Falling (13 page)

“I just wanted to wish you good luck tonight, and I thought, maybe when you got home we could watch a movie together, if you want. Anyway, I will be cheering for you at the game tonight,” I whisper as I glance into his eyes. I turn to leave but Connor stands and grabs my hand.

“I guess I will see you after the game then. Make sure you pick a good movie, maybe a scary one?” he suggest with a twinkle in his eye.

“Yeah, maybe, since I will have someone to watch it with.”

“Yeah, I remember you told me you like to cuddle during a scary movie if you are with the right guy. Will you cuddle with me if you get scared?” he asks with a grin.

“I guess we will find out when I get scared won’t we,” I chuckle as I turn and walk away. I glance over my shoulder and Connor is standing there watching me with a goofy grin.

For the rest of the day, I am in a fog, completely distracted by the fact that Connor and I plan on watching a scary movie alone tonight. I also know that this will be the perfect opportunity for me to tell him how I feel. I am so excited, yet more nervous than I have ever been.

**********

“So I guess I am not invited to watch this movie after the game?” asks Leah with a laugh.

I snort, “No you are not invited. Plus, you wouldn’t want to watch the movie, it’s a scary one." My eyes sweep the sidelines and field looking for 45. I can’t believe that Connor is actually interested in me. I watch him run the ball several yards and can’t hold in my cheer. Leah looks at me shaking her head and laughing. I watch Connor run the ball in for a touchdown and then do his little hip shake celebration dance. He is so adorable. By the end of the game, I am so nervous I can barely sit still. On the ride back to Sparks’ house, we talk about my parents coming home in a couple of days and Allie tells us about her new boyfriend, Toby. I start laughing because that was her partner she was assigned that she hated so much. We continue to tease her all the way home.

I wait in the living room watching television for Connor to get home. Leah stays with me, joking that she is staying to be our chaperone. We end up watching
Underworld
, since it is on cable. By the time Connor gets home, Leah is dozing on the couch. Connor walks into the living room and glances from me to Leah, then back to me.

“So is my little sister going to watch the movie with us?” he asks with a frown.

“We were just watching television until you got home,” I say as I reach over and nudge Leah awake. She looks up and sees Connor, then laughs.

“So I guess you two want me to leave?” she asks with a fake pout.

“If you really want to watch the movie Leah, you can stay. We don’t mind.” I say, even as Connor shoots me a look that says what are you thinking.

Leah thinks for a minute and then says with a
laugh, “Just joking. I am heading to bed. See you two in the morning." She squeezes my shoulder and grins at me as she leaves. 

Connor sits down next to me and grins, “So it is finally just you and me. What movie are we watching?”

“I went by the movie store on the way home from school and rented the
Paranormal Activity
4. I hope that is okay.”

“Sounds good to me,” he says as he grabs my hand and pulls me closer to him.

“Before we start the movie, I need to talk to you for a minute.” I say taking deep breath. He nods and looks at me with a smile. His fingers are tangled with mine while his thumb rubs my wrist.

“I have liked you for a while now, but I never thought I had a chance with you. I mean, you are popular, gorgeous, sweet, adorable, everything I could ask for in a guy. Lately, we started hanging out more together, and my feelings for you have grown. When you kissed me the other night, I thought my heart was about to explode.”

“Okay, before you go on I have some stuff to say too. But there is something I need to do first." He pulls me so close that I am sure I am almost sitting in his lap. Before I can react to his closeness, he tilts my chin up and leans in until his lips are touching mine. His runs his fingers into my hair and pulls me to him. His lips continue to lightly brush over mine. I lift my arms and wrap them around his neck. My brain has completely shut down. Connor groans and lifts me up so I am sitting on his lap. He continues kissing me like he is starving for me. When he finally leans back, we are both breathing hard. Connor laughs and puts his hand on my knee, while the other hand plays with my fingers.

“Okay, time for the truth,” he takes a deep breath. “I have been trying to tell you this for a couple of days, although I should have told you weeks ago,” I continue to stare at him with puzzlement. “It all started when you went out with Blake. I couldn’t stand it, so I made sure I was at the movies that night too. I couldn’t believe how jealous I was, but I kept thinking it was because we had been hanging out more than usually. Then I started having moments where all I could think about was grabbing you and kissing you. That night in Leah’s room, if she hadn’t moved, I would have devoured you. You looked so cute and sexy standing there in your pajamas. It was all I could do to leave the room. Then the other day at the movies, I almost couldn’t stop myself. I wanted to kill Leah when she threw that quarter at you. I finally had to beat you at bowling to get my chance." He laughed still looking at me with unsure eyes. “When you started ignoring me, I thought okay, these feeling I have will go away, but they didn’t.  The longer you wouldn’t talk to me, the more miserable I became. My heart actually felt like it had shattered. You are one of the best people I know. You are smart, funny, and you tempt me in every way possible." I am completely stunned and my heart is flipping from Connor’s words.

“Okay, one question, why did you act that way with Samantha at the fall festival? And what was that about in the parking lot at the movies?” I ask because I have to know.

“At the fall festival, Samantha asked if there was something going on with you, I told her no because I didn’t really understand my feelings for you. I knew my feelings for you had changed but I wasn’t ready to talk about them. I messed up big time that night. The whole time I was fighting with her all I could think about was that as soon as she left, I could be with you.” He leans in and gives me a quick kiss before he continues. “At the movies, she asked if we were on a date, I wanted to say yes but I wasn’t sure how you felt about me. She knew I had feelings for you, I told her when I broke up with her that there was someone else. I completely lost it with her at school on Wednesday. It infuriated me that she would talk to you like that,” he said as he continued to rub the rip in my pants.

I lean into his body and wrap my arms around him. I press my cheek against his and whisper, “I tried to stop thinking about you, but I couldn’t. My plan was to ignore you and push you out of my heart. That plan totally failed. All it takes is seeing you, or talking to you, and my heart leaps. When you stood up to Samantha for me, I knew I had to tell you how I felt. ” He wraps his arms around me and tips my chin back with his finger. He strokes my face and leans down until our foreheads are touching.

“So now that we have cleared the air, you want to watch a scary movie with me?” he asks with a smirk.

“Only if there is cuddling though,” I say as I snuggle into his body. I feel him kiss the top of my head and run his hands over my back.

“So instead of Klutzy, I have a new nickname for you.” He grins. I look at him waiting for the nickname. “How about girlfriend? It has a nice sound to it.”

“I have a condition though, Connor. I will only answer to that nickname if you promise to pick me up every time I fall down, and you can’t laugh at me either.”

“Are you serious, no laughing?“ he
snorts. “I mean, that will be really hard. You fall down all the time,” he grins. He face softens and he runs his fingers along my cheeks, “I know I call you Klutzy, but over this past month, I have felt like the one that was falling."

“Connor,” I say as I lean closer to him, “we must be in a big heap on the ground because I have fallen for you too." He chuckles and pulls me tight against him. As he kisses me deeply, I know that for once I am not falling alone.

About the Author

Tonya Shepard teaches middle grades social studies and loves every minute.  She enjoys playing and taking walks with her daughter and miniature schnauzer.  This is Tonya’s first book, but hopefully there will be more.

Keep up with Tonya on her website
(
http://tonyashepard.wix.com/books
)
or feel free to email her at 
[email protected]
.