Alex Piper x Amara Stuart [Schooled Fanfiction]

Part 6 [The Diner 2/2]

AUTHOR'S NOTE:
I AM SOOO SORRY THAT THIS TOOK SO LONG. I've had so many personal issues lately that have completely ruined my motivation to write this. On the other hand, I did plan a LOT of the future chapters, so I have a clearer vision of where this is going!! So sorry, once again.

Alex's POV:

Once Ronnie, Weasel and I finished watching The Sandlot, we decided we should go out to the diner on Main Street. That place may seem average, but it has the best burgers I've ever tasted. Way better than anything I had back in Pittsburgh.

When we got there, and walked in, the guy at the front took us to our seat. And something, or, someone, caught my eye. It was Amara, at the table next to us! She was sitting with an adult man, whom I'm assuming is her dad. As I observed the conversation between the two of them, I got a weird feeling. My stomach began to hurt, but, I was happy. Happier than before. How strange...

The guy at the front registered our presence, before taking us to a round table with 3 chairs, right next to where Mars was sitting. As I got seated, I could swear that she was looking at me and the guys. I mean, not that I'm judging- she literally goes to my school. She's in my 1st period class, she definitely would recognize me. So- wait- why am I sweating? Why is my face heating up??

I push through my nerves that I can't explain, and glance at her direction. Sure enough, she was in fact looking at me. It seemed like neither of us had ever registered that we were literally staring at eachother, and making direct eye contact. I couldn't tell you how long our eyes were locked on one another, although in reality it was probably only a couple of seconds. She ended up turning her head back towards her dad swiftly, and leaned in to whisper something. Before I knew it, I felt 2 more pairs of eyes on me, and I turned back around to remember that my two friends were sitting right there.

"Dude, that was the most awkward, yet intense staring contest I've ever witnessed between two strangers."
Weasel commented, while having the most straightforward face plastered on him.

"Uh- dude, she literally goes to our school...she's a junior."

"Wait? What? I've literally never seen her before..."
Ronnie speaks up as he observes the girl talking to her dad, much more discreetly than I was.

"...that's the girl that yelled at Rayday's friend today at lunch."
I quietly explained, hoping that she wouldn't overhear us talking about her from literally 10 feet away.

"Wait, THAT'S her??? I swear to you dude, I've never seen her before until today-"
Ronnie replies, a lot louder than I was, clearly not taking the hint

"Dude, be quiet!!"
I cut him off, whispering loud enough for him to hear me the first time.

"Jeez man, what's got you so stressed..?"
Weasel asked

"I...nevermind, let's just drop it."

I swiftly looked back at Amara for only a second, and to nobody's surprise, she was profusely avoiding making eye contact with me again. I can't blame her, honestly. I brought my focus back to my friends, and we talked about how we enjoyed the movie. Despite the fact that Ronnie and Weasel appear to be massive jocks (which, don't get me wrong, they absolutely are), they can also be huge nerds. The three of us LOVE watching movies together, before talking about them over dinner. It's become somewhat of a tradition, despite it not happening on a regular basis. Sometimes I'll watch their football games and practices, and just wonder how I could ever possibly become friends with them. Of course, I'm so glad I am, because they're genuinely so fun to be around.

After another minute of conversation, we placed our orders and waited as patiently as possible. Knowing that Amara was right near me, I couldn't help but pay attention to her. The same dude who greeted us at the front joyfully walked to their table, before joking around with them. Intrigued, I subconsciously began eavesdropping (not on purpose, I swear). A lot of what was said didn't make sense to me, and they almost seemed like inside jokes or something. The owner then stuck his hand in the other man's hair and messed with it, before being shoved away by him, laughter filling their section of the restaurant.

I had completely zoned out of my friend's conversation, since they were bickering about football strategies for their next game against Germantown.

As I observed the interactions between them, I realized that the owner of this place must be a good friend to Amara and her dad. It became blatantly obvious when he plopped himself down next to Amara, and started talking about his son

"Yeah, James is almost done with college now! Thinking about it makes me feel old, honestly."
He explained

"Wow, he's already almost done? I forgot he was a senior. Your son is gonna do some great things, Tony."
Her dad responded, slightly surprised

"He really is. I'm proud of him, and so is Kate. You guys are coming to his graduation, right?"

"Of course, man! Wouldn't miss it!"

"Have you told James that we're coming?"
Amara chimed in

"Uhm, no actually. I thought it'd be a nice surprise. He hasn't seen you two in a long time."

"Ooooh, I'm SO gonna sneak up behind him after the ceremony!"
She expressed, almost in a bragging way

"Oh, he'll hate that!"
Tony joked back

"That's the point!"
She smirked

I couldn't help but smile while listening to this whole interaction. Seeing Amara being, well, social, isn't something you see every day- or, really ever. Seeing her be so genuinely happy, when she's always reserved in school, is so appealing to me.

I wonder; why...?