Out Of This World

I watched as Mr. Burleigh’s car pulled out of the driveway and took off down the street. The dark brown mop of hair sat in the front seat, fixated on the road ahead and not once turning back to look at me. I was grateful for that.

Sighing, I dug my hands into my pockets and trudged across the lawn to my driveway. Images and prostests of what I’d just done buzzed in my mind and I was thankful that Ben wasn’t within mind-reading range; there was no hope of concealing these disheartened thoughts of disapproval.

“Kim…hey,” the voice snatched me from the claws of my own mind and I looked up to see Hayden standing awkwardly on the welcome mat. I didn’t greet him, just stared like a stunned mullet. He took a few stummbling steps toward me, eyes struggling to stay on my face. “I uh, was wondering if you wanted to hang out tonight?” It was more of a question than a statement.

I continued staring, fighting against my mind as it struggled to pull me back into recent events.

“Yeah,” I said vaguely, “What did you have in mind?” Hayden looked taken aback, as if the fact that I was even considering came as a surprise to him.

“Movie?” He asked almost cautiously. I nodded and forced a smile.

“Sounds good. I’ll just go get my stuff.” I said before flitting through the door and up the stairs to my room.

For the rest of the night Hayden remained cautious and hesitant. I didn’t blame him. I had pretty much full on rejected him last time he tried to kiss me so I didn’t know why on the drive back home I was still waiting for him to make the first move. As we neared our destination I felt my body temperature begin to drop even further; it was tonight or never.

And then I did it. When he leaned over to open the door for me I caught his lips with mine and we sat there, for heaven knows how long just…making out. It was becoming pretty intense, it seemed Hayden had gone well past getting his confidence back and my body, not getting the usual satisfactory feeling of literally melting against his mouth, fought furiously for warmth (which I really hoped didn’t come off as too eager). All in all, the whole experience was cliched, dramatic and brought the customary adrenaline rush that was expected in these particular situations; it was normal, and I’m still debating whether the occurance was worth more than the supernatural melting I was accustomed to. I was pretty annoyed when my lips decided they’d frost over and I had to pull back. Hayden didn’t seem too pleased either as he grasped the back of my neck and pulled me back into him. I smiled in amusement against his lips and removed his hands.

“I really have to go,” I whispered, cheeks pink, “But I’ll see you tomorrow, ok?”

Hayden nodded before giving me one last peck on the lips and then seeing his persuit of opening the door to its full success.

“Bye!” he whispered loudly as I trampled across the wet lawn and around to the gum tree. I turned and waved over my shoulder before beginning the climb upto my room. I was pretty sure I had my keys, but the ludicrous teenage girl in me said it would be more romantic this way. Pushing open the window and landing with a soft ‘thump’ on my bed, I giggled softly to myself as I recalled the night’s events.

“Glad you had fun.”

I screeched. A cold wave of terror ran through me and if I hadn’t been frozen before, I was now. Solid. I shivered again and again as Ben’s haunting figure walked out from the shadows to stand infront of me. I gritted my teeth as he held his stomach and began to laugh uncontrolably, sitting on my hands in attempt tokeep from hitting him warm them up. After a solid five minutes of laughing, I thought he might suffocate and die. The thought was pleasant, though unfortunately far fetched. My lips quavered as his laughter decreased and he stood there, hands folded across his chest, letting out snorts of laughter every few seconds.

“I’m s-s-sorry,” and he began laughing again. Removing my hands from under my thighs I stood up, looked him in the ridiculing eye, and slapped him hard across the face. The loud, strident, ‘THWACK’ lingered in the air as his mouth opened in shock.

“What the fuck?!” he cursed, bringing a palm up to his reddened cheek. It was my turn to laugh. As he moved his hand backwards and forwards over his face a bright pink hand print became visible. “Argh that fucking hurt!” he moaned. I laughed more and directed him to the mirror. He looked at himself and groaned.

“Now we’re equal,” I stated, sniggering. I shivered again and Ben closed the window before coming over and wrapping his arms around me.

“No I don’t think we are,” he said quietly, “You don’t have to carry the evidence around on your face!” I laughed again and he poked me in the side.

“You’re such a baby,”

“I’m not the one that screeched for Legolas to take me a way to some place magical,” he smirked.

“I didn’t screech for Legolas to take me a way to some place magical,” I frowned, “I just screeched.”

“You sounded as if you were being castrated.”

“To get with Legolas, I don’t need to be. On the other hand if you were to get with Legolas…”

“It’d be the same for you and Kiera Knightly, except the opposite,” Ben pointed out.

“I don’t want to get with Kiera Knightly, and anyway, I wouldn’t,” I countered, “Learn your lesbian sex ed before you start telling people they need to be reverse-castrated. God.”

“Well, I don’t want to get with Legolas,” He argued.

“Yes you do.” I grinned. Ben shrugged.

“Meh…” I laughed at him and he ruffled my hair before releasing me, “Warm now?” I nodded.

“So how was Roxy’s party?” I turned his wrist to check the time, “It’s only eleven, you’re back early, what happened?” Ben groaned.

“I started heating up- with all the thoughts and the people in there. We made out a bit, then I had to make up and excuse and leave.”

“Was the party good though?” he shrugged.

“Alice was there, and I hung out with her a bit while Isabelle was with her friends. It wasn’t really our scene though,” he looked at me and gave me a small smile. “It would’ve been better if you were there,” he added quietly. “How was stuff with Hayden…where did you go again?”

“I never told you,” I said darkly, rolling my eyes, “But we went to the movies-“

“Oh yeah that’s right,”

“Why are you even getting me to tell you. You know what happened.” I scowled.

“You’re right, I do,” He smirked. “So you had to leave too huh?”

I nodded. Then something strange happened. The atmosphere in the room, between Ben and me, changed so drastically and I knew we both felt it. I’m not sure what it was, but I’m pretty sure it had something to do with the way Ben was looking at me and I think I must have been looking at him the same way. We were both thinking the same thing, yet we both chose to ignore it. Then Ben cleared his throat, and I knew he was going to be the one to bring it up. I wasn’t sure if it would be worse having to start the conversation, or listen to him start the conversation. I didn’t know what he was going to say about it, but I had a whole list of things I was preying that he wouldn’t mention.

“About what happened earlier…” He stuttered. I nodded jaggedly. “You enjoyed tonight, right?” I hesitated,

“With Hayden or the…the uh-“

“With Hayden.” He said quickly. I nodded again.

“Yeah, I did.”

“It was nice to be able to…relax right? Not worry about what you may…do to him.” I nodded again. By now it was my only working function.

“So I was thinking…I totally understand if you don’t want to but,” He cleared his throat again and turned to face me on the bed. I knew what was coming. “I was wondering if the…the repetition of tonight’s earlier events could take place before any…any repetitions of tonight’s later events in the uh…in the future…” he was rammbling but I think I got what he ment. After all, I was thinking it too. Never the less, I decided to grow a dick and clarify that what he was saying was the same as what I was thinking.

“So you want to like, make out before we do anything with a human?” I said, my voice smaller than intended. Ben nodded.

“Uh yeah, well that’s the basic gist of it…I guess,”

We’d done it before, kissed. Sometimes we had to, but it was never a regular thing, and most deffinetly not scheduled. Adding on what happened earlier,-the random impulse that I claimed was for the benefit of him and Isabelle- everything had suddenly become a lot more akward between the two of us on the kissing subject. I didn’t like it at all. We were best friends- nothing was ever awkward. Before, making out every so often to get the body temperature right was just a method of survival on Earth. I think even our parents knew we had to do it. And with all this new akward tension, and the random kiss being mostly upon my inclination, I couldn’t help feeling responsible for the way things had turned.

But did it matter? As long as we were both playing cool and had our significant others, did it really matter what we both thought on the inside? The whole thing was so silly. We both knew what was going on in our heads, we knew what was going on in each other’s heads, but we didn’t confront it. I guess we were scared of losing each other. At times, Ben was the only thing keeping me alive.

I decided not to over analyze the subject and pushed it to the back of my mind.

“Yeah , so I guess that’s decided then,” I smiled, neatening Ben’s dark mop. “I’m really tired, I think I’m gonna sleep now.” Ben nodded,

“Alright I’ll see you tomorrow then.”

“Yep- and Ben?”

He stuck his head back through the window. “Yeah?”

“Sneak into my room while I’m not in it ever again and I won’t just frost bite your nuts.”

Ben smirked, “What else is there to frostbite that matters?”

I laughed darkly, “Oh, believe me, after I’m done with you, sexual pleasure will cease to exist-even as a castrati.”