[ C h a p t e r - F o u r t e e n ]

Chapter 14

“Van, open up, it’s your father," my dad knocked loudly. I opened the door with one shoe in my hand. He smiled at me while I slipped the shoe onto my foot.

“Yes, dad?” I asked as I stood up. Jeremiah inherited his height, around the six foot area while I inherited my mother’s fragile stature.

“I talked to that Jonah boy,” he told me with an approving smile. I furrowed my eyebrows, trying to play it innocent.

“What does that have to do with me?” I asked him and he smiled at me.

“Jeremiah told me you like this boy,” I groaned loudly, shaking my head as my hands buried themselves in my hair.

“Why does everyone believe everything Jeremiah says? He has the mentality of a six year old!” I asked him and he shrugged. “I have to go downstairs now or else mom will cut my legs off and make them for dinner," I told him as I stepped out of my room.

“As long as she fries them, I’m okay with it,” my dad joked and I rolled my eyes.

I walked down the stairs and saw Mere at the bottom, talking to my brother. I sighed, shaking my head as I walked over towards the tree. I placed Jonah’s gift under the it before turning around. My eyes met Jonah’s and he looked shocked. Did the wrapping paper start to peel? What if he recognized the bag?

“Savannah, hey,” he smiled.

I waved. “Hi, Jonah.”

“You look pretty," he complimented me and I felt my face warm up. I glared at the floor.

“Thanks, you look pretty, too,” I told him as he furrowed his eyebrows with a smile on his face. “I meant nice; you look nice.”

“You clean up nice," he nudged me and I glared at him, punching his shoulder. He stared at me, shocked for a moment before he laughed. “You hit like a girl!”

I punched him harder and he winced. “I’d like to retract my statement. Anyway, what’d you get for Christmas?”

I looked at him and shrugged. “I got some more clothes, a pair of shoes, a new headset, hair stuff, a new backpack, and some other stuff. What’d you get?”

“I got a new pair of shoes, a few new memory cards, more membership for XBOX 360, a new headset, and a few new games,” my eyes widened slightly at the latter part of the sentence. What if he’d gotten the game I’d gotten him already for Christmas?

“What games?” I asked him.

He shrugged. “A few games, sports games, really," he told me and I nodded. Thank goodness the game I got him wasn’t a sports game. I’d have to beat around the bush so badly that there wouldn’t be any bush to beat when I’d be done.

“Any games you wanted that you didn’t get?” I asked him and he nodded.

“The new STF game but I’ll get it eventually," he shrugged and I nodded, containing my smile.

“I have it," I smiled smugly and he glared at me. “Christmas gift from Ms. Antoinette; it’s one of the many perks of working at a video game store.”

“Yeah, I saw it there," he nodded.

“I’d invite you to play it but one, it’d be rude to just up and leave the party and two, my mother and father wouldn’t approve of me being alone in my room with a guy,” I shrugged.

He laughed and I smiled before curiously looking at him. “Did you meet my brother yet?”

He nodded his head. “Yeah, when I came inside, your mother was yelling at him to come inside and get ready,” he shrugged while I nodded.

“What about Mere?” I asked.

He pursed his lips. “Not exactly.”

I beckoned him towards the kitchen. We entered to see the two of them eating cookies and drinking milk.

“Jer, Mere,” I smiled when I realized that their names rhymed.

“Jonah, Vanna,” Jeremiah smirked and I glared at him, telepathically sending my brother the message not to say anything. My brother just laughed before hopping down from the counter.

Mere was staring dreamily at him and I held back from vomiting everywhere. “Mere?”

“Oh, yeah, hey Jonah,” she snapped back to reality. She was busy watching Jeremiah bend over to refill his milk. I wanted to puke. “Vanna? Can I talk to you for a minute out there?”

“I don’t think that’s the best idea, Mere,” I warned her, discreetly glancing from Jer to Jonah.

“Too bad, Vanna," she yanked me out of the kitchen and I turned to face her once we were in the clear. “I want to kiss him.”

“Who?” I asked her.

“Your brother!” she snapped as if it was obvious.

I shrugged. “Then do it.”

“I don’t know if he likes me!” she complained and I sighed, taking out my phone. “What are you doing?”

“Asking him if he likes you, duh,” I replied as I brought up Jeremiah’s contact.

She smacked my phone out of my hand, causing it to drop to the floor. I stared at it. “If it’s broken, you’re paying for the damages.”

“That’s not a big deal right now, Vanna! Can you find out if he likes me without being obvious? Please?” she asked and I sighed before nodding.

“This isn’t a one man job,” I told her and she shrugged.

“Just get it done.”

~~~

After filling Jonah in on the plan, we split up and I went to the backyard. Jonah is supposed to tell Jeremiah that my mother needs him in the yard and Jeremiah will casually walk into the backyard where I’ll corner him and ask if he likes Mere. It’s not obvious, right?

After waiting a moment, I heard footsteps coming towards the balcony. Jeremiah was whistling as he closed the door. He looked around and saw me, furrowing his eyebrows. “Can I talk to you?” I inquired.

“About?” Jeremiah raised his eyebrow. “If it’s about how you’re pregnant, I noticed. Your stomach got a little bigger; I was just waiting for you to tell me; I didn’t want to press-,” I cut off my brother.

“No, you dimwit; I’m not pregnant! I wanted to talk to you about Mere,” I told him.

I noticed he started looking away. “What about her?”

“Well, do you like her?” I asked him and he shrugged.

“She’s okay," his response was dull.

I leaned in slightly. “Okay? What does okay mean?”

“It means, she’s okay,” he told me.

I frowned. “Just okay? Not fantastic? Extraordinary?”

He looked at me for a moment before sighing. “She’s cool.”

He changed the adjective and I narrowed my eyes. “What’s wrong, baby brother?”

“Firstly, I’m older than you, and secondly, nothing. Nothing is wrong," he told me as he blew out a breath, causing a white fog to surround his face momentarily.

I placed my hands on my hips. “Something’s wrong, spill,” I told him. He just sighed in response. “Is it how she looks?”

He shook his head. “She’s pretty.”

“Is it her personality?” I asked.

He shook his head again, chuckling lightly. “She’s funny, sweet, and can eat a lot; all the things I look for in a girl.”

I pursed my lips. “What is it?”

He was silent for a moment. “Are you sure she likes me?”

I stared at him for a moment. His question caught me off guard. “Of course she likes you. Why do you think I’m out here? Not because I want to be, that’s for sure.”

“Are you sure?” he asked.

“Yes, I’m sure!” I snapped. Jeremiah nodded before turning to enter the house.

Why is it always other people that think their problems are gigantic when in reality, they’re miniscule? Why is it me that always has problems with relationships? Am I doing something wrong? Is there a class I can attend that’ll help me with this?

“And sis?” he asked and I turned to look at him. “I’m still going to help you find out who your mystery kisser is.”

I groaned and placed my head on the banister, my ears filling with the sound of my brothers mocking laughter.

~~~

I was sitting on the couch when my aunt came over and plopped down beside me. “Hey honey.”

“Hi, Aunt Sylvia,” I smiled at her.

She grinned at me. “Got any boyfriends I should be worrying about?”

She winked at me and I groaned. “No, Aunt Sylvia.”

“Are you sure?” she questioned. Why is everyone always questioning my statements?

“What has my mother told you?” I asked her.

She laughed before shaking her head. “Your mother hasn’t told me anything. But may I ask you a question?” I shrugged in response. “Who is that boy that Jeremiah is talking to?”

I didn’t even need to look in their direction. I furrowed my eyebrows. “Jonah?” she nodded her head vigorously.

“That’s the one! Who is he?” She asked with a smile on her face.

“He’s Jeremiah’s friend,” I vaguely responded. She laughed, rubbing her chin slightly.

“That’s funny, because I asked Jeremiah the same thing; he said that Jonah is going to be your next boyfriend," she chuckled.

“What?” I asked, my voice raising a few octaves. I looked in Jonah and Jeremiah’s direction to see Jer wave at me and indiscreetly wink. I turned and looked at my Aunt in horror. She just smiled before standing up and walking away.

~~~

When it was time to open gifts I was surprised when my mother handed me mine. I didn’t expect a gift, seeing as the party was at my house. Jonah obviously had the same expression as me because he turned to me. “I didn’t realize I was getting a gift, too," I muttered.

I rolled my eyes, opening my gift slowly. I stared at the beanie. It wasn’t just any beanie, though. It was the same material from Waverly’s dress. I stared at it for a minute before a smile tore across my face. “Is this the cloth?”

Jonah nodded with a small smile on his lips as he opened his gift. When he saw the game, he stared at it for a minute. I was nervously biting at my lip. “I'm totally playing this when I get home," he nodded with a grin.

I looked at him and nodded. “It’s so awesome!” I found myself scooting closer to him on the couch, flipping the game over on my lap and then holding it closer so he could see it. “You can play with three other people. It’s so cool; you can trash houses, crash cars, and even have your own custom made house. You can make a family; you can kill your family. You can have pets.”

I fixed my glasses as Jonah smiled. “Sierra and I are going to be playing this all day tomorrow. Thanks, Savannah.”

I frowned. “How’d you know it was me?” I asked.

“You made it so obvious. A normal person doesn’t gnaw on their lip like a woodchuck while someone is opening a gift,” I bumped his shoulder with my own while I stared at the game. I felt our legs touching and I felt a shiver run down my spine.

Someone coughed and I looked up. I assumed it was my father and I thought he was going to push me over onto the couch and sit between us immaturely but I looked up to see Jeremiah with a smirk on his face. His arm was extended outward and he had a mistletoe in his hand, holding it right above me and Jonah.

Uh oh. He told you he’d help you.