Two Of A Kind

17. First date jitters

Aiden's Pov~

"...And that's all for today's class, be sure to read chapters eighteen through twenty-one. There will be an exam on Friday." Mr. Brumfield instructed as the bell rang. Half the students were already out of their seats, ready for the end of the school day to be near. I hardly paid any attention to the lesson. My mind was still occupied with the thoughts of the last encounter I had with my parents, or better yet, the encounter they had amongst themselves.

After my mother ran after my dad, I reluctantly went to my room, not bothering to interfere any longer. When she told me I had said enough, I didn't disagree in the slightest. Although I believed I made the right decision, it constantly felt like I had done something wrong. If I'd known I'd be eaten up from guilt this bad, I probably would've second-guessed my options.

"Mr. Pierce, not so fast." My teacher's voice stopped me right before I reached the door. I turned on my heel, stopping in front of Mr. Brumfield's desk.

"I take it you know what this is about?" He asked, eyeing me expectantly from the tip of his rectangular lenses.
"Not really." I responded nonchalantly,
Lying through my teeth.
"This is about your grades. You went from one the most academically successful students in all my classes, to bottom five." I knew he was being dramatic when he said bottom five, but nonetheless, I had noticed the decrease in my grades. From an A plus to a C minus to be exact.

"Look, sorry about the grades Mr. Brumfield." I emptily apologized.
"Don't apologize to me," he countered. "Your grades determine your future, not mine." I stared at him blankly and he took that as a sign to continue.
"Listen Aiden, if there's something going on in your personal life that's hindering your academic abilities, I can refer you to your class's assigned counselor. Dr. Osborne, she's great-" I cut him off.
"I appreciate it Mr Brumfield but that won't be necessary. I can take some after school courses for extra credit, it's fine." My tone came off a little defensive, but I didn't need him meddling in my life outside of school. Even if he was only doing what he got paid to do.

He ignored my suggestion and started scribbling something down on a sticky note.
'Dr Osborne, room #304.'
"Just give it a shot Pierce, it'll be worth it." He gave me a sympathetic smile, and with that I headed to my next period.
••••••••••••••••••••

"Wow." I sat across from Rider in the cafeteria, spilling every ounce of what happened the other night.
"I know right. And the worst part of it all is that I didn't even mean for it to come out the way it did." I paused, my statement made me come to a realization .
"Maybe that's why I feel so guilty." Rider sipped the carton of apple juice in front of her before speaking.
"Perhaps..." She was responding to me, but the one word replies told me her mind was elsewhere.

"Hey what's wrong?" I asked, gently placing my hand on hers.
"Nothing, it's stupid." She said, shaking her head.
I hated that she felt she couldn't tell me about what was bothering her. Especially when I called her for every single inconvenience in my life. I had to show her that she could confide in me. That she could trust me.
"Would you like to go on a date?" I blurted out the question before I could think about it. The question obviously took her by surprise as well. Her eyes widened for a split second, and her cheeks started to redden.

"Really?" She asked hopefully.
"Of course! I know I should've asked sooner, but with everything going on with-"
"Aiden, shhh," she commanded, placing her index finger firmly on my lips.
"I'll be ready at 7."
•••••••••••••••

I couldn't help but feel a flurry of nerves and excitement building up inside me. Today was the day I had been waiting for – a date with the girl of my dreams. After all this time, I finally mustered up the courage to ask her out.