Claustrophobic (Teddy Duchamp)

19

Teddy got to the movie house nearly 20 minutes early just to ease his nerves. Of course, this didn't actually help. If anything, he was even more nervous. Him being there made the whole thing all the more real.

Teddy had gotten his mom to help pick out his clothes for the date because he wanted to look nice for Cecelia, but he was kind of lost on his own about what looked good and what didn't.

His mom had picked out a green and white striped flannel button-up and his cleanest pair of jeans. They tried to do something with his hair, but it was all for naught. He just made sure it wasn't sticking up everywhere.

He was leaning against the wall of the front of the movie house. He had one hand in his pocket playing with the money in his pocket.

He checked his watch. According to the hands, it was now 4:55. Five minutes. He looked around to see if maybe she would show up a little early.

Just then, looking across the street, he saw her turn the corner. His breath hitched in his throat.
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Cecelia was beyond nervous about the date for so many reasons. One reason being that her parents hadn't exactly given her permission.

Sure, her mom said yes, but like in the end of every argument her parents had, her mother had "changed [her] mind" about the date.

Cecelia pretended to be upset, but she had already said yes. She was going for goodness sake.

She ended up making a plan with Agatha, so her parents thought she was staying there. She left her house at 4 and went to Aggie's to get ready.

She wore a purple dress that went down to the middle of her shins. She had left her hair down, just pinning her bangs to the side, out of her face.

She walked from Aggie's to the movie house. As she turned the corner across the street, she saw Teddy standing there against the wall, and she could hardly believe it.
_____

"You look- Damn, I can hardly talk," Teddy commented.

Cecelia blushed. "Thanks, Teddy. You look good in that shirt." She linked their arms together, as they walked over to the ticket booth.

"Oh, this? Yeah, I- uh, Well, I had my mom help me out," he confessed.

They got their tickets and went in. They got some drinks but decided against popcorn, and Teddy insisted to pay for everything.

They walked down the little hall to find which of the little theaters was the one they were looking for. When they found it, Teddy held the door open to let Cecelia in.

"Thanks," she murmured, giving him a small, nervous smile.

He nodded and followed behind her as she walked up the steps to find seats.

When they were seated, they both sat in an uncomfortable preoccupation, each pretending to watch the movie.

Teddy coughed, causing Cecelia to look at him. He gave her an awkward smile and looked back up at the screen.

Cecelia leaned back in her seat and sipped her drink. The whole 15 minutes they had been sitting in the theater had been most uneventful and rather boring.

Teddy glanced over to her blankly staring at the bright screen. He leaned close to her and whispered in her ear. "Hey, you wanna get out?"

She looked at him like he was a saint and nodded emphatically.

They both crouched and tiptoed out of the theater. They left the building and walked out into the slowly diminishing light of day.

"Where do you want to go, Celia?" Teddy asked, his demeanor brightened from the change in scenery.