THOSE GOOD TEEN YEARS (Book 1)

Chapter Ten: Dinner

The dinner was good. Really good.

Emma was enjoying herself. This was something that was normal. Ever since Peter and she became best friends, they had been dinner at each others' house. They would sleepover after that, and then enjoy the next morning.

Peter's house was on the same street that Emma's was on: Orange Drive. Because the houses on this street had huge attics, people had nick named it the Attic Corridor. Weird name, but it felt cool. It was just like hers (in structure) though the interiors were obviously different. Peter had been living in Lakeforest since like forever. He knew this place like the back of his hand-the secret paths into Promenade, the backdoor to the Kasy's Supermart (and stealing some chocolate bars). God, those were the times.

When she had come to his house around seven in the evening, it was his sister who had opened the door. Adeline Norman (the name rhymed with Madeline) was a senior, older than them by four years. She was a seriously beautiful girl with curly deep red hair and sea green eyes, and a gracious curvy body. She was very popular, despite not being a blonde, which proved Sienna's point that popular people need not always be blond. She had already gotten into an Ivy League college, and probably didn't have to worry about her grades anymore, but Adeline was into maintaining  a perfect image: perfect body, perfect features, perfect grades and perfect everything.

"Hey, Em! What's up?" she smiled cheerfully. She was nothing but polite to her guests. When Emma compared her with Peter, she wondered how they could be siblings. Peter was a rebel, trouble maker kind of a person, while Addy was not.

"Nothing much, Addy. The usual. Finals coming soon and all, and then I'll be off to high school! Do you think it's a little bit conceited to think like that?"

"Nah, you're gonna love high school! Now I get why mom was making chocolate chip cookies! You love them, don't you? And you probably don't even gain weight from all that. I swear, you're so lucky! Hey, Pete! Em's here! What are you still lolling up there for?"

"Just a minute." Then Peter came out, wiping hs hands on a towel. He looked super cute with his hair all messed up, and when he saw Em, he grinned. The I know I look cute grin. Emma's heart beat faster. Now that she knew that he had feelings for her, and she had feelings for him, it happened a lot whenever she was around him. It kep going Pe-ter Pe-ter Pe-ter.

Her cheeks grew warm, and she knew she was blushing. Then she also noticed Addy watching her with raised eyebrows. Damn. No doubt she had probably guessed what was going on.

"Come on, then, let's eat. What did you do last night?" He asked.

"Nothing much really. What about you? What were you doing now?"

"Getting the prints ready. Gotta have a book full of memories." Then he winked.

Oh. Right. One of his many amazing talents was photography, and Peter was really good at it. He was the group photgrapher, and sometimes also the school's unofficial Photographer. Seriously, could this guy be anymore awesome?

He would have been awesome as my boyfriend, she thought longingly.

They all sat on the table, and Mrs. Norman came out of the kitchen with a steaming dish in her hands. She was really pretty. She had wavy red hair, but bright blue eyes. Mr. Norman was already seated, and gave Emma a warm smile. Apart from his french beard, he looked an exact copy of Peter, or Peter was a copy of him, whichever. He had the same black hair (neatly cut, though) and sea green eyes. Green eyes seemed to run like water in the Norman family. Something about his smile reminded her of Ali, for no reason. Weird.

"Emma! Darlin', you're getting prettier by the day! Really, I can see why Peter talks about you so much." he wiggled his eyebrows playfully. Both Emma and Peter blushed. Seriously? He talks about me? She thought giddily.

"Dad! Seriously, can it on the jokes now, OK? I don't talk about you all the time." he clarified to her. He was still blushing, and all the other Normans were smiling silently. Really, couldn't  Peter see that it was totally obvious that he had a crush on her? God. Even stupidity had a level.

The dinner got quiet, and then Mrs. Norman (her name was Jean) asked her about school and such, and by ten, dinner was over, and Emma felt really good. As she was leaving, Addy asked to see her privately in the lounge.

"So..Em...do you believe you have a chance?"

"A chance with what?"

"I was there, so don't deny it. You like my brother, and he likes you, but like all idiot boys, he's not gonna admit it. Do you believe that you have a chance with him?"

Emma thought about it. It was absolutely ridiculous to think that a jock like Peter would ever fall for a nerd like Emma. But a wild hope was there in her; it happened in the movies, and yeah, if she thought about it, it happened with her parents, though the roles had been reversed: her dad had been the nerd and her mom had been the pretty cheerleader.

"Yeah..I think so...I mean, I'm not good looking enough for him, and he'll-"

"Not good looking enough? Are you kidding me? If you looked at yourself from someone else's point of view, you'd know. Em, you are very pretty. Deny it all you want. And I think it's a cliched view that jocks date only pretty girls. It's love that matters, not looks. All I'm saying is, don't give up on him just because he doesn't respond. He's kind of...slow to be outgoing about his feelings, see? And no matter how much he stays quiet about it, don't give up, ok? Promise me."

Emma nodded, because the feeling of hope rose in her chest. She wouldn't give up on him. And she would do everything to have him as hers.

Maybe it was time to get the girls' help.