Just Another Lovesick Boy

Much to his irritation, Eddy was finally forced out of the hospital to attend the last week of school before we went on winter break. It irritated the hell out of him that our teachers dumped so much makeup work on him while he still had to study for the exams. I ignored his heated glare after I pointed out that now he would have something to focus on instead of constantly worrying about Free while sitting around at the hospital for hours on end. If it weren’t for Anya constantly helping him with his studies, I don’t think Eddy would have ever actually gotten around to doing his work.

My mom and Eddy’s dad had begun to switch shifts in looking over Free. Mr. Devereux, as much as he wanted to be by Free’s side all the time, could not risk missing any more work. On the days Mr. Devereux had to leave, my mom would bring her work with her to the hospital and kept Free company. I was sure that working from the hospital was taking a toll on my mom’s work but she didn’t seem to mind.

Free had yet to wake up. She sometimes sighed in her sleep or would twitch a bit but we stopped jumping up to check on her whenever she did that. The cuts on her face and arms were healing nicely. She stopped looking so lifeless. Now she was simply sleeping. Eddy still held on to the hope that every twitch and sigh was a step closer to Free waking up. But I think that the fact that her heart was still beating was enough for Eddy. Enough to keep him agitated every moment he was away from her side anyway.

The biggest surprise, however, came at the beginning of the week when Eddy and Anya exited the lunch hall holding hands. They nonchalantly set their things down before sitting across from me and Lee. Eddy’s eyebrow twitched up at us when he looked away from Anya long enough to notice our incredulous stares.

“What?” he simply asked as Anya adjusted herself from under his arm around her shoulders.

“When did this happen?” Lee asked, gesturing to the both of them.

“Last night, when the idiot kissed me,” Anya answered with a small sigh.

From over her head, I could see Eddy waggling his eyebrows in my direction with a ghost of his old mischievous smile on his face. With a shake of my head, I returned his smile with one of my own before quickly glancing away. I didn’t want to baby Eddy anymore. I knew that at times my worry for him could be suffocating but I still felt a twinge of concern when his smile didn’t meet his eyes the way it used to. But it was no longer my job to be Eddy’s mother. There was no doubt in my mind that Eddy could take care of himself. I only had to convince myself that I was okay that he could do it without me.

“Damn, Eddy, get on that,” Lee grinned widely.

Anya and I stared at the two incredulously as they exchanged a complicated handshake that had to be made up on the spot. As they continued their antics, we rolled our eyes towards each other before scoffing in unison, “Children.”

“At least you’re prepared for the future, doll,” Lee nuzzled up to my side.

“What?” I sputtered out as I felt the tips of my ears burn bright red.

“What?” she mimicked in an innocent tone that did not suit her at all.

With narrowed eyes, I slowly moved my glare away from her to turn it towards Eddy, who snorted into his water. Anya was no better as she smirked slyly as she dipped a plastic spoon into a small cup of yogurt.

“Tease,” I muttered as I playfully pushed Lee’s head away from me.

She released a small chuckle before wrapping her arms around my neck. She left a small kiss on my cheek before saying, “I can’t help the fact that you’re so easily flustered.”

“Stop it,” I grinned. I felt betrayed by my own emotions as the smile crossed my face. I was never overly fond of my smile so it irritated me to no end that I would smile whenever I was uncomfortable or upset. Unfortunately, Eddy and the entire Evans family seemed to live for making me uncomfortable. Lee’s nose wrinkled in amusement as she poked my cheek before she thankfully relented.

“So how are your tests going?” Anya changed the subject suddenly.

“Totally passed,” Lee and I answered immediately in unison.

“Ugh, of course,” Eddy groaned. “You AP kids have a way to make an artless rough-hewn joithead such as I feel so dimwitted.”

There was a brief pause before us AP kids slowly turned our heads to stare over at Eddy in disbelief. He did not seem to be bothered with our stupefied expressions as he lazily took a sip of his water and nodded his head in greeting to another student passing by. I held my hand out to greet the same classmate without looking away from Eddy. A sarcastic remark was on the tip of my tongue before I swallowed it down with a shake of my head.

“I take your tests aren’t going so well then?” I asked instead.

“They’re tests. I hate tests,” he groaned again. “And econ sucks. Whose idea was it to take that stupid class?”

“Yours. You thought it would be easier than Government or Euro,” I reminded him.

“Should’ve taken Euro.”

“No,” Lee interrupted, drawing out the word as her eyes widened. “I took it last year and if you think Mrs. Idlett is tough for World History, she’s torture for Euro.”

“It couldn’t have been that bad,” Anya shook her head.

“Toughest AP class I ever took. Ridiculous amount of homework, endless reading, and when AP exams came around, she would have us meet an hour before school and an hour after school to study. That was just for extra credit. If we wanted to study more, she would let us come to her house on weekends and it would just be some study party for, like, five hours.”

“That’s really fucking weird,” Eddy said deadpanned.

“She really drills the information in your head. I actually had to ask for more paper for the essay portion of the essay.”

“Ew,” I whispered, remembering that I rarely, if ever, even managed to use even half of the given paper.

“Exactly. Feel lucky to have taken econ,” she nodded to Eddy. “Besides, if you took Euro, you would’ve been another AP kid.”

“Perish the thought,” Anya grinned slyly over at her new boyfriend.

“I’m feeling a bit cornered by all three of you and I resent you all,” Eddy turned away from us.

“Not nice being on the receiving end of teasing, is it, Eddy?” I smiled.

“Oh, sugar, I’d be glad to be your receiving end any time,” he grinned back before giving me a seductive wink.

My smile grew wider as I returned his wink with a blown kiss, causing both the girls to groan in annoyance. Regardless that it had become well-known that Lee and I were together now, and that Eddy’s infatuation with Anya had been obvious for months, there were still the few lingering rumors about how far Eddy and I took our relationship. It still made no sense to me but as long as Lee didn’t have a problem with it, I rather enjoyed adding fuel to the fire. Clearly, I had been around Eddy for far too long.

The remaining days of the week were minimum days, so we thankfully were able to leave the campus just before noon. Friday marked the unofficial beginning of our winter break. Previously, Eddy and I were looking forward to the two week reprieve from school but with Free in a coma, vacation looked bleak. Our usual vacation routine involved Eddy and I taking Free out to parks and the movies or just hanging out together. Even with Eddy slowly perking back up, our houses were quiet with Free singing carelessly.

Eddy was especially quiet when Christmas came around. We all gathered around in Free’s hospital room on Christmas morning to exchange presents. My eyes kept drifting towards the unopened pile of gifts at the bedside table. Who knew when Free would be able to open them? I pushed the negative thoughts out of my head as I smiled over at Mr. Devereux as he opened the gift from my mother. A couple hours passed by with subdued laughter until we were all surprised with the entrance of Mr. Devereux’s older brother with his family.

My mom and I said our greetings as Eddy bounded over to his cousin with a large grin before hugging him. They spent several moments huddled in the corner with Derek murmuring reassuring comments to Eddy, who could only offer a strained smile in return. The presence of Eddy’s extended family turned the soft smiles into boisterous laughter. My mom and I eventually said our goodbyes so we could prepare for our own family to come visit.

As soon as the front door shut behind us, I sighed lightly. Mom turned around with a questioning expression on her face. I grimaced before hesitatingly saying, “I just hoped that she would wake up for Christmas. I guess that would be kind of a cliché though.”

Mom’s face softened. “I hoped she would wake up, too.”

Her voice was gentle. It did not echo throughout out the room but the lowered volume of her voice made the silence of the house stand out even more. I stayed in the entrance way as she turned around to walk upstairs towards her room. I leaned against the wall before playing the messages left on our voicemail.

“Hey, Jocelyn and Adrian! Merry Christmas! I hope y’all are having a gorgeous day. Jack and I are spending Christmas with Daddy at the ranch with my sister and her husband and let me tell you, Jack and Andrew are two boys who do not belong on horses, the poor dears. Bit sad, really. Well, I just wanted to wish you happy holidays! We should be back for New Year’s so expect us and make me some lasagna, Adrian Dawson. All my love to you both! And some for the Devereux’s and a little extra for the chick!”

I smiled as Cecilia’s offbeat holiday greetings. Only she could pull off a well-wishing and hide not only an insult but a demand in there as well. Though I had to admit, the thought of Dad on a horse brought on more than a few chuckles. I was still laughing when the next message played.

“Hello, fellow Dawsons. Just calling to give a friendly reminder that we should be arriving around two. George says he expects a feast, Adrian, but don’t you dare go crazy until I’m around to help. And don’t worry, dear, we’ll be bringing the desserts, so don’t stress yourself out. See you in a few hours!”

With a slight nod, I erased both messages before making my way towards the kitchen. My uncle’s wife always teased me at my lack of baking talent but she always came through for me in the end. Any of my attempts to make dessert would only end in disaster. Disregarding my aunt’s warning to wait for her, I pulled the thawed ham out of the refrigerator and began preparing it for dinner. Even she had to concede the fact that it would take hours prepare and I couldn’t wait around for her. Besides, she could help with potatoes or something.

My mom came down from her room some time later and helped me make various sauces and side dishes. We hadn’t gotten too far before the doorbell rang. My mom waved me off as I cleaned my hands off on a rag and made my way to the front. I opened the door with a smile, already prepared for what my aunt would say.

“Adrian Demetri Dawson, how dare you, you started without me!” Lily whacked me on top of my head.

Without even blinking, I wrapped my arms around her waist. “Merry Christmas, Lily.”

“Yeah, yeah, Merry Christmas, brat,” she kissed my cheek, most likely leaving a red lipstick stain on my face, before she made her way towards the kitchen.

“Hey, Adrian,” my uncle George smiled at me as he and my two cousins walked in carry multiple bags.

“Merry Christmas, George. Hey, Nick. Hey, Chris,” I nodded to the other boys.

They both gave me identical smiles before dropping off half the bags at the large Christmas tree in the living room before following me back into the kitchen.

“Twins, twins, twins all over the place!” my mother exclaimed gleefully as she ruffled George’s hair before moving on to give Nick and Chris a hug.

“Do you feel a bit left out on this, brat?” Lily nudged me as she rinsed some vegetables in the sink.

“Absolutely. Jocelyn failed as a mother by not giving me a twin,” I said seriously.

My mom glared over her shoulder at us both before saying in a sing-song voice, “Everyone knows left-handed people killed their twins in the womb.”

Lily and I held up our dominant hands before glancing at each other. In unison, we shrugged and said, “Whatever.”

“So simultaneously flippant,” Chris grinned widely.

“You could be each other’s twin,” Nick finished the thought.

Lily and I grimaced at the same time, causing the two pairs of twins in the kitchen to laugh loudly. George and the boys soon left to watch television in the living room as my mom, aunt, and I continued preparing dinner. However, after my mom cut herself on one of the knives, Lily kicked her out of the kitchen, leaving us the only two remaining. We made idle chatter for a few moments before she changed the subject to a more serious matter.

“So where’s the little bird who always follows you around? I would have thought her and Eddy would have been here.”

I paused for a moment as I peered out of the kitchen window. I rinsed off a few more potatoes before answering, “They’re at the hospital. They got into a car accident and she’s been in a coma for the past couple weeks.”

The steady chopping behind me slowed down to a halt. Lily placed a hand on my arm as she sympathetically told me, “I know they’re very important to you. You must be worried.”

I nodded as I continued my task. “It was hard at first. I think we all hoped she would wake up today. Christmas and all. But she didn’t. But she will. Soon. I hope. Eddy misses her.”

Lily went silent for a moment before turning around to go back to her pile of chopped vegetables. “And so do you.”

“Absolutely,” I answered immediately.

From there, the tone of the conversation brightened considerably. There would definitely be more food left over. The Devereux family always joined us for dinner on holidays, as they usually met their extended family during the mornings. This year, however, all of the Devereux family would be meeting at the hospital before departing for dinner presumably at a restaurant. Mom had already informed Mr. Devereux that everyone was more than welcome at our house for dinner but I suppose that he wanted to spend the entire day with Free. The Devereux's were the ones who usually took most of the leftover's so I would just pack them up and put them in their fridge for them. I think they would like that.

Nick quietly shuffled back into the kitchen, the sound of laughter following behind him. He sat at the island and watched me as I chopped potatoes on a cutting board.

"Are you making roasted potatoes this year?" he asked.

I smirked lightly up at him, not missing the hopeful gleam in his eye. "Yes, sir. Roasted potatoes for you, mashed potatoes for Chris, and baked potatoes for George."

"My carb loving freaky family," Lily sighed as she stirred macaroni noodles in a pot.

"We can't help it. Potatoes are just so diverse. Who wouldn't love them?" Nick smiled as his mom rolled her eyes, obviously hearing this before.

"So what grade are you in again, Nick?" I asked to make polite conversation.

"We just started tenth grade," he informed me.

"How are you liking it?"

"It's okay," he shrugged. "Chris likes it more than I do."

"What do you mean?" I glanced up at him.

"I don't mean I don't like it. I just mean that he's more sociable than I am. He's all about clubs and activities and I just want to go to class, get it over with, and get home."

"I feel you on that," I laughed. "I can't stand class. But you know, activities aren't that bad. As long as they aren't sports."

"Chris wants to join the swim team," he immediately told me.

"Slap him," I responded just as quickly, causing Lily to lean over and slap me on the head in retaliation.

"If my baby wants to be on the swim team, he'll be on the swim team," she snapped at me without anger.

"Got it, got it," I rolled my eyes before grinning at Nick, who was already smiling broadly. "Were you going to try out with him? You would be good at it."

"No," he trailed off uncertainly.

"But?" I asked.

"But I was thinking of joining the Calculus and Physics clubs next year. I would have this year but you need to be taking junior level honor classes for them. That's not too weird, is it?"

"Not at all," I shook my head. "I'm a member of the Calculus club."

"Really? How is it?" he asked, his eyes lighting up.

"To be honest, we don't really get the opportunity to do much. My school is highly focused on art programs. But your school is way different than mine. You should talk to the club advisor about it."

Nick nodded slowly. He hesitated before asking, "So you think I should join?"

"Totally," I nodded as I arranged all the chopped potatoes in a glass pan.

"Cool," he said softly. "It's just...don't tell Chris, but we always do things together and now we're not. It's kind of weird."

"My mom and your dad are twins and they're so different. It's not a big deal, Nick. You're still going to be twins."

"But you are a little weird," Lily spoke up behind me.

"Quiet, you," I warned before smiling assuredly at my younger cousin.

He gave me a small smile in return before asking if there was anything he could help with. With his assistance, the three of us managed to finish all of the plates just in time for dinner. After placing plates of food on the dining room table, we called the other three into the room to say grace and begin eating. Conversations occasionally overlapped throughout dinner before we all eventually ended up in one large group discussion about recent updates on all of our lives. It was after dessert and we all had gathered in the living room that the topic of Lee came up.

"Adrian, have you talked to Nara Lee today?" my mom asked me.

"Nara Lee?" my uncle immediately perked up at the sound of her name. "Who is this?"

"My girlfriend," I answered with a goofy smile.

As Lily exclaimed in happiness, I caught Chris cringing in the corner of my eye before he sullenly handed over a dollar bill to his younger brother. After calling them out on it, Chris had the sense to appear guilty while Nick continued to grin proudly.

"We bet how long it would take you to confess to her," he pouted as he ruffled his hair. "I said you wouldn't do it until after you were 18, Nick said you would before."

"What?" I exclaimed.

"Hope to the introverts, Adrian," Nick simply stated as he pocked the money.

"So when do we meet her?" George interrupted.

"I could ask her to come over, but I honestly have no idea if she's available right now," I said, already taking my phone out of my pocket to text her.

"She better be, I want to meet this girl," Lily said.

"She is such a doll and her and Adrian are just too cute together," my mom cooed, causing my ears to flush brightly.

We were in the middle of unwrapping each other's presents almost half an hour later when Lee finally texted me back. I paused from sorting through an open box in my lap to read the message. My mom gave me an expectant and curious look as I stood up.

"I'm going to go pick up Lee," I mumbled as I blushed. "I'll be back."

"Be quick!" Lily called after me after I grabbed a bag of awaiting presents and walked out the front door.

I shook my head and let out a huff before jogging off my porch. The walk to Lee's house was never too long but it was cold enough outside that I regretted walking out without a jacket. When I arrived at her house, I blinked in surprise at the additional cars parked in her driveway and in front of her house. Shrugging it off, I walked up the path to her porch before knocking on the door. I could hear the loud laughter coming from inside even before the door opened. Once again, I found myself blinking in surprise at the presence in front of me.

“Who the hell are you?” the girl with the faded blue and blonde hair asked me.

“Adrian Dawson. Who the hell are you?” I returned in an upbeat tone and small smile.

“Maddie Jones. Why are you here?” she continued.

“I’m here to be the escort of one Nara Lee Evans and to be the distributor of gifts,” I answered as I held up my small bag of presents.

“Well, who am I to deny the presence of a wannabe Santa Claus?” she smirked as she opened the door wider to allow me entrance.

“Who indeed?” I nodded before following the sound of echoing conversation.

Almost immediately, I smiled out of nervous reflex when I noticed the number of people occupying Lee’s living room. Straight from the pictures that decorated the wall that Lee showed me when I first visited were all of her relatives. At that moment, all of them turned to peer eerily similar pale eyes at me.

“Well, isn’t that jarring?” I asked out loud, my grin growing wider.

“Oi,” Lee spoke up from her seat by the fireplace. “Shut up.”

“Whatever the lady wants,” I conceded with a humble nod as she stood up to walk towards me.

“I’m not a lady,” she grimaced as she pinched my arm.

“Of course, my lady,” I smiled down at her.

“Stop,” she shook her head at me before grasping my hands. “God, you’re freezing.”

“No big deal,” I shrugged. “So…family?”

“Family? Oh!” she spun around. “Everyone, this is my boyfriend, Adrian. Say hi. Be nice. Don’t embarrass me. Thanks.”

I waved over her head as the serious faces all formed into similar polite expressions. They all offered their greetings before Lee’s mom popped in from another room.

“Oh, Adrian!” she smiled at me. “I was wondering when you would come around.”

“Merry Christmas, Mrs. Evans,” I grinned as she hugged me.

As soon as she pulled away, I offered her one of the small gifts from the bag I brought along with me. The small groan of exasperation she released after I formally addressed her yet again turned into a gasp of surprise. Her face melted into another brilliant yet gentle smile before leaned up to leave me a kiss on my cheek.

“Adrian, you didn’t have to,” Mrs. Evans said as I gave the remaining gifts to Mr. Evans and Lee’s sisters.

“According to Maddie, I’m the next Santa Claus so apparently I did,” I shrugged lightly before standing next to Lee.

“Whoa, cool it, I said a wannabe, not the next Santa Claus. You wish,” the blue haired girl remarked from her place by the tree.

“Madeline,” said a blond woman who had to be Mrs. Evans sister and Maddie’s mother scolded.

“Eh, whatever,” Maddie and I said in unison. She threw me a barely concealed smirk that I returned with an equally indiscernible wink.

“Well, not that this isn’t fun, but now that Adrian’s met my extended family, I’m off to meet his,” Lee straightened up to grab a jacket to pull over her thin blue sweater.

“Ooh, Lee, already meeting the family. When can we expect wedding bells?” a boy who had to be my cousin’s age teased.

“Oh, my God, speaking of which, Tessa, show them the picture,” Nicole jumped in, Tessa immediately brightening up as she rushed off to grab her phone.

“What picture?” almost all of teenager’s exclaimed at once.

“Bye!” Lee yelled before pulling me out of the room with her.

She didn’t relax until we had turned around the corner onto my street. She paused at the small broken opening of a brick wall before nudging me to follow her. She stooped down to pass through the opening, holding her hand out behind her so I would be immediately behind her. The opening served no purpose but to be an entrance to a small makeshift alley way between two houses. I passed through the broken wall multiple times but never bothered to make my way inside. However, I made a mental note to try to come to the spot more often with Lee when she suddenly pushed me against the wall and placed her lips upon mine. I immediately wrapped my arms around her waist to pull her closer so I could kiss her more deeply. So far in my life, nothing could compare to her gentle and chapped lips. It was hard to believe that I could finally be with her the way I’ve dreamed of since I was thirteen.

When she pulled away, she immediately sighed and buried her face into my neck. “Today was just so…”

“Long,” I finished for her.

“You, too?”

“Yeah.”

“I went to three different houses today and then they all ended up following us back to ours anyway. Like, wow, why didn’t you just come over in first place, you know?”

I chuckled lightly into her hair before nodding, “Yeah, that would make sense.”

“What about you?”

“Went to the hospital to see Free. Both Eddy’s uncles and their families came over. We left. I cooked. My uncle and his family came over. Saw you. Here we are.”

“Is your uncle’s family as huge as mine?”

“God, no, that would be a nightmare.”

“Shut up,” she laughed as she punched me lightly in the stomach.

“Like, seriously, how many cousins do you have?”

“Five on my mom’s side, three on my dad’s. And that’s just first cousins.”

“Yeah, couldn’t deal,” I shook my head. “I live a life with a mere two cousins.”

“What are their names? I want to be prepared,” she inquired as we stepped back through the brick wall to make our way towards my house.

“Chris and Nick. Twins. Fifteen. Their mom is Lily and their dad is my uncle George, who is, incidentally, my mom’s twin.”

“Are they as embarrassing as my family?” she grinned as she swung our intertwined hands back and forth.

I nodded. “I can guarantee you that they are assembling a collection of naked baby pictures right now.”

“Then what are we waiting for?” she perked up considerably.

“Brat,” I shook my head at her.

“Hey, wait a minute,” she paused only a few houses down from my own so she could peer up at me with narrowed eyes. “Where’s my present?”

I raised an eyebrow at her before holding out an awaiting hand. “Where’s mine?”

Almost immediately, she dropped a small wrapped box into my hand, causing me to freeze in surprise, before holding out her own hand patiently. With a small nervous smile, I dug into my pocket and pulled out the small box I somehow managed to wrap myself earlier in the morning and placed it into her palm. Lee’s eyes widened in surprise, just as I was sure my own had. I glanced down at her just as she glanced up at me, both of us silently agreeing to open our gifts at the same time. After peeling back the paper and taking off the lid, I broadly grinned as I took the content out of the box.

“Looks like we had the same idea,” I smiled as I held up my gifted bracelet as she held up hers.

“Ugh, we are too cute, it makes me sick,” she grinned as she tied her leather and beaded green bracelet around her wrist.

“Definitely puke-worthy,” I agreed as I tied my new leather and blue twine around my wrist, right under Eddy’s friendship bracelet.

Lee took the step forward to wrap one arm around my neck to pull me down to her height. “Merry Christmas, boyfriend,” she whispered before leaving me a gentle kiss.

“Merry Christmas, girlfriend,” I smiled against her lips before kissing her again.

Yeah. I changed my mind. The only thing that could compare to the feeling of her lips against mine was hearing her voice calling me hers. That definitely won.