Lost Boy || Leonardo DiCaprio

Chapter 5: Baby, I Believe in You

I was lying on my bed as I listened to the Stevie Wonder cd through my speakers. I had been playing it nonstop all morning, impressed by the music but also stuck with thoughts of Leo. Isn't She Lovely played for like the third time as I snuck a peek out the curtains. I smiled softly when I saw the car had been moved from the driveway. Tobey and Leo were playing basketball, since there was a hoop above the garage. I couldn't help but admire how Leo glided across the cement, completely focused on the game, even if it was obvious it was just for fun. He ended up looking up past the tree near my house, probably catching a glimpse of me. Even though it was difficult to see inside during the day, it was easy to see the curtains parted. I chewed on my lower lip as I thought about how Clementine said if I wanted to spend time with Leo then I should just go for it. So, I ended up putting my hair in two pigtails that were flattering and didn't make me look like a five year old. Then I jogged down the stairs and casually walked outside, pressing my lips into a weak smile. I stood there for a few moments, hugging myself, since I was losing my nerve.

"Hey," Tobey greeted first. "You're Alyssa, right?"

I stared at him before blinking a few times, surprised he knew about me. We had never met before. "Yeah, I live next door to Leo."

"Yeah, he told me about that. You want to join us? We're just playing for fun. We're not even keeping score."

"I'm horrible at sports." I was already taking a few steps back as fear gripped me.

"Come on, we'll go easy on you. Here, try making a basket first."

I forced a smile before grasping the basketball he handed me, dribbling it a few times. I then did my best to throw it into the hoop, sighing when I missed.

"You can do it underhand first until you get the hang of overhand," Tobey suggested.

I tried that, but I think I ended up doing worse, feeling my face growing hot.

"It takes awhile to get it. You can keep trying if you want."

"No, I think I'll just watch you two play if that's okay."

"Yeah, but I think we're going to take a lemonade break. It's getting too hot out here for us. You want to come inside? His mom made a bunch of lemonade."

"Okay," I shyly agreed, Leo looking over at me with no expression before we headed indoors.

"Hey, you boys in already," a woman asked. She had blonde hair to her shoulders with bangs and resembled Leo a bit.

"Yeah, it's really hot out there," Tobey commented, sitting at the kitchen table as she served us drinks.

"Oh, is this your girlfriend, Tobey?" I wanted to die as her eyes landed on me.

"No, she's the next door neighbor."

"Well, it's nice to meet you. I'm sorry I never came over and properly introduced myself. It's just been hard moving so abruptly like this."

"It's okay," I softly said, taking the chair beside Tobey.

"Is there anything else you boys need? I'm heading to the store to pick up some groceries."

"No, we're good, Mom," Leo answered that time.

"Well, okay. Make sure you don't lock yourselves out like you did that one time." She rolled her eyes as Leo seemed to turn a little pink.

"We won't, Mom," he reassured her. After she left I kept sipping on my lemonade to distract myself.

"This is really good lemonade," I spoke up.

"Yeah, Leo's mom makes the best. I think there are some cookies around here too," Tobey shared, standing to search for them.

I looked over at Leo as he happened to do the same, our eyes meeting briefly.