A Recipe for Disaster

I drove to Izzy's house later that evening, still incredibly nervous. Even though I'd spent most of the afternoon with her at the mall, I was afraid to take her on a date. Honestly, there was no way I could embarrass her or look ridiculous, granted that I'd worn my booty shorts for her, but I knew how I got when I liked a girl. I'd bumble and trip and stutter; a complete and utter hot mess. It was obvious that I liked Izzy and I didn't want to disappoint her.

I really couldn't place my finger on what I liked about Izzy, but I couldn't stop thinking about her. She wasn't like any other girl I'd ever met. Maybe it was the fact that she was the only girl to not slap me for staring at her chest, or the only girl to smack my ass for the fun of it. My cheek then tingled when I remembered the soft kiss she gave me the day before.

With this thought, my cell phone rand as I pulled into her driveway. I noticed that it was Izzy and answered. "Are you aware that I just pulled in?"

I heard her giggle. "So where are we going?"

I fake scoffed. "I can't tell you; it's supposed to be a surprise!" I could tell she rolled her eyes by the sudden silence. "I'll tell you if you come down."

"I'll come down if you come in," she compromised. "My, uh, dad wants to meet you..."

"He wants to meet me?" I repeated.

"He wants to meet the rockin' stud that's taking his little girl out," she said. I chuckled. "Well, that's not what he said; it's my paraphrased version."

"You think I'm a rockin' stud?" I asked, smirking as I got out of the car.

"Just come inside, idiot," she laughed, hanging up. I closed my phone and walked to the front door. I raised my fist to knock on the door, then it opened before I could touch it, seeing Izzy. "Hey, you!" she greeted sweetly, hugging me. I hugged her back, wanting to keep her close, but I let her go at the sight of her father. "Hi, Daddy. This is Jack."

"Uh, h-hi, Mr. Brennan," I blurted nervously. He smiled at me.

"The famous Jack. Finally, I get to meet you," he said, shaking my hand. I heard a girl in the other room scoff. I peered in to see a blond girl of about 14 enter. She looked like a smaller, blonder version of Izzy as she looked at me.

"Oh, so this is that Jack guy," she said, turning to Izzy, "the one with the pretty eyes and cute ass?"

Izzy managed to giggle it off, though still blushing pinker than her hair. "Y-yeah, this is him. Jack, this is the little pain in my neck that my father named Flannery." Flannery continued to look at me.

She then turned back to Izzy and crossed her arms. "I don't get what makes you think that he would look delicious sweaty..." Izzy's eyes widened. "That's so gross, Iz, what is wrong with you?”

“You little brat, you've been reading my journal!” she growled. With that, she chased Flannery up the stairs. I chuckled nervously, while their father seemed quite entertained.

“Ah, another day, another breach-of-privacy induced fight,” he said. “So you're taking my oldest daughter on a date...”

“Y-yeah,” I replied.

“And where are you going to take her?” he asked. I'd forgotten how intimidating meeting a girl's father was.

“I was going to take her to, u-um, Dave&Busters,” I told him. He smiled.

“Have her back by 11, alright? And treat her right, got it?” he instructed. I stifled a laugh as Izzy and Flannery fought and wrestled upstairs with a thud.

“Of course, sir,” I said. “I-I really like Isabella, and I would only ever treat her right.” He smiled abruptly.

“No other boys have ever called her Isabella before,” he said. I could only smile as Izzy scurried down the stairs.

“C'mon, Jack! Let's go before she comes back down!” she advised, leaping onto my back and forcing me to carry her. “Mush, Barakat! Mush! Bye, Daddy!”

We left and I drove us, Izzy sitting restlessly in the passenger seat. “So, um... Flannery seems...”

“Like an evil little twerp?” she said. I chuckled.

“I was going to say 'interesting', but I guess that might work, too,” I replied. We became silent for a minute or two until I decided to break it. “So...”

“... so...” she repeated. I swallowed hard.

“... so... you really think I would look delicious sweaty?” I asked her. She looked at me and blushed.

“I dunno... maybe...” she mumbled shyly.

“Maybe isn't an answer,” I joked. She blushed further.

“Fine. Yes, you'd look delicious like a big fucking slice of lemon cake. Now, where are we going?” she said.

I just smiled. “Dave&Busters; my fun really loves it there!” She giggled and I felt the tension from my question melt away. As she stared out through the windshield, I carefully peered over at her, somewhat examining her. Her pink hair was curled and softly tousled, sort of Kristen Stewart-esque. She wore little makeup, which I loved because I didn't think she needed any, though the fact that I thought she could just roll out of bed beautiful was always there. It was as though the pink and blue zebra print skinny jeans and the Pokemon tee shirt with (ironically) a Jigglypuff on it would look perfect on her and her only. Izzy was beautiful, and that was a fact I would never escape from. Ever.

She peered over at me, and when our eyes met, she blushed, looking away. I could only wonder if she'd been gazing at me as well. Looking between her and the road, I couldn't tear my eyes from her. She looked back at me, still blushing and smiling now. “You seem pretty interested in something.”

I scrambled for words, trying to pay attention to the road. “I-um... uh... yeah, just, um...” we stopped at a red light only blocks away from Dave&Busters, “... you, um...”

“What? Is there something stuck on my face or something?” she asked, touching her cheeks.

“N-no...! You look beautiful,” I blurted, widening my lids when I realized what I'd said.

“Y-you really think I look beautiful?” she asked, blushing, yet she could never out-blush me at the moment.

“... I dunno... maybe...” I said, not seeing what I'd set her up for. She smirked at me.

“Maybe isn't an answer,” she teased. I laughed and slapped the steering wheel as we pulled into the parking lot.

“You're a tricky little Jigglypuff,” I said, smiling at her. She chuckled.

“We Jigglypi are quite notorious for being tricky,” she replied as we got out of the car. “Wait... Jigglypi...? No... Jigglypuffs? What's the plural of-”

“-and yes, by the way,” I input. She looked confused as we walked to the entrance. “I do think you look very beautiful.” She giggled and blushed, then, as we walked, she slid her hand down my arm, lacing our fingers together. I squeezed her small hand as we entered, preparing for an amazing date.
___

By the end of our time at Dave&Busters, I never wanted to leave Izzy's side. I'd never really realized how much fun she was to be around, and I started to see how much I really did like her. I'd never met anyone that could make me laugh so easily without even trying to, not to mention she kicked my ass at eight different racing games and a burping contest. No matter how much I said it, I couldn't shake the heavy high of a great evening.

We'd been driving for about ten minutes when I began to talk. “Izzy, I had such a great time with you tonight and...” I looked at her to see her sleeping in the passenger seat, her head tilted on the cool glass of the window. Her breath was steady, fogging the glass, and I muffled a small 'aww'. We had been talking and playing so vivaciously that it was refreshing to see her rest. Soon, we arrived back to her house at 10:47pm and I nudged her. She shifted slightly but didn't stir. Fuck. I thought. “Izzy... come on... wake up, Jigglypuff.” She shifted again, opening her eyes slowly. “Hey, we're back at your house,” I said softly. She smiled weakly.

“I didn't mean to fall asleep; I just had so much fun with you and I'm exhausted,” she murmured. I got out of the car and opened her door, kneeling to her level.

“I'll level with you,” I offered. “I'll carry you inside.” She sat up as best as she could, making grabby hands at me like a small child.

“Quick, Jack. It's cold out,” she mumbled. I chuckled and carefully lifted her up out of the car bridal style. I bumped the door closed with my hip and Izzy wrapped her arms around my neck and nuzzled her face into it. I walked up the walkway and once I reached the front door, it opened, and I was now being greeted by Mr. Brennan and Flannery.

“She was, erm... tired, and fell asleep, so, uh... I carried her so she wouldn't have to strain herself,” I explained. Mr. Brennan smiled in the most fatherly fashion.

“Go ahead and take Isabella up to her room,” he advised, leaving the room. Flannery smirked at me.

“Yeah, Sweaty Boy,” she said, “and be sure to give her a nice, long kiss goodnight.” She skipped away.

Now I was starting to see the twerpy side of Flannery Brennan.

Hesitantly, not wanting to drop her, I made my way up the stairs to her bedroom. I loved the sight of her sleeping, quiet like you wouldn't believe. She was the definition of purity in my arms, pale and pink, seeming fragile; as if dropping her would cause her to break into a million tiny pieces like a small china doll. And that was how I held her.

I entered her bedroom and gently placed her on her bed. I couldn't believe how small and light she was. I smiled and placed a small kiss on her forehead. I suddenly felt disappointed, but headed out of her room. I felt a hand gently grasp onto mine and I turned to see Izzy staring at me, her big brown eyes drooping from exhaustion. "I-Izzy, I thought you were-"

"Kiss me, Jack," she demanded. I couldn't respond, so she stepped in closer to me. She placed her hands on my face, her palms soft on my cheeks; she stood on tiptoe, her heels kicked off, and softly placed her lips upon mine.

I'd always hated the word "magic". It always seemed to imply on things that were impossible. But this was possible, and it was magic. We kissed long and sweet until she pulled away, then held both of my hands, lacing our fingers together. "I had lots of fun with you, Jack. I really like you."

"Would you, um... be interested in going out again sometime?" I asked. She kissed me again, softer this time as if trying to calm me from a rush I wasn't aware I was emitting.

"I'd really like that," she giggled.

I smiled and placed another kiss on her forehead. "I'll call you tomorrow. But for now, I want you to get some sleep."

"Good night, Jack," she said. I softly stroked her cheek affectionately, then turned to go. I suddenly felt a squeeze on my ass and I laughed and turned back to Izzy.

"Really?"

"Sorry. I guess old habbits die hard."