One Big Cliché

Chapter 18

Dustin

          Nicole's not at the table yet, and I'm starting to get anxious. Her friends are...intimidating. They've all accepted Chris, because he's easy to like, but the only ones comfortable with me are Sarah and Tyler. John's okay with me, but he's still a bit wary. Claire's glaring at me unusually hard today, and I start getting even more antsy, wondering what I did. Does she know about Friday night? Does she know I can't stop thinking about it, and she's angry because she thinks I'm some kind of pervert that's taking advantage of Nicole? I didn't do anything, though. She was in control the entire time. Right? We didn't even do anything! Why is Claire mad?

          Man, the way she looked under me, though... I should have kissed her. Maybe she'd have slapped me, maybe not, but I wish I would have. The entire night I couldn't sleep after she left. And I also had a huge hard-on the first half of the night, and then major blue balls the second half. I laid there, staring up at the ceiling until the sun started shining through my blinds, too afraid to actually do anything just in case she found her way back to my room.

          I shake the thought away, taking a deep breath and coming back to the present. I notice Chris acting awkward for the first time. Actually, now that I think about it, the nerds are acting awkward, too, unusually quiet and glancing at me every now and then.

          Chris licks his lips, "So, uh Dustin—"

          Nicole comes up just then, sliding in between Chris and Sarah. Without looking at anyone, she proclaims, "So apparently I'm pregnant."

          Sarah looks at her in shock. Max does, too, which is surprising since I've yet to see him look directly at anyone. Not as surprising as what she announced, though. Chris winces, hissing through his teeth as he looks away from me.

          I lean around him to get a better look at her, glancing at her stomach, "Wait, what?"

          She looks at me casually, "Yeah, rumor has it you've got a little Dustin junior on the way."

          Oh. Rumor. Right. The beating in my chest dies down, and I relax. Then straighten up again, "Wait, what?"

          "Yeah, I heard that, too," Claire states accusingly, still glaring at me. John nods solemnly, and Eddie and Andrew look down at their trays, picking at some popcorn chicken.

          Tyler shrugs and Sarah gapes at him, "You heard that, too? Why didn't you tell me?"

          Shrugging again, he pops in a bite and finishes chewing before answering, "I didn't think it was a big deal. I know it's not true." He gestures around the table, "They know it's not true. That's all that matters, right?"

          She scoffs, then turns to Nicole, "Are you okay?"

          "Yeah," Nicole says, shrugging but looking down. I watch her as she starts tracing invisible swirls on the table, having not gotten lunch. I can't see this bothering her, but I could be wrong. Unless something else is up. I'm about to say something, I'm not exactly sure what, hoping the words magically appear as necessary, but she says something first and looks directly at me. "So, if it's a boy, I'm thinking Corbin. If it's a girl, maybe Elizabeth—after my mom. What do you think?"

          I open my mouth. Close it. Yeah, I've got nothing. Chris is the first to respond, "Why Corbin?"

          She shrugs, "I don't know. It has a nice ring to it, I guess. Corbin. Pretty."

          The look in her eyes is haunting. Not sad, just... empty. Like she's had all she can take, and there's nothing left for her give. The vacantness in them is stamped into my mind long after the topic dies out, sticking with me for the rest of lunch, through my next class and our last period, where Tyler steps up to her desk before she gets the chance to leave. He asks if she's okay while uncomfortably rapping his knuckles slowly against her desk. He probably felt obligated to, since he's dating her best friend. I wait until she says yes before heading out to the gym, where those eyes still occupy the forefront of my mind.