Taylor walked back to his house in a daze. He couldn't believe he had actually kissed Laurie......sort of. He didn't mean to, he just felt kinda.......vulnerable, in a way. He didn't really know how to explain it. Maybe a good talk with Ike would help him clear his head.
Tay opened the door. "Hi Mom, I'm back!" he said. Not waiting for a response, he ran up the steps to Ike's room. Tay knocked on the door.
Ike quickly wiped a tear away. "Come in," he said. He saw Tay walk in. "Oh, hey," he said casually.
"Hey, Ike. I gotta ask you some advice," he said.
"Sure, go ahead," he said.
Tay hesitated. "Well, I walked Laurie home. And when we were at her door, I kinda kissed her cheek," he said.
Ike nodded. "Yeah, go on."
"Well, I didn't mean for it to happen. I mean, I like Laurie as a friend, nothing more. But she called my name and I stopped walking back, and she gave me a kiss back. It wasn't just a regular kiss, I mean it was on the cheek, but I could tell there was some feeling in it," he rambled on.
"So, you kissed her and she kissed you back and you didn't mean it?" Ike asked.
Tay nodded miserably.
"Oh, boy. Now she probably thinks you like her," Ike said.
"What do I do, Ike?"
Ike thought for a minute. "Well, you gotta call her and let her know you didn't mean anything by it. Tell her easy, just in case if she really thought it did mean something."
"Okay, sounds like good advice," said Tay. "Then what?"
"Well, explain to her that you still want to be friends and give her the time and space she needs. Listen to what she says, okay?"
"Okay, thanks Ike. I'm going to go call her and tell her now," said Tay. He jumped off the bed.
"Whoa, hold on pal. Since Laurie had to leave, she's probably eating dinner right now. Give her some time," he said.
Tay sank back down on Ike's bed. "Yeah, you're right. I'll wait 15 minutes.
At the Woodman house, Laurie was happily eating her slice of double cheese pizza. She couldn't believe that Tay had kissed her! And she kissed him back! The sparks were flying. Laurie set her slice down on her plate. "May I finish in my room? I want to call Halley, if that's okay with you."
"Sure, hun. Go right ahead," said Mr. Woodman.
"Thanks Dad!" Laurie took her food and drink and rushed upstairs, still being careful not to spill any of it. She sat her stuff down on the table next to her bed and dialed Halley's number. About 30 seconds later, Halley picked up.
"Hello, Green residence," she answered professionally.
"Halley, Halley, it's me Laurie!" she shrieked. "Guess what?"
"LAURIE! What?" she asked.
"Remember Taylor Hanson?"
"Yes."
"He lives right behind us!"
"Cool!"
"And guess what again?"
"What, again?"
"He was walking me home today, and when I was about to go inside, he gave me the sweetest kiss ever!"
"Oh, Laurie! Your first kiss!" Halley exclaimed.
"I know! And then I kissed him back! Both kisses were on the cheek, but I could tell they meant something."
"Boy, Laurie, you are lucky," said Halley.
"Oh, I know," said Laurie. She sighed.
They talked for awhile until Halley had to go. They promised to call each other the next day. Laurie hung the phone up. As soon as she hung it up, it rang again. She jumped. She answered the phone.
"Hello?"
"Hi, Laurie, it's Tay."
Laurie's heart did a flip. "What's new?"
"Not much. Listen, Laurie, about me kissing you......."
"Oh, Tay, I loved it," she said.
Tay gulped. "You did?"
"Yeah. It was very sweet. It was my first kiss."
Tay gulped again. This was going to be harder than he thought!
"Did you like it?" asked Laurie.
Tay didn't respond right away.
"Tay? You there?"
"Oh, yeah, sorry. I dropped the phone," he said.
"No problem." Laurie heard her father calling her. "Tay, I gotta go. My dad wants me. Talk to you tomorrow!"
"Okay, bye Laurie."
"Bye Tay." Laurie hung up the phone and ran downstairs. Tay hung up his extension and let out a huge sigh. This had not gone the way he planned.
Chapter 8
Chapter 6
I Knew Them When
While We Grow
