MICHELLE
Ben is the first male I've ever not hated.
All the other males I've known were monsters.
My father,
His friends,
The other horny boys I've met.
Ben is different. He doesn't look at me like I'm just a piece of meat he wants to devour.
He looks at me like he actually cares.
Does he care?
Why would he care?
Why do I care if he cares?
I have never cared about any guy and I'm not going to start now just because I meet one guy who seems nice, thoughtful and so damn good looking.
It's only going to lead to one thing,
Pain.
"We are here" Ben says and I snap out of my thoughts.
He has the car parked in front of his house.
I mean mansion.
I get out hurriedly and start to walk towards the front door.
He follows.
I wait for him to open the front door and we both walk in.
We meet a stunning looking woman in the living room.
She looks like she is in her forties.
Blood red hair that fall to her shoulders. Blue eyes that resembled Ben's , and spotless white skin.
She looked so elegant, dressed in a short black dress and heels.
"Mom, you are home" Ben says surprised.
Oh so this is Mrs McGregor.
Of course .
She smiles and walks over to us with elegant strides. Her perfume is intoxicating.
"Yes dear. I left work to come check on your sister. She insists on not going to see a doctor" she says worriedly.
"Well you know how stubborn Laura can get" Ben says with a shrug.
"Yes. She is just like you " Mrs McGregor says pinching his cheeks and I couldn't help but giggle.
She looks my way as if just noticing my presence.
Her expression shows curiosity.
At least it's not disapproval.
"Who is your friend?" She asks
"Her name is Michelle. She is actually Laura's friend. She came to see how she's doing. We are just classmates" he replies quickly. Too quickly.
Ouch
Classmate zoned.
That hurt.
Why did that hurt?
"I see" Mrs McGregor says raising her eyebrows and gives me a quick smile.
I smile back.
"I have to get back to work honey. Take care of your sister okay?" She says and gives Ben a quick kiss on the cheek.
"Sure thing mom" he replies dryly. And she gives me another brief smile before rushing out of the house.
Rich, busy parents.
Ben and Laura must have this mansion all to themselves alot.
"So , Laura is in her room, you can go check on her. I'll be in my room if you want to check on me too" he says smiling and wiggling his eyebrows playfully.
I narrow my eyes at him and shake my head.
I head towards Laura's room without saying a word.
I was still upset about the classmate zoning.
"You look horrible" I say as I observe Laura.
She is in bed with watery eyes, red face, redder nose, and her hair looked like she had been scratching it vigorously.
"Gee thanks. Just what I wanted to hear" she replies in a voice that tells me her nose is completely blocked.
"A flu shot would have saved you this suffering" I say sitting on the bed with a smile.
"I hate shots. I hate hospitals. My mom has been trying to get me to go. But I insist I'd be fine" she says pouting.
I smile. She looks like a stubborn four year old.
"Yea. She said so "
"You met her?" Laura asked
And I nod.
"Good. Since she has met you once, she won't ask any questions any other time she sees you here. My dad is hardly home in the day so you may not meet him for a while" she says and blows her nose loudly into a tissue. I furrow my eyebrows.
"Eeew piggy"
She chuckles "So tell me what happened at school today. Did I miss much?" She asks
Uh-oh.
O-kay where do I start?
I get comfortable and start to give Laura details of the days events.
******
I'm in the McGregor kitchen trying to fix dinner for myself and Laura.
I really hope she gets better soon.
Sick Laura is no fun.
I miss the old talkative, giggly Laura.
I hope the curry soup I'm making helps.
I learnt how to make it from foster home.
It helps me sometimes when I'm sick.
"Hi Mimi"
I jump and turn around to see Ben behind me .
"Hey! Are you trying to give me a heart attack?" I ask feigning annoyance.
I was actually strangely happy to see him.
He had been locked in his room ever since we got back.
He chuckles "jumpy much. What are you doing?"
"Making soup" I say dryly.
"Hmmm. Can I have some?. The cook is gone for the weekend so I'm starving" he says with a sigh.
I roll my eyes. "Sorry it's just for me and Laura"
He pouts "hey! Why can't I have some?"
I empty the soup into two bowls, place them in a tray and start to walk away.
"Because Laura is my friend and apparently you are not" I say harshly and walk out of the kitchen towards Laura's room.
"But..! What did I do?" He shouts after me sounding confused.
Serves him right.
He even had the nerve to give me a nickname .
Mimi! Really?
I thought we were just classmates?
God I hate being so upset over something this trivial.
*******
I'm in the McGregor guest room laying in bed. It's 10pm. I'm sure everyone is asleep. Laura says this would be my room anytime I visit.
It's a medium sized room compared to Laura's. But back at the foster home, five girls shared this size of room.
I sigh as I lay in bed.
It felt good to be somewhere other than the foster home.
It felt like I'm out of prison. Even if it's just for the weekend.
I shut my eyes and relax into the soft comfy bed, and just as I'm drifting into dreamland there is a sharp knock on my door.
What the actual fuck!
I jump out of bed and head to the door. I'm dressed in a tiny short and a T-shirt.
It must be Laura at the door, I think to my self.
Maybe she can't sleep.
My poor sick friend.
I open the door and I gasp as I come face to face with tall, brown haired and handsome Ben.
He just stands there staring at me with concern.
His blue eyes shorn even brighter at night.
Freak
"What?" I snap sounding a little harsher than I intend.
"Why are you upset with me?" He asks looking genuinely worried.
"What? Is that why you woke me up? To ask why I'm upset? Well now I'm even more upset!" My voice is louder now and he quickly covers my mouth with his palm.
"Shhhhh"
"Don't ssshhh me" I say my voice muffled by his palm. He pushes me into my room and shuts the door behind us both. He lets go of my mouth and my eyes widen.
"I didn't say you could come in!" I yell.
"Mimi sit down " he orders
"Don't tell me what to do you controlling ass" I snap getting really angry this time.
Who does he think he is?
The king of the world that everyone adores and obeys?
Well not me!
His eyes widen "calm down Mimi I'm just trying to have a conversation here. Control your temper please" he says desperately.
I see how frustrated he looks, so I calm down even though what I'd really like to do is yell about how I don't have a temper.
Relax Michelle. He is just a boy. A stupid boy like the others. He is no different.
I sigh and place my hands on my hips.
"So what do you want to talk about at 10pm that couldn't wait till tomorrow?"
He bites his lower lip and sits on my bed.
"Sit down" he says. I hesitate. "Please" he adds and I sit.
"You are upset with me and I don't know why.
I thought after what happened at school today we were finally beginning to get along and are on the road to building a friendship but now it seems we are back to you hating my guts and I don't know why?"
He sounds so frustrated and I wonder why my attitude affects him so much.
I shrug "I thought so too , but you made it clear I wasn't your friend when your mom asked. That I was Laura's friend and you and I are just classmates" I say bluntly.
He shut his eyes in realization.
"I'm so sorry about that. I only told my mom that so she doesn't give you a hard time. She hates seeing me with any girl except Jessica. If I had told her you were my friend she would get upset and say you can't stay" he explains.
I frown "why would she do that?" I was genuinely confused.
"Well, you see. My parents and Jess parents are really close business associates. When I started dating Jess, they were elated. They believe once I take over the family business and Jess takes over her own family business which is an even bigger one than ours, we would get married, and would be able to build a great empire. My mom has even started dreaming of how huge the wedding is going to be and she even has names for our kids already" he says and I stare at him in shock.
"And you agree to all of this?" I ask with mixed feelings.
He shrugs "I'm doing my thing Mimi. I'm dating Jess because I want to. Not because of my parents. I don't know if I'm gonna marry her. Right now I'm just playing along so everyone is happy" he states with confidence.
I knew Ben wasn't the kind of person that would let his parents make personal decisions for him.
He seemed like a man who liked being in charge. No wonder he ran for school president.
No wonder he acted a little bossy sometimes.
"Oh I see. That's why I was so upset. Because I thought you saw me as just a classmate. After all that you did for me today. It hurt to know I was still just a classmate." I say calmly.
He smiles.
He looked even more handsome when he smiled.
He raises his hands slowly and touches my chin.
"I'm so sorry I made you feel that way. But I'm glad because now I know you want to be my friend" he pauses, then drops his hands and it falls on my palm.
He holds my hand and looks straight into my eyes.
I felt tense because of his closeness but I had to focus enough to hear what he wanted to say.
For some reason, my heart was racing.
"I want to be more than just your classmate Mimi. I want to be your friend, I want to be someone who can make you smile when you are sad, who can calm you down when you are furious. Which I know you frequently are" he chuckles and I smile nervously.
Why am I so nervous? I think I'm shaking.
What was this boy doing to me?
The way he was talking was so intense.
Like he meant every word.
It scared me.
Nobody has ever spoken to me this way.
Now Ben who I've only just known a few days is speaking to me like this.
Like he cared.
We are alone, in my room, my heart is racing uncontrollably.
Oh God what am I feeling?
These feelings were so strange.
I swallow hard.
He is stroking my hair absent-mindedly now.
Oh please stop.
Wait, not yet.
"I want you to be able to tell me anything. Your worries, your pain, your deepest secrets, your troubles. I want to help you solve them" he continues.
I stare at his intense blue eyes and I'm lost for words.
"Why?" Was all I could say amidst all I'm feeling.
He stops stroking my hair and exhales loudly.
"I don't know Mimi. I just have this great urge to be there for you. Like its my responsibility to help you. Maybe because I know there is something in you that's broken and I want to discover it, and fix it" he says softly.
I smile sadly.
"President Ben. You can't fix everything"
"Let me try" he says still holding my hand.
I stare at him but I'm silent.
"Please. Could you bring your wall down just a tiny bit. So I can climb over and see what's in there? Please"
Wow, he said please twice.
He must really want this.
I nod and it takes all of my will power to prevent tears from falling. "Okay" I whisper, and he hugs me.
I must be going crazy because I hug him back.
What have I gotten myself into?
********
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