Chapter 16
Beck and I sit down at a table and I glance over the menu. “Do you know what you want?” I ask him after a moment. Beck glances up at me, smiling with a little nod.
Rebecca🌸: I’ll order for us if you’ve chosen :)
I smile, closing the menu and putting it down. “Thanks, and yep, I’ll have that soup of the day thing.”
Beck nods enthusiastically and raises his hand up in the air slightly to catch someone’s attention. A woman comes over, giving Beck a big smile before grinning at me. “Ooh, now what can I get you today?” She asks, her smile friendly and bright.
Beck moves his hands as the waitress watches him, before nodding. “Cool, I’ll get that for you. See you later Beck!”
I blink a few times, before glancing up at Beck. “You know sign language?” That was dumb, it’s obvious he knows it, unless he and this lady came up with their own secret language.
Beck just grins and nods, pulling out his phone.
Rebecca🌸: She went to university with me. Her sister is deaf so she knows it too
“Oh- that’s, that makes sense. Is it um, is it easier for you? To use sign language than type?”
The man opposite me stares at me for a moment, before glancing down at his phone again.
Rebecca🌸: It feels more like a conversation, yes.
I chew on my lip for a moment, looking down at my hands in my lap as I fiddle with my fingers. “Could you um…could you teach me? So I can recognise…and then uh, we could um, have conversations better? What we’re doing now works fine for me but um, I just thought it’d be um, better for you,” I say awkwardly, not daring to look up.
Did I ask him something insensitive? I don’t know what kind of thing makes him uncomfortable and I don’t want to accidentally say something offensive. I know I shouldn’t treat him like a snowflake, because he’s not. He isn’t fragile, but I just…I don’t want to mess this up.
I want to treat him carefully, and it has nothing to do with his mutism.
A tap on my arm makes me glance up and I meet Beck’s eyes. He smiles at me warmly, a light blush dusting across his cheeks.
Rebecca🌸: I’d love to teach you
I peer from my phone to Beck, and then back again, before my lips twitch up at the corners. “That would uh, that’d be awesome. Thank you.”
Beck grins before sitting back in his seat as the waitress comes over with our food. She gives us each a big smile, and I don’t miss the way she discreetly points to me and then winks at Beck. He instantly gets more pink before clearing his throat and digging in to his quiche.
We eat in a comfortable silence for a moment before my phone rings. I instantly sigh when I see the caller ID. Giving Beck an apologetic smile, I answer the call.
“Hello mother.”
“Griffin. We’ve moved the date of the party up. It’s this Saturday. Be there,” she says before hanging up. I close my eyes briefly before putting my phone back in my pocket. Beck looks at me with a little concern but I just shrug.
“I’m really sorry, I have to cancel our date. I have to go see my mum, and she won’t take no for an answer.”
Beck visibly deflates a little but nods in understanding.
Rebecca🌸: That’s ok, I hope things go ok when you’re there. I’ll have plenty of cat pics at the ready :)
I smile at him, feeling my heart squeeze just a tiny bit. “Can we reschedule though? I probably won’t be able to do this weekend, but we could go for a walk together next week if you’re free?” I ask, really hoping that my bloody mother hasn’t just ruined my chances with Beck.
Luckily, he nods quickly, his smile returning.
Rebecca🌸: I’d really like that.
I feel my face heat up slightly as I rest my cheek in my palm. “Perhaps I could take you up on the offer to teach me sign language?”
Beck nods eagerly as we stand up to leave. I let Beck pay for us both only on the condition that I’ll pay next time, and then we’re off driving back to my university. I don’t have much time left until my next lesson, so once he pulls up and I get out, I try not to linger for too long.
Still, I don’t want to just leave like this, especially when I cancelled the date we’ve been so looking forward to. Chewing on my lip whilst I stand parallel to Beck’s car, his window wound down so we can talk. So I can talk, and he can hear me, I guess.
I lean forwards slightly, placing my hand over his where it rests on the car door. Beck glances down at our hands and I feel my face heat with embarrassment.
“Um so uh, do you want to play the game tonight? I’ll be on if you are,” I say awkwardly. Beck just beams at me, turning his hand over and giving mine a squeeze.
Rebecca🌸: That sounds great. I’ll see you online tonight then?
I smile again, finally removing my hand from his and taking a step back. “Cool, perfect, cool, nice. So uh, I’m gonna- bye!” And then I run off like an idiot, my heart pounding as I try not to look like I got embarrassed and ran off, but knowing full-well that’s exactly what I did, and I bet Beck knows that too.
Rounding a corner, I spot Rodger and some of our other idiot ‘friends’. I keep my head down and continue walking, hoping that he’s too busy talking to his buddies to notice me. Unfortunately, he clearly sees me, and gives me a glare.
I keep going though, and he doesn’t say anything or try to stop me. I don’t get what his problem is; there’s no way he has actual feelings for me, so what does he want? Is it just that I’m familiar; something easy to fall back on?
Am I just a fucking rebound?! Well it doesn’t even matter, because I’m not even going to waste my energy thinking about him. Whatever he does, doesn’t matter. Things are going well with Beck, and I’ll admit, I have the teeniest crush on him, so that’s all that matters right now.
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