We Found Each Other in the Dark

“Mate?”

A voice rang through my head as a hand waved in front of my eyes. I ignored it for a second, but then lethargically turned my head to see a concerned look on my friend Luke’s face.

“What?” I asked ruder then intended.

His eyebrows pulled together and he opened his mouth slightly, offended by my tone.

“What crawled up your dick?”

I mimicked his expression and shook my head, silently replying “nothing”. He said nothing else so I looked back down at my phone I’d been staring at for the past hour. Luke scoffed and my head snapped, angry eyes burning holes into him.

“Something funny Lucas?” I asked, punctuating his name by shoving him.

His lips molded into a smirk and he nodded.

“Yeah.” He said getting up from the couch.

“And what’s that?” I crossed my arms over my chest.

As he started to walk away he paused to snicker at me.

“You’re absolutely butt-hurt over some girl you just met dude, it’s hilarious.”

Normally I would’ve went after him, head locking him until he fell to his knees, but something was stopping me. When he was completely out of view I looked back at my phone and grimaced. What the fuck was my deal? I hadn’t talked to Jackie in a day and a half and for some reason I felt completely lost. I’ve never been one to sleep around and treat girls like garbage, but I’ve also never been one to obsess over a girl I barely knew. From the moment I met Jackie though, I knew something was different. She had this aura around her…her general presence was enticing. She was so laid-back, but then suddenly would be bursting with excitement over something as small as a kitten. The night we went to get food she said McDonald’s was more then perfect and geeked out over the Spiderman toys that came with the kids meals. As soon as we started talking though she got 100% serious and real, acting as if I was the most interesting person she’d ever spoken to. What was weird was that I felt the same exact way about her. She never said the wrong thing, and if she ever did she’d apologize up and down as if she had threatened to kill someone’s mother. Jackie took no shit and never really gave any unless a button was really pressed. Absentmindedly my hand had began tightening it’s grip around my phone so when it vibrated suddenly my insides shook. I looked down at the illuminated screen instantly and felt my mouth go dry.

“Finally got Monster Hunter 3, come over and play with me! (:”

All day I had been hoping she’d text me, but I never expected that. Our first time hanging out I made fun of her for having a DS but not Monster Hunter, she told me that once she got it I’d regret ever saying anything. My hands were quivering for whatever reason as I went to reply.

“Game on, be there in 15.”

The day I rode her home I realized that her apartment wasn’t too far away from the house my mates and I lived in while we were in the states. Of course I didn’t let her know that…I was always worried that I’d say something creepy and she’d vanish forever. She always called herself creepy but in reality she wasn’t. My phone buzzed again gaining another jump from my insides.

“Sounds good, get ready to regret this suggestion (;”

A smile tugged my lips upwards and a funny feeling bubbled in my stomach.. Not wanting to seem to eager I waited awhile to leave, busying myself around the house ignoring Luke’s constant comments.

“Why won’t you ever invite her over here?” He asked as I grabbed a water from the fridge.

I slammed the door and pressed my back against it, glaring at him. I unscrewed the cap of the water and took a long swig before deciding to respond.

“I wouldn’t wanna scare her off by letting her meet you.” I muttered.

Luke sneered and used his tongue to play with his lip ring.

“Or you’re worried one of us will steal her away from you.” He fired back.

Even though he was kidding an anger swam through my veins and I wailed the cap at his face. It nicked his cheek and he put a hand up crying out in pain. I snorted and made sure to let my shoulder bump his hard as I passed him.

“You’re too much of a pussy to steal anyone’s girl.”

The drive over to Jackie’s seemed to take forever, and when I finally parked it took me even longer to get out of my car. It wasn’t our first time hanging out, but for some reason it felt like it. My stomach was fluttering and my palms were sweating. After about 10 more minutes I forced myself out of the car and after buzzing her doorbell I felt the instinct to just run. Even through the crappy speaker her voice sounded intoxicating and I felt my head start to spin. I ran up the steps, jumping every other one and took a deep breath before putting my fist against her door. It took only a second before the door swung open revealing a grinning Jackie. Unintentionally my eyes trailed up in down her body, fond of the Batman attire she had on and the cut of her shirt that revealed her toned midriff.

“Hey!” She sang with a small wave, catching me watching her.

I wet my lips and forced a smile trying to not seem too obvious. We stood there for a minute until Jackie stepped to the side and waved me on inside. Her apartment was simple for the most part with a few framed nerdy illustrations hung up on the walls. The floors were dark hardwood while the furniture was either white or black.. Skulls and candles randomly popped up throughout and the rug in front of the tv in the living room replicated a bear rug, only as a Wompa from Star Wars.. She showed me around briefly, my attention being caught by some of the zombie memorabilia that also adorned the rooms. She offered me a drink, I timidly showed her my water, and then we got comfortable on the couch…her back propped against the arm of the couch while I awkwardly sat in the middle; her feet only inches from the side of my thigh. I pulled out my DS and we were instantly immersed.

“No fucking way!”

Jackie’s shout of defeat filled the entire room, rumbling the chandelier that hung above us. She slammed her DS shut and tossed it towards me, crossing her arms over her middle. When I looked up she was pouting like a scolded child and I had to gulp down laughter.

“I know you want to laugh, you better not.” She jokingly threatened sticking her tongue out.

I ran my tongue across my lips, letting them relax into a triumphant smirk. I rested my hand on top of her knee and raised an eyebrow.

“I told you I was the best.” I boasted. With a wink.

Her eyes widened and she gently kicked me in the side knocking me over. Without a word she flew onto me using her fingers to jab and pinch my ribs, tickling me. Although she wasn’t doing much damage I acted as if she were, “fighting back” by wedging my fingers into her sides. Her head was back as laughter and cries poured from her mouth, my fingers clearly winning.

“Michael!” She cried, gasping for air. “Please ok you win!”

Her words only made me worsen my torture, the tickling turning more into a wrestling match. I somehow managed to get to my knees on the cushion and our hands were laced together trying to hold one another away. In one swift movement I pulled my fingers from hers and began moving them along her sides remembering the parts of her that were ticklish the most. Suddenly she melted underneath of my touch, falling onto her back on the couch…her hands bringing me with her. When the haze from our previous moment disappeared our faces were only breaths apart from one another and I could feel her heartbeat against my chest. Her eyes moved up and down my face and my hand held hers up next to her cheek. The feeling that had been fluttering in my stomach traveled downward and began pressing a certain member against the inside of my jeans. Within seconds I flew up from the couch and nervously looked around the room for a distraction. Jackie sat up and I could feel her eyes on me.

“Michael?”

I looked at her from the corners of my eyes, stray hairs falling perfectly around the frame of her face. Crimson tinted her cheeks giving her a natural glow and I could see in her eyes that she felt like she had done something wrong.

“I uhm…I have to go.” I said hurriedly before sprinting for her front door without another word.

I heard her calling after me but I didn’t stop. I was downstairs and in my car in record speed and I sat staring blankly at the rain that had collected on my windshield while I was inside.

“Fuck!” I cried aloud banging my hands against the steering wheel.

My phone started going off in my pocket, but I ignored it as well. What the fuck was I doing?