Me: Why? You’ve proven you wouldn’t listen to me anyway.
It came across a lot harsher than I mean it to, so I added, Don’t look at it.
Theo: Where are you right now?
I knew if I told him he would come, and I wanted him to come.
Me: Monroe Academy High School.
Theo: I’ll be there in thirty.
3:39 p.m.
I had taken the quietest shower of my life in the girl’s locker room, changed out of my overalls and back into dark skinny jeans, a light-yellow shirt, and red flats. There was no brush for
my damn hair, so I threw it up in a ponytail. It was ironic how I felt like a high school teenager while rushing to the front of a high school. The first thing I noticed when I came out of the school was the girls giggling and holding on to each other at the top of the stairs. Among them was the girl with pink-tipped hair, clasping the arm of who I guessed was Josh. He seemed more annoyed than anything else.
“He’s so hot.” One of the girls giggled again.
“Sexy. It’s the right word, and he’s totally my type,” another one said as she flipped her hair over her shoulder.
I knew it even without taking a step forward. I knew it had to be him. Sure enough one of them was gaping at him. Theo wore dark jeans, a button-down shirt, and a leather jacket. He was leaning against a red Aston Martin with the top down, hands in his pockets casually. Grabbing my phone, I called him.
“You always have to make an entrance, don’t you?”
He glanced around until he saw me. “You must be talking about yourself. Those are a lot of stairs. Don’t trip. Everyone is watching, and as adults we need to make this as cool as possible.”
“Oh God, why did you say that! Now I’m going to trip.”
He laughed. “Fine. How about I run up as you run down, and we meet each other in the middle.”
“Is there a dramatic kiss scene too?”
“If I were directing, yes, but since this is a high school and you work here, let’s keep it PG for the time being.”
I couldn’t get rid of the smile on my face. “Hang up, and on three.”
He nodded and threw his phone in the back of the car.
One…
Two…
Three…
We ran, and I hoped I didn’t fall running down the stairs. He skipped every other one, rushing toward me. He made it to the middle before me, and I basically jumped on him and kissed him deeply. We hadn’t talked in days. I wasn’t sure what the hell we were doing. But I still wanted to kiss him if only for a few seconds. I felt it…the desire to kiss him hard, to have his tongue in my month, to do more than just kiss. Sadly, we both broke away before it got to that.
He took my hand, and we ran down the stairs together, not stopping for anything. He opened the car door for me, and I slid in and pulled on the seat belt. That girl and her friends’ mouths were completely hung open in shock and confusion.
“What happened to keeping it PG?” he asked as he started the engine.
“It’s high school. PG-13 is allowed too,” I answered, waving to the girls. One of them even waved back, stunned.
“Where do you want to go?”
I leaned back. “Where do you want to take me?”
“Don’t tempt me, Felicity. I’m trying to be a gentleman.” He held on to the steering wheel tighter.