“SNACKS!”

Bailey bounded in, his pineapple socks sliding along the hardwood floors that lined his room. Carefully, he set down a bowl of chips in front of Victoria and then slumped into the other beanbag chair in the room.

It was late at night and he had a girl in his room. A girl. In his room. Bailey was having a hard time not being a little nervous. He wasn’t about to try anything, but it was still a little weird. He was just hoping that she didn’t have any expectations for her.

They were all alone in the cramped little space since Bailey had paid his two brothers fifty dollars each to find somewhere else to sleep. He kept his distance from her, not wanting to crowd her in the little space, but he stayed close enough to make it seem like he wasn’t afraid of her, or something.

Outside, it was still dark, save for the streetlights that never went off, but the sun was threatening to peak out on the horizon. Bailey paid no mind to it.

He settled into the beanbag chair and glanced at the blonde girl. 

”So, whatchu wanna do? Video games? Cards? Movies?”

A genuine smile spread over Victoria’s face upon Bailey’s entrance and proclamation. She followed him with her ruby red eyes as he placed the bowl in front of her and seated himself. “Aitah Bailey…umm thank you.”, she said with a smile and nod as she snagged a chip.

She really liked him. He was nice and fun to talk with. He seemed to have an uplifting presence about him. It was reassuring and gentle, and it made Victoria feel very relaxed. He was also very respectful and thoughtful. He was an all-round good guy, judging from the time Victoria has spent with him so far.

“I don’t mind playing games or listening to music or both.”, she giggled.

Victoria hadn’t really played many video games back home or since coming to America. This meant Bailey had to help her along most of the time, but on occasion she would play helpless after knowing how to do something and use the time he was distracted to score more points. It was all in fun and made her laugh.

Time flies when you’re having fun. Victoria happened to glance at the clock and immediately got up from the bean bag. “I’m sorry Bailey. I have to go! I had fun, but I really need to leave now!” The girl rushed for the front door as if she was going to be in serious trouble for being late.

The song Bubbly by Colbie Caillat seemed fitting for that moment. Bailey sat, wiggling around in his chair every once and a while, trying not to seem too awkward. Every once and a while, he would glance at Victoria, just to make sure that she was having a good time. She certainly didn't seem to be having a bad time, at the very least. 

Or, at least, he thought that she wasn't.

All of a sudden, Victoria stood up and proclaimed that she had to leave. Bailey stared at her, unsure of what to do for a second. He really hadn't expected her to run out like that. Say she didn't like him? Sure. Think he was gross? It was a definite possibility. Stand up and race outside for no apparent reason? Never in a million years.

Sure, he wasn't all that great with people (everyone knew that), but he didn't think he was that bad. He definitely wasn't run-away-screaming-from-the-scene bad. Was he?

After a minute of blank staring, Bailey leapt out of his seat. He had obviously done something to make her uncomfortable, and he had to figure out what it was! There was no way that he was letting her leave without knowing. Nope, nuh-uh. He was a man-boy ready to solve the problem. 

Sliding down the hallway in his socks, Bailey raced after the blonde girl. He didn't even bother to put on shoes as he exited the house. Some things were more important than proper foot care. 

Soon enough, he could see her in front of him. Only about six feet away from him. Her hair was really pretty from the back.

He stopped, cupping his hands around his mouth so that his voice would be amplified. 

"Victoria! What's wrong? Did I do something? I'm, like, really really sorry if I did! I promise that I'll try not to do it again!" he shouted after her, though it may have come out in one big string of words. 

Enunciation when yelling was not one of his strong suits. 

His words reached her ears and immediately she felt terrible for him. She didn’t mean for him to think he had done something. Oh Bailey, why do you have to be so nice?

Stopping and turning back to face him she didn’t know if it was the right thing or the smart thing to do, but she felt she had to do it. She smiled at him. “You didn’t do anything Bailey. Nothing is wrong with you. I enjoy spending time with you and I’ve had a great time.” She paused and glanced towards the ever-brightening sunrise. She was running out of time and fast.

The clouds in the sky were now the timer as they began as a beautiful rosy red before transitioning to a fiery orange. “I just really have to go right now. It’s hard to explain, but I promise I will sometime.” A bright yellowish hue covered the clouds as a final warning just as the first rays of sunlight streaked through the city.

She quickly moved closer to him. “I really like you and I’ll explain everything later. Please trust me.”

A warm sensation started spreading over the left side of her face. Why was it only one side? If she was blushing shouldn’t she feel warmth on both sides? Victoria placed her hand on her cheek and now her hand felt warm. Dread set in as she turned and looked right into the beam of sunlight. Instantly she closed her eyes and screamed at the top of her lungs while covering her face.”

Bailey was at a complete loss as to what to do. They'd been having such a good time, and now she was running away? It didn't make any sense. Sure, he knew that he didn't have a great understanding of how to interact with girls, but even he knew that her reaction was unusual and a little uncalled for. He'd never heard of or seen anyone run out on someone like that. Not even in the movies, where crazy things happened all the time. 

"Why can't you just tell me now? Can we talk about it?" Bailey continued to prod, his voice holding all the exasperated impatience of a young mind. He just couldn't understand why she was reacting like that. Sure, he could get angry and impatient with things, but never like that. 

>> “I really like you and I’ll explain everything later. Please trust me.”

"Okay, then why-"

Bailey was cut off suddenly when Victoria started to scream. Like, really scream. Bailey covered his ears and made a few jerky movements, unsure of what was going on. Was there something hurting her? Was he just that awful that he'd made her scream at the top of her lungs?

Then, it hit him. Her allergy to sunlight. How could he have forgotten? He was such a jerk. All that she was trying to do was get home without dying, and there he was, freaking out at her. Seriously, what was his problem?

So, Bailey did the only thing that he could think of doing. He jumped in front of Victoria where the sunlight was hitting her and hope that his shadow would be enough to shield her from whatever it was that the sunlight did. "I'm so sorry! I forgot about your allergy!" he yelled over her screaming. 

She was surely going to make DocProf mad by getting herself all burned up again. Hadn’t she learned her lesson from the last time? The sun and herself don’t mix very well, and here she was outside of all places with the sun rising screaming bloody murder.

Bailey’s voice. She could hear him, he was close by. The warmth of the sunlight suddenly stopped and the morning air made her skin feel cool again. Did the sun suddenly turn off, or had it gone behind a cloud? Victoria opened her eyes slowly to see Bailey standing between her and the ball of fire. She clung to his shirt and pulled herself close to him. “Please don’t let me burn! Please Bailey!! Hide me from the sun! Get me back inside please?!”

”I won’t!” Bailey enthused, making sure to block every bit of sunlight that came near her. He was so, so stupid. How on earth had he let her stay until it was that bright out, or let her run off into the sunlight? He should have kept her inside.

He kept her shielded as he began to walk forward, ushering her back inside while shielding her with his body. It was slightly awkward and cumbersome, but at least she wasn't burning in the sunlight.

"I'm so sorry, Victoria," he said, "this is all my fault."

It really was. He felt terrible about it. At least he was able to stop the sunlight, though.