With The Labels

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Thirteen

I don't have the balls to call Blake. I just decided that. I am in my bedroom after arriving home from the cafe with James. It is late afternoon and I am considering taking my brother's advice and inviting Blake over for dinner, but I don't know what to say when I call him.

Pacing around like some sort of caged animal, I finally decide to wing it and call him. It is time to turn over a new leaf. Time to slowly, start taking down my wall.

The phone rings a few times, and a part of me wishes it went to voicemail. But it doesn't. The phone is answered on the other line.

Before I give Blake the chance to say anything I blurt out, "Come over for dinner tonight. My brother is in town. You should meet him."

It is silent on the other end for a few seconds. Oh god, what did I do this time? Did I scare him off before he even said anything?

"Just can't get enough of me, can you?" Blake says on the other line in a teasing tone. I let out an audible sigh of relief. Maybe we can pretend like last night never happened.

"Great. Be at my house at six." I hang up before he gets a chance to say anything else. Might be a little rude but I don't want to give me or him a chance at copping out.

~

The doorbell rings promptly at 6PM. Mom and James both know that Blake is coming over for dinner. I am honestly a little nervous. Not just at being around Blake again, but because it will be with my family too.

I tuck a strand of dark brown hair behind my ear before opening the front door. I am wearing the same outfit as this morning, but I put on some makeup and a pair of white converse. Blake is standing there. Once he sees that is me, he smiles. He looks really handsome in a baby blue button down, khakis, and a pair of Sperry's.

"Hi." I say shyly, still feeling a bit awkward. I step away from the door, gesturing into the house. "Come in."

Blake steps into my house and walks over to mom. He gives her a hug, welcoming her back home from the weekend away. He then walks over to James. I take in a deep breath, kind of nervous to see how they interact. Even though James is the one who suggested this in the first place, he still acts like an overprotective brother. He wants me to let people in, but still doesn't want me to get hurt.

"Hey, I'm Blake. You must be James, Caroline's brother." They shake hands, doing the weird man-hug thing.

"Yeah, nice to meet you, dude." At least they get along.

We walk over to the dining table and sit down. Mom made an arugula salad and flank steak. I'm not a big meat eater, but she makes really good steak. I sit down next to Blake, and mom and James sit down on the other side of the table. We all dig in, making casual dinner conversation. James and Blake talk about different sports teams that I don't understand. When Blake tells James he has been the quarterback and captain of the varsity football team since Sophomore year, he seems genuinely impressed. James also played football in high school, and continued in college for his Freshman year. We talk about horses and school and anything that really came up. It was light conversation for over the dinner table. It was good. After we finish eating we clear the table. Mom says she will be making some homemade chocolate chip cookies for desert but they won't be ready for like an hour.

Blake and James seem to be really hitting it off. The Alabama State Hornets football game is on tonight. They are able to watch about forty minutes of the game before it ends. Playing against Mississippi Valley State they end up winning 45-15. Since football is extremely boring to me, I help mom make the cookie dough while listening to the boys cheer in the living room. Once the game is over, both of them get up and come into the kitchen. James informs us that he will be right back, he is just going to go out to the barn and check on the horses. Mom ushers Blake and I off so she can finish the cookies. With nothing else to do, we walk up to my bedroom.

Blake sits down in my desk chair, and I sit down on my bed. We are facing across from each other, not really saying anything. I bite my lip, trying to ignore the awkward tension in the air. We sit like that for a few minutes, before Blake stands up.

He looks like he is about to say something, "Listen, Caroline, I just need to get this off my chest. I am a major asshole for thinking it was alright to try and kiss you. It wasn't right of me because I don't know how you feel back. Because I really like you Caroline, but I'm not sure if you feel the same way, and that kills me. I want you so bad, but I am not the guy who pushes himself at girls, even though I seem that way sometimes. I am truly not a bad guy, even though sometimes I might come off like that." Blake continues to ramble on, stumbling over his words. He talks fast, "I was in pieces before you came here and slowly you are putting them back together. And I just needed to tell you this because I felt horrible all night and last night and-"

I cut him off, jumping off the bed and running over to him. I slam my lips against his without giving him a chance to think. He seems shocked at first, but melts into the kiss. I place my hand on his cheek. He pulls me in closer, one hand on my lower back and the other tracing my right arm. If it could get any cheesier or more stereotypical I would say sparks flew when our lips touched, because they truly did. It was electrifying. His touch, his lips. It just felt right, like something I have been missing but didn't know I was missing it until now.

Our lips finally part, and I rest my forehead against his. Breathing heavy, Blake has a big smile on his face. "You don't need to apologize." I whisper.

We sit down on my bed shoulder to shoulder, staring straight ahead, questioning if what just happened really did just happen. I touch a finger to my lips, which still tingle. Yep, it definitely happened.

"So..." I break the silence awkwardly.

"So..." He replies back, just as awkwardly.

"We should go and see if the cookies are ready." I face palm myself internally. Real smooth, Caroline.

Blake laughs, "Yeah. We should do that." We both get up, walking next to each other back into the kitchen.

Turns out, the cookies were ready, and mom also had some chocolate ice cream. We all sit back down at the table, devouring the freshly made cookies and cool ice cream. The whole time we ate, Blake's hand was intertwined with mine under the table.

~~~~~~~~~~~

So I hope you guys liked this chapter because I thought it was really cute.

Pictured to the side is Daniel Sharman, who plays Blake, and the girl he is kissing is supposed to be Caroline-not Allison from TW >:)