you & me

Do you ever feel like love isn't real? I did. My parents died in a car crash a few years ago, and now I live with my grandparents. I call them Gee-Gee and Pap. Don't ask me how my grandma got the name Gee-Gee-I'm not the one to ask.

It was always awkward when I was with my friends. We'd always need a table for five, my friend John and his girlfriend, my friend David and his girlfriend, and then there was me, the forever alone guy. I'm in 11th grade and I have yet to get a single girlfriend.

Tonight happened to be one of those nights, the guys were double dating with their girls. Luckily, I have nice friends so they let me come along.

"Dude, you really need to get a girlfriend. You don't wanna die alone, do you?" asks my friend David.

"No, I don't want to die alone, but it would be nice to have a girl that likes me. I guess I'm not 'the full package'," I say, using air quotations at the last part.

"Whatever," says David. I look over at John and his girlfriend, Chelsea, but they're just making out. David's girlfriend, Maddie, hasn't said anything since we got here. The waitress comes with our drinks. Everyone got Pepsi, except me, I got water, you know, forever alone.

"Are you guys ready to order?" asks our waitress, who's name tag suggests her name is Lauren.

David looks around and realizes John and Chelsea are still making out.

"Uh, no, could you give us a couple more minutes?" he asks.

"Sure. No problem," Lauren replies, but she sounds a bit annoyed, obviously about the fact that Chelsea is now sitting on the table and making out with John. Poor guy. He had to go with that slut. She's been with every guy in school. Except me, of course.

"Uh, guys? You gonna stop? We're in a restaurant. Save it for the bed so we can eat," I say to John and Chelsea. I can here a chuckle come from David or Maddie.

"Oh, uh, sorry," stutters John, finally giving his tongue a break. Chelsea sits back on the seat, blushing, and picks up a menu.

A few minutes later, Lauren comes back takes our order.

"You got your eyes on any girls?" asks John, after Lauren leaves. God, would they let it go? I'm not getting a girlfriend. No one likes me.

"Don't say that, man!" says David. Did I say that out loud?

"Yes, you did," says Maddie. I really need to stop. Hopefully I didn't say that out loud, too.

After a couple minutes of stories from David, (like the time he almost got his leg bitten if by a shark, true story, I was there) our food came.

"Yes! Finally!" I yelled, maybe a little too loud, because I see a few people from around the restaurant look at me. I don't care. I dig into the cheeseburger I got.

"Wait, I got it!" exclaims Maddie.

"What?" I say.

"Seth, you should try a dating website! That's how my neighbors got together!"

"Oh, hell no! Are you crazy! I don't need to go around and start loving some weird psychopathic chic from Russia!"

"I agree," says David, coming to my defense, "and, your neighbors got divorced."

"It was a good 2-month marriage."

"Sure it was."

After that, we pretty much kept quiet for the rest of the night. Of course, I drove myself home.

When I get inside, I see Pap lying on the couch, sleeping with the tv on. Gee-Gee is probably sleeping upstairs. I decide to take a shower.

When I get out of the shower, I put on a pair of basketball shorts and a tank top-one for boys-and crawl in bed. I start to see the resemblance between me and Pap, I've been falling asleep with the tv on. So tonight, I decide just to turn the tv off and then go to bed. Within minutes, I'm knocked out.

So how was the first chapter?

Will Seth ever find love?

Will John and Chelsea stop kissing?

Find out in the next chapter!

- J. M.