Ruining You by Nicole Reed

the idiot laughing
liking a hyena? Please. You know you like them. Just admit it,” he says
grinning like a jackass.
    My face hurts from smiling.
“Please tell me that girls don’t laugh at those jokes. I don’t see you getting
many dates with them. I’m laughing at just how awful they really are.”
    “Now you are really hurting
my feelings,” he says with a straight face, “…but you are right. I haven’t
picked up one girl with my joke telling.”
    I nudge his arm with my
elbow, “You need to work on your bad jokes.”
    “Girl, I’ve got so many for
you. What did the...”
    He starts, but I slap my
hand over his mouth before he can finish. “NO! No more jokes. Have some
sympathy for my splitting headache.”
    Laughing, he says, “Saved
today, but tomorrow, I’ll have some good ones for you.”
    “You know, I just finished
my session with Dr. Raines, and do you want to know what she said to me?”
    He looks at me and shrugs.
“Sure.”
    “That we, as in you and me,
have a lot in common. She said that you would be a good person for me to talk
to.”
    Eli looks at me baffled,
like he’s trying to figure something out. “Well, that’s.... I didn’t think that
you were....or maybe not?”
    “You didn’t think that I was
what?”
    He is about to answer when
his name is called. Tami is coming towards us.
    “Hey Eli, you have a
visitor,” she says.
    “Thanks,” he replies. He
redirects his attention back to me. “It’s probably my mom. She is trying to
talk me into coming home for Thanksgiving. Are you going home?”
    “No, I’ve already spoken to
my mother about it.”
    “Well, maybe we can spend it
together. That is, if you want to?”
    “Sure. I was just going to
have a vampire movie marathon. It’s probably not your thing, but you’re welcome
to join me.”
    “Are you kidding me? I
actually visited the town where the movie was filmed last year.” His grin is
infectious.
    “You did not,” I say,
slapping his arm.
    “Ouch, and yes, I did.”
Standing, he looks down at me. “Movie marathon on Thursday. I’ll bring the
popcorn; you bring the drinks. Deal?”
    “Deal,” I reply, and he
turns to head back toward the building.
    I watch him disappear around
the corner. Eli confuses me. He seems to have himself more mentally together
than anyone I know. During our group sessions, he counsels the crowd just as
much as Dr. Gale, and everyone listens to him. Plus, he is very well-liked. I
catch the girls staring at him constantly. I want to know his story, but at the
same time, I don’t want to push him for it. He is going to demand mine in
return, and I’m not ready for that.
    After being around him today
and yesterday, I see that he is not interested in me other than a friend. It’s
a lot like being with Reed or Cal, and I’ve missed that. I figure he must have
a girlfriend back home that he is serious about and misses. My stomach growls,
reminding me it’s lunchtime, so I head back in.
     
    ~~~~~~~
     
    The following days and weeks
start to shape my new life and the new me. Eli and I spent Thanksgiving
together watching movies, and it ended with a massive popcorn fight. People are
still finding kernels everywhere in the common area. Who knew that a discussion
about whether it would cooler to be vampire or a werewolf would spark such a
heated debate?
    When I’m not with Dr.
Raines, I spend almost all my time with Eli. We talk about everything. Well,
everything except why we’re here and things back home. We’ve skirted around our
stories so much that it’s almost second nature. Despite the fact that we
abstain from sharing such vital details, I still believe that I have grown
closer to him than anyone else in my life right now. Oh, and as for his bad
jokes, they’ve only gotten worse, and he has an arsenal full. He refuses to
stop until I cry for mercy. His family may have him here because they can’t
take anymore. The more I listen to him, the more I believe that could be