SkaterGirl

Chapter Nineteen

"I want you to be my girlfriend, Abigail."

My breath hitched and I looked at him, dumbfounded. "Why?"

"Because even though I don't know you as well as everyone else here does, I do know you pretty well. Cayla talks about you, I hate how people in school talk about you. I want you to be happy and I want you to be happy with me," Luke said.

"Um..." I didn't know how to respond.

"You can think about it," he said.

I nodded. "I just really don't get it. This is really out of the blue."

"Maybe for you, but I've wanted to ask you ever since I learned more about you," he said.

"Oh wow," I said as I thought back to my awful summer. "I really have no clue what to say."

"Let me take you somewhere Friday and you can say something then," he offered.

I looked at my friends and they nodded. Even Kyle. I looked at all of them one last time for reassurance and shrugged. "Okay, what do I wear?"

~

Ms. Ames helped me get ready for my "date" with Luke. I had on a red t-shirt that fit in the right places and a white skirt with red flats.

"Where are y'all going?" She asked.

"He said a restaurant," I shrugged.

"Do you like him?" She asked.

"I don't know, I've never thought about any of my friends like that," I said.

The doorbell rang and I took a deep breath.

"I'll wait up," she said and I walked out the front door.

"You look great," he said as he opened the passenger door.

"Thanks," I sat down and buckled my seatbelt.

He drove us to a restaurant and we got a table. I had no clue what to say.

"So... Why do you like me?" I asked.

"Because you're beautiful, you're funny, you're strong, and you try your hardest every day," he said.

"Thanks," I bit my lip. "So, tell me more about you."

"You know, but I'll think of something. I love to read, skating is a lot of fun, I really don't like school... Not the biggest sports fan, but I'll play them. And watch them."

I nodded and a waiter came to our table. "Ready to order?"

"I just want a water," I said.

"I'll have the chicken platter," he said.

The waiter took our menus and I felt insanely awkward. Luke looked at me and I didn't know how to look away. I finally looked down and tried to breathe. This was all so crazy and weird. Luke took my hand and his hand was so warm against mine. I let him hold it, not only for the warmth, but because it really did feel right. I was horrified and excited at the same time.

The waiter came back he ate his food. "Want some?" He asked.

I shook my head.

"It's good," he said.

"I'm not hungry, thanks," I laughed nervously.

"If you insist," he said.

He paid the bill and we got back in his car.

"Well, I had fun--"

"This isn't over. That was just the start," he said.

"Wait, where are we going now?" I asked.

He pulled up and parked. We weren't in the middle of nowhere, but we were in a park and no one was around. He put on upbeat music and tried to make me dance.

I shook my head. "I can't dance."

"Neither can I. We can both suck at dancing together," he said and started randomly dancing.

It's not that he was bad, his dance moves just didn't fit the song. He took my hand and twirled me so I had twirled into him I just couldn't help but laugh because my nerves were insane. I spun out of him he wrapped his arms around me, really making me lose the ability to breathe.

I didn't know what to do with my arms so I put them around his neck. "This is still an upbeat song," I laughed.

"You're right," he said and tackled me to the ground and tickled me.

I laughed uncontrollably and he eventually stopped tickling me so I could breathe properly. He helped me sit up and put his forehead on mine. I closed my eyes and waited for him to back away. Instead he leaned in and whispered, "If I kiss you, will you get mad?"

I shook my head and let him kiss me. Nothing too heavy, it was a simple kiss that lasted a while. I let him put his tongue in my mouth and for once I didn't care what was happening. I liked this feeling. I liked that a nice guy really liked me and held me gently. I had my fingers in his hair and the whole time I was shaking.

He pulled back and I caught my breath and so did he. He went to say something, but I kissed him again, making it passionate and deep. Next thing I knew, my legs were around him and he had his arms on my lower back. He laid me down and I looked at him. He pulled back again and brushed some hair from my face.

"I think we need to stop," he said.

"Why?" I asked.

"Well, for one, this can't be comfortable," he said referring to the fact that my back was on grass. "And two, this step is too soon. When it's time, I want both of us to be somewhere where this wouldn't be illegal."

"Oh yeah," I chuckled. "We're in a park."

He nodded and helped me up. "But one day we will, but when we're ready."

I nodded. Truth be told, I was glad he stopped it. Sure I was willing to do it, but he was right. This was too early and I'd never done it before. How did I know I wanted to lose it to him? My hormones had momentarily gone out of wack. He drove me back to Ms. Ames, kissed me goodnight, and I went inside.

"How was it?" She asked.

"Good," I nodded. "Turns out I do like him," I laughed.