Telescope Eyes

“Now how does that tie into theme two?” Mr. Carter asked, using his finger to find someone to call on. She groaned as it pointed at her. “Ah, yes, Micah how about you answer that for me.”

Micah picked her head up and felt her cheeks flush as her classmates snickered, for she was obviously not aware of the question. “Could you repeat that? Sorry,” she mumbled, picking up her pencil and skimming over her notes quickly.

“What caused the political changes in the Mesopotamian area?” He repeated, his voice practically mocking her.

“I—uh—

Micah sighed as she heard a loud ‘ring’ from the loudspeakers and her classmates shuffled around her, picking up her bags. “Saved by the bell,” Mr. Carter spoke. “Miss Crosby, please come talk to me.”

Micah sighed and packed her bag, wiping her eye of any excess make up that had come off during her small nap in class. She packed her bag slowly, dragging her feet as she walked up to the front of the room. “Yes, Mr. Carter?”

“Micah, I don’t know what’s wrong today, but my aid graded your quiz; you got a three out of twelve dear. I’m going to have to call your mother, it’s procedure,” Mr. Carter sighed. “I know you try hard, but sometimes in AP classes trying just isn’t enough. Are you sure this is what you want to take this year?”

Micah took a deep breath before rubbing her eyes, “I’m sorry Mr. Carter, I’m really trying believe me—it, it’s just been a rough month at home. Is there any way I can do some extra credit or something?”

Mr. Carter scrunched his mouth together in thought, tapping his chin. “I’ll tell you what, I’ll hold up on the phone call. Come back in tomorrow after class and make up the quiz, get some sleep tonight and we’ll see how it goes okay?”

“Thank you so much,” Micah said, taking a breath of relief. That phone call home was the last thing she needed right now—her mom was already in Hell this month.

Micah walked towards the door, biting her lip to hold back tears. Not only was this already an extremely stressful week, but on top of that she was now failing a class.

“Crosby, you okay?”

Micah kept her eyes forward and kept walking through the hallway deserted by kids going to lunch. Her footsteps echoed in the quiet halls, only stopping when a hand latched around her arm and pulled her to a stop.

“Baby girl, what’s wrong?” John cooed, wiping a tear off of her eye. “You didn’t meet me by Severson’s, are you okay?”

Micah shook her head fervently, letting her tears fall hard now that she had someone to bring her guard down. She let her sobs soak into John’s shirt as she cried, him whispering sweet words in her ear. After a few seconds she calmed down, taking a deep breath and chuckling as John wet his thumb with his tongue and wiped mascara off her cheek.

“You want to tell me what’s going on?” He asked, a worried look on his lips.

“I’m so stressed, John. I’m failing a class, I have three tests on Friday and I don’t feel ready for any of them—and my mom is…she’s just losing it right now. Saturday marks a year,” she whispered at the end feeling her heart strings pull. “He’s been gone for a year now.”

John’s lips pulled into a pout as he pressed his lips to her forehead, “For starters, you’re going to ace those tests and you know it. You’ve been studying for some time now and we’ve been reviewing in class. AP will work itself out, Crosby, you’re working your ass off and I promise it will pay off.

“And you know I’m here for you if you need to talk, scream, cry—anything,” John said, grabbing her shoulders and staring into her eyes. “I’m here, Eric’s here, Addie is here, Garrett is here, Jared is here, Rissa is here,” he continued, listing off their friends. “Everyone loves you, Crosby and you’re not alone, okay?”

Micah smiled, chuckling softly as she wiped one stray tear away. “You’re a good friend, O’Callaghan.”

“Yeah, well,” John smirked, wrapping his arm around her shoulder and guiding them towards the lunch room. “I like your outfit by the way. That cardigan really accentuates your figure, Miss Crosby.”

Micah giggled, bumping his shoulder lightly as they walked into the crowded cafeteria, “You should be a fashion journalist, John.”

“Oh my God, I know right?” He replied, his eyes rolling to the ceiling like a preppy girl.

She chuckled as she took a seat at the lunch table where her boyfriend seemed to be in an important conversation by the scowl on his lips.

“That’s ridiculous!” Eric exclaimed, slamming his hands on the table as he stared at Garrett Nickelsen. “Steven and Jackie were so much better than her and Kelso! He was an idiot!”

“Lies!” Garrett yelled back, completely frustrated. “Kelso is so much hotter.”

Eric looked at Micah with a look of disgust on his lips, “Can you believe this guy?”

She shook her head back and forth with a small pout on her mouth, “It’s so sad that people aren’t as smart as us, huh?”

“It is,” Halvo said, shaking his head.

“It’s not all about looks, Garrett,” Addison added, laughing at the boys’ argument.

“Exactly!” Eric agreed, nodding his head. “Like, if it was, there would be no way Micah and I would be together! She is so much hotter than me. She’s like a twenty and I’m a thirteen, maybe.”

“I’ll go fourteen,” Micah seriously, hiding the smile on her lips.

“Awe, thanks babe,” Eric chuckled, turning back to argue with Garrett.

“I’d give Eric like, a nineteen and a half,” John smiled with a wink. “And I can say that because I’ve seen more of him than you have,” he sang, laughing at Micah.

“I don’t know why you’re proud of being a whore,” she sang back, causing her friends to laugh with her.

“John!” Eric scolded, “You said we were never going to tell them. Come on bro you know I don’t kiss and tell!”

“I call bull shit!” Garrett laughed; his eyes were wide in surprise at his friend’s words. “The night you and Micah had your first kiss you called me sounding as giddy as a ten year old at a High School Musical concert.”

Micah giggled as Eric’s cheeks blushed and he mumbled a quiet ‘did not’. She squeezed his thigh softly under the table, giving him a small grin that he smirked at, winking. Her friends may have not been normal, Hell, they weren’t close to it at all, but Micah knew she could always count on them to make her feel better even when she was at her lowest point.

“So, guess what?” Eric smiled, biting his bottom lip.

“What?” Micah asked, resting her head on her boyfriend’s shoulder, looking into his pretty eyes.

“My parents are going out of town for the weekend—meaning I have a house to watch all by myself. And you know how scared I am of being home alone, so I was thinking that maybe you’d want to spend the weekend with me? Just us?” He smirked, lifting his eyebrows.

“Hmm,” she giggled, pretending to contemplate his offer. “Mm, yeah I could do that,” she replied nodding her head with an innocent smile.

Eric kissed her lips softly and quickly, and she could taste the orange juice he had been drinking on them subtly, “I’m in like with you, Micah.”

She giggled, “I’m in like with you too, honey.”

*

“Mom,” Micah whined pulling on the bottom of her shorts like a little girl would. “Please let me go over. I’ll stay the night at John’s, just please.”

“Micah Marie, do you think I’m stupid? I know you’re going to say that you’ll be at John’s for the night when you’re really staying the night with Eric. I was a teenager once too darling,” her mother replied in that parental voice that Micah hated so much.

“Mom, please, I promise I’ll stay at John’s—just please trust me,” she pleaded, her bottom lip pulling into a pout.

Her mother sighed and took off her reading glasses, placing them on the top of her romance novel she had been reading all afternoon. “Take your brother to his baseball practice and I’ll think about it. But you better believe that Priscilla will know to check for you if I agree to this.”

Micah squealed, nodding her head and running up the stairs to make sure her brother was ready. She grabbed her phone and dialed a familiar number as Daniel packed up the remainder of his practice bag.

“Hello?”

“John, my lovely best friend, are you going to your brother’s practice today?” Micah asked, a sweet tone in her voice.

“I wasn’t planning on it, but by the sound of your voice I’m going to guess that you’re going to try to persuade me to,” John chuckled.

“I’ll let you go bra shopping with me next weekend,” she laughed.

“I’ll pick you and Danny up in five,” he responded quickly, hanging up.

Micah laughed before going to the bathroom and fixing her hair quickly, rustling her hand through her loose waves. She slipped a pair of all black Vans on her feet before running downstairs with her brother and hopping into John’s white pickup truck. They drove the short trip to the baseball fields, taking a seat on the metal bleachers as their siblings headed to their little league practice.

“So, I hear Eric’s parents are going out of town for the weekend,” John commented, lowering his sunglasses and giving her a devious look.

“You heard correctly,” Micah giggled, bumping the boy’s shoulder. “If my mom let’s me go I plan on using that to my advantage.”

“Need me to cover for you?”

“Have I told you lately that you’re the best friend I’ve ever had, Mr. John Cornelius O’Callaghan?” She smiled, wrapping her arms around the boy.

“Don’t use my middle name,” he cringed, laughing softly. “And you know, it wouldn’t hurt to hear it more.” The two laughed, watching as their brothers lined up to hit balls, aiming for the outfield. “Is Eric getting lucky tonight?”

Micah felt her cheeks blush as she shrugged her shoulders looking down at her black shoes, “I don’t know honestly. I’m kind of nervous to…you know.”

John laughed, “How far have you two been?”

“Eric hasn’t told you?” She asked, lifting an eyebrow.

He shook his head, “Nope. We tell each other a lot of stuff, but we keep your and Addison’s sexuality quiet. I don’t want him knowing everything about her just like he doesn’t want me knowing those things about you; it makes it more special I guess.”

Micah smiled, her heart beating quicker. Eric was so sweet to her; he and John really were great guys. “We’ve been far, not sex, but far,” she said simply, shrugging her shoulders.

“Well, I mean, do you feel ready to do that with him?” John asked seriously. He was staring off into space and his voice was shaking, he seemed nervous to hear her answer.

Micah thought about his question for a while. Sex was always a big deal to her—that’s how it had been taught to her. She had learned that it was a gift for a married man and woman, but given that she wasn’t sure she believed in marriage she simply thought it was for people who were in love. And although she may have not said it out loud yet she was definitely in love with Eric.

She loved the way he would call her at night when she’d had a bad day. She loved the way he would leave her little gifts outside her window at random with notes telling her he was thinking about her. She loved the way that when a guy would look at her too long, or try to flirt with her at a party Eric would subtly wrap his arm around her shoulders or give her a small kiss on the forehead.

She loved the way her just truly cared about her—and she truly cared about him as well. He was one of the two boys she trusted with every secret she had. He was always there when she needed him—with a hug or a kiss, whichever she needed at the moment. He always knew when they were going too far physically, or where she wanted to be touched and when. He always knew what to say to make her heart beat quicker than when she was running the mile in gym class.

Micah would trust Eric with her life.

She smiled shyly at John before nodding her head, not noticing the sadness in his eyes. She sighed through a grin, “Yeah, I think I am.”

*

Micah smiled at the boy standing in front of her, biting her lip nervously. “Hi,” she said shyly.

Eric took her hands into his, “Hi,” he replied, leading them into his empty house. She followed him into his kitchen, noting that his butt looked really nice in his tight jeans.

She gasped as she looked at the living room table that had two plates of spaghetti along with a bowl of salad and two glasses of wine. “This is so sweet, Eric,” she said, looking at him lovingly.

“Oh this isn’t for us,” he said casually, laughing as she punched him in the arm. “Ah, just kidding. Sit down, beautiful.”

Micah took a seat across from her boyfriend, smiling nervously as him before looking down at her plate. “This is very romantic,” she commented, giving him another grin.

“I watched a whole marathon of Felicity today,” he laughed. “My feminine side really got to me.”

“Felicity huh?” Micah laughed.

“My mom was recording it,” Eric groaned. “And since no one else was here, and someone, being you, was out with John…I had two options, Felicity or homework, and I think it’s obvious how I feel about homework.”

She chuckled and shook her head at the boy, biting into the delicious meal he had made with a smile permanently on her lips. They ate dinner and talked about life—school, friends, and even her dad.

If she could do one thing for the rest of her life it would be talk to Eric. He always had something interesting or funny to say and he just looked at life in a different way than most people. Even if their relationship didn’t last forever Micah would need him as a friend; she honestly couldn’t imagine going a day without hearing one of his ridiculous (and usually not funny) jokes.

He truly was one of her best friends.

After dinner Eric pulled Micah over to the couch, grabbing her body and holding her tightly to his own. They laid in the silence of his home, just listening to the sound of each other’s heart beats. Most kids when their parents were out of town would be throwing a party, or having sex every second, but they just needed the simplicity—the freedom to just be.

“So today in English we had to write a journal, and I was just wondering what your answer to it would be,” Eric started. “What was the one moment that has truly defined your life?”

Micah bit her lip as she thought about it, and when she reached her conclusion she rolled to where she was laying completely on his chest, her hands folded under her chin so that she could look properly into his eyes.

“The moment I realized that my dad really wasn’t coming back,” she said simply.

Eric looked into her eyes seriously, gauging her emotions, “Why?”

Micah took a deep breath, smiling softly when Eric tucked her blonde hair behind her ear. “I guess in that moment I believed that—that uh, well I always believed that God would protect me from everything. In a way I guess I always thought that as long as I believed, he would keep me safe as a reward. And when my dad died I realized that it was a lie.

“God wasn’t someone that protected me—God was just there to give me hope. I believed for a while that He didn’t exist at all, and even some days that he punished us—that he wasn’t loving. But one day I was walking back from school in Vegas and this, this guy was following me. When I was little my dad used to tell me that if I was scared to look to the sky and I’d see a light, that angels would be there protecting me. It used to work because I would picture it all in my mind and it’d be fine.

“So when that man got closer to me, I looked up at the sky and closed my eyes—praying for the first time in months and when I opened my eyes the guy was gone. I don’t know what happened to him, but he was gone. I guess that day I realized that no matter how angry I was at God—I still believed he would protect me; that no matter how lost I get in life, someone will still love me.

“It’s kind of stupid,” Micah finished, closing her eyes and hiding her face in his chest.

Eric’s hands tightened around her back and he shuffled to where they were lying on their sides facing one another, “That’s not stupid at all, Micah,” he whispered with a smile on his lips. “That really is an amazing story.”

“Thanks,” Micah smiled, placing a soft kiss to his clothed chest. “What about you? What moment defined your life?”

“When I learned how to play the guitar I learned how to love,” he responded quickly. “I learned how to dream—and now I’m working on achieving that dream.”

“You’re so cool, babe,” Micah responded honestly. She really did think it was cool that he could play an instrument—she felt like she wasn’t talented at anything.

“Hardly,” Eric chuckled. “I’ll teach you if you want.”

She sat up to where she was straddling his waist and she put her hands on his chest, “Really? When?”

“Of course I will,” he laughed, “And whenever you want, baby girl.”

“Right now,” she said seriously, hopping off of his body and leading him upstairs to his bedroom.

Eric was laughing as he followed her into his room. Micah grabbed his acoustic and held it with a large smile as he took a seat on the edge of her bed. He gestured for her to come to him and so she took a seat in his lap, resting the guitar on her thighs. He wrapped his hands around either side of her waist and grabbed her hands, placing the left one on the neck of the guitar and the other over the strings of the sound hole.

Eric used his hand to place her left hand’s fingers to hold down certain strings in an awkward position, before taking her other hand and moving it down to strum. He smiled and his breath fell on her ear, “That’s called a power chord. Musicians use them a lot, typically with an electric. It only plays the root of the actual chord.”

Micah smiled, laughing softly, “I don’t know what that means, but okay.”

Eric chuckled and pressed his lips to the back of her neck, “You’re cute.”

“I know,” she giggled, quietly sighing as his lips continued on her skin, sucking between kisses. She closed her eyes and relaxed into his body, smiling softly.

Eric took the guitar from her lap and placed it on the floor, spinning her around in his arms to face one another. Their lips meshed at once and their bodies collided against one another, falling back into Eric’s sheets. They kissed like they would never have another chance only pulling apart to tear off yet another piece of their clothing.

Micah didn’t even hesitate to unbuckle his jeans, leaving the boy in simply boxers and a shocked expression. She just kept kissing down his body, her hands roaming every area he had wanted her to touch for eight months.

Micah bit her lip nervously as Eric moved to where he was hovering over her half naked frame. Her shirt and bra were on the floor and had previously been replaced by her boyfriend’s mouth, but now as he stared down at her his eyes were focused on hers—and they were filled with a need.

She nodded her head and Eric wasted no time in moving his hands to her jean shorts and pushing them down her thin thighs. She moaned as his hands roamed her body, touching her in places she’d never let him—and then he slid down her underwear, touching the one place she never let him near.

It was weird how easily it was for her to suddenly let him have all of her, but today with John Micah realized that she really did feel ready for this—for Eric. He had been nothing but perfect and she knew in the long run that she would never regret doing this with him.

“Micah?”

“Yeah?” She sighed as his lips came back up to her mouth. She caught her breath, her moaning calming.

“I lied earlier when I said I was in like with you,” he whispered, cupping her face with his hand, sweat dripping on their frames. “I’m in love with you, Micah.”

She smiled, her chest rising as she continued to catch her breath, “I’m in love with you too, Eric.”

He grinned at her and kissed her passionately, his tongue meshing with hers, “We don’t have to do this, honey. If you’re not ready—

“Eric, I swear to God if you stop right now,” Micah moaned, closing her eyes.

The boy laughed softly before kissing her lips, “I love you.”

“I love you too.”