Chapter 20: Chapter 20 - An Awkward Date

Friday night arrived, and John paced in front of the Durham house. Donovan had told him not to come in, so John waited. A little later, Donovan climbed out of his room on the second floor, leaped effortlessly to the ground, and sneaked toward John.

“So, I take it your family doesn’t know about Emilee,” John said, matter-of-factly.

Donovan stuck out his lower lip in imitation of his father. “Son, you must only date a Hunter or their family. If you don’t, our kind will die out, and the world will end.”

John shook his head as he laughed. “I still think you should tell them. They’ll probably worry.”

“Like you told your dad?” Donovan retorted, “He doesn’t even know that you’re a Hunter. Come on, let’s get moving. We’re supposed to meet at Madelyn’s house in twenty minutes.” He gave John a mischievous smile. “Emilee said that Madelyn’s parents are out of town.”

John and Donovan walked down the quiet streets. Madelyn’s house was on the east side of town. Thankfully, they were moving quickly, and the town wasn’t very big.

They chatted idly until they arrived at a large, three-story house. Several Corinthian columns supported a large, wrap-around porch. The siding, punctuated with red brick, was slathered in a creamy shade of white. The lawn was obviously well-maintained. Sprinklers gently whispered over the grass.

John and Donovan walked up the sidewalk and tried to take in the immensity of the house.

“Well, brother, Madelyn’s got money. Good choice, dude. You sure set your sights high,” Donovan said.

Since John could not think of a response, he simply grunted.

They rang the bell. It was a fancy bell, and it took about five seconds to finally finish its song.

Emilee opened the door. She wore a loose red and white sweater that fell down on one shoulder, contrasting perfectly with her pale skin and blond hair. Most of her hair was pulled up, but a few curly ringlets clung to the side of her face. She also had on some designer jeans which looked like someone had chewed holes in them. John had never really liked that look, but she wasn’t wearing it for him.

“Whew, babe, you look great,” Donovan said after a moment. He kissed her on the lips and wrapped his arm around her as they entered the house. John stood hesitatingly in the doorway.

“Come on,” Emilee said, “Madelyn’s waiting for you. She won’t bite, unless you ask her to.”

Emilee smiled hungrily, giving John the sense of a wolf. He still felt that something was off with her, but he could never quite put his finger on it. It was probably just his awkwardness around girls. Donovan knew what he was doing. John most definitely did not. John shivered a bit, called up his courage, and followed.

The inside of the house was just as nice as the outside. Hard, dark brown wood floors contrasted with the milky white walls. Paintings of flowers and smiling people dotted the walls with splashes of much-needed color.

As they entered the great room, John’s heart skipped a few beats. Madelyn descended the stairs on the opposite end, wearing a nice green and white baseball t-shirt. The local Battle Axe Beetles logo was blazoned on the front. Comfortable jeans covered her legs, and red converse shoes enclosed her feet. Her thick, sandy blond hair, which was usually in a ponytail, was down and perfectly framed the dusting of freckles on her strong face.

“Hi, John,” Madelyn said as she walked up to him, adjusting her glasses. She always had the scent of fruit. Oddly, he could never think of what kind.

John’s brain went blank. He frantically searched his mind for some words—any words—to say, but he was afraid he would say something stupid like he had done before.

“Brother, all you have to say is, ‘Hi,’” Donovan whispered a little too loudly. He was obviously enjoying this. John took a breath and tried to remember what Corinne taught him.

Just talk to her and listen, he thought to himself. “Hi, h-how are you?” He asked.

“I’m doing fine. How are you?” Madelyn replied, studying the ground. Maybe she hadn’t gotten over the cupcake incident after all.

The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

“O-okay, thanks.”

“Well, if the awkwardness is finally done,” Emilee said, “Why don’t we crash in the living room?” She smiled with amazingly perfect white teeth.

“Hey,” said Madelyn, “Let me show you guys around.”

Suddenly, Emilee’s beautiful face darkened. “We don’t want to waste time doing that, do we?”

Madelyn’s thin lips tightened into an even thinner line and quivered a little. “I mean, just the upper floors. Then, we can come back down. It’s what good hosts are supposed to do, right?”

Emilee smiled, and the darkness lifted. “Okay, if you want to bore the boys to death, then I guess we can do that.”

Madelyn almost audibly relaxed. John wondered what was going on. Donovan didn’t seem to notice anything. He just smiled at Emilee. The third floor had a bunch of storage and other things. The second floor was more interesting. It was nestled on one side of the great room up the grand staircase. Two hallways were split by a large aisle. Madelyn took them down one side, which was really a bunch of spare bedrooms and studies.

“This room’s my favorite,” Madelyn said, opening a door that showed a room filled, bottom to ceiling, with books. “It’s our library. It’s been in our family for generations.”

“Wow, you have nerdy friends,” Donovan joked to Emilee.

John just shook his head.

Madelyn took them to the side that faced the driveway. “My room is on this side,” she said, pointing to the third door on the right. “I get to see everyone as they come to visit. There are some really great sunrises, too.” She looked almost wistful and somehow sad.

Emilee cleared her throat. “Okay, we’ve seen this extremely interesting second floor. Let’s go back downstairs already.”

They returned downstairs and moved to the middle of the room, where a black leather sofa and love-seat blocked off a section in front of the television.

They talked for a while, mostly about school, and they played a game of cards. John tried not to make a fool of himself. He eventually started to loosen up and even enjoyed himself a little bit, but Madelyn was still tense. She kept fidgeting with her hair. John tried to say stuff to get her to relax, but nothing worked. He wondered if she was as scared as he was.

Finally, Donovan said, “Well, Emilee and I need to talk. We’ll be over in the study if you two kids need us.”

“Wait! What do you want us to do?” John asked.

“Whatever you want, brother,” Donovan said and winked as he and Emilee walked to a room next to the stairs and closed the door. Silence lingered in the great room for a moment. John’s chest constricted, and he felt suffocated by panic. His heart began to pound.

“It’s okay,” Madelyn said, “Do you want something to drink?”

“Uh, sure. I’ll have some water.” John said. He was always thirsty when he was stressed out. Considering he had never been alone with a girl, his mouth felt as dry as a desert.

Madelyn brought him a cup of water from the kitchen and sat down next to him. “Well, what do you think of my house?”

“It’s very nice,” John said after a gulp, “Thanks for letting me come. I felt bad after…uh…after that one time we talked about the…desserts. I’m not always the best at this talking thing.” He cursed himself silently. Donovan had told him not to bring it up.

“Oh, it’s fine. You don’t seem like the type who feels comfortable talking.” Her voice was a mellow soprano.

It was ironic, considering the fact that she’d barely said anything tonight.

“It’s not that,” he answered. “When I’m talking to a pretty girl, I get flustered. I don’t know what’s going to come out of my mouth.”

“You’re talking to me now,” Her gray eyes searched his. John thought he heard a small tremor in her voice.

“Well, yeah, but you’re not pretty now.” John kicked himself as he said it. He knew he would say something stupid. “I mean, you’re beautiful, but you’re also normal.”

Madelyn, who had worn a serious expression the entire night, smiled bemusedly. She put her hand to her mouth and vainly suppressed a laugh. “Okay, John, I’m normal. I guess that’s a good thing. What else?” She scooted a little closer to him.

“And, uh, you’re smart, and uh, um. . .” He could not think of anything else to say as His nose caught a whiff of that fruit smell again. He loved it, he decided. Madelyn took his left hand. Her hands were small, so she had to use both. John felt a warmth move up his hand. She leaned in for a kiss, and he met her lips with his.

He had never kissed before, so he had nothing to compare it to. It seemed wonderful. Her lip balm tasted like raspberries. Raspberries! That was what her hair smelled like tonight. Madelyn trembled a bit, but put her hand on his chest. He tried to take her head in his hands, but at that moment she suddenly pulled back.

“What’s wrong?” He asked, panting for breath, “It wasn’t anything I said, was it? I always ruin these things.”

“It’s not that,” She said, tears welling in her eyes, “You’re really nice, but I can’t do this.”

“Why?”

Madelyn shook her head and buried her face in her hands. She visibly quivered, and then she curled up onto the couch and placed her head on his leg. Not knowing what to do, John tried to pat her shoulder as gently as he could.

She cried there for several minutes. Eventually, she sat up and imploringly gripped his hand. “Can you do me a favor?”

“Uh, sure, what do you want me to do?”

Her eyes pleaded with his. “Just tell Emilee and Donovan and everyone that we made out. Don’t let her know I cried like this. Please.”

John was silent for a moment. Making a girl cry was not the way he hoped this evening would end. He wished he could be like Donovan right now. Donovan could always find the perfect answer. “O-okay, I guess I can do that.”

“Thanks.” Madelyn lay back down for a few more moments. Finally, she got up and walked softly to the bathroom. She returned in a few minutes, all her makeup and hair as tidy as she could make it.

John sat there on the couch.