Broken Memory ✓

15. A Game of Monopoly

Caleb and I have been texting a lot out of the group chat that was originally made. It's been a few weeks since the dinner and I can't get him out of my head. I don't know why... It's like every text he sends me gives this jittery feeling in my chest. It feels like... I adore him and his presence... But more than what would be considered typical. What is this feeling?

It's the very end of the school day; just a minute left of class. Caleb and I sit in silence, lost in our own thoughts, but my gaze keeps subconsciously shifting to him. I only realize this when I see his glance towards me, an expression saying, "what?" filling his face.

I shake my head, as if saying, 'don't worry about it', and he just nods slightly. The bell finally rings and we walk out of class together, parting ways at our lockers. I get my stuff and Connor is the first to show up behind me this time. His expression looks troubled, strangely enough.

"Everything okay?" I ask him. He shakes his head no.

"I'm just super stressed out... My mom is at work currently and I have to take care of my siblings for nearly the rest of the night... But I have so much homework to do and they're gonna want to run around or play a board game with me or something... If I take care of them instead of doing homework I'll have to stay up pretty late to finish it and feel terrible tomorrow... But there's really not much I can do."

"Connor, I can help you. I'll ask my mom if I can come over and I'll keep your siblings busy while you finish up homework. It's gonna be okay."

"You'd really do that?"

"Of course, silly. We're best friends, I'd help you any way I can."

He smiles slightly at this, suddenly wrapping me into a warm hug. "This means the world to me, thank you."

I hug back until we hear Caleb's footsteps approach, then him awkwardly standing by us. I let go and smile at Caleb, who gives a half smile back. "I'm helping Connor after school, so yeah," I tell him as we exit the school.

"Alright," Caleb nods blankly. We walk together mostly in silence as I text Mom asking if I can help Connor. She replies with a yes and I shove my phone back into my pocket.

When we get to Connor's house, the both of us say goodbye to Caleb and Connor unlocks the door. Renae walks out immediately, her hair put up and a purse on her shoulder, and says goodbye to Connor. She smiles at me, not really seeming to wonder why I'm here, and dashes to her car. Connor signals for me to walk inside and I do so, being greeted by the familiar warm air of his house. Three young kids are running around the house, roughly playing with each other.

"Alright, guys, settle down for a minute," Connor tells them as he sets his bag down on the floor. The three boys stand in a line in front of Connor, waiting for him to speak. "So, I have a lot of homework I need to do, so my friend Ash here is gonna watch over you guys. Make sure to listen to her."

"Wanna play Monopoly?" one of the boys immediately asks me.

"Sure! Sounds fun," I reply enthusiastically. The boy scurries out of the room, sprinting back a minute later with Monopoly. We set up on the living room floor, Connor sitting at a table close to us in case something goes wrong.

We play for a while in peace until one of the kids decides it's unfair that his brother has more money than him.

"I want some of his money!" he wails. "I need more!"
"You'll get more as the game goes on," I try to comfort him.

"No, now! I want more now!"

"But we have to follow the rules of the game so that everyone gets a fair shot. If I gave you more money, your brothers would also ask for more money, then we'd have the same problem."

I notice Connor eyeing me as I talk to his brother out of the corner of my eye. He has a small proud smile on his face, like he's proud of the way I'm handling his brothers. This makes me feel happier to be here.

The brother huffs, crossing his arms and turning around. "This game is stupid."

"Come on, let's keep playing, okay? I can trade with you if you'd like, that's allowed."

The pouting boy turns back around to face us. He grabs his cards and looks them over, then reveals a card. "I want a good one."

His vagueness makes me chuckle slightly, but I try to mask it with my hand. I look over my cards and hand him a 'good one' like he had asked, then take the card he offered. He seems satisfied with the trade and we continue the game.

"Ash! Ready or not, here I come!" I hear the oldest of the boys scream. Ollie is seven and seems to be all over me. I guess I make a good babysitter?

I'm currently hiding in the bathtub; not the most original hiding spot, I know. I don't know this place well enough to find a more intricate hiding place. I hear quick footsteps and the bathroom door creak open even further. The footsteps walk to the end of the bathroom, then walk back and pause next to the bathtub. I concentrate on making my breathing as quiet as possible, but I feel like I've been found.

The shower curtain I was hiding behind is forcefully slid open and Ollie yells, "found you!" I jump at the suddenness of it all, finding myself laughing as he laughs too.

"Boys!" Connor yells. Ollie and I both glance to the hall and he takes off. I get up from the bathtub and follow him as well. We find Connor at the kitchen table. There are bowls at three of the six seats. Snack time, I'd assume, as it's still fairly early for dinner. Connor walks back into the kitchen, signaling for me to come, and I follow.

"I hope they weren't too much trouble," he says as he leans against the counter.

"Nah, not at all. They were good."

"They're not usually that cooperative. They must like you or something," Connor shrugs smiling at you. "You do have a charm to how you talk to them."

"Oh?"

"Uh... Yeah. Anyway, I finished all my homework, so I've got it from here, but thank you."

"Oh, okay. I should probably get home anyways. I'm glad I could help, though."

"Before you go, I've got something for you," Connor begins to walk out of the kitchen. I follow him and he leads me to what I'd assume to be his bedroom. He walks to the bookshelf as I look around some, examines a few books, then gets a certain one out.

"At the dinner thing, I remember you saying you liked Stephen King. This is my favorite Stephen King book. You can keep it, just keep it safe." He hands me a hardback book with no title on the cover. The book looks to be above 500 pages at the very least.

"Oh, wow. Thank you," I grin without really meaning to, examining the book further. "I'll keep it in good condition, I promise."

He messes with the end of his hair as he watches me with a dimpled smile. Without further warning, he embraces me in a warm hug. "Thank you so much, once again. I could have
never done all of this by myself."

"Aww, Connor.." I hug back. "Of course, I'd do nearly anything for you."

I leave the house with the new Stephen King book and my bag, feeling satisfied and actually quite happy... But... One thing I have to note is that my heart didn't feel like it'd explode when he hugged me...

So that must mean...

Caleb is the one who makes me feel nervous and jittery.

Caleb is the one who sends butterflies throughout my body and overwhelms my system with happiness.

And I think I understand why. He's adventurous but yet still caring among many other admirable qualities. I clutch my Nirvana necklace as I think about it, tucking it under my clothes so that Mom and Dad don't see, and think about him the rest of the way home.

Sorry once again for shorter chapters! It might be around this length for now on... Longer chapters are so hard for me to write :/

I have nOt been vibing with quarantine, and it might be a bit before I update again because I'm getting my room redone. Dunno though, I stay up late to write at night so maybe I'll still update at least weekly.

Anyway, have a good day y'all!