I Am You

Chapter Fourteen

After getting the Aspirin from a store, Ethan drove us to a pizza place. I had never even heard of it before. As we walked through the doors, a smile found its way to my lips as my senses registered the sweet scent of the pizza dough along with the savoury smell of the marinara sauce.

'Trust me, this will be the best pizza you've ever had.' Ethan said with a child-like excitement.

'I have the same feeling.' I said with the hint of a smile.

I let him order for the both of us. It seemed fair, considering that this was the first time I was trying out this place. He, clearly, had been here more than just a few times. After placing the order, the both of us sat at a table while we waited for our dinner. I felt the need to apologise for what happened in the morning. Ugh, this always happens to me. I say awful things to people without thinking only to realise later that I was being a little too rude.

'Hey, Ethan. I'm sorry if I was an ass to you this morning. I didn't mean to be so harsh.' I said, looking down at my hands.

'Nothing I can't handle.' he shrugged.

'I'm serious, I was out of line. I feel bad now.'

'Well, I'm serious too. We're fine. Let's just forget it.'

'Thanks.' I sighed. I wasn't convinced, though.

'Just one last thing. What is it about me? I get a feeling that you find me... appalling.'

'I don't. Not anymore. Actually, it was mostly me. I'm not used to having a lot of people around. So, the whole "making new friends" thing has been hard for me. On the top of that, you asked me out. I just didn't know how to react, I guess. This is new to me. I'm not used to guys like you asking me out.'

'Guys like me?'

'You know, normal, cheery, the guy that everyone likes hanging out with? On the other hand, I'd be the least approachable person in any given room.'

He chuckled.

'You can be scary sometimes, I'll give you that. But at other times, you're this beautiful, creative, deep person who just wants someone to understand her. At least, that's what I perceive. I wish I could change the way you see yourself.'

I smiled.

'I wish I could too.'

'Your order is ready!' said the girl at the counter.

'Wait, you had it packed? I thought we were staying here.' I said.

'Oh, no. We're going up the hill.' he said with a side glance as he went to pick the food up.

'What hill?' I muttered to myself.

'Come on!' he said as he bounced towards the door.

I hurried behind him. I had no idea what was happening, but I was too tired to open my mouth and ask questions about it. So, I just decided to go with it.

As we drove around, I was practically salivating as the car was filled with the heavenly smell of pizza.

'I swear I'm not going to be able to wait for more than thirty seconds now. I'm starving.' I was acting like a child, which clashes with my usual mood and personality. But everything goes into the garbage when I'm hungry. I don't care what happens to my personality, when I'm hungry, I need food or else good luck dealing with a five-year old.

'We're almost there.' he said calmly, as if he was addressing a toddler. Well, he got that part right.

After a minute or two, he pulled over. As I got out of the car, I couldn't help but grin as I looked around me. We were at the top of a small hill, with something resembling a forest around us. Not the scary kind, the calm and peaceful kind. The moon was brighter than ever and as I looked down at the city lights, they almost seemed like the reflection of the stars above.

'Wow, what is this place?' I asked.

'I used to come here as a kid. This place has seen most of my childhood outbursts. I came here every time I needed to be away from all the craziness out there. It's a peaceful spot, isn't it?'

'It's beautiful.'

'Come on, up.' he said as he jumped onto the hood of the car.

I sat beside him. He was about to say something.

'Shush, no. You can't talk until I've had at least two slices.' I said, as I stuffed my mouth with the pizza.

'Yes, ma'am.' he laughed.

After I had transformed back from a hunger-stricken monster to a human, he continued.

'How'd you tie your hair back up? I thought I had taken care of that problem.' he said, pointing towards my scrunchie on his wrist.

'I always have a spare one. I don't like my hair when it's down. It's very frizzy.'

'No, it's not. It looks better down.' he said, taking a sip of his soda.

We talked for about an hour after that. Well, he talked and I listened. Apart from having to answer a couple of random questions that he threw at me, I didn't have to do much of the talking. Just listening. He didn't force me to say something like people usually do. I liked that. As much as I hate to admit it, I was having fun. As Ethan went on talking, I realised that he could indeed talk like a normal person without all the cockiness and the smirks. Everything played out better than I had imagined.

'That's probably the best pizza I've...'

Before I could complete the sentence, my phone chimed. It was a text from Dylan.

'Hey, I'm home. Where are you?'

'Just out, getting dinner. Do you want me to get you something?'

'No, I already had a snack. Thanks, though.'

'Okay, I'll be back soon. Bye.' I texted back quickly and put my phone in my pocket.

'We should head back. We have college tomorrow.' I said, looking at Ethan.

'Yeah, let's go.'

We jumped off the hood and got into the car.
When we drove back to my apartment, neither of us felt the need to say anything. There was a comforting silence. My head had stopped hurting, I was feeling better.

As Ethan pulled over to drop me off, I turned to him.

'Thanks for today. I had fun.' I said.

'You're welcome.'

I felt like he wanted to say something more. But he didn't. Again.

After a moment of hesitation, I asked, 'What is it?'

'Huh?'

'There's something on your mind, I can tell.' I said, my stare not letting him look away.

'I was wondering if we could do this again. That is, only if you're up for it. Just dinner.' he said, quoting himself from before.

'I don't like the sound of it.' I said sternly.

'Oh.' he said, embarrassed.

I giggled.

Yes, I giggled. Get over it.

'Maybe, you should ask me out on a real date next time.' I said as I got out of the car.

I could see his face light up instantly. He looked a bit confused too. I'm guessing that he wasn't expecting me to be so straightforward. To be honest, I wasn't either.

'I'd like that.' he said after a few seconds.

'See you tomorrow. Bye.' I smiled.

'Bye!' he said and then drove away.

As I walked into the building, that smile didn't leave my lips. It felt good, as if everything was finally falling back into its place.