Eddie pulled his boots off once we got inside, nervously stumbling over his feet as we walked to the kitchen. My parents were laughing together, teasing each other as they cooked. Eddie was close behind me as we got to the kitchen.
"Hey, guys – my friend, Eddie, is here," I announced. My parents turned to us, beaming.
"Welcome, Eddie!" my dad greeted, wiping his hands as he crossed to Eddie. They shook hands and Eddie was as nervous as he was when he learned who my dad was.
"Hi, Mr. Patterson, h-how are you sir?"
"Very well – do you like pasta?"
"I like anything!" Eddie insisted enthusiastically. This made my parents laugh and my mom came over to us as well.
"Well, that's good to hear," she teased, leaning into my dad. She looked at me. "Why didn't you ask Chrissy to stay?"
I felt heat creep up my neck and got embarrassed.
"Oh, she had homework she had to do!" I lied. The fear I had of my parents potentially spilling the beans about me and Eddie reared its ugly head. I swallowed hard and forced a smile. I could feel Eddie watching me. My father raised an eyebrow and turned his attention back to Eddie.
"So, Mr. Munson – come with me. We'll go grab those short stories from my study," my dad ordered. Eddie's jaw dropped and his eyes widened.
"Wait, you were serious about that?" Eddie exclaimed, giddy. My dad laughed and nodded.
"Of course – I think I'd benefit from feedback from someone who is as passionate about fantasy as you," my dad replied. Eddie looked at me, his face full of an expression of a kid on Christmas morning. I smiled.
"He was the one that invited you over!" I teased. Eddie's smile grew and he followed my dad to his study, peppering my dad with questions about the books he loved so much. I watched them, my heart skipping at how excited Eddie was. I felt a poke on my side and turned to my mom.
"He's cute," she gushed. I felt like my face was set on fire with how embarrassed I was.
"Oh, my god, stop it!" I hissed, desperately hoping she wouldn't push it. She grinned and poked me again.
"Do you like him?" she teased. I felt my stomach drop and New Margot was in panic mode.
"We're just friends!" I lied. Her smile grew and she nodded her head knowingly.
"Oh, I see. Just friends," she parroted back. I looked at my feet. This was a problem. They both liked him.
"Are you sure, Mr. Patterson? I can—"
"Eddie, I'm positive. Take them back with you and you can let me know what you think next time I see you," my dad replied as they walked back in. Eddie had several manuscripts in his hand, holding them close to his chest like they were precious treasure.
"Thank you so much, sir, I can't tell you how excited I am to read them. I bet I won't have any feedback!" Eddie complimented, over the moon. I grinned.
"I look forward to hearing your thoughts," my dad said, clapping his hand on Eddie's shoulder. Eddie nodded eagerly and my dad turned to me.
"Dinner in an hour, little elf," he told me. I nodded and looked to Eddie.
"Want to go work on our project some more?" I asked Eddie. Eddie nodded and continued to thank my dad profusely as we left, making both of my parents laugh. He followed me up the stairs to my room, still gushing over the stories my dad had given him.
We got to my room, and I closed the door, watching Eddie as he continued to chatter on. He was so excited, wrapped up in his own bubble and excited about what my dad had given me. His eyes were lit up and glistening. My heart started to pick up as I crossed over, sitting on my bed next to him. He was explaining something in detail, gesturing wildly, and I felt my heart swell. He noticed me watching him and stopped abruptly, his face turning red.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to dork out on you, that was so lame—"
"Can you kiss me?" I blurted out. He snapped his head to me, shocking not just him but myself.
"I just went on a rant about the political systems of orcs, and you want me to kiss you?" he asked, absolutely bewildered.
"Please don't question it," I whined, desperate for this dork's lips against me. He smiled and wrapped his hands around the base of my neck. He stroked my jaw with his thumbs, his touch so gentle and soft.
"I forgot that you're a secret nerd," he teased. I smiled as he kissed me, making me melt again and every nerve in my body felt electric. I placed my hands on his chest, gripping onto his t-shirt. I sighed as he nosed my chin up and started kissing my neck. "Puppets, David Bowie, and orcs, it seems."
I laughed and pulled away, beaming at him. His stare was soft and sweet, his hands still around the back of my neck. I kissed him one more time and climbed towards the top of my bed. I patted the spot next to me. He scampered towards me, leaning against my pillows and rolling on his side to face me. I did the same, grinning at him as he placed a hand on my waist.
"Your hair is different," he commented. I felt my face flush and shot my hands to my hair, mortified that I didn't have time to fix it today. It was wild and curly, but not tamed and smooth like I normally did it.
"Sorry, I was going to fix it, but then Chrissy came over and I wanted—"
"Go, it's cute – I like it," he interrupted, moving his hand from my waist to my hair, lacing his fingers in my curls and stroking it softly. I felt that familiar melt and scooted closer to him. He smiled and kissed my forehead. "Is this Old Margot's hair?"
I felt my face flush and was horribly embarrassed. I nodded tightly and was panicked that he wouldn't be into me anymore.
"What about Old Margot's glasses?" he asked, his grin growing. I flushed and buried my face in his chest. I could feel his heart pounding through his chest, and it made me smile.
"What about them?" I mumbled as I wrapped a leg around him. He started scratching the back of my thigh and laughed.
"I want to get the Old Margot experience!" he teased. I looked up at him and glared.
"Absolutely not," I replied. He smirked and got close to my face, his hand still on my thigh.
"Now, I definitely have to see them on," he pushed. I felt my face flush and my stomach drop.
---
Margot looked panicked, and I felt awful for my lame flirting. I swallowed hard.
"Go, I'm sorry, I was just teasing," I apologized. She watched me and nodded her head.
"It's okay. I'm just...worried," she explained. I furrowed my brows and looked at her, puzzled.
"What are you worried about?" I asked. She looked down and started tracing my chest, making my already pounding heart race.
"You're into New Margot. I don't want you to see more of my old self and..." she trailed off, letting me fill in the rest of her thought. I shook my head, hooking my finger under her chin and pulling her to my face.
"Go, I might have been drawn to New Margot, but I'm obsessed with you. The glimpses of Old Margot and who New Margot is. And all the Margots in the in between," I insisted. She watched me, a small smile growing on her face.
"Obsessed?" she asked, her tone teasing. I flushed but decided to be brave.
"Absolutely feral for you, princess," I responded. Her smile widened and she kissed me quickly. She watched me for a minute and quickly rolled off her bed. She went to her nightstand and started rummaging through it. I was confused as she continued to look for something. She stopped and sighed, taking a minute. She finally turned to me, her face bright red.
I couldn't help but grin – she had put on her large frames for me, letting me get another glimpse. They were cute, and they endeared me to her even more. She groaned.
"See? Too dorky," she whined. I shook my head and took her hands, pulling her back to me on the bed.
"Not at all – you're so cute," I sputtered, absolutely taken with her. I smiled when she blushed and kissed her again. She smiled as I pulled away and she reached out to tuck some of my hair behind my ear. I decided to flirt some more. "You know, you keep showing me these things about yourself that you think make you dorky, but it's just been making me like you more and more."
Her face was split into one of her heart-stopping smiles as she watched me. She poked my chest.
"You keep telling me that your lines wouldn't work on me, but then you say something like that, Eddie Munson," she replied sweetly. I felt my stomach flip.
That wasn't a line – I really meant it.
I started kissing her again, too worried that if I kept talking, I would put my foot in my mouth and ruin the miracle that I had somehow lucked into over the last couple of days. She threw her arms around my neck and pulled me closer to her. I felt my head get dizzy as she moved down my neck – how had this girl never been kissed before me?
"No hickeys," I teased. She laughed and came back to my lips, kissing me again.
"Margie! Eddie! Dinner is ready!" her mom called from downstairs. She smiled at me and kissed me hard one more time before getting up and setting her glasses on her nightstand. I followed her out the door and grinned as she looked back at me like she did the night of the party. It was insane how different things were between us now.
I followed Margot to the dinner table, sitting across from her. Her mom set a plate in front of me and grinned as I thanked her. We all were settled and started eating.
I was blown away by the dynamic between Margot and her parents. They were all so smart, asking questions and debating different things. Margot would do things to include me, asking questions or checking in to see if I wanted to talk about something else. But I loved listening to them and watching them together. It was different than anything I had ever experienced in my own home, and I enjoyed being a spectator.
"Eddie, do you want seconds?" Mrs. Patterson asked, taking my plate. I smiled shyly and nodded quickly – the pasta had been delicious, and Wayne and I weren't the best cooks. She grinned and patted my back as she went to get me more. I looked up and watched Margot, grinning as she laughed with her dad.
Her hair was cute today. It was wavy and curly and looked great framing her face. She turned to me and smiled, making my heart catch. Her mom came back with my second plate, and I started digging in.
"So, what is this big project you guys are working on?" Mrs. Patterson asked. Margot took a sip of water.
"For English – we've got to read books and pull together discussion points and essays<" Margot answered. I looked down and smiled – we had done anything but work on our English project for the last couple of days.
"What books?" Mr. Patterson asked.
"Sense and Sensibility, The Hobbit, and A Midsummer's Night Dream," I replied. He raised his eyebrows, grinning.
"The Hobbit? I've been trying to get Margie to read that forever," he teased. Margot rolled her eyes and her cheeks filled with color.
"Eddie had more convincing arguments," she quipped back.
"Oh, I'm sure," her mom said. Margot shot daggers at her mom and Mrs. Patterson winked, enjoying putting Margot on the spot.
We finished dinner, and I insisted on helping Margot wash the dishes. Her parents agreed and went out to her living room. Margot and I would brush against each other as we cleaned together, each of us in a silent competition of who could fluster the other one more. I set a hand on the small of her back and leaned over her to grab a rag, getting close in her personal space. I smiled when she turned red, thinking I won.
I was sorely mistaken as she leaned up to my ear, her lavender scent overwhelming me.
"Do you need me to hand that to you?" she asked, her whisper breathy and low. I felt my mouth dry and my stomach flip. I was stumbling over my words, unable to bounce back. She giggled and kissed my cheek quickly. "I win."
I grinned at her, moving away from her as I dried my hands. She smiled back and leaned into me. I felt an overwhelming urge come over me.
"What are we supposed to do in school?" I asked, feeling lame as ever. Her face faltered and she watched me for a beat before her smile came back.
"We can sneak around – we can play this game for a bit," she answered. I smiled, excited at the thought of sneaking off together. She smiled back at me. "Is that okay for now?"
I nodded eagerly and wrapped an arm around her waist. She leaned further into me, making my heart stop.
"I hate to do this, but I need to kick you out – I've pushed off my homework all day because I wanted to spend time with you," she said. I felt my heart skip and grinned at her.
"Such a nerd," I teased. She laughed and nodded as she started out of the kitchen. I followed her to the living room and waved at her parents.
"Thank you for having me, Mr. and Mrs. Patterson," I said, smiling at them. They smiled back at me.
"Thanks for coming – we'll see you soon, right?" her dad asked. I nodded.
"Yes, sir – I will have your manuscripts back soon!" I answered. He grinned and nodded his head. Her parents said goodbye to me, and I followed Margot to the front door. She opened the door and handed me the stories her father had given me. I widened my eyes and nodded towards my van, hoping she would understand my code. She smiled.
"Mom, dad – I'm going to walk Eddie to his car. I'll be right back!" I was relieved that she understood what I meant. We stepped out of the house together, and as soon as she closed the door, I wrapped an arm around her and pulled her tight as we walked to the van.
"I'll see you tomorrow, Princess Margot," I said, leaning close to her face. She smiled back at me.
"Until tomorrow, Sir Tiebaut," she replied.
We got to my van, and I turned to her. I took her in my arms, setting one of my hands on the side of her face. I traced her cheek with my thumb as she placed her hands on my chest. I pressed my lips to hers, not ever wanting to leave without giving her a goodnight kiss. She smiled as she pulled away from me.
"I look forward to our sneaking around," I quipped. She smiled and nodded, her grin goofy and giddy. I kissed her one more time before dropping her and climbing into Shelob. I waited until she got to the front door and waved as she turned to me. She returned it and closed her front door behind her. I took a deep breath and leaned back into my seat, grinning like an idiot.
It had been the best weekend of my life. I could only hope that the miracle would continue.