Opposites Attract

Ryan returned downstairs after a bit in a pair of basketball shorts and a clean tshirt. "Alright, you ready?" He asked, looking at Finley. "Oh by the way mom Finley is going to stay for dinner. I hope that is okay." He said as he grabbed his backpack.

Nora nodded, "Of course that is okay." She said.

Ryan motioned Finely to follow him. He led her up to his room. His house was filled with family photos and pictures of him, along with his trophies and awards. He opened his bedroom door and walked inside. Unlike most teenage boys rooms, his room was very neat and orderly. "Okay, so did you want to start with the paper?" He asked as he pulled out his desk chair for her.

@ katahdin

@ XXGhostyXX

Finley had given in and accepted a glass of lemonade from Ryan's mother once she finished chopping the vegetables, looking up when Ryan came back downstairs. She collected her bag and gave his mom a little wave as she followed Ryan up the stairs, adjusting picture frames as she wen so that they were perfectly straight, pleasantly surprised to see that his room was neat and tidy.

She slowly took a seat in the chair he offered her, mumbling a quiet 'Thank you' before nodding. "I suppose that makes the most sense.."

Ryan nodded as he pulled out his books, "Yea I thought so. Which is why during my free period at the end of the day I went ahead and typed up a rough copy." He said as he handed it to her. "You can read over it and we can add whatever you want." He said.

@ katahdin

@ XXGhostyXX

Finley nodded a little as he handed her a copy of the paper, spending a good five minutes trying to smooth out some of the creases in the paper, but eventually she gave up and read it over, marking her corrections and additions in pencil. Once she was finished she passed it back to him with a little nod. "It's good.. I'd only add a few things." She explained, flipping through her textbooks to look for something.

Ryan watched as she tried to flatten out the paper, then took the paper back from her. "You really do have something wrong don't you?" He asked. He looked at the paper, looking over the Marks that she had made. Ryan glanced up at her, "So, any ideas on what we should do for this model?" He asked.

@ katahdin

@ XXGhostyXX

Finley frowned a little as he said that she had something wrong with her, sitting back in her chair. "I have OCD.." she admitted softly, picking at a loose string on her shirt. She didn't really feel like talking anymore, especially after what he'd said to her, so she simply gave a little shrug when he asked what they should do for the model.

Ryan frowned when he realized that he said something wrong. "Look I didn't mean that in a bad way. I'm sorry." He said. He hoped that he didn't just ruin the whole night for them. "I should have worded that differently." He said.

@ katahdin

@ XXGhostyXX

Finley shook her head a little as he began to apologize, frowning a little as she looked at him. "It's fine, really.. My dad used to say that a lot, is all.." She explained quietly with a little shrug. "It doesn't matter, though."

Ryan watched her, then looked at the paper in his hands. "It does matter though. I should not have said it. I guess I just wasn't thinking." He said. He looked at her, "Let's just work on this project." He said.

@ katahdin

@ XXGhostyXX

Finley nodded a little in agreement when he suggested that they work on the project, offering to make the model while he typed up the corrections. She knew that if she let him do it he'd do a fine job, but because of her OCD she wanted the project to be perfect, and she worried that Ryan wouldn't be as careful as she would be when making the model.

Ryan nodded, "Fair enough. Let's do that." He said. He started to make the corrections on the paper while she worked on the model. After awhile he heard his mom call them down for dinner. "You ready to eat?" He asked as he closed his book. He knew he was starving.

@ katahdin

@ XXGhostyXX

Finley was happy to work in silence with him on their project, making sure everything was perfect on their model as she worked. Once he asked if she was hungry she looked up, nodding a little as she stood. "Are you sure it's ok if I eat here? I can always make something for myself when I go home.."

Ryan stared at her, then chuckled. "Yes, it is okay or I wouldn't have offered." He said. Ryan led her downstairs to the dining room. He sat down on at the table with her as his mom set the food on the table.

Nora looked at her, "Do you have any allergies? I should have asked before I made everything." She said.

Ryan looked over as his dad walked into the dining room and sat down. He looked at him, "How was work?" He asked.

Ryan's dad looked over at his son, "It was alright. Nothing too exciting." He said. He looked at Finley, "I see you have a new friend." He said.

Ryan nodded, "Uh yea this is Finley. We are working on a project at school together." He explained.

@ katahdin

@ XXGhostyXX

Finley nodded a little as she followed him downstairs, quietly taking her seat while Ryan spoke with his mom and dad. She wondered if every night was like this, where they all sat down together and ate, and wondered if her family did the same without her. Pushing the thought aside when his mother asked if she had any allergies she shook her head. "No I don't, thank you for asking though.." he said, waiting for everyone else to help themselves to the meal before taking a little bit of everything, not wanting to be rude and take too much.

She looked up when she heard his father asking about her, nodding a little in agreement at Ryan's statement. "It'll be done by tonight though, so I won't trouble you all anymore after this.." she murmured softly. Her stepmother always told her no one would want to be around her, so she just assumed that whenever she had to go somewhere or speak with someone she was a burden.

Ryan glanced over at her when she mentioned being trouble. He shook his head, "You aren't causing any trouble." He said. He began to eat his food, hearing his father start talking.

"So, Finely. Tell us about yourself." He said.

@ katahdin

@ XXGhostyXX

Finley frowned a little when his father asked her to talk about herself, giving a little shrug as she ate. "I'm not very interesting... I'm in Ryan's biology class, and his history class, but we don't really talk much outside of class.." she said with a little shrug, having never had to answer a question like that before.

His dad nodded, "What about your family? What are they like?" He asked.

Ryan glanced over at her, wondering what she was going to say. He didn't know much about her family either. He sip of his drink, waiting for her to answer.

@ katahdin

@ XXGhostyXX

Finley frowned a little as she was asked about her family, tensing up a bit. She didn't really like talking about them, especially since they'd basically abandoned her, but she knew she had to say something, not wanting to be rude. She also knew she could tell the truth, as that would only make her father mad if he ever found out she'd told someone.

"O-Oh.. They're... They're fine.." she mumbled simply, staring down at her plate in the hopes that the subject would be dropped. She'd lost her appetite, and could feel herself beginning to panic, so after clearing her throat she stood awkwardly. "I-I'm sorry to waste the food, but I'm full.. I'll be upstairs finishing the project, and then I'll head home." She said quickly before excusing herself, hurrying up the stairs to Ryan's room. She didnt really have a plan once she got away, but she knew that she didn't want to have her panic attack in front of everyone and ruin their meal.

Ryan watched as Finley took off upstairs. He looked at his parents. "Excuse me." He said as he got up and went after her. He opened his door slowly, seeing her. "Hey, are you okay?" He asked. It didn't take long for him to realize that she was not okay. He shut the door and walked over to her. "Breathe." He said as he tried to think of a way to calm her down.

@ katahdin

@ XXGhostyXX

Finley had sat down on the floor by his bed, her knees pulled to her chest and her face hidden in her arms, rocking slightly as she tried to calm herself down. She glanced up when she heard him come in, eyes red and puffy from crying, but as she saw how calm he was she tried to imitate his breathing, taking slow deep breaths. Eventually she just broke down into sobs, however, hiding her face again as she cried.

"I-Im sorry... I-I'll leave soon, I promise.. I-I won't bother you anymore.."