The Other Wheeler || Eddie Munson x Y/N

7. Apologies

When we arrived at school on Monday morning, there was a buzz in the air. With it being the week before Spring Break, people were excitedly anticipating the days off of school. Mike was planning on going to California to visit his friend, Will, and his girlfriend, El. For some reason, Nancy wasn't planning on visiting either. Johnathan was Will's brother so it seemed odd that she wouldn't jump on the chance to go see her boyfriend who lives thousands of miles away.

I was looking forward to Mike being away. Even though I had done a decent job at avoiding him yesterday, he still was giving me funny looks and silently teasing me every chance he got just to get under my skin. I could only imagine how his lunch conversation would go today. 

Before band started, I found Robin and caught her up on the events of the weekend. "That's so exciting, Y/N." Robin replied, but seemed distracted. I followed her gaze and arrived at a red headed clarinet player, Vickie. Vickie and I had spoken a few times due to us playing the same instrument, but I didn't know her very well. I did however know that Robin had a huge crush on her.

I teased Robin. "You're drooling."

Robin snapped out of her stare and looked at me apologetically. "Sorry. I am happy for you Y/N, I just wish that I could experience those kinds of things without being an outcast."

I felt so bad for Robin, but didn't know how to respond to that. I couldn't tell her that everything would work out, because there were no guarantees that it would. It hadn't even occurred to me how telling her about my experiences with Eddie could affect her. The two of us stood next to each other in silence for a few moments before I put my hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry that you have to go through this."

That's when the bell rang and we headed to our seats. Band rehearsal was spent getting ready for the pep rally and the basketball game on Friday. I wasn't really a fan of basketball, but I really enjoyed playing in the band. When I played in the band, I felt like I belonged, I felt like I mattered. 

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I met up with Robin again at lunch and kept any mention of Eddie to a minimum considering the conversation we had earlier. Robin and I were chatting when Mike came over to our table, which was unusual. The two of us hardly ever interacted while at school. "Hey, can you drive me home on Friday? Hellfire is meeting the same time as the game and we should be wrapping up when you're done with the band."

I looked at Mike confused. "Isn't Nancy giving us a ride?"

Mike shook his head. "She's driving separate. Apparently she has to get there early and stay late to work on the article about the game for the school paper."

I sighed with frustration. "I wish Nancy had told me. I told Mom that we wouldn't need both cars on Friday."

Mike and I stared at each other trying to come up with a solution. That's when a devilish grin grew across his face. "I'll ask Eddie if he can drive us."

And before I could object, he was running back to his table. Robin looked at me. "And why would it be a bad thing for Eddie to give you a ride? I assumed you'd jump at any chance to be around him."

I turned to face her. "I want to be around Eddie, but I don't want to suffer through a car ride where Mike will be giving me looks the whole time. He will for sure make it awkward on purpose."

Robin laughed. "Man, I sure am glad I don't have a brother."

Just as she finished her sentence, Mike was back at the table. "It's settled, Eddie will pick us up and take us home on Friday."

"I hate you." I glared at Mike, but couldn't stop a small smile from forming on my lips.

"Love you too, Y/N!" Mike said as he walked back to his lunch table. I looked over at his table and made eye contact with Eddie. He gave me a smile and then dropped his eyes back to his lunch. 

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After school, I met Nancy out at the car. "Hey, thanks to you, I have to suffer through a drive with Eddie and Mike on Friday." Nancy looked at me with confusion on her face. "Mom needs one of the cars on Friday and you're taking the other one so Mike came up with the wonderful idea of asking Eddie if he could drive us."

Nancy cupped her hand over her mouth, but then let out a laugh. "Y/N, I am so sorry, but I can't wait to hear how that drive goes."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah" I said while waving a hand at her. The two of us got into the car and waited for Mike.

When Mike joined us in the car, he was met with dead silence. Apparently none of us wanted to address the elephant in the room. The whole ride home continued this way. Just as I was about to get out of the car, Nancy locked the doors refusing to let us out. "I need you two to work this out. I'm not about to suffer through this all week."

I let out a heavy sigh, but finally addressed Mike. "You better not do anything to embarrass me on Friday with Eddie."

Mike looked astonished. "You really think I would sabotage you like that?" I didn't respond. "Y/N, I may give you crap because you're my sister and that's my job, but I'm not going to ruin your chances at finding something good."

After hearing Mike's words, I felt like a horrible sister. I turned to face Mike and replied to him sheepishly. "Thank you. And I'm sorry that I assumed the worst from you." 

He gave me a light smile. "We're good. Don't worry." He said easing my concerns.

"Now that wasn't so hard, was it?" Nancy chimed in and unlocked the doors.

As much as my siblings get on my nerves sometimes, man am I lucky to have them. I thought I was the one always look out for them, but lately it seems like they're the ones always looking out for me.