I Will Not Kiss You
Chapter 19
Donna cooked Spaghetti Bolognese for us all, making mine with quorn in a separate saucepan, and she let me watch her cook again. She even let me help her but I said I didn’t want to touch the beef, which she said was fair enough and understandable.
My Mom arrived while we were all eating to drop off my overnight bag. She told me privately that she’d put a brand new, unopened toothbrush in there for me because she knows I don’t like people touching my toothbrush in case they have dirty hands. I said thank you to her and then Donna invited her in for a little while so that they could have a ‘catch up’. That means they tell each other what they’ve been up to recently because they haven’t seen each other for a little while.
Gerard and Donald sat the other sofa, trying to watch ‘The evening news’ on TV. Actually, Donald was watching it but Gerard looked like he was going to fall asleep. That means he was either tired or bored. Mikey told me. He was resting his chin in the palm of his hand, his eyes half-closed. He caught my eye and mimed falling asleep and hitting his head on the arm of the sofa. I smiled because it was funny. Mikey smiled too but he was looking at me, not Gerard.
“C’mon.” He said, heading towards the stairs.
I followed him up the stairs and into his room. He jumped onto his bed and I sat on the spare mattress modestly but he patted the space next to him so I sat next to him instead. He grinned and crossed his legs, leaning back slightly and using his arms to prop himself up. I didn’t smile because I didn’t know what we were smiling at.
“Gerard likes you.” He stated.
“Wha-“
“Gerard. He likes you.”
“Well I like him.”
“No, I meant like like.”
“Oh…”
He laughed and slowly reached out, patting my shoulder briefly.
“How do you know?”
“Please. This is my brother we’re talking about. I know him like the back of my hand!”
“That’s not a very helpful answer.” I laughed.
“It’s just the way he looks at you.”
“How does he look at me?”
“He kinda’…..glances at you, looks away and then looks again. And he smiles every time you walk into the room.”
“He does?”
Mikey laughed, kicking his long skinny legs as he did so.
“What are you, blind?” He giggled.
“No.” I replied.
“Sorry. I was being sarcastic.”
“Oh; oops.”…
…I asked Mikey if I could have a shower at about 11:00 pm before I got into my PJ’s. Donna and Donald had gone to bed about a half hour beforehand and Gerard was downstairs still. Mikey said ‘Yeah sure’ and went to find a towel for me while I looked through my bag for my PJ bottoms. He came back with a dark blue one and said there was shower gel and stuff in there. I said ‘Thank you’ and went out of his room and down the hall towards the bathroom. The lock on the door was broken so I couldn’t lock it. I shut the door and stripped off before I got into the shower because it would be stupid to get into a shower in your clothes unless you’re cleaning it.
“Ok, how the heck does this thing work?” I mumbled to myself when I saw the two dials.
One was very big and the other was smaller and had a red line at one end and a blue at the other. I pondered over it for a moment, afraid to try anything in case I broke it. This is one of the many reasons I’m so funny about staying anywhere other than Mom’s or Dad’s! I’m always frightened of breaking stuff I don’t know how to work. I reached out for the smaller dial and tried turning it towards the red line but nothing happened so I turned the big dial instead. Instantly a jet of water streamed down. I shrieked as it touched me because it was too hot. Then I realised the little dial worked the temperature of the water, so I turned it towards the blue line and the water went freezing cold.
“Cold cold cold cold cold!” I cried, delicately turning the dial again.
The water went too hot again. It would seem that this is one of those showers that you need the skills of a safebreaker to work. Eventually I got the temperature right and picked up a green bottle from a little cabinet beside the shower. It said ‘Men’s irresistible’ on it which Dad has at home so I knew it was shower gel. I squeezed a little onto my hand and started to wash myself. I’m one of those people who take about thirty seconds in the shower. That doesn’t mean I’m a dirty person because I’m actually very clean but I’m quick about it. Because my hair was wet and sticking to my face, I slicked it back out of my eyes…
“Oh Jesus!” Someone cried.
I turned towards the door in time to see it being slammed shut. Someone had just walked in on me. My cheeks felt hot and I knew I was blushing. I turned the shower off and stepped out, grabbing my towel and drying off. My PJ’s were right where I left them so I yanked the checked blue bottoms on and pulled my T-shirt back on. Then I collected up my clothes and went back into Mikey’s room. He was sitting on the floor with his back resting against his bed. Gerard was sitting beside him.
“Did you figure out how to work it ok?” Mikey questioned.
“No,” I replied truthfully “I couldn’t get the temperature to work properly. I worked it out eventually.”
“Good.”
“And…um…I think your Dad walked in while I was in there because I heard someone shout.”
“Actually…um…that was me,” Gerard said, lifting his hand as he said it “Sorry about that!”
“Didn’t you hear the shower?” I asked.
“I wasn’t really paying much attention,” He explained “And Mikey’s left the shower on in the past so…um.”
“Oh.”
“Don’t worry,” He reassured “I didn’t see much.”
“Ok.”
No one said anything so Gerard cleared his throat and excused himself. Mikey smirked after him and then at me whilst trying to stop himself laughing. I grabbed a pillow and hit him with it, telling him it’s not funny.
Classic movie thing or what? =P
My Mom arrived while we were all eating to drop off my overnight bag. She told me privately that she’d put a brand new, unopened toothbrush in there for me because she knows I don’t like people touching my toothbrush in case they have dirty hands. I said thank you to her and then Donna invited her in for a little while so that they could have a ‘catch up’. That means they tell each other what they’ve been up to recently because they haven’t seen each other for a little while.
Gerard and Donald sat the other sofa, trying to watch ‘The evening news’ on TV. Actually, Donald was watching it but Gerard looked like he was going to fall asleep. That means he was either tired or bored. Mikey told me. He was resting his chin in the palm of his hand, his eyes half-closed. He caught my eye and mimed falling asleep and hitting his head on the arm of the sofa. I smiled because it was funny. Mikey smiled too but he was looking at me, not Gerard.
“C’mon.” He said, heading towards the stairs.
I followed him up the stairs and into his room. He jumped onto his bed and I sat on the spare mattress modestly but he patted the space next to him so I sat next to him instead. He grinned and crossed his legs, leaning back slightly and using his arms to prop himself up. I didn’t smile because I didn’t know what we were smiling at.
“Gerard likes you.” He stated.
“Wha-“
“Gerard. He likes you.”
“Well I like him.”
“No, I meant like like.”
“Oh…”
He laughed and slowly reached out, patting my shoulder briefly.
“How do you know?”
“Please. This is my brother we’re talking about. I know him like the back of my hand!”
“That’s not a very helpful answer.” I laughed.
“It’s just the way he looks at you.”
“How does he look at me?”
“He kinda’…..glances at you, looks away and then looks again. And he smiles every time you walk into the room.”
“He does?”
Mikey laughed, kicking his long skinny legs as he did so.
“What are you, blind?” He giggled.
“No.” I replied.
“Sorry. I was being sarcastic.”
“Oh; oops.”…
…I asked Mikey if I could have a shower at about 11:00 pm before I got into my PJ’s. Donna and Donald had gone to bed about a half hour beforehand and Gerard was downstairs still. Mikey said ‘Yeah sure’ and went to find a towel for me while I looked through my bag for my PJ bottoms. He came back with a dark blue one and said there was shower gel and stuff in there. I said ‘Thank you’ and went out of his room and down the hall towards the bathroom. The lock on the door was broken so I couldn’t lock it. I shut the door and stripped off before I got into the shower because it would be stupid to get into a shower in your clothes unless you’re cleaning it.
“Ok, how the heck does this thing work?” I mumbled to myself when I saw the two dials.
One was very big and the other was smaller and had a red line at one end and a blue at the other. I pondered over it for a moment, afraid to try anything in case I broke it. This is one of the many reasons I’m so funny about staying anywhere other than Mom’s or Dad’s! I’m always frightened of breaking stuff I don’t know how to work. I reached out for the smaller dial and tried turning it towards the red line but nothing happened so I turned the big dial instead. Instantly a jet of water streamed down. I shrieked as it touched me because it was too hot. Then I realised the little dial worked the temperature of the water, so I turned it towards the blue line and the water went freezing cold.
“Cold cold cold cold cold!” I cried, delicately turning the dial again.
The water went too hot again. It would seem that this is one of those showers that you need the skills of a safebreaker to work. Eventually I got the temperature right and picked up a green bottle from a little cabinet beside the shower. It said ‘Men’s irresistible’ on it which Dad has at home so I knew it was shower gel. I squeezed a little onto my hand and started to wash myself. I’m one of those people who take about thirty seconds in the shower. That doesn’t mean I’m a dirty person because I’m actually very clean but I’m quick about it. Because my hair was wet and sticking to my face, I slicked it back out of my eyes…
“Oh Jesus!” Someone cried.
I turned towards the door in time to see it being slammed shut. Someone had just walked in on me. My cheeks felt hot and I knew I was blushing. I turned the shower off and stepped out, grabbing my towel and drying off. My PJ’s were right where I left them so I yanked the checked blue bottoms on and pulled my T-shirt back on. Then I collected up my clothes and went back into Mikey’s room. He was sitting on the floor with his back resting against his bed. Gerard was sitting beside him.
“Did you figure out how to work it ok?” Mikey questioned.
“No,” I replied truthfully “I couldn’t get the temperature to work properly. I worked it out eventually.”
“Good.”
“And…um…I think your Dad walked in while I was in there because I heard someone shout.”
“Actually…um…that was me,” Gerard said, lifting his hand as he said it “Sorry about that!”
“Didn’t you hear the shower?” I asked.
“I wasn’t really paying much attention,” He explained “And Mikey’s left the shower on in the past so…um.”
“Oh.”
“Don’t worry,” He reassured “I didn’t see much.”
“Ok.”
No one said anything so Gerard cleared his throat and excused himself. Mikey smirked after him and then at me whilst trying to stop himself laughing. I grabbed a pillow and hit him with it, telling him it’s not funny.
Classic movie thing or what? =P