Oddball

Chapter Nine

"Oh, man!" Willow exclaims, standing up at the table.

Orange juice drips off the edge of the table and onto her lap. She flicks her hands and steps away from her chair.

"It's the beginning of the day and I've already made a mess." She sighs as my mom hands her a hand towel, "I'm so sorry."

"Accidents happen." I reassure her with a smile as I mop up the sticky mess.

"Especially when I'm around. I'm going to go change my shorts." Willow says as she takes the towel upstairs with her.

Mom helps me clean up the rest of the mess. She takes the sticky towel from me and leans against the counter with a knowing smile on her face. I raise my eyebrows at her and tilt my head.

"What?"

"You're acting... Different. She makes you talkative." Mom tells me, cocking a brow at me.

My cheeks heat up and I shake my head, "Psh... No." I take the towel from her and make a hasty escape to the laundry room.

By the time I return to the kitchen, Willow is back at the table. She is now wearing a black shirt that says "this is my punny t-shirt" with a pair of denim shorts and a black beanie. I smile and sit down next to her. We finish our French toast breakfast and decide to spend the day exploring the caves on the far end of the beach. Mom says she'll be going out with her friend Carol, so she might not be home til late.

At around 11, we set out to the beach with two sandwiches and a water bottle in a tiny drawstring backpack. We trek across the sand and after 20 minutes of walking, we arrive at the caves. Willow pulls out a flashlight and we enter the darkness. It's extremely humid and it reeks of fish and salt. We wander around the caves for hours, taking pictures with Willow's disposable camera.

At 3, we leave the caves and sit down on the sand. Willow insists that we eat them in the sand because if we didn't, they wouldn't be sandwiches. Of course, I have to agree because she's just too adorable to deny. We finish our little lunch and I find myself asking her over and over if that counted as a date. After the third or fourth time, she finally says yes and kicks some sand at me.

We chase each other across the wet sand and Willow pushes me into the water. I tumble into the waves and emerge from the water with sand buried in my clothes. I pull Willow into an enormous hug and then give her a piggy-back ride all the way home. We burst into the house in a fit of laughter and immediately start discussing who should shower first.

Willow agrees to let me shower first, so I take a speedy shower and change into a pair of sweatpants and an old shirt. I go downstairs and make some popcorn while Willow showers. I return upstairs to pick out a movie and she emerges from the bathroom, wrapped in a blue towel. Her pale skin looks flawless. And I notice she has short, light blonde hair. It's shaggy and short, stopping at the top of her ears.

I can hardly make words, let alone a sentence. She smiles at me and I clear my throat, standing and moving across the room. I sit on the edge of the bed.

"Do you want to watch Anchorman or Super Troopers?" I ask, swallowing hard.

"It's up to you." She says.

Willow obliviously strides over to me, taking a seat on my left. I look up and around the room, anywhere besides her. She places her hand on my shoulder.

"Payton."

"Um, yes?" I reply awkwardly.

"What are we?" Willow asks.

"...Humans?" I feel like an idiot as soon as the word leaves my mouth.

"That's not what I meant." She laughs.

"What did you mean?" I lean back on my hands and chew my lip.

"I mean, it's obvious we have some really great chemistry. I can't help but notice it. I find you attractive and I have feelings for you. I just wanted to be straightforward." She says, completely confident in her words.

"I... I like you. A lot. Uh... Where did this come from?"

"I do most of my thinking in the shower. I figured that it would be best to tell you. I don't want to waste any opportunities I have. You know?" Willow adjusts her towel, tightening it so it won't fall.

"Yeah... Well, I'm glad you told me..." I say quietly.

"You're adorable." She smiles and I sit up, blushing.

"I'm shy. And kind of awkward." I shake my head a bit.

"I think you're wonderful." Willow tells me.

I blush again and finally, I dare to look up at her. She looks at me with a longing expression. Willow leans forward and her palm meets my jaw. She gently pulls my face to hers and our lips touch. Her lips are cold and soft, sending a chill down my spine. My heartbeat won't stop increasing. I feel the scar across my chest tingling.

Willow pulls back slowly, remaining close to me. I keep my eyes closed for a moment and catch my breath. My hands are shaking and I realize that I've never felt anything like that in my life. It was fantastically terrifying. I want to do it again. However, Willow stands and gestures to the bathroom.

"It's all yours." She says, as if the events that took place in the last 5 minutes never happened.

"Oh, um... Thanks." I nod.

I stride to the bathroom and close the door behind me. I lean against the door and take a deep breath.

Wow.