Crush on you

"Okay Lee, I have to leave now." Casey exclaimed from the kitchen. She'd been standing there for more than an hour cooking.

Leila shifted in her bed. 'This is really boring. How can they expect me to stay like this for three weeks?'

"Leila, I said I have to go." Casey repeated but this time she was standing at the foot of the bed. "I cleaned a little; you know put everything in its place. And... I made dinner. it's on the counter outside."

"Thanks a lot Cas,"

"Hey, cheer up." Casey said when she heard her friend's tone.

"But Cas, how am I going to live with this stupid sprained ankle? I'm going to miss a lot of classes and I don't even know what to do. Should I inform them that I won't be able to attend classes for the next three weeks because of my ankle?"

Casey looked kindly at her friend and was about to answer when she stopped her. "And the fact that a guy is going to stay here with me is enough to drive me insane. And not any guy, Fred!"

"Lee, is there something I don't know about that Fred guy?" Casey asked and pulled a small chair Lee had put in the corner with a small table with books and magazines thrown carelessly on it.

"Huh?" Leila murmured. "Wh- what do you mean?" She sat up straight and pretended to be busy putting a pillow behind her back. She didn't want to answer Casey's question. What would she tell her? That she'd had a crush on the guy for months and that she probably saw him more than ten times each day and never once had she had the courage to go up to him and say anything. That she'd seen him go out with every gorgeous girl and still dreamt about him day and night.

"I mean, you almost had a heart attack when I opened the door last night. Then you stood there as if you were made of stone, not even saying hi to the guy." She sighed and reached out to put a hand on her friends shoulder. "Lee, I've known you for years. And... I know you're always shy around guys. It's just that I've never seen you react like this before. Do you like that guy?"

Leila lowered her head and looked at her hands. "Do I like him?" She repeated the question more to herself than to Casey. "I don't know Cas." She shrugged restlessly then raised her hands in the air in desperation. "What if I do? Do you think someone like him will give a girl like me any attention? It's impossible Casey. Impossible!"

"You are one stupid girl Leila. Why wouldn't he? You are a beautiful, sexy and most importantly nice girl. Your only problem is being shy, so what? Everyone has their own problems. I'm sure Fred himself has his own problems. It doesn't mean we should stay at home and live miserably because we don't like some things about ourselves."

"Casey! He dates girls like Benny and Amanda and... You know these cheerleaders. What am I compared to all of them?"

"Oh, I should kill you for what you just said. Benny?? Amanda?? You are way too better than these girls. Lee, have some self confidence." She shouted the last words and it made Leila's eyes water with tears.

She looked up and Casey saw the tears in her eyes. "Honey, I didn't mean to upset you, it's just that you don't believe in yourself. You have to." She said gently.

"I know Cas, I know you didn't mean it. But... uh I hate this! Why can't I be a normal girl with normal relationships and normal love life?"

"You are normal! Jus-" Casey's words were interrupted by a small noise.

Leila quickly glanced at the clock next to her on the nightstand. "It's five thirty. That might be Fred. Didn't you say that he told you he'll be back at around five?" She asked in horror.

"Yeah, I'll go see."

Casey got up and walked carefully outside the room. Looking around her in the small place she found no one. She was about to go back to Leila's room when she heard the doorbell. She went back to the door but before she opened up she paused for a second.

"Fred took the keys in front of me earlier today." She said thoughtfully.

"Who is it?"

"Fred!"

Casey opened the door slowly and found him standing with bags in his hands and hanging off his shoulders and he was carrying this big box which made a low squeak.

"What's in the box?" she asked quickly.

Fred walked past her and threw some of the bags on the couch casually as if the place belonged to him. He looked at the box he was still holding in his hands. "That's... nothing."

Raising an eyebrow Casey titled her head a little before realizing that the door was still opened. She closed it and turned to Fred who was standing there putting the box carefully on the counter of the kitchen.

"How is Leila?" He asked not looking at her but at the mysterious box.

"She's fine. Bored I think, but the pain is bearable. I thought you have the keys?"

She felt more than saw him stop still. "I... I have them."

"Fred."

He turned around and stared at her for a while. "Casey, can we talk about this later? You know..." he said and pointed towards Leila's bedroom.

Casey agreed and nodded her head. "Okay, I'll go say goodbye to Leila." She said and he watched as she opened the bedroom's door, went inside and closed the door behind her.

Fred sighed heavily and sat down on the couch he'd spent the night on last night. His mind was working very fast, busy with what he'd heard when he opened the door with Leila's keys and accidentally heard her conversation with Casey. He couldn't help but eavesdrop when he heard her say he dated girls like Benny and others and that she wasn't going to compare herself with them. After listening to that he ordered himself to go out and stop listening to what they were saying. He tried to go out but on his way he hit the foot a table placed near the door. Fred had to move quickly, open the door and leave fast. He didn't want her to know that he'd heard them. That he'd found out she actually liked him.

She liked him! The thought itself made him happy and worried at the same time. What he'd heard her say made him somehow feel sad. She thought she wasn't good enough for him, that Benny or any of the other girls he went out with were better than her. 'That's not true, she's a nice girl.' He thought and wondered why she thought they were better than her. He also wondered what she'd think or say if she found out that he himself might not be good enough for her. Maybe not even good enough for any of the girls he went out with the last few months.

Fred was so busy with his own thoughts that he didn't hear Casey come out. He looked up at her and wondered if she'd told Leila that he might have heard their little conversation.

"I better get going. Chris's probably home by now." She said with a smile that told him 'Don't worry'.

"Did you go to the pet's store?" Casey asked as she gathered her things and started heading for the door.

"Yeah, I went there and told a guy named Ryan about everything." He rubbed his chin and thought for a moment. "I think he was more surprised that I'm the one informing them of her injury than being surprised that it really happened to her."

"Yes." Casey answered seriously. She opened the door and turned a still thoughtful expression to him, "Take care Fred. If you want this, you have to take care what you do and what you say."

By these last few words she left him alone. Fred thought about her words for a while before he finally shrugged and carefully grabbed the box from the counter.

"Take care huh? Okay." He mumbled before knocking on Leila's door.

"Come in."

Fred opened the door. "Hi there," he said from the doorway and watched as she sat up straight and pulled some curls behind her ear. "Can I come in?"

"Sure." She whispered and gazed with wide eyes at the box in his hands.

He went in and stopped beside her side of the bed. "I got you this as a sorry, and as company." He mumbled as he handed her the box and watched as she put it next to her on the bed and with hesitant fingers she started opening it.

"What is it?" She asked shyly without taking her eyes off the box.

Fred didn't answer her. He just waited for her to find out herself. And when she finally saw what was inside he heard a loud gasp.

"Oh my God." Leila exclaimed as she carried out the little puppy and put it on her lap.

"I got it from the pet's store when I informed your boss of your injury. And after some strange his questions and my answers he told me that you'll keep the job. And that he'll just get someone till you can get back on your feet. I think he said the puppy belonged to a dog you really like, her name is Lily? "

Leila was speechless. She just stared from him to the puppy and back. "I... yes ah- Thank you."

Fred grinned and sat on the chair next to her bed. "I thought you'd be bored if you stayed alone for so long. I just hope you like him."

"I love him." She said and for the first time he saw her giggle. Fred gazed with wonder at her beautiful brown eyes; she had the most wonderful eyes he'd ever seen.

"So what are you going to call him?" He asked trying to look at the puppy instead of looking at her eyes. He knew it wasn't a good idea staring at her like that. What had happened earlier today, their kiss and how she had reacted to it had made him want nothing more in life than to make love to her and feel her body close to his. And he knew if it wasn't for Casey, he would have done something as stupid as go further than just kissing her.

"I donno, what do you think?" She asked and he could see some of her shyness fade away.

"Well, under these circumstances what do you say we call him Step?" Fred answered with a wide grin.

"Step? Hmm." She pretended to be thinking hard about it but her smile betrayed her and she started giggling.

"I take that as a yes." He looked down at the sleepy puppy in her hands and shook his head. "Step it is!"


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"So, you gonna be staying here with me all the time huh?" Leila asked the puppy as she stroked his back. She still couldn't believe Fred actually did this. She'd been there when Lily —a dog owned by one of their costumers- gave birth to more than ten cute little puppies. Back then she so wanted to have one but she'd convinced herself that she was busy all the time and that having a pet wasn't an option. Right now she had nothing to do except for sitting here in her bed and dream about Fred.

'Fred! How can he be so nice?' She thought while she waited for him to bring the food Casey had made when she was here two hours ago. Leila was shocked when Fred came in carrying a tray with a lot of plates on it in one hand and two cans of beer in his other hand.

"I found these in your fridge, if you don't mind." He mumbled as he put everything on the small table, picked it up and placed it near her bed.

"No, it's fine."

"Okay. Let's see, here we have pasta and chicken fingers. I actually bought pizza and some stuff with me because I didn't know that Casey made anything. So you have a lot of options. Pizza or pasta?"

Leila stared with a smile at the food in front of her and felt her stomach protest in hunger. "I think I'll eat anything. I'm... kind of hungry."

Fred didn't answer, he just smiled and she felt as if her heart was about to stop. He was gorgeous. 'God, if I'm dreaming, I don't want to wake up ever. Coz seriously I don't think this is really happening.' She thought for the million time.

"So, I don't know anything about you aside from your name and that you went to school with Rob, Chris and Casey. What else?" Fred asked few moments after they'd started eating.

Leila took a sip from her beer before answering, "There's nothing more actually."

"I'm sure there is. What about your family?" He asked casually.

Leila stopped eating at once. She looked down and replied. "What about my family?"

"I don't know," he picked one of the chicken fingers and took a bit. "Where are they?"

"Alive."

Fred looked up when he heard her tone. "Alive? Good, and..."

Leila thought for a moment, 'I don't want to talk about that.'

"I... well, you can say we are not in touch." She answered finding it the best way to explain her relationship with her parents and two brothers.

"I see."

"What about you?" She asked trying to push her family subject away from the conversation.

"I'm a lonely child. My dad left us when I was five and my mom raised me up."

"I heard you're from San Francisco."

"Yes," He replied shortly.

"Your mom still lives there?"

"Yes she does."

Leila noticed how he smiled when he mentioned his mother. She also noticed he found the whole subject as unattractive as she'd found it. He went silent for a while and she found herself cursing, 'Why do I always have to ask the wrong questions? I always drive them away. I blew the only thing that might have come closer to a chance with Fred.' She thought sarcastically.

"Listen Fred, you don't have to stay here with me. I know you feel guilty about my ankle, but you don't have to do this." She murmured and watched closely, wanting to know what would be his reaction.

Fred seemed to be taken aback from what she just said. "Leila," he started and she couldn't help but love the way he said her name. "There's something I want to tell you. I don't think you can handle staying here alone..."

"Fr-"

"Let me continue please. I know you're going to say that Casey can come stay with you. No I know she's busy with Chris and her job. You just said you don't have a close relationship with your family and that means no one can stay with you. On the other hand I happen to be the reason all of this happened. And I also happen to be free without anything to stop me from staying here and help you. I also happen to be in almost all of your classes and I think I'm a good tutor."

"But I don-"

"Wait I'm not done yet." He pointed out when she started protesting. He knew that what he was about to say was something she might either accept it and everything would be just fine from this moment on, or not and throw him out of her place right away.

"Leila, I've sort of been wanting to..." He rubbed the back of his neck nervously and realized this was the first time he'd actually asked a girl out. "You know, I've wanted to um... ask you out."

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Well, hiiii guys I hope you liked this one. Right now i know where i'm going with this story and hopefully I'll write more offten.

Keep telling me what you think about this one.