Into Your Own

Ch. 4: Getting Down to Business
As I sat in my Volkswagen bug outside of Evie's house my stomach growled. The pizza that I had bought was really getting at me. I snuck a look at it. This was even worse than the candy bar. God, it smelled good. How did Evie keep her figure eating junk like that? Mystified by the strange workings of genetics I decided it was time to go in and get some learning. Taking a deep breath, the magical pizza, and my bag I got out of my car and walked up to her front door, which was painted a shameful color of blue. I rang the bell and waited looking around to make sure no one was looking. Evie and I would have to coordinate our stories to give a reasonable explanation as to why I might be at her house, may be something like I was working for her dad on one of his projects.
Just as I was having this thought the door opened to reveal a slightly wet Evie toweling her hair dry. Why would she take a shower in the middle of the day? This seemed very odd to me, but I didn't mention it as she was odd anyway, and I didn't want to get off on the wrong foot. Or have my foot stuck in my mouth yet again.
Instead, "Hello Evie. It's great to see you again."
"May I come in." I added as an after thought because Evie had yet to move out of the door way. As I looked at her I noticed that she had been turning steadily more red since she had opened the door. My words seemed to snap her to her senses though because she stepped back and made a noise that spoke of an apology even though the words didn't pass her lips.
"Well, here's your pizza anyway." I shoved the thing at her mostly because I was afraid I would shove all of if in my mouth I had to hold it for a minute more. "I got the large size if that's okay. It seemed the most economical."
"That's good because that's what's for dinner. I usually make it, but with you coming and needing so much help I didn't think I would have the time. Dad likes pepperoni." She said this almost absently as she looked at the ground. I would have thought she was embarrassed about her home except for that the place was spotless. She took the large pizza box from my hands and left to go put it in the kitchen. Her words really struck a note with me. She was so mature, making dinner I bet she even cleaned the place too. May be I was being a little selfish taking up her time, but she was the one who had accepted to do it. And it would get her off cooking for at least a week. I smiled at her thoughtfulness, thinking of her father and getting his favorite instead of her own. May be she wasn't as cold as she would have liked everyone to believe.
"Oh! Just make yourself comfortable in the living room," she yelled across the house as if she has just noticed that she had left me standing in her entrance way. I hesitantly walked into her house. Once through he small hallway that followed the door the place opened up into a large central room. On the far wall there was a huge chunk of the wall cut out which opened up to reveal the kitchen where Evie was standing like it was perfectly natural for her to be there. I on the other hand had never cooked a day in my life. I was a bit intimated by her obvious comfort there. There were also a set of stairs on the wall to my right which I assumed lead to the bedrooms upstairs. I figured the room I was standing in was the so called living room.
It was a good room, well lived in, with a brown carpet and a old blue couch with fading green dots, may be not fashionable but comfortable. The couch was facing a television on the wall to my right set on top of a high standing wood table. There was another table next to the couch where I assumed where we would be working since this seemed to be the main area of the house.
Evie looked up as I walked in and became even more flushed. I thought that may be something was really wrong with her so I asked, "Are you alright? You seem a bit flushed. Do you need to lie down because I can come back later."
"Oh no I'm okay...." Here she got a very mischievous twinkle in her eye that I didn't entirely like, "But I have to tell you that making out with Brad is not an extracurricular activity. I think the teachers would be offended that you labeled it as such." Now it was my turn it blush. She had seen us. I gulped and adverted my widened eyes. I was so embarrassed. She had seen me with Brad. God! Had she noticed anything weird? Like that I was totally faking it and that I held not attraction for Brad in any way?! I mean he was a nice guy and a good friend but I could never seem to get up enthusiasm for "doing" things with him, not that I had ever mentioned it to anyone. And after the first few times when Brad had been disappointed that I wasn't into it I had just started faking it. He pleased me in so many ways I could at least act like I was into him. Relationships were about compromise anyway. I looked up at her to see if she was accusing or just making fun and as she can into my vision I was suddenly struck at the thought of Evie doing those things to me, pushing at my shirt and stroking my breast with grace instead of Brad's fumbling. Jees, he had almost taken my shirt off. How much had she seen? I almost asked the question out loud, but I thankfully I couldn't seem to find my words. My mouth opened and closed like a dumb fish as I stumbled around for something to say. She seemed to be enjoying my discomfort very much which made me angry, "Well! I'm allowed do that with him. He's my boyfriend, and I thought it would be kinda crude to tell you I was gonna go do things with him after school."
She looked a bit a taken aback at my words and a little sad, but then her eyes dropped and I wasn't too sure if I had just imaged the look because when she looked back up again at me she had a practical look on her face, "I guess you do. Wanna start. It's why you can after all not to take about you sex life."
I was disappointed at her logical point of view. I chalked the feeling up to the shock to finding out that Evie had seen Brad and I. I guess I was doing it right because she would know right? She was going with Jimmy? And I really couldn't dispute her claim I had come there to study.
So I lightly sat down on her big couch and immediately sank into the thing. It was like quick sand, not that it was uncomfortable. The opposite actually, it was very nice like a pillow, but it was very odd for me because all of my furniture was either an antic or very fashionable and therefore uncomfortable. It felt so good that I fell slightly into it and stared to nuzzle it like a cat. It even smelled nice like sun and lavender. When I looked up Evie was standing over me with a funny little smile on her face and slightly laughing like I was a little child or something. Feeling a bit like she was going to pat my head or something I straighten up a bit and grabbed my back pack which I had set on the floor and started to get my books out. Evie moved around to the other side of the couch and sat down and the thing sank even more. I told her about my plan to keep others from knowing; she just mentioned that she thought I had put a bit too much thought into this and that if I just said something about doing it for extra credit no one would question me because they all knew her dad was a total sico and wouldn’t ask him about it. Even if they did I didn't think that they would find it all too strange that he had no idea what they were talking about. And then we started to work.
It was hard, but Evie made it seem easy and she had a way of explaining it which actually made sense or shooting it through a different logic than the book which was actually easier, but the thing that most prominent in my mind was not the math it was the fact that because the couch was so old it dipped us together so that we were pushed together and Evie's leg was pressed very tightly against mine making it burn. I wondered if she was feeling the same fire I was. Was that normal? Could it just be that Evie was unusually warm and was heating me. I was pretty thankful when her father walked in the door and 6:30 releasing us from our positions for a dinner break, too bad I couldn't eat it, but I also couldn't leave. Evie had spilt up the pages of the book into four sections; one for everyday that we had until the test, and we had only gotten about half way through the first one. We would have to get cracking afterward my parents would expect me home by ten at the latest. They didn't really care what I did as long I was home by a respectable hour and didn't shame the family name.
Evie's father on the other hand seemed to be very interested in what we were doing; he also seemed a bit shocked to see me when he first walked in. Had Evie not told her father I was coming? He dropped his briefcase and did a double take before looking at Evie with a puzzled frown, raising one eyebrow quizzically. I shot up, "Hello sir. We were just studying together. We have a test at the end of in the week and we thought it would be a good idea to study." I smiled my best and hoped he swallowed the lie.
He looked at Evie for a couple of seconds every intently; I couldn't see Evie since she was still behind me on the couch, but I had the feeling she was giving her father the same look he was giving, daring him to refute my words, but then his face broke into a smile, "So what are we having for dinner. I'm starved. I had to set up three different dishes to day." And with that his eyes were back to the big blank, friendly holes that they usually were.
Mr. Dapple wasn't a big man, like his daughter he was pretty short only about 5'8'', but he still a good looking guy with dark hair, a bit of a tan and wide gray eyes just like his daughter's only were his eyes were normally kind of blank where Evie's eyes seemed to see and judge everything.
"Your favorite Dad, pizza." Evie extracted herself from the couch and stared to move towards the kitchen. Mr. Dapple put down his case and moved after his daughter, sitting at the table and moving restlessly like a little kid waiting for his meal while he pulled off his tie and jacket. They started talking about their days in a very familiar way, and I took this as my sign to leave and go get something to eat for myself, probably a sandwich from the Togo at the other end of town.
As I moved to the door Mr. Dapple yelled, "Hey where do you think you're going? You aren't going to get out of having dinner with us. We might not have lived in this town forever but we still have manners." He looked at his daughter expectantly like she should really be the one to insist that I should stay.
"Yeah you can't go yet; we haven't finished. Sit your ass down.”
Evie had taken the pizza out of the oven where she had apparently put it before to keep it warm. How had she kept the box from burning? Seeing me look at it she became defensive, “I don’t like it when it’s been microwave and dad doesn’t like it cold. And I would really rather it been warm too.”
She smiled a little and pointedly looked at the third chair at their table. I hesitantly walked back into the room as I tried to make up for my rudeness. How was I going to explain that I couldn’t eat their pizza. But I stood at their doorway and awkwardly tried to explain, “I would really like to stay, don’t get me wrong. It’s just that right now I’m on a diet that my mom put me on. I went a little crazy over the summer and had a bit of ice cream. I really just wanted to know what it tasted like. It’s no like I went on a binge.” For some reason the truth was coming out my mouth and the true resentment I had for being put on a diet over a little ice cream. I blushed a little realizing that I had given a bit too much information. Evie and her father looked at each other a bit confused, not quite sure if I was joking, but too aware of my discomfort to say anything.
“I could make you something else,” Evie said kindly. “I won’t poison you, promise.” She said trying to lighten the mood with a smile.
“Oh, I couldn’t put you out that way.”
“No problem. What do you want?” Evie got up from her chair and moved over to the counter.
“Ugg... It’s not what I want; it’s what I can have.” Evie and her father exchanged another look.
“You know no one would ever know if you had pizza with us. We won’t tell anyone. Would we Dad?”
“Of course not. It’ll be our little secret.” Her father smiled at me kindly.
I looked at the pizza longingly. Really what could it hurt? I looked back at Evie and she seemed to think it was a good idea. Evie was the smart one right I should listen to her opinion. Smiling I sat down at he table feeling rebellious as I asked for a slice. Evie came and sat back down and shelled them out. The pizza was as good as it smelled. god may be better. It was like a small piece of heaven. Who ever had thought of the idea was a genius. Evie and her father seemed to be very amused by my enjoyment of the pizza.
“Good Huh?” Mr. Dappled asked.
“Yes very. It’s one of the best things I’ve ever tasted.”
Evie didn't seem to be able to take it any longer because she suddenly burst out laughing. I sat up in my chair startled and as I did my pizza fell out my hand and landed face down on the floor which only succeeded in making Evie laugh harder. I was a bit hurt at this point, in my house we never laughed at each other and with my friends it was always a mean laugher at someone's inabilities. But when I looked at Evie and her father, who was laughing now too, I only saw joy. Evie looked so beautiful laughing that I couldn't help but chuckle myself. Not wanting to disappoint her with my cleaning abilities or lack there of I picked up my fallen slice with my thumb and forefinger and took it over to the garbage and dropped it in. Seeing me clean up a little made Evie calm down enough to grab a paper towel to clean up the grease off of the floor which was thankfully niobium. I smiled at her and she passed me on the way to the trash can and surprisingly she smiled back. The rest of dinner went well. I talked with Mr. Dapple a little and thus acquired a bit of information about what he was doing that would differ the really interested or suspicion. Then Evie and I got back to work and we quicker this time and were finished by 8:00.
"I guess it's time for me to leave."
"Guess so I see ya tomorrow. And don't worry I won't come up to you and say hi to you at school."
I was hurt by her careless joking I felt like we might kind of know each other after spending four hours together, "You know I wouldn't mind if you did. I'm popular enough for the both of us." I joked back and then left. I turned around before I got into my car and saw Evie still standing there looking at me. I waved and so did she and then I got in and turned on my car to go back my cold house and to call Michelle and tell her about my new extra credit assignment.