In My Arms

“You ready?” Jason asked as I walked up to him.
“Yep.” I smiled.
“All right let’s get going.” He told his friends. We walked out to his truck and then drove to a small pizza place a couple miles from the school. When we got inside, I sat between Jason and Will.
“So did you have fun tonight?” Jason asked me as we ate our pizza.
“I did. Thank you for introducing me to Will. I couldn’t have done it without you two.” I said honestly.
“Yeah you could have.” He said and looked into my eyes. I got lost for a moment but then I heard someone shout.
“I want to make a toast! To Kasey, our newest friend, and Will , the only guy who can dance and not make it look gay!” Zack said and held up his class. Everyone clinked their glasses together and clapped, making me blush slightly. After everyone ate, Jason took me home and he shut off the engine.
“Thanks again, for everything.” I said.
“No problem. So I was thinking, do you maybe want to go out on a date tomorrow night?” He asked. Instantly a smile came upon my face.
“Yes, I mean I would have to make sure with my dad, but I would love to.” I smiled.
“Ok, great. Call me sometime tomorrow.” He said. I nodded my head and he got out to open the door for me. He was so sweet. We weren’t even on a date but he was already being a perfect gentleman.
“I’ll walk you to your door.” He said.
“So I’ll see you tomorrow?” I asked. He nodded his head.
“Oh wait! Give me your phone!” He said right before I opened the door. I pulled my phone out my pocket and handed it to him. I saw him touch the screen a few times and then he handed it back to me.
“Now you have my number.” He smiled.
“I’ll call you tomorrow.” I said.
“Night.” He said.
“Night.” I said and walked inside shutting the door behind me. As I entered the living room I saw my dad peeking out the window, not realizing I had just walked in. I decided to scare him, so I quietly walked up behind him.
“Were you eaves dropping?” I asked and he jumped.
“What? No!” He said.
“Sure.” I said not convinced.
“Look can you blame me? You don’t want me to meet the dude yet! And I have to make sure he’s a good guy so far.” He explained.
“Ok. Well for the record, from what I know, he’s a perfect gentleman.” I said and sat down.
“He did open the door for you and walk you to the door.” He smiled.
“Since we’re on the subject of Jason, he asked me out a date for tomorrow night. I told him I would have to make sure with you first so do you think I can go?” I asked hopeful.
“Sure. Curfew is ten o’clock though.” He said.
“Thank you! I love you!” I said and kissed his cheek.
“Yeah yeah! Just go get changed and meet us down here for some movies and ice cream.” He said and kissed me back. I nodded my head and ran upstairs to pull on a pair of pajamas. Before I went back down stairs, I grabbed one of my favorite movies, Just Married.
The next morning I got up early and went for a swim since it was warm outside. As I came back up for air I noticed Brian sitting on the edge of the pool.
“You’re up early.” He said.
“And so are you.” I countered.
“True. So I hear you have a date tonight?” He said.
“That is also true.” I said.
“Are you sure you’re ready for dating?” He asked.
“What?” I asked confused.
“Well it’s just that you’ve been through a lot, not just in the past couple months but in your life. Are you sure you can handle a boyfriend with all the other stuff going on in your life?” He asked.
“Who said he was my boyfriend? I’m just going out on a date. That’s all.” I clarified. I honestly had no interest in having a boyfriend at this point in my life. I just want to have fun while I’m a teenager.
“But still, do you think you can handle it?” He asked.
“Of course I can handle it! It’s one date! Do you think I’m that fragile, that I can’t handle both my personal life and my social life?” I said frustrated.
“No! That’s not what I meant!” He said.
“Really? Then what did you mean? Cause it sure sounds like you think I’m weak and unstable.” I argued.
“I never said that.” He said firmly.
“You didn’t have to.” I sighed and got out of the pool. I wrapped a towel around my body and marched into the house. As I was passing the kitchen, my dad saw me.
“Kasey! What’s wrong?” He called.
“I’m fine.” I said and kept walking up to my room. I went into the bathroom to dry myself off all the way and then pulled out my phone. As I pulled my hair up into a messy pony tail, I dialed Jason’s number.
“Hey Kase! What’s up?” He answered.
“Oh not much. I just wanted to let you know that if the offer was still available, I’d love to go on a date with you tonight.” I said.
“Of course! I’ll pick you up around seven.” He said.
“Great. I’ll see you then. Oh and by the way, when you come just honk.” I said and hung up. Suddenly I grew bored and decided to start searching for an outfit to wear. As I went through my closet, I couldn’t find anything suitable for a date. All I had was a bunch of tank tops and shorts. After I got dressed, I went over to the stairs and called out to my dad.
“Hey dad!” I shouted.
“Yeah sweetheart?” He asked.
“Do you think I can go buy an outfit for tonight?” I asked sweetly.
“Sure. I’ll have to just drop you off though, I have to go to a meeting, or Brian can go with you.” He said.
“I’d rather just go by myself! Thanks!” I said. I grabbed my purse, phone, and IPod from my room and then met my dad in the car.
“Where do you want to go?” He asked as we pulled out of the driveway.
“The mall is fine.” I said.
“So what happened between you and Brian?” He asked hesitantly.
“Nothing, he was just being a jerk. But I handled it.” I said looking out the window.
“So you’re not mad at him anymore?” He asked.
“I never said that.” I said.
“So then how did you handle it?” He laughed.
“I left before I decided to punch him in the face.” I said seriously. Ok so maybe I didn’t handle it. But I think I got my point across, whatever it was.
“What did he do anyway?” he asked.
“He told me that I wasn’t ready to be dating because my life is so screwed up, can you believe that?” I scoffed.
“Sweetie he’s just worried about you.” He said.
“That still doesn’t give him the right to judge my personal life and my social life. I get that he’s worried but it’s still my decision.” I said.
“Maybe you should tell him that.” He said and I shrugged my shoulders. We pulled up to the mall and he handed me his credit card.
“Here you go! Just don’t overdraw my account, okay?” He smiled.
“I would never.” I laughed. After I gave a quick kiss on the cheek, I got out and he drove away. The first store I went to was a store called Fashion Nova. This store mostly just sold dresses. After trying on numerous dresses, I settled on a light pink summer dress. Then I went and found some sandals to go with it. Overall, I only spent about thirty bucks on everything. Since I was done, I decided to call my dad so he could pick me up.
“Hey dad, I’m ready.” I said when he answered.
“I’m still in a meeting sweetie, but I’ll have someone else pick you up. Just wait where I dropped you off.” He said. I agreed and we hung up. Fifteen minutes later a black BMW pulled up and rolled down the window. But the person in the driver’s seat was the exact person I did not want to see at the moment, Brian.
“Ready?” He asked. I sighed and hopped in. as he drove off, I kept my eyes on the road.
“You still mad at me?” He asked. I stayed quiet.
“I’ll take that as a yes.” He said after a few seconds. I pulled out my phone and decided to send my dad a text.
To: Dad
Brian? Really? And here I thought you loved me… :/
“Are you ever going to talk to me again?” He asked. A few seconds passed.
“You know you can’t stay mad at me forever.” He said. True, but I could sure as hell try.
From: Dad
You’ll survive :)
“Damn it Kasey! I’m just trying to look out for you, you’re my baby niece and I love you!” He snapped.
“Well you sure have funny way of showing it!” I snapped back. I noticed that we had arrived home and we were already parked, so I got out of the car and hurriedly went inside. I ran up to my room before anyone could see me and shut my door. I hung up my outfit and then went into the bathroom. It was now about four o’clock so I thought I would get a jump start on getting ready. After I shaved, I hopped into the shower and washed up. Once I dried off, I wrapped a robe around myself, and began to do my hair. I used a curling iron to make waves. Next, I did my make-up lightly.
Once again, I checked the time and saw that it was now six o’clock. Time seemed to pass by so quickly. I put my dress on and then stepped into my sandals. I used my full length mirror to make sure everything was perfect. I smiled at the outcome. I was happy, yet a little bit nervous. Suddenly I remember I needed to brush my teeth again, so I went and did that. I then used a Mentha flavored chap stick.
“Kasey! You’re date is here!” I heard Matt call. I checked the clock to see if I let time pass by that quickly again, but found it was 6:45. He was early. I checked myself one more time in the mirror and then quickly sprayed some perfume on my wrists and neck, before heading down the stairs.
The first person to see me was my dad.
“You look beautiful sweetheart!” He said and hugged me.
“Thank you daddy.” I smiled.
“All right, remember, be home by ten , and be safe. If you need me to pick you up early just call me, ok?” He asked.
“I will, don’t worry.” I said and turned to the rest of the guys waiting. Jimmy was the first to jump at me. He picked me up off the ground and hugged me hard.
“You’re growing up too fast! Quit it!” He said.
“Jimmy!” I laughed as he spun me around. The next to hug me was Johnny, and then Zacky. Brian was left standing at the end looking awkward. Good, I thought. He smiled and gave me hug, but I found it hard to return it.
“You look wonderful kid, I’m sorry about before. OK?” He asked quietly.
“Ok.” I said looking down. I always found it hard to forgive people. I walked to the door and gave everybody one last wave goodbye. I walked out to the car and saw Jason leaning against it. He stood up straight once he saw me.
“You look amazing.” He said and gave me a soft hug.
“You clean up nice too.” I said smiling. He opened the door for me and waited for me to get in before shutting it.
“So where are we going?” I asked.
“A small diner about ten miles from here. They have the best food ever, and it’s nice and quiet.” He said. I got even more excited. I was never one for fancy restaurants; I loved the little ones that were tucked away in the corner. About a half an hour later, we pulled up to Cherrie’s Diner. Again, Jason opened my door for me hand held is hand out for me to take. We walked inside hand in hand and I noticed that the diner resembled a fifties diner. It was just so cute.
“Two please.” Jason told the lady at the front. She nodded her head and took us to a booth in the back. On the table was two beautiful place mats, and a small vase with a single yellow rose. I found it nice that it wasn’t the typical red rose.
After we order our food, he started a conversation.
“So where did you go to school before Huntington?” He asked me.
“Valley Village. It’s a ways away from here.” I said.
“Why did you move?” He asked. This wasn’t something I really wanted to talk about.
“I moved in with my dad.” I said trying to be vague.
“So it’s just you and your dad? What happened to your mom?” He asked curious.
“That’s something I just don’t want to talk about.” I said honestly.
“Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to pry.” He said.
“No! It’s ok! It’s just still a touchy subject.” I explained quickly, because I didn’t want him to feel bad.
“Well what’s your dad like?” He asked.
“He’s great. I love him death.” I smiled.
“I take it he’s not over protective if he didn’t want to meet me first.” He laughed.
“Surprisingly he’s not. I think it’s my uncle I have to worry about.” I laughed.
“Do you have any siblings?” He asked. Great, another touchy subject.
“Yeah a sister, what about you?” I said quickly.
“An older brother.” He said.
“So when did you start dancing?” He asked.
“Many many years ago, but I just started to get back into when I came here.” I said.
“Really, why did you stop?” He asked.
“I just didn’t have enough time for it.” I lied.
“Well I think you’re an amazing dancer. I can’t wait to see your next performance.” He smiled.
“Thank you.” I said and our food came. We talked throughout our meal, both not about anything too serious or related to my home life.
“After we’re done here I was thinking we could go for a walk on the beach.” He said.
“I’d love that.” I said. When we finished our food we got back in the car and drove back to my place. We parked just a couple blocks away and walked to the beach area. As we walked, he held my hand.
“So is there going to be a second date?” He asked.
“I think there might be.” I smiled.
“Well then I can’t wait for our second date.” He smiled.
“Me too.” I said.
“I have to admit, I really like you.” He said.
“I like you too, a lot.” I said softly. Before I knew it, he leaned and placed a gentle kiss on my lips. He pulled away after a few seconds and smiled at me. I smiled back and then grabbed his shirt by the collar pulling him back and kissing him. One of his hands cupped the side of my face and then the other held the small of my back. In the middle of the kiss, my phone’s alarm went off.
“It’s almost curfew.” I said.
“I should get you back home.” He said and took my hand. We walked back to his car and he drove me home. Like the night before, he walked me up to the door.
“I’ll call you tomorrow.” He said and placed a soft kiss to my cheek. I smiled back and the walked inside. I looked into the living room and only saw Brian sitting.
“Where is everyone?” I asked.
“Outback. Can I talk to you for a second?” He asked standing up.
“Sure.” I sighed.
“I’m really sorry for everything I said earlier.” He started.
“It’s ok, you already apologized.” I sighed.
“Yeah, but somehow I don’t think you really heard me. Or wanted to believe me.” He said.
“Go on.” I said.
“I never meant for you to think that I thought you were weak or unstable. I just don’t want to see you get hurt. You’ve been through so much, and I just don’t want anything or anyone to make it worse. When I first met you, you were just a scared little girl. And I think I sometimes still think of you that way.” He said and I looked up at him.
“I mean it was just a few months ago that I was holding you like a little kid because you had a nightmare. But you’re growing up, much to my dismay. And I have to let you grow up. You’ve changed so much from when you first came here, and it’s for the better. I mean you still have your troubles. But you’re not the same person you were. You are so much stronger then who you were. And I just seem to forget that. But please don’t think that I feel you’re weak. I just see how far you’ve come and I don’t want anyone to mess that up.” He said. For once, I was speechless. I had no clue that that is what he thought.
“Do you think you can forgive me?” He asked.
“Of course. I’m sorry I over reacted.” I said hugged him.
“It’s ok squirt. I love you, you know that, right?” He asked and kissed my forehead.
“Of course. And I love you too Uncle Brian.” I said and hugged him even tighter.