See You on the Other Side | ✓

21 | The Date with Avery

"When it's all said and done, will you need me too, girl?" - Wallows, Only Friend

~~~

I told myself not to get my hopes up too much about that kiss. I still had to get through the date. Even though I reminded myself to not think, I couldn't stop replaying that scene in my head.

Avery and I had kissed in the absence of alcohol.

I didn't know what to do and at this point, I was scared to ask. I needed to pull myself together and get inside this restaurant. I was definitely in the mood to stress eat. Hopefully Avery wouldn't be because I wasn't trying to pay a huge bill.

I exited the car and walked over to the passenger's side. I opened her door, earning praise for the simple action.

"And they say chivalry is dead," she joked.

I single chuckle left my mouth. "It's not dead until I'm dead."

"Wow, do you use that one with every girl or just me?"

"Just you," I replied.

Her response was a quick smile before we entered the restaurant. There was a wait, but it was around ten minutes so, we decided to stick out the wait.

We got seated at a booth, which I was excited about. Shortly, the server came and asked us if we were ready to get our drinks. Avery got a raspberry lemonade while I got a Sprite.

"So, Avery," I began.

She looked up from her drink and stopped sipping. "Hm?"

"I feel like you know more about me than I do you."

"Well, what do you want to know?" She asked.

"Maybe we can make our knowledge on the same playing field. Since you know what my home situation is, maybe I could know yours."

"Okay, well," she drew out. "I have a brother, but he's at college. He plays basketball for Virginia Tech."

"Isn't that school D1?"

"Yeah. He worked his ass off to be there, but he's changed now. I thought he would be back home since he's on winter break at the moment, but I haven't seen him since he left in the fall," she vented. Her expression fell as she seemed to come to terms with her brother's persistent absence.

"I'm sure he wants to see you."

"Does he though?" She asked. It was more of a question directed at herself. "I mean, I understand that D1 is time-consuming, but he could've at least come home for the holidays."

"Okay so, your brother's gone. What about your parents?"

"My mom's difficult and my dad is unbearable. That's all I'm saying about those two."

"Well, my mom and dad are dead so, I understand not wanting to talk about it."

Her brown eyes softened. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be. It was a while ago. I've had 11 years to come to terms with the cards I've been dealt. I'm just lucky enough to have my grandma," I said.

That was the first time that I verbally acknowledged the commitment my grandma gave to me. I'd been so ungrateful and for what? Without her, I'd be in the system being God knows where.

Avery looked up from the table to break the solemn mood I guess I had created. "So yeah. There's my situation. I'm barely at home because of dance though so, it's not too bad. My mom and dad aren't the greatest, but I couldn't imagine my life without them."

"I don't really want to kill the mood, but when murder is involved, you get numb when it comes to the death of family members. I hate to admit it, but..." my thoughts trailed off as I came to terms with what I was about to say.

"Sometimes, I feel numb about life. Like I'm just living to live it. I'm not really living with a purpose," I admitted.

"Do you want things to be different?" She asked. My hand was sitting on the surface of the table. Avery reached out to touch it. "See life differently?"

"I don't know. Maybe. But I've already been thinking like this for so long. I think it's too late to get out of my pessimism."

"It's never too late to change, Adrian. You still have a long time to make some adjustments."

"It's been too long," I reiterated.

In this dimly lit restaurant, my mind was being illuminated with all these memories. A distinct one was something I thought my brain had stored away for an eternity. It was a flashback to my mom playing with me when I was 5.

For a long time, all my memories seemed to only consist of the incident and the moments after it. Now, I had a vision of what juvenile joy looked like.

I got a vision of what the old me was like.

~~~

I pulled into Avery's driveway. I said goodbye to her while contemplating another kiss. I decided not to since I didn't want to come on too strong. Instead, I just waited until she walked in the house.

I went home without the answers I really had wanted. It was nice to hear Avery open up about her home life, but the potential for more than a friendship was still in limbo. I lay in my bed thinking about it all.

I heard a knock on the door and turned to the source of the sound. My door was cracked so, I could see it was my grandma outside the door. I figured she was about to ask me how the date went.

"Since you didn't say anything to me about it when you came in, I'm assuming it didn't go so well," she speculated, slowly opening the door.

"It went fine. I'm just thinking."

"About what? You know I'm not the one to judge. Unless it's something illegal." She suspected with a raised brow.

"I just don't know what to do, 'ma. This whole starting a relationship thing is difficult. I keep getting mixed messages."

"Maybe you're the one doing it."

"I'm not trying to come on too strong and get hurt. This girl has me wrapped around her finger and she doesn't even know it," I explained. I turned to bury my face in a pillow.

"Don't suffocate yourself over this. Just tell her how you feel. Don't make things more complicated than they actually are," she advised.

"Thanks, grandma," I said.

"It's nothing. I can't just let my grandson wander through life aimlessly."

"Thanks for just being here and taking me in and everything."

She squinted. "What are you trying to get at here?"

"Nothing. I just got this realization that you are really important to my life and I'm lucky to have you as a guardian."

"That's what family is for." She left the room.

A/N

I'm surprised I wrote this all in one day, but anyway, I apologize for being away from this book for so long. I just needed a break.