Ride (h.s)

15

Jane

A few more days had passed and our class had been canceled on Tuesday so I decided to go work at the library. After we closed for the night I stayed behind printing labels for new books. When I was finished I vacuumed the whole library and then I cleaned all of the tables.

My phone began ringing and when I looked at the number it was Harry. "Hello?" I answered.

"Hi baby, what are you doing?" His voice was raspy.

"Just cleaning up, I had kids in here all afternoon for this reading challenge we have every month. Then the book club was here too. It was just crazy today." I explained.

"Oh I'm sorry, do you need help with anything?" I was almost done so I didn't need any help, but I still wanted to see him.

"No, but I'm about to go home if you want to go out?" I walked back over to the front desk getting my keys and my bag. "It's still early."

"What could we do at eight at night?" He asked more to himself. "How about you come over and- wait have you eaten yet?"

I looked over at a bag of chips I had been snacking on. "No?"

"I'll make you dinner, you come over and we'll eat together hmm?" I figured that over dinner I could ask him some questions that have been bothering me the last few days.

"Okay, I'll be over in about twenty minutes." When we hung up I took a deep breath. I decided to head home first and change out of my heels into something more comfortable. My parents were in the garage when I got there. My dad fixing his old truck and my mom ironing to keep him company. "Hey." I walked in. "I'm home, but I'm gonna head over to Harry's in a little while."

"Have fun kid, but not too much." My dad said from underneath the car. I rolled my eyes and went into the house. I was brushing out my hair when my mom walked in, sitting on the edge of my bed.

"Sweet pea, I'm going to ask you something and it's going to stay between us, this time I promise not to tell anyone." She put her hand up to promise me. "Have you and Harry- are you having sex?"

I turned to look at her, as comfortable I am with my mom, it was weird to talk about stuff like this with her. "No, we haven't, I don't think I'm ready yet," I admitted.

"Okay, well if you ever need to talk I'm here for a reason." She shrugged.

Nothing beat my mom's advice so I decided to ask her something. "Mom?" She looked up at me. I took a seat next to her and hesitated before speaking. "Harry's great, but he's had some trouble in the past. How do I ask him about that without bringing up bad memories?"

"You can't, honey you just have to ask him. Holden told me about your little spat with him the day he left. Getting to know someone means you bring up the good and the bad." She patted my head and I knew I was going to have to ask him what was killing me to ask him.

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Harry had made grilled cheese. His cheeks blushed when he said he didn't really know how to make anything else. "I can make spaghetti, but I don't have any noodles." He confessed.

"It was good, thank you." I reached over to hold his hand. He pulled me up out of my seat to sit on his lap, holding me close, putting his arms around my waist. He put his head on my back and kissed my exposed skin from my shirt. I giggled and he did it again. "That tickles." He did it again making me squirm. "Stop I'm really ticklish." I giggled.

He chuckled."Oh, baby, you shouldn't have told me that." Before I could do anything he had picked me up throwing me over his shoulder. He walked all the way to his room where I began laughing as he playfully threw me on his bed tickling my sides. I squirmed away making him laugh. "Get back here." I giggled rolling off the bed to my feet.