t w e n t y t w o ;
They reached Dieter and Liesl's house within a few minutes of driving and Dieter shut off the car engine, leaving the car in the drive way. The three got out of the car and Liesl skipped up the path that led up to the house, her red hair bouncing past her shoulders as she happily hummed a tune Louise didn't recognize. Louise watched her and wondered to herself just how someone could be like her. So pretty, so happy. And everyone seemed to love her easily. When Dieter had been handing out her campaign buttons, many of the people had offered to help plaster flyers of her over the town. Everyone in their small town knew each other, and they were all like family. But to Louise it was a strange concept.
She most marveled at the fact that most people seemed completely enamored with the red headed teenager. While Louise could barely get one guy to even glance at her. She was surprised Dieter was still around after getting to know her a bit. She was a foul mouthed teenager who was the complete opposite of him. He was the same as his sister. So handsome, so perfect. She just wanted to reach over and slap his handsome face. But that surely would be unacceptable.
Liesl disappeared into the house without another glance at them while the other two lingered outside for a few moments. Louise stayed behind because Dieter wasn't moving, and she wondered if he was maybe having second thoughts about inviting her over to his house. She also didn't just want to barge into his house like she owned the place. In front of Dieter she would exercise the few amount of manners she knew. She needed to be a whole new version of herself if she wanted to impress him.
She had been lost in her thoughts, thinking how hard it would probably be to behave herself, until she was taken by surprise by the feeling of Dieter's lips on hers. It had been a quick kiss, merely a peck, that sent her heart into overdrive. As Dieter pulled away from her, he seemed nervous and he watched her expression for any reaction, biting down on his lip. Then he began to offer her a sheepish apology. "I'm sorry. I'd just really been wanting to do that all night, and I couldn't because Liesl was in the way." He immediately started playing with his hands, rubbing his fingers nervously, and Louise stared at his hands. They were nice and looked smooth. She wondered how his hand would feel in hers.
For possibly the first time in her life, Louise felt herself go red in the face. She shyly looked down at her feet and said nothing of their shared moment. What could she say to him? It wasn't like the kiss had bothered her. If anything, she liked it and was hoping he would do it again. Or maybe she could go for it herself.
When he saw that she wasn't going to say anything about it, he gestured for her to follow him up the small path that led up to the house. As they walked, he reached for her hand and held it in his. Their yard was well kept with little flower beds in front of a porch with a swing on it. On the ground in front of the door was a mat that read welcome with a friendly smiley face on it. It was the complete opposite of what she knew from back home. It seemed like these type of people only existed in movies. They were so polite, and so perfect. It was like being in another world.
Dieter got out his set of keys out of his pocket and opened the front door after fumbling in the moonlight to find the right one, since Liesl seemed to have locked the door when she went inside. In the living room, his parents were sitting watching a movie together. Liesl was nowhere to be found, and Louise assumed she had gone straight to her bedroom. Mrs. Park was leaning her head on Mr. Park's shoulder like a young couple in love. They both smiled politely at the two teenagers as they entered the house. It wasn't too late at night, but they did seem rather confused that their son was bringing someone home with him. Dieter led Louise past his parents and up stairs without saying anything to them. His bedroom was the first one, nearest to the hall and the stair case. He asked her to wait for him there and that he would talk to his parents, assuring her that they would understand.
