"So, you want to do something tonight?" Megan asked.
"Sure, what were you thinking of?" Jake asked.
"Whatever you want. I just thought it might be nice..." she shrugged.
Jake looked up from his book. It occurred to him that she was nervous. But why would she be? Actually, she'd been kind of like that the whole week – ever since she got him out of that bottle. Suddenly he found himself reviewing the last few days.
Had he been acting any different? He didn't think so. Sure, he'd been a little cautious, but nothing too drastic. Still, maybe he should make more of an effort. He did actually like her, even after all that had happened, and he didn't want to alienate her.
In fact, it kind of annoyed him how much he liked her. Maybe that's why the whole bottle thing bothered him so much; he would have thought she of all people would give him a chance to explain before sending him away like that.
Still, he tried to reason with himself – it wasn't actually that bad; he'd had much worse done to him. Really, the problem was that he'd started to feel like a real person again, and getting banished like that just reminded him how far from normal he'd really fallen. But that would have happened anyway after her third wish; it wasn't really her fault. Jake set his jaw, suppressing a sigh. This whole thing would be a lot less complicated if he didn't still actually like her.
"Jake?" she asked cautiously.
"Sorry." he shook his head to clear it. "What would you like to do?" he asked.
He sounded a little distant, even to himself. Maybe he should try that again.
"What do you feel like?" That was better.
"Well, I don't know. I just thought you'd want to do something. I mean you seem kinda down, and I don't know..." Megan mumbled, looking embarrassed. "Never mind. Sorry I mentioned it."
"No, we should do something." Jake said decisively. And not just because he wanted her to be happy; it would be good to get out, stop thinking so much.
"Like what?" Megan asked. "You pick."
"Movies?" Jake asked, shrugging. "I don't really know what people do." he admitted.
"I guess that makes sense." Megan said, thinking. Then she brightened. "Have you ever had ice cream before?"
"Actually, no." he told her. At least, none that he hadn't made himself, but he was pretty sure that didn't count.
"Then you're in for a treat." she grinned. "There's a really great place just a few blocks from here."
"Sounds good." he said, and for the first time in almost a week, he meant it.
The whole way there, Megan did nothing but tell him how much he was going to love it – how there were all sorts of different flavors, how he could get combos or sprinkles or pieces of candy on it. Jake laughed; he might never have been before, but he was pretty sure he knew what to expect.
The shop was brightly lit and actually pretty crowded. The counter had a glass window in front, showcasing row after row of ice cream tubs. They walked around to the back of the line, Jake still staring at all those tubs.
"Ok, you were right – there's kind of a lot." he told Megan.
"I know, right? So what are you going to get?"
"I have no idea." he said.
How was he supposed to choose? He didn't even know what half of these flavors were supposed to taste like. He'd never had a birthday cake, or a strawberry cheesecake. And what was a blue raspberry supposed to taste like? It sounded like the kind of mistake he'd get in trouble for making.
"Well, what do you like?" Megan asked him.
"Strawberry?" he found himself asking. That seemed like a nice, safe bet.
"That's boring." Megan rolled her eyes. "You should be more adventurous."
"Strawberry seems pretty adventurous to me." he told her. And he knew what it was supposed to be. "What are you getting?"
"Green tea ice cream." Megan grinned.
"Really? Sounds weird."
"I'll let you try it." Megan told him. "But don't be jealous when mine's better than yours."
"Oh, I'm sure I'll manage."
"Yeah...or just change yours."
"That too."
They placed their order and Megan got out her wallet. Jake tried to give her money, but she just waved off his attempts.
"I can pay." she told him.
"Really? Why?" They both knew he just made up whatever money he used.
"I don't want you to feel used." she shrugged, and Jake could tell she was kind of embarrassed.
"...Thanks." he said after a minute.
It was hard for him to believe she really said that; it was the first time in his entire life that someone really cared about how he felt. The cashier handed them their ice creams, and they made their way to a table.
"So how do you like it?" Megan asked, after he'd taken a bite.
"It's sweeter than I thought." he told her. He never made it this good before.
"You like it?"
"Actually, yeah."
"Wanna try mine?" she asked.
"Uh...sure." he said hesitantly.
It didn't exactly sound like something he'd be interested in, but who knew when the next time he'd get to try actual ice cream would be? He took a small spoonful.
"Kind of bitter." he said after a minute. "Not bad, I guess. But mine's definitely better."
"That's what you think." Megan told him.
Something caught her eye over his shoulder, and she peered around him to get a better look.
"Stacey!" Megan said, surprise obvious in her voice. "What are you doing here?"
"Oh, hi Megan. Jake." Stacey said dully.
"Are you ok?"
"Yeah." she sighed.
"What happened?" Jake asked her. She looked absolutely miserable.
"Nothing." Stacey gave a weak smile. "I was just here with Heath, but it didn't go so well."
"Where is he?" Megan asked, looking around.
"Oh, he left." Stacey tried to say it casually, but her heart wasn't in it. Suddenly, she looked at them carefully, as if something important had dawned on her. "You guys aren't on a date or anything, are you?"
"No!" Megan said quickly.
"No...not a date exactly." Jake said automatically.
He hesitated just the perfect amount to get Stacey's attention, and Megan raised her eyebrows at him.
"Sorry." Jake whispered when Stacey wasn't looking. He hadn't meant to do it – it was just such a habit with him that he didn't even think about it anymore.
"You are!" Stacey said, eyes wide. "I'm sorry to ruin your date."
"You're not ruining anything." Megan told her. As Stacey looked to Jake for confirmation, Megan glared at him. "I hate you." she whispered quietly to him.
Jake's eyes went wide and he knew he must look nervous. He was about to apologize again when he saw the look on her face. She turned slightly to hide her smirk. She was actually smirking at him! He never would have thought he'd see that. He let out a breath, forcing himself to calm down.
"Are you ok?" Stacey asked him. He hadn't even realized she'd been staring at him.
"Yeah...I'm fine." he said.
There was still some tension in his voice that he hadn't quite been able to get rid of. Stacey didn't notice, but of course Megan did.
"You really should relax more." she told him.
"I'll try to keep that in mind." he told her a little tersely.
"Oh, don't be like that." she rolled her eyes at him. "You know you've been way more annoying to me."
"That's true." Jake admitted, finally relaxing enough to break into a grin. Just thinking about all the things he used to do to her was enough to put him back into a much better mood.
"Why don't you hang out with us?" Megan asked Stacey, once she was satisfied that Jake was really ok.
"No, I can't ruin your date." Stacey told her.
Jake thought he heard a bit of a whine when she said it. Megan must have too, because she just laughed.
"Trust me, you're not ruining anything." she told Stacey.
"You sure?" Stacey asked skeptically.
"Positive." Megan told her.
"Jake?" Stacey asked, turning to him.
"Of course." he told her, quickly getting over the surprise of actually being asked.
"Ok – I don't really want to eat by myself anyway." Stacey said, pulling up a chair and moving her ice cream to Jake and Megan's table.
"What is that?" Jake asked, peering into the cup she'd set in front of her. It was brown with white chunks in it, and it looked disgusting.
"Just Rocky Road." Stacey shrugged.
"Oh." Somehow, that wasn't what he pictured Rocky Road as looking like.
"So what happened to Heath anyway?" Megan asked. Jake was glad for the change in topic.
"Oh, we got in a fight. Again. So, he left."
"What happened?" Megan asked. It sounded redundant to Jake, but apparently not to Stacey, because she answered.
"He got a call from his cousin – something about a family emergency. But you know what? He sure seems to have a lot of those. And he never tells me what he's up to."
"...Do you think he's...well..." Megan asked slowly.
"Cheating on me?" Stacey finished. Megan nodded glumly.
"Who knows?" Stacey shrugged. "But all his weird excuses are why Tara hates him so much."
"So why are your dating Heath anyway?" Jake asked suddenly.
"What do you mean?" Stacey blinked.
"I mean, if he acts like that, what are you doing with him?"
"Well, I don't know..." Stacey trailed off.
"Just seems like you could do better." Jake told her.
"Yeah? Like who?" Stacey asked.
"I don't know – I don't know a lot of seniors. Just the ones on the soccer team."
Why did these girls always want concrete examples? That wasn't the point he was trying to make. He decided to start over.
"I just mean that personality should count for something. You know – someone who actually pays attention – values your opinions and doesn't...you know...act like Heath."
He'd been about to say and doesn't leave you by yourself somewhere, but he stopped himself in time. He knew what Megan had done was mostly an accident, and he didn't want to remind her. Besides, the night was going so well, why ruin it?
"He's right – even if he did kind of lose focus a little there at the end." Megan said, nodding. "You should pick someone who cares about you – helps you out, maybe does your homework if you need it. Or hang out when you're bored. You know..."
Jake was glad he'd had so much practice keeping his face neutral. Sure, it didn't always work, but it was definitely the only reason he got out of this with no more than a raised eyebrow to show his surprise. Megan had just described him. Did she mean to? Did she think he'd notice? It was the first time since he'd been freed last week that Jake wondered if maybe she did actually like him.
"Where am I supposed to find someone like that?" Stacey scoffed.
"I could ask around the soccer team." Jake offered. He'd had worse chores assigned to him before; this wouldn't even be hard.
"Would you really?" Stacey seemed surprised. Out of the corner of his eye, he thought he saw Megan with a similar look.
"Sure, why not?" he shrugged.
"Well thank you." Stacey smiled at him. Then, she glanced down at her phone, which she'd set on the table about ten minutes before she finished her ice cream.
"Oh, hey – I gotta run." Stacey told them. "But thanks for letting me eat with you. And thanks for the pep talk." Before she headed out, she turned back to Megan. "I'll catch up with you this weekend."
ns 15.158.61.51da2
