It's Like Monopoly, But Physical.

Chapter Twenty-One

Twenty-One

After Van and I eat breakfast, Greta tells me that she found my shirt and shorts in the bathroom and she'd wash them for me. Once my clothes are done getting cleaned, I'm leaving, I'm not staying any longer. I shouldn't even be here right now, I should however be in school, but a part of me thinks that ditching to be with Van is worth it. He doesn't lie to me, and I don't lie to him. That's how this relation— I mean FRIENDship is going to work.

Van and I sit on the couch in the living room, to watch some TV. I sit all the way at one end of the couch and lay my legs across his lap. I may not have been trying to get him to 'want' me last night, but today just feels different with him. Part of me hates that when I'm around him I can't be mad at him, but the other part knows that forgiving him is the only thing that will make me feel better.

I feel Van's hand touch my bare leg and pretend it's not there, I just keep staring at the TV. I can't even pay attention to what's on TV, which I'm pretty sure is The Smurfs...and boy is Van's hand warm...

His hand is slipping up...closer....closer...clos—

"Julie, will you come with me to the store!" Greta calls to Mrs. Taylor from somewhere in the house. "Silly me dropped the laundry detergent all over the floor."

"Yeah, I'll meet you in the car!" Mrs. Taylor yells back then "Vance, Abby, we're leaving," she tells us, then a door closes.

That was random...and weird. Greta was probably doing my laundry and spilled the detergent on the floor.

Van leans in closer and asks, "did you buy that?"

I look at him, "buy what?"

He chuckles. "We're the only ones in the house now," he explains.

The only ones in the house right now... If Van wanted to he could take me upstairs do god only knows what with me. Oh my god what am I thinking...? Sleeping with Van? I can't sleep with Van. I have too much dignity to sleep with Van. He's slept with...everybody. No, I think the bigger question is why am I even thinking of sleeping with Van. I know I've thought about being with Van, but I haven't thought about...sleeping with Van. Maybe as a joke, but actually sleeping with him...?

Ugh...who am I kidding? I need to face the stupid truth that in not only my life, but every girls life, there will always be those three guys: the one she hates, the one that she can't get enough of, and the one she loves.

"Okay, so I have a quick question," Van says.

Here we go...

"Since Smurfs are blue and that's the color you turn when you're choking, what color do they turn when they're choking?" Van asks.

I laugh and shake my head. "You crack me up." Where does he even come up with some of the random crap he says. The funny thing is that if you actually think about what he says, he has a point. A very big point in fact.

"So...what do we do now?" I ask quietly.

Van looks around the room and stops when he sees something on the shelf across from us. "Well, since Vance Taylor is always prepared, we could play Monopoly until we puke," he chuckles.

A smile slowly forms on my lips and we both jump up from the couch, saying, "I'm the car!"

We both laugh and I say, "fine I'll be the thimble."

"Out of all of the rest of them, the thimble? Really? What's with that?" he teases, while taking the game off of the shelf.

I shrug as I start to clear off the coffee table. "I don't know, it's a fun word to say. Thimble. Say it, isn't it fun to say?"