Snippet #2073689

Destin was baffled. What Carrie had said to her completely blew her mind. It wasn't what she said, really, that bothered her. It was just the thought of even being considered Alec's girlfriend that shocked her. Destin knew that Carrie would know if she had a boyfriend; Destin'd spend hours babbling on and on about random nonsense regarding the guy. Yes, Destin was a tomboy-ish girl, but she was still a girl. Having a lover was something that excited her - it got her girly side working. She couldn't help it. So, when Carrie labeled Alec as "the guy she'd been home running" she stood there, wide-eyed (almost as much as Alec was a moment ago) and...baffled.

Her mind spent several beats trying to process the thought and to either come up with a comeback or to deal with it in some other proactive way. For some reason, the first thought that came to her mind was, "What would Carrie think if I ended up actually dating Alec?" That thought took up brain power as well. Carrie wouldn't be very encouraging, that's for sure. Carrie was the type to think that nerds were nerds and every one else deserved to date each other; the nerds should be shunned from the gene pool. Neil explained it very much. Just look at him. His oversized, chunky pants were riding low on his hips (practically down to his knees!) and the wife-beater tank he was wearing gave off a humble impression, didn't it? Destin couldn't imagine herself dating someone like Neil; she just wouldn't like it. Alec, however.... Ugh, but wait. The mind is still processing. Would he even want to?

Before Destin could get in any sort of mumble jumble that resembled a denial, she could feel Alec's hand lacing into hers. Almost instinctively, Destin's hand tightened around his as well, though she didn't plan for it to do so. They were holding hands, and he was tugging on her arm. Why? Neither her ears nor her brain seemed to work, for she was halfway across the yard back to the house before she could process what Alec somewhat boldly remarked. He denied what Carrie said and...oh? He poked fun at Neil's act of sucking off Carrie's skin. Ha, ha, that was cute. She let out a snort, starting to laugh directly after. Her laughter was quiet, but it still was clear. Did he really just run away?

She couldn't blame him. If Destin had any say in the matter (or if she could) she would have done the same thing. Running away from Carrie was something she'd always wanted to do. That girl was just too much...everything for her to handle. She always felt compelled, though, to stay and be a friend to Carrie despite any internal rejections. If not for Alec, she would have been stuck hanging around Carrie and Neil all night long. For this, she was yet again eternally grateful for Alec existing. Of course, she hadn't a clue that Neil was the one he primarily was running from. If she had, she would surely tease him for this. Like the male angler fish, Neil was pretty harmless to a normal, little "fishy" like Alec. Carrie was the one with the bark and the bite, while Neil just stands there in the background, supporting her and, well, fertilizing her.

Suddenly, it really hit her. It really, truly hit her. Alec was holding her hand. And...the strange part was...that it felt...comfortable. She didn't feel like she needed to let go. She was holding his hand and they were walking back into the party house that she had led them out of not too long ago. His hand was firm yet gentle, and she couldn't help but muse over how much she, admittedly, liked holding his hand. The last time she felt like this was when she was with...well...never, really. She never felt this confident in anyone's hand holding ability, quite frankly. Whether this was a sign, Destin didn't know. But she may as well roll with it. For right now, however, she felt like she had to address what he said.

"So..." Destin finally managed to coyly say, after they were out of Carrie's earshot, "if we're not home-running, nor sitting on benches...then what are we doing, exactly?" Her question was entirely meant to tease him. The sly smile and accompanied giggle made it obvious. She wasn't sure if he understood the hidden messages behind the words, considering he was more of a recluse than someone that would know about all the different uses of softball terms. According to Carrie, "home-running" was, of course, "going all the way" while "sitting on the bench" meant "going through a time period where the person being talked about is single". She didn't expect Alec to know this, though if he did, she'd be impressed. That would make his answer to her question even more difficult to discover. Basically, she was asking him what they were doing if they weren't sleeping around or being single. Plus, he never denied being her boyfriend. Her girly brain, of course, felt the need to question this part. She knew she was over-thinking things, but she didn't quite care:

So...is he implying he wants to be my boyfriend by not denying it? Or is he just too nervous to admit it, so he figures not saying anything about it would be a way to avoid the subject?