Love To Deaf (COMPLETE)

Chapter 20

Sunday.

Ah, the day when my troubles were supposed to be forgotten. Supposed. I could get away with trying to fight out thoughts of Jasper and everything of that sort, but there's something I just could not escape. Some people say that it's just natural. I totally understand that - but that does not mean that I have to accept it.

The time old enemy of every woman to ever live.

I'm going to be blunt: my period came.

Great! Perfect, just what I need when I'm supposed to be relaxing. It's not even my time of month! I blame stress. That is not factual in any sort of way but at some point I need to blame something other than nature.

I was considering texting Marco and not having him come at all - but he's been my closest friend for a long, long time. He knows all the girly things that women endure. Heck, for awhile when we were young, he kept "supplies" in his car for me because he was my ride to school. Not to mention the very first time that it happened to me, I was with him. Yeah, true test of friendship there.

He'd understand if I wasn't feel up to it. But by the looks of it, our talk had him seeming like he needed company too. Letting my breath out in a long slow sigh, I watched my phone for him to text me when he arrived. I'd set aside everything else for this event. Work, and ... Okay, so I only work.

I would've invited Stacy but she was getting along in pregnancy again and was feeling sick. Not to mention, I would not be surprised if Dustin had to work and she had Caleb all to herself. I sorted through all my Star Wars movies that I owned ( which is all of them if you are wondering ) and put them in order.

My chest heaved in with a heavy sigh, my hands fidgeting as I tried to calm down. My phone went off and I jumped, reacting to the buzz that I felt on my leg. Okay, showtime.

I opened the door, and there was Marco just like he had promised to be there. I hadn't seen him in a very long time it felt, and it was as though I was seeing an almost new person. A more tired version of him. Then again, he had just been through a breakup.

"Hey," he smiled as he signed and I invited him in.

"Hi!" I felt my throat tense up. I must've spoken really loudly, not that would've mattered to either of us.

Marco looked around and smiled. "You look nice." He said.

"Thanks, I don't feel like it," I signed and rolled my eyes. He gave me a slightly confused look. "You look good too. It's been awhile, yeah?" I sat down on my barstool and he leaned against the counter as he yawned.

With a nod, he ran a hand through his hair and rubbed his chin. He had new grown stubble that looked itchy. I'm so glad I'm not a guy, I can't even stand going a day without shaving my legs.

"Sorry if I'm a bit... Off." he stated and smiled lightly.

"You have every reason to feel off, Marco!" It was nice having someone that I could just pick up where I left off with. Marco was the best for that. He never forgot anything about a person; he remembered everything that made you happy. "I'm so sorry about what happened."

"It's fine, really," he shrugged it off and held up a finger to tell me to hold on. He put his satchel on the counter and pulled out chocolate covered coffee beans. I nearly squealed I was so excited! "I got these for you."

I grabbed them and inhaled, already smelling the coffee through the packaging. "You are amazing!" I ripped it open and popped in a handful. "How do you remember all this stuff, Marco? We haven't even been face to face in the last year!"

"You're not easy to forget," he laughed and made the 'crazy' sign with his hands.

"Oh gee thanks."  I rolled my eyes and slightly held my stomach area as a bit of pain set in. Marco noticed and ignored it for the time being.

"And you loved these things when you were going through rough patches. That and hot chocolate."  His eyes sparkled like he was rewatching a memory.

I smiled and looked down at my feet, running a hand through my hair. That's the thing about the two of us; we were always there for each other during the hard times. Somehow, we just stuck with each other. Even when I was the dumbest teenager ever and totally was the worst friend to have, I always had Marco to come back to.

His hand came onto my shoulder and regained my attention. When I looked up, he pulled away. "You okay?" He asked.

"Can I just be honest?" I said, rubbing my stomach.

"Say no more." He held up a hand and chuckled, shaking his head. He closed his eyes for a moment and then opened them. "I guessed when I came in."

"Seriously?" My mouth dropped open.

"You get this look about you when you're, ya know," he gestured to something far off. I got the point. "Sort of tired, sort of uncomfortable. And super excited for candy."

"That last bit is always true." I corrected.

----

Two movies in and we were already starting to tear up. Okay, I was starting to tear up. I was over-emotional for several reasons and you can assume the most prominent one. Marco just chuckled at me while I sat there like a baby.

"It's sad!" I objected, pointing to the teenage version of Anakin Skywalker.

"He's acting like a two year old. I get it, but dude," Marco  shook his head just as the movie ended. I inhaled deeply and caught an unfamiliar scent. It smelt like citrus. No, like perfume. I couldn't figure out where it was coming from. "Pass me the remote?" He asked so he could put the third movie in for us. I nodded and handed it to him and I caught another smell of that scent.

I snorted. Marco was wearing cologne? Since when did he do that? I mean, he always smelt good, but I had never known him to wear cologne. Gosh, it really had been a while since we had been around each other.

"Are you okay?" he asked. "Need a break?"

"No," I smiled. "Just... Thinking is all."

"Okay," he hesitated before hitting the play button. "What are you doing next week, just out of curiosity?"

"You mean when I'm not this emotional?" I laughed it off, not thinking much of it, and fluffed the pillow behind me. Shrugging, I popped another piece of candy in my mouth. "Probably not much. I have to deal with work all week but I have Friday to Sunday off. Friday is a green schedule day for the students, seniors are working on projects that day."

Marco watched me intently before scanning his phone and then smiling. "Me too. Do you wanna hang out sometime then?" He also leaned back into the couch cushions and held a pillow in front of him. He looked sort of tired still, and hugged the pillow.

I sat up a bit straighter and smiled. I wanted to say something like, 'really?' Even though that wouldn't have made much sense because, we used to hang out all the time. It shouldn't have shocked me he wanted to hang out, but for some reason it got me really excited. "Yeah!" I tried not to look overly excited.

Marco turned the slightest shade of pink around. His eyes stared at me for what felt like a long time and I started to stare back. before I had a chance to say anything, he looked away and rubbed the back of his head .

"Cool," he smiled at me and set a reminder on his phone. "What day works for you?"