The Price of Friday Nights

nine

"Sunday Morning rain was falling..." I jammed out to some Maroon 5 as I got ready to start my day. I grabbed my brush and bounced around the room like a lunatic belting out the lyrics at the top of my lungs and dancing like I was in front of a stadium full of fans.

Why am I doing this you ask? Just because it's fun and it's a Sunday free from homework, which is definitely not something that happens regularly.

After Mel and Amy's constant matchmaking fails at the barbecue yesterday, I felt that I needed a well deserved break from everyone who was there trying to set me up with Tyler. I mean, he was definitely cute, but he wasn't special. He was just like all the egotistical football players I'd grown to hate back in Florida, so why try now?

I grabbed a light blue romper from my closet and threw it on, before walking out of my room to the kitchen.

The house was already bursting with activity at 9 am which took me by surprise. Sammy was up watching his Sunday cartoons and Mom was getting ready to head to work for an extra shift in the ER.

"Sammy!" I hollered down the stairs, "What do you want to do today? I'll take you anywhere!"

There was a brief pause and silence as he turned down his cartoons and thought carefully. After a couple seconds passed, he replied jubilantly, "Let's go to the zoo!"

***

We arrived at the zoo in record time, with my speedy but safe driving. Sammy was ecstatic to be at the zoo, and I'm not going to lie, so was I. I definitely felt like a five year old on a sugar high.

"Come on Sammers, which animal do you want to see first?" I said as I grabbed his hand and dragged him across the park. 

"I want to see the giraffes!!" He yelled with his eyes shimmering in the light. I beamed at my little brothers excitement and jogged with him to the area where the giraffes were.

"Hello, I'm Jeff." The man standing next to the giraffes greeted us as we walked into the exhibit. I reached out to shake his hand and instead of shaking it back, he replaced it with a bundle of carrots. I looked at him confused and tilted my head to one side, questioning his motives.

Wait, was this weird but attractive man giving me carrots as a sign of flirtation?

"Excuse me miss, but it looks like your brother wants to feed the giraffes too. If you would just step to the side so we can keep the line going?" Jeff said politely with a smile, snapping me out of my ridiculous train of thought and causing me to look behind me at the line that had begun forming. I blushed at my lack of thought and moved out of the way. I swear have the weirdest mind sometimes.

I took the bundle of carrots and split them into two piles, and gave the second half to my brother. 

"Just put it in his mouth Sammy, it's easy. I promise!" I whispered to him.

"WHY DON'T YOU DO IT FIRST!" Sammy yelled back, frightened.

"No, I want you to do it first. I've done this before, you haven't kiddo!" I laughed, "It's life experiences."

"But what if he chomps my entire hand off, or what if I accidentally get stuck onto him, and get tossed up in the air, what if-" He stammered eyes wide open.

"It's okay kid, he'll just throw you all the way to where the hippo's sleep. Hopefully you'll land in mud, or if not, their backs." Jeff said as he overheard our conversation. I tried hard to contain my laughter as I watched my little brother look back and forth between Jeff and the giraffe.

"Maddy, can you feed it with me, so you can save me before anything happens?" Sammy pleaded with his eyes wide in his famous puppy dog face.

Just as I was about respond to him, a little girl about the same age as him came sprinting over at full speed nearly toppling him over.

"HI! I'm Amanda, I'm six years old and I love long walks on the beach and sunsets. Who are you?" She said extending her arm in a handshake position, startling both Sammy and I.

Sammy looked at me in a who-the-heck-is-she kind of look, so I took the initiative to introduce myself first. 

"Hi, I'm Madeline. It's very nice to meet you Amanda, and this is my little brother Sammy." I said nodding my head over to where Sammy stood with his eyes downcast and blushing slightly.

"Hi Madeline, may I take Sammy to see the monkeys?" She asked in the cutest voice in the world. I smiled at her and nodded my head, giving her the okay to drag my brother to another exhibit just a couple meters away from us.

I was so preoccupied with watching the two skip off into the distance, that I didn't notice the extremely good-looking guy standing right next to me. 

"Hey, I'm Parker. I'm sorry my little sister can be over-bearing and cute all at one time... It really throws me off too." He chuckled as he extended a hand to greet me.

"She's definitely a ball of sunshine that one!" I replied smiling back at him as I reached out to shake his hand firmly.

He's got really nice hands...

"So have I seen you around here before? I don't think I have?" He asked me with his eyebrows slightly raised.

"No, I just moved here from Florida about a couple weeks ago!" I replied.

"Oh that's why! I've grown up here so I know most of the people around, so I was confused to see an unfamiliar face!" He clarified to me as he pulled out his phone. 

I looked down at his hands wondering what he was doing. Maybe he was going to ask for my number? Or was that too soon... I waited in slight anticipation before he tapped on the camera app and snapped a couple shots of Sammy and Amy in a tight embrace. I cringed at my thoughts once again, as I misinterpreted yet another action.

Second misinterpretation today... I'm really on a roll.

"While I have my phone out, maybe I could get your number? I mean Amanda seems to really like your brother, so maybe we could do a playdate kind of thing together?" He asked me, flashing his pearly white teeth in my direction. SCORE for Mads!

I grabbed the phone from his outstretched hand and typed in my contact information before putting it back in his hands. 

"I hope I'll hear from you soon." I lamely replied, cursing at myself for my embarrassing response.

He seemed pretty unfazed by my blunder and continued to talk to me like we had been friends for years. After hours spent on feeding the giraffes, eating cotton candy, and browsing the store for safari hats, Parker and I had become fast friends in the short amount of time knowing each other.

As the day flew by, the more and more exhausted I felt. And with me, when the exhaustion hits, my thoughts take me far away.

It was weird that although we had just met Parker and Amy, I couldn't shake the feeling that I knew them from somewhere. They just looked very familiar to me.

______________________________________________________________________________

A/N:
Hi beautiful people!
I'm so sorry for not updating for so long! One, I haven't had the motivation (whoops) I'm a lazy ass for sure... and two I just got home from cheer camp so I've been sick at home trying to catch up on work before school starts up again :((
AH SCHOOL DAMN.

Also sorry this is so short, but I wanted to introduce Parker and Amy to you all :)

Anyways, I hope you enjoy this chapter, it's short but sweet!
As always, comment, vote, love, promote!

See ya next chapter!

xo. Nikki