Birds || Fuenciado

Chapter 10: Almost Kissing

Alex is coming to stay.

"Alex is coming to stay! Alex is coming to stay!" I shriek like a kid as I scramble down the stairs on Saturday morning, sprinting recklessly into the living room and ricocheting off the wall as I do so. Dad, settled into his armchair with his legs up on the footstool and the newspaper crossword open on his lap, looks up, and just about has time to blink rapidly before I sweep myself around the back of his chair and wrap him up in what I can manage of a hug whilst he's sat down. "Alex is coming to stay!"

"Is that so?" He says, moderately baffled and stunned, and I let go and launch myself into the kitchen, where Mom is still doing the washing up from breakfast.

"Alex is coming to stay!" I shout as I throw myself at her, wrapping my arms around her waist and squeezing, bouncing slightly, and she starts, surprised.

"Oh!" She suddenly yelps, dropping the soapy sponge into the sink water. "Right."

"Mike!" I shout, letting go of her too and bolting back up the stairs, not even bothering to knock on his door before bursting in on him half concentrating on whatever homework he's doing, half texting someone. I interrupt both activities and leap over, taking him by the shoulders and shaking him. "Alex is coming to stay!"

"That's great, Vic!" He grins, the only one not caught off guard by my hysterics. "When, exactly?"

"I don't know yet!" I say loudly, and then I have to stop because, quite frankly, my legs are still full of lactic acid from my run this morning and now I'm out of breath again. As I wheeze slightly, traipsing back downstairs and stumbling into the kitchen once more, my heart jumps, skips and frolics madly. I lean against the door frame and catch my breath, ridiculous smile still plastered all over my face. Mom looks over her shoulder, calm as ever, and smirks as she raises an eyebrow.

"Victor," she says softly, "is Alex, by any chance, coming to stay?"

"Yes," I sigh happily, laughing out loud as I spin away from the doorway and float across the kitchen to lean on one of the dining chairs. "He's coming back for the OC Halloween party!"

"That's lovely," she smiles brightly. "It'll be nice to see him again. So he'll be around the end of October?"

"Seems like it. He can only take a few days off college, but that doesn't matter. Can he stay here?"

"I don't see why not," she nods, and I jump for joy, fists clenched, and try not to explode with excitement.

"Ye-es! Thank you Mom."

"No trouble."

For a moment, I'm slightly calmer and more collected, but it doesn't last long before I start squealing again. I haven't seen Alex since the beginning of Summer, and although for most people that may not be long, for me and Alex it may as well have been years since our last meeting. Throughout high school we only had each other and we saw each other every day - so when that suddenly changed, it was torturous.

Words cannot express my joy that I get to see him again.

I manage to pull myself together in time to take Mike to the library to meet Tony, who stands outside the building, waiting, dressed exclusively in black and holding Doug, still dressed in a high visibility ESA jacket, close to his chest. Mike barely remembers to say goodbye as he gets out of the car, but that's fine. I smile as I watch him go.

On the way home my phone rings, and I quickly glance at the caller ID and my grin spreads wide again. Pulling over the car, I answer it as quickly as I can and put it on speaker.