Baby, Just Breathe.

The pizza guy came around 7pm. Sophia wanted to eat in front of the TV, and John didn’t argue, but I did. After five minutes of arguing, I gave up: they stayed in the living room, on the couch, and I ate in the kitchen, all alone. I did everything in silence, hearing the laughs of the siblings who were watching The Family Guy. As soon as they finished, John came into the kitchen and started to provoke me in a funny way.

“Was your lonely pizza good?”

I just looked at him pretending to laugh at that poor sarcasm.

“C’mon, grumpy. Tell everything to Uncle O’Callaghan”

“Do you like to make fun of me, isn’t it?”

“Actually I think you are a nice girl so I’m just trying to have a conversation. I barely talk to girls who aren’t really my fans, they make me nervous. Well actually also talking to my fans sometimes makes me nervous. But anyway, I think you’re cool. Besides I trust my sister, she has good tastes in people”

“Should I take that as a compliment?”

“Whatever you prefer, Pearl”

I smiled weakly and avoided eye contact. I wasn’t good at that. I wasn’t good at flirting either. When a guy liked me and I liked him back, we always got to the point. I hate going round in circles for nothing when you know what you want from the other one. But John kept staring at me and I really didn’t have the balls to stare into his big green eyes; if it was someone else, maybe I would have.
John was clearly the kind of guy who could have had everything and everyone. That scared me. If he snapped his fingers just once, I would have probably been at his feet, as most of the girls who were his fans.
He said I was a nice girl and I didn’t get him nervous: those things started to float around my mind; he was indirectly playing with my mind. Just like his sister. They were seriously alike, probably too much.
Sophia took John as her role model or something, and I didn’t know if that was a good or bad thing.

“When are you going to leave for college?”

“September 8th. Did you go to college?”

“Yes, but just for a semester, at ASU. I wasn’t even that good. Then I had the chance to become what I wanted to, so I dropped off”

“You did the right thing; I don’t know what I’m going to be in five years”

“I hope you find your way”

“Thanks John”

That guy made my legs going weak. Everything he said was mature. Sometimes he looked like a total jerk but then underneath that first impression, he really was someone to count on.

“So basically I have to see your face for two more months or so, am I right?”

“You do the math”

“Never been good at that”

“Anyway yes, it’s like less than two months. After that you won’t ever see my face again”

“Well don’t put that like I said I don’t want to. Sophia likes to have you around” he stopped for a second but then he kept on talking “and well I like you being around as well”

“How come you’re so into compliments? We barely talked before tonight and now you’re full of good words for me…I’m not use to it”

“Why are you so surprised?”

“Usually, people who compliment me too much want something in return”

“Always try to learn to love the ones who don’t show love in return”

“Isn’t it a line from one of your songs?”

“Indeed. It’s from Color, actually”

“You’re weird O’Callaghan”

“I know. Is that a problem for you?”

“Not really”

He smiled and just left the kitchen without saying anything else.
That guy was totally messing with my head.