E + A

stupid boy

Someone stopped me in the hallway, tugging at my sleeve.

"Eric, right?"

Alexis. "Yeah," I replied. That one short, long-haired girl in my English class. The pretty one. Her eyes practically undressed me in the middle of the hall.

"What's your phone number? I want to go out and eat. Your pick?" she finished, her grin making her eyes shine. I stopped for a moment, eyes wide. I snapped out of it and nodded, wringing my hands together.

"Yeah, I can," I replied. "Here," I took out a piece of paper and fished for a pencil, quickly jotting down the number. It felt like everyone's eyes were burning through me. My face flushed, quickly finishing and handing her the slightly crumpled paper. I kept my eyes down on her delicate face. Why did I get so quiet?

"Thanks, I'll call you after school." she smiled. Her eyes fading a deep shade of brown, almost giving a hint of red. I stared. She made a slight face and walked off. I waved at her turned back, a small forced smile on my face. Everyone's eyes are stinging. I need to stop doing that. I continued walking.

Next class, I sit. I can't focus to save my life. Effortlessly scribbling on the notes page. Millions of things other than the teacher's words going through my head. My eyes stayed down. I paused and picked at the scab on my arm.

________________________________________________________________________________

Ringing. I turned to my phone, an unknown number reading across the screen. I smiled slightly, reaching over. I answered.

"Eric! You actually picked up," Alexis let out a slight laugh. I quietly giggled and nodded, putting her on speakerphone.

"I mean, you called," I teased, tearing at the end of my shirt. She giggled.

"Mhm," she started. "So, what time? I was thinking 4:30, maybe?" shyly, she finished.

"Sure," I replied with a soft tone. My face started fading pink. "I was thinking the steakhouse down the road from me? Well, not really down the road. But it's close," I laughed, grinning. She giggled and sighed.

"Yeah. I'll be on my way then, message me the place," she said. I sent the link, and she hung up. I put down my phone and fell back onto my bed, looking at the posters on my ceiling. My eyes ached slightly. What was I going to wear? I sat up, rubbing my eyes.