Holding Back [COMPLETED]

Chapter 20 - "What can I say I'm full of surprises."

"Isaac is your door still open," Isaac's mom yelled up the stairs.

The sound of her voice snapped both of them out of their thoughts. Isaac's face turned beet red as he rushed to the doorway.

"Yeah, we'll be down in a second," he called back.

Haley bit her bottom lip as heat flooded her cheeks. Trying not to look as mortified as he felt, Isaac turned back to her. For an awkward moment, neither of them said anything feeling as if they had been caught doing something they shouldn't.

"Umm." He rubbed the back of his neck. "We should probably go down."

Haley nodded in agreement and made a quick gesture to his room.

"Thanks for showing me your telescope and stuff."

Some of Isaac's unease melted as he sent her a small grin in appreciation.

"Yeah, of course."

He took a step towards the hallway and Haley followed. When they reached the kitchen, his mom was smiling at them, her blue eyes teasing.

"Did you two have fun?" she asked.

Isaac's cheeks flamed again and Haley crossed her arms, struggling to not to feel as embarrassed as she was.

"We should get going to the school," Isaac said. "We have a lot of painting to do."

"I'll get the keys," his mom said. "You'll need these."

As she passed Isaac, she handed him his glasses. Dipping his head slipped them on and looked up at Haley. Even though there was something more attractive about him without the glasses, she preferred him with them on. It felt more true to who he was. 

When his mother returned, they left the house, leaving Cal locked inside. The puppy gave a pathetic whimper and rested its head on the ground. At the sad sound, Isaac glanced back as if debating something.

"He can't come with you," his mother said, reading his thoughts. "You're painting and he would make a mess. Besides you just gave him a bath."

Isaac nodded in agreement but still wore a troubled expression as they left the yard. As they walked, Isaac's mother asked Haley about school and the project, keeping the conversation light. By the time they had all the places opened that they needed, Haley knew exactly where Isaac got his cheery personality from.

"Alright you two, have fun. Call if you need anything," she said.

Giving Isaac a quick kiss on the cheek, she left. Embarrassed, Isaac wiped at his face.

"You want to get working," he asked.

Haley bit back a smile and gave a quick nod. They walked to the line of booths and carried their booth back.

"Do you want to do the booth or the sign first?" Haley asked.

"Let's do the sign. I'll get it and you get the paint."

They entered the gym and headed for the storage area. As Isaac went looking for the kissing booth sign, Haley moved to a collection of paint buckets. On the top were labels saying which colors were designated for which booths. She grabbed the two they needed, buckets and the bit of supplies they could use. She was spreading out a paint strained drop cloth when Isaac came back, the sign under his arm.

"We are supposed to paint it white and red," Haley said, as he laid it down, "but it doesn't say which color goes to the background and which one goes to the letters. What do you think?"

Thinking, Isaac stared at the sign.

"I say we mix things up and do red for the background and white for the letters."