Can't Blame a Girl for Trying

Chapter 5

     I had to be hallucinating, it was the only explanation for what I saw. Riley was sitting on my front porch with Farkle eating ice cream both chatting as if it were any other day. I nudged Lucas who was standing next to me after helping me out of his car and asked, "Okay, please tell me you also see a pretty brunette  on my porch talking to a guy in a leather jacket."

      Lucas raised a brow at my strange question, "Yes I do. Do you know them?" Instead of answering I ran forward yelling, "Honey!!!!" Riley's head lifted in my direction and the dorky smile that I missed so much appeared from ear to ear. "Peaches!!" She jumped down from her seat and swung her arms wide. I ran into her arms and we both fell backwards due to Riley's clumsy long legs. After a few seconds of laughing, I got back up and readjusted myself. "Farkle!!" I yelled again. Farkle replied with his famous, "Ladies..." Farkle opened his arms and I hugged him too. I stepped away from them, close to tears.

       Riley looked over my shoulder and smirked, "Are you just going to stand there or are you going to introduce us to your friend?" Riley might as well of been wiggling her eyebrows as she said friend. She must have gathered enough evidence by now to support the idea that he is Lucas.

     I stepped towards Lucas awkwardly and pointed to each of my friends in turn, "Lucas, this is Riley. Riley, Lucas. Lucas this is Farkle. Farkle, Lucas"

      Lucas shook hands with the two of them and smiled politely. Riley seemed a bit too interested in meeting him. I don't know why that bothered me at all. Probably because I did not want him to get the idea in his head that I talked about him. He did not need to know that...

      "So" I said smiling, "Have you guys went in yet?" I asked nodding towards my front door.

      "No, we just got here about an hour ago. We were going to wait for you." Farkle answered looking around at my new neighborhood. "You never told us how beautiful it is here. Much better then the apartment you lived in New York." I nodded silently,feeling a bit awkward and not completely agreeing.

      "Well you guys can come in if you want." I said looking at everyone and smiling at Lucas and Riley. I led the way inside while everyone was chatting mindlessly. I took Riley by the hand and dragged her from room to room talking the whole way about everything, school, friends, homework, and what it's like to live away from New York.

      At one point during out little get together, Riles set me aside to talk to me about Lucas. I told her the truth, I don't know how I felt about him. We have only known each other for two freaking days anyways. Riley answered saying, "By the time Farkle and I leave in a week, I expect to have an answer from you." By then I believed I would have an answer, even if its only half-formed.

         For the duration of Riley and Farkle's stay we went to zoos, museums, art shows, a concert, ate at several concession stands, and went to see a few good movies. Some of these things we did with Lucas but it was mainly meant for Riley, Farkle, and I. My favorite thing about seeing Riley again is the hours of talking while eating ice cream and gossiping. I missed our all night girl talks so much. I got to spend plenty time with Lucas at school. After he was done with his detention sessions, it became a habit for him to take me to school and drop me off, often hanging out at my house for about an hour. We were getting closer and it terrified me yet gave me a reason to want to go to school. I got decent grades and I got to see my best of friends every day for a week. I even found out I could do both choir and art! Every other day I would switch between the two classes, neither of the teachers wanted me to leave their class. But, eventually the week with Farkle and Riley came to an end. Before leaving, Riley pulled me aside once more and asked if I had an answer to how I felt about Lucas. I told her I liked him, I just did not know how yet. She smiled at my answer and dropped a bomb just as she was about to leave, she really liked Farkle. I didn't know exactly what to say so I just stood there like an idiot while she hugged me and left.

       I knew Farkle loved her, but he said he loved me too; both of us would be equal forever in his heart. Maybe he will learn to love her as a girlfriend as much as he loves me as a friend. Whatever he is feeling now, I bet it will go Riley's way. It is her world after all I thought laughing to myself.

      I felt eyes on me and my focus immediately turned to Lucas's window in his house. His curtain was open and he was looking at me curiously. As soon as he saw I was looking at him, his face erupted into a smile causing me to smile back automatically. That was when I realized something, when I was with Riley all that mattered was her world to me. When I am away from Riley, I can focus on my own world that had laid in ruins for my whole life due to its poor attention. I could now focus on making my world a better place.