Invisible

I woke up when my mother came barging in. "WHOSE IS THIS?!" She roared, making me jump and fall out of my bed. I sit up groggily, but I can't see anything because I'm not wearing my contacts.

"Can you hand me my glasses?" I ask slurrily.

She shoves them in my face and jabs me in the cheek. I put them on and tumble back into bed. "Whose is what?" Then I see she's holding a pair of panties.

"THESE!" She yells.

"Lorrie's?" I ask, sitting up.

"THEY'RE TO SMALL!"

"Lorrie's friends? They aren't mine."

"They were in the dryer," Mom said with her teeth clenched.

"Oh! They must be Corrie's!"

"That girl from-"

"She was soaked to the bone. I gave her some of Lorrie's clothes and tossed hers in the dryer. Promise. Don't you trust me?"

She's obviously deciding. "Does Corrie know they're here?" She finally asks.

"She was probably to embarrassed to mention it, if she noticed," I say. "She's really shy."

"Alright." She folds her arms, tucking the underwear out of sight. "How is that project coming along?"

"Great," I groan, falling back. "Can I go back to sleep?"

"So... She's kind of cute," Mom says, shaking back her curly blond hair.

"Mom!" I yell, tossing a pillow at her.

"Lorrie said you and Kaylee broke up. Shy girls are better."

"Mom, stop!"

"You like her, don't you?"

I sit up and stare at her.

"Her number's in your phone."

"Because we're working on the project! Calm down."

"You! I'm trying to help. I just want to help-"

"You aren't helping."

"Well I'm sorry," she snaps. "You should invite her over."

"You're so weird Mom."

"No, really! Lorrie and your father are gone, and what are you doing?"

"She wont say yes," I say, falling back. "I already tried."

"You asked her out and she said no?"

"I told you, she's really shy."

"So you do like her."

"Yes, Mom, I think I do!" I yell. "Will you go away now?"

She holds out my iPhone. "When you ask her over."

"You aren't going to actually listen to my conversation."

She stares at me expectantly. I yank the phone away from her. I was going to call her anyway.

I dial her number, praying it isn't a fake. It rings three times before she picks up. "Hello?"

"Hey, Corrie, it's um, Aaron," I say, loosing any confidence I had to begin with. Suddenly, I'm a little nervous. "You're still alive."

"Still," she agrees without any hint of emotion.

"Wannacomeovertoday?" I say all in one breath.

There's a crash in the background, then a door slams. Corrie's voice sounds strained. "I can't. I have to go. Like, now."

"Oh, alright," I say, and I can hear the disappointment in my voice. "Promise, if I call you later, you'll pick up."

'I promise." Then she hangs up.

"See?" I ask, glaring at Mom.

She shrugs. "You're not giving up, are you?"

"Get out."

She leaves and stare at my nightstand, cradling my phone. There's a picture on my nightstand of Jake and me two years ago at the beach. We look almost exactly alike, except Jake's a bit taller than me and has curly brown hair instead of shaggy light blonde like mine. We even both have green eyes. The same build, tall and skinny.

My phone rings. Corrie! "Hey!" I say enthusiastically into the phone. "Change your mind?"

"What are you smoking?" It's Jake, not Corrie.

'Woops... I thought you were someone else."

"Who?"

"Not you."

"Obviously. Anyways, you busy? I'm bored and its like eleven."

"Not at all. Come over, I just have to get ready."

The doorbell rang.

"Were you really waiting outside my door?"

"Honey, Jake's here."

I hang up and get up to brush my teeth.
~
An hour later were outside a Coldstone and I'm staring at my phone while eating chocolate ice cream with Reeses cups in it.

"Who are you waiting for?" Jake finally asks.

"No one."

"So its Corrie, right?"

"What gave you that idea?" I ask distractedly.

"You have a crush on Corrie?"

"No." Then my phone rings. I jump for it, but its just Dad.

"She is kind of cute."

"Hey, Dad," I say.

"Whose Corrie?" I hang up to his laughter, and Jake's.

"Dude, why didn't you tell me?" He laughs so loud and hard that people from the other tables stare.

"This place is packed for October," I say, trying to change the topic.

"Are you going to invite Corrie to the Halloween party?"

"I doubt she'd agree to go," I say. "I've asked her out twice and she shut me down."

Jake finds that incredibly funny, and now I feel awful. "She seems really shy... I bet she's autistic," he muses.

I never considered that. "No, I don't think so. She just doesn't know what to do."

"It must be a very humbling experience to get shut out by a girl you like," Jake said, smirking.

I drop my head to the table. "Would you shut up?"

Jake laughed again. "Alright, alright. I think the other customers are starting to think were gay. Let's go."

We stand up and leave. "It's freezing," I say as I unlock my truck door.

"And we just ate ice cream. Maybe we shouldn't have done that, in hindsight," jake said, getting into my car gingerly because the seats are frigid. "I need a car."

"So I don't have to drive your ass everywhere."

"Exactly. Why don't you call Corrie and tell her were working on the project?"

"She'll probably ditch. I don't think she likes me."

Jake punched him on the arm. "Cheer up, Aaron. Everyone likes you."

"Not Corrie," I sigh, looking at my phone in the cup holder.

"What if I call her and say I want to work on the project?" Jake suggests.

"She'd say no anyways, then get even more angry with me because I gave you her number."

Jake already has my phone and is taking Corrie's number from it. "Don't talk."

I sigh, but Jake puts it on speaker. "Hello?" Corrie asks suspiciously and my heart gives a little thrill.

"It's Jake."

"How did you get my number?"

"I took Aaron's phone right before he left my house," Jake giggles. "I've already called Kaylee and he's going to have a surprise on Monday. She is a whore. But anyways, Coach has scheduled practice every day next week 'cept Wednesday, so we aren't going to be able to work on this project at all, because I have a date Wednesday night, and I'm not giving that up. So want to work today, or tomorrow?"

"Did Aaron put you up to this?"

"Ouch, I'm hurt," Jake laughed. "No, it was my idea, but he went right along with it. Give me the okay and he'll go and pick you up."

There's a really long pause. "How would he know, you took his phone?" She finally asks.

"He lives two houses down from me, Corrie," he answers.

"Tell Aaron to leave me alone." She hangs up.

"Ouch," Jake said. "Maybe she really does hate you."

"Do we really have that much practice?"

"Yes."

"God," I groan.

"I guess Corrie really didn't appreciate you dumping coffee on her."

"Yeah," I say evasively.

Jake makes a sympathetic noise. "You mind if I ask her out?"

"Yes!" I yell.

"Just kidding. She's to depressing for me."

"She's-" but I stop myself, because I don't know what I was going to say.
~
I call her before I go to sleep, having to force myself to wait that long because ever since I dropped Jake off I keep seeing Corrie going off the bridge.

Every ring makes me more anxious. She's not going to answer, she's dead. Dead.

"Hi, Aaron," she says, sounding exhausted.

"You kept your promise," I say in relief.

"And you called. Did Jake say anything about working on the project?"

"Yeah, we're booked for the next week."

"I thought you put him up to it."

"No, he was serious." Kind of.

"Ohhh..."

"Not everything is going to be a ploy to get you," I say, laying on my stomach. "And if you aren't busy tomorrow..."

"I am."

"You suck, your lying, but fine."

"I'll see you on Monday." Translation: don't call me tomorrow.

"Promise?"

"I promise."

"Goodnight, Corrie," but she'd already hung up.