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mike couldn't wait for 11:30. he had his fingers wrapped around the cord, twisting and pulling until the circulation in his fingers was cut off. he dropped the cord and did it again and again and again, until his watched beeped signalling that it was the moment he had been waiting for all day. the boy quickly dialed elle's number, already knowing it by heart. it rang a few times, but it quickly stopped when elle picked up.
"hello?" with that word, mike let out a breath he did not know he was holding in. he smiled and flopped on his bed, smiling at the ceiling.
"hey elle, it's me, mike." the boy sighed into the phone. there was a slight giggle coming from the other end.
"hey mike. how was your day?" the girl asked, making mike bite his lip. he didn't really pay attention to his day, because his mind was on other topics, like this call, and the girl on the other end.
"it was okay. listen, about max today, she said-" mike began, but the girl on the other side of the call cut him off before he could say anything more about the subject.
"mike, it's okay. i'm...i'm just a little skittish, that's all. tell her i'm sorry." she said, making mike nod even though the two teens couldn't see each other. the boy thought now was the time to ask her the question that has been bugging him since the weekend.
"elle...are-do you want to go to a party with me on saturday?" mike breathed, biting his lip as he waited for an answer from the girl he liked.
"if i can convince my dad to let me sleepover at max's, i would love to go." the girl said into the phone, making mike smile and laugh. suddenly, mike's bedroom door was thrown open by none other than his older sister nancy.
"michael wheeler you already asked her out now hang up the damn phone! some people would like to sleep instead of flirt!" nancy groaned, her hair a mess and in her pajamas. mike just looked at her and shrugged, putting the phone back up to his ear as his sister left the room.
"well, i gotta go. see you at school tomorrow ellie." mike whispered into the phone.
"that's okay mikey, i'll see you tom-" the girl's sentence was cut off my a loud grunt, then the sound of glass shattering.
"elle? ELLE!" mike yelled into the phone, trying to hear what happened. he gave up, getting no response and running out of his room right past nancy.
"mike, where are you going?!" she called after the boy as he took off to the grey house in just sleep pants and an old t-shirt. he pounded on the door, panic in his eyes as he worried about his neighbor's well-being. the sound of a door opening and shutting came from the back of the house, so the tall boy hid in the shadows, observing the scene. the brenner family car pulled out of the driveway and speed down the road and into the distance.
once mike saw that it was clear, he snuck into the house through the back door.
"elle?" he called as he stepped into the house. cobwebs and boxes full of knick knacks cluttered the inside of the grey house, making mike bite his lip. "eleanor?" mike called again, slowly walking up the steps to the second floor. he pushed the first door open wider, inspecting the room. it seemed quite normal, so he walked to the second room. there, he found his neighbor, trying to pick glass out of her hands. she jumped, hearing him enter the room.
"mike! wh-what are y-y-you doing here?" she stuttered, her eyes big with fear. mike said nothing, grabbing the broom that was propped up against the wall of his crush's room and beginning to sweep up the broken glass on the ground into a neat pile.
after a few minuets of silence, mike decided to break the tension in the room. "i shouldn't have come, i know that. but i knew something was wrong ellie, i couldn't just let you deal with this on your own." he sighed, putting the broom back where he found it and crouching down next to the pretty girl. elle sighed too, but gave him a hug.
"you're not wearing shoes, be careful." she warned, making mike laugh quietly and pick her up in a swift motion.
"neither are you." he smiled gently, walking out to the hallway and finding the bathroom. he set the girl down on the toilet as he hunted through the cabinet for bandages. "you know, when i was little, i used to be really clumsy. like realllly clumsy. i could trip just like walking, you know?" he said, looking in her eyes to distract her as he disinfected her wounds. elle let out a little laugh, but then hissed in pain.
"fuck, that hurts!" she muttered, making mike chuckled as he began to wrap her hand in bandages.
"never took you to be a swearer eleanor..." his voice trailed off, looking up at her questioningly.
"brenner. eleanor brenner." she smiled shyly, watching mike check over his handwork.
"anyways, that's how i got good at this medical stuff. constantly fixing myself up. and unluckily for me, my little sister now has the clumsy trait, so now i've moved onto helping her and others feel better." he smiled, giving a kiss to her bandaged wound before standing up. he couldn't help but notice all the other bruises that covered elle's body. some seemed newer, while others looked yellowish and fading. he shook his head, but the images didn't go away.
