Fan Fiction ❯ Almost An Angel ❯ Apology ( Chapter 9 )

Michael and I left the kitchen, then headed upstairs to his bedroom. I don't know why that's where we both went. Neither of us said anything abut where we were going; it was like some weird sort of unspoken agreement. I guess we both figured it was 'safe' ground for him.

He sat down on his bed, I sat down at his desk. We both just sat there for a while, not saying anything. Talk about awkward.

"What did you want?" Michael asked me after a few minutes. I blinked. It was a good question; what exactly did I want to say?

"I wanted to say I'm sorry." I said slowly. That was it, right? I knew for sure that I felt bad…

"What for? There's no rule saying you can't bring a guy home for the night if you feel like it, is there? Your parents aren't here; what was there to stop you?"

I couldn't ever remember Michael sounding so… bitter, until then. It was like anger and hurt mixed together, then soaked in battery acid.

And I didn't know what to say. I mean, what could I say? It was the truth, and I didn't know myself why I felt so bad. It's not like we were going out or anything; what was there to feel so guilty about? But he looked so sad… That's when it hit me.

"No, there isn't a rule. And there wasn't anything to stop me, except that it was rude. We could've gone to his place or something. Besides, I'm not sorry for sleeping with him; we're going back out again, so why should I?"

"Then what are you sorry about?" Michael asked me, getting louder and sounding frustrated. I halfway expected him to start crying or yelling or something from the look on his face and the way his hands were curled into fists.

I wasn't angry, but when he got louder, so did I. It was like an automatic reaction. "Look, I'm sorry because I didn't mean to make you feel bad! I hate seeing you upset or sad, I hate hurting your feelings, I hate making you look miserable! Okay?"

He stared at me for a while, holding his breath; I don't know if he meant to do that or if it was an accident, but it freaked me out a little, to tell you the truth. Then he started talking, whispering really.

"Davis… Thank you for not wanting to hurt my feelings. It's nice to know you care. But… You shouldn't have to feel guilty. You didn't do anything wrong. I'm just too sensitive for my own good."

"Michael,"

We both jumped a little at the sound of the phone ringing. The telephone was on the desk, so I grabbed it and answered. "Hello?"

"Davis, honey?" It was my mom.

"Hey, Mom."

"How are you, dear? You seem upset… Is everything okay? How's Michael?"

"I'm fine, Mom. Everything's okay. Michael's fine." It wasn't quite the truth, but she didn't need to know that her 'precious boys' were having a little fight. She still sounded suspicious when she started talking again.

"Are you sure? You sound… Nevermind, it's none of my business if something's wrong, if you don't want me knowing… Anyways, I was just calling to tell you that we won't be home until tomorrow. Grandpa's offered to cook for us tonight,"

"And you'd have to be crazy to pass that up." I said, grinning. My Grandpa's a great cook; it's always a treat when he feels good enough to making something for us.

We both laughed, and Mom seemed to forget that she was suspicious of just how happy I really was. "Exactly. I'm glad you understand. Well, I love you, honey."

"I love you too, Mom." I felt like I was a little kid again, but at least I knew I was loved.

"Is Michael around?"

"Yeah, he's right next to me…" I didn't know what she wanted with him, but as long as she didn't pry him for answers on why I sounded 'unhappy', it was fine with me.

"Would you put him on the phone, please?"

"Sure thing, Mom. One second…"

I covered up the receiver of the phone with one hand and looked at Michael. "Mom wants to talk to you for a minute." I told him, offering him the phone. He scooted to the edge of his bed and took the phone from me.

"Hello? Hi, Mrs. Brown. I'm fine. No, we haven't thrown any huge parties…"

I couldn't help it, I had to add on to that. "Yet!" I screamed.

Michael glared at me, but didn't have a chance to say anything before Mom started asking him things again. "No ma'am, Davis hasn't gotten into any trouble yet… No, no… All right. Tomorrow evening, got it. I'll see you then." He paused for a few seconds, and I could just make out my mom talking a mile a minute. "Okay. No, I won't forget. Okay. Goodnight."

He tossed the phone back to me, and I hung it up. "So, what'd she want?" I asked.

"She wanted to make sure that you were behaving, to tell me when they'll be home, in case you forget, and we're supposed to buy a carton of eggs and an onion before they get back. She wants to try out a new recipe your Grandfather taught her."

"You want me to get the stuff?"

Michael looked like he was going to say something, then changed his mind and just nodded.

"Okay. Is there anything else we need?"

"Sara's almost out of juice boxes; she likes Pink Lemonade best. Jason was complaining that he's out of soda; make sure it's Pepsi, he's going through an Anti-Coke phase. Esther's had a sweet tooth all week, so grab a package of Oreos or something. And we'll need more napkins soon, so get those too. Other than that, I can't think of anything."

I was surprised to hear that he actually paid attention to what my little brother and sisters wanted, but I guess I shouldn't have been. It did make me feel like I was shirking on my brotherly duties, though.

"Juice, Pepsi, Oreos, and napkins. Got it. I'll be back in less than an hour, okay?"

"Okay."