Chapter 41 Homecoming
-Drew-
I’ve lost track of time, and I blame it on Annie.
How is a guy supposed to focus when he’s got a girlfriend like her?
We’ve gone back to the lake each Saturday in September.
So far, we’ve only gotten to the top half of our clothes, and each time we are on the edge of one of us making the next move lower, my damn alarm kills the moment.
We have agreed it is a requirement to have it set, because we both get lost in the kisses and touching.
The worst time, in my personal opinion, had taken place last weekend when Annie asked me to lie down on the backseat, then she’d kissed her way down my chest while her hands had skimmed over my dick through my pants.
She’d been unbuttoning my jeans when it had gone off.
It was physically killing me each time we got this far and had to stop.
***
Also, it was getting old not being able to see her skin in the dark.
I needed to get her over her worries that her parents would see my car at the house, and they’d know what we were up to in my bedroom.
I asked Dad if I could start parking my car in the garage.
He’d told me he didn’t have a problem, but since most of the random stuff was Mom’s, I should ask her.
Over dinner, I’d asked her, and she’d played twenty questions with me on why I’d wanted to park the car in the garage.
I’d tried to say it was easier, etc., etc.
, but she kept asking. I finally confessed, “So that when Annie and I want to come home from a date, her parents don’t know we are here, right next door.
” Mom smiled at me with the confession and gave me her permission to start the cleanup.
I’ve worked on it a little every night over the last two weeks, and I am almost done.
***
Tonight, Mom joins me in the garage, inspecting my work.
“You’ve done a great job out here, hunny,” she says, walking around all the bins against the wall.
“Thanks, it will be easier to find your extra supplies for sure,” I say to her, pointing at the many bins of similar painting materials.
“You’ve never worked so hard to have a girl over before, hunny.
I’m impressed,” she smiles. I want to tell my mom that Annie is different, but then I know she’ll ask me why.
I have a lot of reasons, but I’m not sure I can give a name to all of them.
“Thanks, Mom. Yeah, she’s pretty special,” is the version I give her.
Mom eventually heads back inside, and I pull my car into the open side of the garage, feeling pretty happy with my accomplishment.
***
It’s the week of homecoming, and while I’ve gone before, we seniors all seem to be taking it to an extreme.
It’s like since it’s the last one, we have collectively decided to give a shit about all the little details.
It’s been fun getting to do little couples outfits with Annie, and my favorite so far is the dress-up day theme ‘dress up like your future career.’ Annie is dressed in this little light blue pantsuit, and she even has one of the karaoke microphones.
I’m dressed in my travel baseball uniform, complete with a ball cap and sunglasses on top of my head.
We are different but we complement each other, and it feels good to think that we want to be in careers that aren’t complete opposites, like what we want to be now would still work into the unknown future.
Again, Annie makes me think differently, because I’m pretty sure that before her, I’d thought of the future in weeks or months, but with her, I’ve started thinking about how we could make it work into college and maybe, just maybe, after that, too.
Tomorrow is the homecoming football game, and the dance is Saturday.
The girls of the group have again made all the plans.
Annie told me today that they all agreed we’d save a limo for prom and that we should meet at the restaurant, meaning each couple would drive separately.
I’d almost asked why we couldn’t double up into one car and then thought better of it, because if we were in our car, then each couple could go wherever we wanted to after.
I was personally going to try to talk Annie into finally making it to my bedroom.
I needed to see her in the light, and I was over trying to make the backseat of my car work.
I was ready to spread out on my bed with her next to me.
***
On Saturday morning, the idea got even better when, over brunch, Mom informed me that she and Dad would be going on a short trip to a gallery in Texas that wanted to house some of her new works.
She’d asked me to make sure to get some pictures of us all dressed up, and I reassured her that there would be no lack of photos if Mrs. Campbell had anything to say about it.
Mom laughed and agreed. I grabbed my phone to text Annie and update her on our new opportunity.
Drew
Can I suggest a private after party
Annie Campbell
Private you say… details?
Drew
My parents are leaving for the next 2 days
My car can hide in the new hideout
Annie Campbell
Interesting interesting
Drew
Angel you’re killing me here
Annie Campbell
I think we have some bases to cover
See you tonight, Dimples
For the first time in a long time, I really hope she isn’t talking about baseball with me, and that when she says bases, she means we can finally make it all the way to third.
***
I’m dressed in my black shirt with a red tie as requested by Annie.
She is wearing that dress from the summer, like she said she would.
Since we are driving separately, the rest of us aren’t meeting until the restaurant.
I head over a little early before the appointed time.
Mr. Campbell lets me in again. He’s got the playoff game on.
I sit down on the couch and we both get lost in the game.
It still seems so crazy that Coach thinks that I could make this my career, that I could be good enough to be the guy fans like us are screaming and cheering for in the crowds, attending the games, or in front of their TVs.
We are so focused on the game that I jump when Annie's lips kiss the back of my neck by the base of my hair. “Shit, you startled me,” then quickly amend, “Sorry, Mr. Campbell” because I hadn’t meant to say shit in front of her dad.
“No, problem, Davis, she’s a silent assassin,” her dad says, and we both laugh.
I get up from the couch and can’t help but appreciate the long tan legs on full display in that red mini dress.
I think the picture over the summer had been taken from the wrong angle because this view of her long legs and the dress barely covering her ass is the stuff of my dreams. “I think Mom wants to get some photos if you are ready,” Annie asks, smiling at me.
“You look amazing, and yes, I’m ready for pictures,” I finally form words.
Annie’s dad waves goodbye to us, and we go out front.
Mrs. Campbell, as predicted, takes so many photos.
I ask her if my mom can get a few, and she says she will edit some and print me the best ones.
***
At the restaurant, we meet the lunch crew and their dates.
Craig is now dating a girl named Kayla, who seems nice, and Luke is with Katie, who is a junior on the soccer team with Annie.
Meg is still dating Tom, and they are on round two of homecoming.
We sit at a circle table and joke and laugh for far too long.
Annie and I are touching in some form or another the whole time.
Holding hands, my arm along the back of her chair.
My hand resting on her exposed thigh. We eventually decide we are fashionably late and should head to the gym to make an appearance since we are all dressed up.
When we get there, the dance is going full blast, with people dancing and hanging on the edge of the dance floor in groups.
We all group into the photo booth and take a ton of crazy and fun photos.
Then it’s time to dance. It’s a lot of pressing bodies together in rhythm to the songs that play over the sound system.
They throw in a few slow songs, and we break into our couples.
Annie wraps her arms around my neck, and I wrap mine around her back.
At some point during the last slow songs, she places her head against my heart, and I rest my chin on her head.
It’s easy to hold her like this and get lost in the moment.
When the music changes back to the latest pop star chart-topper, I lean down next to Annie’s ear and say, “You ready to get out of here, Angel?” She wraps her hands in mine and leads me toward the doors of the gym.
We cross the dance floor, leaving our friends, and I let my girlfriend lead the way to our next destination.