Geek Facade

Three: Conversation Starters

After six mind-numbing rounds of card games, I had been sufficiently initiated as one of 'the crew'. The beer had been flowing all night, apparently, and they were all knee-deep into Tipsyville. I was barely halfway through my first beer, since I wasn't a big fan of alcohol. Throughout our rounds of poker and gin rummy, Xander had remained in his corner, seemingly oblivious to the outside world. Occasionally, I'd look over and catch him watching me, though he'd always look away once my gaze had locked onto his.

"Soooooph, let's play strip pokerrrr," Ash slurs, waving a handful of cards at me with a smile that would be suggestive if it weren't for his glazed and slightly cock-eyed expression.

"Strip poker, yeaaaah babyyyyy," Ana giggles and waves her beer bottle around, swaying slightly in her seat.

I think I'm gonna sit this round out, guys," I scoot forward on the sofa to stand up. "But you guys can continue playing. Just no nudity, okay?"

"You're no fun, Soph," Leo pouts from beside me. His eyes are a little glazed, but nothing else suggests that he's as intoxicated as his friends are. But then again, he's always been able to hold his alcohol well. "Just a teensy teensy bit of skin?" He pinches his thumb and forefinger close together, and knits his brows together in a pleading expression as he looks up at me, his head cocked sideways like a puppy. 

"No nudity," Tom growls, sounding relatively sober. "Cas is for my eyes only."

"Are you saying that I'm gonna lose, baby?" Casaundra, or Cas as she told me to call her, scowls prettily up at her boyfriend.

"Everyone loses in strip poker, hun." Tom kisses her chastely.

I leave the ongoing argument, and wander over to Xander's corner. He watches me get closer, his shoulders stiffening up and his eyes becoming more and more guarded. "Hi." I say, at a loss for words as I get lost in his beautiful eyes again. Even with his walls up, he still draws me in, catches me breathless.

He looks up at me, a ghost of a grimace passing over his face. For a long moment, he stares at me, and I'm only vaguely aware that the argument behind me has increased in volume. "Hi." He finally replies, in a smooth, low baritone.

"Do you mind if I sit?" I gesture at the chair in front of me hesitantly, noting that he's been doing work. 

"Um..." He eyes the chair, then looks back up at me, and repeats the movement several times.

"It's okay if you're uncomfortable. Never mind, then," I smile softly at him, keeping my own emotions in check, and turn to walk  away. I force myself to walk back towards the rest of the group, but I've barely crossed half the distance before I feel a hand close around my wrist. I turn back around, meeting Xander's unsure gaze. It seems as though there is still some internal debate going on behind his eyes, and I wait for him to speak, giving him an out.

"Stay, please." He pulls me back towards the table, and I obediently follow him over. He pulls the chair out for me to sit.

"Xander?" I call softly, afraid he's going to go back to silence now that I'm in his bubble. He looks at me quickly, his expression blank. I smile gently, making sure my expression is sincere and open. "Thank you." He nods once and ducks his head quickly, staring at his lap. I take a moment to look over the work he's doing. "What are you majoring in? This stuff is pretty deep," I observe. 

He quickly grabs the papers, and shuffles them into a messy pile. I wince. The level of complication of whatever he's working on is definitely not general degree-level; he'll be regretting shuffling those papers randomly later on when he has to sequence them together again. "I'm a physics major," he mutters.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have looked." I apologise, unsure of what the heck I'm doing here.

"No, no," he looks up at me, slightly panicked. "No, it's not you. I-I just-" he forces himself to stop and take a deep breath. "It's not finished yet," he finishes lamely.

"Oh, okay." I smile at him, taking no offence. "Um, so, where are you from?"

"New York." He pauses. "What about you?" He asks shyly.

I laugh, softly, so I don't scare him off. "I'm from Los Angeles; I'm neighbours with Lionel back home, actually." I thought they were in the same group? Wouldn't he know this already?

"Oh, right." HE rubs the back of his neck awkwardly, then looks up and asks with an intensity that takes me by surprise, "Is he your boyfriend?"

I laugh, caught off guard. "Lionel? No! Oh no, is that what he's been telling you guys?" I ramble, unable to stop myself. "Leo is my best friend, my big brother, nothing more."

He nods once, slowly. "But he likes you as more than a friend."

I shake my head. "He used to; it was nothing more than a crush. But he likes someone else now."

"What about you?" He's completely serious, completely engaged in the conversation. Even when there's a burst of laughter coming from the cluster of couches, he doesn't blink or look over. His brown pools of chocolate bore into mine, soft yet penetrating.

I laugh nervously. "What about me?"

"Do you like someone else?" It's so easy to get lost in his gaze; it's like we're the only two people in the room.

"N-no." I shake my head.

"Why not?" He leans closer to me, bridging the gap between us, and  I catch a hint of minty breath.

"Invalid answer. Why not?" His face is mere inches away from mine, and as his minty exhalations wash over my face, I inhale greedily.

"I haven't found the right person yet, I guess," I say breathlessly, slightly dizzy, and he pulls away suddenly. No! Come back!

"Right." He says tonelessly, quietly.

"What about you?" I venture timidly.

His eyes meet mine. "What about me? I'm a nerd, Sophia. Haven't you noticed that I don't even socialise with people I call my friends? What could you possibly ask me about romance?"

I steel my courage, and reach up to remove his glasses. He freezes, sitting there stiffly as I slid the black-framed spectacles off. "You're a beautiful, beautiful boy underneath the glasses, Xander," I say softly.

He looks away uncomfortably. "No part of me is beautiful, Sophia. You shouldn't be associating with me. I'm a nerd, and you're- you're gorgeous," he mumbles the last part, looking down at his lap.

My heart swells at the sincere compliment, but my ego doesn't need more inflating; I need to reassure him now. I put his glasses on the table, and place a hand on his forearm. "You are absolutely beautiful, Xander. I promise. Both inside and outside. And I'm a nerd, too. Why else would I be with my older brother on a Friday night, instead of being out with friends?" I grin wryly. "I came to college determined to turn over a new leaf and be more social; instead, already on the first week I was so worried about keeping up in class that I completely forgot about making friends." I sigh.

He's silent for a beat. Then, "Well, you have friends here now."

His words spread warmth in my chest, and I grin at him. "Yeah, I guess I do."

A/N: Sorry for the long wait, writer's block struck. Comment for more! I'm a little lost on how to continue this story, honestly. PM me with ideas, if you've got 'em.