This Is Me

Firework Fear

I pull away from Parker after that, smirking at his face. He is really shaken up. Then he seems to realize something.

"Idonthaveaguestbedroom" he rambles. Chuckling to myself, I ask for clarification.

"I. Don't. Have. A. Guest. Bedroom," he says more to himself than to me. Crap. My eyes widen in surprise, and he looks everywhere but at me. Taking a shaky breath, I sit down on his bed, but only the corner, so it's not, like, suggestive, or anything.

He runs a hand though his hair.
"I'm gonna take a shower," he mutters, and I nod.

***

Parker walks into the room, rubbing a towel over his head. He's wearing basketball shorts, and a muscle shirt. Only some people can pull off a muscle shirt. They don't say 'muscle' for nothing. You really do need muscles to pull that off, though.

Parker can pull it off because he has big muscles. Really big muscles. Argh! Don't do that, Aaron.

He catches me staring, and flexes. Raising an eyebrow, I flex too. I stand up, putting my hands on my hips, daring him to challenge me. Not a good idea. He runs at me, and tackles me. Falling on the ground, I make a squeaking sound.

I open my mouth to call Ally, but Parker clamps his hand over my mouth. Should I bite him, or lick him? I'll lick him.
Lick.

Parker pulls away instantly, wiping his hand on my shirt.
"Gross!" he says.
"If it makes you feel any better, your hand doesn't taste very good," I shrug.
"It doesn't!" he protests.

My phone makes a popcorn noise. Mom.... Again. I crawl over to my phone, and unlock it.

'Don't forget, u have a fight tomorrow' the text says. I groan. That's right, I box, as a sport, and I have a fight with someone in order to pass onto the next level. I have to win this fight.

Parker raises both eyebrows at me, wanting me to explain. I enlighten him on everything. He nods.

"If you want, you can train at my house a little more, just to be ready," he offers. I nod, gratefully. He pushes me down on the floor. He sees my confused expression, and sighs.

"Sit-ups, genius," he rolls his eyes. I do fifty.

Pull ups.
Crunches.
Bicycle.
Stretches.
Jogging through his neighborhood.

By the end, my forehead is caked with sweat. Panting, I bend over, my hands on my knees. Take deep breaths. Deep breaths. Okay, all better.

"Can I go to your fight tomorrow?" Parker asks shyly.
"Heck yeah!" I'm bouncing on the balls of my feet with excitement. He grins, and pats my back.
"Good job," he congratulates me.
"Soooooo, do I get a gold star?" I ask, gently shoving him.

He chuckles, shrugging. We all back to his house, in silence. The silence isn't awkward, though. If anything, it's comforting. We get into his room by climbing into his window.

"I-uh, can I take a shower?" I ask awkwardly. He smirks, rummaging through drawers. He seems to find what he's looking for. He hold out a bundle of clothes to me. My jaw practically hits the ground. He waves the bundle at me, daring me to grab it.

Accepting his dare, I snatch the clothes away from him, and march into his bathroom. Well, actually, he shares it with Ally, so I can use her shampoo and conditioner. Thank God.

After my shower, I grab his clothes, and basically fall into them. 'Slipping', wouldn't be the right word for that. I stare at myself in the mirror. I sigh at my reflection. I look ridiculous. Oh well, YOLO, right?