Loving Josh

Day 1

My heart raced and I squinted past the bright sunlight. The airport was booming with business, husbands hurrying to their planes, lugging heavy bags behind them. My eyes searched each face that came off a plane, hoping to see a familiar face. Flight 28A had just let out and a fresh crowd of people shuffled off the plane, rubbing tired eyes while shaking their tired limbs. Finally, a tall guy came into view, hauling an overnight bag on his shoulder that looked overstuffed. Our eyes met across the floor and I laughed joyfully, breaking into a hurried sprint.

“Paige!” Josh yelled, and I threw myself into his arms, fighting back happy tears. His strong arms–stronger than I imagined–came around my waist as he picked me up off my feet, spinning me briefly. “Paige,” Josh said again, placing me down in front of him. His eyes scanned my face, then my body and he just laughed, running a hand through his thick curls.

“Josh,” I replied, studying his features. I had seen him many times on FaceTime before, sure, but this was different. Josh–My Josh–was standing in front of me, handsome as ever. His gray eyes shimmered as he placed his hands on my waist and his fingers curled around my hips. “How was your flight?” I asked, my voice light and just a bit awkward.

“Alright. California and New York time are very different, so,” He shrugged, his smile disappearing from his lips briefly. “But I’m glad to be here.”

And we stared at each other for a moment.

It didn’t feel real–My Josh was standing before me–all of him. “I’m glad you’re here,” I whispered, my voice suddenly thick. And I felt like crying. Josh tucked my dark hair behind my ear and took my hand in his own.

“Me too, Paige,” Josh whispered, and for a moment, I thought we might kiss, but no such luck. “Let’s go,” Josh said lightly, snapping out of the moment, and I nodded as we walked hand-in-hand out of the airport and to my Dad’s car.

“Are you ready to meet my Dad?” I asked, trying not to smile so much. My efforts were for nothing though, because it was physically impossible to stop smiling. I mean, my boyfriend was standing in front of me. The thought made butterflies explode inside of me.

“Yeah,” Josh said, his voice smooth and confident. He squeezed my hand and walked up to the gray car that lingered outside the airport. I opened the backseat door and slid inside, meeting my Dad’s eyes through the rearview mirror. Josh slid in beside me and cleared his throat. “Hi, Mr. Silverstone. I’m Josh Wyatt. It’s great to meet you.”

“Hi, Josh. It’s nice to meet you,” Dad said, shifting the gear into drive. The car rolled smoothly over the road and we were slowly moving towards the airport’s parking lot exit. “Paige has told me a lot about you.”

“Is that so?” Josh said, and the hint of amusement in his voice made me want to bury my face in my hands. “Well, Paige is such a great girl. I’m lucky to have her.” My cheeks heated and I pulled my lower lip between my teeth.

“I’m glad to hear that,” Dad said, smiling lightly. We were out of the airport parking lot and driving towards a surprisingly un-busy highway. “So Paige tells me you’re in college. This is your first year, right?”

“Yes,” Josh said, his hand still entwined with mine. “I go to Columbia University.”

“Nice. What are you majoring in?” Dad asked, and I stared out the window as the terrain zoomed by. Bits and pieces of the outside world play on my mind as my Dad and Josh continue to talk.

“English. I want to be a college professor,” Josh informed my Dad, and Dad gave him an approving nod. Is he really perfect? I wondered silently, because from the looks of it, Dad was taking a liking to Josh.

“That’s a good job. If you wanna teach, that’s where the moneys at,” Dad said, and I turned to look at Josh, who stared at my Dad. His gray eyes floated towards mine and he gave me a half smile before he turned back to look straight-ahead.

Ugh, just staring at him gave me butterflies.

Josh and Dad were still talking about teaching when we pulled into the driveway of my house. “Thank you for letting me stay here, Mr. Silverstone,” Josh said, stepping out of the car. He grabbed his bag and held it tightly, clearly a bit nervous. Dad smiled. My heart fluttered as Josh’s hand met mine again.

“Of course, Josh. You seem like a nice young man,” Dad said, and smiled before inserting the key to the house and stepping inside. I paused in my tracks to look at Josh, who patted my head. I pouted as he did, because being short sucked.

“You ready?” I asked Josh as we stood on the front stoop, staring at one another. In that moment, nobody else mattered because My Josh stood in front of me.

“If you mean to take on California, then of course,” Josh said, and smiled at me. I laughed as we stepped into the house and shut the front door behind me.

...

“Josh seems nice,” Mom said as Josh disappeared into the guest bedroom, unpacking his stuff.

“Smart kid,” Dad chipped in, and I smiled. I knew Josh would make a good impression on my family--but I underestimated him, because my parents think he is terrific.

“Do you kids have any other plans today?” Mom asked, pulling a soggy teabag out of her mug.

“I just plan to show him around today. Tomorrow, we’re going to the beach,” I said, and Mom nodded, taking a sip of her tea. She put her whiteish blonde hair in a bun on the top of her head and picked up a yellow notepad.

“Well, I have some work to do, sweetheart. Have fun,” Mom kissed my cheek lightly and disappeared into her office. Dad stood up and wrapped his heavy arm around my shoulders, his eyes shiny.

“My little girls all grown up,” Dad said, kissing the top of my head.

“Ish,” I responded, closing my eyes briefly.

“I’m so proud of you, Paige,” Dad kissed my head again and his eyes met mine, “Have fun, okay? And be safe.”

“Always,” I said, my voice surprisingly weak. Dad smiled and walked upstairs, leaving me alone.

“Hey,” Josh said a moment later, emerging from the guest bedroom. His hair fell in his eyes briefly and he brushed it away quickly. “Ready to go?”

“Mhm,” I responded, sniffing and standing up. I grabbed my mini-backpack and slung it over my shoulders, smiling brightly.

Josh paused and stared at me, hands in his pockets. His lips parted as he stared at me, which made me suddenly self-conscious. “You’re so beautiful, Paige,” Josh sighed, and I felt my face turn pink.

“I know,” I said meekly, trying to laugh it off, but I should’ve known I’m too socially awkward to do that. Josh took a step towards me, his smile contagious. He walked closer to me than we were at the airport and my breath hitched. He gently put his hands on my waist, his breath coming out short.

“I’m so happy to be here, Paige,” Josh whispered, his faintly minty breath on my cheek. My heart pounded so loud in my ears, I almost couldn’t hear what Josh had said.

Okay, confession time: If Josh were to kiss me now, this would be my first kiss. To quote one of my friends, I am a “Lip Virgin”. And it’s not like I don’t want Josh to kiss me--because I do--but I always thought my first kiss would be a bit more romantic. Especially with Josh.

Josh tilted his head slightly and leaned in closer to me. “Josh...” I managed, and Josh stared at me. His grey eyes were so close--I could see the specks of gold sprinkled in them. “I... uhm...” I cleared my throat briefly, “I think we should get going.”

Josh paused, then pulled away, a red flush creeping up his neck. “Oh, alright,” He said, his voice just a bit strained. “Where are we going?”

“Just on a walk for a little while. I was thinking we could go to this awesome Ice Cream shop. One of my friends works there, so,” I smiled weakly and Josh nodded lightly, shoving his hands back into his pocket.

“That sounds nice,” Josh said, and a few minutes later, we were walking in silence.

I’ve always hated awkward silence--so I try my best to fill it. “So, how is school?” I asked, counting each pebble I saw on each street.

“Alright,” Josh responded, and I expected him to add onto that response, but he seem to not have intended to, so we were trapped in silence again.

“Does it get warm in New York? It get warms here in the summers, but it’s a nice kind of warm,” I said, and giggled awkwardly.

“Depends,” Josh responded again, and, again, he didn’t add onto that response. After that, I was discouraged. I welcomed the silence this time, wondering why our conversation topic went so cold.

I pondered this for a while, at least until I could see a boardwalk in the distance. “That’s where the ice cream shop is,” I told Josh, pointing towards the brightly lit strip of shops.

“Awesome. Let’s go,” Josh said, making an attempt to sound cheerful. I nodded and we walked to the boardwalk, which didn’t take long, since it seemed we were both in a rush to do something.

After a moment of walking past small shops, I asked, “Is everything okay?”

Josh paused, then sighed, “Yeah, I guess.”

“What’s wrong?” I asked, stopping in front of a colorful shop. From the outside, it smelled like heaven. My mouth watered.

“I’m sorry,” Josh said after a moment, and I cocked my head at him. “I’m sorry for being such a jerk to you while walking. And I’m sorry that I tried to kiss you,” His face was visibly a bit red, which was very cute, “I just thought this would be the easy part.”

I exhaled, a bit more at ease than before. “I’ve never kissed anyone before,” I admitted, and felt stupid afterwards. I’m eighteen years old and I’ve never kissed anyone? My cheeks heat. Way to keep a guy, Paige.

“Oh,” Josh said, and I sudden wanna dig my own grave and jump into it. I’m so stupid. “So you want it to be special?”

“Y-yeah,” I muttered, and suddenly felt like crying. Tears pricked my eyes as a cold breeze circulated.

“Okay,” Josh said, and his brow furrowed. His arm came around my shoulders and he kissed the side of my head. “I’ll make it special, alright?”

I looked up at Josh, who looked at the blinking OPEN sign on the door of the ice cream parlor. “Really?” I whimpered, hiding my strangled sob through a series of coughs.

“Of course, Paige,” Josh smiled, and he patted my head again, “If that’s what you want, then okay. Your wish is my command.”

I smiled gratefully and felt a warm sensation in my tummy. “Thank you,” I whispered. Josh patted my head as we stepped into the heavenly smelling ice cream shop.