Chapter 11
After saying our farewells to my dad, Noah offered his arm to me and I hooked my arm with his, smiling. We walked to the car that way. It was cute. He opened the door for me and closed it after I got inside. He took my bag with my extra clothes in it and put it in the trunk. I never knew how polite he could be. I thought football players were always immature and rough, but I guess he was different.
We back out of the driveway and began on our way to wherever we were going. I still didn't know where he was taking me.
"You look beautiful," he commented. I couldn't help but blush. I looked down at my feet and thanked him.
"Thanks. You look really sharp, yourself," I replied.
He smiled at me. "Thanks. Would you like to listen to some music?"
"Sure."
He pressed a button and some classical music began playing from the speakers in the car. I was surprised. He had a CD of classical music.
"Wow, classy," I said. "You're impressing me here."
"That's what I aimed for."
We drove in silence, enjoying the calming music. I closed my eyes and leaned back for the rest of the ride, until we stopped.
"We're here," he said, turning off the engine. I looked out the window. We were at a fancy-looking restaurant called Amelia's. My eyes widened. This place was extremely expensive, and very high quality. Why was he taking me here?
"Amelia's? You sure?" I asked.
"Yes, I'm sure. Come on."
"The wait is going to be forever. This place is packed," I said.
"I have a reservation. My mom knows the owner of the restaurant, so I got one easily. Please, Keaton. Stop being so tense. It's just a restaurant, okay? That's all there is to it," He reassured, helping me out of the car. I just gave him a half-smile.
Don't get me wrong here, it's not like I didn't want to eat here, but I thought that it was just too much. I thought first dates were going out for ice-cream or watching a movie, not eating at a four star restaurant. On a scale of one to ten, this date was probably an eight, with ten being, like, going to Fiji together or something.
We walked into the dim restaurant with men in suits and women in formal dresses. My eyes had to adjust to the darker light. There was quiet jazz music playing in the background and everyone was talking in hushed tones. Noah walked up to the host stand and began talking to the lady there.
We followed the lady to a table near the back. Noah pulled out my chair for me and pushed it in when I sat down. He sat himself down and then the waiter came by with water. We ordered drinks and Noah let me choose the appetizer.
I took a sip of the water, to avoid eye contact from another one of Noah's awkward stares. I was so ready to tell him to stop staring, but I didn't want to be rude. Then the rest of this date would be really, really awkward.
"Have I ever told you how beautiful you are?" he commented.
In the surprise of hearing a compliment, I choked on the water, coughing like crazy. Noah stood up and came around the side of the table, asking me if I was alright. I nodded, continuing the coughing fit. Everyone around us turned their heads to look at the female teenager, who did not belong here, choking on water.
After a minute or two, I stopped coughing and when I was about to take another sip I heard Noah say, "You probably shouldn't drink anymore water for tonight."
I gave a small laugh and put the water back down on the table. "Probably."
"So, where are we going after this?" I asked, as the calamari was delivered.
"You'll see," he smirked. I rolled my eyes and then took a spoonful of calamari from the dish and put it onto mine. "I love calamari," Noah whispered.
We ate in silence for a little while until Noah broke the ice. "Do you like the food?" he asked, popping a bite into his mouth. I swallowed hard.
"Yeah, it's great," I responded. "Thank you for taking me here."
"Anything for you, Keaton," he said, sipping his soda. I smiled and looked into his eyes, they were a beautiful, bright blue. They reminded me of the sky. They sparkled like polished gems and they were calming to look at. He stared back into my eyes. My eyes were a weird mixture of green and blue. Depending on the light, the color varied. Sometimes they looked grey and boring, but other times they were bright and happy.
I shook myself out of my daze. I saw Noah smirk at me and look down at his plate. Just then, the waiter returned and asked for our orders. Noah ordered some kind of steak and I just settled on the fetticuini alfredo. Everything was expensive here and the pasta was one of the cheapest items.
"Mm," I moaned as I took one bite of the pasta. "This is amazing."
"That's great," he said, cheerfully. "So, have you started thinking about colleges?"
I put my fork down and frowned. "No. That's the last thing I've been thinking about. Have you?"
"I really want to go to Notre Dame and try for a football scholarship or something. Just so my parents don't have to pay the whole price. It's expensive to go there, but the football team is amazing."
"You would definitley get a scholarship. Aren't you like the star football player?" I asked, taking another bite out of my delicious dinner.
"Something like that," he smirked and gave me a wink.
We exited the restaurant and then went to Noah's house. He parked in the garage meaning we would be staying here for the rest of our "date".
"You can change in my bathroom," he said, handing me my extra clothes from the trunk. He took my leftover dinner and lead me inside. He showed me the way to his room and then went downstairs.
I pulled off the dress and put on some leggings and a oversized sweater. I brought my Toms, too, so I didn't have to walk in heels all night. I even brought my makeup removing wipes because I knew I would get tired and start rubbing my eyes a lot.
I wiped off most of the makeup quickly and splashed my face with some water to get off the excess. I stuffed all my formal clothes in the bag and exited the bathroom to find Noah changing.
"Oh my God," I gasped. He turned around and his eyes widened. "Oh shit!" He shreiked as he covered his man parts. I covered my eyes with my hands. As if this date could get any more awkward!
"Please get some clothes on," I pleaded. I heard a drawer open and close along with the sound of him putting something on.
"You can look now," he said. "Sorry. . . I probably should have changed in the corner or something. Sorry."
I opened my eyes. He had sweatpants on, but no shirt. I couldn't help but stare at his abs. It was definitley a six-pack, no doubt about it. "Whoa," I whispered.
He stepped closer to me and then even closer. We were inches apart. I tore my eyes away from his stomach and looked up into his eyes. He stared back into mine, mesmerizing me. He brushed my hair back behind my ear, leaving my heart racing. I blinked and looked away before he could do anything.
"I'm just, uh, going to go, um, downstairs," I gulped, silently scolding myself for being such an idiot.
"Uh, yeah that's fine. I guess."
I turned and began walking that way. My arm brushed his abs when doing so, and then I began walking even faster. My heart was beating a million beats per second. I made my way down the stairs and sat on the bottom step.
"Who are you?" A young, girly voice said. I looked up to see a black-haired girl, who was probably only nine or ten. "Are you another one of Noah's girlfriends?"
"No, we are just friends. Who are you?" I asked, smiling brightly.
"I'm Noah's little sister, Hadley." She said. "What's your name?"
"I'm Keaton," I answered.
"You're pretty," Hadley complimented.
"Thanks. So are you," I smiled. We talked for a few seconds, then she told me that her baby doll was hungry so she had to feed it or something like that, so I was left alone on the stairs waiting for Noah. I couldn't stop thinking about his body. It was nice, okay?!
I heard someone from behind me clear their throat. I turned and saw Noah, this time wearing a shirt, a plain white t-shirt. It was see-through, like the first day of school. Great, just great. Here we go again.
I pulled myself up and followed Noah to his kitchen. He lead me out a sliding door to a pool area. We continued walking without saying a word and we descended stairs past the pool for the longest time.
Once the stairs stopped, I looked up. I was facing a beach. Waves calmly lapped the shore. I took off my shoes and stepped into the cold, refreshing sand. I wiggled my toes deeper into the sand, with the wind blowing my hair in my face.
Noah gestured me to a flat rock. We just sat there for a few minutes, watching the sunset.
"It's so pretty," I observed.
"Just like you," Noah said. I looked down at the sand below and blushed for the billionth time that night. I dug my toes in and out of the sand, just listening to the waves. He was so flirty with me. I liked the attention, I liked the compliments, but damn. His compliments were ongoing.
"Keaton?" Noah asked, looking at me. I turned my head towards him.
"Yes, Noah?" I addressed.
"What are the chances?" he asked, looking out onto the water. "What are the chances now?"
I responded with a sigh and kicked the sand under my feet. "I don't know, Noah."
We sat for another minute or two until he started talking again.
"Keaton, right when I met you that first day, I instantly knew I liked you. I kept telling myself that I didn't like you, and that's why I stayed with Bailey for that day. I would've broken up with her right after class, I really would have. When you said you were moving again after this year and when someone told me that the new girl didn't want a boyfriend this year, I knew I wouldn't get you. I tried my hardest to tell myself not to fall for you beause I knew it wouldn't work in the end, but then I realized that it didn't matter that you were moving. I couldn't change the fact that I was into you."
"Noah, I'm flattered," I said quietly. "But I just can't be your girlfriend, alright?"
"Keaton," he began. "Who says you can't? No one is holding you back, but yourself. Do you really want to leave here remembering that you rejected someone who loved you? Who cared so much for you?"
I was stunned. Loved me? What? "No, I-I don't want that—"
He looked me straight in the eyes. "So?" he whispered.
"Noah, you know why I'm avoiding all this. Why can't you just let it go?"
"Because, I care about you too much to do that. You know how much I like you."
"I know. And I'm sorry. It's just not going to happen. I don't want to go through all of this and then just lose it all when I leave to Vermont next year," I explained. "I'm not saying I don't like you, I do. I really do. If I wasn't moving I would—"
"You already know where you are moving next year?" He asked, sadness in his eyes.
I nodded. "My parents told us a few days ago."
"Oh," he replied, looking down at the sand below us. "There's no changing their mind at all? It's official?"
"They're already looking for another house," I choked. For some reason, I could feel tears starting up. I never felt this way, even when I did try to make friends. This time, it was different. I felt like these people were going to actually keep in touch when I moved, and that I loved them all more than any other people and it's only been a month.
Finally, after a long silence, we walked back up to Noah's house.
"Thanks for the ride, Noah," I thanked him as I got out of the car. It was almost eleven o'clock and I was exhausted.
"Yeah, of course," he smiled weakly, like he was going through some antagonizing pain. I smiled back at him.
"It was an amazing date, Noah. I really enjoyed spending time with you," I told him. He nodded.
"Thanks, Keaton," he said. I could tell he was upset that I had turned him down, once again. I saw the pain in his smile and the hurt in his eyes, even though it was night. "I'll walk you up to your door."
"Okay."
He turned off his car's engine, then followed me to the side door. I turned around to face him.
"You're going to make me cry if you keep acting all depressed," I admitted, smiling sheepishly. He chuckled a little.
"I'll see you on Monday, then."
"Yeah, biology. Woo."
"Yep..." he trailed off, looking at the ground. I put my bag down that held all my formal clothes. I held my arms out and reached out to Noah, giving him a tight hug. He hugged me back, just as tight, maybe even tighter.
"Goodnight," he said, when we finished our long hug.
"Night."
I closed the door after I saw him get into his car. He was terribly upset and he didn't even try to cover it up in front of me. I bet he was just trying to make me feel so bad for him that I would go out with him, but I've been told many times, that I'm a stubborn person.
I grabbed my bag and went upstairs. The house was dead silent and all the lights were off, meaning everyone had gone to sleep. I dropped my bag once I entered my room and flopped on the bed. I was absolutely exhausted.
I checked the time on my phone.
11:11.
"I wish that my parents would change their minds about moving and we would all stay here," I whispered to myself.
I know it was such a lame thing to do and make a wish on a certain time, but I was up for anything. Even though we still had the whole winter and spring in school, I kept thinking about the move and how I would have to start again.
I would leave Bailey, Hannah, Andrea, and Kayla.
I would leave Laura, Olivia, and Michelle.
But worst of all, I would leave Noah.
I felt that weirdness in my chest when I thought about him. That warm, fuzzy feeling. I knew this emotion all to well.
It was that almost-love feeling.
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The ending of this chapter wasn't the best, but, God, Keaton just go out with him already!!
Sorry if this chapter was kinda boring... sorry it will get better I think. I hope!
Thanks for reading. <3
-alyssa