Spin The Bottle

45 | I Miss Him

Is she about to come down with something?
Could it be Karma paying her back for lying to Luke?

Her conscience is still eating at her for doing that. She decides to call Brooke. She doesn't think she can bottle up how she feels anymore. The lid is about to burst open and she feels like she'll won't be able to take it so she decides to tell her best friend.

They do say a problem shared is a problem half solved.

She gets her phone, turn around on her bed, dialing Brooke's number and putting the phone to her ear. Brooke answers on the first ring as if she has been patiently waiting for her to call.

"Hey, baby girl! How was your date?" Brooke's chirpy voice says.

Steph has told her to stop calling her that but Brooke being the stubborn girl that she is, hasn't stopped. Steph feels like saying it again but she just sighs, allowing it to slide.

"It was good."

"Just good? Did you guys kiss?"

Steph stays silent for a moment after that question.

"Hello? You still there?" Brooke yells into the phone.

Steph pulls the phone away from her ear as she winces. "Geez! Can your voice get any louder?"

She hears Brooke laugh. "Sorry. Wait, are you okay, Steph?"

"I'm fine."

"You didn't answer my question," Brooke deadpans.

"We didn't kiss. Well, he kissed me on the cheek not the lips and honestly....." Steph trails off, dreading Brooke's reaction to what she's about to say next.

"What?"

"I didn't want him to kiss me on the lips. I was mentally panicking when I thought he was about to," Steph admits.

"Why? I thought it's something you've been dreaming about since you started to like him?"

"Yes, B. It is... well, was. I don't even know what's wrong with me," Steph groans in a frustrated tone.

"Steph, I need you to calm down and take a deep breath. What the hell is going on? How are you feeling?"

"I don't exactly know what or how I'm feeling, B. All I know is that since Chris confessed his feelings to me, I haven't been able to get my mind off it," Steph reveals.

Brooke lets out a breath from the other line. "You still think he was lying....."

"I don't want to," Steph cuts in. "I really don't want to but part of me still does."

"What part?"

"Like 5% of me believes he was just kidding."

"And the other 95%?" Brooke questions, obviously smiling.

"Wants to believe him. I just need to talk to him, B. I need to know."

"You should talk to him."

"I haven't been able to get my mind off it no matter how hard I try. I've been thinking about it and him all week. The fact that he's avoiding me is only making things worse for me. I don't even want to imagine how awkward it would have been with him if I babysat Emily this week. He doesn't even sit beside me in class anymore. I lied to Luke during our dinner date because I just wanted to leave. I didn't think it was fair that I was on a date with him and yet I was thinking about another guy. It's frustrating, you know. He doesn't have the right to do that. He just said all those stuff and disappeared. I feel like I'm going insane thinking about it and the worst part of all this is that......I miss him."