Him and Me.

Him and Me- Thirty Eight.

Every end of a period, a tulip had been taped to my locker door. I knew because when lunch time came and I had to exchange my books for the next few classes, there were 4 pretty tulips crowding my locker. With a raised eyebrow, I removed the flowers and stuffed them carefully inside before heading out to lunch. I was having lunch with Colby and Tyler today, and if Kyle decided to show up, then so be it.

I was running a little late since I had Spanish just before lunch, and that class was such a brain workout. We had another set of vocabulary assignments, and I thank God that Colby and I were speaking again. I could sure use his help.

Pushing the doors to the cafeteria, I spotted Tyler’s messy curls easily and made my way to the table he was occupying. Colby wasn’t there, so I figured he was probably buying his lunch. I really hoped there was something good, like pizza or those chicken sandwiches.

“Hey,” Tyler greeted, pulling on my ponytail the moment I sat down beside him. That earned him a glare from me. He just laughed and pointed towards the lunch line.

“I already got Colby to grab lunch for us.”

I nodded absently, picking at a loose thread at the hem of my shirt. Twisting it around my finger, I gently pulled at it, wincing slightly as the material tightened, no doubt leaving marks on my forefinger. But hey, at least I managed to remove it from my shirt.

A tray suddenly plopped down on the table in front of me, making me snap my head up. Colby sat there across from me, his arms resting against the table. He was looking at me with amusement in his eyes, and a small smile graced his lips. Despite my irritation at him startling me, he did look cute, with his face all lit up.

“What’s so fascinating about that piece of thread?” He asked, grabbing a carton of milk from the tray.

I rolled my eyes. “It wasn’t fascinating, it was annoying.” I then adopted a straight face.

“I killed it already.”

Colby shook his head with a chuckle, and gestured at the loaded tray. He then grabbed a sandwich, an apple and gave them to me. He also pushed a water bottle towards my side of the table. I raised my eyebrows expectantly and he pursed his lips, looking a little smug.

“Chicken.”

“Hmmm,” I hummed approvingly with a smile, unwrapping the sandwich. I took a bite, grateful that my wish had come true. Sure, I liked pizza more, but this stuff was also good. Way better than that mush the lunch ladies sometimes served, and which we avoided at all costs. Colby started eating as well, his meal consisting of a two sandwiches (probably tuna), a banana, the milk, and a bottle of water.  

“Why do I feel like a third wheel?” Tyler suddenly spoke up.

That made me pause mid bite and slowly turned to face Tyler. I honestly forgot about him, and it made me feel a teeny bit guilty. It also made me blush, as he was insinuating that Colby and I looked like we were on a date, which was pretty ridiculous. We were in the middle of the school cafeteria, for crying out loud. When I saw the look on his face though, all the guilt was swallowed down together with the piece of sandwich that was still in my mouth. His face said it all—he was trying very hard not to burst out laughing. I sensed that Colby paused as well, but he recovered much earlier that I did, because I heard him clear his throat.

“Do you need me to hand out your lunch for you, too, Ty?” Colby asked, sarcasm evident in his voice.

Tyler blinked and clutched at his chest. “Why, of course Colby! I don’t expect anything less!”

Colby snorted, and at that, Tyler laughed and pulled the tray towards him. “I was just playing, you guys. Don’t forget—I am the reason why we’re all sitting together today again, at this lovely table. I, Tyler Simmons, made this happen.”