Obscure

thirteen

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" Tabatha groaned from the depths of her bed, a mountain of covers shielding her from the light that flooded the room. Sophie ignored her and rushed to the dresser. She squatted down and started to rummage through her drawers. Tabatha shifted around on the bed, her sleepy gaze flickering toward her alarm clock before it landed on Sophie. She scowled. "It's like ten in the morning, on a Saturday." 

"Relax," Sophie muttered under her breath, distractedly. "I'll be done in just a minute." 

Tabatha groaned again and rubbed at her eyes. She sat up, her blanket fortress slowly falling around her waist in a bunched up bundle. She yawned and watched Sophie curiously. "Does this have anything to do with what Eli said last night?" 

Sophie flinched. 

She hadn't told Tabatha about the date. She didn't want her to get the wrong idea. She figured that the quicker she got it over with, the quicker Eli would move on and leave her alone. 

"Well?" 

"Yeah, kind of," Sophie responded shortly. Her lips twisted into a scowl when she realized she'd reached the end of her pile of clean clothes. She carefully began to pull them out to do a more thorough search. 

Tabatha sighed. "What are you looking for?" 

Sophie pressed her lips into a firm line. She eased down onto her butt and crossed her legs in front of her. She scratched at the back of her head and glanced around at the clothes strewn about on the floor around her. "I used to have this shirt," she started to explain. It was her date shirt. It was this cute little frilly thing that made her feel super girly and stylish. The only time she ever wore it was if she was going on a date. 

Then a realization slammed into Sophie full force. 

"What the hell am I doing?" Sophie groaned, and almost smacked herself in the face in her frustration. Looking cute would only attract Eli more. That was the absolute opposite of what she wanted to happen. Sophie's gaze scanned over her clothes. 

Tabatha arched an eyebrow. "I'm trying to figure that out as well." 

Sophie sighed. Tabatha could probably help her pick out the right clothes needed to successfully operate this mission. "I have a date," she blurted out before she could stop herself. Tabatha's eyes grew wider than the moon. She opened her mouth to respond, but Sophie spoke before she could manage to get a word out. "I want to look like a frump." 

Tabatha blinked. "A frump?"

"Yes," Sophie said, and nodded her head. "I want to scare this guy away by looking like a frump." 

Tabatha remained quiet for a few moments. Her gaze flickered over the clothes that surrounded Sophie, and her lips pressed into a firm line. "Can I ask who the guy is?"

Sophie just stared at her. 

Tabatha perked up. "Eli?"

Sophie twitched. "Don't say it out loud. It's weird." She frowned and skimmed through her clothing again. She didn't really have anything frumpy; just a pair of yoga pants and some old t-shirts. She held up the yoga pants and stared at them with uncertainty. The pants were pretty tight, and she'd read somewhere that guys found them pretty hot. 

"Why do you have to look like a frump?" Tabatha leaned forward with interest. "You can scare him away and still look like a smoking hot babe." 

Sophie grimaced. "I don't want to attract him at all though. It's bad enough he's inserted himself into all my classes." She sighed. It's not that she didn't like Eli. He could be quite charming when he wanted to be, and she did get along with him just fine. It's just that she didn't like the way he seemed to be trying to force their relationship. It was moving too fast for her taste. 

Tabatha climbed out of bed. The two hovered over the mounds of clothing --Tabatha's now included-- until they both agreed on a slightly frumpy outfit that seemed to ooze with boredom and disinterest. Sophie dressed and completed the look with a simple pony tail. She kept her face makeup free. 

"Are you sure about this?" Tabatha asked as Sophie started toward the door. She stroked her chin with thought. "What if you end up falling for him?" 

Sophie shook her head. "I don't fall. I slowly tumble." 

Tabatha rolled her eyes. "He's really not that bad, you know."

"I know," Sophie said. She smiled slightly at Tabatha as she neared the door, her purse in hand. "I just don't think he's the right one for me. At least not right now." 

A knock suddenly sounded and Sophie jumped away from the door like a startled cat, her eyes wide. She hesitated, her fingers curled around the doorknob, and glanced at Tabatha. The door wasn't exactly paper-thin, but it wasn't a boulder either. Anyone who had been standing behind it for too long might have overheard bits of their conversation. Tabatha's eyes were wide, her lips pressed into  firm line. Sophie sighed and opened the door. She blinked at the person who stood on the other side. It was just as she'd feared. Eli smiled slightly at her. His smile didn't quite reach his eyes. 

"Ready?" he asked. 

"Yeah," Sophie said, her voice soft. Her stomach churned. She felt horrible; as much as she didn't want to go on the date with him, she still didn't want to break his heart. She'd hoped that, with a little help from her side, that the date wouldn't be as amazing as he hoped, and that his crush would fizzle out naturally. 

Sophie awkwardly held up her purse, as if to show him that she was on her way out the door already. "Let's go. I'll see you later Tabatha." 

Tabatha bid her goodbyes and Sophie closed the door behind her. Eli shoved his hands into his pockets and the duo strolled down the hall, toward the main entrance. "I hope you like video games," he commented. 

Sophie blinked with surprise and glanced at him from the corners of her eyes. "Video games?"

He smiled wiry and hummed, "You'll see."

She rolled her eyes. "Oh boy."