3To be honest, I couldn't stop thinking about that boy. And I couldn't even call him by his name… I was so caught up in the moment to ask him his name. Images ran through my head… of him. How his jaw line was structured so delicately. How his skin was a perfect shade of tan, and his chin, rounded with such elegance. His eyes, oh his eyes, the color of warm, sweet chocolate… which made him look so gentle. His nose, perfectly shaped; and surrounding his nose, was freckles, which gave his face such dimension. These images made my heart drop. Maybe it's just my girlish hormones speaking, but damn, he was so handsome.
I sat up in a sluggish way, turning over to look at the alarm clock. I had to focus my vision so I could read the bright red numbers. 11:47AM the clock said. Huffing, I peeled away the covers off my legs and pulled myself up from my mattress. As I departed from my bed I realized my dresser was empty.
I groaned and tore open one of my clothing boxes. After digging through a box of t-shirts I found a pair of my light blue Capri jeans. Along with the jeans came a yellow v-neck, it must have been stuck to my pants. It fell on the floor and I picked it up and brushed it off. I pulled on a white tank top before putting on the v-neck. I stumbled to the bathroom while trying to pull on my jeans. I got them on and began to brush my hair. I was ripping through the knots in my hair when my door creaked open, causing me to leap backwards. I held my chest by habit, and I saw my mother stick her head around the corner of the door.
"Hey honey, heard you were awake. Breakfast is down stairs. Hurry before it gets cold. After you eat, your father wants you to help him with something. I think he wants to repaint the porch. He says the white is chipping. That means a trip to the store, and then he's going to want to paint it today, since it rains tomorrow evening. A lot to do today sweetheart so make sure you eat your breakfast." She mentioned before shutting the door.
After I groaned, I put my long black shiny hair into two braids, leaving my side bang down to hang in all its glory. I put on a little eyeliner, not much; just enough to make my green sparkling eyes illuminate. I slipped on some socks and quickly hustled down the stairs to introduce my foot to my shoes. They met nicely, and I tied the knot to bond them for a while. I sat at the kitchen table and devoured my breakfast. My mother came into the kitchen as I gnawed on some toast.
"Hey honey, your father's outside checking out the porch. Making last minute measurements and adjustments. How do you like your first breakfast in our new home?" she said and beamed at me while washing the dishes.
I gulped down the last of my orange juice and replied, "It's good mom, thanks."
"I'm glad." She said scrubbing some syrup off of one of the plates.
"Ann!" my dad called from the door.
"Yeah dad, I'm coming!" I hooted. I turned to my mother and quickly murmured, "Bye mom." Before whipping the door open to stumble to the car.
"Bye Ann!" I heard my mother holler as I slammed the car door.
We drove to Home Depot and got the white paint, and a few boards of wood. My dad said that some of the boards on the porch were getting old, and it needed to be replaced, so he got some extra wood.
We got home to find my mother and another woman chatting over near the garden.
"Hey mom." I muttered getting out of the car with the paint can in my arms.
"Oh, hey honey." She said grinning at me. She turned to the woman with her and mentioned, "Oh, Mary, this is my daughter Anna."
"Hello there." She said shaking my hand gracefully.
"Hi, nice to meet you." I mumbled with a sarcastic smile.
"I have a son about your age, you must have met him. He brought that pie we made over yesterday. You know him?"
"Oh yeah, he was very kind." I informed, "I never got his name though."
"His name is Kyle, silly boy, not mentioning his name. I'll make sure he comes over and helps you guys unpack. We like to make friends, make sure people feel welcome here." She said assuring.
"That'd be great. In return, how'd you like to stay for dinner?" my mother asked.
"Oh, well that'd be lovely dear, but we don't want to intrude." Mary said laying a hand on my mothers arm.
"Oh no, I insist, I mean, I cant just leave you empty handed after all this you're doing for us. Helping us move in, helping me with the garden, your too kind."
"Oh, fine. It'd be nice to get to know each other. Since you're going to be living here for a while." She mentioned while flashing a polite smile.
"That's great." My mother said and my father called me to come help him with the porch.
I went to help him with the porch. We pulled up the old boards, and put in the new ones. It looked, and felt, much better. Once we put in all the nails, we stirred the paint, and got out the paintbrushes.
Whistling, I swiped the white paintbrush up and down on the wood of the porch. I leaned down to turn the volume on the radio up, when I saw a shadow at my feet. I straightened up and turned to see the brown-eyed boy standing in front of me.
"Um, hello." I murmured, a little startled at his presence.
"Hi, my mother sent me over to help. I'm not sure with what, but I'm sure you'll help me figure that out?" He asked chuckling.
I giggled as well, "Of course. Well, ill get you a brush, and you can help me paint this. Its a lot of work, you think your up for it?"
"Sounds fun." He grinned.
"Not to me, but, whatever floats your boat." I smiled crookedly and handed him a brush.
He dipped the brush into the paint can and began to paint in strokes that were marvelous.
"You paint a lot? I'm no painting expert, but you seem to be pretty handy with the paintbrush there." I said gesturing towards his paintbrush.
"Yeah, I guess you could say that." he chuckled, "I do most of the…" he stopped and thought for a second, "the handy, construction work."
"Cool. Come over more often then, I bet my dad would love your expertise."
He chuckled, which made me laugh as well.
We painted… and painted… and painted, till I had to have a break.
"Oeh painting is tiring. I'm going to go get us something to drink, wanna come?" I said with my hand on the door handle.
"Sure." He said placing his paintbrush against the paint can and rubbing his painted fingers on his jeans.
I swung open the door and walked to the kitchen and grabbed two glasses from the cupboard. While opening the fridge, my eye caught him glancing around the room, examining the kitchen. His eyes stopped and met with mine, and I looked away to grab the lemonade.
I poured our glasses, and handed one to him. Except for my excessive sipping, everything was silent.
"I never got your name." Kyle said sipping as well.
"I'm Anna, and your Kyle. Your mother told me."
"Ahh, my mother, always ruining formal introductions." He said shaking his head jokingly.
I giggled, "So… what school do you go to?" I was sick of awkward silences.
"Milford High, it's just down the road. You must've passed it on the way here." He said looking at me from over his cup that met his mouth, and as a result, his lips turned up into a smile.
"Well, I bet we did, but I fell asleep in the car on the way here." I mumbled my cheeks turning a shade of red, "you know, a 12 hour drive isn't easy on someone who moved boxes all day."
He chuckled, "I bet."
I nodded and leaned against the counter. I sipped my lemonade and glared at him while he looked around the kitchen some more.
"This place looks so different." He muttered.
"W-what?" I stuttered in confusion.
"Oh, my friend used to live here. It's been for sale for a while. I was just saying how it looks so different." He said assuring me. But I could tell he was leaving out something. I let it go, I didn't want to pressure him.
I finished my lemonade and he did as well. I grabbed our glasses, filled them up, and took them back onto the porch.
We continued our continuous pattern of 'up-down' strokes that resulted in white wood for another never-ending hour. But maybe I never wanted it to end. A hot boy and I painting, sheesh, I would do this all day.
I groaned and he turned to look at me.
He arched his eyebrow in confusion. My frown turned into a smile and I laughed, "How do you do that?"
"Easy peesey." He said repeating his eyebrow dance.
I burst into laughter and pleaded, "Teach me!"
"Nope." He chuckled, "You'll learn eventually, when your time comes."
"C'mon, this isn't Star Wars, or riding a bike, please, teach me!" I pouted giving an innocent smile.
"No-can-do, little lady." He said smiling and pretending to go back to painting.
I bit my lip and put a hand on my hip. Smiling deviously made my arm also react. My paintbrush flew down his arm making him white on his tan.
His jaw clenched and his mouth opened a bit as he turned to look at me with a teasing anger.
"Hah." I teased as I put both hands on my hips and leaned my head backwards.
"Well that attack deserves a reply." He said and his paintbrush darted on my cheeks, making white dots on my jaw line.
I scoffed and started splatting paint at him. He attacked with bullets of white, which made me girlishly scream and giggle.
Footsteps crunching on grass came from the side of the house which made us go back to painting on the house, and not on each other.
My dad appeared around the corner. I smiled and waved at him, "oh, hey dad!"
"Hey honey." He said hauling a wheelbarrow filled with dirt around and dumping it into the garden around the porch steps.
"What cha' up to?" I asked painting yet looking back at my father.
He groaned, "Your mother wants me to put more dirt in the garden. She says there's not enough."
"Cool."
"I would normally not ask you what your doing since I already know that your painting. But it appears to be more painting on eachother than the actual house." He said chuckling.
My cheeks warmed and turned back to painting. My dad continued to chuckle as he went back behind the house with the wheelbarrow.
The atmosphere started to get dark, and we only had to paint one last board and we were finished.
We painted it together, our paintbrushes hitting the top of the paint can with a clank, as we got the last plank done.
He wiped the sweat off his forehead, getting a long stripe of white paint on him as well. I giggled.
"What?" he asked continuing wiping off his forehead.
"Every time you wipe your face, you bolden the white stripe you have across your forehead." I said bursting with laughter.
He huffed and tried wiping it off.
"Stop, stop, your making it worse." I laughed, "Let me try."
I walked towards him and used my cloth I had to wipe his forehead. It came off slowly, and I didn't want to hurt him, so I dabbed the cloth on my tongue, and continued rubbing gently. It came off and I grinned.
He stared at me, and I did back. Looking down, I pulled some hair behind my ear.
"Thanks for helping us with the porch." I said. 'Cause I know I DEFINETLY couldn't finish this by myself… eh, also, you're amazingly hot, and I love your presence.' I thought, but would never say out loud.
"No problem. It was fun." He said wiping off his hands as best he could.
"Yup. So, you coming for dinner?" I asked grabbing the paint can and brushes and taking them to the back yard and setting them to the right of the back door.
"Of course." He said following me.
"Good." I said, "My moms making steak. And the adults are having wine. In celebration of our move."
"Sounds like fun." He said, "I should get home, wash up before me and my mother come over."
"Okie dokes." I said opening the screen door. "Cya in a bit."
"Cya." He said before turning to run and disappear around the corner.
I went in the house, and ran upstairs to take a refreshing shower.
I got out of the shower dripping wet, wrapped a towel around my body in all its glory, and walked into my room to find my bra and panties. I ripped open a box that said 'Anna's STUFF' and grabbed out a pair of white panties and a white bra. I slipped them on after drying off, and ran a brush through my wet hair. I pulled on a black tank top and a pair of shorts. I blow-dried my hair, and once I was finished with that, it was straightening time.
My legs felt bare, and they didn't want to feel bare, so in the middle of straightening my hair, I straggled on a pair of skinny jeans. I continued to straighten my hair, and once I finished, I pulled on a loose gray t-shirt.
I looked at my eyes in the reflection of the mirror. I sighed. They weren't illuminating. Well, quick resolution to this problem. While pulling out my black eyeliner stick, a grin poked at my lips. I gently put the eyeliner on my waterline, and I was satisfied. Many girls may go far with the makeup for guys, but for me, I want a guy who sees my inner beauty. And if he doesn't like my outer beauty, well fine for him, I don't quite give a damn.
I ran downstairs just in time to help my mother set up dinner.
She pulled the steaks out of the oven, and I set the table with white shiny plates that matched the tablecloth so elegantly.
As I just got done placing the last spoon on the table, the doorbell rang. My dad came down the stairs straightening the collar on his white button up shirt, and answered the door.
Kyle and his mother came in the door, shaking my fathers hand.
"C'mon in. Kelly's in the kitchen setting up dinner. Make your selves comfortable. I'll take your coats." He said and took their coats and put them on the coat rack.
"Thank you." They both said and Mary peered around the house.
"Oh, it looks to beautiful in here." She said.
"If you think this is nice, we haven't even finished unpacking yet. Come over in a week, then you'll be amazed." My dad said, and they chuckled.
Kyle's eyes met on me, and he walked towards me.
"Hey." I greeted.
"Hey. You look nice." He said eyeing my outfit.
"Really? Thanks. I just threw this on. You look nice too." I said examining what he was wearing. He was wearing a pair of jeans that fit just right. Not skinny jeans, but also not baggy. With the jeans came a nice white polo shirt with the collar adjusted perfectly. His hair was brushed, and as he stood near me, Suave shampoo scent filled my nostrils.
"Thank you ma'am." He said nodding his head.
Everything got silent between us. All we could hear was the conversation and howling laughter of our parents in the kitchen.
In a faint chuckle, my mother made out a, "Kids! Come eat!"
"Dinner time." I said to Kyle and walked towards the kitchen.
Steak and cooked vegetables scent appeared as I walked into the kitchen. It smelled fantastic! I took a seat at our decently long wood dining table and patted the empty seat next to me, gesturing that Kyle sat with me.
He got my signal, and sat next to me. As I was looking towards him as he grinned, I noticed my brother slide by closing his Nintendo DS and sat next to Kyle.
"Hello." Kyle said turning to Brandon.
"Oh, hey." Brandon said messing with his fork and napkin.
"I'm Kyle. I live across the street. And you are?" Kyle asked politely flashing a warm smile.
"I'm Brandon. Her brother." He said reaching across Kyle to point at me.
"Unfortunately…" I mumbled and coughed.
Kyle chuckled, "Sibling love."
"Oh yeah." I muttered sarcastically.
We ate our dinner, exchanging thoughts and memories trying to make conversation. It was nice. The food was good, we got to know each other more, got some laughs in, he seems like a really down-to-earth guy, and I like that.
When it was time for them to leave, Mary had already said goodbye and thank you to everyone. Kyle and I stood on the porch exchanging our goodbyes.
"Thanks for dinner." He said smiling. His eyes glimmered from the porch light. My chest thumped.
"Thanks for coming over." I said slyly.
He chuckled, "we should hang out sometime again."
"That'd be great." I said trying to hold back my nervousness. If there were a heartbeat race, my heart would definitely be in 1st place right now.
"Alright then, Cya 'round." He said starting to turn away towards his house.
"Cya." I said and bit my lip. I wanted so badly to grab his hand, pull him to me and kiss his cheek. But we just met. No matter how badly my heart wanted his touch. I had to resist. I don't want to scare him away.
I turned to walk towards my house, when the bottom of my feet felt sticky. I picked up my foot to examine the mess on the bottom of it. My foot was covered with white paint. I grumbled and was about to swivel to go back into the house, when I realized that there were footprints. Kyle's tennis shoes footprints right in front of my bare foot footprint. Well, at least I know now that I'll never forget this day. Even though with or without the footprints, it seems impossible.