The Only One » cth [en]

3. jade totally knows how to socialize

I come out of my room, hoping that Ash's stupid friends have gone home by now.

I'm stopped by Calum's voice when I get to the hall, though.

"Siri, call sister."

I know the situation is far from funny, but for some reason it makes me want to laugh. I know, I'm a terrible human being.

"Hey, Mali. Is it okay if I have dinner here?"

"I guess, it's fine. Are you sure you don't mind picking me up later?"

"Okay, sorry. Bye."

His sister hangs up, I suppose and then an awkward silence falls upon us, even though he doesn't know I'm here. Or at least I thought so.

"You know that when a person loses one of his senses, the other ones get more accurate? So I can still hear you breathing."

Fuck me.

"Well, remember me not to break into your house then. Althought, I am so not sneaky that I would probably trip on your doorstep or something and break some fancy bowl, like it happens in the movies."

He smiles and I wonder if he can sense that I'm smiling too.

Okay, now I'm just being weird. 

"Does she let you stay?" I ask.

"Yeah. You do know I don't need a babysitter, right? That would be so uncool. It's just not very convenient that I go around walking in the streets by my own."

"Yeah, I know. Huh, does it bother you?"

"What? That I can't see? Yes, Jade, I think it would bother everyone."

I cringe and lean into the wall. Way to go, girl.

"No, I mean, obviously, that's not what I meant." I sigh, why don't words come out of mouth the way I want them too? "If you want I can drive you home. Hum, just so we don't bother your sister of course."

He leans too. I try not to stare but I can't help it. His jawline is perfectly defined and I can't help but find his eyes kinda quirky, still finding their way to lovely.

"Are you chinese?" I blurt at the same time he asks "How old are you?"

He then proceeds to laugh and I want to crawl into myself and just remain in fetal position until sweet death decides my short stay on this earth has come to an end.

"I am certainly not chinese. I'm from New Zealand." his voice breaks me from my brief panic attack.

"Oh my god! I love kiwis."

I really should start thinking before I speak.

"I meant the fruit. Not the birds. I mean the birds are okay too. But not the people. I mean... Oh my god, I'm such a mess." I cover my face with both of my hands to cover up my embarassment.

"Aren't we all? How old are you, Jade?"

The way he pronounces my name has a ring to it and I feel my ears heating up.

One hand is placed gently and blindly on my arm, sliding gently to the top of my hand, taking it away from my face. 

He's smiling. He's not making fun of me. He doesn't have a condescending look on his face. He is simply... smiling. 

Now that I think about it you wouldn't know he was blind just by looking at him. His eyes look completely normal. I don't know what I was expecting, he's still a normal person.

"19. You?" I let out, barely louder than whisper.

"20. Can you text my sister then? I hope your driving is better than hers. Just don't tell her that." 

He unlocks his phone with his print and then hands it to me.

"Just sign it, please. Or she will think I was kidnapped or something."

Just in my defense, his voice tone can be really funny and propitious to laughter. So I snort instead of chuckling lightly like a decent person would.

"Thank God, Calum, I was starting to think you had got lost." Luke comes out of the living room door and eyes us suspisciously "Oh, you're chatting with boring Jade."

Our hands were barely touching by now, but I still step back. Luke would mock me for the rest of my life if he saw it.

"Do you know what's more boring than me, Luke? Your sexual life." I roll my eyes at me and Calum grins.

Take that, Hemmings.

"You wish it was boring. Now, now, no need to be jealous. Just come and eat the tiny slice of pizza that's been atributed to you."

"I am not eating a tiny slice of pizza. That wouldn't give me energies for even an hour."

"Jade, in all honesty, does your ass ever get jealous of the shit that comes out of your mouth?"

I put my hand above my heart, really pissed off, and, pulling Calum by an arm behind me, I storm past the annoying blond, punching him in the chest while doing so, hoping the kind warmth of pizza would calm my little fragile heart.

Ugh, I hate boys so much. Maybe I should be a lesbian.