Skinny Boy ✔

Chapter 20: a call

"Hello?" I answered the unknown number.

"Hey, Nathan?" The voive on the other end sounded vaguely familiar, but I couldn't put a name or face to it.

"Yeah? Who's this?"

"This is Chelsea."

That's how I knew her voice!

We weren't even talking face-to-face, but her voice alone was enough to make heat rise to my cheeks and my heart kick. "Chelsea, hey!" I inhaled a smile. "How did you get my number?"

I could hear the faint giggles of another girl on the other line, and Chelsea telling her to shush. "Uh, Sandy did. She wanted me to call you to s--"

"Just ask her out on a date already!" the other girl, whose voice I know as Sandra's, shouted in the background. I only now realized that I was on speaker phone.

"Sandy!" Chelsea hissed. I stifled a smile, knowing all too well that this was the typical neurotic behavior of my friend. I don't know how long her and Chelsea had known each other, but I had known her long enough to be unsurprised by such an outburst.

"What?" she continued, acting oblivious to the fact that she wasn't supposed to do that. But oh, I'm sure she knew. She was just going to take charge and get to the point. And that she did. "You said you think he's cute, right?"

Saying that I was blushing would be the understatement of the year.

"I know he likes you, he was blushing like crazy!"

How does she know?! I thought. Just when I started staring at my windows like a paranoid freak, it dawned on me that she was talking about the other day.

When I finally found my voice amidst my flustered state, I interrupted their bickering and said, "Are you trying to play match maker?"

"Yes, she is," Chelsea said quickly. I could hear Sandra whining in the background to put me back on speaker. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have called. I didn't know she was going to do that. She said to just ask if you wanted to hang out, and that's what I was going to do, I swear! I didn't know she was gonna--"

I'm not sure why, but her nervous rambling made my heart warm. Maybe it was the fact that she cared enough to be nervous, but whatever it was, it gave me the courage to cut her off by saying, "Do you wanna go out sometime?"

I swear, I thought my pulse stopped during the whole second she paused.

"What?"

"Do you want to go out, like on a date? I mean, only if you want to..."

She inhaled sharply on the other end. "Yeah," she said, a slight giggle in her words. "Yeah, that sounds...that'd be awesome!"

I wanted to start crying right then and there. I was so happy, I wanted to cry. "I'd say something like 'pick you up at eight,' but I don't know your address, and I don't have a car. Plus, eight is way too late to start a date."

She giggled.

This must be how angels laugh.

"It's okay, we can meet up. I'll text you this evening, and we can work out the details."

"Okay." I said as nonchalantly as I could.

"Bye."

And then she hung up. And I was left wanting to both sigh with contentment and scream with excitement.

I have a date. I have a freaking date with Chelsea.

It took me the better part of half an hour to wipe the smile off my face. And when I managed to, it didn't last for very long, because a couple hours later, right as I was being called down for dinner, I got the awaited text message.

"Nathan! Hurry up already!" Haley screamed, banging an obnoxious fist on my door. "We're all waiting on you to start the movie!"

I tapped my thums across the screen, and before I could start over thinking every word I put, I hit send.

When I got downstairs, everyone's eyes landed on me. I knew that the stifled smile on my face was a dead giveaway that something was up, but I didn't care. I was in too good a mood to care. Dad was first to inquire about it.

"What's got you so chirpy, bud?" he asked, moving aside from the taco supplies so I could make one. Haley didn't bother to stick around for this conversation; it was her turn to pick a movie, and she wanted to start it as soon as possible.

"I got a date," I announced, trying to make my smile look as casual as I could.

Jamie busted out laughing. Now I didn't have to try to hide my excitement, because it disappeared at this point.

Mom gave him a smack on the arm, but he didn't relent.

"That's great, buddy," dad smiled and clapped a hand on my back. "Proud of you. Do we know the lucky girl?"

I shook my head, forcing a smile back onto my face. But this time around, compliments weighed less than insults, and it would take a thousand compliments to make me feel better about the harmless joke Jamie. "She's a friend of Sandy. I think she's new to town, not sure though."

"No wonder she agreed to go on a date with you, she doesn't know you!" Jamie snickered. "Has she even seen you?"

Ouch.

"Jamie!" mom scolded.

"What?" he squeaked, arms up in surrender. "I'm just kidding."

I focused all my attention on the tacos in front of me, but made sure to flip him the bird when no one was looking.

He's just teasing. He isn't serious.

But no matter how hard I tried to convince myself of those truths, there was another, stronger voice that I caved in to. It was the same voice that used to push me past the point I thought I could go. But thise, it gained a new tone, and it carried a different weight. Instead of encouragement, it brought with it a feeling of smallness. Belittlement.

He means it. There's truth in it.

I don't deserve a date. I don't deserve Chelsea. She deserves better.

It was safe to say that I couldn't focus on the movie. I still, to this day, don't know what it was about. The thoughts were too loud, too frequent, and every time I began tuning in to what was happening on the screen, I quickly tuned back out.

The thoughts were persistent, and it was a showdown between me and them.

Spoiler alert: the thoughts won.

~

Hey guys, thanks once again for reading.

Thoughts?

I know you guys were probably disappointed in Nathan last chapter, so here's a chance to have some sympathy.

Question: have you ever heard of the movie Beautiful Boy? I saw it today, and it was heartbreaking.