Unknown Name

Inspired by Irving

After texting Brooklyn I lie back with the phone sitting on my chest. I sigh loudly, Charlie climbs onto my chest and stares at me for a bit before curling up. I laugh as he falls off and tries to play it casual, “I saw that Char” I chuckle and he gives me a doggy glare. I think back to this afternoon in the pool with Brooklyn, if only she knew how amazing and hot she was. Did I actually just think that? The more I think about it though, I realise she really is. To divert my thoughts I look at the sleeping dog at my side, snoring quietly with his tongue out of his mouth slightly. I stare at the ceiling and listen to Charlie’s and my own breathing, I start to drift off and Brooklyn comes to mind again as I fall asleep.

I’m dreaming of Brooklyn, not in a weird perverted way but an admiring way, when my alarm goes off for school. Damn school! Always ruining good things! I think as I rub my eyes blearily and vaguely pat Charlie’s head before swinging my legs over the side of my bed. Wearing my track pants and Charlie as a permanent attachment to my ankle, I walk into the kitchen and start cooking eggs for myself. Mum and Dad aren’t around very often so I’m quite self-sufficient. After the eggs are done I try to get to the bench to eat but Charlie’s getting underfoot, looking up at me with big puppy eyes. Sighing loudly I relent and push some eggs to the floor for him, he sucks up the scraps like a vacuum.

As I’m eating my eggs and feeding scraps to Charlie, I vaguely hear the front door open and look up as I hear footsteps coming towards me. “Really? Already shirtless? Hasn’t my self-esteem suffered enough?” my best friend Ben stands in front of me chuckling. I grin “is my being half-naked make you uncomfortable?” he raises an eyebrow and shakes his head before chucking my school shirt at my head. “Just get dressed Spence, leaving in 5” he calls over his shoulder as he walks back out the door.

“Can you turn that shit down?” Ben reaches for the volume dial in his car with one hand, the other on the steering wheel. I swat his hand away, turn the radio up and start dancing… terribly. “You know you’re only embarrassing yourself right?” he shakes his head, returning both hands to the wheel. I spot a group of girls from our school at the café near the lights as we pull up and give him my best mischievous look as I loosen my seatbelt slightly. “Oh really?” I raise an eyebrow at Ben as I roll down my window. I catch his expression as I haul my upper body out the now open window and call out to the girls. “Hey girls! Like these moves?” I proceed to dance terribly, half hanging out the window while still turning up the volume on the radio.

 I grin madly and continue dancing as they look up and burst out laughing, but they do nod appraisingly. I jab my thumb in Ben’s direction and shout “my friend here taught me everything I know.” I can feel Ben tugging on my shirt but ignore him as one of the girls calls out, “can you teach us?” and her friends behind her giggle and nod. I shrug and say “I can’t but my friend here can” I tilt my head in Ben’s direction back inside the car. Ben’s not unattractive so whenever I can I try and set him up with who I can find, much to his embarrassment. They look at Ben up and down before nodding, “I’ll give you his number later” I call pulling myself back inside the car.

“Spencer!” Ben whines as we pull away from the lights in the direction of school. “What?” I ask innocently “just trying to get my best friend some action before he graduates.” He just shakes his head as I continue, “don’t want to graduate a virgin do ya?” I nudge him in the side and he elbows me back, this continues back and forth until we pull up in the car park. Even then we sit there for like 5 minutes jabbing and prodding each other, until we get out of the car laughing and getting questioning looks from people around us.

As we reach the lockers I spot Brooklyn sitting with her friends and as I distractedly shove my bag into my locker, Ben nudges me and whispers “go for it.” I feel heat rise up my neck and think to myself jeez was I that obvious. I look at my locker haphazardly shoved into my locker, didn’t even register how much I had been paying attention to Brooklyn and the way her freckles lightly dusted her cheeks and how her hair fell in waves down her back my mind goes off on its own. Jeez! Gotta stop doing that! I silently yell at myself but before I realise what’s happening my feet have started walking in Brooklyn’s direction on their own accord. Uh-oh! Warning: prepare for possible embarrassment! My mind screamed before deserting me, leaving me mindlessly smitten as I got closer and closer to Brooklyn and her friends.