Smile for Me

“You want anything to drink before I head up to take a quick shower?”
Synyster Gates in the shower upstairs? Oh, God…
I cleared my throat and forced myself to stop thinking as I answered. “No, I think I’m okay.”
“Okay. If you do decide you want something, the kitchen’s through there, help yourself to whatever you want. So just chill out, make yourself at home and I’ll be down in a jiffy.” He promised before running up the stairs.
I laughed at him and flopped down onto the couch before pulling out my phone and dialing Emma’s cell number.
“Hey, bitch.” She greeted cheerfully.
“Hey, what are you doing?”
“Just getting ready. I have no idea what to wear.” She sighed heavily. “What are you wearing?”
“Jeans and a tee – what I wore to school.”
She gasped. “You’re wearing the same thing you wore to school?” She sounded mortified.
“Yeah, why not? Syn said I looked fine.”
“Well, you did look pretty cute – wait, when have you seen Syn?”
“He picked me up from school, surprised me with a birthday present.” I felt my cheeks redden at the memory and shook my head at myself.
“Oh, what did he get you?”
“A teddy bear.”
“Aw.” She practically giggled. “You love teddy bears, that’s perfect. So where are you now?”
“At his house, waiting for him to get ready.” I said with a sigh, grabbing the remote and turning the TV onto FUSE.
“Where is he?”
“In the shower.”
She squealed. “Synyster Gates is in the shower upstairs? You should have gone in there with him, what is wrong with you?”
I laughed at her. “Are you crazy? I’m not a slut, Emma.”
“That’s right, you’re not. That is actually something Jen would do.”
“Emma – “
“I know, sorry. I won’t mention it again.” She changed the subject again and had a definite whine to her voice. “Katie, what should I wear?”
I rolled my eyes. “I don’t know. Does it really matter?”
“Um…is Zacky coming out with us tonight?”
“Yeah.”
“Then yes, it does fucking matter what I wear tonight.” She sighed. “God, why can’t you be here helping me with this? This is hard.”
I laughed. “I’m sure you’ll look fine. You always do.”
“Thanks babe, but I’m not really trying to impress you.” She sighed. “Okay, I’ll finish getting ready and meet you at the bar in a couple of hours, okay?”
“Sure thing. See you later.”
“Bye.”
I dropped my phone onto the couch beside me and stared blankly at the screen, not really caring what I was watching.
I sat down there for about another half-hour before Syn finally came downstairs and basically took my breath away. He was wearing loose, ripped jeans with a tight white tee that had I and LA, with a crossbones sign replacing the heart in between and red splotches all over the back and front. His hair had been semi-straightened, framing his handsome face perfectly and he wore a little bit of eyeliner around his dark eyes.
Oh my God…
“So I heard you talking to Emma.” He said, heading into the kitchen.
“Yeah? She’s meeting us at Willie’s in a couple hours.”
“Sounds good.” He said, coming back into the living room with two bottles of beer.
I quirked an eyebrow at him. “Starting the festivities early, are we?”
He nodded and handed me one after popping the top and sat on the other end of the couch.
I took it and took a sip, holding the cold bottle on my leg when he asked me a question.
“So who’s meeting us there tonight, besides Emma?”
“Um…just a few other girls that I’m good friends with – Jen, Haylie and Mandy. They might bring their boyfriends, I don’t know.”
He nodded and took another drink of beer.
“Hey, I don’t think I’ve ever asked you. Do you have a boyfriend?” He asked suddenly.
I shook my head. “Nope, not anymore.”
“Not anymore? What happened?”
I shrugged one shoulder. “He was an asshole.”
“Ah.” He nodded.
“You?”
“Do I have a boyfriend?” He smirked and shook his head. “No, thank God, that would be just awkward.”
I rolled my eyes at him. “No, do you have a girlfriend.”
“Oh, a girlfriend. No, I don’t have a girlfriend.”
I nodded and couldn’t help the small voice inside my head the screamed in happiness.
His cell rang then and he reached into his back pocket to dig it out, lifting his hip before settling back down with the cell against his ear.
“Hello?” He paused. “Oh hey, Zacky.”
I smiled at him and turned my eyes back to the TV, not wanting to eavesdrop on his conversation.
“Oh, I don’t know. I’ll ask her. Hey, Katie?”
I turned to look questioningly at him.
“Do you want to head over to Zacky’s now and get your friend to meet you there?”
“Um…sure.”
He winked and said into the phone, “Yeah, we’ll be there in a few. Bye.”
He flipped the phone closed and slid it back into his pocket before finishing off his beer. I finished mine, not wanting to seem rude, and stood up with him.
“Ready?” He asked.
“Ready.”
“How do I look?” He asked, posing for me and I laughed even as my heart skipped a beat.
“Perfect.” I said honestly and he winked.
“Then let’s go.”
He led me out the door and down the sidewalk before stopping by his car.
“Drive or walk?” He asked, looking at me.
“How far does Zacky live and are you planning on getting too drunk to drive me home?” I asked and he smiled.
“I don’t think I’ll get that drunk, and Zacky lives a few blocks away.” He thought about it for a minute, before he shrugged. “Might as well walk, just to be on the safe side. That okay with you?”
I nodded and fell into step with him as we casually made our way down the street.