Just Keep Your Head Above

I woke up, yawning and still groggy, pulling an oversized cardigan over the white cami I had been wearing with short plaid boxers. I was still tired despite the fact I had slept for a good eleven hours or so. I wiped some sleep from my eyes as I walked down the carpeted stairs absent-mindedly. The plush white carpet warming my feet up nicely. I always woke up cold in this house, on account my parents kept the upstairs freezing.

"Well look who's finally up," My mother chirped, already dressed in khaki shorts and a grey t-shirt, she looked like a typical PTA mother. I groaned as a response, darting for the refrigerator and pulling out a gallon of orange juice. "Lovely," she commented sarcastically. After putting everything back, I sipped from my cup seeing her busily arranging sandwiches on her plate.

"Why are you making sandwiches?" I asked my voice still hoarse from just waking up. I took a sip as the tangy drink awoke my senses slightly. I stretched my legs out as I leaned against the granite counter tops in our kitchen.

"Because sleepy head, it's noon," My mom said, only looking up when she had determined the placing was perfect. I rolled my eyes taking another sip of juice. It was the weekend and I could sleep till noon if I damn well wanted to. "Now, Corazon make yourself useful and bring these to your brother and his little friends," She said passing the plate to me and swiping away my orange juice. I didn't even have time to object as she pushed me lightly towards the game room.

"He's almost eighteen, I don't think he counts as little anymore," I seethed sarcastically under my breath as I marched down the hallway. I wasn't in the mood seeing as I had been uprooted, starting high school and forced to cater sandwiches all in one morning. My parents didn't understand why I was upset, I was making friends and I seemed well-adjusted, but I'm a teenager- I don't have to make sense.

"Doesn't matter, just do it," My mother sang just to let me know she heard me. I was more impressed about her hearing me than her sandwich making skills. I took a whiff and it was peanut butter and fluff. I smirked taking one half sandwich from the top and sticking it my mouth as I walked in.

"Hey doucheface, Mom made food," I announced, before looking into the room. When I did, I saw four boys staring at me with game controls in their hands.

"Tell her I said thanks and you're a bitch," Charlie grinned, with his over-sized Phoenix Suns hat, placed sideways on his head. I scrunched my nose making fun of him in my head for even looking like a douche. He hungrily grabbed the plate from my hands and passing them around. I turned to leave taking a bite from my stolen sandwich and nearly bumped into a tall skinny boy.

"Whoa," He said placing his hands on my shoulders to keeps us from colliding. "You are quite the stone-cold fox," He grinned as if it was the best pick up line ever. Suddenly, my tank top seemed too low and my shorts too short. I rolled my eyes.

"Stone-cold fox? Really?" I retorted before sticking my sandwich in my mouth to free my hands, removing his from my shoulders and mimicking him by putting my hands on his shoulders to move him out of the way. I walked down the hall and over heard him talking to my brother.

"Dude your sister is fucking hot," He gushed, I felt flattered and disgusted at the same time. I flipped my long brown hair over my shoulder and kept walking as I heard Charlie's reaction.

"Dude, shut the fuck up!" He said with a mouth full. I smiled and finished up my sandwich returning to my cup of orange juice, left lonesome on the counter. I sat for a moment and just felt the silence of the house, minus the groans and shooting noises coming from the game room. I looked at the clock and realized I should probably make something of my day.

After taking a shower and getting dressed into a pair of short denim shorts and putting on a high school athletics shirt I made my way back down stairs to the living room where I decided to ignore the texts pouring in my phone, invites to go shopping or watch a movie. Frankly, I wasn't interested, the girls I had befriended were fake bitches, but they were the ones who extended a hand to me so I took it. I groaned finally settling on The Princess Diaries that was on all day. I was texting my friend Rose from California, her beckoning me to come home.

Come pick me up and save me! I responded, texting quickly before I felt a disturbance in the couch and I turned to see the skinny boy I had almost bumped into earlier grinning at me. I raised an eyebrow waiting for something to come out of his mouth.

"I'm John," He said, bringing an arm up on the couch to make his chest wider. I stared at my phone praying Rose would text me back and give me an excuse to do something besides pretend to watch TV.

"That's nice," I dismissed him, keeping my eyes on the TV, pretending to be captivated by a car dealership commercial that promised newer, better cars for lower prices with an obnoxious jackass dressed up as a cowboy.

"So are you a freshman, 'cause I love fish," He grinned, again like it was the best pick-up line ever. His eyes traveled down to my chest and I rolled my eyes wondering what the hell was happening that I couldn't even watch TV in my own house without being bothered.

"So go get sushi," I smiled curtly hopping up and turning off the TV, making my way to the kitchen. By some odd coincidence, my stomach growled as my phone vibrated at the same time, making an embarrassingly loud noise.

"You're funny, I like a little fight in them," He said following me. I dug through the pantry, nothing sticking out to me until I saw a box of Cheez-its and I grabbed them. I turned realizing there was only one way out of this. I turned around giving him the most gracious smile I could ever fake in my life and grinned.

"Really? You know, you're kinda cute," I gushed, my voice getting slightly higher with fake excitement. He gave me a crooked smile, which admitted was cute, straightening up with confidence. "It's so weird because I really, really wanted someone I could just have some fun with, you know, fun," I raised my eyebrows suggestively, closing in on him selling seductive like hot cakes. "And I love being adventurous, sexy even," I tried not to laugh as his eyes bulged.

"Really?" He asked, one hand going down to my hip, his fingers lightly pressed against skin revealed by my shirt being a little too short. He licked his lips hungrily.

"Nope, and even if I was it wouldn't be with you," I said, returning my voice to a everyday tone and popped a couple of cheez-its in my mouth. I gave him a curt smile and turned to walk back to the living room. I heard him let out a genuine laugh.

"Touche," He shrugged before he had an honest grin on his face. That was the first thing that caught me off guard. Just then my brother and his other friends came in asking him where he had been.

I shot up, something waking me up for no reason. My room was still dark, everything seemed to be a shade a blue and the air was still. I checked the clock, the big red numbers hurting my eyes at first before I read 3:04 shining brightly. I groaned falling back onto my pillows before I got lost in my thoughts. That dream was too real, it felt like a memory. I stared at the ceiling before it dawned on me, the tall boy was John and it was from freshman year, before Rose got her boyfriend and was too busy for me. I shot back up, I yanked the covers off of me and blindly made my way through my room, stepping on clothes I'd left on the floor.

I stared into the darkness until my eyes adjusted, forming lines of the hallway and a door at the end of it. I made my way to Charlie's door and thought about knocking before realizing I didn't want to wake everyone else up. I prayed he wasn't sleeping naked before I walked in and pushed his mattress down like he had done to me earlier.

"Charlie! Charlie!" I whispered as loud as I could, making almost a hissing noise before he groaned and flipped over. I kept pressing before he shot up, clearly pissed off.

"What Cory?! What the fuck could you want at," He paused to look at his night stand and looked back at me with tired eyes, "three o'clock in the fucking morning?" I paused debating telling him incase it really was just a dream.

"When was the first time I met John?" I asked, I was wide awake now. I stared him with a hopefulness he would get where I was going.

"Shit, I don't know your freshman year whenever we moved here, why Cory? This couldn't wait until morning?" Charlie asked rubbing his eyes and laying back on his back not realizing the severity of the situation.

"How did we meet?" I asked, pressing him, he groaned as he sat up again and looked me in the eyes. They were hard and angry until he saw the desperation in my eyes then they softened.

"I had friends over, you brought sandwiches in and you almost ran into John, he tried hitting on you. He called you like, 'one hot babe' or like, shit some old school shitty pick up line," Charlie struggled to remember with an entertained smile on his face.

"A stone-cold fox?" I asked, raising my voice with hope.

"Yeah! That was it, wait how did you know that? Cory, what the fuck is going on?" He asked suddenly finding it odd that I woke him up in the middle of the night to ask him about an interaction I had with one of his friends.

"I remember," I smiled, a grin growing across my face.