The Boy Next door (j.b)

Chapter 4 ~ New friend

*EDITED*

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~ Chapter 4 ~

Justin gave his mother a ressuring smile, before turning his eyes on me. "Okay, follow me." His white teeth were impossible to look away from, and his pink lips formed prefectly underneath his sweet nose.

He started walking away from the kitchen , expecting me to follow him. I started walking fast behind him to catch up with his long strides. He seemed nice, actually. But I knew I couldn't get too attached. At least not now that I promised myself to not let more people into my life. 

"My room is a mess right now, sorry for that. But at least I got the bed up." He said while we walked to his room. He opened a door at the end of the hallway, while I followed quietly behind. His room was big. The walls were all white , making the room seem a lot bigger and brighter. His bed was plain still, without any pillows or duvets. The boxes were shattered fairly across the room, making it look messy.

"We can sit here, better than sitting on the floor." He pointed at his bed while smiling at me. His smile made my lips curve upwards. He was so friendly, that everytime I saw him smile, I couldn't help but smile myself. We sat down across from each other, I exhaled soundlessly. "So you're Ariana, right?"

"Yeah, that's me." I replied.

"So tell me a little bit about yourself," he laughed a little. It was slightly awkward. I felt like I couldn't get out of the box I was closed in, and I was extremely afraid of saying anything wrong. 

"Uhm well, what do you want to know?" I asked, trying to keep my voice down. No reason really, it was just an instinct I had because of my shyness.

"I don't know. Tell me what you do, what your hobbies are, anything." He shrugged, crossing his legs as he waited for me to answer. 

"Okay, uh, I'm Ariana and I'm seventeen. I like summer and I'm afraid of spiders. You?" I was very curious about him and his family. Mostly about him though.

"I'm Justin, and I enjoy playing hockey. I actually don't have any favorite part of the year, and I don't know what I'm afraid of, really." He smiled slightly. "Oh wait, I'm actually claustrophobic."

I smiled. "Really? That must suck."

He just shrugged.

"But hey, don't you prefer winter, because of hockey?"

"No, or, errhg, I don't know. I just enjoy summer just as much, because I like to swim too, and get tan." He winked, letting out a small chuckle, making me laugh along with him

His laugh was cute.

"So, Ariana. Tell me a little bit about your family." He asked.

He really had to ask about that?

"I live with my dad here, and my brother moved to New York a few years back."

"Oh, that's so cool! Have you been to New York yet? Visited him?" He asked.

I shook my head, letting out a small giggle. "No, we kind of lost a little contact when he moved out. I mean, he calls every now and then, but he's working a lot, so..."

"Oh, that sucks. Does he live with your mom, or is he older than you?"

"Uh, he lives alone. He's 23 or something, I've lost track with the years." I let out a nervous laugh. Why can't he stop asking these questions.

"What about your mom?" I swallowed. That question came a lot quicker than I expected. He noticed my nervousness, slowly taking a small inhale. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-"

"No, no it's okay! It's nothing, really. I just don't like talking about her a lot" I shrugged my shoulders, looking down on my lap. "She passed away a few years ago."

Justin got silent, but somehow, I didn't want to look up at him. He was going to give me that look. That 'oh, I pity you' look. And I wasn't ready for that look today.

But something in me made my gaze lift upwards, meeting his pityfull eyes as I thought. "I'm so sorry Ariana, I didn't mean to ask, I really didn't know. I'm-"

"It's okay Justin, don't worry about it." I gave him a half-smile, hiding the fact that I was slightly irritated that he brought this up in the first place.

"So, are you going to go to school here?" I asked, changing the subject because of the awkward tension. He swalloed, and clenched his jaw.

"Yes, I am. What school are you in? Hopefully, I'm in the same." He replied.

"I go to Rose High School. Where are you starting?" I asked, a slight hope build up inside of me. I wanted him to go to Rose high School too.

"Rose high School." He smiled, giving me a small wink.

~ 

I haven't changed a lot in the beginning, but I think a lot will be different later in the story. So hopefully, people would want to reread it.