Outburst

Chapter 2 - One-On-One

It was no secret that I had a strict uncle. Even my best friends, Emma and Lucy, would have a second thought to ask me out on weekend. They never asked me to go with them, because they knew I would refuse it.

Like what happened 2 weeks ago. There was this big sale in the department store. Lucy, who was a shopaholic, was excited about this and asking me and Emma to go with her. Shopping was not my specialty, but why not? I needed a new pair of shoes to match my navy blue bag that Uncle Luke gave me on my birthday.

"What time shall we go?" asked Emma while fixing her gray beret. She really loved wearing any kind of hats, so she was just as excited as Lucy when finding out that the hats got the biggest discount there.

"What about after school?" suggested Lucy. "I'm afraid if we go at, let's say 5 pm, we can't even get into the department store because of the crowds."

"No, you're just afraid that you won't get any good stuffs," said Emma, and they were laughing, except me.

"After school? Seriously?" I asked worriedly.

"Why? You have something to do?" Lucy asked, but Emma immediately elbowed her. She then remembered why. "Oh, I forget... Your uncle wants you to go straight home."

"Yeah," I frowned. Uncle Luke even told Grant to be at my school precisely 10 minutes before the bell rang. I got really frustrated every time I saw his car at the parking lot. "Can we just change the day? On weekend maybe?"

Lucy glanced at Emma. Emma gave some signs through her eyebrows movement.

"Even if we change it, I'm not sure if your uncle will allow you. No offense, Cal, really," Lucy frowned.

None taken, guys.

I felt really bad that time. I knew, deep inside they were complaining, when can we hang out with you, Cal? Correction, when and where can we hang out with you, other than your house?

That was a reference to the times when Uncle Luke happily allowed me hang out with them. At our house.

What am I, a 6 years old kid who had a dollhouse to play in her house? Jeez, Uncle. But of course, I didn't say that to him, and I didn't refuse his offer... for about 5 times. I was thinking maybe Emma and Lucy found my house more boring than their own.

And now, it was about to happen again. This time, it was Emma who asked me. Not for shopping or anything that required me to go far away from home or school.

"Lucy's got a crush on this boy," Emma started telling the story, while Lucy's face was already blushed. "The name's Ivan. He is a 12th grader from Red Pine High School. Every Tuesday, he and his friends are always playing basketball near the park. We're going to see him and make Lucy talk to him."

"NO! Oh, my God! You know what happened 2 weeks ago!" cried Lucy.

Seeing my confused face, Emma explained, "We were going to the mall in a hurry, to that sale, you know. We ran really fast to catch the bus, and... Lucy kind of bumped Ivan who was walking with his friends. Hard."

"Hard? You mean like..."

"He fell down, okay!" Lucy shouted. Her face turned red. "He was really big and he fell because I bumped him. And I just ran without apologizing. Oh, God, I was so stupid."

For Lucy, big sale beat everything. She would do anything to get it, well, including doing a hit and run on her crush.

"You didn't run because of the bus, right?" I asked.

"I ran away because he was this close to me!" said Lucy while pulling Emma to her front. "That's why I think this is a bad idea. And you two know what I will do if I'm nervous."