked out well for her that she was down to go to the museum and then the movie night.

"I don't blame you," Emma said, smirking faintly. She watched as the scenery passed by, glancing over to him when he started to talk again. "Oh, that's weird all around," she said, shaking her head in sympathy. "I stayed in the dorms for the first year with two other roommates, They weren't too bad, but the one would Skype chat with her boyfriend every night and they really didn't get the idea of privacy. Last year I managed to score a single dorm, so I was on my own. It was pretty nice."

---

"Awesome," Sebastian said, grinning wide as she watched him. He knew that it was potentially stupid of him, but he hated backing down from something, especially when someone believed that he might not do it. Plus he got to hang out with Parker, who was an attractive girl. She also seemed pretty interesting. "So you're just going to agree to hanging out with a total stranger for practically the entire day? Just like that?"

"Well aren't you lucky," Chris said pulling up to a red light. "The dorms get pretty crazy, you must have been thankful for your own room." He never really stayed in the dorms that much, only two or three times when his buddies got him to got to parties. For the most part, he avoided it. The insane amount of people didn't do wonders for him after long periods of time there. A very short while later they were parked and Chris was climbing out of the truck. "Now, I'm willing to pay for all the groceries this trip as long as someone'll help me cook dinner. I don't want to burn the house down but I kinda like cooking so I need supervision."

---

"Just like that," Parker confirmed, nodding her head as she leaned back into her chair. "Are you going to agree to hang out with a stranger all day tomorrow?" It probably was stupid of her, he could be some weird murderer or rapist or something, but she was taking the chance. It wasn't like she was agreeing to get into his all white van for candy, right? It was a museum and a movie with a hot guy.

"It was alright. I mean, I liked the relative quiet, but nothing really blocks out the noise on the weekends," Emma said, shaking her head at the thought. Her particular building was notorious for parties, and weekends had been hell on earth for her. She'd ended up falling asleep in the library a couple of times, just to escape the loud noise. "How about we go half on the groceries and I still help you cook dinner? I'd feel bad if you paid for everything yourself," she said, offering him a grin as she hopped out of his truck.

---

Sebastian was pretty sure that he couldn't grin any wider when she said that. "Oh, definitely. I mean, I already asked said stranger, so I was pretty sure that that was a given," he replied easily, smirking over at her. He figured that it would be fun. It was practically impossible to mess up a museum and movie... Thing. Was it a date? He wasn't quite sure. They were probably just hanging out is all. They hardly knew each other. It could be like a pre-date or somethingl

"That sounds like a plan to me," Chris said with a grin. As they reached the building, he grabbed a buggy and leaned on it as he pushed it through the automatic doors. It made him much shorter, and it wasn't even that comfortable of a position, but given the chance to lean, Chris was going to take it. "Are you more of a fresh foods kinda girl or are you more frozen peas? Personally, I'm a frozen peas kind of girl." He looked at Emma with a grin, just goofing around. He really did prefer the food that you kept in a freezer or in a can and didn't have to worry about it going bad as much. It was just easier.

---

"I guess its a date, then," Parker said without really thinking about it. Was it a date? She was going to just see how he reacted to her saying that. She was okay if it was supposed to be a date, and if it wasn't, she was okay with that too. It'd probably be a fun day either way. The remaining time in the current chairs might be a bit awkward if he ended up saying 'whoa whoa whoa its just hanging out where the hell did you get a date from?' but she'd power past that if it happened that way.

Emma liked his grin. It was the kind that you didn't see that often, with how open and genuine he seemed. She followed him in, stepping a little closer to him as a mother with a cart almost clipped her. She didn't mind, though. The mother's cart was filled to the brim and her kid was screaming about a cookie. "A bit of both, actually. Fresh tastes better, but frozen's way easier," she said, letting out a laugh as he spoke. "So did you want to split up and grab stuff, or tackle the whole store together?"

---

"So it is a date. Okay, cool," Sebastian said, acting as though he wasn't relieved that she'd cleared that up. As nonchalant as he may have appeared, he would've silently churned over that question, trying to figure out just what the whole thing meant. "That means that we'll have to get dinner at some point too. And I'll pay for that, you know, since I'm a pretty awesome gentleman," he said, giving her a wide grin.

"Whole store together, I think," Chris replied. He grabbed a pack of cookies off a display as they headed towards one end of the store, and cracked it open. He pulled out a cookie and put the whole thing in his mouth before holding the pack out to Emma. "The kid said cookie so I wanted one," he said, muffled from the cookie in his mouth. He'd of course pay for the pack, but he was always one to munch as he shopped. If he was going to pay for it, what was the harm in eating the food before he bought it, right? They'd still get their money and he'd still get his cookies.

---

"My hero," Parker said in a thick southern accent, putting a hand over her heart. She switched back to her normal accent before continuing. "That is really nice of you, in all seriousness, but you don't have to. I can pay for myself." She didn't like when people paid for her when they did things together. It wasn't that she didn't appreciate it, but she always felt like she owed them, even if they said she didn't. It just made her feel kinda bad, like she was using them - even if she wasn't.

"Sounds good to me," Emma said, watching as he grabbed a pack of cookies. She cocked a brow as he ate one, a little confused. "Aren't you, you know, actually supposed to buy those before you eat them?" She asked, not quite sure what the code of ethics was for that one. She figured that they would pay for them, but it still felt a little weird to her. She glanced over to the display beside them and grabbed a bag of chips, dropping it into the cart.

---

Sebastian let out a quiet laugh, grinning over at her. "Hey, it's fine. Whatever you want to do, you know?" The last thing that he wanted was to annoy her, so if she wanted to pay for herself, then that was fine with him. Granted, he'd try to slip her the money some way over the course of the night, even if she didn't realize it. He felt like it was the polite thing to do, to pay for dinner on their apparent date.

"That's technically the order, yeah," Chris said, taking another cookie before putting the open pack in the kids seat part of the buggy. "But I like to eat, so the order is being reversed today. I've never gotten told off for eating the food before, except for by my mom. But hey, as long as I'm going to pay, I don't see an issue." Chris straightened out as they reached the meat section at the end of the store, where it was the coldest. "Okay, Emma, what do we want for dinner tonight? And the next night? And for breakfast and shit?"

---

Parker nodded with a smile, looking down at the book in her hands. She reached down to her bag, which was on the floor beside her. She pulled out a notebook and a pen, writing her name and number down on a corner and tearing it out. She shoved her stuff into her backpack and stood up, hitching her bag over her shoulder. "Text me or whatever," Parker said with a smile, standing in front of Sebastian and holding out her number. "I gotta get to class."

"Well uh, okay then," Emma said. She still wasn't sure, but if he was doing it, then what was the harm? She pulled out a cookie from the pack and took a bite, smiling at the pure sugar. "I'm honestly not really sure. Pizza? It'd be pretty easy to do. We could grab a frozen one or do it homemade," she said, taking another bite out of the cookie as she looked over to him. "What do you want? And cereal for breakfast. Or pankcakes. Something easy that won't take long. My classes are early as hell."

---

Sebastian was confused as she took out a notebook, the realization hitting him just as she stood up. "I uh, yeah. I definitely will," he said, grinning as he took her number. "I'll text you later and we'll figure out what the plan is for tomorrow," he said, wanting to just make sure that they were on the same page. How he'd managed to get a date with a really pretty girl that he'd just met was beyond him, but he wasn't questioning it.

"Lets home make the pizza, that'll be fun," Chris said, agreeing with what she said. He nodded along with the rest of what she was saying. "Yeah, that stuff sounds good. I'm a big fan of mac and cheese and ramen noodles, both easy meals that are staples for the college kid." He grabbed a pack of pepperoni's from a meat display, figuring they'd need it for that night's pizza. "I'm a pretty big fan of sandwiches, too. Maybe we can get some lunch meat and cheese and stuff. The only food in the fridge now is half a Gatorade and an energy drink."

---

"I look forward to it," Parker replied with a smile, before stepping around his chair and heading towards the exit of the student centre. As soon as she was out of the building, she had her phone out and she was texting her best friend, who went to a different school, about the whole thing. She felt like a bit of a highschooler, rushing to tell someone, but someone needed to know about her going on a date, right? That wasn't something you didn't tell your friends.

"Oh man, mac and cheese is my favorite food of all time. With a little hot sauce? That's practically comfort food," Emma agreed, letting out a low laugh as she finished off the rest of the cookie. "That sounds pretty good. It'd probably be best to grab some easy stuff to make. And I guess the others can go shopping for whatever they like," she said, running a hand through her hair as she looked around, pausing as they approached the lunch meats. "Anything you want in particular?"

---

"Same here," Sebastian replied. He turned around in his seat, watching her as she walked without any shame whatsoever. Who care if people thought it was weird that he was watching her leave? She was attractive and he'd just gotten her number and they were going on a date tomorrow. He'd hit the jackpot. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and instantly saved her number, bringing up a quick text to send her as well.

So this is Sebastian. You know, your date for tomorrow.

"Whatever is cheapest," Chris said with a laugh, leaning back down onto the cart as he looked at the meats that were available. "Oh, and bologna. I don't know if its... No, its not on sale. Whatever, get a couple. I do love me some bologna. Its disgusting but I'm a man, so it fits. We're disgusting creatures. I don't know how you women can stand us."

---

Halfway through texting her friend, Parker got a notification from a number she didn't know. She opened up to the messaging screen and smiled slightly to herself. Well, that was fast. Just can't get enough of me, can you? She clicked send before shoving her phone back into her pocket, making her way to her class. She was a lot more confident in saying shit like that via text. It wasn't as nerve wracking as when you said it to a person who was looking at you.

Emma laughed, looking over the food. "Cheapest and turkey. Turkey is good." She scrunched up her nose when he mentioned bologna, shaking her head slowly. "You can have that to yourself. That stuff is nasty," she said, glancing over to him. She chuckled as she looked back to the meat. "Only because you're good looking." The words came out without thinking and she paused. "You know, guys in general are good looking."

---

Sebastian felt his face flush just a little when he read the text. Was he being overbearing? He wasn't sure. He turned to his laptop, figuring that he should actually start on his homework. That lasted for thirty seconds before he was pulling his phone back out to reply. Oh no, not at all. I mean, I was the one to invite a complete stranger out on a date.

"Don't be embarrassed, everyone think's I'm extremely good looking." Chris stopped walking and stood up straighter, pulling a goofy pose and a really bad blue steal face. "I mean, c'mon. Who can resist all of this?" He went back to his position against the buggy and kept walking, grabbing a thing of dough for the pizza that was near the exit of the meat section as they continued through the store.

---

Sometimes you gotta live on the wild side, don't you think? Sometimes a hot stranger asking you on a date is a good thing. She couldn't really believe she'd just called him 'a hot stranger' when talking to him, but she was sure she'd get over it. He had to think she was at least moderately good looking to, right? He wouldn't have tried to pick her up if he thought she was a total hag.

Emma could feel her cheeks flush as he struck a pose. She ducked her head, letting out a quiet laugh as he started to walk. She'd barely known him for an hour and already she was embarrassing herself in front of him. That might be a new record for her. "So other than stuff for sandwiches and pizza, was there anything that you wanted to make sure to grab?"

---

That's true, although it's way better when a hot stranger accepts your offer for a date. Sebastian was grinning from ear to ear. She thought he was hot. Granted, he'd had girls think he was attractive before, but it was always this nice little ego boost to know that someone found him appealing. He glanced down to his laptop, trying to focus, but he found that he kept looking at his phone. He hardly knew this girl and he was already acting a little pathetic.

"No, I don't think so. Bread and the basics. The stuff we need to survive, but nothing really that stands out. Just your standard grocery shopping," Chris shrugged. Grocery shopping always made him feel like a dad, which was stupid because he didn't have any kids. He just always felt like he had a family to support if he went grocery shopping. Most of the time it was just him and a roomie, but that was besides the point. "What about you, Emma? Anything you want to get?"

---

Debatable. Okay, I'm going into class now. I'll text you tomorrow when I'm awake and we can pick a time to go? Parker walked into her class and took a seat at the back, pulling out her crappy little laptop and her textbook. She still had her phone in her hand as she set herself up, wanting to make sure she saw if Sebastian replied. She felt like an idiot, but she was excited about the next day. As she waited for the class to start, she saved his number into her phone, and finally put it down on her desk beside the laptop.

Emma nodded. That made things a lot easier for them. She thought it over, trying to think if there was anything that she really wanted. "I think I want some fruit. And avocados. Mangos and avocados," she said after a couple of seconds, glancing up at him with a smile. "That's all I can really think of, though."

---

No. Not debatable. And have fun, I guess? Or you could, you know, text me today too. But that sounds good to me. Sebastian sat back in his seat, forcing himself to focus on the task at hand. He even flipped over his phone so he couldn't see it if the screen lit up. Although that just meant that he kept reaching for his phone to check every couple of minutes. He couldn't help himself. He just wanted to hear from her.

"Avocados? You're one of those?" Chris said, raising his eyebrows as he turned his head to look at Emma. "Avocado tastes like nothing. I don't get why people like it." People who got it on subs were people he didn't want to trust. Who wanted weird squishy green shit all over their sandwich? Not him. "Alright, well lets just go up and down the aisles then. Get everything we need." He grabbed another cookie and shoved it into his mouth as they turned down the aisle with the pastas and such.

---

Leave me alone, you pest. I'm trying to learn. Parker put her phone down after she'd sent the text, but realized she probably sounded like she didn't want to talk to him. She picked it up again and quickly sent a text saying I'm kidding, I'm not trying to learn. I don't like this class. She didn't want to sound like a bitch who didn't want to talk to him when she really did.