THURSDAY
2:56 PM

"Are you waiting for someone?" Cam asked me, leaning against the locker beside mine. The hallway filled with students trying to get out of the building but some lingered around in their little groups. I was usually out of here the second the bell rang which is why Cam asked.

I blew a raspberry with my lips, shoving the books I needed into my bag. Do I even have this much homework? "Yeah."

"Is it Amelia?"

I knew for a fact that Amelia hadn't told Cam of her feelings for him yet. I don't know if it was because she was my closest friend but I could sense her nevousness every time Cam came up to us. She looked like she would throw up on Cam's shoes every single time. Imagine her telling him she was into him.

Amelia was like a sister to me so I could tell she wasn't just into Cam. It was more than that and I wasn't stupid enough to see it.

But Cameron? He was obvlious to it all. He even asked her if she was getting sick again and it looked like it took her entire being to shake her head no. I think it was because she finally accepted that she had a thing for my cousin that managed to change how she acted towards him now.

"Sandra?" Cam caught my attention again and I almost dropped my physics textbook, catching it before it fell to the ground.

"Um, sorry. No, not Ames."

"So," A certain smile creeped onto Cameron's face. "Your man."

I rolled my eyes so dramatically I almost lost my vision for a second. "Kevin is not my man but yes he's meeting me here at my locker."

"Are you going to his house so you two have a chance to hook-"

"There will be no hook. No hooking left, hooking right, hooking down and definitely no hooking up of any sort. He's been helping me with biology lately so he's coming over to mine."

"Oh, is this because your mom wants to quote on quote 'meet the man in your life'?" Cam smirked.

"What-How do you know she said that? I only told Ames about that." And there's no way that Amelia told him that.

"My mom and your mom have been talking again." He said.

"What? Are you serious? After months-a year they decided to start talking again?"

"Yeah. They bumped into one another at the groccery store the other day or something like that. So Kev's meeting your parents? Big step in your relationship."

"Do me a favor and shut up." Cam mimicked my words and I turned to glare at him when he cut in.
"Have you even seen Kevin today? He wasn't at first."

"No I haven't." I felt kind of weird about that. He didn't text me in the morning either but he knew already that today was the day that he would be coming over. I should've texted him this morning or something. I was going to ask Amelia if she saw him in art today but I could already imagine the smug look on her face if I did. I should've just-I stopped my thought when a familiar laugh was heard down the hallway.

Speak of the devil.

And he wasn't alone. I recognized the girl beside him as Allison Tinto. In the four years of high school I have never had a class with her but I got the impression from a lot of people of what she was like. They weren't good impressions but I wasn't realy one to judge someone I didn't know well enough.

Kevin listened to her talk and when his head turned in my direction for just a fraction I didn't miss the how her hands lingered on his arm to catch his attention. He gave her that Kevin smile and I heard Cam mumble a "wow" under his breath.

When I assumed the conversation was over, she gave him a hug and he reciprocated it before saying goodbye.

I let out a breath I didn't even know I was holding when Kevin's eyes finally caught my own. I didn't think Kevin's smile could get wider but it did. "Hey."

"Hey." I said back, stepping into his hug. Kevin with the clear intention that he wasn't going to let go any time soon, kept the smile on his face. "I'haven't seen you today. Is everything-"

When I was pulling back to look at his face I noticed something. He looked focused. Alert. More alert than I have ever seen him. "Is everything okay?" I finished off, my hand involuntarily reaching up to the side of his face. His smile dropped for a quick second, his expression morphing in confusion from my action before it returned. 

"I overslept." He said.

"What?"

"I overslept," He repeated. "I slept through first period and made it at the end of second. I missed morning ball practice and coach is going to kill me but-"

"You never oversleep." I cut him off. Kevin always slept too little, had issues staying asleep and falling asleep. He never overslept.

"I know." He grinned. "My mom told me from work that she didn't want to wake me up. It's probably because I was working on that art project and fell asleep two hours after-"

"Your sleep schedule." His mom had set it up to make it easier for Kevin to sleep at a certain time everyday.

"Yeah, and it's actually helping."

"I can see that." I smiled back. "I'm happy for you, you look a lot less tired."

Out of nowhere, Cam cleared his throat and I came out of my daze, I dropped my hand from Kevin and that gave him the hint to take his arms off my waist. I turned back to my locker, thinking about anything I need for homework while listening to their conversation.

"Allison Tinto?" Cameron asked him just as I grabbed my sweater.

Kevin chuckled. "We were just talking. Her brother's on my rep ball team."

"Oh, so nothing there?"  I could help but push away from the interior of my locker to look at Kevin's face for his answer while shrugging on my sweater.

Kevin scoffed. "You can go after her. Allison's not my type." He admitted, shrugging his shoulders.

"I'm not your type either." I mumbled, zipping my sweater up when I noticed Kevin's eyes fall on me. They stared at me in confusion before they narrowed.

Cameron shifted his feet, obviously sensing the shift between us in the atmosphere. "Um, I have a council meeting. I'll see you tomorrow guys. Tell your mom I say hi S."

"Bye." Kevin and I chorused, Kevin's eyes still on me as I shut my locker.

Kevin still hadn't let it go of my previous statement when we were in the middle of the bus ride to my house. He turned his body towards me lazily leaning his arm on the back of the chair. "What's my type then?"

I pursed my lips, turning my head from the window to look at him. "Okay, um, your last two girlfriends had light hair and light eyes."

"So you've been doing your research on my exes."

"No, I just have eyes." I retorted.

Kevin chuckled. "Well I'll have you know it I don't really have a physical type."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. If anything I prefer a girl to take her seriously but at the same time not so much. You know what I mean?"

"No." I admitted.

"Okay, I'd like a girl who's kind of funny, smart, kind, a tiny bit sarcastic, and a little bit fiesty."

"Fiesty." I repeated.

"Yeah, but if I had to say physical attributes then dark brown hair, brown eyes, a dimple on one cheek, a pretty smile, a scar on her forehead from a time when she fell when she was four. And she'd have a laugh that sounds like something going down a garbage disposal and-"

"My laugh doesn't sound like that. You're mean." I laughed, pushing him slightly.

He laughed then gave me a serious look. "Yes it does." Then he grinned. "I'm kidding it's cute. So S, you are my type. Whether you like it or not."

"Wow, I feel special." 

He winked. "Of course you do."

All that confidence Kevin had suddenly disappeared when we were standing on the porch of my house. He started wiping his hands against his pants and running a hand through his hair.

I was about to open the door after unlocking it with my key when I gave him a look. "What's up with you?"

Kevin's eyes looked anywhere but my face. "I'm kinda nervous."

I reached for his hand and just as I thought the nervousness was evident upon his palm. I bit back a smile. It was kind of cute he was nervous to meet my mom.

"Kevin, just breathe okay? It's just my mom. Just think of a kinder older version of me."

He looked me in my eyes. "Believe it or not I'm kind of weird around adults."

"Well now you're going to learn to not be weird around them." I grabbed him by the hand and pulled him into the house. After telling him to take off his shoes and leave them by the side, I did the same and yelled out, "Mom! I'm here with the idiot."

"Sandra," my mom walked in, putting her glasses that were on her head down to the bridge of her nose. "Don't address him as that."

"Mom this is Kevin. Kevin this is my mom."

"Hi Kevin."

"Hi Mrs. Forman, nice to meet you." He gave her that Kevin smile and honestly that's all he ever needed to do whenever he was around people in general. It was enough.

"So biology?" My mom asked with raised eyebrows and I closed my eyes for a brief second making sure she was getting the hint.

"Yeah and before you asked we will be studying in the dining room not my bedroom," I caught Kevin's glance at me but I ignored it. "It's right through the kitchen the other room attached. I'll be right there." I told Kevin.

Kevin started heading towards the kitchen when my mom asked. "Kevin would you like to stay for dinner?"

"Sure if, uh, if you wouldn't mind."

"Of course we wouldn't."

"Thanks." When he disappeared, my mom gave me a look that made me groan out loud.

"No, no, no, it's not like that. We're literally just friends."

"He's so kind and polite."

"Yeah but he's Kevin." I mumbled, crossing my arms.

"He's the same guy that asks you to prom everyday?" Oh yeah, Raina told her about that too.

"Yeah but I'm not going with him nor am I dating him, got that?"

"Whatever you say hun."

That's when Kevin voice called out. "S, babe, do you have my pencil case?"

I glanced at my mom, already feeling my face flushing from that word. 'Babe?' She mouthed, eyebrows up.

"Um," I cleared my throat. "Yeah, I'll give it to you in a second." I scurried out of my mom's gaze,  a hand on my face.

When I went to the dining table where Kevin already had my textbook opened up and took out flashcards I had made previosuly, I swatted him on the arm, handing him my backpack. "Babe? Seriously?"

"It slipped out I swear." He said innocently, taking the pencil case out and grabbing a pencil.

I sighed, sitting next to him. "It's okay."

"So," He twirled the pencil between his fingers. "Does she like me?"

You're Kevin who doesn't like you?

"Maybe, I don't know. You'll find out later, maybe tomorrow."

My mom didn't like Kevin.

She loved him.

Not only her but my dad did too. Raina tolerated him, glancing at him from time to time as he answered everything my parents and asked him for dinner that night, getting less nervous by the hour. And I think he liked them too.

When he was going to head home, he told everyone bye and I was walking him out. On the porch where he was waiting for his mom to pick him up, he said. "Your family is really nice."

"Well behalf of my family, thank you."

"I don't know how your related to them you don't have a nice bone in your body."

"Kevin."

He smiled to let me know he was joking. "Even Raina. She didn't seem as uh, interesting as you made her seem."

"She has her moments yeah."

A car pulled up in the front of the house and Kevin looked over. "Yeah that's my mom. I think when I get home I'm just gonna knock out. I'll text you goodnight, okay?"

"Okay. Bye Kev."

"Bye S." He squeezed my hand before heading over to the car. I watched it drive away before heading back inside to see Raina sitting on the staircase, staring at me weirdly.

"What?"

"So," she turned her phone around in her hand. "When is he coming over next?"