number neighbor / mileven texting au.

twenty-eight.

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT;
YOU'RE DIFFERENT.

"i swear, you could be his fricking twin!" el exclaimed, following with an infectious giggle that brought a smile to mike's face.

they had just finished the movie and el had noticed how freakishly similar the boy on the couch beside her looked to one of the main characters.

of course, he was very insistent she was only imagining this uncanny resemblance, "yeah, if i was short and chubby with some dorky ass glasses!"

she gasped, feigning as if she had taken offense. she tugged her hand away from his, the hand he had originally reached for in response to the first pennywise jumpscare in the house scene. after the scene was over, he was still unwilling to let go and continued to mindlessly play with her fingers or rub his thumb across the back of her hand for the remainder of the film.

"you think glasses are dorky, huh?" she queried, bringing her index finger to the bridge or her nose and pushing hers up.

he decisively grasped her hand again and smirked. "his are. yours are cute."

she definitely wasn't used to this new, forthcoming version of mike that apparently returned her restless feelings. she ducked her head down, hoping to hide her burning cheeks.

of course, max had insisted on doing her makeup and finding her a cute outfit for tonight. the ginger styled her by tucking a simple, tangerine-colored blouse that el had bought earlier at the mall into a pair of faded mom jeans that she already owned, finishing it off with a pair of white sneakers. max dusted her cheeks with blush and lightly coated her lips with gloss, praising her appearance by calling it a "masterpiece."

when mike first picked her up, things were a tad awkward. not uncomfortable or unpleasant, just very unfamiliar. she never thought she would ride in his car or go to his house, but all of sudden she was on this date, doing all of these things. it just felt so weird.

i suppose 'weird' is a recurring theme for them, though.

throughout the movie, the tension died down. she kept giggling at his flinching or the way his grip on her hand would tightening during certain scenes. she had learned one thing: he did not like clowns.

"so, are you hungry?" he offered, thankfully not bringing up the fresh, red tint of her cheeks.

she hummed, "definitely. though, i remember you saying you can't cook so, should i be worried?"

he let out a dull 'haha' before it turned into a true chuckle when she began to snicker. "i bought snacks, like the pre-packaged junk. i know, it probably would've been impressive if i cooked you dinner, but i know my strengths. cooking isn't one."

she nodded, "well, at least you're aware."

he stood up, off the old yet super comfortable couch that had been in his basement since before he was born, pulling her up by their interlocked hands. "the food's upstairs. i would've brought it down, but dustin left gummy worms out down here a few weeks ago and there were ants so my mom has banned food in the basement." from everything el had gathered about dustin henderson, she wasn't even slightly surprised. the pair scurried up the stairs, finding themselves in the kitchen moments later. he reluctantly released the soft grip he had on el's hand to open up the cabinet. "shit, i meant to make us popcorn before the movie," he recalled upon seeing the box of microwaveable popcorn on the top self.