P&P

Chapter Eight

"Are you sure this is frozen yogurt?" George asked me as we sat at a table at a frozen yogurt shop. He was wearing a cut off shirt that showed off his muscles and his hair was messy. I couldn't help but swoon when he picked me up at my house.

"Yes, I'm sure." I said as I ate a spoonful. "It doesn't taste like it though."

"It tastes like real ice cream!" He said, and I laughed at how excited he was over it. "The guys on my team will hate me for saying this, but I'm glad the summer season is almost over."

"You get tired of traveling a lot?"

"Yeah, kind of. I feel like I'm always running."

"What do you mean?"

He was quiet for a moment. "This isn't really a first date kind of conversation." He laughed uneasily, and I was curious to know more than ever what he meant.

"I don't mind." He looked up at me, debating in his head whether to share or not. He relented.

"Did you catch my bird tattoo yet?" I nodded. So now he was going to share the story behind the tattoo. "I kind of came from a bad family. My mother was an alcoholic and my dad was...it was just bad. My friend's dad found out what was going on and turned them in, and I lived with his family for a few years." He paused for a second to look at my expression. I encouraged him to go on. "But after my friend's dad died, he started being very...cold. His dad loved me like a son, and I think he was jealous. I was forced out as soon as I turned eighteen."

"Wow." I breathed. "That's awful."

"Yeah." He answered. "So I'm kind of like a bird, you know? I fly wherever the wind takes me, take shelter wherever I can find it. I wanted to go to college and get a good job, my friend's dad had promised me money to go, but that never really...panned out."

"I'm sorry." I told him honestly.

"And if there was anyone to talk some sense into my friend, it would've been his sister. I mean, we..." He had a look of anger in his eyes, until he turned back to look in mine. "I'm sorry. You don't want to hear me go on about this stuff. The past is the past."

"What doesn't kill you makes you stronger." I added, cursing myself for how cheesy that sounded. At least I got a smile out of him.

"Yeah, I guess you're right. There's nothing I can do about it now." He told me, looking into my eyes. So he really was different from the rest of the tanned jock boys. He was...damaged. We quickly moved on to lighter topics, and I invited him to Sushi Bar with my sister and her boyfriend. I wasn't sure if Charlie and Jane were official yet, but it didn't matter. From the way things were going, it looked like they would be in no time. When George said yes, the little girl inside me squealed.

I was absolutely on cloud nine.

"Lizzie, my dear," My mother called me over to the couch when I got home. She looked absolutely ecstatic. "I just thought I'd let you know that Richard Collins came over looking for you." She winked at me, which was unnervingly creepy.

"For me?" I asked, completely perplexed. Oh god. It was suddenly sinking in what this meant. I had to find some way to stop the inevitable, and fast.

"Yes! And I invited him to dinner tomorrow night." My mother said as my heart sank. "I think he likes you, Lizzie!"

"Oh, no, you should cancel. Please. Cancel dinner with him." I begged her. "He might get the wrong idea about me and...him."