Confidence Building 101

by Matt Tims

  “No, honey, it’s fine!” she called out. “You don’t have to leave!”

  Kevin hustled out of the backdoor before sprinting around the side of the house to his car. Ms. B wasn’t wrong about a lot, but she couldn’t have been more mistaken when it came to his plans. There was no way that he was staying anywhere near this house.

  Chapter 4 – Some Helpful Advice

  Friday Night. 8:57 PM.

  If there was a bigger dumbass on the planet, then Kevin was waiting to be introduced. He couldn’t believe he was in this situation after all he’d been through today. Somehow, his notebook was still at his buddy’s house.

  What would be the best way to approach this? He texted Scott to find out when he was going to be home tomorrow, but had yet to hear back. That was definitely a good sign for his friend. Chances are Eva was keeping him pretty busy.

  He’d left the spare key on the kitchen table and blew past it when he rushed out of the house earlier, so the only way he would get his homework was if Ms. B had returned the key behind the shed. That, or if she was home.

  What if he just knocked on the door? Would that really be the end of the world? Sure, she would’ve had time to think the situation through. She would finally understand what an obsessed pervert he was, but what if she didn’t care? Or better yet, what if it didn’t bother her? She’d never embarrassed or attempted to make him uncomfortable in their eleven years of knowing each other, so maybe she would act like nothing happened at all?

  His call to Scott went straight to voicemail. Yeah, he was busy alright.

  Kevin grabbed his keys and walked out his front door. He would just head over to Scott’s place. Did he have a game plan? Absolutely not. But maybe that’s why nothing ever worked out for him. Perhaps it was because he was always overthinking and dissecting every little situation in his life. He would just go with the flow for a change. Whatever happened, happened—regardless of how humiliating it may be.

  He pulled up to the dark house and parked out in the street. The idea of Ms. B not being home was the equivalent of swallowing a Valium; but then again, her car being in the garage had already fooled him once today. He couldn’t let his guard down.

  He walked back to the shed to find the spare key missing from its usual spot—not that he’d expected things to go any differently. She was probably home with his luck too. He headed back around the house and to the front door when his worst nightmare came to fruition. How could every single thing go wrong in one day?

  Ms. B’s black SUV was pulling into the driveway.

  He couldn’t see anything through the dark windows as the garage door opened and she parked inside, but she was going to be furious with him. She would have to be! The look on her face when she greeted him in the driveway seconds later said it all.

  “Hey, Kevin!”

  She was smiling. Even now? Maybe it was just a habit though. The real question was why wasn’t she mad at him? He’d uncomfortably gawked at her earlier in her bra and panties, and now it was like she didn’t remember or care. A tight pair of black yoga pants and a long sleeve royal blue workout shirt only caused her smiling face to glow that much more. Everything about her drove him insane.

  He nervously greeted her, “Hey…Ms. B…”

  The SUV’s trunk opened to reveal a plethora of groceries next to a gym bag.

  “Can I get a hand with these?” she asked.

  He helped haul bag after bag of food, drinks, and snacks into the kitchen. Only a handful of words were exchanged while they moved from the garage, to the kitchen, before heading back to the garage again. A “thank you” here, a “where do you want this?” there, and a few smiles along the way. There was no denying the elephant in the room that still lingered, however. She was going to bring up his perverted ways eventually. It was only a matter of time.

  “Where’s Scott?”

  His head perked up at the sound of her question. Well, it was official: he was the biggest moron on the planet.

  Scott was supposed to be at his house! How had he forgotten about that? Covering for his friend had completely slipped his mind with how concerned he’d been about their laundry room incident; and now here he was, standing in the middle of his buddy’s kitchen, helplessly staring at the wall while he prayed for a strike of lightning to put an end to his misery.

  “He’s-he’s uh…” Kevin stammered in an attempt to buy more time. “He’s uh…”

  Why was he still trying to lie? He wasn’t good at it. He was awful at sneaking around, deceiving, and being untruthful in general. Maybe a little honesty would solve all his problems.

  “He’s with his girlfriend.”

  Lisa’s jaw dropped. “What?”

  “He’s with his girlfriend,” he said, nonchalantly picking through a bag of fruit on the kitchen counter.

  “Scott has a girlfriend?” she asked, flabbergasted.

  His hand continued to play with the groceries in front of him as he meekly answered, “Yeah…”

  Soft, warm skin briskly clamped around his forearm. His head shot up to see Ms. B standing directly next to him. Her vanilla scent was intoxicating. Her gentle touch was soothing and reassuring. All of his worries melted away as he gazed into those welcoming blue eyes. What was he doing here again?

  She guided him through the kitchen and into the family room. The next thing he knew, he was sitting on the couch with his best friend’s mom. He was speechless. He was nervous, anxious, and fidgety; but then he looked into her eyes again, and he was zen.

  “We need to talk.”

  He couldn’t get enough of her voice. “We need to talk” could have been “You need to drive across the country for me,” and he would’ve been on board. What he really wanted to know was what she did at the gym earlier. It didn’t take a genius to figure out that she got a workout in before going grocery shopping, and the only thing he could picture was her body in that amazing bra and panty set from this afternoon. How ridiculous would her always unbelievable butt and legs appear after a lower body workout?

  …

  “Kevin.”

  …

  “Kevin!”

  A few quick blinks cleared his mind. “Yeah?”

  That smile was back, and she was lightly giggling now as well. She just looked so cute, and he was the reason she was laughing! That wasn’t anything new though. He had a long track record of zoning out and daydreaming while he was in her presence, and she always seemed to get a kick out of it—even if she never said anything.

  “Scott has a girlfriend?”

  He took a deep breath and admitted, “Yeah, but you can’t say anything.”

  Her look was one of immense confusion. “What? Why not?”

  “Because he doesn’t want you to know,” he revealed.

  “Why?” she asked again.

  “He thinks you’re going to hassle him,” he said.

  “Hassle him? What!? That’s ridiculous!” Lisa loudly declared, annoyed and offended. “How could you say that? When have I ever been difficult? That’s insulting, Kevin!”

  He gulped as a result of her intense reaction. He’d never seen her angry like this before. “Why are you yelling at me? I don’t think you’re difficult. I’m just telling you what Scott said.”

  “Yeah, I don’t know why I’m yelling at you…” Her voice grew quiet and calm before she started to laugh in disbelief from what she was hearing. “I’m sorry. I just can’t believe he has a girlfriend. For how long has this been going on?”

  “Two months,” he answered.

  “Two months?” she questioned. “He’s been dating a girl for two months and I had no idea? Do you know her?”

  “Yeah, we’ve met a few times.”

  Just how out of the loop was she? “She doesn’t go to school with you guys?”

  He hastily shook his head. “No, she lives like forty-five minutes away. Scott met her while he was working at the car wash over the summer. She was living with her aunt, but moved back with her parents
when school started.”

  “What’s her name?” she inquired.

  “Eva,” Kevin told the concerned brunette. “She’s really nice too.”

  She attempted to process what she’d just heard. How was this going on? Did she work that much? Was she that oblivious when it came to her own son’s personal life? He was dating a girl who lived forty-five minutes away—for two months—and she didn’t have the slightest of clues!

  “Wait, she lives forty-five minutes away?” she questioned, the logistics of the situation not quite adding up. “So, when does he see her?”

  He unsuccessfully attempted to hide his smile. “Let’s just say that your bodybuilder son isn’t actually hitting the gym…”

  Of course! How big of a dope was she? Hearing that Scott had signed up for a gym membership was surprising enough, and she was flabbergasted by the amount of time he would spend there—supposedly working out and playing basketball. Sixty days and not a single change to his lanky frame. It looked like a career as a detective most likely wouldn’t be in her future.

  “He’s actually driving out to her house when he tells me he’s going to the gym?” she asked.

  He nodded from his spot on the sofa. “Yeah, they meet halfway and go to movies, and play putt-putt, and stuff too; but yeah, he drives out there a lot.”

  She still couldn’t get over the revelation of her own son not wanting her to know that he had a girlfriend. “I just don’t understand why he wouldn’t tell me. I wouldn’t have a problem with him dating at all.”

  “Believe me, I’ve told him that,” he agreed. “I don’t know why he thinks you would. And you didn’t hear any of this from me either. I mean, shit…I’m supposed to be covering for him tonight.”

  Things abruptly clicked for Lisa. “He said that he was sleeping over at your house, so is he—oh my God! He’s staying at this girl’s house!? Are her parents there!?”

  “Now I see why he didn’t want to tell you…” Kevin commented.

  “No, it’s not—” She stopped herself and let out a deep exhale. “Do you know what’s going on?”

  “You’re not going to freak out, right?” he hesitantly inquired.

  “I’m not going to freak out,” she assured the eighteen-year-old who she never would’ve imagined having this conversation with. “I promise.”

  “Scott is staying at Eva’s house because her parents are at a hotel tonight. I talked to him earlier and he’s fine.”

  Her concerns were spiking again. “He knows about protection and stuff, right?”

  “Like I said, he’s fine,” he did his best to calm her worries. “Trust me.”

  His voice relaxed her. She trusted Kevin. He looked out for her son; and at times, it felt like he was looking after her as well. Like a few years ago when an extremely strong storm covered their backyard in fallen limbs and broken branches. Who was over the next day helping Scott drag the debris out to the road? Kevin. And while he was doing his buddy a favor, she felt like he was doing it to help her out as well. She had a crisp fifty dollar bill and a homemade peach pie waiting for him the following day, but his act of kindness was more than an attempt for some quick cash and his favorite dessert. She knew that he would always be there for her.

  Kevin had put her worries to rest. If he said to trust him, then she would trust him. “So, tell me about this Eva girl.”

  “Well, she’s cute,” he started. “Brown hair, brown eyes, probably like five foot three. She’s pretty and like, how would you say…bubbly…maybe? She’s enjoyable to be around and she’s really fit too. Believe me, your son did good.”

  She was all smiles. “It sounds like he has the Kevin seal of approval.”

  He gave her a big thumbs up.

  “So, what about you? Is there a girl in your life that I don’t know about either?”

  His demeanor instantly changed as he shyly peered away. “Nope, no girls.”

  “Have there been any?”

  His eyes timidly found his fantasy woman again. This wasn’t a discussion that he wanted to have. “Really?”

  “What?” she chuckled. “I’m curious. I thought I knew everything about you two, and here I find out that my own son has a girlfriend! I’m interested.”

  His focus shot back to the floor. “There was one a couple years ago.”

  “Wait a minute. Was it before you guys started the tenth grade?” she asked.

  Kevin was baffled. “Yeah, how do you know that?”

  “You disappeared for that entire summer,” she laughed. “Well, maybe not disappeared, but you weren’t around nearly as much as you usually are. I missed you.”

  God, he loved this woman. She remembered him not being around as much as usual back before the tenth grade? How amazing was that?

  “Scott would always tell me that you were busy whenever I asked where you were,” she explained. “And I always forgot to ask when you came around. I knew something was up. So, who was the lucky lady?”

  “You seriously want to hear about my ex-girlfriend from two years ago?” he asked, fairly surprised and extremely embarrassed.

  Lisa suddenly sprang out of her seat. This discussion was missing a vital element. “Hold that thought!”

  He watched her hustle into the kitchen and rush to unload the rest of groceries. His offer to help was declined as he patiently waited on the sofa for her to return. Part of him loved this. Having her all alone this way was foreign territory, but it was something he could definitely get used to.

  “Have you ever drank wine?”

  His face scrunched. The question that had come from the kitchen was a rather strange one. “Umm…yeah. My Grandma would let us have some with dinner.”

  “Red wine?” her voice asked again.

  “Yeah,” he answered. Where was she going with this?

  He noticed her retrieve something out of the cupboard before strutting back into the family room a few moments later. This was seriously happening? Was this a movie or real life?

  He asked, “Really?”

  “I’m not forcing you to drink if you don’t want to,” she told him before finding her original seat with a half full glass of red wine in each hand. “Feel free to say no. I just have a little tradition on the weekends. I like to relax with my Kindle, treat myself to a glass of wine, and just unwind. You and Scott are usually out so I have the house to myself.”

  “Oh, I can leave if you want me to. I don’t want to bug you,” he told her.

  Lisa instantly shook her head. “You’re not bugging me at all! Are you kidding me? I would much rather have you here than be by myself. Believe me, I can read whenever. Great conversations with amazing men are few and far between.”

  He couldn’t put into words how badly he wanted to lean over and kiss this angel; but instead, he reached out and accepted one of the glasses. Spending some alone time with her was amazing enough. He wasn’t about to blow things by pushing his luck.

  Her feet curled up on the sofa as she made herself more comfortable. Lisa was now slightly leaning against the arm of the couch with her feet pointed in her son’s friend’s direction. Kevin, on the other hand, was noticeably less relaxed than the voluptuous brunette. In fact, the nervous teen appeared to be on the verge of a panic attack from his spot on the middle cushion.

  “So, tell me about this girl.”

  He took a big swig from his glass. Something told him that he would need it. “Her name was Rachel.”

  “And how did you two meet?” she asked.

  “She was a cute blonde who I had a crush on all throughout the ninth grade,” he started. “I finally got the nerve to ask her out a week before summer vacation started. We were in the same first period math class and she always had a coffee in her hand when she walked in, so I asked if she wanted to get a coffee after school, and she said yes.”

  That brought a smile to her face. Ah, to be young again. Sometimes she regretted how she took her time in high school for granted. How was she supposed to know that t
he dating scene was all downhill after her youth? There was nothing appealing about some overweight asshole who attempted to buy her affection. An innocent eighteen-year-old sweetheart on the other hand? That was the kind of guy she missed flirting with.

  “We walked to that coffee shop in the village on Main Street after school,” Kevin went on. “You know, the one with the green awning? This was before any of us had cars. We both grabbed a coffee and I’m trying to get this thing down without puking. God, do I hate coffee.

  She giggled before taking a sip of wine.

  He was opening up more and more as the seconds ticked by. “I found myself really liking this girl—more than just physically. She’s perky, sharp, and really smart. She has all these great qualities I never saw from sitting next to her in class. I eventually walk her home and we stop at her front door, and she’s standing there waiting for me to make a move. I’ve never been good with women. I’m still not. I just can’t read ‘em. I know when they want something, but I have no clue what that something is. I can’t explain why I did it, but I told myself to go for it. So, I leaned in and gave her a kiss on the cheek.”

  “Alright!” Lisa cheered. “Hey, not good with women? According to who? That sounds pretty good to me.”

  “You didn’t see what happened next,” he announced with his eyes down on the floor. “I turned and booked out of there. I mean, I really moved. I couldn’t tell you how she reacted because I looked like the Road Runner. There was probably a cloud of smoke in front of her door.”

  “You were only fifteen!” she laughed. “You were nervous. It happens. You wouldn’t believe the way some guys in the thirties and forties act. They behave like terrified high schoolers too.”

  He shook his head, still disappointed in himself all these years later. “I don’t know. She gave me a big hug when I saw her in class the next day and we ended up dating.”

  “Am I missing something here?” she questioned, still curled up on the sofa with her glass of wine in hand. “That doesn’t sound bad to me at all! You took a cute blonde out for coffee, kissed her, and then started dating the next day. That’s like every guy’s dream!”