It's Too Cliché...Right? Ch. 02

"Just because your love life's a wreck doesn't mean ours has to be," Brian said. "Besides, I'm sure you can handle yourself. Just remember to breathe."

If only it was that simple.

I wish I could say that I couldn't sleep that night, about how the thought of my impending meeting with Evan kept me up till the wee hours of the morning. Or maybe how my dreams were filled with naughty images of Evan in my bed, fulfilling my wildest fantasies. Well, they weren't. I slept like a baby, early to bed with a peaceful slumber. Okay, maybe as early as any teenager who had been surfing Tumblr right before bed would consider. Still, a relatively good night's sleep.

It wasn't until morning that the situation actually dawned on me, no pun intended. I was going to be meeting Evan, granted for a school project but still, I would be spending time with my long-time high school crush, and I was probably going to make a fool of myself...again.

I stared at the ceiling, wondering if today was going to be any different than the previous. I mean, there was a chance that I could act normal around the guy, right? A part of me just screamed hell yeah. After all, I was popular and he was a nerd. This should be easy. The other part of me rolled his eyes.

"You up honey?" My mom's voice came through my bedroom door.

"Yeah," I croaked, my voice still hoarse from waking up.

"Well, you better get ready or you'll be late," she said, her voice fading as she walked away.

I sighed, swinging my legs off the bed. "Just remember to breathe," I said, repeating Brian's words back to myself.

All the way to school, my mind was preoccupied with preparing myself for the meeting. Pathetic, I know, but I needed to make a better impression of myself. Tim, Brian and Sam left me to my thoughts though, instead focusing on Tim and his love life. Sorry, lil' bro, but I've got my own love life to sort through.

The day passed in a blur, partly due to the fact that I was hardly listening in every class. At lunch, I saw Evan but as per usual, he vanished partway through to god knows where. By then, everyone in our little group knew about my pairing with Evan. Mitch was rolling his eyes at my inadequacy, Melissa seemed bored by the entire thing and Jake was the encouraging dude-bro. Tim stared dreamily at...what's her name again? Whatever, that girl he's crushing on, while Brian and Sam were semi-laughing, semi-cheering me on like the good friends they were.

Eventually, the end of school arrived and I was, to say the least, a nervous wreck. The bell literally rang a minute ago, and I was still sitting in my seat, things still unpacked as they sat on my desk.

"Do you think he broke down or something?" Mitch asked Tim as they watched me.

"Dude," Tim said, snapping his fingers in my face, causing me to snap out of my trance. "Your prince is waiting for you in the library and you're still here why?"

"He's not my prince and he's not waiting for me," I countered, finally starting to put my stuff away.

"Actually, he is, waiting for you I mean," Mitch pointed out.

"Shut up," I grumbled, stuffing the last of my stuff into my backpack. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a project to work on."

Laughing, both of them stepped aside to let me pass. "Good luck," Tim shouted as I exited the classroom.

"You're gonna need it," Mitch added, albeit in hushed tones not meant for my ears.

"I heard that!" I shouted back, glaring at the stupidity that was my friends. Sometimes I seriously wonder why I hang out with them. Tim, I had no choice, but the others?

As I made my way to the library, at a quarter of my usual walking speed I might add, I kept replaying what Brian told me in my head.

Just. Keep. Breathing.

The vibration of my phone startled me a little, my already jittery self, hypersensitive to everything around me. Taking it out, I opened the text from Sam, which was simply the fist pump baby meme with the caption, 'Met with my crush today, didn't make a fool of myself'. I chuckled to myself as I sent back the thumbs up emoji, shaking my head as I thought about my crazy yet amazing friends.

As I stowed my phone, I looked up and stopped, staring at the wooden door in front of me. The word 'library' sat against the frosted glass as if daring me to enter. Shaking the trembling from my hands, I huffed once in an attempt to calm myself. Confidence, I told myself as I pushed through the doors.

Soft sounds of pages turning replaced the cacophony that was the school hallway, seeming like I had just entered another realm. The smell of paper assaulted my nose, the scent strangely calming on my tense body. To the left, the librarian sat behind the counter, typing away at her computer. Just behind her, a student arranged books on the shelf, sometimes reshuffling them into their correct order.

It's not that I had never come in here before, but I definitely didn't frequent the place. It almost seemed...foreign to me. I turned, scanning the tables for any sign of Evan. I didn't need to look long however, because it seemed like my eyes had some affinity for the guy, immediately picking out the head of black hair, his face buried in a book in front of him.

With a deep breath for good measure, I walked over to him, trying my best to stride with the air of confidence I usually possessed when I roamed the halls of Cornway high, not that it mattered because Evan didn't look up once. I looked at the table he was seated at, noticing the three other chairs surrounding the circular piece of furniture. The seat on his left was occupied by Evan's bag, which left the seat on his right and the one across from him.

In the short amount of time I spent walking from the library entrance to Evan's table, I had managed to have an internal debate over which seat I should take. If I sat to his right, it would be easier to talk to him and compare notes or whatever, but that would leave me a little too close to Evan for my liking. Choose the seat across from him and it would seem like I was avoiding him, which could lead him to think that I either didn't like him, or I liked him too much.

Before I could even come to a decision, I was already too near the table. I needed to make a decision, and fast. It was then that I realized I didn't work well under pressure, because instead of doing the polite thing and announce my presence, I literally plopped myself down in the seat to his right and, a little too loudly, throwing my backpack into the seat next to me. This caused Evan to look up surprised and startled. He wasn't the only one either, feeling the eyes of other library occupants turning in my direction.

Controlling the blush that was threatening to creep onto my cheeks, I quickly said, "Hey."

"That was quite an entrance," Evan muttered, whether he was commenting in amusement or disdain I couldn't tell.

"Well, that's how I roll," I said, but internally slapped myself. Way to look like a total ass hat, jackass. I watched as Evan's eyebrow gave the slightest furrow, almost imperceptible. Great, now instead of a bumbling idiot, I become douchebag number one.

"Right...so I've already done some research," Evan said, pointing to the pile of books that sat on the table.

"You did all that in the fifteen minutes since school ended?" I asked, slightly astounded at his level of dedication. I guess you didn't get to be second in class by slacking off.

He chuckled, though. "No. While I'm sure your brother probably could pull that off, I'm not as talented," he said. "No, I found some of them during lunch this afternoon."

"Lunch?" I asked, unable to follow him.

"Yeah, I come here during lunch all the time. Mostly, I just like the quiet but seeing that we have this project, I figured I could get a head start." I felt like I had just gotten some really important news, finally answering the question that had plagued me for many a year. Evan comes to the library whenever he disappears at lunch. I should have guessed it, but for some reason, it never occurred to me. He was smart and reclusive; the library was basically his habitat.

"Oh. Wow, now I feel like I'm not contributing to the project," I laughed, rubbing the back of my neck in embarrassment.

"Oh, don't worry, there's still plenty for you to contribute. Besides, this way we can finish this up faster," he said, a small smile on his lips.

'In other words, less meetings which in turn means less of me seeing you,' I thought, but of course I couldn't say this out loud so I settled with a simple, "Awesome."

So, that's how we spent the next two hours; perusing through books and writing down notes. I would say, however, that I was proud of myself for at least being able to talk this time around. Other than the fact that I made myself look like a jerk in the beginning, I think I did pretty well. That being said, if Evan did think I was a jackass, he probably still thought it, meaning that I had basically made myself look even worse than if I had been a klutz.

"I think we should continue this another day, I'm beat," Evan said, stretching his back which probably ached from being bent over for two hours. I should know, my own was throbbing.

"Yeah sounds good," I said, arching my back in an attempt to loosen the knots that had formed. "Man, I think I need a back massage."

"Yeah," he laughed. "I think I need one too. Maybe we can help each other out?"

The smile instantly dropped from my face. "What?" I asked, unsure if I had heard him right.

"I was kidding," Evan laughed, this time harder than before.

"Right," I chuckled nervously. "Of course you were." He was joking with me; that had to be a good sign, right?

"So, meet again Thursday?" Evan asked as he put away the last of his belongings.

"Yeah...sure," I replied, can't help but feeling a little down that our meetings were nothing more than professional cooperation.

"Cool," Evan said, getting up and heading off, throwing his bag across his shoulder. "See you around."

I nodded as he walked away. For the briefest of moments, I felt the urge to call out to him. To stop him from leaving, maybe even ask if he would like to go out sometime. I mean, that was what I would have done with any other guy, so why not Evan. Not only would it help me determine if he was actually gay, but also if he was interested in me.

But of course, I didn't. Instead, I watched as his back slowly got further and further away, until disappearing past the doors of the library. Sighing, I packed and soon followed Evan's path out of the library. Pulling out my phone, I texted Brian, wondering if he had gone through with his date with Sam or if they had canceled. It wouldn't be the first time.

"Hey, you still in school?" I typed before I hit send.

Immediately, a reply came. "Yep, out front."

I made my way over to the entrance, almost bumping into someone as I rounded a blind corner. "Oh sorry," I said instinctively before looking up and seeing Evan. "Oh, it's you."

"Don't sound so excited," he joked.

"Yeah well, I've just seen you for two hours, I think I can use a break," I replied, although in my mind, nothing was further from the truth.

"I hear you," Evan chuckled. "So, I'm gonna go...again."

I smiled, trying to hide the blush that decided to come up on my face. Geez, he jokes a little and I light up like a tomato. Once again, I looked at his departing form fighting the urge to reach out and grab his arm. Talk about creepy. Instead, I settled for walking a couple paces behind him, just observing him. Yeah, like that isn't creepy at all. So sue me, I tried not staring the whole time we were together, let me at least check the guy out when he wasn't looking.

His black hair was messy, yet neat at the back, something akin to an organized mess. Tan skin covered his neck, face and hands, every other part of him covered up by the long-sleeved shirt and jeans he wore. While far from body hugging, the loose shirt seemed pulled in areas, especially the arms, which pointed to some muscle underneath all that cloth. My eyes traveled momentarily to his butt, moving with each step he took, looking oh so delightful in his dark blue jeans. A beat-up pair of converse looked about ready to fall apart with each step, the lining in some parts already fraying.

As I returned my eyes upwards, cliché dictates that I find Evan looking back at me, noticing me eye raping him. Not in my life it doesn't. What I did find, was the light shining onto his face, making me realize just how handsome he was. The light caught on the sharp angles of his face, accentuating the strong jaw and sharp nose, not perfect enough to look plastic, but just perfect enough to make him look naturally stunning. But what really caught my attention, was his long eyelashes that drew your eyes to them. I knew Evan had nice eyes, but I had never been close enough to see how beautiful they actually were. Heck, I was looking at him in profile and he still looked amazing.

As he opened the door to the school, the dazzling light from outside blinded me enough that I had to pull my eyes away from Evan. Good thing too, because just outside the school doors, were not only Brian but everyone in my little group of friends.

I almost wanted to scream when everyone, and I mean every single one of my friends, stared at Evan as he walked to his car. Some, like Brian, Sam and Tim, had smirks on their faces as their eyes darted from him to me. Mitch and Melissa had contemplating looks on their faces as if trying to analyze what they think happened in the time Evan and I were together. Jake had the look I hated most because he was looking at Evan in the same way that I had just been looking at him not a minute ago. Not that I thought Jake would try and steal Evan away because that's just not who he was, but I couldn't help the slight jealousy that bubbled in the pit of my stomach.

"Oh, my god, can you guys make it any more obvious," I scolded, exasperation clear in my voice.

"Ok, I never really understood your crush on him, but I think I see it now," Jake said, still looking at Evan who was already getting into his car.

"Don't even think about it," I warned. Like I said, I didn't think Jake would try and steal Evan from me, but it never hurt to throw caution to the wind.

"Don't worry man, I'm not gonna steal your boyfriend from you," Jake said, a smirk playing on his lips.

"He's not my boyfriend...yet."

The addition of that one word at the end made everyone, even Melissa, perk up. This was followed by a barrage of congratulatory remarks, although I didn't think I needed any sort of congratulation seeing that nothing had happened yet.

"Oh, confident I see."

"Someone's getting laid soon."

"And the old Brad is back."

I laughed, shaking my head. "So, I'm guessing it went well?" Sam asked.

I was about to answer when Brian interrupted. "Don't answer that yet. C'mon let's head to the mall. I think this calls for celebratory pizza."

"Guys, there's nothing to celebrate," I said, trying to call back the dispersing groups all heading towards their cars.

"True, but pizza needs no excuse," Mitch yelled back as he and Melissa walked over to their Mercedes.

"True that," Jake called out, Tim bounding after him.

"Where do you think you're going?" I asked after my brother.

"The car where no one would be talking about your sex life."

"No one is going to be talking about my sex life," I yelled back, turning to face Brian and Sam, whose expressions told me that my last statement was far from the truth. "No," I deadpanned, walking past them towards Brian's car.

"You always act like you don't like to talk about it, but we know you do," Brian said, walking a pace behind me. "Especially so now that it's sex with Evan we're talking about."

"Well that's where you're wrong," I said, opening the car door and jumping in. "So, what happened to your date?"

"We figured we'd be the good friends we are and make sure you're okay after your meeting," Brian said, hopping into the driver's seat.

"So...Sam canceled?" I asked, directing an eyebrow at Sam entering the passenger side.

"Yes," Brian muttered.

"Only because I was curious about your meeting," Sam added before turning to her boyfriend. "Oh, cheer up, I'll make it up to you."

The ride to the mall was, surprisingly, devoid of any talk about me. School, home, plans for the weekend, everything except me and Evan. I wasn't complaining, though, seeing that I'd rather not be embarrassed. Halfway through, I caught Brian's eye in the rear-view mirror, seeing a smirk form on his lips.

"What I tell you, you're totally wondering why we aren't asking you anything embarrassing. You so want to tell us," Brian laughed, Sam smiling beside him.

"Whatever."

Around half an hour later, we were all at the mall at this pizza place we frequented. After the routine orders of pizza, all eyes were glued to me, already expecting me to spill the details of our meeting. I didn't actually have much to say, though, seeing that most of the time was spent actually doing work and not drooling over Evan.

"Well, we're waiting," Melissa said.

"What?" I replied, playing dumb.

"Spill. What happened during the meeting?"

"Nothing much," I replied, which got groans from the other occupants at the table.

"Really? That's all you're gonna give us," Sam complained.

"What did you expect anyway?"

"A step-by-step run by of everything that happened would be good."

"That sounds more like homework to me," I said. I could already tell that my friends were starting to get a little impatient with my stalling, but hey I deserved to have some fun too right, especially with all the crap they put me through.

"It was okay," I said. "I mean, it was a meeting for a school project, so that's what we did almost the whole time."

"So, you could talk to him this time? No stuttering like an idiot?" Tim asked.

"Nope, cool as a cucumber."

"Really?" Jake asked, raising an eyebrow. I looked around the table and sure enough, incredulous looks stared back at me. Okay fine, I guess if I was in their shoes I'd probably have a hard time believing it too but that was really the case...wasn't it?

"Yeah, I managed to hold a relatively normal conversation with him," I said. "I mean, if you don't count me making myself look like a jerk in the first few minutes, I think I made some excellent progress."

"Explain," Sam demanded.

"Okay, so when I walked into the library I was my usual frantic self and I kept overthinking everything I was gonna do," I paused.

"That sounds plausible," Brian added, which I ignored.

"I was thinking about where I was going to sit and before I knew it I was already at the table. So, instead of standing there like some weirdo, I quickly dropped into one of the seats and threw my bag into the other. Let's just say I wasn't the quietest person in the room. Didn't help that Evan hadn't noticed me before and my racket kind of shocked him. He made some comment that I can't really remember and then I played it off like I was some jerk. You should have seen the face he gave when I did."

"Wait, so it didn't turn out well? After everything you said, it sounds like you bombed," Tim asked.

"That's what I thought too, but Evan was...cool. For someone so mysterious, he actually has a sense of humor."

"Really? Mr. Doom and Gloom has a sense of humor?" Melissa asked.

"First of all, you of all people don't get to call him gloomy and secondly, he surprisingly does. He even cracked a joke that we should give each other massages. Granted, I didn't actually take it as a joke initially, but..." I trailed off.

"He joked that he wanted to give you a massage?" Sam asked, to which I nodded. "Ooh, kinky."

The group burst into laughter. "So, do you think he's gay? Your gaydar giving you any hints?" Mitch asked.