-Welcome to Reality-

Chapter 19

Now that Skylar and Trevor have left, Phoenix and I are sitting alone in my family room.  Normally I wouldn't have a problem being alone with her, or any girl for that matter, but now that she knows how I feel about her it's like walking on eggshells.  It seems like if I say anything it will sound stupid, or if I move I'll make an idiot of myself.  I just wish I never told her.  She was right, it is too soon.  I should have known better then to scare her off like that.  What was I thinking?  Well I guess that was the problem, I wasn't... I wasn't thinking at all.  I acted on impulsive, and got caught up in emotion.  I was weak.  And look where it got me.  I'm sitting here on the floor speechless, across from the girl that I couldn't shut up with just a day ago.

Finally, I stand up, clearing my throat to speak.  Just talk to her like she's your sister, Pierce.  On second thought, that would just make things weirder.  I will talk to her like she is Phoenix.  The same girl who showed up on my door step the first day I got here.  

"Uh... Do you want something to drink?"  I ask walking over to the kitchen where I open the fridge.

After a short pause, she answers me.  "Thanks but...  I should probably hit the road, it's getting kind of late."

I look over my shoulder, staring at her as she stands up and grabs her purse off the couch.  Her eyes then shoot up to meet mine, so I whip my head back toward the fridge.  As I hear her footsteps walk towards my direction, I take out two bottles of coke and place them onto the granite counter that now separates us.  

"Are you going to drink both of those?"  She says, raising her eye brows.  I wonder if she is forcing that smile..

"I am going to drink this one..." I reply, twisting off the lid to my coke.  "And you... are going to have this one."  I slide the bottle towards her, and lean onto the counter top, waiting for her to grab it.  But Phoenix just stands there, looking at it as if it were a life-or-death situation.

"Oh come on just take it...."  I say, sighing heavy.  "I just want everything between us to go back to the way it was."  

"Oh come on..."  She grunts, throwing her head back. 

"No seriously, Phoenix.  We sat in the same room tonight for hours and didn't say one word to each other!  When have we ever done that?  I know I made things kind of weird for us by telling you how I felt but I didn't think it change us this much."  I respond disappointed, using my hands a lot as I speak, for know apparent reason.  Not wanting to come across high strung, I stand up straight and slip my hands into my pockets.

"But nothing has changed, Pierce!"  She replies defensively, while still remaining perfectly calm.  Man, I need to learn how to do that..

"Okay then... Have a drink with me."  I resolve teasingly, scooting the bottle of coke closer to her, little by little.  This time, she reaches out to take it.  And she unscrews the cap, she looks at me with narrow eyes, shaking her head side to side.  She even manages to hold this glare as she takes her first sip.

"I missed that face..."  I mumble to myself unconsciously, before taking a drink myself.

"What?" She says surprised, relaxing her face back to normal.

Realizing that I just spoke those words out loud, I swallow my entire mouthful of soda, causing the carbonation to clog my throat.  As if this moment couldn't become any more uncomfortable, I place a fist over my mouth and begin to cough hard.  Meanwhile, Phoenix just stands there, watching my face turn purple.  Finally, after catching my breath, I manage to  say a quick "Nothing."   To my disgrace, it came out much more high pitched then I had expected, and sounded some what like a constipated third grade boy.  Needless to say, I couldn't feel any more confident at this moment.  NOT.