I danced my way through the morning classes and hummed as I skipped into the cafeteria for lunch. I neatly placed my books on the lunch table, cheerfully patting each book as I put them down.
“You seem like you’re in a very good mood,” Rebekkah remarked, looking at me with a baffled expression.
“Oh, you know.” I shrugged. “The sun rise was beautiful this morning, wasn’t it?” I smiled dreamily and rested my chin on my hands.
She looked at me like I was crazy. “So, Cayda…” she said. “I’ve been meaning to talk about a couple things.”
I sat down in the seat across from her. “Fire away.”
“I was wondering if you found anything out about Aaron that I wanted to know.”
“Like what?” I asked.
“What about that girl he likes?” she inquired. “Did you find out who she was?”
“Nope.”
“Okay… Did you find out about his necklace?”
I thought about telling her. It wouldn’t really hurt if I did, right? But it just felt wrong to me to tell her something that Aaron trusted me with, so I kept my mouth shut.
I shook my head. “He didn’t like to talk about it.” It wasn’t a total lie.
“Then what the heck do you do over there?” she asked.
“The article is more about his opinion on girls, not about his personal life.”
She sighed. “I know. I guess I just thought you were doing this to get all those details to help me out here. I obviously misunderstood.”
“I guess you did,” I stated.
o . O . o
I was glad to get away from Rebekkah as soon as lunch ended. I swiftly got my books and walked out of the cafeteria. But before I could go down to the locker hallway, I was pulled into an empty classroom. I couldn’t see who it was at the moment, but I smelled the cologne immediately. “Aaron! We’ll be late!” I whispered.
“I don’t care,” he said stubbornly, finally letting me go. “I couldn’t wait until tonight came. He kissed me, putting his hand on my back to pull me closer.
“Aaron!” I said, playfully swatting at him.
“What?” he asked innocently.
“Someone will see,” I whispered, looking past him at the closed door.
“Why does it have to be a secret?” he asked.
“I don’t know...” I said. “It’s complicated.”
“But we’re going to tell people soon, right?” He looked at me, concerned.
I tried so hard to say the word ‘no’ but what came out was, “Of course.” I mentally slapped myself in the face.
“Good,” he muttered, giving me one more kiss. “Let’s get to class.”
o . O . o
I got off the motorcycle at Aaron’s house. I didn’t feel as sick as I had before. We walked inside his house and went up to his room. He proceeded to sit on his couch and turn on the TV.
“What are you doing?” I asked. “We have an interview, you know.”
He turned on his Wii and answered, “Playing Donkey Kong Country 3. Want to join?”
“No,” I said firmly. “I need to finish this article by next week. I really need to start working on it soon.”
“I know you, Cayda,” he said. “You can’t back down from a challenge.”
“What does that mean?”
“You probably have never played Wii before,” he said.
“Yes, I have!”
“I bet you couldn’t play this game.” He smirked.
He was right. I couldn’t back down. I needed to prove him wrong and wouldn’t feel closure if I didn’t. I’d feel like a failure.
I heaved a frustrated sigh. “Fine. Explain to me how to play.”
He tried his best to explain the controls for my understanding. But my understanding of video games is very limited. The Wii remote felt awkward in my hand, but I tried my best to look experienced.
“Which monkey am I?” I asked.
“You’re the little one,” he answered.
“But I want to be the big money,” I said.
Aaron replied, “I think we both know I’m the buff one here.
I laughed. “Ha! Fine. Have it your way.”
He started the first level.
o . O . o
We were on the fifth level, and it was tough.
Aaron exclaimed, “Come on, Cayda! You’re slowing me down! This game is about teamwork!”
“Correction: You’re going way too fast,” I said, struggling to keep up. He paused the game right before I died for the third time this level. I laid my head back on the couch and sighed. “I don’t think this game thing was meant for me.”
“Oh, really?” he asked sarcastically.
“No need to be mean about it,” I said. He laid his head back also and we looked at each other. He suddenly took the beret off my head and ran. I quickly jumped up and went after him. After a few minutes of chasing him, I finally caught up to Aaron. I yanked my hat out of his hand. He came close to me, pinning me between him and the window frame. The setting sun was shining through the window which made Aaron’s hair shine and his eyes look clearer. He leaned in to kiss me.
My phone rang; I tried not to laugh at Aaron’s disappointed expression. I looked at the screen; I missed a call. And it was 6:30pm. “Oh my gosh!” I exclaimed. “It’s six thirty! We didn’t even get anything done…” I mumbled on more complaints. I grabbed my coat and ran down the stairs. I was about to run out the door, but Aaron caught my arm. He pulled me back for a kiss.
Some think of kisses as magical. Like, it can cause a frog to turn into a prince. But this was a different kind of magic. All my worries trickled away and were replaced by a feeling of relief. I hoped he didn’t notice me sigh.
o . O . o
I went home, only to find Rebekkah in my room. I could tell something was bothering her. Her eyes were dark and she crossed her arms nervously. My blinds were open, and so were Aaron’s. My heart leapt in panic. I hoped she didn’t see anything.
“What’s wrong, Rebekkah?” I asked.
“You’ve just… been spending more time with Aaron then with me,” she said.
My face grew warm in frustration. “What do you want me to do? I have to have the story done by next week.”
“Well, tomorrow’s Friday night,” she said. “I was wondering if you could call off the interview—for just one day.”
“What?! You really have that little trust in me?”
“Cayda, please. I-I just…” her voice trailed off.
I tried to hide my disappointment. If I declined, it would be obvious that something was going on. I forced myself to say, “Okay.”
“You promise?”
I gritted my teeth. “I promise.”
o . O . o
Before I went to bed, Aaron called me. I picked up and answered. “Hello?”
“Look out your window,” he said.
I opened my blinds and saw Aaron through his window. He waved and I smiled. “Hi there. I’m actually glad you called.”
“Oh?”
“Yeah,” I said. “I have to call off tomorrow’s interview.”
I saw him frown. “Why?”
I replied, “Rebekkah thinks I’m spending too much time with you.”
“Does she know about… us?” he asked.
My heart skipped a beat. “Us?” I echoed.
“Yeah,” he confirmed with a small smile.
“No, she doesn’t,” I said. “I guess I’m just afraid that she’ll be mad when I tell her.”
“You have to tell her sometime,” he said.
I sighed. “I know. I will. But it’s late, and I have to study for the test tomorrow.”
I saw his eyes grow wide. “We have a test tomorrow?!”
I laughed. “Nope! I just wanted to see your reaction.”
“Your mean.” He chuckled.
“Just returning the favor,” I said with a smirk. “But it really is getting late. I have to go to bed. Goodnight Aaron.”
“Goodnight, Cayda.”
I hung up and went to bed, leaving my blinds open. It just felt wrong to close them.