I stare into the window, my brows furrowing in concentration as I exam each adorable, wiggling body behind it. I'm hardly able to contain my excitement.

"They're just all so freaking cute!" I exclaimed as I bolt up. My best friend just sighs behind me and I whip around to look at them. "Hey! What's with that sigh, huh? I'm not wrong, they're absolutely adorable." Caroline just looks at me with exasperated, green eyes. They're the same eyes she's been giving me ever since I've made us start stopping by the local pet store on our way home from school.

"Oh yeah, so freaking cute." She said in a monotonous voice. Now, I sigh.

"You're absolutely hopeless. Honestly, how does this not just make you almost die from the cuteness." Caroline looks down at her watch before meeting my own pastel green eyes.

"That overly complicated sentence almost made me die from your utter lack of English skills. I need to go home and get this assignment started." She flips her brown strand over her shoulder before turning away from me.

"What? That history assignment isn't even due for another two weeks! There's no reason to start it today." I whined, not wanting to be left alone to my own devices. I hate being alone.

Caroline looks back at me over her shoulder. She adjusts her glasses back up on her nose as she says,

"There's every reason to get started on it early. One being so I don't have to worry about it later on. You'd do well to start it as well, but seeing as how much of a procrastinator you are I doubt that'll happen." With that she leaves and I huff out in annoyance.

"God, why does she have to be like that? I know I can be annoying sometimes, but geez." My annoyance slowly dies down and turns to that of dejection. I look back towards the puppies wiggling around in their pen. As soon as I lift my hand to the glass they all hurry towards it and start licking the window. The corners of my mouth lift up slightly and I hang my head down. "You guys wouldn't leave me, right?" Of course, they don't answer and I chuckle as one bangs his head off the glass and looks around confused.

After another moment of standing there alone I turn and start heading home.

***

The house is dark and empty when I return. I don't bother to turn on any lights as I take off my shoes and climb the stairs to my room. Everything is eerily silent, though it's something I've learned to get used to over the years.

Once in my room I close and lock my door before breathing out a sigh of relief.

"How can it be so stuffy and suffocating when I'm the only one here?" I question as I walk over to my desk. As soon as I turn on my lamp my phone comes to life in my back pocket. I set down my bag before picking it up. "Hey mom, what's up?"

"Are you home already Emma?"

"Yeah."

"Shoot. Alright, well just order out tonight. There isn't really much in the fridge and I won't be getting out of work before the grocery store closes. Sorry honey." I smile into the phone as I say,

"Don't worry about it, mom. It's your job so there isn't much we can do about that. Work hard and I'll see you when I see you." My mom doesn't say anything for a long while and then I hear a sigh of relief.

"I'm glad you understand. I'll see you when I see you." With that she hangs up and I'm left with a silence over the phone that's mimicked in the entirety of the house. For a long time I just stare at the darkened screen before punching in a number.

"Thank you for calling Pizza Hut this is Charolette how can I help you today?"

"Hey Charolette this is Emma. I just want my usual." There's some scribbling in the background and then she comes back on the phone.

"Is that delivery or pick up?" My eyes move down to my school bag where my assignment sits.

I should probably start it like Caroline said.

"Pick up."

***

The pizza place is warm and cozy when I arrived there. It's also surprisingly packed.

Charolette smiles at me when I arrive. Her brown hair is pulled back in a painful looking ponytail and her brown eyes shine with a happiness that seems to be permanently stuck in them recently.

"Right on time, your Pizza is just about all set. Breadsticks and everything are already done." She nods to a filled bag to her right and I walk over to stand beside it.

"Nice, thanks a bunch Char."

"It's not a problem. Just doing my job." I smile at that since it's typical Charolette. We go to the same school together, but hang out in different crowds. At least, I hang out in a different crowd. Charolette doesn't really have a crowd since she's more of a loner. That's slowly been changing recently ever since she got a boyfriend, though.

We're not really friends per-say, but she is a pretty cool person.

"Hey Annie, can I get a refill here?" Some dude calls over from his booth. I notice Charolette stiffen up at the nickname and my smile falters at the sight. Just because she's been getting more friends at school doesn't mean people have stopped bullying her. There are still assholes who find it funny. Before I can say anything to the guy someone else beats me to it.

"Get your own drink." I look over and my lips curl up as I watch Mikey walk over to the front counter. He glares at the dude as he leans over and pecks Charolette on the cheek in greeting. The guy quickly turns back to his laughing friends.

"Nice one dude." I said as I lift my fist towards him. I've talked to Mikey a few times here and there and our groups occasionally hang out together which is how I know him. He's a pretty cool guy, though I was surprised when I heard he started dating Charlotte.

Mikey looks away from the guy and towards me. His glare disappears and he smiles as he knocks his fist against mine.

"Hey, Emma, what's up?" I shrug as I lean against the counter.

"Oh, you know just living it up on good pizza." Charlotte's brow furrows then and I can tell she's thinking about something.

"Isn't this, like, the fifth time you've order pizza this week?" Mikey raises a curious eyebrow at that.

"Seriously? You know you'll get fat like that right?" Charlotte punches him in the arm and Mikey just chuckles at that. "I'm joking! Five times in a week though, man you must love pizza." Just then the rest of my food is brought out to me and I arrange things around in my bag before grabbing it off the counter.

"What can I say? Pizza is life. See you guys at school." With that I leave before they can question me anymore on the matter. I hate talking about myself if I can avoid it since it'll only get me unwanted opinions.

On my way home I watch as some moron crashes their bike into a lamp post. It happens so suddenly and so close to me it takes a minute to process and, once it does, I can't help but burst out laughing. Usually the first thing you should do is help them, but honestly, how often does it happen.

"Yeah, thanks." The person grumbles as they stand up on wobbly legs. That kicks me into action. I set down my food and rush to their side.

"Are you alright?" I asked, worried for their well being. The person, a guy, rubs their head and winces.

"I'll live." They pull away from my hands and pick up their bike. It's then that I notice they've got a long gash on their arm and it's bleeding. A lot.

"Hey, let me help you." I said and the dude looks back at me. He can't be anymore than a year older than me, if that. Shaggy blonde hair falls into his brown eyes.

"I said that I'm fine." I cross my arms over my chest and look pointedly at the cut before meeting his eyes once more.

"And I said let me help you." I walk over to my food and gently wave the bag in the air. "I've got food and it's clearly more than one person can eat. Just let me bandage you up, grab something to eat, and you can leave." The guys eyes dart between the bag of food and me. His stomach growls loudly and I smile, knowing that I've won.

Five minutes later we're walking into my still dark and silent home. This time I flip on the lights and lead him into the kitchen where I set the food on the island. I grab two plates from the cupboard.

"Help yourself. I'm going to go grab the first aid kit." He nods and starts pulling out the different boxes and I can't help but smile before hurrying to the upstairs bathroom. When I return four slices of the pizza are already gone along with a third of the breadsticks. "Oh man, you must have been hungry, huh?" I asked as I pull a stool up beside him.

"Well, a crash like that takes a lot out of you." I chuckle at that as I open the first aid kit and get to work on the injury.

"I'm Emma by the way."

"I'm Seth." My eyes flicker upward only to clash with Seth's. My cheeks warm slightly at that and I quickly look back at the injury. "So, your parents aren't home?" I shake my head as I dab at the cut. It's more visible now that I've cleared most of the blood and dirt. Thankfully, most of the bleeding has stopped and it doesn't look too serious either.

"They're both working right now."

Should I really tell that to a complete stranger?

I wonder as I sneak another peak at him.

Well, he doesn't seem like a bad person.

I grab some gauze from the kit and start wrapping up the injury. As soon as it's good I sit back and admire my handiwork before nodding and turning to the food. I grab my plate and stack three slices of pizza on it along with some breadsticks. Seth just raises an eyebrow at the amount on my plate before saying,

"You know, you'll get fat like that." I shrug as I dig in.

"Someone said the same thing earlier." My eyes clash with his and I smile slyly as I say, "I guess it's a good thing I don't need your permission." It pulls a smile from Seth and I feel oddly satisfied by it. My stomach turns over and I look back down at my food. "So, Seth, how old are you?"

"17. I'll be 18 this year."

"So you're graduating, same as me. Do you live around here?" I catch him nodding out of the corner of my eye. "We must go to the same school then. Weird, I've never noticed you around."

"Yeah, I try not to stick out too much if I can help. I'm more of a fly under the radar type of person." I nod as if I understand when I really don't. After a few more moments of silence he stands from his seat and I look over. "I should probably get going." He starts walking away, but I latch onto his wrist before he can get too far.

"Wait," I start but die off since I have no idea what else to say. Seth only looks back at me confused and my cheeks heat up in embarrassment. I bow my head, letting my hair block out my face. "I-uhm-I," I try to grasp something to say and my grip tightens around his wrist. "Don't go yet. There's, um, desert. Yeah! There's desert that I bought from Pizza Hut and there's no way I can finish it on my own." I said as I look back up and meet Seth's eyes. My grip on his wrist is still tight and a part of me refuses to let him go.

He's the only thing keeping the house from being filled with that suffocating silence.

Seth just looks at me curiously for a long moment. His eyes search my face, probably trying to see if I have some sort of ulterior motive. When he's finally satisfied he sighs and moves back to his seat.

"Alright, but I need to leave after this." I nod and quickly pull out our desert.

***

"Seth!" I called out as soon as I spot him in the school hallway the next day. He looks over at me and waves in acknowledgement. I hurry over to him and smile widely. "Hey, so I guess we really do go to the same school. That's awesome. Thanks a bunch for staying over so late last night." I rub my head as I look down at the ground. "I didn't mean to be an annoyance. It's just fun with more people around, you know?"

"Yeah, I get it. Listen, I need to get to class right now. How about we talk later?" My smile falters only slightly before I nod.

"Yeah, totally." Then, he leaves me standing on my own in the hallway.

Alone.

I snort as I look down.

Like always.

***

I stop into Pizza Hut on my way home from school. Mom had sent me a text saying she wouldn't be able to make it home at a decent hour once again. No one I usually talk to is working this time and I just stand off to the side alone as I wait for my order to be finished. Once it's finally called I sigh in relief and get the heck out of there.

As I'm walking home I pass by the park I used to play at when I was a child. A sudden urge to be there tugs at me and, before I know it, I find myself walking towards the playground and sitting on the bench.

I eat my pizza and watch the setting sun over the treetops in silence. No one is out right now since it's getting later and I'm fine with that since it's not completely quiet.

"Emma?" I turn and look at Seth over my shoulder. He seems surprised to see me here.

"Hey." I said as I turn back around and munch on my pizza.

"Is that from last night? I thought we ate all that." I shake my head and wait to finish chewing before responding.

"This is tonights dinner." I catch Seth scrunching up his nose at that.

"What about your parents cooking?" I bark out a bitter laugh before I can stop it. From the look of surprise that washes over Seth's face I can tell her wasn't expecting it.

"I'd be shocked if my mom even knows how to boil water. The same goes for my dad." I shrug. "Pizza Hut is good."

"Yeah, it's good every once in a while, but two days straight? I'm sure it's not that great."

"It's not two days straight. More like six now." I said as I meet his eyes. Seth's mouth drops open in shock and it's actually pretty funny. "Hey, don't worry about it. I'll get something else eventually for take out. Pizza Hut is just more convenient." Seth takes a seat beside me and I turn the box towards him so he knows he can have a slice if he wants.

"No cooked meals? At all?" I shrug once more.

"My parents are kind of work-a-holic's so it comes with the territory that I'd just get take out more often than not." I look down at the slice in my hand as I smile. "It's kind of one of the reasons I got you to stay so late yesterday. Sorry." I said as I look up at him. "The house, well, it's kind of suffocating with all the silence so having someone there was a nice change of pace. I really appreciate it, Seth." My phone comes to life with a text and my mood falls a notch when I read it.

"What's wrong?" I look over at Seth as I turn the screen off.

"Nothing. You know, I've always wanted a dog. They're adorable and loyal and they won't ever leave their masters alone. That's kind of nice, you know? To not have to be alone." I sigh and stand up. I close the pizza box lid and place it back in the bag. "Sorry, I got gloomy there for a second. I should head back home. There's a project I should probably get started on. It was nice talking to you, Seth." I hurry out of the park before he can say anything more to me.

***

The next day I open the front door to find a very smiley Seth behind the door. Before I can even invite him in he pushes past me. I close the door and quickly follow him to the kitchen only to watch as he dumps a crap ton of bags on the island.

"Hey, what's going on?" I questioned as I walk cautiously into the kitchen. Seth looks back at me, his smile still on his face. It looks amazing and I find myself blushing.

"I'm making you a good, old fashioned, home cooked meal. Since I do this most of the time for my younger siblings it'll be a piece of cake for you."

"Oh, no, Seth you really don't have to do that. Is this because of what I said last night? I'm sorry about that. I was just ranting. Really, it's-" I'm stopped when Set points his wooden spoon directly at me. His eyes take on a kind note as he says,

"Please, Emma, I want to do this. If I didn't I wouldn't be here." I swallow a lump that's formed in my throat and simply nod before taking a seat on one of the stools.

For the next hour I sit and watch Seth make me dinner. We chat about classes, homework, our friends and family. It's all really laid back and I find myself laughing and smiling right alongside Seth. It's a nice evening and I notice as dinner is served, the house feels warm and cozy like the Pizza Hut.

It's a first in a really long time.

"Holy crap! This is amazing!" I said as I place some mixed vegetables in my mouth. Seth just laughs at my reaction.

"Well, I would hope it's better than fast food." I nod enthusiastically as I shove some more in my mouth. "Good, I'm glad you like it." His eyes zero in on me then and I freeze up as he leans over the island and runs his finger along the corner of my mouth. His eyes sparkle with amusement as he shows me a piece of the broccoli's head. "Geez, you eat like a kid." I blush furiously at that and continue eating.

"You really are amazing." I said as I look back over at Seth from my seat on the couch. He's clearing up the dishes. I'd offered to help, but as soon as I broke one he hurried me out.

Seth snorts.

"I'd like to see you name one thing better than me, right now."

"Oh, a dog hands down." Seth stops cleaning and looks back at me with a raised eyebrow and I can only smile at that. "I mean, a dog is freaking awesome. They're smart, loyal, cute, adorable, amazing, smell really good." I continue listing off all of the amazing traits of dogs and get so lost I don't notice Seth walking over to me until he's already towering over me.

"You seriously think that a dog is better than me?" Another lump forms in my throat and I lean back against the couch as he bends down further and further until his hands are on either side of my head and his face is insanely close to my own.

"Well, yeah. Dogs are amazing." Seth's mouth becomes taught and I hear him click his tongue in annoyance. His eyes meet mine and I suddenly get a vivid vision of the future.

Of Seth and I walk a dog side by side, smiling. The quiet, suffocating house no more than a distant memory.

I'm pulled back to reality as his lips brush against mine.

"Then, I guess I'll just have to change that."

Yay, story 7 day 7 with 29 minutes to spare. I'll give this thing an edit tomorrow. Hope you enjoyed. Don't forget to vote, comment, and share!!!!!