Authors: Ivan Kendrick
“Thank God. You really are all right?”
“I’m a little shaken, but otherwise I’m fine.”
“That’s good. I’m glad you called.”
“Thank you for protecting me.”
“Anytime.”
“Well, I got to go. See you later.”
“Take care, Amanda. Bye.”
“Bye.”
Nathan held the phone in front of him. He didn’t want to hang up, so he waited for Amanda to do so. When she did, Nathan put his phone back in his pocket.
After he was free to go, Nathan drove back to his dorm. He walked up to his room and entered. The place was dark. Evidently, Ashton wasn’t there yet.
Nathan sat down on the sofa. He picked up the remote control and turned on the TV. He didn’t watch shows often, partly because he was too busy. Nathan browsed through the channels, settling on the news. He walked to the kitchen to make himself a cold-cut sandwich. Nathan then grabbed a bag of Lay’s from the pantry and opened it.
A quarter of an hour later, Nathan saw the front door opening. Ashton was back.
“Hey, bro,” Ashton said when he closed the door.
“Ashton,” he replied. “How was your day?”
“Not bad. I couldn’t find Judith, so I went to work. Maybe she doesn’t live here. It’s no problem, I’ll still talk to her later.”
Nathan nodded, finishing his sandwich.
“How was
your
day?” Ashton asked.
“Eventful,” Nathan answered. He then told him about what happened earlier.
“Someone wanted to kidnap Amanda?”
“It looked like a robbery attempt to me. Amanda looks...well-to-do."
“She does.”
“I’m just glad I was there to save her.”
Ashton thought for a moment.
“You know, I might have kidnapped Amanda myself, if I was as into her as you seem to be.”
“Ha ha ha,” Nathan replied with sarcasm.
“Come on. She’s clearly interested in you. I’m sure Amanda wouldn’t mind if
you
kidnapped her.”
“I’m sure she wouldn’t appreciate it.”
“If you say so.”
Ashton went to the kitchen to microwave a couple of burritos for his dinner.
“Does Kayla know about you and Amanda?”
“No. And I think that maybe it would be best if she never knew. What if I tell her and then nothing happens between me and Amanda? I’d rather not worry Kayla.”
Ashton gave Nathan an it’s-your-call sort of look.
“You’re a lucky bastard, you know. To have two hot women vying for your affection like that. Damn. Not that I’m not lucky enough.”
I wouldn’t call it lucky
, Nathan thought as he disposed of his bag of chips and then washed his plate on the sink. When he finished, he went back to his bedroom to do some homework.
While Amanda was working on her laptop, she heard the ring that indicated she was receiving a Skype video call. She opened the program and saw that the call was from her parents. Amanda accepted the call. After a few moments, she saw her mother, Florence, on screen.
“
Hi, mom!” Amanda greeted. She noticed her mom’s expression and added, “Is something wrong?”
“
I just wanted to know if you’re all right.”
“
What do you mean?” Amanda asked, looking up. She spotted Kellan standing around the corner of the entrance that led to the kitchen. He grinned sheepishly. Amanda rolled her eyes and looked back at her MacBook’s screen.
“
We heard about your attempted kidnap.”
“
I figured as much. Don’t worry about it. I’m fine. Hughes got it under control.”
“
I just had to hear it from you. We were about to give you a phone call, but your brother is on the computer and he saw you were online on Skype.”
Amanda smiled, picturing Ryan in her mind. He was still in high school, a junior, and thankfully still single (as Florence said).
“
Is he there?” Amanda asked.
“
Yeah. You want to talk to him?”
“
Sure.”
Florence stood up from her seat. Seconds later, a young man took her place. He was blond with blue eyes, like Amanda, and just as good-looking. His hair, of course, was shorter. It was styled in a wavy tousled do.
“
Sister! Great to see you,” Ryan told her.
“
It’s great to see you too.”
“
We’re glad that you’re all right. When mom heard about what happened, she went mad.”
“
Yeah, I can imagine.”
Ryan laughed.
“
How’s father?”
“
Here,” said a deeper male voice. Amanda saw her dad, William, peer around the corner of the screen. Only part of his head was visible. She laughed.
“
Hi, Dad!”
“
I’m glad to see you’re fine, princess,” he said, moving to stand behind Ryan.
“
Thank you.”
“
We can’t wait to see you again.”
“
I want to see each of you too, dad. I’ll see if I can fly to spend Thanksgiving over there.”
“
We’d love to have you here,” Florence said, moving back to be visible on the screen.
“
How’s school going?” Amanda asked her brother.
“
Good. I’m getting lots of A’s.”
“
And dating lots of girls.”
“
What?” Florence asked as Ryan laughed out loud.
“
I’m just joking.”
“
Don’t get any ideas from your sister. I want to see you with a college degree before you get cozy with a girl.”
“
Calm down, mom!” Amanda said, laughing. “He’s 17, cut him some slack.”
“
Don’t worry, sister. I get along with women just fine.”
“
Did you just hear what this Don Juan said?” Florence asked William, who shrugged.
“
Let’s change the subject, will ya? You all are making me uncomfortable here,” said Ryan, looking at his father and then at his mother. His cheeks were turning red. Amanda shook her head.
“
How are you doing over there?” William asked.
“
It’s great. A little cold, but nothing I can’t handle. I like it here. The university’s wonderful.”
“
Are you getting lots of A’s?” asked Florence.
“
Of course, mom. I’m studying hard.”
“
Attagirl.”
Amanda smiled, feeling glad that her mom was proud.
“By the way, you don’t find it boring over there in that small town?”
“Mom, I grew up in a small town.”
“Joliet’s not that small, but point taken.”
Amanda shrugged.
“It’s not that I like it here. I just enjoy being free from the paparazzi.”
William whistled.
“It’s amazing that you’re already that famous.”
“I’m not that famous, dad. I just have a loyal fan base. They love me.”
“I see.
Have any guys there caught your interest?”
The question made Amanda blush.
Well, I guess I had that coming.
“
No, dad. I’m new here.”
“
I was just curious.”
“
Ha,” Ryan said. Amanda narrowed her eyes at him, feigning irritation.
“
All right, we’ll go now,” Florence said. “You’ve got to study, right?”
“
Yeah,” said Amanda, grabbing a book and waving it in front of her laptop.
“
Take care, princess,” William told her. “And call us every now and then.”
“
I will, dad.”
“
Okay. Be safe, dear,” Florence said.
“
Goodbye, sister.”
“
Take care,” Amanda told Ryan. She then clicked on the End Call button and closed the Skype window. She looked in the direction she thought Hughes was. Amanda was a little annoyed with him, but he’d done the right thing. She hadn’t gotten in touch with her family since arriving in Ithaca. It had been good to talk to them.
Before reporting for work the next day, Nathan decided to exercise a bit. He’d be a little tired, but the workout would be good. Nathan took it easy and worked on the punching bag at the gym. He felt like venting.
Every day, Nathan was getting increasingly more confused, instead of the other way around. He pictured Amanda in his mind. She was just as lovely as he remembered, perhaps even more. Nathan then pictured Kayla, with her bright smile. Even though she wouldn’t grace a magazine cover without the aid of makeup, she was still very beautiful.
Who should I go for? My beloved, unreachable one with stunning beauty, or the girl next door who loves me?
Nathan decided to test his feelings about the two of them before making a decision. He had work that day, but he’d leave early enough to be able to spend some time with Kayla in the afternoon. She’d expressed interest in going to the beach. Unfortunately, Nathan couldn’t afford the time or money to travel even to Manhattan at the moment. A trip had to wait until at least Thanksgiving.
Just then, Nathan got an idea. After returning to his dorm and showering before school, Nathan sent Kayla a text. He knew just where to take her.
R u busy tonight?
Kayla replied a few seconds later.
Most likely. Got any plans?
I thought you might want to go out.
Kayla sent a frowning face before her reply.