Chapter 8: Dating a Rock Star
I woke up hearing my cellphone vibrating non-stop and couldn't feel happier that I changed it to vibrate mode. I rubbed my eyes and there were quite a few missed calls from Mimi and tons of messages from her. I wondered what had happened for her to call me so insistently and so early, especially on a Sunday. As I sat on my bed, she called me again.
"Hello, Mimi." My voice was still sleepy.
"Finally!" She said so loudly it almost sounded like a yell. "I was desperate to talk to you!"
"Why? What happened?"
"So is it true?"
"What is true?"
"Come on, you haven't checked our gossip group?"
"No, I just woke up. And I'm not really interested in gossiping."
"Well, there was a group of girls from my class that are huge fans of The Teenage Wolves and they said they saw Yamato at the arcade last night. They sent some pictures in the group and it's definitely you. So do you have anything to tell me?"
"Mimi, did you seriously call me to talk about this? On a Sunday morning?"
"I know it's very early and I apologize for that, but I just couldn't sleep from anxiety. So I need to know, were you two on a date?"
I sighed deeply. One date and things were already getting out of hand. I wondered how it would be tomorrow at school and the mere thought of it made me cringe and shiver. "I think it's personal."
"Oh come on, Sora!" She insisted. "I'm your friend, you can trust me."
"I don't want it to get out of control. He has some intense friends."
"So it was a date, then."
"Mimi, I'm not going to discuss that with you." I said a little annoyed. "I already said it's personal."
"I'll keep it a secret, I swear."
"Alright. What does it look like for you?"
"It looks like you two went out on a date."
"Then we went out on a date."
"Wait, that's my view on the photos. You didn't confirm anything."
"Bye, Mimi."
"Wait, Sora! Wait!"
I put my phone away on my bedside table and got up. As soon as I opened the door from my room, the smell of coffee entered my nostrils and my stomach automatically growled. So I walked down the hall towards the kitchen.
"Good morning, mom." I said as I sat on a chair across her.
"Good morning, darling." She looked over her shoulder towards me and then turned around. "You're up early for a Sunday."
"I know, someone called me and woke me up, so…"
"You couldn't fall back asleep."
"That's right, and also I didn't want to."
"So how did it go last night?"
"You were dying to ask me that, weren't you?" I asked with a light smile.
"I did want to know, yes."
"Well, we went to see a movie and then played at the arcade for a while. It was a good date."
"I'm happy to hear that, Sora. You make a cute couple."
"Yeah, I guess." I shrugged. "I still don't know how to feel about this though."
"You've been friends for years, so of course it's going to be something strange at first."
"Exactly, and I just wish he could understand that I have my own timing to adjust to this big change. He's much more ahead than me when it comes to this, and I feel like I have to push myself harder to keep up with him. And that's why we had a fight last night."
"You two had a fight?"
"That's right. He got angry because I'm really confused about my own feelings. I'm still afraid of losing our friendship over this. What if we realize it's not working and we are better off as friends? Can things go back to normal?"
"Sora, I don't think things can go back to the way they were before. It's just something you have to accept." She sat down across me. "But it doesn't mean it will be a bad thing."
"It doesn't mean it will be a good one either."
"That's true, but it can be better. I'm sure that's what he's betting on and hoping for. Don't you think so?"
"I guess. It might be it, considering he asked me to be his girlfriend."
"He did? What did you say?"
"I didn't say anything. Though I suppose I already am after our date."
"You don't have to be anything you don't want to, Sora."
"I know. But I still want to kiss him. I know how you feel about it, but I have to admit we had kissed a couple of times already. And I like it."
"So you do have feelings for him. You wouldn't want to kiss him, let alone doing it and enjoying it if you didn't."
"I do." I nodded. "He's a really nice boy."
"Indeed. But it takes much more than that."
"I know."
"What are you going to say to him?"
"I'm not sure, mom. Some of his fans can be very intense and I don't know if I can handle that."
"Yeah, that could be a problem. But I have no doubt he'll do what he can to protect you from them and the situation."
"I think so too. Do you think I made a bad decision?"
"I think what you need is to sit down and reflect on what you really want. Then stick to what you decided and not keep going back and forth with it, which is what you're doing. It's not something cool to do with Yamato or any other boy who might be interested in you."
"I know, you're right. It's about time I make a decision and stick to it."
"I'm sure he will respect whatever you decide to do."
"Yeah." I took a deep breath. "Well, I better go change and make my bed."
I walked back to my room and sat on my bed, immediately leaning over and grabbing my cellphone. I noticed there was a missed call from Yamato and once again found myself torn between wanting to talk to him and needing some time alone to think about everything that has been happening and all the changes it was going to bring in our friendship or relationship. I glanced at my computer, desperately hoping Piyomon would try to talk to me. I could definitely open up to her about it, though I was completely sure she would squeal and say I would just jump on him and tell him I did want to be his girlfriend. I couldn't help but smile at that thought and think things would maybe be so much easier if I just had her romantic view of things. But unfortunately, I wasn't. The real situation and what I would have to face still scared me a lot. Eventually, I just put my phone away again and looked over to my computer once again, still hoping Piyomon would appear suddenly. But that didn't happen.
.
I was back to my regular week routine the next day. My alarm clock went off at the same time my mother opened the door from my bedroom to wake me up, so I already had my eyes open by then.
"Good morning, Sora."
"Good morning, mom." I turned down my alarm and rolled over on my bed.
"Breakfast is ready."
"Thank you. I'll be right there."
About forty minutes later, I was all ready to go to school. I took one last look in the mirror to make sure both my fully green uniform and hair were good. Then I walked into the kitchen and began to gather my obentou to put it in my bag. Once I was done, I grabbed it and sat down in the small hall next to the front door to put on my shoes.
"Mom, I'm going to school." I announced when I was up on my feet again, while throwing my backpack over my shoulders.
"Okay, darling." Her voice echoed in the hall. "Have a nice day."
"You too."
.
As soon as I opened the door, I came across Mimi standing in the hall with a grin on her face. I didn't know why I was surprised at all, thinking about it. Of course she'd show up at my door. She must have been desperate to find out about me going out with Yamato on Saturday night, especially because I gave an excuse not to talk to her about it openly.
"Good morning, Mimi."
"Good morning!" She squealed excitedly. "I know I showed up unannounced, but I was thinking maybe we could go to school together today."
"Sure, that's fine to me." I offered her a smile and then we began to walk down the hall towards the elevator. I decided to play the fool. "Did something happen? Do you want to talk about something?"
"No, everything's fine. I just thought maybe we could spend some time together, since we haven't done it that much lately."
"Yeah, you have a point." I had to agree with her there. Things have been so crazy lately I haven't been able to see my friends. "So how are you? What did you do on the weekend?"
I immediately regretted asking her that and realized I had fallen into my own trap. She would ask me how mine was and I would have to tell her everything. Not that I don't mind telling her about it, but sometimes she lets it slip to her close friends from class and they aren't exactly quiet about it. They like gossiping.
"My parents decided to go to my grandpa's beach house while it's still hot. We spent the weekend there and it was amazing. You have to go with me some time. I have no doubt you will love it."
"I'd love to go there." I smiled genuinely at her. "Beach is always fun."
"It is!" She replied excitedly. "What about you, though? How was your weekend?"
"Oh it was alright. I didn't do anything that interesting, really."
"You're really going to make me beg for you to tell me, aren't you?"
"What?"
"Oh come on! I'm dying to know how your date with Yamato went."
"Mimi, this is personal."
"I promise I won't tell anyone. I promise!" She insisted and I started feeling bad about it. "Please."
"Fine, but it has to stay between us. You can't tell anyone at all. Under any circumstance."
"Got it! I promise." She raised her pinky finger and I linked mine with hers, after staring at it for a moment.
"Okay. It was alright, I guess."
"You guess?"
"We had a small argument during it. Mostly my fault, but yeah."
"Oh Sora, I'm sorry. Do you want to talk about it?"
"I don't think there's anything to talk about, honestly." I sighed. "It's basically me not knowing what I want or desperately running away from the situation because I don't want to deal with how I feel."
"Is that why you fought?"
"Pretty much. He got angry because I reciprocate his feelings most of the time and I got mad because I feel like he's pushing me to accept how I feel. But I don't know if I'm ready to acknowledge them, you know?"
"So these diverse opinions cause a disagreement between you two."
"Exactly." I made a pause to bite my lower lip. "And I hate it, because he's my best friend."
"Did you tell him that?"
"A few times. He says we can't go back to the way we once were."
"I agree with him on this one. But it could be better, don't you think?"
"Maybe. I just wish I wasn't that scared to try."
"Have you two already… you know… kissed?"
I blushed heavily, which pretty much gave it away. "A few times."
"Was it always him who initiated it?"
"No." I shook my head negatively. "The last one was me."
"So you do like him."
"Of course I like him." I said a little too loudly. "He's a great guy and my friend, so that's an obvious answer."
"Okay, but that's not what I meant. Do you like him as a boy? Would you be okay with him having a girlfriend?"
"No, I don't think I would." I confessed. "I'm almost sure I would be jealous."
"You have your answer then."
"So my answer to his question is probably yes."
"What question?"
"He asked me if I wanted to be his girlfriend."
"He what?!" Mimi squealed and I begged her to keep it quiet. "And you didn't say anything?"
"What was I supposed to say?"
"Hmm yes? A lot of girls would love to be in your place right now."
"I know, but…"
"If you say no, there's a very high chance you'll regret it for the rest of your life. Is that what you want?"
"No, that's not what I want."
"So go find him and say you want to be his girlfriend before it's too late."
"But, Mimi, it's not that easy…"
"Stop sabotaging yourself and be thankful for the amazing opportunity life is throwing at you."
"I'm not…"
"Now, Sora." She said a little more incisively. "Don't let this change slip through your fingers. Grab it."
"Alright. I'll see you later."
"Good luck." She cupped her mouth and shouted at me.
"Thank you." I said over my shoulder and then continued my way to my classroom.
.
Yamato passed by me so fast when the final bell rang that I barely noticed him, let alone have the chance to call his name and tell him to wait for me. So I began to gather my things as fast as I can, hoping to catch him before he leaves. I accidentally hit Taichi with my backpack and murmured a quick 'sorry' as I stormed off the room.
By the time I reached the exterior area of our school, I spotted him circled by a group of some intense girls obsessed for him and his band. I know I shouldn't be mad about it at all and probably should have saved him from them, but I simply walked past them towards the exit. I definitely wasn't ready to face all the consequences that being his girlfriend would bring.
I faintly heard his voice desperately begging for them to let him go, so I looked over my shoulder for a brief moment and saw him trying to make his way out of the small group and starting running away from the girls. But I knew he was actually coming in my direction, so I began to increase my walking pace though I was aware he would reach me within seconds.
"Hey."
"I thought you were talking to your friends."
"They aren't my friends."
"Isn't it why you left our classroom in such a worry?"
"Oh, that?" He pressed his lips together for a moment. "I'm sorry for that. I thought I'd give you some space, since we haven't talked yesterday at all."
And suddenly I wasn't all that angry with him anymore. "I needed that. Thank you."
"You're welcome." He gave me a small smile. "So… how are you?"
"You don't have to play safe with me. I already know what you want to ask, we're best friends, remember?"
"Right, of course." His smile turned into a soft giggle and he rubbed the back of his neck. I immediately realized he was nervous and a tiny smile came to my lips. "You're smiling, that's a good thing."
"Silly." My smile got bigger and I was sure my eyes sparkled for a few seconds. "You rub your neck when you feel nervous. It's something you do since you were about six or seven."
"Old habits die hard, huh?" He took a deep breath. "So are we going to talk about Saturday night?"
"We would have to eventually." I looked over my shoulder to make sure none of his fan girls - the ones I know at least - wasn't around and eavesdropping our conversation.
"So did you like it?"
"Overall, yes, I did. The movie was great and so was the arcade."
"I completely agree with you."
"Listen, I…" I made a small pause before proceeding. I was about to touch a sensitive subject. "I know I already apologized a few times, but I still feel like I should say I'm sorry for not turning our night into a sort of disaster."
"Hey, don't worry about it." He reached down for my hands and held them within his. "It's in the past now. Sometimes first dates can go bad. The other ones can make up for that."
"The other ones?" I looked into his blue eyes. "Does that mean you still want me to go out with you again?"
"Of course. This time you can decide what we're going to do. How does that sound to you?"
I couldn't quite understand why my face was suddenly beamed with happiness. It was like I wasn't even mad at him about fifteen minutes ago. "That sounds great." I let my fingers get laced with his as we began to walk back to our houses. The words escaped my lips before I could even control them. I didn't mind it at all though, cause my brain and my heart were finally at the same place. "Oh and by the way, I do want to be your girlfriend."
