Did I Say That Out Loud?
Lucas Friar was a happy guy. He had a lot going for him at 16. He had a great group of friends that included his two best friends, Zay and Farkle. He had just finished his freshman year of high school with awesome grades. He and his father seem to have found some common ground and he wasn't on his case all the time. He had a summer job for a local animal clinic. He would be cleaning cages and feeding the animals that had to stay over for treatment, all while gaining some valuable experience. He was hoping to save what money he made for a car. The icing on the cake for him was his girlfriend. Riley Matthew was the most caring, understanding girl in the world, and she was his.
They had been dating since the fall and he couldn't imagine being any happier. Ever since they became official at the ski lodge, things had been awesome. He knew how he felt about the brown-eyed brunette, but had never told her. He loved Riley Matthews and hoped she loved him back. Their dates were always simple, they either went to the movies or to hang out at Topanga's. They could talk about everything under the sun and never get bored with each other. They never got much alone time because their friends were always with them, especially Maya and Zay. If it wasn't the two of them then it was Farkle and Isadora. They went on double dates with the geniuses, quite often. The only person that had ever questioned him about his feelings was Maya. She wanted him to tell Riley at the ski lodge, that was a conversation he can't forget.
Maya: Okay, Huckleberry, if you care about me... here's what you do. Go find Riley... tell her you love her.
Lucas: Love her?
Maya: Just say it. We like it.
He appreciated what Maya was trying to tell him, but he would tell her in his own way, in his own time.
He was due to meet Riley at Topanga's, they had a date scheduled, just the two of them for once. He was looking forward to some one on one time with her. Even if it was just sitting in silence holding her hand, that would be fine with him. They were going to order pizza and drinks and then go to the park for a picnic. It wasn't much but it was all he needed.
Riley was waiting for him when he got to Topanga's. She was wearing a purple sundress and sandals and had her hair in a braid down her back. He could feel his heart skip a beat when she smiled at him. He wondered if she had any idea just how beautiful she really was. She smiled at him when she saw him and it just made his knees go weak. Why did she have this effect on him?
"Hi, Riley," he said.
"Hey, Lucas," she said.
He leaned in and kissed her cheek. She smelled like sunshine. He wasn't sure if sunshine had a smell, but that's what he thought she smelled like. She kissed his cheek and hugged him.
"You ready to go?" he asked her.
"Yeah, I'm ready." she said as she reached down and picked up a bag that was sitting on the table.
"What you got there?" he asked.
"Oh, just a blanket and a surprise my mom sent." she answered.
"Oh good, as you can see I didn't think about a blanket." he said, "what idiot forgets to bring a blanket to a picnic?"
"It's okay Lucas, don't beat yourself up." she said as she rubbed his arm.
He loved when she touched him, like she was now. Her touch was warm and soothing to him. Gave him goose bumps, too. He needed to get his mind off of Riley's touch and back on their date. If he didn't, he would whisk her to his fire escape and sneak her into his room for a makeout session instead of the park, for a nice innocent picnic. Where had those thoughts come from. Sure, they had made out a little, but not much and right now that's all he could think of.
"Lucas, I thought you were ready to go?" she asked, looking concerned.
He had to shake his head to clear his thoughts and get his mind back to the present. "Yea, I'm ready." he said as he grabbed her hand and laced their fingers together.
The walk to the pizza place only took 15 minutes. One large pepperoni pizza and two root beers to go and they were headed for the little park nearby. He carried the pizza and the cold bottles of soda were put in the bag with the blanket and whatever surprise Mrs. Matthews had sent. He held her hand for the remainder of the walk. When they got to the park they scouted for the perfect place. They wanted shade so the afternoon sun wouldn't be so hot beaming down on them. The perfect spot was under a huge shade tree and there was even a little bench nearby. They set their things down on the bench and Riley took the blanket from the bag and spread it out on the ground. Lucas, who was wearing a blue t-shirt and denim shorts, removed the flip flops from his feet and put the pizza down on the blanket and found a spot for himself to sit down. Riley took the bottles of soda from her bag and a medium sized plastic container. She handed Lucas the drinks, removed her sandals and sat next to him while still holding the container.
"So what's the surprise from your mother?" he asked.
She opened the container and put a hand over his eyes and held it in front of his nose for him to smell of. "What's it smell like?" she asked.
He laughed as she covered his eyes, but he took a whiff and a big smile crept across his face. "Your mom's chocolate chip cookies?" he said.
She removed her hand from his eyes and showed him the bowl of cookies. "Fresh from the oven, this morning." she said.
"Your mom is the best, remind me to thank her later." he told her.
Riley pulled some paper plates and napkins from her bag, as well. They dug into the pizza and carried on a conversation while they ate. Talking about everything from their friends to their summer jobs, as Riley was working at her mother's bakery. They devoured the pizza and cookies. After cleaning up their trash they decided to just sit and enjoy the beautiful day for a while.
Lucas was laying down with his arms under his head while Riley sat next to him. "You look uncomfortable, Lucas. Why don't you lay your head in my lap." Riley suggested. So he moved over to her and lay his head in her lap. This position was much more comfortable to him.
"Are you comfortable like this, Riley?" he asked.
"Yea, I'm fine," she said. She was playing with his hair, running her fingers through it and just enjoying the lazy afternoon in the presence of one of her favorite people.
Lucas was enjoying the feel of her hands in his hair. It was so relaxing. So much so that he had drifted off to sleep and was dreaming. It was a nice dream, he and Riley were walking, along and they stopped under a tree and he took her in his arms and she had her arms on his shoulders and he was telling her how much she meant to him. How much he enjoyed spending time with her and hoped she felt the same. She assured him that she did. She was staring in his eyes waiting for his next words, "I love you, Riley Matthews." He bent his head to kiss her…
All of a sudden he felt someone shaking him, it was when he heard her voice that he realized where he was. "What did you just say?" she asked. She had a shocked look on her face.
Lucas sat up very quickly and looked at her, "What are you talking about? I fell asleep, I didn't say anything."
"Lucas Friar you were talking in your sleep and if I'm not mistaken, you said, "I love you, Riley Matthews.' Did you say that Lucas?"
"Did I say that out loud?" he asked. She was just staring at him, still shocked.
"Yes, you did." she said. "Did you mean it?" she asked.
By the look on her face Lucas couldn't tell if she was happy or not. He stood up and started pacing, looking for the right words to calm her fears. Before he could speak she asked again, "Did you mean it, Lucas? Do you love me?" She wasn't giving him any help with the look on her face. He paced a bit more and finally sat on the bench with his back to her.
He had to admit his feelings, they were out there. To deny them would hurt to much. He didn't want to scare her her off, but wasn't it better that she knew. He put his face in his hands. He could feel the heat that was there. "Yes, Riley, I love you. I've been in love with you for a while. I just wanted the time to be right. I wanted to make sure you feel the same way about me. You don't have to say them back." He still had his face in his hands. So he didn't see or hear her approach.
She put her hands on top of his, on either side of his face and gently pulled his hands from his face. She had a serious look on her face. "How could you possibly think that I don't feel the same way? I have wanted to say the same words to you for a while now. I guess, I was scared too. But, I do, Lucas. I do love you, more than you could possibly know."
He didn't give her a chance to say anything else. He stood, taking her face in his hands and kissed her lips tenderly. As he pulled away, they were both smiling. He couldn't help it to be honest. He sat back down on the bench with Riley sitting in his lap. All of a sudden Riley was giggling, so Lucas asked her, "What's so funny? Why are you laughing?"
"Just thinking that if you didn't talk in your sleep we may have never admitted our feelings to each other. I'm glad you said it out loud."