Esther

2 - I am NOT a horror fan

Josh

Saturday night rolls around. I try to swallow the nervous lump in my throat. Unsuccessfully. I only met Esther a few weeks ago, through the girlfriend of one of my mates on the football team. She's pretty, there's no doubt about it. She's sweet and kind and funny and talented but I never considered that I like liked her.

Until that interfering twerp turned up.

Well, maybe twerp is a little harsh.

Fine, twerp is too harsh. I'm just nervous.

Alex. That's his name, right? He has a kind of snarky charm around him that's really hard to look away from. He's smart, that's for sure. And he seems confident. He has the kind of character that pulls you in, rendering you unable to look away, making you stress about making him like you, if that makes sense. Does it make sense? Who cares.

I only realised I liked Esther because of him, because of the pang in my heart when he said they were close, because of the jealousy I felt when he said they were going to the movies. I've always admired him in out shared lectures, and I desperately wanted him to like me.

I shake the thoughts out of my head. I need to get my act together before I start running late. I throw on my jacket and give myself a quick glance in the mirror. Good enough.

But when I meet Esther at the cinema, I immediately feel underdressed. How does she even manage to make a simple blue dress and leather jacket look like it belongs in a fashion show?

I hold open the door for her as we wander over to cinema three, waving over the crowd of people at Alex, wringing his hands as he waits by the ticket counter. Overlapping chatter muffles in the carpeted halls as we are admitted to the cinema, trying to look inconspicuous as we find our seats in the dim light.

I sneeze. Cinemas are ridiculously dusty did you know?

We find our row and file past people already sitting down, mumbling apologies as they twist in their seats to avoid being squished. Whoever designed these seats really could have done a better job. I sigh and plop down in my seat, Esther squirming in the one next to me.

"Aw shoot." She mumbles under her breath, turning to me. "Hey, can we swap? I can't see." She pouts, gesturing to the tall person in front of her, blocking her view of the screen. I shrug and stand up, awkwardly trying to shuffle past her. Someone in the row behind us tuts and whispers, very loudly, about idiot children blocking their sight. Esther snickers.

I turn to the screen as the opening credits begin, but out of the corner of my eye, something distracts me. Alex is staring at me. Like, openly staring. I frown, feeling my face heat up.

"Can I help you?"

He frowns back at me and turns away with a miffed expression on his face.

"No."

That was odd. I settle into my seat, staring up at the screen as the movie begins to play.

Now, before I tell you exactly what happened, I believe it is necessary to mention something I discovered during the next two-ish hours.

I am NOT a horror fan.

So, this was just great.

I forgot about my little quarrel with Alex, or whatever you might call it, and instead jumped out of my seat every two seconds. Honestly, why do people do this? For fun? The music builds up in that way that means you know there's going to be another god damned jump scare but at the same time you can't look away. And yep, there it is. My heart jumps into my throat and I try desperately not to scream. And Alex is looking strangely at me again. It takes me a second to realise I'm holding his arm. In a death grip. I clear my throat, feeling my face flush with embarrassment.

"Sorry." I whisper, dropping his arm, only to grab it again two seconds later after someone gets their head cut off. I curl up in my seat.

"This is my emotional support arm now." I joke. "You bring me to a horror movie you pay the price."

He ducks his head to hide his stupidly big grin, and suddenly the horror movie doesn't seem so bad anymore. Because I made him smile. Which means he likes me.

And if he likes me, he won't mind it when I ask Esther out.

Maybe this wasn't such a bad idea after all.

The lights slowly start to flicker on as people begin to file out of the theatre, snippets of conversation cutting through the murmur. For some unknown reason, Esther enjoyed herself.

"I knew it! I knew he was the murderer right from the beginning. He was the only one, right? Like think about it, he had the perfect opportunity for every single murder because he was just conveniently never around."

"Yeah, yeah, we get it, you're a genius." Alex remarks, his face pale even through a smile. He rubs his arm. "I think I'm going to have bruises in the shape of your fingers." He complains, pouting.

"Well, if you'd told me it was a horror movie, I would have come better prepared." I retort, glowering at him.

"Oh, so you're just a wimp then?" he glances back at me, a triumphant smirk on his face. Which turns into a scream as I shove him into a wall.

"Don't act too cocky, you were screaming too." I remind him. Our bickering subsides as we step out of the cinema into the chill of the crisp autumn night. Esther shivers. Wordlessly, I take off my jacket and wrap it around her shoulders.

"Thanks for, um, inviting me."

"Thanks for coming." She smiles. Behind us, Alex coughs.

"Um, hello? I bought the tickets! Shouldn't you be thanking me?" Esther laughs and ruffles his hair.

"I was getting there! Not need to fight for my attention." She bids us farewell, pulling my jacket tighter around her shoulders as she walks away. We stand in silence and watch her go, waiting for her to get to her car before turning to each other. Alex looks like he wants to say something, he has a determined look in his eye as he squares his shoulders. But all he does is nod and brush past me, leaving me standing alone under the flickering streetlight. I was hoping for something more.

But what else is there to say?

I shiver in the slight breeze as I begin to walk home. Maybe I shouldn't have given away my jacket. I'm sure I'll get it back when I see her next. But for now? I'll just have to pretend it doesn't matter.