Touch Me

Time

I fixed my hair in the mirror, spending what felt like hours making sure I looked presentable before I even thought about leaving. I grabbed the small bunch of flowers I had picked, and locked my door, climbing out my window. I texted Kevin and he met me outside my house, walking me all the way up his front steps

"You ready?" He asked as we reached his door

"Yeah.." I smiled nervously.

He put his hand on my back

"Don't be nervous, okay? You'll do great."

I nodded as he knocked on the door before opening it

"Mom?" He called out as we entered

His mother walked into the room, smiling ear to ear. She had the exact same smile as Kevin.
I saw the flowers I had already given him, displayed in a vase in the dining room.

"Hi, boys!" she cheered as she gave Kevin a hug, before turning to me.

"You must be Connor!"

"Yes, hi, that's me! It's so nice to meet you!" I smiled and reached my hand out to shake hers.

She rejected my handshake, pulling me into the same tight hug she granted Kevin, instead.

"Oh- hi! These uh.. These are for you, as a little 'thank you' for inviting me over." I laughed, offering out the now crushed flowers I had brought

"Oh, thank you! How sweet... Come on in, kids, dinner's ready." She replied, leading us to the table, where there were already plates of food. I sat down next to Kevin, looking at him every now and again for reassurance.

"So when did you and Kevin meet?"

"Um, We met when I first transferred to this school, back in September" I made a conscious effort to smile the entire time, but it probably came across as a bit weird, in retrospect. We carried on the conversation as I picked at my food. I was barely eating, and they were both starting to notice. I ate more than I could so I didn't seem rude, but I was already feeling nauseous from eating so much. There was only so much more I could force down.

After around twenty minutes of choking down more than I could handle, I knew I was going to be sick.

"I'm sorry, is there- is there a bathroom I could use?" I asked, trying to hide my slight panic.

"Yes, just down the hall, there."

"Thank you." I stood up pushing my chair in and walking quickly to the bathroom.

I ran the faucet so they wouldn't hear me vomiting. Afterward, I cleaned up, wiping the seat down just in case I had gotten any on there. I flushed the toilet and washed my hands, swishing some water in my mouth so I didn't have foul breath. I left the bathroom after making sure I hadn't left a trace, and sat back at the table, as if nothing had happened.

"You alright?" Kevin whispered as I returned to my seat

I nodded and gave a convincing smile, before returning to the conversation we were previously having. Nearly an hour later we decided that it was time to end the night.

"Thank you so much for the dinner, Mrs. Price, it was fantastic!"

"Thank you for coming! You come over any time, Sweetheart, you're always welcome here, okay?" Mrs Price gave me another hug goodbye

"Yes, Ma'am.. have a nice night!" I stepped out the door, with Kevin's hand on my shoulder

"You, too!"

Kevin closed the door behind us, and I swiftly turned to him

"I did it!" I giggled, pulling him into a hug

"You did great, Connor. I'm very proud of you." he smiled, hugging me back with one arm.

"I can't believe I did it!"

"I can! I knew you could do it."

"Do you think you mom likes me?"

"I'm sure of it. She liked you before she even met you."

"I was terrified she wouldn't like me."

"Why wouldn't she? You're extraordinary."

"I just thought maybe I'd say something wrong or mess it up somehow.. I'm glad I didn't"

"Well, you did fantastic, Connor."

We kept walking, making little remarks every now and again.

"..so I'm guessing you got sick?" He added in after a few moments of silence

"..Huh?"

"You ate almost everything on that plate. I haven't seen you keep down more than a few bites.. I could hear the water running, so I assume that you.. were sick."

"You noticed..."

"Of course I did. I haven't seen you eat even half of how much you ate, as long as I've known you"

"Yeah.. I tried to keep it down, but I couldn't. I'm sorry.."

"Don't apologize. You're trying and that's what's important, you can't control your stomach"

"Thank you, Kev" I replied as we reached my house

"Alright, drink some water and get some sleep, can you do that for me?"

I nodded

"Okay.. Thank you for having me over, I had a lot of fun.. Your mom is really sweet."

"I had fun too. Now, go on, get some rest, Sunshine." He smiled

"Alright. Love you." I kissed him on the cheek

"Love you too." He replied, starting back to his house. I climbed back through my window, sitting down on my bed.

This was the nicest day I've had in a long time. I went into the bathroom to wash up, after some time to wind down, and looked in the mirror. I looked just as shitty as I looked earlier. I still had dark bags under my eyes and looked sickly as hell. That's why I thought she wouldn't like me. I look like a drug addict of some sort.

She didn't seem to notice. But she was probably just pretending not to. She was nice enough not to mention it, or even react. I took off my shoes and tie before rolling into bed, trying not to let the way I looked bring me down from the lovely night. I didn't bother turning off the lights, burying my face in the mattress instead. I was on the verge of finally falling asleep, but was interrupted by my father, yelling up the stairs to me.

"What is it?" I called back to him

"Get your ass down here!"

I huffed and climbed out of bed, reluctantly heading down the stairs. I was met by my father, holding my phone. Shit. How did he even get his hands on it?

He had my texts with Kevin open. Instinctually, I started to back up the stairs, knowing what was coming. But as I took a step back he immediately grabbed me by my shirt collar, making me fall back down the stairwell. He pulled me back up to meet his face.

"I thought I told you what would happen if I caught you talking to that boy again"

"I'm so sorry..." I knew apologizing would do nothing but make it worse, considering that's what I tell him every time. But what else could I do? "I-I shouldn't have spoken to him, I know, just please, don't hit me.." I begged

He picked up a half-empty beer bottle, shattering it on my left shoulder. I cried out in pain, small shards of glass piercing and embedding themselves in my skin. My eyes began to well with tears, blood soaking through my white shirt.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry!" I sobbed

"Why didn't you listen when I told you the first time!?" He gained volume "you never fucking listen!"

"I-I couldn't help it! I can't- I can't change the way I feel! I tried! I tried so hard, Dad..!"

This made him angrier than I've ever seen him. He picked me up by neck again, slamming me into the wall as hard as he could

"You're gonna fuckin' have to change it! Or I will!" He shouted before I fell unconscious from my head hitting the wall with so much force.