warning before you decide you want to see what I look like as a hood ornament."
"I see. So, you're a speed junkie," he joked.
"I guess so. That's my first taste of it."
"What? Your parents never speed?"
I shook my head, not wanting to delve into my funked up home life.
"You must love roller coasters," he said as I unbuckled my seatbelt.
"I wouldn't know," I said, opening my door.
"Are you serious? You've never gone on the Hulk?" he asked, looking at me like I'd just stepped off an alien mother ship.
"Never been to a theme park," I said, stepping out of the vehicle.
He was still sputtering in shock when I closed the door behind me.
"Hey, I wanted to get your cell number," he asked, following me to my front door.
"Why?"
"You know, they have these new inventions called phones. I thought maybe I could call you on one, they're supposed to be a real hoot."
"Why?" I repeated like a two-year-old who was confused about why the sky was blue.
"Come on, to talk," he said, leaning against the wall as I unlocked the door.
The door swung open. "I don't have one," I admitted.
"You don't?" he asked like he didn't quite understand the concept. I couldn't blame him. I was pretty sure I was the only teenager who didn't have a cell phone. Until this moment, I never wanted one. "Okay then. Can I get your home number?" he asked, finally coming to terms with my lack of twenty-first century technology.
"Uh, I guess," I said, rattling off the number for him. I waited while he plugged it into his cell and then stepped into the house. "Well, thanks for the ride," I said, shutting the door.
He stopped it with his foot before it could fully close. "Just so you know, I wasn't pissed Kirk saw us. I was pissed by his comment," he said, turning on his heel and heading down the sidewalk.
"He was only speaking the truth," I said quietly, watching his retreating back.
I closed the door behind me and leaned against it. My heart was reacting to his words in a strange way. Why would he care what Kirk said? Was it possible he was interested in me? "Not likely," I said to the empty living room. He obviously has some kind of hero complex and would probably snap out of it soon enough. None of it mattered anyway. I wasn't about to get into any relationship, so it was time to nip the whole situation in the bud.
I left the entryway feeling deprived. Spending time with Dean had a way of accentuating the emptiness of my house. I pulled a frozen meal out of the freezer and disposed of the carton. I hated these things, but had accepted them as my penance for driving my dad away. The humming of the microwave filled the silent house as I grabbed a soda out of the fridge. When the meal was finished cooking, I settled myself on a barstool at the kitchen counter. I sat eating for a few minutes, but the silence of the house seemed more oppressive than normal and began to wear on me. I stood up and dumped my unfinished meal in the trash. I wasn't that hungry anyway. Maybe some music would clear my head. Dean's attention today had opened a door I had bolted closed years ago. A door that belonged closed. Hell, it was a door I didn't even need. I embraced my solitude. I loved being alone. I loved silence. I was a liar.
Chapter Seven
It was rainy and overcast when I woke the next morning. The bleak weather seemed fitting for Mitch's service. Death was bleak after all. My life was bleak. I didn't know anymore if I was just trying to convince myself of that fact, or if the actions of two completely different people had really allowed a small ray of light to peek into my existence. It wasn't possible. Was it? Denial was a tough pill to swallow. No matter how hard I tried to crawl back into the comfortable dark cave I'd dwelled in for so many years, someone was slowly dragging me out. Dean. He was changing me. He was making me feel. I didn't want to think of him, but he was always there like someone standing just outside your peripheral vision.
Pulling my
"I see. So, you're a speed junkie," he joked.
"I guess so. That's my first taste of it."
"What? Your parents never speed?"
I shook my head, not wanting to delve into my funked up home life.
"You must love roller coasters," he said as I unbuckled my seatbelt.
"I wouldn't know," I said, opening my door.
"Are you serious? You've never gone on the Hulk?" he asked, looking at me like I'd just stepped off an alien mother ship.
"Never been to a theme park," I said, stepping out of the vehicle.
He was still sputtering in shock when I closed the door behind me.
"Hey, I wanted to get your cell number," he asked, following me to my front door.
"Why?"
"You know, they have these new inventions called phones. I thought maybe I could call you on one, they're supposed to be a real hoot."
"Why?" I repeated like a two-year-old who was confused about why the sky was blue.
"Come on, to talk," he said, leaning against the wall as I unlocked the door.
The door swung open. "I don't have one," I admitted.
"You don't?" he asked like he didn't quite understand the concept. I couldn't blame him. I was pretty sure I was the only teenager who didn't have a cell phone. Until this moment, I never wanted one. "Okay then. Can I get your home number?" he asked, finally coming to terms with my lack of twenty-first century technology.
"Uh, I guess," I said, rattling off the number for him. I waited while he plugged it into his cell and then stepped into the house. "Well, thanks for the ride," I said, shutting the door.
He stopped it with his foot before it could fully close. "Just so you know, I wasn't pissed Kirk saw us. I was pissed by his comment," he said, turning on his heel and heading down the sidewalk.
"He was only speaking the truth," I said quietly, watching his retreating back.
I closed the door behind me and leaned against it. My heart was reacting to his words in a strange way. Why would he care what Kirk said? Was it possible he was interested in me? "Not likely," I said to the empty living room. He obviously has some kind of hero complex and would probably snap out of it soon enough. None of it mattered anyway. I wasn't about to get into any relationship, so it was time to nip the whole situation in the bud.
I left the entryway feeling deprived. Spending time with Dean had a way of accentuating the emptiness of my house. I pulled a frozen meal out of the freezer and disposed of the carton. I hated these things, but had accepted them as my penance for driving my dad away. The humming of the microwave filled the silent house as I grabbed a soda out of the fridge. When the meal was finished cooking, I settled myself on a barstool at the kitchen counter. I sat eating for a few minutes, but the silence of the house seemed more oppressive than normal and began to wear on me. I stood up and dumped my unfinished meal in the trash. I wasn't that hungry anyway. Maybe some music would clear my head. Dean's attention today had opened a door I had bolted closed years ago. A door that belonged closed. Hell, it was a door I didn't even need. I embraced my solitude. I loved being alone. I loved silence. I was a liar.
Chapter Seven
It was rainy and overcast when I woke the next morning. The bleak weather seemed fitting for Mitch's service. Death was bleak after all. My life was bleak. I didn't know anymore if I was just trying to convince myself of that fact, or if the actions of two completely different people had really allowed a small ray of light to peek into my existence. It wasn't possible. Was it? Denial was a tough pill to swallow. No matter how hard I tried to crawl back into the comfortable dark cave I'd dwelled in for so many years, someone was slowly dragging me out. Dean. He was changing me. He was making me feel. I didn't want to think of him, but he was always there like someone standing just outside your peripheral vision.
Pulling my
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