Excerpt from Only For You

            “What do you want to see?” she asked.

            “I get to pick? You never let me pick.”

            She shrugged. “Today’s your lucky day.”

            “I guess I should get dumped more often.”

            She smiled at me. “What do you want to see?”

            “Nothing with love or that chick-flick shit.”

            “Okay,” she said. “That’s fine. I don’t care what we watch.”

            I laughed. “Since when?”

            “Just pick,” she said, pinching my side.

            “I want something with guns, explosions, and death and stuff.”

            She rolled her eyes. “You are so cliché.”

            “Hey,” I said. “What happened to me getting to pick?”

            “I said you could pick the movie. I never said I wouldn’t make fun of you for it.” She stepped toward the ticket booth and pulled me along with her. “How about the new James Bond movie?”

            I nodded. “That works.”

            “And it has hot chicks in it.”

            “You think I didn’t already know that?” I laughed.

            She glared at me for a moment then stepped toward the window. She ordered our tickets, which I paid for, despite her protests, and then we walked inside. I didn’t like it when Scarlet paid for anything. I knew she had a mound of student loans hanging on her shoulders. My entire education was paid for by my parents but Scarlet didn’t have that luxury. I offered to help her pay back her loans, but being the stubborn woman that she was, she refused any aid I offered. My parents loved Scarlet like their own daughter. If I asked them to pay off her debt, they would do it in a heartbeat. But, of course, Scarlet would never let that happen either.

            “Do you want something from the concession stand?” I asked.

            She raised an eyebrow. “Are you serious?”

            “What?”

            “Is that a serious question?” she asked. “I always want something from the concession stand.”

            “That’s right, I forgot. You’re a fatty.”

            She smiled at me. “A hot fatty.”

            I whistled. “Smokin’.”

            We stood in line, and when it was our turn, I ordered. “Just a medium popcorn, please.” I opened my wallet to grab the cash when Scarlet spoke.

            “And a bag of skittles, milk duds, and another medium popcorn.”

            I stared at her, dumbfounded. “I thought we would share a popcorn?”

            “I’m hungry.”

            I laughed. Scarlet never failed to surprise me. I pulled more money from my wallet and handed it over. We grabbed our snacks and walked into the auditorium.

            “I thought were going to dinner after this,” I said.

            “We are.” She sat in her chair and started shoving the popcorn in her mouth. Her candy was sitting on the arm rest, ready to be devoured immediately afterwards.

            “Are you starving or something?” I laughed.

            She glared at me. “No. I just like to eat.”

            “Apparently.”

            She threw a piece of popcorn at me, and it hit me on the shoulder. “I work out.”

            “Thankfully.”

            She threw another piece of popcorn at me.

            The movie started and I stared at the screen. I leaned back in my chair and watched the unstoppable action of the movie. It was a nice distraction from the disturbing reality of my mind. Halfway through the movie, Scarlet leaned her head on my shoulder but I didn’t mind the touch. I thought she was just being affectionate, but then I realized she was eating from my pail of popcorn because she already finished hers.

            “You are unbelievable,” I whispered. I laughed quietly, trying not to disturb our neighbors.