Will you catch me if I fall, Kelsey?
1311 Words
"Kelsey, you look stunning." Lucy leaned in and whispered to me as we walked behind Greg and Erik towards the car. "That color is so good on you, definitely keep it and wear it more often."
I smiled and tried to look confident, but inside my stomach was in knots and my head was a muddle of confusion. "Thank you, is my make-up okay?" I whispered back.
"Perfect." Lucy said as she bumped into my shoulder playfully with a smile. "Didn't I tell you he was hot, and judging by your reacxtion when you saw him, you think so too." She leaned in closer and lowered her voice another octive. "And the way his eyes undressed you when you opened that door, positively primal." She giggled.
I tried to smile, but instead it fely more like a grimace. There was something very unsettling about this entire situation. How could I dream about someone and then suddenly they appear in my reality? What kind of madness was this? My rational mind kept coming up with a viable explanatio. Maybe I have seen him before, but subconsiously I never gave him much attention? Perhaps it is not the man in my dreams, merely someone who resembles the man from my dreams? Could I have manifested my dream boyfriend? I have heard that can happen.
"Mi'lady," I was brought back to reality with the sound of a very deep male voice, one that was both husky and sexy. "Allow me." Erik said as he opened the rear door of Greg's car to allow me to get in. "Your carriage awaits."
I smiled at him, a genuine one. How was this my reality right now? This handsome stranger was literally like my own prince Charming, even down to the charming accent. "Thank you, Erik." I said as I leaned down to get in.
"Well I have never heard my Toyota being referred to as a carriage before, the biggest cheeseball award goes to you Erik." Greg quipped from the driver;s seat.
"Ignore him Erik, i thought that was adorable." Lucy added as she sat in the passenger side and closed the door.
Erik got in the other rear door, it was quite cramped in the back and although I was tiny, Erik must have easily been well over 6ft, taller than any guys that I'd ever seen here in Conneticut, that's for sure. He turned to look at me and smile as Greg started the car. In the dark, for a moment Erik's eyes seemed to glow, kind of like my dream. I gasped a little, then blinked. Trying to make sense of what i had just seen. My mind was definitely playing tricks on me.
"So, what's the plan Luce?" Greg asked as he waited at the junction to drive out the parking lot.
"We stop for burgers, spend thrity minutes chatting and getting to know each other," She looked over her shoulder at me and winked. "Then we drive Kelsey home, allowing for fifteen minutes to let her get changed again before she gets home." She looked over her shoulder again. "That sound cool with you Kelsey? Your mom will never know." She winked again.
I wanted to slidde down the seat and hide my face with embarassment right now. Understanably, Lucy was just being kind and looking out for me, but it made me sound like such a loser. "Thanks, yeah, that sounds great. As long as I am home before eight-thirty." I regretted saying those words as soon as they were out my mouth.
"Woah, how strict is your mom? You have a curfew? How old 'are' you? Like ten?" Greg laughed loudly and Lucy gave him a dirty look.
"I am twenty-one tomorrow acxtually." Damn it, why do i keep talking! "I mean, not that I am making a big deal about it, just you know...saying....." my voice trailed off, I knew my face was hotter than the Sun right now with embarassment.
Lucy squealed, nearly causing greg to run off the road. "Jeez, luce, tone it down."
"Seriously, it is your twenty-first tomorrow and you weren't going to say anything. We need to do something amazing for it. What are your plans?" Lucy was positively animated. It felt like my life was very surreal right now, between meeting my dream man, literally, the man from my dreams, and Lucy who has never barely spoke to me in fifteen years, now acting like my best friend. What was happening here? Not that I was complaing, it felt 'good' to be with people other than my mom or my Coach, who not only was Lucy's mom but a very lovely person and a great mentor.
"No plans." I lloked down at my hands, which was fiddling with the strap on my backpack. "my mom kind of makes me spent the day with her then I will go to practice after dinner like normal. That's kind of what we always do for my birthday."
The car went silent as evetyone looked at each other, the heavy scent of sympathy hanging in the air. A throat was cleaered, breaking the silence.
"Well I say we make this a birthday to rememeber for Kelsey, why don't we all join her for practice tomorrow, then stop for some food on the way home?" Erik said as he silently reached across and wrapped his large hand around mine, stopping me fidgeting with my bag strap. The tingles that went through me were very unexpected and I shivered at the contact.
"Yes! I love that idea. No more boring birthdays with your mom, you have us now." Lucy leaned over and touched my knee gently. "I am sorry it took me so long to be a friend to you, sounds like you could have used one sooner." she smiled sadly.
I felt tears sting my eyes as i tried to hold them in. If only she knew how long I had waited for someone to day those words to me, that they were my friend. "Thank you Lucy, I appreciate that."
Greg cleared his throat awkwardly. "Sorry to ruin this beautiful moment guys, but we're here. Can we go eat now, I'm starving."
We all opened our doors at the same time, clearly all needing some food, as we walked in to the burger bar, I felt an arm wrap around me. It gave me shivers down my spine, but in a way that felt electric and exciting. I immediately felt transported back to my dream again. The way the strong arm caught me and spinned me into him.
"You looked chilly, thought you could do with the extra body heat." Erik grinned cheekily down at me.
"How considerate of you, this sweater is a little chilly for February." I said as I moved closer to him. No idea what was going on right now, but none of this even made sense to me. How could I feel so comfortable and familiar with this man from another country that i only met an hour ago? "Can you skate?"
Erik looked down at me with a little smile on his face. "A little, I used to skate a lot as a kid on the lake near my family home in Norway."
I held my breath as I recalled the frozen pond from my dream. "I am sure you are better than you're saying, but I look forward to seeing you in action on the ice tomorrow."
"Will you catch me if I fall, Kelsey?" His eyes seem to glow again, as a gentle breeze carried the familiar scent of pine trees and musk over my senses.
I chuckled nervously. "Sure, I won't let you fall."
But as we walked into restaurant, all I could think about was how 'I' was the one who could be about to fall.
- Writer
