Stealing the Stars

Dark Chocolate

I know when you are 8, a crush is cute but childish. It gets easily over looked. But, really? My older brother's best friend Xavier was so cute. He's only one year older too. And though we are older now, I still have a place in my heart saved for him. So that maybe, just maybe, if he got to thinking about me that way too, I wouldn't break his heart like he broke mine so, so many times.
My brother, Eli, is two years older than me. So he is 18 now. It all started when he came home from the backyard all sweaty and grassy with a friend. Keep in mind this was 8 years ago! He took off his cleats and showed his new friend around the house. Mom came down the stairs and stopped when she saw the extra kid in the kitchen.
"Now who is this Eli?" she asked.
"Oh, yeah, Mom this is Xavier, but we call him Zave. Can he stay for dinner?" Eli asked in one big string of words. Mom blinked and reluctantly agreed. Now, it wasn't till that night, when set a seat for Xavier next to little ole me, that I realized how many freckles he had. Too many to count! And those chocolate eyes!They looked good enough to eat!
We were doing our family's every night ritual. You share the most over whelming feeling of the day, and what made you feel that way. I always went last, so while I waited for Mom to finish, I went for another bread roll. Zap! I looked at my hand and saw that my fingers were touching Xavier's. I blushed and went to grab another roll, trying to ignore the electricity that coursed through my hand. I saw him give me a nervous smile, before biting into his role. Was that a coincidence? What fate have us grab the same bread roll? Coincidence... No way! And from that point on, I couldn't help but glance up at those dark chocolate eyes, and those freckles that could outnumber the stars.
He had to leave before it was my turn to share, so he sadly didn't get to hear it.
"I feel awestruck! Eli, your friend is so cute!" I cried and grinned a toothy grin.
"Ew! Bea! You can't like my friend! That is gross! He is older than you and everything!"
"Well how much older?"
"A whole year, so back off!"
"Leave Bethany alone," mom intervened. But that wasn't the last time I talked about Xavier.