Brooke

Standing right before you is the girl herself, dressed in the very same cheerleading outfit from the photos you'd so recently ogled. She wore a jacket too, but it was a light one, and unfastened, so it didn't detract from the eye full you were currently getting.

You quickly pulled yourself together before your stare could be construed as lecherous.

"Err... No, sorry. I... Just moved in up the road." You point, "So I was just... talking a walk. Checking out the neighbourhood, you know."

She followed the vague direction you indicated with your thumb.

"Danielle Mackenzie's place?" She asked, and you picked up a trace of melancholy in the tone.

"Sorry, I don't..." You tried to reply, but she waved it away.

"Sorry." she responded in kind, "No, she was a close friend of mine for years, then her parents suddenly decided to move to Europe."

"Ah." Was all you think to say as a silence fell between you.

"Well, maybe that'll leave an open spot in your friends list then." You finally said with a smile. "Lord knows I'm gonna need to start my own list from scratch now."

To your ears it sounded like the cheesiest cheesebag line ever, but Brooke never-the-less returned a little smile. "Maybe" she said, and put her hand out.

"Brooke White" she formally introduced herself.

You took her hand in one of your own. Her skin was like silk and you hoped your own hand wasn't disgustingly sweaty. "Scott Walker" you gave back.

"Well, I've got nothing in the fridge, so I'm off on a quest to find the nearest Pizzhut, McD's or etcetera." You said.

"Oh... Okay" Brooke replied, with a slightly hesitant and thoughtful expression.

You were playing a gamble here. You'd read in her profile that she was aspiring to become a professional chef after school, and that she liked to get opinions on her cooking from friends.

You'd only gotten a few paces down the street before she called after you.

"Hey. Actually... I was about to make myself something. I'm a pretty good cook, you know... If maybe... you might want to... You know, if..." She trailed off there, clearly a little embarrassed about the sudden offer to a stranger she'd just met.