My Enemy

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER THREE

As I walk into my house, all I hear is silence. "Hello?!" I hear nothing except for my voice echoed back to me. I guess no one is home. I decide to go upstairs and get started on some homework. I have a ton to do.

I hear the front door open a while later and my little sister, Mikkey, yells for me. "Roxie? Are you home? We brought dinner." As soon as I hear that, I bolt from my bed and down the stairs to the kitchen. There is nothing more satisfying than food. When I get downstairs, I see my mom carrying grocery bags. I sigh and pout a little when I realize that she has to cook first. Ugh.

Mikkey runs into my arms and I squeeze her hard. "Can't... breathe... choking... me..." "Jesus, sorry, Mik. I'm just excited to see my favorite seven-year-old. Hey mom, what's for dinner?" I ask excitedly. Before she can answer, the front door shuts. I can't see who it is. "Oh, Honey, that reminds me. We have a guest for dinner." "Oh that's great, Mom. Who is it?" "Your old friend, Roman Parker."

What. The. Hell. "What's he doing here?" I ask. "He was locked out of his house and his bike ran out of gas. I told him he could eat supper here and then go home. His parents should be home by then." I roll my eyes. Roman walks into the room, wearing his signature smirk and winking when he sees me. He's carrying the rest of the groceries, I presume. "Hello, Roxie." "Parker," I greet, irritation edging my tone. I have to be careful in front of my mom. I don't want to have to answer endless questions.

"Roman, can I talk to you for a sec?" I ask sweetly. Without giving him time to reply, I grab his arm and drag him towards the living room and away from my family. "What's up Baby Doll?" he asks. "Why are you here?" "I got locked ou-" "No, I mean why didn't you just go to a friend's house or something. Are you that determined to make me hate you even more?" "No. Your mom found me on the side of the road. She insisted I come for dinner. She didn't really give me an option." "Whatever. I'm going to have her kick you out." I turn around towards the kitchen, but Roman grabs my arm, a little too harsh for my liking. "Don't forget, she has no idea we aren't friends. She still thinks we've been friends since seventh grade. It's best to keep it that way as to avoid the third degree, don't you think, Rox?" His eyes are pleading and I give in, seeing as he has a point. He's always cared for my mom, like a second mother of his. I can see he doesn't want to hurt her feelings. Neither do I. "Fine. Dinner, then you go home." "Deal," he says, holding his hand out for me to shake. I walk away, annoyed.

It is true that Roman and I were friends in seventh grade. A girl was bullying me because I had to wear braces and Roman defended me and told her that braces were cool and at least I would have perfect teeth. He also said that she'd probably grow up to be a hooker, gesturing to what she was wearing: tight ass shorts that showed the bottom of her ass cheeks and a crop top that didn't even fit her boobs, but I'm pretty sure she had stuffed tissues in them to make them look bigger. Gross. Ever since that day, Roman and I were close and the best of friends... until everything changed in high school. He became an ass and a player. I despise guys like that. We drifted when he started to change ways.

"So," my mom begins when we enter the kitchen. "Do either of you want to explain what's going on?" "Umm we were just catching up, Mrs. Peterson." "I see... Roxie, how was your date with Jackson?" She has no clue I had detention. She would kill me. "Uhh, it was okay I guess. He took me to the movies. So cliché, but it was nice." "Oh, really? That's nice. What did you see?" I inwardly panicked. I hadn't thought of an answer to that question. "Uh... we saw..." I couldn't come up with anything. I looked at Roman and saw him smirking. Damn you, Roman. This is all your fault. "Honestly, I don't remember the name. And it was boring. About dinosaurs. Whatever... How was work?" I quickly changed the subject. "It was just like every other day. Pretty fun and I got to hang with some cool people." My mom is a teacher who works with disabled and special ed kids. They are so sweet.

We had burgers for dinner, and man were they good. Roman kept lightly kicking me under the table and I would kick him back. I think my mom was noticing. "Would you two calm down for five seconds, please. I know you've missed each other and are happy but Jesus, chill." I choked on my food and Roman smirked. I punched him in the side. "Oomph."

When we finished eating, Roman abruptly stood up and announced his departure. "Well, I guess I should get going now. My parents are probably worried." "Roman, honey, how will you get home?" my mom asked. "Oh, I'll just walk. It's not too far. I'll see you guys lat-" "Nonsense," my mom said quickly. "Roxanne will drive you. Right, honey?" she asked, looking at me. Shit... no... I don't want to ... I need an excuse. "Mom, I would, but I have a ton of homewo-" "Sweetie, it's Friday, remember? You have all weekend to do it. This isn't up for discussion. You will drive him. It will give you guys more time to catch up. Now, go." She gave me my car keys, pushed us out the door, and locked it. Great.