"Yes! It's 4, that means it's time, El!" I call out through the living room of her house. She insists on having our tutoring sessions here, maybe since there's so many resources waiting at her hand and foot. No one's here, of course, so we're totally alone.
"Where...where should we go?" Ellie's already nervous, I can tell.
"Right here. Couch is fine. Just put your books aside somewhere." I tell her. We move to sit on the brown leather couch that revolves all the way around the room. I sit first, and she sits next about ten feet away from me.
I want to laugh, but it's a perfect teaching moment. "Okay, if we're starting with the basics, El, it's time for Tip 1: getting close. You can't interact with a guy if you're not close to him. Most of the time."
Blushing profusely, she slides over to me and eventually hits the shoulder-shoulder touching mark. "And relax, Ellie, I'm not going to hurt you, and neither is any other guy." I mean that with a passion
She inhales and exhales three times, enough to calm her heartbeat.
"Now, Tip 2: introduction. Your name is the best first impression you've got, so start with that. We'll get into more conversation starters later, but for now, just stick to a 'hey' and an 'I'm Ellie', and maybe a 'What's your name' or 'How are you'."
"It's that simple?" Ellie asks, and I nod. "I told you, this isn't rocket science, and it's not a big deal. Be yourself, and about 90% of the time, that's all you need to remember."
"90%?"
"The other ten counts the rejections and irrelevant people, because there have to be those that just won't accept you. No such thing as a perfect guy, Ellie."
"Of course not." she mutters under her breath.
"Is that Ellie Harmon expressing her attitude and her valued opinion? What has this world come to?" I exclaim, and she scowls at me. "Keep going, Carson."
"Okay, so Tip 3: conversation. There's no limit to your words. Keep them flowing. Don't make it boring, and don't act uninterested (unless you really are and he's not the guy for you). And give him your attention. That means keeping eye contact." I direct that last part straight at her, and she widens her eyes when I look at her.
"I can do that, Carson." she mumbles, trying to keep my gaze. I just laugh.
"Tip 4 is flirting. Do I need to look that up for you?" I ask as a joke, but she doesn't reply, so I wipe the smile. "Is there a guy you're actually really looking for, Ellie?" I decide to finally ask, hinting. Her head snaps up, and her eyes widen. "No.." she says nervously.
I chuckle, and she glares at me. "Shut up."
"I think you're already ready for this, Ellie. Your nerves are just getting the best of you, that's all."
"I still don't know a lot, Carson."
"Just be yourself around a guy. We're just like girls. Except for a few parts."
Ellie blushes bright red, and I stifle a laugh. Of course she's thinking dirty. You might think Ellie's the most clean and innocent person, but I know better.
"Tell you what, how about we watch a few Youtube videos? Everything's on the internet."
"Videos? Like on dating?"
"Yeah, El. It's kinda what we've been talking about for the last few minutes. Where did smart Ellie go that quick?"
"I'm here! I-I just, I told you, I've never done this, and it's kinda weird for me."
"It's life, El."
She sighs. "Fine. I'll watch them."
I pull out my phone and press the Youtube app. I search 'dating tips' in the box, and I click on the first one (actually the second, because the first was about some show called 'Dating Naked').
Basically, the video just explains what I had said, which was the basics. Hugging, flirting, holding hands, that part of dating. It even touches on the gay side...which I figure would be the same...except for a few factors.
I take her through a couple more videos, and already I can tell she's learning something. Maybe she wants to know more about this than I thought.
"I kinda get it now. It's not all stranger to me." she says when the videos finish. I set my phone aside.
"Good! Time to practice."
Ellie's eyes widen faster than ever before. "What-but.."
"You gotta practice on someone, Ellie, otherwise it might get a little awkward when you kiss that guy you like."
Who I hope will be me.
"I don't like anybody!" she exclaims, going instantly red. With a confused look, I reply, "I didn't say you did, that was just an example."
"What? I mean...I just...never mind. Fine, let's practice." she says back, a look of determination crossing her face. I have to smile.
"Okay, so pretend like you just saw me at a party or something and you want to come talk to me. Because who wouldn't want to come talk to me-"
"Shut up, Carson."
"-when I look this good?"
"Ugh!"
"That's not how you introduce yourself! Do we need to go back over this already?"
She made an exasperated sound at me. "You're impossible."
"No, I'm irresistible. Now, introduce yourself to me." Sighing, she takes a breath and looks straight at me.
Her golden hazel eyes focus on mine, and I completely miss her introduction, completely mesmerized.
"What?" I blurt.
"I said, my name is Ellie, what's your name?" she says quietly.
"Oh, come on, I know you've got more than that. I can barely hear you."
"You're the one who isn't listening." she snaps, but I can tell she wants to do better.
"Okay, I'm listening. Introduce yourself again, loud and clear."
She says the same line, raising her head and talking louder. Her eyes manage to stay relatively close to my gaze, and we have a short quick conversation.
"Now, that wasn't so bad, was it?" I ask her, and she blushes, of course, before answering.
"Guess not."
"You've just got to have some confidence, even if you screw it up. Hey, guys like girls who aren't afraid to make fools of themselves. We do it all the time."
"I know that much." she says with a laugh. "Can we watch more videos now?" she asks, her warm smile making me want to melt. "Duh." I tell her, and we do.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Hey! I decided to start off two weeks after I posted chapter one, because I'm super busy with a lot right now.
Thanks for 25 reads, but I need the votes too! Can I get to 10 before I post again?
In the picture is the person I picked to be Ellie. Her name is Katie Stevens (you might know her if you watch Faking It on MTV and she was also on American Idol). I'll have someone else as Carson next update.
New Update: Friday, Feb. 27 or Saturday, Feb. 28
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Clouds || E & C
ChickLit"Is something wrong?" she asks. I quickly regain my smile. "No, it's amazing. I really am an awesome teacher." I brag. "You really are," she says in a quiet voice, eyes flickering between my own and my lips. Slowly, she leans in, and our mouths me...
