Kiss Me

PART I, chapter 5

- V -

The entire day on Thursday, I wasn't able to concentrate. Trisha kept looking at me with concern.

"Are you okay?" she asked finally.

"I am just tired," I said. "Plus, I am trying to figure out what kind of dress I need to buy for tomorrow..."

"We'll figure it out," she nodded. "I am wearing black," she warned me. "So you'll need to get some other color. I don't wanna be, like, your dress twin!"

"No problem," I nodded. "Hey, my mother was asking if she could go to the mall with us..."

"Sure," Trisha nodded immediately. "I love your Mom! She is so awesome! And her taste is, like, impeccable!"

"Yeah," I said darkly, Tony's handsome face flashing in my head again. "Her taste is uber..."

"Uber?" Trisha grimaced. "Please tell me you are not one of those internet gamer freaks!"

"I picked it up from my brother," I said apologetically. "He is always saying 'Uber this' and 'Uber that'..."

"Oh, I see," Trisha giggled. "Oh, hey!" She suddenly stopped and slapped her forehead. "I totally forgot! I need to drop my paper off at Mrs. Jenkins'!"

"I'll wait for you outside," I said and she ran off.

I went outside and sat down on the steps, enjoying the warmth of the sun on my face. Suddenly, I heard a clicking sound and turned my head. My breath immediately stopped in my throat. It was Tyler. He was clicking his black Zippo, trying to light a cigarette.

"Well, damn..." he muttered when the Zippo didn't produce any flame. His gaze fell on me. "Hey, do you have a lighter?" he asked, and I just silently shook my head.

He sighed and sat on the steps next to me. I looked at him, my mind completely blank.

"You look familiar," he pulled off his sunglasses. "Have I met you before?"

I stared into his dark eyes and felt completely mesmerized.

"You okay?" he frowned. "You look like you are going to pass out..."

"I..." I coughed. "I am fine," I said in a small voice.

"Okay," he nodded. "So have I met you before?"

"Yes," I said slowly. "I... Umm... I spilled tomato juice over your..." I realized I wasn't able to push the word 'girlfriend' out of my throat.

Tyler laughed, and all I wanted to do right now was press myself against his body, and kiss his laughing mouth until both of us were completely out of breath.

"Oh, yeah," he said. "The tomato juice girl, that's right! What's your name?"

"Stephanie..." I said numbly.

He nodded again.

"Cool," he said. "Have you seen Danny around?"

I just shook my head and he sighed. Suddenly, I saw Danny who was walking out of the building, his face buried in a textbook.

"There!" I breathed, and Tyler turned his head.

"Hey, Danny!" he yelled without getting up.

Danny lifted his head and saw Tyler. He shut his book and walked over to us. I was silently praying to God for Tyler not to move from his spot, and to my astonishment, my prayers were answered. Tyler looked up at Danny who stopped in front of us.

"What's up?" he said, his face concentrated.

"Got a light?" Tyler asked him, lifting up his cigarette.

"Yeah," Danny pulled out a lighter and handed it to Tyler.

Tyler lit his cigarette and threw a lighter back to Danny who caught it easily.

"Why the long face?" he asked, and Danny sighed and sat next to me on the steps.

"It's this damn senior project," he muttered.

"Isn't it due in April?" Tyler frowned.

"Yeah," Danny nodded. "I have crapload of stuff happening in April though... I need to get it done before Christmas break."

"Ouch," Tyler winced, and Danny nodded gravely.

"Ah, to hell with it for now," he said and shoved his book into his backpack. "So you guys coming to my party tomorrow?"

"I always do," Tyler nodded.

"You coming, Palmer?" Danny looked at me.

"Yes," I said softly. "I am coming..."

"Cool," Danny nodded. "See you tomorrow then," and he got up and walked away.

"How come you just sitting here?" Tyler asked me. "Do you need a ride or something?"

I opened my mouth and was about to say that no, I am okay; I am just waiting for my friend, thank you anyway, when I heard myself saying:

"Yes, I need a ride."

He looked at me and flicked his cigarette away.

"I can give you a ride if you want."

"Would you?" I said and managed to smile. "That would be great!"

He nodded and got up.

"Okay, let's go then. How far do you live?"

"Not too far," I said, following him and not believing myself, when I saw Trisha coming out of the school building.

She saw Tyler and me and froze in her tracks, her mouth agape, eyes wide. I quickly waved my hand at her behind Tyler's back, and she slowly nodded, making a phoning gesture with her hand. I nodded and caught up with Tyler who was asking me something.

"I'm sorry," I said quickly. "What did you say?"

"I said how come I don't remember seeing you before the tomato juice disaster?"

"I was home-schooled until this year," I said.

"Home-schooled?" he laughed softly. "Isn't it insanely boring?"

"It is," I nodded.

"Yeah, that's what Danny said too."

Suddenly, I tripped over my own shoes and almost fell on the ground when Tyler caught me just in time.

"Wow," he said. "You okay?"

"Yeah," I breathed, enjoying his arms around me. "I am fine..."

"Cool," he said and let me go. "Well, get in then."

I looked at the cars, wondering which car was his, and he laughed.

"Here," he said and grabbed my elbow, leading me towards a black Thunderbird. "Get in."

He let go of my elbow and I almost grabbed his arm, but thankfully, I was able to stop myself in time. He slid into the driver's seat and turned the car on.

"So what do you like to do?" he asked and threw the car in reverse.

Thunderbird purred and flew out of the parking spot backwards. I winced, almost positive that he was going to hit something or someone, but he never did. He got out of the parking lot so easily as if it was nothing to maneuver around slow-moving cars and pedestrians. He got into the road and immediately picked up speed.

"I like to read," I said with a shrug, and he nodded.

"Yeah, me too. What do you like?"

"Different stuff," I said carefully. "What about you?"

"I love reading about cars and such," he grinned. "But when it comes to literature, my hat is off for Mr. Updike."

"I love Updike!" I exclaimed.

"Oh, yeah?" he said, throwing a quick glance at me. "The jokes over the phone. The memories packed..." he said softly. "... in a rapid access life. The whole act..."

"Who will do it again? That's it; no one," I continued, and he smiled. "Imitators and descendants aren't the same."

He laughed softly.

"Updike is great," he said, glancing in his rearview mirror. "You know, at first, I didn't believe that you actually liked him."

"Why not?" I frowned.

He shrugged.

"Girls usually don't care much about him," he said casually. "Laurie's favorite writer is Rebecca Wells," he grimaced. "She'd read Ya-Ya Sisterhood, like, a hundred times."

I laughed at that.

"It wasn't bad," I said, and he grinned.

"I never said it was. It's just whenever I mention Updike, her eyes just glaze over, you know?"

"How long you guys have been together?" I asked him, trying to sound casual.

"Seven years," he said simply, and I just stared at him.

"Weren't you, like, eleven, seven years ago?" I said finally.

"Yeah," he smiled so tenderly that I just gritted my teeth. "She beat me up," and he laughed.

"Beat you up?!"

"Yeah... I think I was picking on one of her friends, so she just walked over and punched me in the face. We've been together ever since," he grinned.

"That's... romantic," I muttered and he laughed.

"Actually, it really is... Well, here we go, Stephanie," he brought a car to a smooth stop, and I just blinked. "This is your house, right?" he looked at me above his sunglasses.

I looked out of the window.

"Oh, yeah," I said with a weak smile. "That's my house... Thanks for the ride, Tyler..."

"No problem," he nodded. "See you tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?" I repeated numbly.

"Danny's party," he said, and I winced.

"Oh, that's right... The party... Is... Ummm... Is Laurie coming?"

"Why?" He looked at me with a half-smile. "So you can get more tomato juice?"

I immediately blushed and he laughed.

"No," he shook his head. "She left for Pennsylvania today to visit her Grandma."

"Oh, I see," I said, trying not to sound too relieved. "Okay then... I'll see you tomorrow..."

I pulled on my seat belt.

"I think it's stuck..." I muttered, trying to unbuckle myself.

"Yeah, it does that... Here, let me do it..." and he reached across my seat to pull something above my head.

His body pressed against mine for a few seconds, and I thought I would pass out for real, when the seat belt finally clicked and slid off my shoulder.

"There you go," he flashed me a quick smile.

"Thanks," I said softly, wishing for the car door to remain locked for the next year or so, but the handle turned just fine.

I climbed out of his car and smiled at him. He gave me a quick wave and took off in his Thunderbird. I sat down on the curb, suddenly feeling very weak. I sat there for almost ten minutes when Trisha's red Mazda pulled next to me. She jumped out of the car and ran to me.

"Okay," she quickly sat down next to me. "Spill!"

I looked at her blindly, and she covered her mouth with her hand.

"Oh my God..." she whispered. "He kissed you?!"

"No," I answered softly. "But my seat belt got stuck and he unbuckled it for me..."

Trisha's eyes became even wider.

"So he, like, had to reach all the way..." She didn't finish her sentence, and I nodded, feeling a wide smile pulling my mouth apart.

"God, Steph..." She shook her head. "This is, like, unreal! Tyler Blake took you home?! Why?"

"I don't know," I said, unable to stop smiling. "I don't care! Trish, it was amazing... He likes Updike..."

"What does Updike have to do with this?" Trisha frowned, and I laughed.

"Everything!" I shouted.

"Stephanie..." Trish bit her lower lip. "You are, like, totally in love with him..."

"I know," I nodded and closed my eyes.

"Steph," Trisha said carefully. "I don't think it's a really good idea... Stop while you still can..."

I opened my eyes and looked at her.

"What do you mean?" I demanded and she looked away.

"Tyler is with Laurie," she said softly. "He will never leave her. He loves her..."

"Laurie-Schmorie!" I snorted. "This is my story...! Oh, hey, it rhymed! Well, sort of," and I laughed.

Trisha sighed.

"Steph," she said quietly. "You are making a huge mistake... Please, don't get me wrong, I am not jealous or anything... Well, maybe just a little," she managed a weak smile. "But falling so hard for someone like Tyler is..." she shrugged. "Well, suicidal..."

I looked at her intently.

"Trish," I said softly. "This is my story! Don't you see? It's the way it's supposed to be!"

"What the hell are you talking about?" she frowned.

I sighed and told her about my Cinderella story. She just stared at me in disbelief.

"Are you for real?" She asked finally. "Steph, those movies are..." she struggled, searching for the right word. "They are like fairy tales, okay? It doesn't happen in the real world!"

I just waved my hand at her.

"I know that," I agreed lightly. "Just let me enjoy this moment, okay? I am not going to obsess about Tyler Blake, don't worry!"

"You are not?" She asked me, clearly not buying it.

"No," I shook my head. "I am not stupid! It's just a crush, that's all," and I smiled at her, thinking that I would never tell her that Tyler was so much more than just a stupid crush, and that I knew for sure that we would end up together. As I said, this was my story and it would play out exactly the way it should. I will get my happily ever after, and it didn't matter what Trisha or anyone else thought.

"Okay," she nodded and smiled back at me. "So, do you wanna go to the mall?"

"Yes!" I jumped up. "Let's go get my mother!"

I didn't feel bad about my mother anymore. I figured, what my Dad didn't know couldn't hurt him. I remembered the way Tony looked at her, and realized that I would sell my soul to get Tyler to look the same way at me.

...When we left the mall, it was almost ten o'clock. I loved the dress that Trisha and my mother chose for me. It was a little bit more revealing than I wanted, but I decided that it was time for me to start changing my old ways. When we got home, I ate two helpings of dinner and felt completely satisfied after I purged in my bathroom an hour later. This whole ordeal started to become my habit, and I didn't even think about how gross or health-damaging it could be. After all, I was going to stop right after I got down to size two.