Once Ryan heads upstairs, I stand up from the table and readjust my pants. My plan was to hug her the second I saw her, enveloping her in my arms and the warm scent of coffee and baked goods. However, when she opened the door with her pajamas still on, I got a little unfocused. Her short shorts and tank top left very little of her curves to the imagination and I could tell that she wasn’t wearing a bra. I doubt that she knew how she looked or she never would have answered the door that way.
But after the story she told me last night, I couldn’t hug her for the first time with a raging boner. So, tuck and cover it was. Just something for me to think about later...
We didn’t really talk on the way to school. But it wasn’t uncomfortable. I hear Ryan singing quietly to the music. She isn’t going to win any singing awards, but it's sweet. Eventually, we pull into the parking lot. Ryan tries to let go of my hand, but I hold fast. She turns to look at me. “What’s up?’ “Let me take your bag.” I grab it from the floor. “Oh, thanks,” I smile at her and bring her hand to my lips. I graze her
I walk into second period English to have Ayo and Lucy wave me over to the seat they saved for me. Lucy hugs me, bouncing on her toes. “I’m so happy for you!” she squeals. “Thanks,” I giggle. I hold her shoulders down. “Stop vibrating, will you?” “Come on, Ryan, this is HUGE! This guy is basically all you’ve talked about since sixth grade!” Lucy says, swatting my arm. “Ouch! Can I at least sit before you mortally wound me?” I smile at her.
“Ryan? Are you ok?”I snap back to reality with Ms. Snow kneeling beside me. Ayo and Lucy are also crowded around my chair. For a second I don’t recognize where I am. I dimly register that I am hugging myself, shaking and crying. The thoughts of the trial had swept me away, completely overtaking my thoughts.“Would you like to go to Mrs. Lewdwig?” Ms. Snow's voice is quiet, but the room is, too. I know that everyone is listening, watching, judging.I nod. All my teachers know the situation and a plan is in place for me to leave class if I need.“Ok.” She pats my hand. I flinch and shrink into myself. She immediately pulls away. “Ayo. Lucy. Can you take
“Hey, what are you doing for lunch?” I ask Ryan as we’re packing up our instruments. Throughout the course of Band, she began to relax. She joked with Jax and me, seemed to get lost in the music, and kept throwing me these little smiles that made my heart race. She almost seems back to her usual self now. I'm happy to see her bounce back so quickly. “Um, nothing much. Just hanging with the girls,” Ryan says. “Do you want to come out to lunch with me?” “Where are you going?” “My mom made my favorite homemade pizza last night, so I was going to head home and grab some.”
I pull away and see her eyes flutter open. She gives me a confused, almost hurt look.“I’m not going to do anything unless you give me the go ahead, Ryan. Verbally. I’m not Tommy and I don’t want to give you a reason to confuse the two of us.”I release her and turn back to the dishes. After a few seconds, she stands beside me and grabs the utensils from the strainer, drying them. We work quietly for a while, only talking to tell her where things go.I’m unplugging the drain and rinsing off my hands when she says, “Hey, Carter. Can you help me out? I can’t reach where the plates go.”Sure enough, I turn to see her on tiptoes, trying to put the plates onto the shelf. I qu
Carter I hope that Ryan was able to focus better on her test than I was on my class. That kiss fogs my brain and I barely hear the bell ring when its time to leave. I meet Jaime and Patrick at our lockers, which are clustered around each other. “Hey, where’d you go at lunch?” Patrick asks. “Ryan and I had lunch at my house. Mom made pizza last night,” I say. “And you didn’t invite us?” Patrick says, aghast. “Did
“Thanks, man,” Patrick mutters before clearing his throat. “So, I know that I’ve been really rough on Ryan in the past - “ “Pendejo,” Ayo mutters. “Ayo!” Lucy exclaims. “Let him talk.” “Fine,” Ayo growls. She folders her arms across her chest and glares at Patrick. “Go ahead.” Patrick's eyes widen and he stares at Ayo for a second. I realize that I don’t think that Patrick and Ayo have ever had an actual
I take Ryan home after the diner. When we pull in, I can see that her parents are doing some yard work. Ryan’s eyes widen. “Shit.” “What?” I ask. “Look, I’m really sorry for whatever my parents are about to do or say.” I laugh. “It can’t be that bad.” Then I look at the fear on her face. “Can it?” By then, I’ve parked the car and her parents are walking over. “Just remember that you said you liked me. Yo