pretty little liar // brad simpson

eighteen

SPENCER

"Ready?"

"Ready."

I pulled the bill of my baseball cap down over my forehead and slid my fingers into Brad's, ducking my head as we stepped out of the cafe where we'd been spotted having lunch. The news of our outing had resulted in more than just an unwelcome third-wheel on our date - our real date - but had reached the point of brinking on an eighteen-wheeler truck of a date.

"I can't imagine the bowling alley will be too thrilled renting out just one lane for all of us." Brad mumbled in my ear, shooting me a cheeky look.

I shook my head, but I couldn't help but laugh at him as the middle-aged men with cameras and teenage girls alike followed us to my car. Brad and I climbed in and quickly locked the doors, breathing a sigh of relief as we booted up the vehicle and I turned in my seat, trying to make sure I wouldn't hit anyone as I reversed out of our spot in the car park.

"Those men are just too close behind for me to get out of here." I sighed, squeezing the steering wheel with anxiety. It was my first legitimate date with Brad, and I wanted it to go well - not come with a lawsuit when I hit one of the men trying to take a picture of us.

"Relax, darling." Brad soothed, sliding his hand up and down my arm. "I've got this."

He twisted the knob and the sun roof began to open atop the car, and Brad unbuckled his seatbelt so he could reach up and poke his head through the ceiling. "Excuse me, could you move back just a bit more? We don't want to bump you!"

There was a lot of shouting, but as I watched in the rearview mirror, they began to scatter a bit out of the way. "Reverse, Spencie." Brad instructed, his head still out the roof.

I began to peel away from the spot until Brad told me to stop and then sank back into his seat, closing the roof and giving me a wide, toothy grin. "Told you I'd sort it out." He teased, leaning over and giving me a kiss on the cheek that made my heart flutter, before doing up his seatbelt and sitting back.

"Thank you, Bradley." I responded, reaching my left hand over for him to hold. I was anxious, no matter how many planned or rehearsed or scheduled outings we'd been on, or how many normal grocery trips or visits with friends that had taken place over the past 18 months, none of them had been so intentional, and that made my heart pound.

Turning up the volume of the radio, I allowed myself to try and relax without the mental pressure, and Brad and I sang and danced to the radio until we got to the bowling alley.

It was uncomfortable, to say the least, on my end. Brad chatted and paid like a gentleman, while I rung my hands together and smiled awkwardly at the boy at the til. "Everything alright, love?" Brad asked lowly, glancing at the men wandering in attentively.

I shrugged, grabbing my shoes off of the bench and following him towards our lane. "I'm just a bit hesitant about the cameras, that's all."

"You've never been like that much before." Brad pointed out questioningly, sliding his shoes off and replacing them with the brightly colored alley shoes.

I shrugged again, attaching the velcro on my shoes and sitting back, glancing at the men who had spotted us and had begun milling about nearby, their cameras no longer tucked under their arms. "I suppose when it's real I fear they'll suddenly get more critical and that'll hurt more than knowing they're ragging on a phony relationship."

Brad nodded in understanding, reaching out and wrapping both hands around mine. "That's the best part, darling." Brad reassured me, his thumbs running over my palms and his dark eyes fixing on my blue ones. "This time it's not about anyone else but us."

My lips quirked up, and Brad's smile spread into a grin, leaning forward to kiss my forehead. "Now, it's game on."

>>>>> >>>>> >>>>>

"Who's that?" Brad asked, peeking over my shoulder at my phone, where I had just typed out a text in response to Tristan. His face went sour - which was an odd thing considering they were best friends, of course had I not known other factors that were involved.

"We need to talk about him tonight, Brad." I insisted, but Brad just grabbed his bowling ball and went up to take his turn, chucking the ball aggressively down the lane. 

I pushed myself to my feet and wandered over, wrapping my arms around his waist, forcing him to listen to my low voice. "Brad, I know you are angry about me talking to him, but you also know that I want you, I want to stay with you, and I wouldn't risk that for Tristan when this is real this time. You know that."

Brad sighed, resting his arms on top of mine and hugging me to him, letting his head rest against mine. "Yes, I know that..." He let a breath between his lips, blowing my hair from my forehead. "We'll talk later."

"Thank you," I sighed, kissing his cheek gently. "Now, are you going to be bummed for the rest of this outing, or can you trust me that I'm here - like you said, just for us this time."

Brad gave me an uncertain look, but then forced a smile onto his face and nodded, unwinding our arms so he could wrap one around my shoulder, kissing the tip of my nose. I wrinkled my nose, earning a laugh. Then, Brad's lips were suddenly poking me all over my cheeks and face, his hands holding my face in place.

"Agh, Brad, yuck! Get off of me, you weirdo." I shrieked, giggling as I shoved him away. He grabbed my hands where they were pushing against his chest, and my heart swelled excitedly as Brad caught my eye, giving me a cheeky wink and then pulling me towards him, pressing his lips softly against mine.

"Need a hand this turn? You were big talk for such an awful bowler." Brad teased, eyeing the score board where I had twice the points as him.

I rolled my eyes, but accepted Brad's offer and let him wrap his arm around my waist, his hand guiding mine as he directed the ball directly into the gutter, twisting my hand last second so I totally botched the turn. "Bradley! Will you knock that off?" I laughed, pushing him away and falling back into my seat.

My phone buzzed as Brad grabbed his bowl and walked up to take his turn, and I glanced down at the screen to see another text from Tristan. I let a light sigh between my lips, glancing up at Brad as he turned around and threw the ball back between his legs. My lips twisted up into a smile, and I turned my phone off before clapping as the ball managed to knock down one of the pins at the end of the lane.