"I know you exist Brett. I just don't want to date you."
He stabbed his heart dramatically and made a squelching sound. Brett has been telling me he's in love for the last two years. Of course it's a total joke, I don't actually believe him.
"Is that because you secretly pine for Mike?"
"What!?" At this I whipped around and walked Brett backwards into a locker until his back is pressed into it. I leaned in close, I didn't want anyone to overhear this conversation.
"Jesus. What did you say?"
"It's not like it's a secret, Maria. It's pretty obvious."
"What the fuck are you talking about? I'm not secretly pining for him, or anyone."
My blood boiled, not because I was angry, but because I was mortified. I wondered if he could really see it. Like my sister said this morning. Was it obvious? Was I walking around behind him like a drooling puppy?
"I'm not going to tell him, if that's what you're worried about," Brett said and moved out of my death grip. "There's nothing to tell, Brett. Just your over-active pervert imagination running wild again." I hoped my deflecting was working.
"Whatever you say Maria. Come, we're going to be late for class." Brett suddenly rushed off in front of me and I stopped for a moment or two gathering my thoughts.
Shit, did everyone know? Did Mike know?
Chapter 8 - Mike
"Is this seat taken?" I slid up to Maria at lunch. I always sit there, and I always ask, Is this seat taken? It's a stupid thing we've been doing for years. But it's comforting. I gave a quick nod to Brett who's sitting at the table too.
"So, what did you discover?" The suspense had been killing me all day. It was all I could focus on, and certainly all I thought about. No other thoughts had even entered my brain.
"About what?" Maria bit into something that looked like cardboard smeared with something green and pasty and strangley lumpy. Her face scrunched up as soon as the stuff hit her mouth. I don't blame her.
"Low fat?" I asked, knowing fully well that it was probably another one of her mother's infamous concoctions. When Maria turned her mother ordered a special gluten free, sugar free cake for the party. We'd landed up using the thing in a food fight.
"Low fucking taste." She said, spitting it out and immediately going for half my sandwich.
"So..." I pressed on, eager to know if she'd uncovered anything. "What did you discover?"
"About what?"
About what?
I couldn't believe she was even asking this. What else was there to discover today, or any day for that matter? It had been the only thing on my mind, I'd barely known what class I was in all day. I'd just moved from one to the other like an extra acting in an episode of the Walking Dead. I 'd been staring at all the girls all day, wondering which one it was. Every now and then one would catch me and smile, but this time I couldn't help but wonder if there wasn't something more hiding behind the smile. Was it a loaded smile that was trying to communicate something to me?
It was me. I kissed you.
I think I must have started at Mindy for way too long because next thing I knew she was walking with me from class to class, trying to talk to me while I was in full blown Zombie mode. Could it have been her? Doubtful, we'd dated for a while and she never kissed me like that, not even close. Unless she had recently started taking lessons?
I pulled my chair in all the way so I'm almost touching Maria and lean in.
"So...have you found my future wife yet?"
"Jesus!" Maria suddenly started to choke on my sandwich. At first I thought it was a joke, but panic suddenly fripped me when I saw her grab her neck and start making some strange faces at me.
"Shit! Shit!" I tried to think back to those millions of reality TV shows where some dude chokes on something in the woods and his young daughter, son or Alaskan Malamute puppy saves his life by performing CPR or something. I jumped into action and all I could think of doing was smacking her as hard as I could on the back.
"OOOWWEEE!" She screamed at me as the offensive object was spat out across the table.
She rubbed her back and looked like she was in actual pain, "Dude, I think I would have rather chocked than have my ribs broken."
I tried to rub it, maybe I'd gone a bit overboard, but she pulled away. I glanced across the room and could see that her sister was smirking, she and he friends burst out laughing. Great sisterly love!
"You okay?" Brett piped up.
Maria nodded, still rubbing her back.
"What was that about anyway?" Brett asked, looking at us both with a strange look. What's up with people and their strange looks lately anyway?
"Did you not hear him?" Maria pushed the sandwich away and coughed a bit. Brett shook his head. "He said future wife! I mean... What the hell..... future wife. I've never heard such crap in my life. How dramtic can you get?" She turned and flashed me a look that could kill millions.
" Dramatic? I'd say you were the dramatic one. Chocking."
"Um..." She cocked her head and went for a good helping of Maria sarcasm, "Not as dramatic as saying that word. Wife. Wife. Please."
"Well you never know, it might be this cool story we tell at our wedding, or maybe even you can tell it since you'll be my best woman."
I burst out laughing, thinking Maria was going
