Chapter 6, Part 2
I take a nibble of my sandwich. Tommy is sitting across from me, eating a slice of pizza. He insisted that we go sit outside under an old tree. He said that we should get to know each other a bit better, since we are going out on Friday after all.
“Favorite color?”
“Robin’s egg blue,” I say without hesitation, thinking of my walls. Tommy is asking me questions such as this in order to get to know me better, but I’m not sure how knowing my favorite color makes us any closer, to be honest.
“Favorite... band?” I chew slowly, thinking. I savor the taste of the roast beef. This is a hard question...
“Hall and Oates,” I finally answer. He laughs.
“Hall and Oates? Really?” I join in on his laughing fit.
“Well,” I say, defensive, “you can’t not love them, I mean come on.” He groans and falls back against the tree. There’s a short silence while we study each other and finish our lunch.
“This is fun,” I comment.
“You’re fun.” I smile. This moment is so sweet.
“Well, what about you?” I ask. “What’s your favorite band?” He ponders this for a moment before replying.
“The Shins.” I smile again.
“Love them.” He smiles too, and twirls my braid.
“Okay, I guess you have alright taste in music.” I grin. Why can’t I stop smiling like an idiot? Oh well, I don’t care. “You know, I missed you at the gas station this morning.”
“What, you couldn’t find anyone else to throw your oatmeal at?” He chuckles. “I’ll meet you there tomorrow morning.”
“I’ll buy you a latte.”
“It’s a date,” I say bravely. He pulls me next to him so that we’re side by side instead of facing each other. I notice that everyone has left the schoolyard. “Oh no! We lost track of the time! We’re going to be late!”
“Don’t worry so much, Charlotte,” he says with a smirk.
“You knew, didn’t you? You didn’t lose track of the time at all!” He holds a finger to his lips.
“Guess we’ll just have to skip,” he winks.
“Thomas Nelson, you are a bad influence on me,” I tease. I pluck up the courage to lean against him, my head lying on his chest. He smiles as he closes his eyes briefly, resting his head against the tree bark. He opens his eyes and snakes his fingers through mine. I can’t wipe my smile away. I decide to memorize this moment. I inhale deeply. The air is crisp and smells distinctly of autumn. I run the fingers of my free hand through the cold grass. Lastly, I look up at Tommy. He’s looking down upon me intently. I sigh happily. I can get used to this.
Author’s Note:
I decided to add more, but I thought this was a good spot to end the chapter, so think of this as more of an extension of chapter 6. Thanks for reading! Vote, fan, or comment if you’d like. :)
