"Don't you think you're a little too old for all these stuffed animals?"
After school, Chris was helping me clean up my room before Melissa came over. I didn't care how neat or tidy it was when Chris was over, but Melissa was different. She had country club go-er written all over her and her posh clothes and I couldn't help feeling like I should try to impress her or something. So far, all Chris had done was snoop around and criticize my belongings.
I stared up at him defiantly and then snatched the teddy bear that he was holding away from him. I tossed it back on my bed. "We're not all sixty-five-year-olds in sixteen-year-old disguises, Christopher Chambers. Some of us are youthful. Some of us even like fun."
"I like fun," he protested.
Giving him a look, I scoffed.
"What's that supposed to mean?" he demanded with a smile.
"Oh, nothing."
"Are you saying I'm boring?"
"I did not say you were boring," I assured him calmly. A grin broke out on my face. "Just a little stodgy."
With one of his carefree laughs that always managed to make me melt, he tackled me and the both of us fell to the floor. I screamed, and then when I knocked my head against my bedpost, I started to laugh while I howled. "Child abuse," I gasped, struggling to get up. "Get off of me!"
Still laughing, he moved and then sat on me. "Are you having fun?"
I couldn't lie to him. I always had fun with Chris. There was always something so playful in his eyes when he looked at me that made me feel young. I grinned and bobbed my head up and down. "I'm having great fun."
"Barrel full of monkey fun?" he asked, his voice innocent.
"You're heavy," I choked.
He leaned down, and I stretched up. "Oh, I'm sorry, am I flattening you?" He kissed me softly.
"Yeah, I think you flattened a kidney."
"That's okay, you have two of them." He smiled and the high afternoon light streaming in through the open window lit up his entire face. He let his lips brush mine again. "Should I let you up?"
I shook my head, running my hands up and down his strong, golden- tanned arms. "Don't feel like cleaning anymore?"
"And you do?"
"Nah," he replied. His hands were in my hair as he kissed me with his beautiful aged innocence. I could feel myself slipping away and falling into the moment when the door swung open.
"Oh, good Lord," Melissa cried, her voice dripping with that familiar Southern accent. "Get a room."
"This IS my room," I reminded her. "And that's the door. You're supposed to knock on it."
She shrugged carelessly. "Your aunt told me to go right in so I did. I didn't expect someone to be on top of you."
"You don't know her at all!" Chris exclaimed. He sat back and watched as I stood up.
"I think I need therapy," she muttered.
"Oh, bull," I laughed. "I'm exposed to you and Jeremy cleaning out each other's lungs with your tongues every day."
"Good job, honey, you made a rhyme," Chris cajoled me.
"Yeah, but it's different for me and Jeremy," Melissa said.
"No, it's not."
"Yes, it is. You're, like, innocent and whatnot."
I smirked. "You wouldn't guess that from hearing the rumours going around school."
Chris whispered confidentially, "Toby's a whore."
"Yep," I said proudly, patting him on the head. "Thanks to Chris here."
"Actually, that's why I came over here," she admitted.
"Because... you heard I'm a whore?"
"I wasn't sure," she said. "I really didn't know."
"Well thank you," I grumbled.
Melissa sighed. "Toby, I mean, I don't care what you and Chambers do-"
"Shut up, Melissa," I said pleasantly.
"I'm sorry," she exclaimed. "But I mean, what do you think my reaction would be if everyone was saying my best friend was screwing Chris Chambers." She said his name like it was a sin-Like she had forgotten he was in the room.
"Oh no, not Chris Chambers," I gasped, mockingly shocked.
"You know Chris isn't exactly well liked, Toby."
"Hey, I'm still here," Chris called.
Melissa blushed. She knew that she was quickly digging herself a hole. "Well, I'm sorry."
He shrugged. But I wasn't pleased with her. I rounded on her and snapped, "Since you're the same as everyone else, why don't you tell me what is so wrong with him?"
She stared at me, her mouth open.
"Toby, don't," Chris said.
I didn't look at him. I felt my face burning and my hands kind of trembling. "What did he do?"
Her eyes were rootless, looking everywhere but at me. She murmured, "No one liked him to begin with. He shouldn't have enrolled in the college courses. He can't go around acting like he's like everyone else; like he has a right to be there."
"He's as smart as you are. Smarter, actually."
"But he's not-"
"He's not as good as you are?" I demanded. "Is that what you're trying to say?"
"I know that's he's an okay person and all, but he's just not the same as everyone else!" she stammered, very flustered.
"God, Melissa, fuck you," I said tiredly. "I really thought you were different."
"I don't want to be different," she said, glaring at me defiantly. "And if you cared about what other people thought of you, you wouldn't want to be different either. Stop trying to change everyone's mind about him."
"He'll do it himself someday," I promised her. "You can stop looking around for the nearest exit. The door's behind you. Use it."
