i'll only pick you - brance [COMPLETED]

Four

Bruce woke up the next morning, feeling as if he had been hit by a car or something. His whole body hurt, especially his head. The angry pounding at his door didn't help. "Bruce Yamada!" His father's voice boomed from right outside the door. That was enough to wake him up.

"Coming, sir!" Bruce said nervously as he slipped out of bed. He scrambled to the door, opening it to see his father, who was less than happy. "What's up?" He asked with a nervous smile.

Bruce's arm crossed his arms and told Bruce, "change and then come downstairs. Your mother and I want to talk to you." He then turned away and walked downstairs.

Bruce sighed, closing his door softly and turning to his closet. He flipped through his clothes, pulling out a dark blue sweater, dark jeans and a black jacket. He knew it was cold outside, he could feel it pretty much through his walls. Bruce got dressed and even slipped on his converse, even though he didn't know why he even did that.

When he got downstairs Bruce saw the unhappy expressions on his parents faces as they sat on couch. He sat across from them, nervously fidgeting with his thumbs, "so..what do you guys want to talk to me about?"

"Georgia called this morning," His mother spoke. Bruce then realised that he had missed her volleyball meet yesterday. "She said you were a no show to her meet. You know how much that meant to her."

Bruce took a deep sigh, "I forgot, I'm sorry."

"Her and her parents are coming over for dinner tonight," His mother said with a soft voice as she took a deep breath. "You better be a good boyfriend apologise to her."

Bruce nodded, "yes, ma'am." He then stood. "Can I go her a little 'sorry' gift from the market?" He asked, though he didn't really intend to actually do that. The awkward tension between them just made Bruce want out of the house for a bit. Plus, he knew if he stayed it was just going to be Georgia, Georgia, and more Georgia. He loves her, he really does, but he's getting really tired of her.

His parents shared an unsure look before his father nodded at him, hanging him 20 bucks. Bruce softly smiled and stuffed the money his pocket. He grabbed his house key and ran out to his bike.

While he rode his bike he took in his surroundings, every little week in a garden, every slightly different colored brick in a home's walls. Bruce heard a cars horn go off somewhat closely to him, so of course he glanced back. He saw a woman who he assumed was in her early twenty's driving the car behind him, and Vance being in the backseat hiding his face as if he was embarrassed.

Bruce grinned widely and waved when Vance peeked out from his hands. Vance waved back before glaring at the woman in the driver's seat. Bruce giggled to himself as he turned back to facing forward, watching as the car sped past him.

When Bruce got to the store he chained up his bike and headed inside. He grabbed a smaller basket before starting to wander around. Soon he found himself in the holiday themed isle, and of course it was nearing Christmas time, so it was mostly Christmas candy and decorations.

As he looked he felt a firm grip on one of his shoulders. Bruce tensed up, immediately knowing who it was. He looked to his right to see Jeremiah and Maddox standing there practically looking down on him. Bruce knew them as Vance's friends, and some of the people who bullied him. "What're you doing here, Brucey?" Jeremiah pinched Bruce's cheek.

Bruce frowned, "go away, guys."

Jeremiah and Maddox shared a look before pushing Bruce against the shelving. "Give us your money, or else," Maddox threatened, pulling out a switchblade. Bruce swallowed thickly, glancing around to see if anyone could help him, but nobody seemed to come to the isle.

Bruce sighed, reaching for his pocket when someone cleared their throat. "What are you boys doing?" The woman that had picked vance up from school yesterday approached. Maddox and Jeremiah backed off of Bruce, hiding the switchblade in the process. "That is what I thought," she sighed, shaking her head, "now go away."

Jeremiah and Maddox nodded nervously and quickly scurried off. Bruce turned to the woman and gave her a soft smile, "thanks, ma'am."

"It is no problem," she spoke with a small smile, her accent clear. "You are the boy Vance had been hanging out with, right?"

Bruce nodded with a small smile, "yeah."

"Is he nice to you?"

"Uh, yeah."

"Good," The woman spoke as she grabbed some candy off the shelf. "Vance talks about you sometimes. You sound like a nice boy."

Bruce felt his cheeks get warm as he shyly laughed, "thank you." The woman softly laughed as she grabbed a bottle of fancy wine from the top shelf, putting it in her cart. Bruce knew he shouldn't snoop into people carts, but he noticed that she had pretty expensive taste in stuff. "Uhm..are you his sister?" Bruce asked.

The woman glanced at him before softly laughing. "No," she shook her head, "I'm Vance's mother. He probably doesn't talk about me much though since I only get to see him for Christmas every year."

"Oh," Bruce shyly laughed, rubbing the back of his neck. "Well I can tell he gets a lot of his looks from you."

The woman laughed, and her and Bruce continued to have small talk for a bit before Bruce had to excuse himself. He grabbed a small stuffed bear off the shelf and went to check out before leaving the store.

While he was riding home he passed the Grab N' Go, and he could see Vance outside smoking. Bruce smiled at Vance when he looked up, and Vance returned the smile. He was glad that he got to see Vance, even if they didn't say anything to each other. He was honestly starting to consider Vance a friend.