The Perks of Being a Freak (Editing)

82. Pretending To Be Normal

“Alright,” Simon began. “So this might be a little awkward for you, but Mitchell and Jaeb want to meet you.”

“They’ve already met me,” I frowned and cocked my head.

“They want to meet you formally as my girlfriend,” every word made Simon’s grimace a little bit deeper.

“That sounds fun,” I scowled playfully. “Except they aren’t supposed to know about us dating.”

“Oh,” Simon’s eyes widened. “Right. So Jaeb kinda threatened to break my legs if I didn’t tell her.”

“You are forgiven,” I pecked his cheek gently, and he grinned.

Which is how, half an hour later, I found myself climbing stairs with Simon’s hand in my own on my way to meet Jaeb and Mitchell, officially.

The apartment that they lived in was old and run down. The wallpaper was peeling, there was mold growing in the corners and the lights flickered. I was a little afraid of what their actual apartment might look like.

But it was clean, and very bare. There was hardly anything in the place.

Simon looked nervous, so I rubbed my thumb over his knuckles. “What’s wrong?”

“It’s embarrassing,” he admitted softly. “You’re so rich, and we’re so… not.”

“You think I care about that?” I scoffed. “I don’t.”

“Lia!” Jaeb shrieked gleefully, throwing herself my way. I put my arms up just in time to catch the ginger, who was wearing one of the shirts my grandmother had gotten me. It was light green, with ruffles on the front and a cinched waist. It fit Jaeb perfectly, and made her look like a little doll.

“Hey, Jaeb,” I grinned at her. “How are you?”

“I’m fabulous!” She pulled me away from Simon, who looked dumbstruck, and sat me down at one of the four mismatched chairs.

“How do you two know each other in a non-fighting way?” Simon questioned, sitting as well.

“We went to get pedicures together,” Jaeb waggled her green toenails at him. Simon blinked and looked at me. I mimicked Jaeb’s motion, showing my dark blue nails.

He sighed and walked into one of the far rooms.

“I made brownies,” I offered lamely, holding out the package. Jaeb looked at them curiously.

“What are brownies?” She asked. I grinned, opened up the container, and held one out. Jaeb took it and bit into it cautiously. In a split second, her face had gone from one of distrust to one of bliss.

“That,” I told her, rewrapping the container. “Is a brownie.”

“Oh my gosh,” she mumbled around the mouthful of chocolatey pastry. “SIMON WE’RE KEEPING HER!!”

I laughed.

Simon, Jaeb, and I sat on those dingy chairs for the next hour or so, talking and sharing stories and laughing. I refused to let them have any more brownies until Mitchell returned from his job. When I asked where he worked, Simon told me that he bagged groceries for people.

When Mitchell walked in and saw me there, his jaw dropped. Slightly, but still noticeably.

“Lia,” he nodded, eyes darting between Simon and Jaeb.

“Mitchell,” I smiled, even though the atmosphere had just gotten a little awkward. “Hi.”

“She’s the girl I was telling you about,” Simon snickered and wrapped his arm around my shoulders.

“You’re dating Lia?” Mitchell’s eyes widened, then he whistled, and his gaze turned to me. “How much did he pay you?”

“Damn,” I shook my head. “You mean I coulda gotten paid to date him? Well, shit. Why am I doing it for free, then?”

Everybody but Simon laughed. He just pouted, and I patted his cheek gently.

Eating brownies and being interrogated by my boyfriends roommates. It was a strange experience, but one I wouldn’t give up for the world. Maybe the four of us were freaks. Maybe we had once hated each other, but we left the freakishness and the hate at the door. It was nice to be able to stretch my wings without worrying about who might see them. It was nice to be able to pretend that, besides the wings, we were all normal.

Pretending to be normal was almost as good as being normal.