Page 94 of Just for Fun
“Hey, babe, come on. We’re taking a limo to the reception hall.”
That seems to startle her, and she finally shows some emotion again.
“But what about your truck?”
“They’ll take care of it here.” I grab her hand and pull her with me. “I can’t wait for you to meet the rest of my friends. You’ll love the all the girls.”
I notice that she has a hard time keeping up with my pace, so I slow down a bit.
“What girls?”
I don’t get to answer when our group spots us, and they all get loud, jumping up and down and yelling for us to go to them.
“Hey, everyone. This is my girl, Zara,” I say with pride.
I wrap an arm around her shoulders and pull her into me. She puts her arm around my waist as she catches her balance. She smiles and says all the right things to my friends, but she is a bit off with me.
“Please don’t be mad at me,” I whisper in her ear when we’re all settled in the limo.
She nods but doesn’t respond.
“I know it’s my fault we were late,” I continue. “But you’re so beautiful, and I just could not resist…”
“Not here,” she tells me in the corner of her mouth while smiling at the group at large. Fortunately, they’re all busy with their side conversations, so no one is paying attention to us.
“I just want you to know how sorry I am.” I can’t let this go. “I’ll make it up to you, I swear.”
“Kyle, please,” she snaps at me through clenched teeth, smile still in place. “Not here.”
“So, you’re Zara,” Alex yells from the other end of the long limo, causing for everyone to become quiet. They all want to listen in.
“I am,” Zara responds, her tone sounding forced. “And I’m sorry, I missed your name. I met so many people today…”
“I’m Alex,” he cuts her off. “Kyle’s best friend.”
I bust out laughing. “Aww, I didn’t know you loved me like that, dude.”
He doesn’t appreciate my comment or my humor. Instead, he continues staring at Zara. At this point, I am a little worriedabout what he might say to her. But then, he must change his mind, because his full attention is on me.
“I’m surprised how accurate the drawings are.”
The smile freezes on my face, and I’m sure to look like a clown.
“What drawings?” Evie quips from somewhere. She is closer to Alex’s side.
“Kyle started working on a new game,” Alex explains to everyone. “He showed me some drafts, but I thought the girl was too plain looking.”
Everyone inside the limo remains quiet. I am holding my breath, praying to God that my self-proclaimed best friend is not about to humiliate the woman I am falling for, in public no less.
Just then, the limo pulls into the circular driveway of a very elegant banquet hall. It stops at the door, and, before long, the door is being opened for us. One by one, we all get out, gathering by the door so we can all go in together.
“Did you draw me?” Zara asks me out of nowhere. Her tone of voice is soft, so that no one can hear.
I swallow hard, wondering how much I should lie to her. But I am proud of all my drawings of her, and I hope she’ll love them, too, when I show them off.
“Yes.”
She nods like she knows what I’m talking about. When she looks up at me, her eyes look glassy. I really hope that she is not about to cry.
