Chapter 2: 2. Call Me By Your Name

Call Me by Your Name (Italian: Chiamami col tuo nome) is a 2017 film directed by Luca Guadagnino. Its screenplay, by James Ivory, who also co-produced, is based on the 2007 novel of the same title by André Aciman. Call Me By Your Name chronicles the romantic relationship between a 17-year-old, Elio Perlman and Oliver, a 24-year-old graduate-student assistant to Elio's father Samuel, an archaeology professor. [Source: Wikipedia]

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FFAEK: After watching this masterpiece, Emily never looked at peaches or Timothée Chalamet the same way ever again.

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Chapter two: Call me by your name

“Wait a minute,” I said, looking into his green eyes, “You know my name?”

Nathan Callahan rolled his eyes like he couldn't believe I would ask that, “That's such a stupid question. We've been sitting together for a year, Kingsley.”

Well, yeah, we had. But, we hadn't ever talked. So I didn't assume he knew my name. Besides, him knowing my name would not be a good thing at all.

“What? You're just gonna stand there and stare at my face?” Nathan said as he stood up, “I won't let you go until I have seen your sheet, Kingsley. Hand it over.”

“This is ridiculous. Are you in middle school?” I said as I shoved my test sheet deeper into my backpack, out of his reach.

Nathan smirked at me as I did that and said, “You don't think I can just take it from you if I really want?”

“You won't take it unless I give it to you,” I said.

“Why wouldn't I?” Nathan said, leaning against the desk a little, still smirking.

I was about to say cause you're a gentleman and something along those lines, when I remembered he wasn't.

He had punched a senior in the face on the first day of school. This would be nothing compared to that.

I put my chemistry copy and textbook in my bag and said, “You can just celebrate with your perfect grades instead.”

“Grades you think I don't deserve,” Nathan said as he straightened up to his full six feet height. I was kind of scared. What if he lunged for my test paper again?

I quickly zipped my bag, “It doesn't matter what I think. You got it, and you can celebrate, so there's that.”

Nathan was giving me a weird look, “You celebrate when you have a perfect test score?”

He asked with so much conviction and mockery, suggesting that I was a complete moron, that I was that type of lame person who celebrated getting perfect marks.

I didn't. Because I didn't get them that much. Self-sabotaging was really getting in my way.

I placed the straps of my backpack on my shoulders, ready to head out, “Every small win is worth a celebration, Callahan.”

Nathan boomed in laughter. It was a mocking laugh. It was supposed to make me feel horrible.

But Nathan Callahan was laughing. It was so surreal, I kept blinking at him, “Oh My God, Kingsley, you are unbelievable.”

Nathan shook his head as he packed his backpack as I remained where I was for reasons I didn't know.

“Do you wanna stay here forever?”

He said as he started for the door.

I followed him. We walked out of the classroom and ran right into the love of my life.

Landon McArther walked by, wearing a brown sweater over his baby blue shirt. His khakis looked amazing on him, so did his shoes. His whole fit screamed, I am more sophisticated than you and I know it. He was glancing at his Apple Watch as he walked by.

I think I drooled a little as I saw him from where I was standing. I was not really hidden, but he couldn't see me because he wasn't paying attention. Yet he was all I could see, all I could pay attention to.

“Donʼt tell me,” I heard his voice and realized Nathan had been in front of me the entire time.

Shit, Nathan probably saw me drooling all over for Landon.

“The look on your face,” Nathan said with a condescending smirk, “Wow, Kingsley, don't tell me you have a crush on that douche.”

That douche?

Did he just call the smartest, kindest person in the entire school that?

I stalked towards him with quick steps and glared at him, “Did you just call him a douche?”

I probably looked like a chipmunk in front of him, glaring at him from my height.

“So what if I did?” Nathan crossed his arms over his chest. His forearms flexed. Gosh, could he just not.

“What do you mean?” I demanded, “He is so not. You don't even know him.”

Nathan scoffed, “As if you know him any better than I do.”

I glared, “I'm in the debating club with him.”

“So?” Nathan asked, “How is that relevant?”

“Umm, I know him better because we're in the same club?” I said. Why did I sound so unsure of myself?

“You tell me,” Nathan cocked his head to the side, “So you go to the club to stalk him?”

I walked forward, and he fell in steps with me, “No, of course not. I do debates. I'm kinda good at it.”

It was a surprise to my half introverted self that I could ever be good in debate.

“Or so I've heard,” Nathan mumbled, “But McArther? Even his surname sounds snobbish.”

“As if it's his fault,” I replied, “He is awesome, alright?”

Nathan rolled his eyes, “He is such a tool. He walks around with this air like, ‘Look at me, I'm Landon, and I am the best’.”

“No, he doesn't.” I said, and again I sounded unsure, even to myself, “He is the humblest person ever.”

That made Nathan snort again. He was snorting an awful lot. I kind of wished his nose got sucked in somehow.

“Have you even met him?” He sounded amused.

“Shut up, you have to believe me in this. I've been in love with him forever.”

As soon as the sentence slipped out, I bit my tongue. Me and my big mouth. Because I was so used to this idea in my head, being uncharacteristically in love with Landon, I hadn't even batted an eye before I blurted it out.

I felt extremely humiliated. I could feel my heartbeat in my ear.

I shook my head. I should never be ashamed of Landon, ever. He was not anyone to be ashamed of, only to be proud of.

“Love?” Nathan's eyebrows had risen in action, “Really, Kingsley? Love?”

I shrugged, “So?”

“Let me guess, was it love at first sight?” Nathan turned to meet my eyes, “Did you think he was your soulmate right the second you met him?”

I gulped. I had romanticized my meet-cute with Landon too many times.

Landon had been my true north since I set my eyes on him on my first day at high school, in freshman year. There was an orientation assembly, and when I walked in, I bumped into him. He offered me the kindest smile, asked me if I was a freshman, and offered to find my seat.

It wasn't love at first sight. But it wasn't not love at first sight, either. When I met him, I knew he would be someone in my life.

“No, it wasn't,” I rolled my eyes, “But like-”

“It's those romance books you read, isn't it?” Nathan asked, shaking his head. “They made you so delusional that you think you're in love with Mr. I am so fucking good at everything.”

Landon was good at everything. He was perfect to the T.

“He is not good at sports, I think,” I mumbled.

Nathan was exasperated, “Is that what you picked up from what I just said? For God's sake, Kingsley. You're on another level.”

I almost pouted, “Look, it's not that, alright. He is really kind to me, and he is good and right- I actually have no idea why I am trying to convince you my love for him is real, and he's a good guy.”

Nathan stopped walking, “I don't either.”

That was when I looked around us. I hadn't even realized we were almost at the front gate. I looked at him and found him looking at me.

Why was I conversing with Nathan like he was an old friend?

“Would you like to go to the club with me?” I asked.

“I don't go to clubs, Kingsley,” Nathan said.

“I meant the debating club, jerk.”

“Yeah, I know.” Nathan said, as if nothing could ever be more lame than the debating club, “I would rather wash my eyes with soap before I ever set foot in there.”

I sighed, “Fine then. Like I care.”

Nathan looked me over, “Bye, Kingsley.”

I watched him walk away. I watched him cross the front gate and vanish. I stood there for some reason and realized he knew I read romances.

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I plopped down in the seat Leanna had saved for me. I was 10 minutes late. I hadn't realized until we reached the front gate that I should have followed Landon to the debating club instead of following Nathan to the front gate as I tried to convince him that Landon was a good guy. That was such a waste of time.

Landon smiled at me as I settled down. It made me want to melt into a puddle.

The way I caught Landon's attention was like an enemies-to-lovers plot. I knew he was the most passionate debater here. When I debated against him once, I had this weird determination that if I could beat him, that would mean I am good at this too.

It would be like defeating the final boss of a game.

It was only a mock debate, new members vs. the old ones. I had joined the club a few weeks before that. I even had problems completing the whole five minutes of my speech. I was running out of topics to talk about, arguments to counter. But that day, when I stood up for my speech and looked at Landon's serious face, as he regarded me like I was insignificant, I vowed I would wipe the floor with him.

And wipe I did.

Everybody in the debating club saw me for the first time. They were in awe. But the person who was most impressed was Landon himself.  I knew I had made a permanent place in his brain by defeating him.

Landon was kind of obsessed with me that week. He would talk about how awesome I was constantly to other seniors.

A girl could only take so much.

I sighed, swatting the memory away.

“What took you so long?” Leanna asked, glancing at me sideways.  She was my closest friend at school. She knew me better than anyone else. I also knew her better than anyone else.

“Where did you go? You are usually here early.”

“I was-um-” I stuttered, “got out of the class late.”

Leanna narrowed her eyes at me and looked away. I couldn't tell her about Nathan. She would disapprove of me talking to someone like him, which was for my own good. I'd disapprove too if I were in her place.

Leanna didn't like Landon either. She was always telling me he was a pretentious snob, just like Nathan had. When we were alone and talking about the debating club, she would do an impression of Landon being serious about debate. I laughed along with her, and at the same time wondered if I'd ever be able to tell her about my crush on him.

He was literally the only guy I liked in my school. The boys in my class made me want to puke. There were the seniors. Some of them were okay, but they also seemed kind of way out of my league.

If I wanted a high school romance, Landon was my only chance. I might not experience it otherwise at all. I could not have a high school romance in college.

I focused back on the present, listening to the seniors talking about the upcoming competition; the Interstate Debating Championship. It was going to be an online debate.

Landon was already looking at me, expecting me to be enthusiastic about it.

“I don't know,” I said, feeling a little nervous, when I realized all eyes were on me, “I'm not good enough.”

Landon shook his head, “You'll never be good enough if you don't practice, Emily.”

God, I loved the way he said my name, like I was someone special.

“You have to go out there and try and try until you get good at it.”

I shook my head,“I'm not ready. I only really started debating this year. I’ve only given speeches like four times.”

Landon looked at Simon then. Simon Wallberg. Our debating club prodigy.

“You, Leanna and Emily should be on a team,” Landon said like the senior he was, “I think you guys will be great together. It's an online debate, so there's nothing much to be afraid of.”

I exhaled. My introvert self was not ready for this. I didn't hate debates. But I hated the moment building up to them.

“Fine,” Simon shrugged and looked at us, “What do ya say?”

Leanna nodded in agreement. So did I.

It might be one of the last chances I got to impress Landon McArther.

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A/N: me sitting at the back reading all your guesses and comments.

Oh, you poor clueless children

*Laughs like a villain*

Writing is so fun