Hidden Within

Chewing on the inside of my bottom lip, I walk out of the locker room and out into the gymnasium. Hayley’s words play over in my head-- how she’s the last person I want to piss off and how Brian won’t be mine for long. I already know that Brian isn’t going to be “mine” for very long, but she doesn’t know that. And now I’ve quite possibly gotten myself into a sort of feud over a boy that I don’t even like. I should have taken Brian up on his offers to just bail out on acting like a couple at school when I had the chance.

I spot Brian over by the bleachers, and he jogs over towards me. He smiles as he approaches me, and I do what I can to return the gesture. I guess he noticed the strain in my smile, because his quickly fades away from his face.

“What’s wrong, Sunshine?” he asks, concern etched across his face.

I lick my lips and shake my head. “It’s nothing, Superman,” I reply with a tiny smile, hoping it’s enough to assure him that everything’s okay.

“Lana, you can tell me if something’s wrong,” he murmurs. “Are you feeling faint? Do you need to eat something? I can get--”

“It’s okay, Brian. I’m fine, really. There’s just…” I trail off, trying to figure out the best way to tell him that girls are fighting over him without inflating his ego. “It’s just some silly girl drama.”

He raises an eyebrow. “Silly girl drama?”

“Mmhmm.”

“What exactly is that?”

“It’s just drama that some girls invent because they have nothing better to do with their lives. It’s nothing to worry about,” I assure him.

“Okay…” He trails off, and I can tell that he’s thinking about something. “Lana?”

“Hmm?”

“If it’s nothing to worry about, why do you seem worried about it?”

“I’m--”

“Alright, class, we’re going to start off with stretches again. After that, we’re doing two minutes of laps around the gym. So spread out and we’ll begin!” Coach shouts out, cutting me off.

“I’m not,” I whisper to Brian as we find a spot to stretch out.

“Are you sure?” he whispers back to me as we sit down on the floor.

I simply nod my head, afraid we’ll get yelled at for talking. He nods in response in understanding, but I have a feeling that he’s not buying it. I really wish he had never started paying more attention to me; it’s made things a lot harder. I try to focus on following Coach as he leads the stretches, but I feel like I’m being watched.

I glance over at Brian, but for once he’s actually not watching me like a hawk. I knit my brows together, wondering why I feel like there are eyes on me. I turn my head to the left, glancing behind me, and that’s when I see Hayley. Her gaze is fixated on me; her glare icy. I swallow hard and bring my attention to the front of the gym, doing what I can to brush it off.

But I’m left unnerved. What did I get myself into? Does she honestly think that we were friends in any sense of the word and that I ultimately betrayed her by dating Brian? Does she seriously think that Brian is worth all of this trouble? I mean, he’s just a boy. There’s nothing special about him at all. And frankly, I’m sure there are loads of guys out there who are a hell of a lot better than him.

We finish up our stretches, and I get up onto my feet, feeling a little lightheaded. I close my eyes and take a deep breath as I try to regain equilibrium. Hands lightly grasp my arms, and I open my eyes to see Brian standing in front of me.

“You okay there, Sunshine?”

“Yeah, just got a little off balance there. Thanks,” I tell him with a tiny smile.

“Okay. Remember, don’t be afraid to tell me if you’re not feeling well, alright? We don’t need another scare,” he says softly, his lips curled upward just slightly.

“Okay.”

“Come on, let’s get started on those laps.”

“Okay, but do you think you can do me a favor?” I ask him as we make our way to the sidelines where everyone else is lining up to run.

“Sure, what is it?” he queries.

“I know that you’re just trying to be a good boyfriend and stuff, but do you think you could keep some distance when we run?”

He licks his lips. “I don’t know, Lana.”

“Please?”

“I just worry about you. The last time we ran laps, you passed out. I don’t want another scare like that. And I know that you didn’t really eat at lunch, so I’m just worried that you’ll faint again,” he murmurs, his eyes meeting mine.

“Oh…” I mumble, glancing down at the floor.

“I just want to make sure you’re okay, that’s all,” he says, tucking my hair behind my ear, and I return my gaze to his. “Kinda my job to look out for you.”

I chuckle softly and smile. “Is it now?”

“As long as you’re my Sunshine, yeah, it is,” he replies, smiling back at me. “But I will try not to hover, just for you.”

“Thank you.”

“Anything for you, Lana.”

“You’re really committed to this, aren’t you?” I ask with a slight chuckle.

He smiles. “Just being a caring boyfriend.”

“Haner, Fray, time to quit running your traps and start laps!” Coach shouts at us, and I realize that people have already started running. Great, and now I’ve gotten in trouble in class because of Brian…

“Sorry,” Brian mouths to me as we start our laps.

“It’s alright,” I assure him. “Now start running. I know you can go faster than that.”

He nods his head and smiles at me before picking up speed and leaving me behind. I would run faster, but I know that I’m too out of shape for it. And frankly, after feeling a little lightheaded when I stood up, I’m a little worried that I will have a fainting spell like last time, and I don’t need to give Brian more reason to be concerned.

Brian already runs past me, flashing me a smile as he passes by, and I roll my eyes. Is he trying to show off or something? Does he think he’s being cute? Is that something a boyfriend would normally do? I don’t really know… I’ve never really paid enough attention to couples to know what normal couple-y behavior is.

A little while later, Brian manages to run past me yet again. Again, he smiles at me, all full of himself, and I can’t help but shake my head at him. For someone who told me that he would do anything to get out of running laps, he sure as hell is good at them. He doesn’t even look like he’s feeling winded. I attempt to pick up my pace, but I start to feel a little lightheaded again. I shake my head and slow down to my original speed. At least Coach is letting us go at our own pace as long as we aren’t walking, so I can’t get yelled at again.

There’s about another minute left of laps and I’ve found my stride, feeling comfortable enough to know that I won’t be fainting again. I start to round the corner when I feel something bump into me, causing me to lose my balance and fall to the floor. Trying to brace myself, I put my hands out in front of me, and land hard on my wrists. It hurts like a bitch, but at least I didn’t smack my head on the floor again…

I glance behind me and see Brian racing towards me, looking panicked. Great, just what I needed, another reason for Brian to worry about me. I don’t even know why he seems to care so much. I know that he doesn’t really give a shit about me, so why act like he does? It doesn’t make sense.

“Are you okay, Sunshine?” he asks as he kneels next to me, helping me up.

“I’m fine… I just lost my balance, that’s all,” I mumble once I’m up on my feet.

“Did you hit your head again?”

“Nah, I caught myself,” I tell him, rolling my wrists, which do hurt a little bit, but there is no way that I’m going to tell him that.

“Okay… I just didn’t want a repeat of last time.”

“Don’t worry, Brian. I made sure I didn’t push myself too hard. I don’t know what happened, though. I guess I tripped over my feet as I was rounding the corner.”

“That’s not what happened,” he replies as we break into a slow jog so Coach doesn’t yell at us again.

“Wait, you know what happened?” I ask, turning my head to look at him.

“I think so. I saw some girl bump into you as she was passing you. I don’t know if she did it on purpose, but I do know that after I saw her hit you, you fell.”

“Oh…” I trail off, biting my lip. I have a feeling I know exactly who ‘accidentally’ bumped into me-- Hayley. I know that I pissed her off enough in the locker room and that she was practically scowling at me during stretches. I wouldn’t be surprised if she was the one who knocked me over. “I thought you said you were going to keep your distance,” I comment, realizing that Brian’s keeping stride with me.

“That was before you fell.”

“I didn’t faint, though,” I try to reason with him.

“You still fell and it was still scary as hell, Lana. Besides, we don’t have much time left before the two minutes are up.”

“Fine,” I concede, “but just this once.”

“Okay,” he says, smiling at me.

I just shake my head at him as we make another lap around the Gym. Coach blows his whistle and tells us to all meet in the center of the gym. Brian and I walk towards the middle of the room.

“Fray, are you alright?” I hear someone ask from beside me, and I realize that it’s my P.E. teacher.

“Yeah, I’m fine. I just lost my balance for a second.”

“You sure? You looked like you landed pretty hard on your hands.”

“They’re fine, thanks,” I assure him.

“Alright; I was just making sure,” he says before walking ahead of me and Brian to the center of the gym.

We stop once we get there and I cross my arms over my chest, waiting for the rest of the class to get over here. I feel something bump into my hip and I glance over at Brian to see him smiling at me again.

“What was that for?” I ask.

“You were looking kinda grumpy there. Thought I’d try to get a smile outta you,” he replies.

“How was that supposed to make me smile?” I query with a chuckle.

He shrugs his shoulders. “I dunno, but I did get a laugh outta you,” he grins.

“You’re silly.”

“It still worked.”

I bite my bottom lip, fighting back the smile that’s threatening to spread across my face. I look around the room, wondering how much longer it’s going to take for people to get over here, and I lock eyes with Hayley. She sends a smug smirk my way, only confirming to me that she’s the reason I almost went face first into the gym floor. I swallow hard and bring my attention back to Coach as he starts to tell us the activity that we’ll be doing for the next few weeks, basketball. But it’s really hard to pay attention when you feel like someone’s staring daggers at you.

~

Thankfully, I get through the rest of Gym without Hayley causing any shit. And I’ve managed to successfully avoid her in the locker room so far. I toss my gym clothes into my locker, quickly put the lock on the door, and hurry out of the locker room. I walk into the gymnasium and see Brian sitting on the bleachers, waiting for me. He smiles at me as he hops off of the bleachers and I return the gesture as I walk over to him.

He holds his hand out to me and I reluctantly take it, knowing that it’ll look funny if I don’t take his hand. We walk out of the gym and into the hall, making our way to our lockers. He leads the way through the hall, and I notice that we’re a little too quiet.

“So, um, you’re not bad at basketball,” I comment.

“I’m alright,” he says, surprisingly not being cocky about it. “You’re not so bad, either.”

“Not really,” I chuckle. “But who knows, maybe I’ll get better.”

“You should give yourself more credit, Sunshine. You just need a little practice.”

“I suppose so. How’d you get so good at basketball?”

He shrugs. “I play with Matt and Jimmy sometimes.”

“Oh, I see.” I nod my head, remembering that Matt and Jimmy are both on the basketball team.

Silence falls over us again and we turn the corner to where our lockers are. I release his hand, letting him walk over to his locker to get his stuff. I pull my backpack out of my locker and start looking through my books, trying to remember which classes I’ve got homework due. I grab my last book, my Spanish book, and put it into the bag before zipping it up.

“So, are you still up for working on that Spanish assignment?” Brian asks me, making me jump a bit. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you.”

“It’s alright. Just try not to do it again,” I reply as I close my locker. “And, yeah, I think I am. Where did you wanna work on it?”

“It doesn’t matter to me. How about we figure it out on the bus? If we don’t get going soon, we’re gonna miss it.”

“Okay,” I reply with a nod. I sling my backpack onto my shoulder and turn to face him. “Ready to go.”

He takes my hand in his and we begin to walk down the hall. We head out of the building and make our way to the buses. We find our bus and I hear someone call out my name. I turn my head to see Sandi running towards us.

“Hey, sis!” she greets me once she makes her way to us. “Hey, Brian.”

“Hey, Sandi,” Brian replies.

“Hey, Sands,” I say, smiling at her.

“So, how was your day, Lana?” she asks me as we start to board the bus.

“It was alright. Gym was a bit of a pain again, but I guess that’s to be expected from Gym class.”

“What happened?” she asks as we find Matt sitting towards the back of the bus and join him. Sandi, of course, sits next to Matt. Her crush on him is ridiculous.

Brian and I sit in the seat behind them.

“It was nothing, really. I got knocked over while running laps.”

“Did they do it on purpose?”

I shrug. “I don’t really know,” I mumble, even though I feel like it was on purpose. I just don’t need Sandi and Brian worrying about me getting bullied.

Sandi nods her head and turns to face forward as the bus begins to move forward. I hear her say hi to Matt and attempt to strike up a conversation. I gnaw on the inside of my lip, hoping that she doesn’t make an idiot of herself and try to flirt with him. The last thing I need is Sandi trying to break up Matt and Laney.

“Is everything okay, Sunshine?” Brian asks me.

I turn my head to look at him and nod. “Yeah, I was just thinking. Sorry.”

“It’s alright. Were you thinking about anything in particular?”

“Not really.”

“Do you think that girl pushed you on purpose?” he queries, keeping his voice low so that Sandi can’t hear.

“I don’t know,” I mumble, looking down into my lap. “I don’t really want to look too deep into it. It was probably just an accident.”

“Yeah…” he trails off. “So, have you thought about where you wanna do homework?”

“Um,” I pause for a moment, thinking it over. I guess it wouldn’t hurt to just study over at my house. I doubt my mom would have any objections to having him over. And I don’t really want to run the risk of getting to know Brian’s family more and getting attached. “Is my house okay?”

“Yeah, that sounds good. I’ll just have to check in with Suzy and let her know that I’ll be at your place.”

“Sounds good.”

“Yeah…”

We fall into silence for a couple of minutes and I stare out the window, waiting for our stop. I feel something brush up against the back of my hand and I look over at Brian to see his thumb brushing against my hand. I knit my brows together, wondering what he’s doing.

“Why are you doing that?” I ask softly.

“Hmm?” he replies, looking at me in confusion.

“Why are you doing that?” I repeat, looking down at our hands.

“Oh, sorry. I guess I’m in boyfriend mode.”

“It’s okay…”

He releases my hand, and I go back to looking out of the window, waiting for our stop. I hear Sandi laugh from the seat in front of me, and my gaze briefly flits over to her. I hope she isn’t flirting with Matt and laughing at everything he says. I get that she thinks that he’s cute and probably has a crush on him, but he’s taken. I wonder if she’d be acting this way with Brian if he wasn’t “dating” me.

“Time to go, Sunshine,” Brian murmurs to me.

“Oh, okay.”

I grab my backpack as the bus rolls to a stop at our street. I sling my backpack onto my shoulder and take Brian’s hand as we wait for Sandi to get out of her seat. We all say our goodbyes to Matt before getting off of the bus.

“So, what are you two up to today?” Sandi asks me as we walk down the sidewalk.

“Not a whole lot,” I reply. “Brian and I were just going to do some homework. Do you think Mom will mind if he comes over?”

“I doubt it. You know she adores him.”

“She does?” Brian asks, sounding surprised.

“Of course she does!” Sandi exclaims and turns her gaze to me. “You didn’t tell him that Mom likes him?”

“Well, I did… I just didn’t say she adores him…” I mumble. Mostly because I didn’t want him to know just how attached my family is getting to him. And I didn’t want him to get a big head over the whole thing. I know how cocky Haner can get.

“Well, Mom definitely approves of you, Brian,” she chuckles as she leads the way home. “So, what class do you guys have homework in?”

“Spanish,” Brian answers.

“Ooh, Lana hates Spanish. Good luck with that,” Sandi says with a chuckle as we walk up the driveway.

“You don’t like Spanish?” he asks me softly.

I shrug my shoulders. “It isn’t exactly my strong suit.”

He simply nods his head as we follow Sandi into the house. My sister heads up the stairs to her room to put her stuff away, and Brian follows me through the living room and into the kitchen. I find my mom standing at the counter, already starting up dinner for tonight.

“Hi, Mom,” I greet her.

“Hello, sweetheart,” she replies, smiling widely at me. “How was your day?”

“It was alright,” I say, finding it best to brush over the incident in Gym. “Brian and I have some Spanish homework and we were wondering if it’s okay if he stays over for a bit to work on it.”

She turns her head to look behind her and smiles when she sees Brian. “Hello, Brian,” she says, beaming at him.

“Hi, Mrs. Fray,” he replies with a smile of his own.

“Of course you’re welcome to do homework over here. Do you need to use the phone to call your parents, Brian?”

“If you don’t mind,” he answers.

“I don’t mind at all. You’re welcome to use it. It’s right over there,” she tells him, pointing to the phone on the counter closest to him. “Oh, and you’re welcome to stay for dinner if that’s alright with your parents.”

“Thank you, Mrs. Fray. I’ll be sure to ask.”

“You’re welcome, Brian.” She turns her attention to me as Brian reaches for the phone and calls his house. “Would you two like anything to snack on while you’re studying?”

“Um,” I lick my lips and glance back at Brian, but he’s already on the phone, “when is dinner gonna be ready?”

“Probably in about an hour and a half.”

“I think we’ll be okay with just a couple of drinks.”

“Alright, I’ll be out with those in a few minutes.”

“You don’t have to do that, Mom. We can just grab a couple of sodas from the fridge,” I tell her, knowing that she has enough to do as it is.

“Are you sure? It’s no problem at all.”

“I’m sure, Mom. But thanks anyway.”

“Okay. You two let me know if there’s anything you need.”

“We will.” I look over to Brian and he’s hanging up the phone. “Everything okay with the parental units?”

“Yeah. And my step-mom said it’s fine if I stay over for dinner.”

“Wonderful!” my mom replies, maybe a little too happy to hear the news. I really don’t understand why she thinks Brian’s so great.

He smiles at my mom before turning his attention to me. “So, where do you wanna work on this?”

“The living room should be okay,” I reply. “I was just going to get something to drink. Do you want anything?”

“Sure, what do you have?”

“Let’s see…” I walk over to the fridge and look inside. “We have Coke, Sprite, orange juice, milk, and then of course there’s water.”

“Coke sounds good.”

I nod and grab two cans out of the fridge. I head over to him and hand him a can as we head over to the living room. I set my backpack down onto the floor and he does the same as we sit down in front of the couch. I unzip my bag and pull out my Spanish book and binder. I pull out the worksheet that was given to us and read over the instructions, grimacing as I do so.

“Everything okay, Lana?” Brian asks.

“Yeah… I’m just trying to figure this out,” I mumble as I stare at the worksheet blankly.

He scoots in a bit closer, making me a bit uncomfortable. “What are you trying to figure out?”

“Just…” I sigh and shake my head, taking the opportunity to inch away from him a bit. “I’m terrible at this stuff.”

“It’s not that bad,” he says, reaching for his book and propping it up so I can see. “We’re just conjugating verbs, so you can use this chart here.”

“Okay…” I trail off, chewing on the inside of my lip as I look at the chart.

“Still confused?”

I knit my brows together, really not wanting to admit to Brian of all people that I am still lost. “It’s just… Aren’t we supposed to use a different chart for the ar and er verbs? Like, isn’t there a difference?”

“There is,” he says, pointing to another chart on the page. “So if you have a verb ending in -ar, you’ll use this chart. If it’s ending in -er, you’ll use this one.” He points out the different charts. So, like with this first example, it ends in an -ar and you’re conjugating for ‘she,’ so you’ll write down ‘habla.’”

“Oh, okay. So, I just need to remember which chart and ending to use and I should be good?”

“Basically. So, how about I let you try a couple on your own. If you need any help, just let me know.”

“Alright, thanks.”

“Not a problem,” he replies as he returns to his worksheet.

I glance at the page Brian’s book is opened to and turn to the same page in my own. I look at the chart for a moment, trying to memorize it, before I attempt a couple of problems on my own. And as much as I don’t want to admit it, I think Brian going over things with me has actually helped. I’ve managed to get through two problems already, and I’m pretty sure that they’re actually correct.

Four problems later, I feel something gently poking at my arm. Chewing on the inside of my cheek, I try to ignore the poking and continue working on my homework. But the poking continues. Exhaling heavily through my nose, I glance over at Brian to see him poking at me with the point of his pencil.

“Why are you doing that?” I query.

“I was just checking in on how you’re doing with those problems,” he replies with a grin.

“And you couldn’t just ask?”

“I just figured it was easier to get your attention this way.”

“I see…”

“So, how’s it coming along?” he asks.

“It’s going well. I think I’m getting it.”

“That’s good.”

“It is, so can you please bring the pestering to a minimum so I can finish?”

“Okay.”

“Thank you,” I mumble as I return to my homework.

But just a couple of minutes later, something taps against my arm again. I press my lips together and look over at him again. This time, he’s tapping my arm with the eraser of his pencil.

“Wh--”

“Oh, my God, you guys are too cute!” Sandi exclaims.

“We try,” Brian says with a chuckle; I bite my lip and look down at the table, not really sure what to say.

“You don’t have to. You two are adorable,” she says as she walks out of the room.

I lick my lips and lift my gaze away from the table. “Sorry about her. She’s just really excited that I’m dating someone.”

“It’s alright. I’m kinda getting used to stuff like that.”

“You are?”

“Yeah, I mean, my step-mom still talks about how sweet and pretty you are. My dad is still trying to figure out how I convinced you to date me. He still thinks I’m paying you,” he chuckles, shrugging his shoulders. “I’ve just gotten used to hearing people talk about how cute we are and stuff.”

“Your parents have been talking about me?”

“Don’t worry, Lana, it’s all good stuff, obviously.”

“Obviously?” I query, drawing my brows together. How exactly is it obvious that his parents would say nothing but good things about me?

“What? You’re surprised to hear that?”

I shrug. “Well, I mean, they acted like they did, but sometimes people just act nice when they really don’t like you…”

“And you think my parents would do that?” he asks, raising an eyebrow.

“I don’t know. Probably not, but you never know. I don’t know what kind of impression I made…”

“Well, judging by how they both seem to love you already, I’d say that you made a very good one,” he says, chuckling lightly.

“That’s good.” And it is good, if Brian and I were really dating.

“Yeah, and it seems like I’ve done at good job at impressing your family,” he says, smiling.

“Yeah, surprisingly…”

His brow furrows, and his smile fades away just slightly. “Surprisingly?”

“Well, you did torment me since kindergarten,” I point out. “But my mom seems to be under the impression that you only did that because you had a crush on me or something. Sandi even thinks that you only picked on me because you liked me. How silly is that? I mean, if you really did like me, wouldn’t you be nice to me?”

“Yeah, you’d think so, wouldn’t you?” he replies, rubbing the back of his neck. “But you don’t have to worry about me picking on you anymore, Sunshine.”

“I don’t?” I query.

“Yeah, I’m not going to pick on you like that anymore.”

“If that’s the case, then what was up with the pencil poking a few minutes ago?”

“That? That doesn’t count.”

I arch an eyebrow at him. “Doesn’t it?”

“I was just checking on how you were doing with the worksheet,” he defends.

“And the second time?” I ask, my eyes meeting his.

“Well, um,” he licks his lips. “That doesn’t count as picking. I was just kinda bored and decided to check on how you were doing again.”

“You hardly even gave me five minutes before you decided to check up on me, Brian.”

“Really? It seemed longer…”

“Yeah, really. And why were you bored? Why didn’t you just work on your worksheet?”

“Because I finished it,” he says, holding up his completed worksheet.

“Already? Wow, Haner, you didn’t tell me you were a Spanish whiz.”

“Eh, I’m okay. We aren’t even covering the difficult stuff. I mean, this is all review from last year, Lana.”

“I know… This really isn’t a good sign for me, is it?”

He chuckles. “Well, I could always tutor you if you have trouble,” he offers.

“Oh…”

“But only if you want me to,” he quickly amends. “I just figured it’d be easy since we have class together and we live so close an all. And since you’re my girlfriend, I promise not to charge you.”

“And you’d charge me if I wasn’t?” I query.

“Maybe,” he says; the corners of his mouth curve upward.

“You would really charge me if I wasn’t your girlfriend?” I ask again, a little surprised. I mean, I thought he wanted to be friends after all of this is over with. Friends don’t charge friends to tutor each other.

“I said maybe. I mean, a guy’s gotta earn some cash somehow.”

“So what happens when this is over? You’re just going to charge me?” I ask, lowering my voice so that Mom and Sandi can’t overhear.

He shrugs his shoulders; that smile still playing on his lips. “Maybe I’d give you a fifty percent friend discount.”

“But that’s not fair when I had the girlfriend discount first,” I counter, looking at him pointedly.

He looks away from me and down at the table, biting his lip. “Then maybe we shouldn’t break up,” he suggests softly, his eyes briefly catching mine. “That is if you want to keep the discount…”

I swallow hard, my throat suddenly very dry, and I stare at him in surprise. “Oh…” I mumble, unsure of what to say. Of all the things I’ve expected him to say, I never thought he’d say that.

“Lana,” he says, laughing softly. His gaze meets mine again. “I was just joking around.”

“Oh.” I can practically feel the relief cascade over me.

“Yeah, I wasn’t serious. And of course I wouldn’t charge you. What kind of person charges to help out their friends?”

“So we’re friends?”

“We can if you want to be. It’s all up to you. And I promise that I won’t try to buy your friendship with tutoring benefits.”

I smile and nod my head. “Well, I’ll definitely think about it.”

“That sounds good to me,” he replies, smiling back at me. “So, I’ll let you finish up the worksheet, and if you want me to check it for you, I can.”

“Alright; thanks.”

He nods his head, and I look back at the nearly completed worksheet in front of me. It takes me a couple more minutes, just to make sure that I’m confident with my answers, and I set my pencil down on the table. I exhale as I pick up the paper and hold it out to Brian.

“I think I’m ready to have you check it for me. And, please, don’t be too brutal.”

He chuckles, taking the worksheet from me. He sets it down on the table, picks up his pencil, and carefully checks through my answers. I bite my lip as I watch him look over my homework, wondering how well, or bad, I did. He places his pencil down onto the coffee table and picks up my worksheet, holding it out for me to take back.

“So?” I ask hesitantly as I take the paper from him.

“So?” he echoes, smiling just slightly.

“How did I do?” I ask.

He inhales sharply and grimaces-- that certainly can’t be a good sign. “I gotta tell ya, Lana,” he pauses, clearly trying to word things right, “you did fantastic. You seem to be remembering pretty fast.”

“Don’t do that!” I exclaim, laughing a little as I gently shove him.

“Don’t do what?” he asks, looking surprised.

“You freaked me out! I thought I had everything wrong or something! I was gonna have a heart attack.”

“Did you really think you did that bad? Besides, you couldn’t have gotten everything wrong since I did the first one for ya,” he points out with a smile.

“I don’t know. I mean, I thought I did okay, and then you hesitate and act like it was some sort of atrocity, I wasn’t sure what to think. I thought you said no more teasing.”

“I said you don’t have to worry about me picking on you, like being mean. I can still joke around with you-- friends joke around all the time.”

I shrug my shoulders and start to pack up my Spanish homework. “Sometimes, it’s hard to tell when you’re joking around and when you’re being serious,” I mumble, looking down at the coffee table.

“Lana,” he says; his voice much softer than I’d expected it to be. “I’m sorry that I’ve been a jerk to you. But look at me.”

I lick my lips, reluctantly looking up from the table and over to him. “Hmm?”

He scoots in closer and takes my hand into his. “I promise that I’m not going to be a jerk anymore. At least not to you,” he tells me as his eyes lock onto mine.

I gulp and my heart races, whether from nerves because he’s too close for my liking or something else, I’m not quite sure. “And how do I know I can trust that you’re telling the truth?” I query.

He smiles. “I’m your boyfriend, aren’t I?”

“Boyfriends can lie, especially the fake ones.”

“I wouldn’t lie to you, Lana.”

“Are you sure about that?”

“Yeah, I’m pretty sure,” he says, chuckling softly. “How about this: if I’m lying to you, then you can do something to get back at me.”

“Such as?” I ask.

“I dunno. Whatever you want, I guess. You can hit my arm or kick my shin or--”

“Punch you in the face?” I suggest, smiling.

“I don’t know about that one.”

“But you did say that it could be whatever I want. What if I want to punch you in the face?”

“Why would you want to punch me in the face?”

“Why would you pick on me for so many years? I have my reasons.”

“But does it have to be my face? Can’t it be my arm or my stomach or--”

“I could always just kick you in the balls, if you’d prefer that.”

“How about we leave my face and my balls out of it?” he asks with a nervous chuckle.

“But then that just takes all the fun out of it, Brian,” I reply with a grin.

“How is that fun?”

I can’t help but chuckle at him.

“What’s so funny?”

“You,” I answer.

“And I’m being funny, how?”

“The way you’re reacting is amusing.”

“I’m reacting like any guy would when you tell him that kicking him in the nuts is funny!” he says, his eyes wide.

“I know you are. And you know what’s really funny about that?”

“I have absolutely no idea.”

I lean in towards him just a bit. “It’s funny because you seem to forget that you’re not the only one who can joke around.”

His mouth hangs open and he stares at me for a moment. “So you don’t want to punch me in the face or kick me in the balls?”

“As tempting as both may sound, I’m not that mean, Brian.”

He chuckles and smiles at me. “Well, that’s definitely a relief. I’ve gotta admit that you got me there, Lana.”

I smile, feeling somewhat proud that I actually managed to get him at his own game. Something lightly bumps against my shoulder and I turn to look at Brian, slightly confused. “Why’d you do that?”

“No reason,” he replies with a grin. “I still can’t believe you got me, though. I didn’t think you had it in you, Lana.”

“And why’s that? Am I not clever enough to joke around or something?” I query, raising an eyebrow.

“It’s nothing like that at all,” he insists, sounding a bit panicked.

I lean in and bump his shoulder like he had done to mine. “And I got you again, Haner.”

He smiles widely and bumps my shoulder again. I bite my bottom lip, fighting back the smile that’s spreading across my face. I look down at the table again and start to pack up my homework, noticing Brian do the same out of the corner of my eye. I glance over at him, and he smiles at me. And I look away as I feel the heat rise to my cheeks.

~

Slowly setting my fork down onto my plate, I anxiously lick my lips. Throughout most of dinner, I noticed Brian watching me and taking note of how much I’ve eaten-- or rather how little I’ve eaten-- and it put me a bit on edge. It’s not like my mom’s cooking wasn’t great; it was. I mean, Brian had two whole helpings and cleaned his plate each time. It’s amazing how much that boy can eat and yet it seems like he never gains a pound. I just couldn’t bring myself to eat that much.

“Thank you for dinner, Mrs. Fray,” Brian tells my mom.

“You’re welcome, Brian,” she replies, smiling. “I’m glad that you were able to stay for it.”

Sandi and I get up from our seats and start to clear the table since it’s our turn to do the dishes. I follow her into the kitchen and set the dishes in my hands onto the counter. I reach over to turn on the sink, and Sandi gently slaps my hand away.

“What was that for?” I ask, gently shaking my slapped hand.

“You’re not doing dishes tonight.”

“Uh, yeah, I am. It’s our turn to do them.”

“I’m letting you skip tonight, alright? You’ve got Brian over right now.”

“And I’m sure that he can wait a few minutes while I do the dishes.”

“Lana,” Sandi says, sounding exasperated, “the boy has just voluntarily sat through another family dinner. He obviously wants to spend time with you, so go out there and spend time with your boyfriend.”

“It’s only a couple of minutes, Sandi.”

“Seriously, Lana, it’s okay. Go be with him! Really, you’re acting like you don’t even want to see him or something.”

I bite the inside of my lip, realizing that I’m messing up. “It’s not that, Sandi. I just don’t want you doing all of these dishes by yourself. It’s not fair.”

She chuckles. “Forget fair, Lana. I told you that it’s fine to skip tonight. I’m sure you’ll return the favor one day. Now go back to Brian.”

“Okay. Thanks, Sandi.”

“You’re welcome, Lana.”

I return to the dining table and take my seat beside Brian. He greets me with a smile, and I return the gesture. I notice my mom smiling fondly at us while Kris grimaces, probably still wondering why Brian would want to date me.

“Oh! I’m so sorry, I forgot to make something for dessert,” my mom says.

“It’s okay, Mom,” I tell her. “We don’t need to have dessert.”

“Says you,” Kris grumbles.

“Kristopher,” Henry says firmly.

“Sorry… Can I be excused?”

“Yes, you may,” Henry tells him, and Kris skulks out of the room.

“Um, actually, I kinda thought that I could take Lana to get ice cream,” Brian pipes up. “That is, if it’s okay with you, of course,” he quickly tacks on, looking at Henry, who doesn’t look too pleased with the idea. “And Kris and Sandi are more than welcome to come along.”

“I don’t know about that, Brian,” Henry replies. “It is a school night.”

“I understand, sir. It was just a thought.”

“I don’t see the problem with it,” my mom says.

“Emma--”

“It’s not too late right now, and the ice cream shop isn’t very far from here. Besides, I don’t think Brian would keep Lana out too late, would you, Brian?”

“Of course not,” he replies quickly.

“And I’m sure he’ll make sure nothing happens to Lana or Sandi and Kris.”

“Who will make sure nothing happens to me and Kris?” Sandi asks as she walks in.

“Brian and Lana are going to go out to get some ice cream and he offered to let you and Kris come along with them,” my mom replies.

“Oh… Well, I appreciate the offer, but I’m not really in the mood for ice cream tonight.”

“Are you sure, Sands? We don’t mind,” I tell her, really hoping that she’ll change her mind. But I know that she won’t; she’s doing this so Brian and I can have some time alone together. If only she knew that she’s not doing me any favors.

“Yeah, I’m sure, Lana. Thanks for the invite, though, Brian,” she says, sending a smile his way.

“Okay…” I trail off as I start to get up from my seat. “Well, then I guess I’ll go tell Kris--”

“Kris doesn’t have to have ice cream tonight,” Sandi quickly interrupts me, and I sit back down.

“Try telling Kris that.”

“I’ll make it up to him later. He’ll be fine.”

“Okay…” I glance over at Henry, wondering how he feels about letting me and Brian go by ourselves. “Is it still okay if we go out for ice cream?”

I notice him look at my mom briefly before he opens his mouth to answer. “Yes, you two may still go out for ice cream.”

“Thank you, sir,” Brian says, sounding a little too happy if you ask me. Maybe he’s just excited to get out of here. But if that’s the case, why doesn’t he just go home?

“You’re welcome. And don’t keep her out too late, Brian,” Henry reminds him.

“I promise. I’ll bring her back by 8:30, if that’s alright with you.”

“Nine is fine,” my mom suggests softly. “Make sure you two have plenty of time to walk without rushing.”

Brian smiles. “Alright, then I’ll have her home by nine at the latest.” He turns to me, smile still intact. “Are you ready to go, Sunshine?”

“Yeah, I guess so,” I reply, somewhat surprised that Henry didn’t disagree with my mom over letting us go alone.

“Make sure you grab a jacket, sweetheart,” Mom says as she hugs me. “And have fun.”

“Thanks, Mom.”

Brian and I get out of our chairs and head out towards the living room. I tell him I’ll be right back and head upstairs to grab a hoodie from my room. I grab the first one I can find before going back downstairs, where Brian’s still waiting for me. He smiles at me and takes my hand in his as we continue towards the door.

“You two have fun,” Sandi calls out from the couch with a huge grin on her face.

If I could, I’d glare at her for making it so that I have to be alone with Brian, but I can’t. So instead I just mumble a “thanks” as we walk out the door. Letting the door fall shut behind us, Brian and I head down the driveway and take a left towards the end of the street.

Chewing on the inside of my lip, I glance over at him, not really sure of what to say. “So, ice cream… You didn’t mention that earlier.”

His eyes flicker in my direction and he smiles. “I figured that it’d be a nice way to get to know each other without your family around. You know, no stress over having to act like we’re a couple,” he replies.

“If it was supposed to be no stress, then why did you say that Sandi and Kris could come along?” I ask.

“Your sister seems to be pretty adamant about giving us time to ourselves,” he comments with a chuckle. “And Kris, well, I figured it wouldn’t matter so much around him since he’d have ice cream. He couldn’t care less about how we act.”

I nod my head. “I suppose you’re right about that.”

“And since we might try being friends and all, it’d be nice to get to know each other better. It could even make this whole dating thing easier on both of us if we actually knew more about each other.”

“I guess you have a point. But why ice cream?”

“It gets us out of the house, it’s not too far away, and it’s something we can both enjoy. Well, unless you’re lactose intolerant, then I guess it wouldn’t be. But your parents wouldn’t have let you go if you were, so--”

“I’m not lactose intolerant, Brian,” I tell him, chuckling softly.

“Then it’s perfect,” he says, smiling.

“If you say so,” I reply, unable to fight the smile tugging at my lips.

We fall into silence and a light breeze picks up. I unlace my fingers from Brian’s and he releases my hand. I take the hoodie that I had draped over my arm and pull it on, zipping it up enough to fight off the chill. I let the oversized arms cover my hands and I grab the excess material into my fists.

“It looks like it’s swallowing you whole,” Brian comments, causing me to look up at him.

“What is?”

“My hoodie,” he replies, reaching over and gently tugging at the sleeve; and it dawns on me that that is the reason why this hoodie is so big-- it’s not even mine to begin with.

“Oh, right… Sorry I didn’t give it back to you today. I guess I forgot that you gave it to me. I’ll give it back when we get back to my house,” I tell him.

“It’s alright, Lana, you can keep it.”

“Are you sure? I mean, don’t you need it?”

His lips turn up into another smile and he shakes his head. “I have other hoodies. Besides, isn’t that what boyfriends do, give their girlfriend their hoodie?”

I shrug my shoulder, honestly unsure. I haven’t seen Zacky give Lynn one of his jackets, but maybe I just haven’t been paying attention. “I wouldn’t know.”

“Well, you can still hold onto it. It looks good on you.”

“Even though it’s swallowing me whole?” I ask, raising my arms out to my sides a bit.

“Yeah, even though it looks like you’re swimming in it, it looks good,” he says; that soft smile still playing on his lips.

“Well, thanks,” I mumble quietly.

He simply nods his head and we grow quiet again, continuing to walk down to the closet ice cream parlor, Baskin Robbins. A few minutes pass by and we approach the building. Brian opens the door for me and I thank him as I step inside. He follows me inside and we stand behind a couple in line.

I bite my bottom lip as I look at the choices, unsure of what to get. It’s been a little while since I’ve gone out for ice cream and there are so many choices that it isn’t really helping me make a decision. Out of the corner of my eye, I look at Brian, wondering if he is having any more luck than I am.

“Do you know what you want, Sunshine?” he asks.

“Not really,” I mumble. “What about you?”

“Still deciding, but it’s probably going to be between chocolate and cookie dough. Or maybe cookies ‘n cream… Damn, I didn’t see that one.”

I chuckle softly. “Too many to options for ya?”

“I just didn’t see that one earlier. At least I have managed to narrow it down a bit. You seem to be lost,” he points out, his eyes meeting mine briefly before he returns to looking at the ice cream.

“I just don’t really know what I like. I haven’t been out for ice cream in a while.”

“Well, maybe I can help you narrow it down,” he offers.

“When you can’t even narrow it down yourself?”

“I actually just decided, thank you very much. I’m going to get one scoop of cookies ‘n cream and one of cookie dough.”

“You’re going to get two? Are you sure you have a stomach and not some sort of bottomless pit in there?” I ask, poking at his stomach. I gulp and quickly retract my hand, wondering what possessed me to do that.

He just chuckles. “Not sure, actually. The doctors are still trying to conclude on that one.”

“Are you always such a smart-ass?” I query.

“Can’t help it; I get it from my dad,” he quickly replies. “Hey, look at that-- we’re already learning something about each other. See, this is working!”

I laugh and shake my head. “And are you always such a…goof?”

“I’m not really sure on that one, but I would say that there is a good chance that the answer would be yes. Now, let me learn something about you.”

“Okay…”

“Do you want something simple or do you wanna venture out into the world of complex ice cream flavors?”

“That’s what you want to learn about me?”

“Well, for starters. Gotta know the ice cream preference to see if we can hang and all,” he says with a smile. “I mean, what if I find out that you like pistachio flavored ice cream? Like, I’m sorry, Lana, but I don’t think that’s going to vibe with my cookie dough.”

“Did you really just say that we can’t hang if the ice cream doesn’t vibe?”

“What? It’s, like, science.”

“Conflicting ice cream preferences is science?” I ask, wondering if he’s being serious or not. He can’t be fucking serious about this.

“Don’t look at me like that.”

“Like what?”

“Like you think I’m being stupid.”

“I’m not looking at you like you’re being stupid. I’m just…confused.”

“Well, I’m just saying that how can we get along if we’re on such opposite ends of the spectrum, you know? How can I trust a pistachio eater?”

“Did someone who liked pistachio ice cream do something to you or something? Why are you picking on that of all flavors?”

“Because what else was I supposed to pick, Lana? Was I supposed to say we can’t be friends if you like Rocky Road? Because I can’t; that shit’s delicious.”

“Okay,” I say, slightly amused at how serious he seems to be taking this. “Well, do you think you can be friends with a chocolate chip ice cream eater?”

He grins. “See, now that would definitely vibe with my cookie dough.”

I laugh again and sigh. “You’re silly, Haner.”

“Is silly a bad thing?” he asks.

I look up at him, our eyes meeting again, and I smile. “No, silly’s not a bad thing at all. I actually think I might need more silly in my life.”

“Well, then you’re in luck, Sunshine. Because I think I’m just the guy who can add a little silliness into your life,” he says.

“Maybe you are, Superman,” I reply with a tiny smile. “Maybe you are.”