Chapter 5
O n Wednesday evening after he gets out of practice, Ethan texts me, letting me know he’s outside.
During English, I asked him not to knock on my door since my father would be asleep.
Honestly, I don’t know if that’s true. I rarely see my father and don’t really know his schedule since he works so many double shifts.
The real reason I don’t want him knocking is because my mother might answer. And she’ll say something that will have me more embarrassed than I already am. With how Ethan looks, she’ll definitely say I’m sucking or fucking him and I’m not really in the mood to defend myself against her words.
I never am.
Slinging my backpack over my shoulder, I also pick up my duffle bag with a change of clothes inside.
I know it’s wishful thinking that he’ll want me to stay, but it would be nice to stay somewhere that isn’t my house for a night.
I stay at Crystal’s sometimes, but she’s right down the street from me.
I can see my house from her porch. I want to feel like I’m in a city, a state, a world away from home.
I carefully hop down the missing steps and jog over to his car, hoping my mother doesn’t open the door. I’m almost there when someone calls my name. I look over and see one of the local dealers, Isaiah, making his way over to me.
Tossing my bags in Ethan’s car, I ask him to give me a moment and walk over to Isaiah.
Isaiah looks me over, then glances at Ethan in his shiny new car. I hope there won’t be trouble, since Ethan is a new face around here. But all Isaiah does is raise his hand to give him a two-fingered salute. Ethan waves back and smiles at me. I give him a shaky smile, then look back at Isaiah.
“New friend?” he asks. I nod, but don’t elaborate. I don’t know his angle. Hopefully, there isn’t one. “I’ll tell the boys to leave him alone if they see him driving around since he’s with you. He smart too?” Again, I nod. “Good. We won’t start any trouble with him, Koby. You don’t have to worry.”
“Thanks, Isaiah.
“Anytime. We want to see you leave here and never come back. If he’s the one that’s gonna take you, we won’t hold you up.” I don’t correct him and say he isn’t—that I’m working on taking myself away from here—but I’ll let him think that. Anything to make sure Ethan is safe when he comes around.
Isaiah pats me on the shoulder and saunters off. When he gets to the group of guys at the end of the block, he starts talking and gesturing to me and Ethan. The others look over and I see them nodding.
When I slide into Ethan’s car, he looks at me quizzically. “What was that about?” he asks as he makes a U-turn and heads out the way he came.
I shrug and slide on my seatbelt. “They won’t mess with you when you come down here.
Isaiah pretty much runs the block, and what he says, goes.
” I look over at him and he’s still looking curious.
I sigh, seeing how our worlds are completely different.
He doesn’t have to worry about dealers watching his back, making sure no one fucks with him.
He doesn’t have to worry about whether his friends will have protection if they come to his neighborhood.
How would a friendship like this even work?
To answer his unasked question, I say, “Isaiah has been watching out for me and Crystal for years, making sure no one tries to mess with us, rob us, or try to sell to us. He wants us to get out of the neighborhood, get an education and make something of ourselves. Not sure why, but he’s been like that since we were freshmen. He’s…overprotective of us.”
Ethan has a smirk on his face and he’s glancing at me every so often. “What?” I ask.
“Nothing. That’s the most I’ve heard you say at one time.”
Smiling, I look away and say, “Yeah, maybe.”
“No ‘maybe’, creep. It is. It’s cool, though. I’ll get you to talk, one way or another.”
A laugh tries to escape my throat, but I hold it back. I can’t give in too easily, after all.
When we get to his house, I see him eyeing my duffle bag as I pull it from the backseat. My cheeks grow warm, but I look at him head on and ask, “Can I crash here?”
He smiles, takes the bag from my hand and puts it over his shoulder.
“Sure, creep.” When we get inside, we remove our shoes at the door and walk down the hallway.
“You can take the guest room,” he tells me.
“No one has slept here since…hell, I can’t remember.
” He drops my bags on the bed and rubs his hands together. “Ready to get to work?”
I nod and we head back to the living room and sit on the floor. We grab our English outline and get started.
We work smoothly. We have a lot of ideas and they come together seamlessly. Before I know it, we have most of our first draft done. It came out a lot better than I thought it would.
Looking at my watch, I see it’s almost eight. Ethan stretches and yawns wide. “Sheesh. We worked late. Want some dinner? I can order pizza.”
“Sure,” I say, standing up and stretching as well. I can’t remember the last time I had pizza from a restaurant. We have store bought sometimes when my mom remembers to go grocery shopping instead of buying booze. And school pizza, of course.
“Where are your parents?” I ask as I follow him into the kitchen, where he’s taking a menu out of one of the drawers. We’ve been here for hours and no one has come in or out. It makes me wonder how often they’re home at all.
He leans against the counter, looking over the menu he pulled out. “A conference in D.C. They’ll be gone for the rest of the week.” He hands me the menu and walks to the fridge.
“A conference for your dad?” I glance down and look over the menu. So much looks good. I want to try it all. Calzones, stuffed crust pizza, cheese sticks, breadsticks. I have to clamp my mouth shut to keep from drooling.
“Nah. Medical conference for my mom. My dad loves any excuse to not go to the bank.”
I smile despite myself. I love that his father is supportive of his mother’s career and doesn’t feel like it’s less important than his own.
I hand him back the menu and tell him, “I’ll have whatever you’re having. I’m not picky.”
“Cool. You can have the other half of my calzone. This place makes them fucking huge.” I nod, but inside, I’m excited. I’ve never tried a calzone before. I’ve never been able to afford one.
My father leaves enough money to pay the bills, keep my phone on, and get me a few outfits and a new pair of shoes every few months. We don’t have money for anything extra like takeout. I don’t mind though. At least I have food to eat, even if it’s nothing special.
After Ethan places the order, we go back to the living room, and Ethan turns the TV on. “You pick this time.” He tosses me the remote and, to my surprise, I catch it. “Would you look at that? You might be a good wide receiver.”
I give him a deadpan look, making him laugh. I put on a random movie that I know I’m not going to pay attention to and I put the remote down on the couch. I tuck my legs under me and try to get into the movie.
That doesn’t last long. I feel his eyes on me, burning a hole in the side of my face. Slowly turning my head, I make eye contact with him. “Now who’s the creep?” I ask quietly.
He barks a laugh and tosses a pillow at me. “You. Always you.” I hug the pillow he threw to my chest and rest my chin on it. “I was wondering who you’re going to Homecoming with.”
I shrug, playing with the pillow a bit. “I’m not.” I don’t do functions. Add to that, I don’t have money to get a suit.
“Why? No date?” His tone is teasing, but I start to feel bad. It’s true, I don’t do dances and shit, but it would be nice for that to be the only reason I didn’t go, not because I can’t afford the ticket.
Sighing, I decide to tell him the truth. I think it will be okay because of how he reacted to seeing my shitty house. He didn’t turn his nose up or look down on me because of it. He still wanted us to hang out and be friends. I guess we can test the boundaries of our friendship.
Putting my head down, I murmur, “I can’t afford a suit. Or the ticket. I asked my mom and dad, but…yeah. I can’t…go.”
When I look over at him, he looks sad. But he wipes the expression quickly. “Easy fix, creep. Let’s go shopping this weekend. I’ll get you a suit.”
I’m shaking my head before he’s done speaking. I don’t want his charity. That’s even worse than pity. “No, thank you. I’ll be fine staying at home. I’ve done it for three years. I can handle one more.”
“Come on,” he drawls, scooting closer to me. “You haven’t been to a homecoming. You should experience one. We only go to high school once.” When I continue to shake my head, he grabs my hand and holds it between both of his. I shoot a look at him, knowing my eyes are as big as saucers.
My hand in his feels so natural, like it’s the easiest thing in the world to sit like this with him. And he doesn’t seem to mind it being there. His hands are rough from sports, but they feel good against my skin.
God, I shouldn’t be thinking like this. Friends. Friends.
He continues to talk like he’s not making me almost hyperventilate from the small contact. “It would mean a lot to me if you came. I don’t mind paying for your suit. My parents give me an allowance that I haven’t spent in ages. I’d like to use it for your suit and ticket. Please?”
Those damn puppy dog eyes. I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to tell him no when he uses them against me like that. First the game, now him spending money on me? This friendship isn’t even a week old and I’m already fucking lost to him.
Taking a chance, I say, “Yeah, okay.”
His smile is wide and gorgeous. “Yeah?” I nod. “Good. We can head over to the mall after school on Friday. I don’t have practice.”
When the food arrives, Ethan brings it into the living room, and we sit at the coffee table and eat while we watch the shitty movie I picked. I think Ethan pretends to enjoy it, but it’s not good. I’m a little miffed that I didn’t pay attention to what I put on.
The calzone is delicious. A lot bigger than I thought it would be and packed with different meats, cheeses, and vegetables. I try to eat it slowly and not show my surprise when I bite into it. I’ve never had anything like it and I try to savor the taste, not knowing when I’ll have it again.
The movie finally ends and I can barely keep my eyes open.
Ethan bumps me and I look over at him sleepily.
“Tired, creep?” I nod, covering a yawn with the back of my hand.
“Up ya go.” He grabs my hand to help me up after he stands.
“I’ll set you out some stuff in case you want to shower.
I leave for school at seven-thirty. I’ll knock when I wake up, yeah? ”
“I’ll shower in the morning, if that’s okay,” I say, barely stifling another yawn. “I’m exhausted.”
“That’s cool.” He grabs my hand and walks me to the room, probably thinking I’ll fall asleep on the way.
Ethan steps inside, pulls the covers back for me, and motions for me to climb in. I stare at him. “What?” he asks.
I shift my feet and say, “I…um…I don’t…” He raises his eyebrows at me and I finish.
“I don’t sleep in pants. Or a shirt. Just…
boxers.” My cheeks heat like I said something dirty, but I know it’s common for people to only sleep in underwear.
The problem is, I didn’t think to bring any pajamas over.
I don’t have any. A pair of basketball shorts here and there, but I don’t sleep in them.
When I’m at Crystal’s, I sleep with a shirt and boxers on.
Ethan’s eyes go wide, and I see him raking a gaze over me like he’s sizing me up. Probably to loan me something to wear. “Shit, I’m sorry. Yeah. I’ll just…good night, creep.”
Ugh. When he leaves, I flop onto the bed, feeling bad that I made him uncomfortable in his own home. Next time, I’m definitely bringing shorts.