Forces of Nature

Breakfast At Irvine's

Never had I found myself in such an unusual predicament. Nervous energy had me twisting my fingers in my lap, and fear of accidentally touching the person next to me had me sitting rigidly in the booth. I snuck a sideways glance at Tyson, who was idly toying with a pack of cigarettes. How could he be so relaxed? We were sitting so close I could feel his body heat. Granted, this was a common occurrence in our World History class, but at least there we had separate chairs. Now it was all I could do not to brush his leg with my own, given the lack of space on the red vinyl bench we were occupying. I shot an evil glare at Courtney, which she studiously ignored. And with good reason too. After all, I had threatened her repeatedly and aggressively on the way over, telling her exactly what I'd do to her if she abandoned me to Tyson. I'd basically forced her to promise me that under no circumstances would she ditch me, her decade long best friend, for Drew, her three week long boyfriend. And yet there she was, sitting directly across from me as opposed to next to me, where she was supposed to be. So what if Drew had snagged her at the last second and ushered her into the opposite seat? Did he not know the torture he was putting me through by making me sit next to the one person who always brought out the worst in me? Well, okay, not necessarily the worst, but he definitely brought out the dumb in me. Obviously he had no idea, and it seemed he was either oblivious to the withering looks I was shooting his way as well as Courtney's, or he just didn't care. The latter more likely, considering his part in trying to force chemistry between Tyson and I against our wills.

Tyson sighed and began fidgeting, his arm brushing mine ever so slightly. I sucked in a sharp breath through my nose as my stomach did a little flip-flop. The sudden intake of air brought with it the delicious aroma of bacon and pancakes, but to my dismay, what had my mouth watering wasn't the smell of food but the enticing, masculine scent coming from Tyson. I barely managed to check myself before I leaned right to take a good whiff. Stupid, malfunctioning body. Couldn't it at least respect my brain's wishes? Wishes that included having no reaction whatsoever to Tyson's unnerving presence and close proximity.

I looked around for a distraction, taking in the black and white chequered tiles of Irvine's All Day Breakfast Bar, the red bar stools at the counter, and an old style duke box in the corner closest to our booth. The place was jam packed despite the late morning hour, and we'd had to wait fifteen minutes for a table to clear. Waitresses in lemon yellow uniforms were scurrying about the room, quickly and efficiently serving food by the tray load, clearing tables and seating other hungry patrons.

The redheaded waitress assigned to our table came bustling over with a full tray, popping gum loudly in her mouth. She flicked a piece of hair hanging in her face away and looked down at the dishes she was holding.

"Triple serving of double chocolate ice cream with a side of fries?" Her tone suggested she couldn't believe someone our age would order ice cream as a meal. I guess seventeen year olds were supposed to be beyond the I-want-ice-cream-all-day-every-day stage.

Well, not this seventeen year old.

"Thanks," I said, accepting my food. I smiled at the healthy serving of my second favourite ice cream. It was a shame they didn't serve Ben & Jerry's Coffee Heath Bar Crunch. Though a triple serving of that particular ice cream wouldn't have been nearly enough.

Tyson arched an eyebrow at my choice of breakfast but didn't say anything. Drew on the other hand, was all for voicing his opinion as he accepted his bacon and eggs.

"I can't believe you're not going to order anything else."

"What's wrong with ice cream and fries?" I asked, dipping one of the fries into my ice cream before popping it into my mouth.

"That is what's wrong with it," he said, face screwed up, looking at what I was doing. "How can you mix the two? It's disgusting."

I smiled and shrugged. I couldn't help it that my tastebuds loved the combination of sweet and salty, hot and cold. The body wanted what the body wanted. For some obscure reason, as soon as I thought that my eyes darted toward Tyson. For Gods sake, I take that back. Just because the body wanted it, didn't mean it was going to get it. Especially where Tyson was concerned.