Lessons Learned I

It was Saturday night. Adam, Alex and I were at Pizza Hut. I was sitting next to Alex in a booth and Adam was sitting across from us.

"So, what do you two feel like having?" Adam asked in a very pleasant and charming voice.

Alex just shrugged.

"Um...I'll just have some pizza with olives and mushrooms..." I muttered, looking at Alex.

"Okay," Adam said.

Alex slowly nodded. He was being really quiet; he hadn't said a word all evening.

I cleared my throat and looked down at the table. Alex's hand gently brushed against my thigh. I placed my hand on top of his and held it underneath the table. He stroked my hand gently with his thumb.

"Hm. Anyone wanna go to the salad bar?" Adam asked.

I looked at Alex, who looked back at me.

"Um...it doesn't matter to me," I said.

"Okay, we don't have to..." Adam mumbled.

I nodded, not really sure what the heck was going on.

The waiter walked over and took our order, leaving us to talk. Even though we hadn't been talking too much...

"Um, so, how was school for you guys yesterday?" I asked to break the silence.

"It was okay. I have a paper to write for english. Yours?" Adam replied.

Alex merely shrugged.

"Same here. I have a huge report coming up in biology, too," I said.

"I hate biology," Adam stated.

"I hear ya..." I mumbled.

"I'll be right back," Alex said, walking off toward the bathroom.

"Is he okay? He's awfully quiet," Adam said.

I nodded. "He's fine. He's like this around people he doesn't know well," I replied.

"Oh. Alright."

I sighed and looked around, feeling out of place since Alex took off.

Alex returned a short time later. I glanced at Adam, who was smiling politely.

Too bad Alex wasn't paying much attention.

He held onto my hand under the table again. I squeezed it.

"Um..so..." I mumbled, still quite lost.

"So, Rachel, tell me more about yourself," Adam spoke up.

"Well, I want to be a writer or a journalist. I love writing, reading, hanging out with my friends, iced coffee, and cappuccino. I love staying up late, sleeping in, and I've never seen a snake in person. Your turn."

Adam chuckled. "Well, I actually used to have a pet snake."

While Alex gave Adam a weird look, my eyes widened.

"Seriously? Creepy," I said.

"I was about nine. Named him Slip. The devil got away from me though."

My eyes widened even more. "Did he kill anyone?"

"Nah. He was a harmless garter snake."

Under my breath, I mumbled, "Thank God..."

"He was only a foot and a half long. He was pretty young."

I nodded and sighed. "Interesting..."

The waiter gave us our food and walked off.

"So, Adam, tell me about yourself," I said, taking a bite of my pizza.

He took a drink. "Well, I grew up in Dallas. I was on the basketball and baseball teams throughout high school. Four-point-oh student..."

"Really? Interesting," I said.

"Not really. Sorry I'm so dull." He chuckled a little.

I smiled. "I am, too."

In the corner of my eye, I saw Alex staring off into space. I don't think he had even eaten.

"Ah, we have something in common," Adam said, smiling at me.

I laughed a little. "Yeah, I guess we do."

"What's your favorite subject?"

"Writing, of course. Creative writing. You?"

"Math."

"I suck at Math. If it weren't for him, I'd be going crazy," I said, pointing at Alex.

Alex blushed.

Adam smiled politely at Alex before looking back at me. "It's not that bad. I don't think."

"It is for me. I'm hard to teach. I'm surprised he hasn't smacked me upside the head yet," I said, smiling a little at Alex.

Alex slowly picked at the table.

"I'm sure you're not that bad. You're very intelligent," Adam said.

I smiled a little. "And exactly how would you know? You don't even know what kind of grades I make."

"You give off that intelligent vibe," he said upon shrugging.

I smiled. "Why, thank you," I said.

He smiled charmingly. "You're welcome."

I smiled back and rested my hands in my lap.

"So, you're from here, huh?" Adam asked.

I nodded. "Born and raised right here in Seattle."

"That sounds cool. I do kind of miss Texas in some strange ways."

"Really? How so?"

"Family and such."

"Yeah, I bet that gets tough sometimes."

He nodded slowly. "Do you have any siblings?"

"Nope. I'm an only child."

"Heh, lucky you."

I laughed a little. "I've always considered myself lucky in that regard. I'm guessing you've got siblings?"

"Yup. Sister."

I giggled. "Is she younger or older than you?"

"Younger. I'm three years older than her."

"Aw, she's in...eleventh grade? So young, so clueless..." I mumbled with a sigh.

"Yeah. Her name's Anna."

"Anna's a pretty name."

He smiled a little. "She's great. Obsessed with Britney Spears, but still..."

"Aw, what do you expect? She's in eleventh grade. Plus, Britney Spears isn't bad..."

"That's true."

I smiled a little and glanced over at Alex, who had not said a complete sentence since we had arrived.

Adam glanced at him as well before looking at me. "Wanna get dessert?"

"Um...I'm full..." I mumbled, wanting to leave for Alex's sake. Though I have to admit, I wasn't having that bad of a time.

"Okay. I'll just got up and pay for this... Excuse me," Adam said, standing up to pay for our meal.

Alex sighed.

"I should probably go and offer to pay..." I muttered.

Alex didn't say anything in return.

Adam soon returned and smiled. "Y'all ready to go?"

I nodded. "Thanks for paying for dinner, but you didn't have to," I said.

"It's cool. What do you want to do now?" he asked, smiling.

I looked at Alex. "Um...what do you want to do, Alex?" I asked.

Alex shrugged. "I don't care."

I sighed. "Maybe we should head back to our dorms."

"Okay," Adam said.

I let out a sigh as we got up and left.