Moment
Happy Feet
December 20, 2006
"THEY ONLY HAVE ONE MORE LEFT!" Jack shouted at his friends as he ran across the linoleum flooring of Target and down the large aisle of the picked over Christmas items.
As he neared the fourth from bottom shelf he heard footsteps in sync with his from somewhere nearby, but ignored them in his euphoria to grab the treasure. His hands grasped the furry robotic animal just as another, but smaller, pair of hands did the same.
Jack looked up from the pair of hands to see a pair of blue eyes locking with his. The medium heighted female pulled the object towards her body in a motion to state it was hers. Jack pulled back, not breaking eye contact.
"It's my dancing penguin!" She laughed, scrunching up her nose dotted with freckles, "I saw it first!"
"Nuh-uh, I did! It's so mine!" Jack countered childishly, infatuated with the brunette.
She pouted and stopped for a moment, slacking her grip. Jack mocked her actions raising an eyebrow. In one swift motion, she tightened her grip in hopes of releasing it from the lanky male. Succeeding, she hunched over the Happy Feet penguin shielding it from his grasp.
"Hey! Not fair!" he attempted to go around her body to grab it from her protective grip but failed because of her quick turns.
He stopped momentarily and when she thought she won victory, she felt fingers prickle her sides and burst out laughing from the tickling. She arched her back upwards making the toy vulnerable to the boy's clutch.
"Hey that's mine!" she lunged forward at the lanky boy who was holding it high above his head making it impossible for her to reach. She pouted, and then suddenly slyly grinned. She stepped onto the second empty metal shelf and climbed higher to reach the animal but Jack was quick and stepped just out of reach.
Jack let his attention falter for a second, just long enough for the girl to jump on his back making them both collapse to the tile floor. She quickly jumped up and grabbed the now freed penguin and bolted down the aisle past Jack’s friends laughing at the two. Jack scrambled to his feet and darted after her running through the many aisles of Target being careful to not take a corner too sharply. He caught up with her just as she set the cardboard bottom of the half boxed penguin on the conveyor belt. She stuck out her tongue out of the corner of her mouth and pulled out her wallet.
He grabbed her wrist with one hand and the box with the other. Her other hand launched towards the box with his and stared adamantly at him.
Jack realized just how close he was standing to the gorgeous girl and smirked. "I'll let you have it on one condition," he bargained slightly winded.
"Sex with you is SO not a deal for this penguin! It sings and dances!" she pointed awkwardly with her grasped wrist at the toy.
Jack chuckled and winked. "Oh you know you want this jelly," he replied seductively causing a grin to spread slightly across her face. "How about a date?" he said seriously.
She looked at him, raised the index finger of her clutched hand to her chin and "pondered" the offer. After a moment of "pondering," she shook her head and smirked, "Nope!"
Jack pouted, released his hand from hers and swiftly passed a crisp twenty to the elderly female cashier who had been watching the pair flirt. She completed the transaction, handing him back his $4.16 and winked knowingly at him.
"Thanks!" the girl seized the penguin from the conveyor ready to leave the store with her free possession when Jack turned her around holding her close to him, not letting her retreat with victory.
"You owe me now," he grinned.
"Nuh-uh, I didn't agree to anything, stranger!" she smirked.
"Jack," he breathed softly into her ear feeling her shiver slightly at the warmth of his breath. He grinned and moved his face to its normal stance, looking down at her with devilish eyes.
They battled through a staring contest for a minute until she finally sighed, "Fine! But this isn't over!" She began walking towards the exit and slid through the automatic doors where she placed the box on the ground outside the building. She pressed the wing of penguin and began dancing around it laughing. Jack took no moment of hesitation, but joined her in the ridiculous scheme.
Jack noticed his band mates and three unfamiliar girls watching the two's antics out of the corner of his eye. He swore he heard his best friend Alex mutter, "That's all we need, another Barakat." And one of the girls that was standing next to him reply, "They're perfect for each other."
This plastered an infinite grin on Jack's face as he focused his attention on the zany girl bundled up in a gray pea coat and a teal knitted beret. She looked up at him at the same time he felt himself lose balance and fall to the snowy sidewalk. She grasped her sides as laughter escaped even harder from her lips.
Jack crossed his arms and sulked. After she caught her breath she came over and stood above him, "I win!" and held out her hand to help him up. He grabbed it and pulled her down next to him replying, "Not quite."
"Well as entertaining as you two are, we need to get going," one of the girls spoke up from her position next to Jack's friend Rian.
The girl stood up and brushed off the snow flecks from her outfit and looked down at the now grinning Jack. "See you Friday," she winked and started walking away from the group of boys with the girls holding her penguin in front of her protectively.
Jack stood up, mesmerized before realizing one thing. "Hey!" The four girls turned to look at him. "What's your name?"
"Callie!"
She turned back around and quickly turned back again, "Hey Jack, I don't like that fancy restaurant shit. Happy meals are wayyyyyyy classier!"
And with that the girls piled into a red Nissan Altima and drove off, honking at the grinning boys standing out in the chilly Maryland air.
"You forgot to get her number, dude," Alex woke Jack from his thoughts.
"Shit!" Jack yelled.
The three boys chuckled. "Just kidding brah, I got it from one of her friends for you," Alex grinned holding up a small piece of paper with two names and two numbers scribbled on it.
Jack quickly entered the information into his phone and sent a text saying, "This is SO not over (:"
As the guys walked across the parking lot, Jack got a new text, "Bring. It. On. (;" causing him to shake his head and chuckle lightly.
"THEY ONLY HAVE ONE MORE LEFT!" Jack shouted at his friends as he ran across the linoleum flooring of Target and down the large aisle of the picked over Christmas items.
As he neared the fourth from bottom shelf he heard footsteps in sync with his from somewhere nearby, but ignored them in his euphoria to grab the treasure. His hands grasped the furry robotic animal just as another, but smaller, pair of hands did the same.
Jack looked up from the pair of hands to see a pair of blue eyes locking with his. The medium heighted female pulled the object towards her body in a motion to state it was hers. Jack pulled back, not breaking eye contact.
"It's my dancing penguin!" She laughed, scrunching up her nose dotted with freckles, "I saw it first!"
"Nuh-uh, I did! It's so mine!" Jack countered childishly, infatuated with the brunette.
She pouted and stopped for a moment, slacking her grip. Jack mocked her actions raising an eyebrow. In one swift motion, she tightened her grip in hopes of releasing it from the lanky male. Succeeding, she hunched over the Happy Feet penguin shielding it from his grasp.
"Hey! Not fair!" he attempted to go around her body to grab it from her protective grip but failed because of her quick turns.
He stopped momentarily and when she thought she won victory, she felt fingers prickle her sides and burst out laughing from the tickling. She arched her back upwards making the toy vulnerable to the boy's clutch.
"Hey that's mine!" she lunged forward at the lanky boy who was holding it high above his head making it impossible for her to reach. She pouted, and then suddenly slyly grinned. She stepped onto the second empty metal shelf and climbed higher to reach the animal but Jack was quick and stepped just out of reach.
Jack let his attention falter for a second, just long enough for the girl to jump on his back making them both collapse to the tile floor. She quickly jumped up and grabbed the now freed penguin and bolted down the aisle past Jack’s friends laughing at the two. Jack scrambled to his feet and darted after her running through the many aisles of Target being careful to not take a corner too sharply. He caught up with her just as she set the cardboard bottom of the half boxed penguin on the conveyor belt. She stuck out her tongue out of the corner of her mouth and pulled out her wallet.
He grabbed her wrist with one hand and the box with the other. Her other hand launched towards the box with his and stared adamantly at him.
Jack realized just how close he was standing to the gorgeous girl and smirked. "I'll let you have it on one condition," he bargained slightly winded.
"Sex with you is SO not a deal for this penguin! It sings and dances!" she pointed awkwardly with her grasped wrist at the toy.
Jack chuckled and winked. "Oh you know you want this jelly," he replied seductively causing a grin to spread slightly across her face. "How about a date?" he said seriously.
She looked at him, raised the index finger of her clutched hand to her chin and "pondered" the offer. After a moment of "pondering," she shook her head and smirked, "Nope!"
Jack pouted, released his hand from hers and swiftly passed a crisp twenty to the elderly female cashier who had been watching the pair flirt. She completed the transaction, handing him back his $4.16 and winked knowingly at him.
"Thanks!" the girl seized the penguin from the conveyor ready to leave the store with her free possession when Jack turned her around holding her close to him, not letting her retreat with victory.
"You owe me now," he grinned.
"Nuh-uh, I didn't agree to anything, stranger!" she smirked.
"Jack," he breathed softly into her ear feeling her shiver slightly at the warmth of his breath. He grinned and moved his face to its normal stance, looking down at her with devilish eyes.
They battled through a staring contest for a minute until she finally sighed, "Fine! But this isn't over!" She began walking towards the exit and slid through the automatic doors where she placed the box on the ground outside the building. She pressed the wing of penguin and began dancing around it laughing. Jack took no moment of hesitation, but joined her in the ridiculous scheme.
Jack noticed his band mates and three unfamiliar girls watching the two's antics out of the corner of his eye. He swore he heard his best friend Alex mutter, "That's all we need, another Barakat." And one of the girls that was standing next to him reply, "They're perfect for each other."
This plastered an infinite grin on Jack's face as he focused his attention on the zany girl bundled up in a gray pea coat and a teal knitted beret. She looked up at him at the same time he felt himself lose balance and fall to the snowy sidewalk. She grasped her sides as laughter escaped even harder from her lips.
Jack crossed his arms and sulked. After she caught her breath she came over and stood above him, "I win!" and held out her hand to help him up. He grabbed it and pulled her down next to him replying, "Not quite."
"Well as entertaining as you two are, we need to get going," one of the girls spoke up from her position next to Jack's friend Rian.
The girl stood up and brushed off the snow flecks from her outfit and looked down at the now grinning Jack. "See you Friday," she winked and started walking away from the group of boys with the girls holding her penguin in front of her protectively.
Jack stood up, mesmerized before realizing one thing. "Hey!" The four girls turned to look at him. "What's your name?"
"Callie!"
She turned back around and quickly turned back again, "Hey Jack, I don't like that fancy restaurant shit. Happy meals are wayyyyyyy classier!"
And with that the girls piled into a red Nissan Altima and drove off, honking at the grinning boys standing out in the chilly Maryland air.
"You forgot to get her number, dude," Alex woke Jack from his thoughts.
"Shit!" Jack yelled.
The three boys chuckled. "Just kidding brah, I got it from one of her friends for you," Alex grinned holding up a small piece of paper with two names and two numbers scribbled on it.
Jack quickly entered the information into his phone and sent a text saying, "This is SO not over (:"
As the guys walked across the parking lot, Jack got a new text, "Bring. It. On. (;" causing him to shake his head and chuckle lightly.
♠ ♠ ♠
not my best writing, but it was one of the first chapters i wrote. i started writing this in september, haha. it's been a long time coming.feedback?