My Geeky Boyfriend

Chapter Fourteen

Juliette: I feel so cheated Hawk is already stealing you away from me. What does he have that I don't? 

Me: that's easy - a d**k  

Juliette: b*tch. 

I chuckled to myself at Juliette's dramatics before shoving my phone back into my pocket. Today was my first 'class' with Hawk, so I had to bail from hanging out with my friends at Juliette's after school.  Now, though, I returned my attention to the movie we were watching, specifically the third movie - each one sappier than the preceding one.  I reached for the bowl of popcorn at the same time as Hawk - our fingers gently brushed against each other’s in the process, leaving a small tingling sensation. 

What followed were unsure chuckles from the both of us, with him pulling his hand away; giving me room to grab a handful of popcorn. I knew I should have used separate bowls.  

"So," he started, perhaps in an attempt to ease the awkwardness which had started building up in the room.

Actually, the awkwardness which had been building up for a while. And by a while, I meant since I invited him into my room, since we sat on my bed with nothing but a bowl of popcorn separating us, and with the laptop sitting in front of us. And all the while, we were trying to act like everything was totally normal. 

 When I thought of having a guy over, this was definitely not the kind of situation I'd imagined. I'd imagined more bed squeaking and not bed sitting.  

"How have you been liking the movies so far?" He asked.  

"They're alright. Although, I'm pretty sure you've been enjoying them way more than I have." I answered, smiling lightly. 

His reply came as an exaggerated gasp.

"You liar! You were laughing all through Falling for Her."  

"Well...that's only because you were laughing first, I had to laugh with you so you wouldn't seem like a crazy person."

I shrugged, biting back a smile at his facial expression.  He c****d a brow at me, and I sighed.

"Ok, fine. It was a pretty funny movie."  

"But I think what's even funnier is how the writers manage to exaggerate everything. Like Tammie for one, how is she so nice, caring, smart, talented, and good natured. It's like she can do no wrong. And I don't think it's possible for anyone to be that perfect."

I made air quotes at the last word.  

"And you know the worst part? She's supposed to be like this smart, goal oriented girl, but all she does is hang around Xavier. She's like his little cheerleader, his go-to nurse, and his Guidance counsellor. It's as if all her time revolves around him," I wanted to an amused looking Hawk.

"Doesn't she have anything better to do?"  

"Well, it depends on how you see it," he offered with a small smile.

But I just scoffed.  

"Nah, I'm pretty sure that's how it is."

"The fact that she was trying so hard to help Xavier through his issues, doesn't mean she doesn't have better things to do. She had a lot of things going on for her, like that internship for one."

"Sounds like she's not so smart after all. Xavier was a jerk to her for like 60% of the movie. So, why try so hard to help him?" I asked, trying to make him see reason.  

"Because she loves him. And when you love someone, you make extra effort to make sure they're okay. You care about how they feel, and you try to show them you do; to show them that you're there for them," he mused. 

I didn't say anything for a few seconds. I ruminated on his words over and over again. Something about it was familiar. Where had I heard something like that?  And that was when it hit me.  

'Stephanie, I love you, and when you love someone, you try to put their feelings into consideration.'  

Bryce. 

For some reason, I found myself wondering if I ever did that - caring about his feelings.  

"Caring and loving are closely linked together. You can even say they're co-dependent," Hawk chirped, pulling me out of my thoughts.  

"Is that supposed to be love lesson number one?" I asked, chuckling softly.  

"If you do say so yourself," he replied, making a show of giving a bow. 

I could only shake my head, smiling softly at his antics.  

"So, I'm guessing you're not a fan of the heroines in these movies."  

"And what makes you think that?" I asked, amused, to which he just grinned slyly at me.  

"Well, I may or may not have noticed when you through your popcorn at Veronica's face when she told Leo..."

He paused then, clearing his throat, only to continue with a super squeaky voice in an attempt to mimic her voice.  

"I don't want to think about Courtney or anyone else. Enough thinking. Just kiss me."  

I guffawed at his imitation of her, he even batted his lashes exaggeratedly for effect. I won't lie, he acted it even better than the girl that played Veronica.  

"You should have taken drama class," I said between laughs, with him echoing the throaty sound.  "Well, I don't hate them though," I stated after my laughter died down.  

"It's just that many of them can be so annoying. Like Veronica for one, she's so hypocritical. She was judging that Annie girl at the beginning of the movie for sleeping around, and then half into the movie, she was asking a guy with a girlfriend to kiss her.  Because it's totally okay to be with a guy who has a girlfriend just because he suddenly finds his girlfriend to be a fake b*tch, even though he was the one who asked her to be his girlfriend in the first place. And Veronica of course, still acts like she's so much better than Courtney, even though she basically just stole Courtney's boyfriend."

I finished with a scoff. I might not know much about this love stuff, but I knew cheating was a f****d up thing to do. And Hawk seemed to think the same because he chuckled, saying, "true. That wasn't cool of them."

I could only offer a tight-lipped smile in reply, my mind subconsciously drifting to another Leo I knew. Only difference was that instead of a Veronica, he had more of Veronica(s).  But the sound of Hawk's voice, soon broke off my thoughts.  

"And what about Karena? You looked like you wanted to hit her with a baseball bat," he chimed, staring playfully at me, and I couldn't help from chortling.  

"She was just too damsel in distress for my liking. It's like she can't stand up for herself and always has to wait for Dave or Kian to come save her," I mused, leaving Hawk to chuckle.  

"Oh, come on, there has to be one heroine you like in these movies," he urged. 

Well...  There was one I really liked though.

"Olive Penderghest."  

"From Easy A?" He asked, to which I nodded.  

"And why do you like her?"

"She doesn't care about the s**t people think about her, and I find that to be really cool," I said truthfully. 

Hawk nodded slowly, adding an, "oh."

His face suddenly morphed into a smile.

"You know, Easy A is actually one of Dove's favorite movies. I always liked when she watched it though, because let's just say..."

He drawled the last word.

"Back then, I was certain I was going to marry Emma stone."

He finished with a laugh, with me reverberating the sound from beside him.  

"So, it was your favorite too?" I teased. 

He chuckled but shook his head in the negative.

"Then Lost Love?" I offered, with my lips upturned in a mischievous grin.  

"And what makes you think that?" He asked back, with a smile of his own.

"I may or may not have seen you struggling not to bawl your eyes out at the end scene," I singsong, to which he chuckled.  

"Well, in my defense, it was one tear. And besides, who wouldn't cry at that end scene?"  

"I didn't." I deadpanned, struggling to hold back a laugh when I caught his expression.

He looked like he was told that Rihanna became a nun. He turned his body to me so fast; he toppled the popcorn bowl over.

"What? Seriously? Dove cried for two days after seeing that movie."  

"And you?" I asked with a knowing smile.

"Me?" He asked, doing that nervous chuckle thing only he knew how to do so well.

"I didn't cry. I mean, it's just a movie."  

"Hmm, I see." I sensed him relax at my response, and I couldn't help grinning slyly as I added, "I guess I'll just have to ask your sister myself. It's a good thing I kept her number from that night after Tommy's party."  

Of course, I didn't keep her number. I didn't even have her number because she called Hawk's phone, not mine. But he obviously didn't know that.  

"Ok, fine. I may have shed a tear, or maybe two...or three," he admitted sheepishly, leaving me to smile.  

"Aww, that's cute," I cooed.  

"Shut up," he answered playfully, making us laugh.  

"But seriously, that movie is so emotional. I mean, Jake gave Anne his heart, literally. And that note he wrote about how his heart would keep beating inside her was the saddest thing ever. How could you not cry?"  

I could only shrug. I remembered my first time watching that movie; it was with my friends. At the end of it, Juliette and Sam were a crying mess. And even Beck had tears in her eyes. Although, she was quick to say it was because something got caught in her eye.

Typical Beck. 

I was also feeling pretty emotional at the end of the movie, but not enough to make me cry. Not like I knew what was enough to make me cry. It's almost like my eyes were a secure vault, blocking any salty water from leaking out.

"I guess crying is something I'm still not good at," I admitted.

"The last time I remember crying was when I was six."  

"So, you're saying you don't cry?"  

"Yup."  

"Like at all?" He questioned yet again, looking more surprised than when he asked the first time.  

"Yup."

"Not even when you chop onions?"  

"Andy always soaks the onions in water to avoid it stinging the eyes," I answered matter-of-factly.

Although, I doubted Hawk heard what I said because he looked so concerned, I was beginning to worry that he might cry. When he finally said something, it was, "so, you've really not cried since you were six?"  

I simply shrugged in reply.

"That's not right, Stephanie."  

"And why is that?" I asked between chuckles.  

"Because crying is a key way in expressing one's emotions. You feel something; something emotional - sad, happy, or bittersweet, and it moves you to tears. Not like you should cry every day or every week, but there are those moments that come once in a while."  

Wow! He really was taking this seriously. I mean, as for me, I'd learned to just roll with it all these years - I didn't know how to cry anymore. It wasn't a big deal.  Besides, I'd seen those movie scenes where one or even both of the leads cried over a breakup, or something equally dumb. And trust me, it was never a pretty sight - red, puffy eyes, and a running river of snot. Definitely not the kind of look I'd ever want to have.

"You know what, Stephanie? We have to make sure you cry," he declared.  

"Awww, that's so romantic," I cooed teasingly.

"Other boyfriends want to make their girlfriends smile, but you want to make me cry."  

That earned a chortle from him.

"You know, you could think of it as part of our lesson. Crying is a powerful emotion which is linked to love," he mused, smiling knowingly at me. 

I guess that explained why some people cried after a proposal. Seriously, if it were up to me I'd just be like, 'yeah, whatever' and let him put the ring on my finger. Ok, maybe not exactly that, but you get the idea.  

"Well, then, all the best in your endeavors, SpongeBob. But don't be too disappointed later on when you realize my tear glands have really stopped working. If Titanic couldn't get it to work, trust me, nothing else can."

 "Oh, you'll see."

He smiled, looking pretty confident of himself, or perhaps his plan of making me cry.  I couldn't help smiling to myself. Let's see just how long that confidence of his lasted.

"And she was like, 'how could you do this to me, Ted?' And then I said, 'girl, I don't even know your name.'" He said, roaring with laughter at his own s********e of the guys laughing alongside him.

 I, however, settled for an eyeroll and another sip of my coke.  

"She actually thought we were dating," he added between laughs. 

I shot Kevin a pointed stare, using my eyes to gesture to Ted Dickson, who for some reason, had become Kevin's new BFF, hence, his sitting at our table today. Kevin just grinned sheepishly, suddenly finding his plate to be more interesting than my eyes.  But I got to hand it to Ted though, in the few minutes we'd been sitting here, he'd managed to annoy almost everyone.

He lost Sam the moment he started this lame story about some chick he banged who was so hung up on him, that she started getting real clingy. Which for the record, I thought was a lie. What girl would want to cling to Ted? 

 Beck, however, looked like she'd gladly have him tied to a tree surrounded by wolves, than at our table. And Ted had been wise enough to stop staring at Juliette anytime he asked, 'you get me?'

Because the only thing he got in reply, were sharp daggers from her in form of stares. Well, that's when she wasn't typing on her phone with a goofy grin.  My best friend seemed to be getting really high on the Axel voodoo. But it was pretty cute to watch.  Not like I could really watch it as my phone also kept blasting with messages and videos. 

 As if on cue, my phone lit with a new message notification. Glancing at Hawk who was seated beside Kevin, I found him grinning smugly at me, using his eyes to gesture to my phone as though saying, 'go on, check it out.'

I bit back a smile as I slid my phone open to view the message. 

It was a video. 

I connected my ear buds and hit the play button. It was about a four-year-old girl who'd never seen her dad in person before. Her dad was in the military and had tried to make it back home since she was born, but one thing or another always held him back.  And then on her fourth birthday, her dad showed up. And as you could guess, it was some pretty emotional s**t, with some heartwarming narration at the background, and an even more touching song playing alongside it.  I won't lie, it was a pretty moving video. But moving enough to make me cry?

Well...my dry eyes had already answered that question.

I smiled to myself as I typed a reply. 'Awww, that was such a beautiful video '

Hawk stared from me to his phone. And from his face, I could tell he just read the message. His smug look was gone, leaving a frustrated one in it's place.  His reply came soon after. 

Hawk - not even a tear?  

Me: well...I did feel my eyes twitch. 

Hawk: really? 

I could practically sense the joy in his words, making my smile widen as I typed my next words. 

Me: nope Just wanted to give you moral support. 

Hawk: meanie

I could only chuckle. 

Hawk: but don't worry, that was only the 15th most emotional video in the world. There are 14 more to go. 

Me: well then, bring it on, SpongeBob.

I looked at him to find him staring at me with a small smile, and I couldn't help smiling back.  I guessed it'd take a lot more tries to convince him that my eyes really were a locked fault.

 But till then, I could sit back and enjoy the ride