"Sorry," Angie says, and she really does seem sorry. I'm starting to like this girl. I wish she went to my school. Maybe we'd be friends, although she's so pretty she'd be scooped up by the popular girls before I even had a chance to try to be friends with her.
Colton looks at me. "You gotta just ignore that shit. The only reason Hunter and them pick on you is because they know it bothers you."
"I told her that but she doesn't believe me," Wes says.
My face is getting hot. Do we really need to talk about this? I want to get out of here before they tell Angie even more embarrassing things about me.
"We should go," I say to Wes.
"You want to know a secret?" Colton asks me, a big grin on his face.
"What kind of secret?"
"Something about Hunter. He'd kill me if I told you, but what the fuck? I don't owe him anything. I don't even like the guy."
"Then why do you hang out with him?"
"I don't. He hangs out with me. I can't get rid of him."
That's interesting. I assumed they were friends. I guess I don't know all the politics of the "in" crowd. Hunter must see some benefit to hanging out with Colton. I always thought Hunter was more popular than Colton but maybe not.
"So what is it?" Wes asks. "What's the big secret?"
Colton smiles at me. "Hunter used to have a huge crush on you."
Chapter Sixteen
"What?" I look at Colton like he's lost his mind.
"Back in whatever grade we were in when you did that tuna commercial, Hunter told me he liked you. He said you were the prettiest girl he'd ever seen."
I fold my arms over my chest. "That's not funny, Colton."
"I'm not lying. He really did have a crush on you. I went over to his house one day and found a note in his room written to you."
"A note? He never gave me a note."
"Because he was too scared. He thought you'd make fun of him if he gave it to you."
"What did it say?"
"Something about how you have pretty hair and smell good. And how he likes it when you smile. I gave him shit about it because at that age, I didn't really get girls or why I should like them." He looks at Angie. "I was a late bloomer."
She winks at him and smiles. "You definitely caught up."
He leans down and kisses her.
"Hold on," I say. "If Hunter had a crush on me, why was he so mean to me?"
"I guess he was afraid you'd make fun of him if he told you how he felt about you."
"So he made fun of me instead?"
Colton shrugs. "I guess."
"Guys are stupid," Angie says, smiling at Colton.
"Good thing I'm hot," he says to her.
"I don't believe you," I say to Colton.
"It makes sense," Wes says. "He was afraid of getting hurt so he turned it around and hurt you instead."
"But that's not fair. I didn't do anything to him."
"He was making sure you never could," Wes says. "Guys like him are insecure. That's why they pick on people. It's a defense mechanism."
"Yeah." Colton points to Wes. "What he said." He grins at Wes. "That actually makes sense, man."
"Thanks."
"We gotta go sit down or they'll give our table away," Colton says. "See ya on Monday?"
"Yeah, see ya." Wes takes my hand. "Ready to go?"
We walk to the car and when we get there, I stare straight ahead, still in shock about what Colton said.
"I can't believe Hunter used to like me."
"He probably still does."
I turn to Wes. "Are you kidding? He hates me. You've seen how he treats me at school."
"But now I understand why."
"It's not because he likes me."
"Actually, I think it is. He wants your attention and the only way he can get it is to call you names. That's the only way you'll notice him."
"But he knows I hate it when he does that."
"He also knows you'd never go out with him so the only way he can get you to have any kind of interaction with him is to pick on you. I'm not saying it's right. It's just his way of dealing with feelings he can't express."
"If you're trying to make me feel sorry for him, I don't."
"I don't want you feeling sorry for him. He's a jerk and he needs to find a better outlet for dealing with his emotions than bullying people. But now that you know this, you can stop taking it personally. As I've told you before, this isn't about you. People who act like Hunter have their own issues that make them act that way. For Hunter, it's because he likes you and can't have you."
"That's completely insane. Never in a million years would I have thought he liked me."
"Why not? You're beautiful. Smart. Funny."
"I know YOU think that but nobody else does."
"You don't know that, just like you didn't know this secret about Hunter. You need to stop assuming you know stuff when you don't."
"ME? You're one to talk. You're always assuming stuff about me."
"I'm guessing, not assuming. Or I'm basing it on information I learned in our former life together." He smiles as he says it.
"That's right. I keep forgetting our past life."
"Lives. Plural."
"Oh. So now we've been together in more than one past life?"
"I think so. I think we were together in the Middle Ages."
"Huh. I don't remember that."
"I do. Vaguely. You were dating a king and I was a lowly blacksmith but I was damn good at my job. I presented you with an expertly crafted horseshoe and you were so impressed that you left the king and gave me your heart."
"Wow. That was some horseshoe."
"It was. But a bad decision on your part."
"Why is that?"
"With my measly earnings, I couldn't afford a decent apartment for us so we lived in a place filled with rats and caught the bubonic plague. You would've been better off with the king. He had royal exterminators."
I don't know where he comes up with this stuff but it makes me laugh. Other girls might find his sense of humor a little odd but I love it. It's just like mine.
"If we were truly in love, then I made the right decision. And besides, the king probably had syphilis and a million other STDs. You know how those kings slept around."
"True. You were better off with me. Still are." He gives me a smile.
"I don't have any kings asking me out, so as of now, you don't have any competition."
"Except for Hunter."
"I think his crush ended a long time ago."
We've been driving for a while now but I wasn't paying attention to where he was going. I see the movie theater up ahead and say, "We're going to the movies?"
"That was the plan."
"I told you I didn't want to see any of the movies that are out."
"I'm sure we could find something. Let's just go check the times."
"Why don't we go to your house instead? You can show me the garden."
"It'll be dark soon. You won't be able to see it. We can check it out some other time." He parks the car. "Why don't we just go to the surfer movie? You want to see it and so do I."
I reluctantly agree to it, but walking up to the entrance I feel an urge to run back to the car. I keep imagining myself falling flat on my face in the theater, which is what happened last time I was here.
"Maybe we should go," I say as we wait in line.
"It starts in a couple minutes. It's perfect timing."
"Yeah, but—"
"I'm not ready to take you home." He leans down to my ear. "I'm having a great time on this date and I don't want it to end. Do you?"
"No."
But a movie theater is not where I want to be. What if I have to get up and go to the bathroom and end up falling in the aisle? We need to find something else to do but I don't know what that would be.
As I'm thinking that, I hear Wes say something and notice we're at the front of the line. He's buying the tickets. It's too late to get out
of this.
"Want anything?" he asks as we pass the concession stand.
"No, thanks."
"Not even a drink?"
"Nope. I'm good."
He holds my hand as we enter the theater. The previews have started so the theater lights have been lowered. It's not completely dark but dark enough that I can't see. I pull my hand from Wes' and wrap my arm around his to get a better grip on him in case I trip on something.
"You all right?" he asks.
"Yeah. My eyes just haven't adjusted to the darkness. I don't want to trip."
"But if you do, you thought you'd take me down with you?" he kids.
"Yeah."
He laughs. "That works." He stops and points to the side. "How about those seats over there?"
All I see is darkness, along with a hint of the light from the screen.
"That's fine," I tell him, just wanting to sit down.
He takes me to the row, then pries my hand off his arm and holds it in a firm grip as he leads me down to the seats. We sit down and he leans over and whispers, "Is this good?"
"Yeah. It's great."
Wes pushes up the armrest that's between us and scoots over a little. I do the same. We're almost touching but not quite. I feel his hand wrap around mine and smile. It's the first time I've held hands with a guy at the movies. I've been to the movies on dates a couple times but they were first dates and I wasn't ready to hold the guy's hand.
Tonight is only my second date with Wes, or first if you don't count last night's party, and yet I want to hold his hand. And kiss him. And feel his hand going up and down my leg like it did when we were on the boat.
The movie starts and I focus on the screen, waiting for my eyes to adjust. I can see the movie but the theater itself still looks pitch black.
About half an hour into the movie, I start shivering. The theater cranked up the air conditioning and I feel it blowing on me.
Wes' hand leaves mine and I feel him move over a little.
"Come here," he whispers.
I look back at him and see his arm is up behind me, leaving an open spot for me to scoot up next to him. Without even hesitating I move over until my side is right up against his. He turns toward me and puts his arm around me so that my back is against his chest. His other arm goes around me and he lightly rubs my bare arms with his warm hands.
"Is that better?" he whispers.
"Yeah," I say, my heart beating like crazy. I love being in his arms like this but I'm also getting really aroused, feeling his chest against my back, our legs touching. And he smells really good.
It's all very distracting. So distracting I have a hard time keeping my focus on the movie. By the time it's over, I'm not even sure what happened.
Wes lets me go as the credits roll. People are filing out of the theater and our row is clearing out.
He stands up. "Ready?"
It's still dark. Dark enough that I can't see.
"Can we wait? I like to see the credits."
"Sure." He sits back down and we remain there until the very end. The theater is now empty and soon the workers will be coming in to clean.
"Okay, we can go," I say, getting up.
"Wait." He pulls me back down, and when I look at him, he leans over and kisses me. He rests his hand on my knee as his other hand goes behind my head. His tongue is now sliding over mine and I sink into my seat, those feelings from earlier coming back. The heat. The tingling. The urge to do more.
"You guys need to go," a voice says.
Wes backs away from me and smiles. "Yeah, we're going."
He stands up and I look over and see some guy picking up garbage in the front row. He must be used to finding people kissing in here because he doesn't seem surprised by it. He's not even looking at us.
The lights are on now so I can see but I still like that Wes takes my hand and escorts me out of the theater and to his car.
"I had a great time," I say when he pulls into my driveway ten minutes later.
"I had a spectacular time," he says.
"Spectacular," I say, laughing. "Hardly anyone uses that word."
"They should. It's a good word."
"How about stupendous? Nobody uses that word either, but now that I'm saying it, I don't think I like it. It sounds like 'stupid' which makes it less appealing."
"How about phenomenal? I had a phenomenal time with you tonight, Luna."
"I like it but it's hard to spell."
"I think we could do this all night."
"Come up with words and discuss their merits?"
"Yeah, but since it's late, we should probably save that for another time."
"I agree. If I don't get inside soon, my parents will start flashing the porch lights."
"Maybe they don't know we're out here."
"They do. I saw the curtains move when you pulled up."
"Let me walk you to the door."
"You don't have to," I say, but he's already out of the car.
When we're at the front door, he says, "I want to kiss you but I'm worried your dad is watching."
"I'm sure he is."
"Maybe he'll be okay with this." He leans down and gives me an innocent kiss on the cheek. "Goodnight, Luna."
"Goodnight."
He walks off and I go in the house. My parents are in the living room watching TV.
"How'd it go?" my mom asks.
"Good, but I'm tired. I need to go to bed."
"What'd you guys do?" she asks as I'm walking to my room.
"I'll tell you tomorrow. Goodnight!"
I don't want to tell my parents about my date. They'll ask me a million questions, especially my mom, who will want to know if I had trouble seeing or if I was straining my eyes or if they're hurting or tired. I keep telling her to stop asking me that stuff but she doesn't listen. It makes me mad and I don't want to be mad right now. Because right now, I'm really happy.
Wes is so great. I didn't know guys like him existed. He's definitely one of a kind, and perfect for me. He's quirky and a little geeky, which I like, but also has a cool and confident side, which I find to be really sexy. And he's smart, and I've always wanted to date a smart guy. I've just never met one I'm attracted to. Until now.
How did this happen? How did Wes, my perfect guy, show up at my high school? Out of all the high schools in the country, he ends up at mine? Is the universe playing some kind of cruel joke on me? Here's your perfect guy, Luna, but you'll never have a future with him.
Yeah, that's hilarious. Except it's not.
Chapter Seventeen
"What happened last night?" Stella asks when she calls the next morning.
"We went on a paddleboat, then to dinner and a movie."
"You went to the movies?"
"I didn't trip. Or fall. I held onto Wes and we got to our seat and I was fine."
"That's great! Maybe we could start going to the movies again!"
"Maybe. Anyway, it was a great night. Better than I thought it would be."
"That's so awesome. I knew Wes was the guy for you. I could tell the first time I saw you guys together."
"You're just saying that."
"No, really. You guys just go together. You have the same sense of humor. You both use strange words. And I don't know if he told you this, but Wes is obsessed with Bigfoot. Just like you!"
"I'm not obsessed with Bigfoot."
"You're always looking up stories about him."
"Only because I think it's funny how many people are trying to find him."
"Still, nobody I know cares about Bigfoot, except you and Wes. You two are so perfect together. I really hope this works out."
"It won't, so don't get your hopes up."
"It might. You never know."
"Even if we keep dating, after we graduate he'll go off to college and I'll never see him again."
"What college is he going to?"
"I don't know. I didn't ask. It doesn't matter. If it ends next week, then so be it. At
least I got a few fun dates out of it. So what did you and Sam do last night?"
She tells me about their date. It's no different than what they always do; dinner out then go back to Sam's room and have sex and watch movies the rest of the night. Sam lives with his dad and his dad works the nightshift on Saturdays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays so that's when Sam and Stella do it. I hate that I know this. It's too much information, but she tells me everything, even stuff I don't want to know.
After our call, I take a shower and have breakfast. It's a warm sunny morning so my parents are outside on the deck, reading the paper. As I'm putting my cereal bowl in the dishwasher, my mom comes in the kitchen to get more coffee.
"Are you going to tell me about last night?" she asks with a smile.
"I'd rather not."
"You looked pretty happy when you got home. That must mean you really like Wes."
"It was just one date, Mom. It's nothing serious."
"You went out with him Friday too. You've never gone out with a boy two nights in a row."
"The party doesn't count. That wasn't a date. We just decided to go together. And when we were there, we hung out with Stella and Sam."
She grabs the milk from the fridge and pours it in her coffee. "Are you seeing him today?"
"No. I have to do homework."
She holds her coffee mug in both hands as she looks at me. "You're really not going to tell me anything about last night?"
"Mom." I roll my eyes. "Boundaries, remember?"
She comes over and rubs my arm. "I'm just excited for you, honey."
"I know."
She returns to the deck and I see her saying something to my dad. I'm sure they're talking about me. Sometimes I wish I had brothers and sisters so my parents' attention wasn't always on me.
My phone dings and I see a text from Wes.
Flabbergast. Funny word. Underused. I'm flabbergasted by how much I miss you.
He misses me? He just saw me a few hours ago. But I know how he feels. I miss him too.
I text back, Not sure I like that word. Sounds like flab, which makes me think of blubbery fat. Gross! How about boggle instead?
Boggle. Not bad. But it makes me think of that word game, which I'm terrible at. I can never find the words fast enough.
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