“Why not? What was wrong?”
He smiled. “Nothing was wrong….…I just couldn’t stop thinking about you.”
That was the exact moment that he stole Antonio’s butterflies. The same familiar feeling now perked up when I heard AJ’s words.
“I was thinking about you too,” I admitted shyly. “A lot.” That made him smile as he looked onward at the road ahead.
“Is that why you wouldn’t kiss him earlier?” AJ asked cockily.
“You saw that.” He’d confirmed my suspicions.
“Made my day actually,” he replied. “How’d he handle the rejection?”
“I caught him off guard, but I made something up about being sick and not wanting to pass it to him. The same thing I told him to make sure he didn’t try to come by yesterday.”
“Did you two have plans?” AJ asked, turning to look at me briefly.
“No, not yesterday. He just called when you were on your way and I told him I didn’t feel well and he bought it.” I paused. “We were actually supposed to go to the mall this afternoon, though…..but I wanted to be here instead.”
AJ seemed to play it cool most of the time, but that made him grin harder than I think he intended to. “What’d you tell him this time?”
“Cramps. That was all he had to hear. He basically said it was cool and walked me to my car.”
AJ laughed. “So, that’s like ten lies in one day. Sounds like somebody has a bad habit.”
I looked at him and then down at my feet. “Not until lately.” He looked at me again, but didn’t say anything. I think he understood that I was only being so dishonest because that was the only way I could be with him. He was right; lying is a terrible habit, but getting him out of my system would be a much bigger problem than telling the truth.
We pulled up to a gas station. “Want anything?” He asked “No, I’m fine. Thanks.” I watched him go inside and disappear behind a shelf. With him gone, I had a chance to think and regroup. Whenever he’s around, my mind goes haywire and I couldn’t seem to get my brain to work right. It was still unclear to me what I was doing, but I now knew that the crush I’d questioned myself about the day before was in full effect. There was no sense in denying it because I had it bad. I was about two seconds from scribbling his name all over my notebook and seeing how my first name looked beside his last name. As juvenile as that sounds, it was just that crucial.
I straightened up when I saw him coming back to the car with a bag full of stuff, and a large bottle of juice tucked under his arm. Before he got to the car, I leaned over and opened his door since his hands were full. “Did you buy the whole store?” I asked.
“Nope, just some snacks.” He reached into the bag, grabbed what looked like a family sized pack of Twix and opened it. I watched him shove one in his mouth and was honestly shocked that someone with a body like his had ever eaten something so unhealthy. “Want one?” He asked.
“No, thanks.”
AJ laughed and shook his head. “Why do girls do that?”
“Do what?”