Butterflies

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                                                Picture of Naomi "Nomi"

          Sitting in this booth I can't help but to feel extremely awkward. I knew meeting his parents would be scary, but ide never guessed it would be this uncomfortable. I look down at my lap to avoid their stares. This is ridiculous that they would openly stare at me like this. I look down at my lap itching to do something with my hands. I inhale deeply and gather the courage to start a conversation.

"So Damien told me that you guys really like going to art shows downtown?" I ask awkwardly .

I look up at Damien's parents faces searching for a response, but all I get in return is blank stares. I smile at them starting to get increasingly hot in the face. I look up at my bf , Damien, sitting next to me in the resturant booth expecting him to help me out with conversation, but he starts uncontrollably laughing at me. At this weird outburst I'm left stuck for words. I turn my head and look back at his parents who also start laughing and pointing at me. It gets even more weird when everyone in the resturant starts laughing with them. The waiter even makes his way over laughing and pointing at me. I feel my eyes start to water and my throat start to burn. I'm at a loss for words.

"Who does this little girl think she is!?" Screams Damien's mother.

"Right! I don't think she's good for our son. Not one bit!" Says Damien's father.

My heart starts beating so loud I swear everyone can hear it. I clutch my chest which starts to visually pulsate. What the hell is happening to me. I start to panic. Yep. This is how my life ends. I die of a heart attack from public embarrassment.

My ears start ringing loud. I can't hold back the tears in my eyes anymore, hot tears start streaming down my face. The ringing in my ears gets louder and almost becomes methodic. Ring. RIng. RINg. RING. RING!

           I'm suddenly woken up by my annoying phone alarm. I try to become conscious enough to turn it off, but fail horribly. I keep slapping at the phone screen trying to turn it off. It's difficult because my head is not completely in reality, stuck between that weird limbo of dreamland and reality where you still believe the events of your dreams have actually taken place in real life. Once I fully come to, I sit up and turn off my alarm. I flop back onto my plush pillows already exhausted from the day. I lay in bed and remember the dream I had. My stomach fills with butterflies thinking about meeting Damien's parents tonight . I roll over and cover my face with my blankets.

Me and Damien had known each other since back in high school. Well... not really knew knew. More like I had seen him here and there in the hallways and always thought he was so cute. He never really gave me any attention though, even though he claims to this day that he was crushing on me as well. I always thought that was a lie to make me feel better, but I know I can come off as looking "mean" due to my chronic resting b*tch face. 

I remember moving into my dorm freshman year and seeing him at his car gathering his stuff to move into the same dorm. I was shook to say the least. I would have never imagined to see him at my University. Ever since the day I asked the cliché "do I know you" question we've talked to each other every single day. It's crazy that we've only been together for 6 months, it feels like we've been together for years.

I stop reminiscing and come back to the present. I check the time on my phone and it's 9:38 am. I exhale slowly trying to get rid of my nerves. Looking down at my phone I see that there are multiple notifications from Instagram, Twitter , and messages. It feels good to be loved there's nothing I hate more than waking up to a phone that has no notifications.

There's a text from Damien "can't wait for you to meet my parents! I'll pick you up at 4:45". I smile involuntarily thinking about him. He really is so sweet to me.

Hopping out of bed I head to my bathroom. As soon as I get out of bed I regret it. It's so cold in the house, I have no idea why my mother loves to keep the house so cold. It's literally December and I feel like it's warmer outside than it is in the house.

I try to ease my annoyance by wrapping my old creme colored fuzzy robe around me to calm my shivering body. Once in the bathroom I look over my appearance . I look rough but not too rough which makes me happy.

I put my long boho twists up into a sloppy ponytail and wash my face at the sink. The hot water warms me up a little. After washing my face and brushing my teeth I scramble to find my workout clothes. While shifting through the huge pile of clothes in my chair my phone starts to ring.

"Ugh can I get a chance to breathe" I say frustrated.

I see the caller is my friend Simone and I know exactly why she's calling.

"Hey girl" I say accepting the call.

"Hey are you ready?" Simone says with a little annoyance in her voice.

"Yeah I'm ready you can come over" I say standing in my room naked and shivering.

"Cool I'll be there in 5 minutes" she says.

"Ok. See you soon" hanging up the phone.

"F*ck. F*ck. F*ck." I whisper throwing my phone onto my bed and start frantically searching through my clothes pile. I settle on a baby pink t-shirt that goes well with my dark skin tone and some leggings that have mesh cut outs in them. I run to the corner where my nike tennis shoes are hiding and thank the Lord that socks are inside of them. Running back to my bathroom I start sloppily brushing my eyebrows into shape and put my long twists into a cute bun at the top of my head .

"Ayyyeee. I'm ready" I say breathing a sigh of relief.

My phone dings and I know it's from Simone texting that she's outside. Running out of the bathroom I gather up my phone, earphones, wallet, and keys. Putting on my coat I stuff all my things into the pockets and make my way to the front door.

"BYYYEEEE" I yell up to my parents as I leave out the house.

I hear a faint "bye Nomi be safe!" from my parents and make my way to Simone's car.

We head to our  university's gym facility to work out since it's only 25 minutes away. Yes I didn't decide to go to a university hours away from my home , but during the semester I live on campus so I thought I wouldn't totally miss out on my college experience.

A good hour into working out me and Simone are winding down, and decide to cool down by walking around the track.

"So what you wearing tonight" Simone asks finally taking her attention away from the guys playing basketball.

I laugh "Your guess is as good as mine girl"

"What do you mean ? You don't have an idea at all about what you want to wear to meet the parents" she says looking at me sideways.

"I mean I'm stuck between wearing something I have in my closet or running to the mall real quick to find something" I say frustrated.

"Girl you look like you're gonna pass out from a heart attack" she says laughing at me.

I don't laugh instantly brought back to my horrific nightmare this morning.

"Ughhhh girl I feel like I actually will. I'm so nervous" I say looking at her seriously .

Simone's face changes to sympathy.
"Girl you're gonna be fine! You're literally perfect, Damien is crazy for you! Like he's literally the sweetest thing on this planet. What is there not to like about you Nomi?" She smiles up at me .

I smile back at her feeling all warm in the inside.

Finishing our laps we head to the car. I smile to myself. Maybe I was overreacting, his parents will love me.

Everything will go smooth and fine... I hope.

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