Thank You for Saving Me

[Stella’s P.O.V.]

By the end of our meal, everyone was laughing and having a good time with each other.

“Hey Rose. Does your sister ALWAYS tell corny jokes that she thinks are hilarious?” Zachary asked, teasing me.

“Ohmygosh, yes. She’s done that since she was little, beginning with the Popsicle sticks that have the jokes on them. She used to collect those dumb jokes.”

I gave Rose a shocked look, but I couldn’t stop laughing. “Nuh-uh. They aren’t dumb!”

Everyone laughed some more. Alex asked if she had any embarrassing stories about me.

I covered my face. “Ohmyword. No. Don’t tell them anything.”

Jack agreed with Alex. “Oh no. I need to hear just one.”

“I’ll tell one, but that’s all.” Rose accepted.

“But make it really embarrassing.” Alex was being a jackass. I wanted to flip him off so bad.

“Let me think…” I could see Rose digging in the files of her memories. “Ok…” Everyone seemed to lean in. “…when Stella was really little, she was afraid of the toilet and…” She started to burst out laughing as everyone else did, too. I covered my mouth because I couldn’t help laughing. Rose started talking again, through a few giggles. “…Wait, that’s not all. She wouldn’t use the toilet, so she would go to our living room, behind the couch and poop there.”

Everyone erupted in laughter, even me.

“Holy shit, that is hilarious!” Alex was laughing so hard, he was about to roll out of his chair. Jack, Rian and Kara’s faces were blood red and they were cracking me up with their laughter. Zachary, I had never heard laugh that hard. Ever. He was holding onto his stomach, trying to get in breaths between his incredible laughs.

“That is the cutest…thing I’ve ever heard.” Jack smiled at me, winking quickly.

“I’ve been thoroughly embarrassed today. Can we leave now?”

We got the waiter to bring our checks to the table. I reached down on the floor to snatch my purse. As I sat up, Jack mumbled my name. I looked up at him and he mouthed, ‘I got it.’ I blushed, holding my head down, only to look back at him through my eyelashes. I nodded a ‘thank you’ to him and made a mental note to thank him again later. I slid my bill over to him, then we waited until the waiter got back everyone’s change.

Leaving the restaurant, Rose and Kara started talking, so I strolled over to Jack.

“Do you like my sister?”

“Of course, I do. She’s tons of fun. And she didn’t bite my head off. Annd see? I told you I would be a good boy.” He smirked.

“Oh, whatever!” I shoved him lightly. “Playing footsie with me, bad. Winking at me, bad.”

He wiggled his eyebrows at me. “Well, I can’t that I’m super cute and I can’t help that you want me. Don’t hate me because I’m beautiful.”

I started laughing again. “You’re such a goof.”

“Me?’ He asked, raising his tone. He quickly reached down, tickling my sides. I squealed, trying to get away, but I didn’t try too hard. “You used to poop behind the couch,” he said, over my squeaky laughter.

“Shut up,” I laughed. He tickled me some more. Then he wrapped his arms around my waist, hugging me.

“See? Here they go now.”

I looked over and Zachary, Rian, Kara and Alex were standing around Rose.

Jack slowly pulled his arms down and I moved away from being directly in front of him. Still close to his side, I wrapped my pinkie around his.

“Yall are ridiculous to think I didn’t know yall weren’t flirting the whole time.” Rose came to stand in front of us. “But oh, Jack. If you hurt her, you better watch out for the wrath of me.” I held my head down, knowing that speech was gonna come one way or another. “But I know you make Stella really, really happy, so thank you for that.”

Jack smiled and nodded his head at her.

“Alright, little kiddies, I’m out. It was nice to finally meet all of you. And I’ll definitely see yall again.”

I looked at her. “I’m gonna hang with Jack for a while before coming home.”

“Ok, but I’m watching both of you.”

I rolled my eyes at her, before hugging her goodbye.

“Hey Rose, can I get a hug, too?” Alex walked toward her with his arms open.

“Boy, please,” Rose rolled her eyes, waving him off. “Anyway, bye yall.”