“What? Are you afraid?” he taunts, and part of me is tempted to lie, tell him that it’s not a problem.
The other part of me knows that if I agree to this, I’ll probably not sleep tonight.
“Of course not.”
I’ve lost it.
I’ve actually lost every brain cell available.
Why did I do that? Now I’ll probably not be able to sleep tonight.
Sebastian looks at me before he hunches over for the TV remote and pulls up the movie on one of the streaming outlets.
As he clicks away at the remote, the anxiety rises in my chest.
It’s just a movie; how can it be? I’m a big girl now.
I haven’t watched a horror movie in ages, so maybe I’ve gotten over my fright.
The movie begins, and I’m cursing myself for being stupid.
Not even twenty minutes in, and I want to grab the nearest pillow and hide behind it.
The eerie music is making everything worse. I try to imagine a different song in my head, as the one in the movie is clearly chosen for dramatic effect.
When I can’t take it anymore, I stand up, proclaiming I’m making popcorn—anything not to watch that dreadful movie, which will steal all of my sleep.
I look through the cabinets, searching for popcorn to pop in his microwave.
I might have spotted a package in the first cabinet I looked in, but I roam around, taking my time, so I miss the most I can of the movie.
“Bo!”
Hands come down on my shoulders, and I scream, feeling my heart racing after the fear inflicted by the movie multiply as Sebastian scares me.
He is right behind me, and he topples over in laughter when he sees my dramatic reaction to his little stunt.
“It’s not funny,” I grumble as I cross my arms—like a child, I know.
I may be acting childish, but so is he!
He just sneaked up on me and scared me when he obviously knew I was afraid.
“You should have just told me that you were scared, Lily,” he says when he calms down his laughing.
“I wasn’t scared. I just didn’t want to watch a horror movie,” I say, still feeling defensive.
I guess part of me still feels like a little girl in some ways, but I know many adults don’t enjoy horror movies.
“Lily, your breathing was going like you were out for a run. Your hands were almost shaking in your lap, and you bit your lip continuously. Don’t lie to me.”
Suddenly, I’m feeling very hot.
His attention to my reactions shouldn’t be a big deal; he was probably having fun at the expense of my fear, but the tingle in the nape of my neck appears nevertheless.
Who knew Sebastian picked up on so much?
“Did you even watch the movie, or just me?” I ask, not knowing what to expect of his answer, but holding my breath nonetheless.
