Nash The two-story white house had been on my road all my life. Every Halloween it was decorated the best. When I was a kid, it was my favorite house to trick-or-treat at. Each Christmas the lights from this house outdid everyone else on the street. I passed the house during those holidays and always glanced its way to see what new things had been added. The one thing I never thought about was that this was Tallulah’s house. I liked the decorations, but the people who lived here hadn’t been something I gave much thought to. I parked my just-washed Escalade in the driveway and got out. I was self-conscious of my limp. My mind immediately went to Tallulah watching me from one of the windows on the second floor and seeing the way I walked. I hated this feeling, knowing that I was different. Being nervous about a date wasn’t something I was familiar with. That had changed too. I couldn’t walk as fast. People noticed my limp and watched me. I sure as hell didn’t have a swagger anymore. I glanced back at my car and thought about leaving, forgetting this. I was more than likely a pity date. Of all the girls at Lawton High, she would be the one to go out with a guy because she felt sorry for him. She knew what it was like to be unwanted. But I had never stood a girl up, and I wasn’t about to start now. Walking to her door, I silently prayed she wasn’t watching me walk. Didn’t have to be reminded what she was going out with tonight. I shouldn’t have asked her, but I did. I had wanted to, and she’d said yes so easily.
The front door wasn’t covered in decorations. It was the end of August, and the holidays that Tallulah’s mother seemed to love hadn’t begun yet. I rang the doorbell and waited. But only for a moment. The door swung open, and the attractive petite woman who I remembered giving me candy as a child stood there smiling. Tallulah had never come to school events. Her mother wasn’t one who was in the PTA or any other parent organization. I never realized this was her house. “Nash,” she said brightly. “It’s nice to see you. Come on in. Tallulah is almost ready.” She knew me. Which made it even more embarrassing that I didn’t know if her last name was the same as Tallulah’s. I didn’t know her first name either. I had no name to refer to her by. I slapped on a smile. “No hurry. I’m maybe a few minutes early.” I wasn’t. But it sounded good to say it. Her mother st epped back and waved me inside. The entry was small and led right into a large living area. Everything was bright and cheery. Very different. Interesting artwork and a ceiling painted the blue of the sky were the first things to catch my attention. There were even a few clouds up there. “I like the sky, and I like to paint. It’s my thing,” her mother explained. I glanced over at her, and she was also looking up at the ceiling, smiling with a fondness. “Took me a month to paint that thing. I’m scared of heights you see, so this was a challenge. But I did a little every day. Now I can relax and enjoy it any time I want.” Was Tallulah this much of a dreamer? She didn’t appear to be. I would guess it was hard to ever be negative in this kind of home. Her mother didn’t seem to be the kind who
was ever negative. “It’s cool,” I agreed. Because it was. “Let me show you the kitchen!” she said with obvious pride in her voice. I followed as she led me to the next room. It was blue. Everything was a different shade of blue. “Look up.” I did as told, and it took me a moment, but I figured it out. We were under the sea. I glanced back down after looking up at the world from under the water to notice a few pieces of sea life here and there. This would be one hard house to sell because, as creative as all this was, it would take someone like Tallulah’s mom to appreciate it. My mother for example... this would not be her thing. “I’m ready. I’ll rescue you before she takes you to the staircase to show you the ceiling there.” I turned to Tallulah, and the wildly painted house was forgotten. Tallulah was stunning. Breathtaking. No wonder the twenty-seven-year-old teacher was attracted to her. She didn’t look seventeen. Dressed like this, she looked older. When everyone saw her tonight, she’d have plenty of guys to choose from. This was possibly the only date I’d get. The sympathy date would be done. “The bathroom looks like the night sky, her bedroom looks like a stormy sky, and the stairs look like you’re under the stairs in the cupboard with Harry Potter.” Tallulah smirked. “I went through a Harry Potter stage when I was younger, and she did it for my birthday surprise.” Then she turned to her mother. “Thanks for ke eping him entertained. Love you,” she said, then hugged her mom, who kissed her on the cheek.
“Love you. Have fun,” she said to me as well as Tallulah. “Drive careful. Wear your seat belts.” My mother always said the same thing when I left the house. “Always,” Tallulah r eplied. Then she turned back to me, and her smile faded. She wasn’t full of confidence. She wasn’t trying to be flirty. There wasn’t the “aren’t I gorgeous” smirk on her lips. I raised an eyebrow as if to challenge her. Would she really say something rude right here in front of her mother? I loved our verbal combat, but I doubted she’d start it up in front of her eager mother. Then it happened. She smiled. At me. I’d missed that smile. Really missed it. It was slow and a little shy. That was what made her smile so damn beautiful. It wasn’t arrogant. It was unique, something I had only experienced with Tallulah. I didn’t want that to change. I didn’t want her to change. Why hadn’t I asked her out before? I’d always loved her smile. It made me feel good. Why had I waited until she was thin? Was I that damn shallow? Yes. I was. And I didn’t like to admit it. Or acc ept it. But I was. “You look beautiful,” I told her, not caring that her mother was still standing there. Her cheeks turned a pretty pink, and she lowered her lashes, unable to look at me as she said, “Thank you.” That was what I’d been missing. Now that I realized it was out there. The guilt from not asking her out before her
weight loss was heavy. Made me feel superficial. When Tallulah was anything but. She was spending her first Friday night back at high school with me. A cripple. Who she wanted to hate. I’d hurt her and caused pain that she was trying like hell to hold against me. But she was crumbling. Right before my eyes. “Let’s go get a burger,” I said when it was obvious she was embarrassed by my compliment and unsure how to handle it. She hadn’t received many of those in her life. The way she acc epted it was so damn sweet. “Okay,” she agreed, peeking back up at me. “Bye, y’all,” her mother called out. “It was nice to officially meet you,” I told her mother. She beamed brightly and Tallulah turned and we walked out of the house. When the door closed behind us, she looked at me and said, “I promise she’s not crazy.” I laughed. Because I hadn’t been thinking that at all. But the serious expression on Tallulah’s face was adorable. My chest was light. I was happy. Damn.