Managing Boys

Managing Boys (2)

“You’re still going to be able to go to the concert, right?” Sophie nearly shrieked, and it was so loud that I thought my ears were going to bleed. “You said you were going to go to the concert with me, Aria! You can’t back out on me on the day of the concert!”

“Relax,” I snapped, and I could have taken my own advice. “I’m still going to go to the concert with you. Mrs. Scott just needed someone to babysit Tommy last minute for the afternoon. I’ll be back before the concert, so stop freaking out.”

Sophie began to breathe again, and all I did was roll my eyes as I grabbed my bag and headed toward the door. I should have left ten minutes before, but Sophie had stopped me before I could. I just hoped that Mrs. Scott wouldn’t be mad at me for being late. I drove like a maniac all the way to their house, practically running to the front door so I wouldn’t be any later than I already was.

“Sorry I’m late,” I apologized to Mrs. Scott once she answered the door. “My sister had an... um, an emergency. But it's all taken care of now.”

Mrs. Scott smiled at me, but she seemed to be in a rush. “It’s okay, dear. Tommy’s in the living room watching TV, and there’s snacks in the fridge if you’re hungry. I’ll see you in a few hours!”

I couldn’t even say anything to her before she was out the door and practically gone. So I made my way into the living room, where Mrs. Scott said her son would be. And just like she had said, Tommy was glued to the television, a show that I hadn’t ever seen before playing. Tommy didn’t even look up when I entered the room.

“Hi, Tommy,” I greeted, sitting on the couch now as he continued to sit right in front of the television. “It’s Aria. I’m here to babysit you for a couple of hours.”

He still didn’t look away from the television, so I said nothing and waited to see what he would do. The show continued, and Tommy’s big green eyes would follow everything that was happening on the screen. I was starting to think there wasn't even a point in me being there.

When a commercial finally came on, the small boy turned toward me with a surprised look on his face. All I did was blink at him.

“Aria!” Tommy cried out, jumping up from his spot on the ground and running toward me. The second he was close enough, he leaped forward and wrapped his arms around me and buried his face into my chest. “When did you get here?”

I almost rolled my eyes at him, but laughed instead. “A few minutes ago.”

Tommy laughed and hugged me tighter, and I was able to turn the TV off without him even noticing. For the next three hours, we talked and played games like we usually always did. And when it was time for me to leave, he wouldn’t let go of me when we hugged goodbye.

“Come back soon, Aria!” he cried over my shoulder as he continued to hold me tightly. “I can’t wait to see you again!”

I laughed once he finally pulled away. “I’ll definitely come back soon.”

I drove as quickly as I could all the way back to my house, because I had gotten a text from Zoey telling me that both she and Parker were already at my house waiting for me. The last thing I wanted was to make Zoey and Sophie mad at me for making them wait.

I quickly barged right through the front door to see my two best friends and sister sitting on the couch, all of them ready to go to the concert. With one look at me, both Zoey and Sophie looked like they were going to throw up.

“What?” I couldn’t help but ask.

“You’re not wearing that to the concert, are you?” Zoey asked me, reaching over and tugging at my grey turtleneck. “You’ll die of heat exhaustion if you do. Not to mention it’s super ugly.”