31 Days of December

December 17th

One, two, three, four. Who's that knockin' at my door? Five, six, seven, eight. Hurry up and don't be late. Nine, ten, eleven, twelve. Got a secret I can't tell. Flap your fins, flip your tail. School's out, ring the bell.

La, la, la, la. La... La, la, la, la. La... La, la, la, la. La... La, la, la, la. La...

Ethan thought it would be a good idea to study for our finals together. I'm currently sitting across from him, trying to study at the library. However, it turned into staring at my laptop screen while my brain kept singing the Fish Hooks theme song. I haven't seen the show since elementary school, but the theme song randomly pops into my head. Again, like that scene in Inside Out.

One, two, three, four. Who's that knockin' at my door? Five, six, seven, eight. Hurry up and don't be late. Nine, ten, eleven, twelve. Got a secret I can't tell. Flap your fins, flip your tail. School's out, ring the bell.

I stood up because I couldn't sit down and stare at my laptop screen. I could feel antsy. I felt like I could run a mile with how much energy I had. I went to use the restroom and then walked down a flight of stairs to the cafe in the library. I grabbed a bottle of Mountain Dew, paid for it, and returned to where Ethan was sitting, nose stuck in his notes. Ha, nerd.

"Where did you go?" Ethan asked when I sat back down.

"To the restroom and the cafe," I answered as I showed him my Mountain Dew. "I needed to burn some energy. Just sitting around studying makes me restless." He just nodded before going back to his notes. It was weird seeing him being so serious. The Ethan I was used to was a goofball and a flirt. I guess this is what happens when you have a double major and plan to go to law school once he graduates. He has to get good grades.

I started back in my studies. I was trying to memorize the different body systems, but my mind was still having difficulty focusing. This is why finals week is terrible, at least for me. How am I supposed to focus on studying for days? My mind can't take it.

I didn't want to be rude and get up again, but I could feel myself getting antsy. If I was in the apartment, I could pace back and forth throughout the whole apartment. However, I'm clearly unable to since the library is full of students studying. I didn't want to disrupt them. There was no way I was going to be that asshole. Instead, I ended up shuffling my feet and tapping my pencil.

"I can feel how antsy you are," Ethan said without looking up.

"I'm sorry," I said, barely above a whisper.

He sighed, "It's fine." He started packing up his stuff. It really threw me off when he stood up. Maybe he was annoyed with me and wanted to leave so he could study peacefully.

"Where are you going?" I asked, confused.

"We are going out," He said. I was even more confused but started packing up my stuff. "I'm not going to let you sit there and suffer."

"Who said I was suffering?"

"Everybody suffers while studying. You just get antsy when you can't study anymore."

I shrugged, "You got me there." He laughed as he grabbed my backpack for me. He then grabbed my hand and held it as we walked through the library.

We got to his truck, and he opened the passenger door for me.

"Such a gentleman," I teased as he helped me climb in. Before letting go, Ethan kissed my hand. He even closed the door for me. He threw our backpacks into the bed of the truck. He climbed into the driver's seat and took off. I knew exactly where we were going based on the roads he drove on.

When he pulled up to Culver's, he asked, "Do you want your usual? Cheeseburger with cheese curds?" In a previous conversation, I told Ethan how much I loved Culver's and always got a plain cheeseburger with cheese curds.

"Yes, please," I said with a smile. "Wait, make it a kid's meal and get me a scoop of chocolate custard with sprinkles."

"Sprinkles?" He asked.

"You heard me," I said. He laughed and placed our order. However, he ordered water with my order and Mountain Dew with his.

When we got our drinks, he handed me the Mountain Dew and said, "I figured you would want a larger drink that kids size." He truly has figured out how to win me over.

"Thanks," I said, smiling at him before taking a drink of my Mountain Dew. He smiled back before grabbing my hand and holding it.

Once we got our food, I immediately dove into my custard. You see those videos where the guy buys his angry girlfriend food, and like five minutes later, she is dancing happily. That is how I felt, but I wasn't into the whole dancing while eating. Just enjoying my greasy fast food and ice cream.

The scene in The Last Song where Ronnie and Will drive to Will's house. They have the part with them singing to Maroon 5 and driving through the woods. Etha and I were doing something similar. Instead of Maroon 5, it was Christmas music; instead of trees, it was Christmas lights. We also had fast food and weren't going to get stuck in a pothole.

"This is one of the best Christmas songs," I said, turning up the music.

He looked at me and said, "Really? We are on a date."

"But it is Wham! Plus, there was ever a mention of a date," I said. He laughed before kissing the back of my hand. "Last Christmas, I gave you my heart. But the very next day, you gave it away. This year, to save me from tears. I'll give it to someone special." I wasn't afraid of how terrible I sounded in front of him.

"Am I that someone special?" Ethan asked.

"I don't know, are you?"

"I sure hope so."

"A crowded room, friends with tired eyes, I'm hiding from you and your soul of ice. My god, I thought you were someone to rely on. Me? I guess I was a shoulder to cry on," I continued singing as I looked at all the Christmas lights in awe. "A face on a lover with a fire in his heart. A man undercover, but you tore me apart. Now, I've found a real love. You'll never fool me again."

Ethan joined in by singing, "Last Christmas, I gave you my heart. But the very next day, you gave it away. This year, to save me from tears. I'll give it to someone special."

"Last Christmas, I gave you my heart, but the very next day, you gave it away. This year, to save me from tears. I'll give it to someone special," We sang together. Not a single fuck was given at this moment. "A face of a lover with a fire in his heart. A man undercover, but you tore me apart. Maybe next year I'll give it to someone special. I'll give it to someone special."

We were both cackling by the end of the song as Ethan drove us through more neighborhoods. We sang along to Christmas songs and looked at all the Christmas lights. I was having the best time of my life, and I think this was when I knew we would be more than friends. When it was just the two of us, being stupid together, not caring about the stress around us. Just Ethan and me. I knew he was going to be someone special. Maybe not right now, but someday.