Norman's POV:
"Norman, is that yours?" "Did you buy it?" "It's so cute!" "I know right!" "I didn't know you like cute stuff like this." "I should buy a matching one too." The girls fussed as they eyed the dumbo keychain on my bag. Not like it has anything to do with them. The only cute stuff I like is Everett.
Just as a hand reached forward to touch it, I smacked her hand away, protective of my little gift. Despite hearing her soft scream of pain, I ignored her totally, walking away from the piranhas before they got the chance to devour me. Ain't no one is allowed to touch it except for Everett.
"Norman." Everett called out from the crowd as he came from the other side of the hallway. His pooh bear keychain swinging on his bag at every step he took.
"Managed to find Ally?" I asked but seeing that he wasn't carrying any bags any more, I'm assuming it's mission complete.
"Yup. She kept thanking me for it so I was sort of held back." He chuckled with a light blush on his cheeks, embarrassed by having done something nice. Cute.
Taking his hand in mine, I rubbed my fingers over his softer ones, playing with them as we slowly made our way to class. "Do you wanna hang out after school?" I asked hesitantly as he simply squeezed my hand in agreement.
"Sure."
~ Time Skip ~
"15. I thought you said that you're an expert in basketball?" I teased as he glared at me silently, not knowing how to defend himself.
"The machine's rigged." He huffed as I lifted an eyebrow at him, not believing his words. Taking a coin from the basket, I insert it into the machine, throwing the balls into the hoops with ease as they rolled down to me.
"32?!" He stared at me in disbelief as I sent him a wink.
"It's all about skill buddy, it's all about skill." Ruffling his hair, he gave me another huff before grabbing the coin basket.
"I would have beaten your ass if i was at my original height." He retorted, pulling me with him as we went to the candy grabbing machine. Now that's what I call a rigged machine. That shit is a big scam. I've never gotten a candy out of it before.
"Let's play another. This is a big scam." I suggested, walking away from it only to get pulled back by Everett who's already seated and eyes focused on the useless candy scoop which can't scoop shit. The candies will just slip and fall off like water on plastic.
Just as I almost got bored waiting for Everett to push the button, he finally slapped the button hard, the scoop going down and scooping a handful of sweets. What the hell is that sorcery?! How? What even happened? I stared at him in disbelief while hearing the clinking of candies falling into the metal bin below.
"It's all about skill buddy, it's all about skill." He said smugly before grabbing sweets and stuffing into his pockets. Unwrapping one, he held it up to me as I bit it out of his hands, licking his finger a little.
"Sweet."
"No shit a sweet is o-of course sweet." He stammered out flusteredly before rushing away with the coins. "L-Let's do that!" He shouted as I looked towards where he pointed as I felt blood drain from my face.
"Are you sure? I'm very good at that you know?" I said as calmly as possible though I felt like surrendering already.
"W-Well I'm an expert at it." He said with a twitching smirk on his face as we both hesitantly approached the devil machine.
The dance machine.
~ Time Skip ~
"I'll never go back to that arcade." Everett cried out in embarrassment as he buried his head against the table.
"I agree. We shall never." Long story short, we embarrassed the hell out of ourselves, even earning a laughing crowd. I knew I'm not good at dancing…I'm much too stiff for my own good.
"Sorry for waiting. Here's your ice cream waffle and your ice cream waffle sandwiches. Enjoy." The waitress placed our orders down as we thanked her quickly.
Plucking his head off the table, his eyes sparkled like a little kid's, immediately stuffing his mouth with his ice cream sandwiches. "It's sho gud!" He moaned, licking his fingers like a little kitten, clean of any residual.
Seeing him miss a spot of melted ice cream at the corner of his lips, I took his finger to wipe it off before licking it clean off his little finger. Delicious. "N-Norman!" He squeaked in surprise as his face flushed red in embarrassment.
"What's the matter, baby?" I teased, sucking on his finger as he just held his hand there shaking. So adorable.
"B-Baby?!" He stuttered out in shock, his face overheating from the new nickname.
"Yes, baby." I emphasised on the word once more, chuckling at his reaction when he tried to hide his face behind his other hand. Keyword: Tried.
"Eat your food." He huffed, reaching out to pinch my nose hard, making me sneeze much to his delight. Hearing his soft giggles, my heart warmed inconsiderably as I couldn't help but want to protect him and his smiles with all of my might.
"Hey, Everett?" I called out gently as he looked up at me with loving eyes with a soft hum of reply.
"I love you." I said as sincerely as possible as he stared at me dumbfoundedly with mouth ajar.
"H-How can you say that all of a sudden!" He fussed with much embarrassment as his face turned a beautiful red once again. "I-I love you too…" He whispered out shyly as a wide grin appeared on my face. Gosh, I just want to kiss him senseless now. Too bad we're in public… I sighed.
"Norman?" He called out this time. Before I could stare back into his eyes in response, I felt a kiss on my cheek as I snapped my head up in surprise. "Thank you."