English Is Flammable (Student/Teacher)

Chapter 4

Dani and I spent the next few days getting our nails done, shopping, screwing around with different restaurants, complaining about different celebrities and their petty problems, and of course talking about Will.  We are good at this.  

“Dani, I don’t think he’s gonna call.  It’s been three days...”  I said a little sadly.  I really did like him.  

“Don’t say that!  You’re hot shit, who wouldn’t call you?!”  Dani replied, trying to lift my disappointed spirits.

(Will’s Point of View)

“Just call her, man.  What’s the worst thing she can say?  No?”  Bryan asked tiredly.  

“Exactly!  That is exactly what she could say!”  I responded loudly.  How could he not get this?

“Dude, come on, we’ve been going at this for over an hour.  Either you’re going to call her, or you’re not.  You know what, I’m going to call her for you.”  Bryan said exasperatedly, as he reached for my phone.  

“You wouldn’t.”  I said fearfully, pulling my phone a little farther away.

“Wanna bet?”  He said, quickly retreating.  He scrolled through my contacts until he found her name.  

“Bry, come on, don’t do this.”  I begged, trying to grab my phone from him.     

“No, you need to do this.  I’m sick and tired of listening to you whine about how pretty she was, how smart she was, how much you liked her, and all that shit.  It’s getting old.  Half the reason I’m calling her is because I’m hoping she rejects you.  That way you can eat some ice cream, cry about it, and be done.”  Bryan said seriously.  “We’re doing this.  Now, do you want me to press the ‘call’ button?”  

“Yes, please.”  I said quietly.  He pressed ‘call’ and put the phone on speaker.

(Shay’s Point of View)

It rang.  

“Shit!  Do you think it’s... Shit!”  I yelled.  Was it Will?  Was it some solicitor?  Who is it?

“Oh my God, it’s him, it must be!!!  Why are you sitting there?  Answer the fucking phone!!!”  Dani yelled into my ear, trying to grab my phone.

“I...I I can’t.”  I said quietly.  What is wrong with me.  I’ve done this more than enough times, what changed?  All of a sudden, I felt Dani’s full weight, all 130 pounds of it, land on me.  She ripped my phone out of my hands.  

“Alright on the count of 3.  1...2...3!”  She touched the answer button that was lit up on my phone’s screen and put it on speaker.  

(Will’s Point of View)

 She answered on the fourth ring.  

“Hello?”  She said.  I missed her voice.  Wow, if this is where I am after spending less than two hours with her, imagine what a few days could do to me.

(Shay’s Point of View)

“Uh... Hi...It’s Will... From the-”  He said.  I missed his voice.  Wait, I spent maybe two hours with him, maybe.  I don’t even want to think about what could happen after a few days...

“-From the beach.  I remember.”  I responded a little calmer.  

“Good.  I was wondering if you maybe wanted to go out for coffee, or lunch or maybe see a movie... with me?”  He asked shyly.  He was too cute.  Dani was starting to squeal, so I covered her mouth with my hand.  

“Coffee sounds great.”  I said warmly.  Dani bit my hand.  Hard.  “Ow!  Fuck!”

“W..W what?”  He asked nervously.  I cradled my hand and examined it.  She drew blood!

“My friend just bit me.”  I responded.  Then I realized how that must sound.  “Wait, it was-”  I started right before he cut me off.  

“Dani.  Can she hear me?”  He asked.

    “Yes!”  Dani responded for me.  “I was also the one to answer the phone.”  She announced proudly.  

“Hi, Dani!”  Said another male voice.  This was getting interesting.  

“Who is that?”  I asked, confused.

“That was Bryan, my best friend since first grade.”  Will responded tiredly.  

“Bryan who had the balls to call you!”  Bryan announced loudly.

“I say we make a break for it.”  I said seriously.  

“Alright, ready, set, go!”  With that I sprang up from my bed and into my ensuite bathroom.  I locked the door behind me and caught my breath.  Dani started banging on the door.  

“That’s it, Marie April Shay, open the fucking door!”  Dani yelled.  I knew she was mad because she only used my full name when she was mad at me.  

“Marie April?”  Will asked curiously.

“My real name is Marie April Shay, but I don’t like Marie and April never really stuck so now I go by Shay.”  I explained.  

“Oh, I don’t think Marie’s that bad, you’re too beautiful to be an April though.”  He said sweetly.  

“Thank you.”  I said shyly.  “So... Coffee?”  I asked.

“Yeah, I was thinking we could try this little cafe I saw a couple days ago.  I haven’t been yet so I was thinking it’d be a good place.”  He said.  I heard a pounding on his side of the phone.  

“That sounds great.  Where and when?”  I asked.

“How about tomorrow?  Maybe I could pick you up?”  He asked.

“Sure.  Maybe 10:30?”  I asked.

“That was what I was thinking.”  He responded.  

“I live on 112 Alamo.  Know where it is?”  I asked him.

“Yeah.  I live a street over on Larkin.”  He said back.  Funny I’ve never seen him before.  

“Really?  Are you new in town?”  I asked.

“Relatively.  I moved at the beginning of the summer.  I start a new job nearby at the end of August.”  He said.

“That’s cool.  Wow, I ask a lot of questions.  I’ve got to go.  Dani’s about to break down my bathroom door and my dad’s not going to pay to get that fixed for a second time.”  I responded, laughing.  

“Wow, she’s already done that once?  I’ll let you go.  See you tomorrow at 10:30.”  He said, also laughing.  

“Alright, bye.”  I said, sad that we were already hanging up.

(Will’s Point of View)

“Bye.”  I hung up the phone with the stupidest grin on my face as I opened the bathroom door.  

“So?”  Bryan asked.

“She said yes!!!”

(The song is Say You Like Me by We The Kings because it kind of describes how Will and Shay are feeling about each other)