Even in Twenty Years (ON HOLD)

Chapter 19 - Roxy

"How was class?" Finn asked, turning to look at me and draping his arm over my shoulders.

"Same old, same old. More learning and more high school kids. You?"

"More homework and more high school teachers."

"Hey, my love." His arm wrapped around my shoulders as well.

"Hey, Gare Bear." I leaned into him, feeling Finn's arm pull away from me.

"How was your last class?"

"Same as usual. You?" I asked, wrapping my arm around his back and looking up at him.

"History was pretty interesting."

"Hey." Carter and Ryan appeared on our sides.

Passing the lockers, we made our way to the parking lot.

"Catch you guys, later," Ryan spoke, walking over to his truck.

I hugged the guys goodbye and walked over to Ryan.

"Ryan, were you going to leave without hugging me goodbye?"

He smiled. "Of course not." He wrapped his arms around me and gave me a tight hug. "See you, Roxy."

"See you, Ryan," I said, pulling away.

I walked over to Finn's car and stood by the passengers door, waving. "Bye, guys."

Finn and I got in his car, put on our seat belts, and he drove.

I turned on the radio and tried finding a good station. In the end, I settled on an oldies station. Mostly songs from the eighties and nineties.

Finn tapped on the steering wheel to the beat of the song. Journey's song, "Don't Stop Believing," was playing.

In a short amount of time later, we arrived at his house. We walked in. I removed my shoes, and we made our way into the kitchen.

"Orange juice?" he asked, as soon as I sat down.

I nodded my head, getting up from my seat and walking over to the cabinet to get some cups for the both of us. I placed both cups on the island counter, and Finn poured orange juice into my cup.

"Thanks." I picked up the cup and drank some.

"I am so hungry." He turned and put the juice back in the fridge.

"Wanna get something to eat?"

"No. I want actual food. The homemade kind."

"I could make something for us."

"Yeah?" he asked.

I nodded. "Just take out some things, and I'll make us something."

He stood from the stool and searched the fridge. He took out a bag and took out a box of pasta from the pantry.

"Spaghetti and meatballs?" I asked.

"Yes, please."

"Alright." I stood and walked over to the stove and turned it on.

Finn placed the pot of water on the stove and put in the sticks of pasta. While he did that, I got started on the meatballs. I seasoned them and formed them into the shape. While those cooked, I got started on the sauce, since Finn and I preferred homemade sauce.

Once everything was cooked, I mixed the sauce and meatballs together. Finn and I served ourselves and sat at the table to eat, with us sitting across from each other.

"This is so good," he said in between bites. "Rox, this is honestly the best. You are the best friend ever for making me this."

A smile crept up on my lips. "You're welcome."

I drank some of the ice tea Finn had made and looked around his kitchen. The cabinets were a burgundy color. All the appliances were steel and the counter tops were black. It wasn't as dark as it seemed because all the light came in from the big windows on my right.

"I'll wash the dishes." He finished up his food.

"And I'll clean up the mess."

We nodded and stood.

Cleaning the counter, I noticed Finn. He had finished washing the dishes and was smiling at his phone. He quickly typed something and put his phone back into his front pocket.

"Let's go upstairs."

I nodded and washed my hands.

Walking into his bedroom, Finn removed his shoes and jumped onto his bed. Crossing his legs at the ankles, he rested one arm behind his head, while the other grabbed his phone out of his pocket.

I stood by his dresser, looking at the different things. There were deodorant sticks, cologne bottles, two watches, a bottle of hair gel, a comb, and a blue rubber ball the size of an orange.

"Hey." I tossed the small rubber ball at him.

"What's up?" He caught it and turned to look at me.

"This Sunday is Valentine's day. What are you doing with Grace?" I questioned, leaning against the dresser.

He threw the ball back at me and I caught it. "I don't know." He sighed and put his arm over his face, covering his eyes.

"Any ideas?"

He didn't say anything. I took his silence as an indication that he didn't have any.

"Alright. Let me think." I slowly paced his room, throwing the ball up in the air. "How about a dinner?" I turned to look at him.

He sat up, resting all his weight on his elbows, shaking his head.

"Right. You're not adults having a night away from your kids. You're teenagers." I continued to pace back and forth, continuing to toss the ball in the air. "Think, Roxanne, think," I mumbled to myself. "That new cafe!" I stopped and caught the ball in my hand.

"Which one?" He sat up all the way.

"The new one. In downtown. It's called—"

"New Dashes Cafe," he finished.

"Yeah. I hear it's nice. After having something at the cafe, you can walk down the streets. On Valentine's day, they have those pink lights up in the trees. Trust me. It's so pretty at night."

I remember my dad taking my mom and I on strolls through the streets and admiring the lights.

"Yeah." He stood. "That'd be great. What should I get her though?"

"Honestly, flowers and chocolate will do fine. Everyone gets that, but they're greatly appreciated. Flowers and chocolate? I'm sure she'll love that."

"Rox, you're the best!" He stood and hugged me.

"Of course I am."

He shook his head, smiling. "Come on. I'll take you to get some ice cream."

"You know me so well."

"I know everything about you." He grabbed his wallet, and we walked out of his bedroom.

"Not everything." I opened the front door.

"Rox, I even know your cycle."

"Finn, that's weird."

He shrugged his shoulders, locking the door behind us. "What's weird is that you don't know mine," he joked.

I laughed, pushing him to the side. "You're dumb."

He laughed, putting his arm around me.