After Hours

5 - friends or more what do you really want?

Ruby and I stared at each other in shock, our expressions mirroring each other. A million thoughts raced through my mind trying to come up with an adequate reason as to why she was at my doorstep, but none of them seemed to make much sense. It wasn't like she knew where I lived, heck, she didn't even know my last name! So what was she doing here?

Ruby's eyebrows were knit as she said, "Mo- I mean, Carmel? What...? I opened my mouth to address her, but my brother beat me to it.

"Ruby." I heard Dylan say. I turned around to find his gaze focused on her, only once flickering to me before he said, "Hey, are you ready?"

"Yeah, sorry I'm late, my car's been having issues all day." She apologized to him as he moved to stand beside me at the door, before her eyes were back on me.

"I'm Dylan's tutor." She explained. My eyes widened. She was Dylan's tutor?

"Yeah, Carmel, could you move?" Dylan coughed.

"Oh- I...yeah sorry." Realizing I was in the way, I stepped out of the doorway so Ruby could come in. She offered me a smile as she and Dylan went together to the living room, chatting about their days.

I had thought about giving them privacy and going back to scrolling through Instagram in my room, but who was I kidding? Or course I was going to sit in the living room, pretending I was minding my own business while actually waiting for a chance alone with her.

So that's what I ended up doing for most of Ruby's time at my house, and I had a lot of time to think about why I didn't realize she was Dyl's tutor. I never saw Ruby at our house because I had practice on weekdays. Well, besides Friday, but that was obviously when she was working at Swindon Books.

Thinking back, I realized that she did seem very vaguely familiar. It was probably because I'd only met Ruby as Dylan's tutor once : a couple months ago when I had stayed home sick, and avoided running into her in the kitchen. I'd only caught a quick glimpse of her side profile back then, so it made sense that I didn't immediately recognize her when we first met. Although, looking back on the memory, I realized that her hair had definitely been chestnut brown then. I guess things changed.

This had to be the reason she didn't work Monday through Thursday. Instead she was here, at my house. With my brother. The thought astounded me; I went looking for her, and she was right here all along.

Eventually I heard Dylan and Ruby saying they were going to take a break, and I happened to look up just in time for Ruby and I to make eye contact. Blushing, my head shot back down to my phone. But I ended up looking back at her anyway when she decided to come over and stood by the back of the couch, looking down at me.

"So I didn't know you were Dylan's sister." She said to me.

"I didn't know you were Dylan's tutor."

"True." She chuckled. "I've been tutoring him for...probably around four months now?" She said. "He's been doing a lot better than when we started though."

"That's good." I nodded. I remembered Dylan struggling with math a bit in the past. "So I, um...I play basketball." I began to explain. "I have practice on weekdays, that's why we never saw each other before. But now..." I gestured down to my foot in it's brace.

A look of surprise, and then concern crossed over her face. "Oh, You're hurt...." She was able to conclude, and I nodded. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah I'm fine." I waved her off. "More bored than anything."

"Well even still, that's good to hear." She smiled with relief, and my heart fluttered.

I had to admit, a part of me was jealous of Dylan. I had spent so long waiting to go to Swindon Books to spend time with Ruby, and meanwhile he got to see her every week without putting any effort in.