Middle School Miniature

Part 25, Cold Pizza

Our eyes were locked.

His were calm with a glint of lime green concern. Mine was a dark shock of fear. Max started to stand up, giving me a 'stay' gesture. Which, obviously wasn't needed since I was a few inches tall and stuck on a couch. I stood and took an anxious step after him as he slowly left the room. I logically knew nothing was out of the ordinary, but my body was preparing for something to go wrong.

I heard the booming steps coming back down the stairs and was hit with a sudden urge to hide. So I sprinted towards the arm of the couch. It was perpendicular to the doorway into the room meaning that if I stood next to the arm of the couch I would be well hidden until a person would walk all the way into the room. 

"Dude this smells so good!" I heard Jordan say. I relaxed my tensed shoulders. It was just the pizza guy at the door after all.

I watched as the two towering teens strode into view, bringing with them the delicious smell of hand-tossed, oven-cooked heaven. Jordan was setting the pizza on the coffee table but Max had frozen mid-step and was staring at where he had left me on the couch.

"Jordan stop!" Max urgently snapped at his friend. Jordan, surprised, looked up at Max in confusion.

"Dude what?!" Jordan whined, offended. 

Max ignored him. "Amelia, where are you?!"

I realized too slowly that he was looking for me and seemed rather panicked that I had moved from where he left me. Oh the drama king, it was like taking three steps was the end of the world for him. I moved away from where I was leaning in the couch arm's shadow and started waving my arms. Jordan saw me first since he was facing more toward my direction. His confused affronted expression slid into an understanding 'oh' and he pointed me out to Max. 

I smiled a small smug smile. I was slightly amused that my hiding spot worked so well on Max, and I was thinking that it was kind of sweet that he was so worried about me. Until Max turned his head toward me and I saw a panicked expression harden into anger.

"What the heck! I thought you were on the floor and we could have stepped on you!" Max raged and crossed the few steps from his position to mine like an ominous storm cloud. My head followed his approach, looking up and up. My feet studdered as my view was engulfed and I shrank back from the angered being. 

"um, uh," I tried to explain myself. I wanted to shout. I wanted to yell that I was just trying to keep myself safe. I wanted to tell him he wasn't being fair, that he was overreacting. But my jaw had locked up and my whole body was telling me just to run. Run like I was going to die. 

"You could have died." Max spouted madly.

An angry hand shot out and closed around my body before I could press myself further back into the corner. It was like a hug that used to be welcome, that was now unwanted and painfully crushing. I cried out, screaming in pain as I felt my shoulder dislocate and other bones in my body creak from the pressure. 

Suddenly I was falling. I only fell an inch or two in reality but it felt further and more painful than that as I collapsed to the ground and mistakenly caught myself with the wrong arm.

Unknowingly to me, Jordan had been stunned for a moment by Max's anger but was jolted into action by my scream. Max had also been shocked by my scream, which caused him to let go of me. Jordan had raced over and shoved Max who, horrified and immediately regretful by what he had done, was moved over with ease only muttering "I'm.. so sorry... Amelia." 

Jordan, meanwhile, had an arm reached out with a hand behind me, only touching my leg lightly.

"Are you okay?"

His face was a nearby wall with large eyes shining of concern. I only let out a huge ugly sob as a response and clutched at my shoulder which was a little off-center. Jordan, with careful confidence, reached out his other hand and, bracing his thumb on my front, pushed my arm back into position with his pointer finger. The awful popping back into place seared white hot pain into my brain, but only left severe soreness in its place on my shoulder after it was done. I breathed gasping breaths and leaned backward onto my other shoulder, pressing myself into Jordan's warm hand behind me. 

Jordan gave me a warm smile, but I hardly saw it as I curled into his hand. He tilted his hand back, scooping me into it fully. That wasn't thrilling, but I didn't care as much as I normally would have, seeking whatever comfort this person would provide after fixing my shoulder.

I was brought up to his shirt and his hand braced itself on his chest as we moved over to the far side of the long couch. Max just watched this process in guilty silence as Jordan grabbed a throw blanket draped over the back of the couch and nested the hand holding me into the soft blanket. He sat down in his spot and brought the blanket hand nest back up to his chest.

My face was wet from my tears and my voice hurt as I let out a small whimper. I scooted over a bit to where the hand met the soft blanket and let myself sink into it. Max had cautiously approached.

"Amelia, are you alright?" He asked tentatively. 

I didn't want him there. I buried my face in the blanket, hiding from the unwanted giant.

"Dude, seriously. What's wrong with you?" I heard Jordan ask, feeling the vibrations of his voice.

"I don't know," Max said sadly, going to sit at the other end of the couch, "I'm just, so sorry."

All three of us sat in silence until Jordan reached out with his offhand and opened up a YouTube video that provided background noise.

The pizza was getting cold.

After some time had passed, and a few videos had auto-played, I had recovered enough to hear the rumbling from my belly, reminding me that I was starving. I sat up and looked up to Jordan's face, he had noticed me and was glancing down at me, though as he attempted not to stare at me, it made him seem nervous as his eyes flickered around.

"Hey, can we get some of that pizza?" I asked Jordan. Not sparing a glance towards Max. We weren't on speaking terms. Jordan gave me his full attention and appeared very happy both from my recovery and the mention of pizza.

"Yeah, are you gonna be okay if I carry you over there?" He softly confirmed.

"uh huh." I nodded along and crawled back into his hand fully.

"Okay, here we go," Jordan warned as he shifted up, letting the blanket fall. He arrived at the coffee table and kneeled, bringing me out to the table. He left his hand on the table using the other one to slowly open the pizza box. I slowly got off the hand and stood. Moving the hand that had been my ride, Jordan grabbed a slice of pizza from the box and tore off the end of his slice, offering the small triangle to me. I happily grabbed with both hands (gingerly with my sore arm, of course) the largest slice of pizza I had ever attempted to eat, It was as long as the tip of my finger to my elbow. Sadly it was lukewarm at best. Nevertheless, I chomped down on it. Enjoying every thick bite. It would have been better fresh and with a piece of pineapple, but it was still a great meal.

Max still sat quietly on the couch. 

Jordan called out to him, "Max, aren't you going to eat some pizza?" Against my better judgment, I looked up from my pizza and over to Max. His arms were folded and his gaze was stuck either on his lap or up at the TV. He didn't respond. I rolled my eyes at the stupid guy and sighed.

"Oh come on Max. You don't need to starve yourself," I begrudgingly said. When I said his name, his eyes latched onto me. His mouth was curved into a small frown that could almost be called a pout, except it was sadder. I rolled my eyes again and shook my remaining enormous pizza slice in the air, showing him what he was missing out on. That caused one corner of his mouth to rebel and smile ever so slightly. With hesitation and a big breath, Max came over and sat on the floor next to the coffee table. Max shared a wary glance with Jordan and reached out to pick out a piece of no-longer-warm pizza for himself. 

~Ema