jack gilinsky
"amara's a beautiful name."
she blushes at her compliment, "thank you. i think jennifer's a beautiful name, too."
"a bit boring." my grandma shrugs, "thank you, though."
the three of us continued to eat our food, while my grandma and i watched amara ignore the multiple rings to her phone.
after about the fifth one, she takes it out. "..i should probably put this on silent, sorry."
"so, amara, you tutor jack?"
she nods politely, her eyes flickering to mine before back at my grandma. "yeah, i do."
i could sense nervousness in her demeanor. she'd told me several times that it was easy for her to read me. but she didn't know that she was just as easy.
"were you born here?"
amara shakes her head, "no, i was born in san francisco, but we moved to detroit when i was five."
"how come?"
i look at her curiously, as well. "my dad's originally from here, but they decided to settle in california. there was a lot of family drama between my parents and my grandparents, so i guess they decided it would be better if we lived here."
"are you an only child?"
she shakes her head, "i have an older brother, sadly. what about you?"
"i had an older sister." my grandma answers, and i could tell amara regretted the question when her eyes widened. "she passed away five years ago."
"i'm sorry." she apologizes immediately, "..to bring that up."
"it's fine!" she smiles, and catches the both of us by surprise when she grabs onto amara's hand. "back to happier things..what are your plans for the future?"
"i think..i want to be a teacher."
"what grade?" i ask.
"i don't know.." she trails off. "somewhere in elementary, though. maybe third grade."
"that's great." my grandma replies, "i used to be a teacher, too. ninth grade."
amara smiles, "how was it?"
"fun, for the most part. but teaching high school kids can get bad at times."
they continued to hit off, and i found myself staring at amara the whole time.
i wasn't blind, i saw the beauty in her that i knew she didn't. she buries her insecurities while helping other people embrace their own, and i always wonder how she does that.
i look away from her when i hear my grandma's chair push back, and she stands. "i'm gonna throw the trash away, you two stay here."
none of us listen, though. we both stand to help her collect the garbage, and she shakes her head at us.
"uh, hey jack, do you have a phone charger?" amara asks, emerging from the living room while i place the dishes in the sink, turning the faucet on.
"there's one on the left side of my bed, you can go ahead and get it." i reply, and she nods before heading upstairs.
"i like her." my grandma wastes no time, nudging me with a small smile on her face. "those other girls you bring around..they're all over the place." she informs, "i'm glad you two are together."
i shake my head, "we're..not together. i think we're becoming good friends."
she raises her eyebrows, "and you want it to stay that way?"
i shrug, "sure."
she rolls her eyes, "i may be old, but my vision is still good." she informs, "the way you—"
"don't say what i think you're gonna say." i interrupt, and she lets out a laugh.
"it's true. i looked at your grandpa like that on our first date, because i knew he was the one."
i furrow my eyebrows at her, followed by a subtle sigh. "alright, i think it's time for you to head to bed."
amara rahman
catching a glimpse of their conversation, i felt my heart slightly warm up.
i smile to myself as i head up the stairs, taking a right and going towards his room from memory. only this time, it felt different. i felt nervous to be in here.
i enter, inhaling the scent of that strong cologne and rolling my eyes. i bend down beside his bed to grab the charger, before a piece of white fabric catches my eye from beneath his comforter.
the strap was clearly visible, and anyone could tell what it was. i glance behind me before tugging on it, revealing the white bra with a small note attached to it.
see you tonight ;)
- meredith <3
i shake my head, ignoring the stinging in my chest and shoving the bra back into the comforter, leaving the charger. how cliché.
i catch jack's grandma heading up the stairs, and she smiles at me. "i'm getting pretty tired, so i'm gonna head to bed. you're more than welcome to spend the night here, amara."
"thank you." i nod politely. "but i'm actually gonna head home now. you're a lovely woman, and i'm looking forward to seeing you again soon."
she gives me a skeptical look, and i turn my frown into an immediate smile, almost resembling hers. "are you okay, love?"
"i'm great." i beam. "have a goodnight."
she bids me a goodnight in return and we part ways. i shove my shoes on, and jack walks towards me. "hey, you're leaving?"
"my mom said not to be out too late." i try to neutralize my tone, though it ended bitterly and i knew he'd caught it.
"right." he nods, and i go to open the door before he stops me. "hey, wait a second—" he turns me around and the short distance between us made me nervous. "..thank you for tonight."
"thank you." i nod, "i had a good night."
"me too." he nods as well, "see you tomorrow, amara."
"see you."
i knew he'd been standing at the doorway while i got into the car, but i was afraid to look back at him.
i hit my head on the steering wheel when i reach a red light, muttering profanities to myself. the feeling was all too familiar, and i hated it.
"how was dinner with jack's grandma?" bri asks through the phone, and i could tell she'd been wiggling her eyebrows.
"it was fine." i answer, "bri, i'm gonna tell you something. and you have to promise not to freak out."
"oh, god." she mutters, "wait a second— i'm gonna go in the garage incase i scream."
i wait a few seconds while she shuffled around through the house, "alright, hit me."
"don't..don't tell anyone."
"i'm not, amara! just tell me."
"i think.." i sigh, "i think i like jack."