Free To meet You Again by Hayley Nelson

that made your stomach so upset?” she asked.
                   
“I had so much different things to eat, so it could’ve been any or all,” I
garbled out.
                   
“I’ll go and make you some soup, okay?” she stroked my hair.
                   
“I don’t want to see food ever again,” I pulled the blanket over my eyes.
                   
“Ruby, you have to eat something,” she said. “You need the energy to get
better.”
                   
“I need to sleep,” my eyes got watery. My stomach was so painful and I felt so
lethargic, all I wanted to do was sob. What was wrong with me?
                   
“I’ll wake you up for dinner,” my mom patted me on my arm, and then I heard her
get up and walk away.
                   
After how many hours of sleep, I was rudely awakened by the telephone. I waited
about five rings, expecting someone else to pick it up, but the sixth had
bothered me so much I summoned all my strength and pushed myself up. I answered
the phone,
                   
“Hello?”
                   
“Ruby, how are you?” at the sound of Angelo’s voice, I broke down. I didn’t
know why.
                   
“Angelo, I’m so sorry,” I sobbed.
                   
“What for?” he laughed.
                   
“For embarrassing you,” my shoulders were doing some weird rhythmic thing with
my breath. “People are going to be teasing you.”
                   
“You know I don’t care what anyone says,” he reassured. “I’m just worried about
you. Have you eaten?”
                   
“No, I’m not hungry,” I shook my head. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to.”
                   
“Ruby, it’s fine, really. I just want you to get better.”
                   
“Thank you,” I smiled.
                   
“I love you.”
                   
I froze again. I didn’t know what to say. I mean, of course I loved him. But I
still wasn’t sure in which way. I didn’t want him to get the wrong idea.
                   
“I love you,” I said cautiously. “But Angelo, I’m not sure what I mean exactly
when I say that.”
                   
“What do you mean?” he asked.
                   
“I don’t know if I mean ‘I love you’ I love you or just ‘I love you’,” I tried
to explain. “Like, as a friend or as more. I’m not sure.”
                   
“You know you love me,” he started singing.
                   
“Angelo,” I rolled my eyes.
                   
“I know you care,” he continued.
                   
“Angelo, stop,” I laughed.
                   
“Just shout whenever and I’ll be there…” he was laughing, too.
                   
“Whenever,” I coughed into the phone.
                   
“What?” he asked.
                   
“Whenever,” I said. “Whenever.”
                   
“Oh. Oh!” he realized. “I wish I could.”
                   
“You said just shout whenever,” I joked weakly.
                   
“You have to rest,” he insisted.
                   
“Yeah, I do,” I agreed. “But I feel bad leaving you hanging like that.”
                   
“It could’ve been worse. You could have actually puked on me,” he laughed.
                   
I laughed. “Yeah, I guess. It’s a good thing I ran off, then. It would have
been more embarrassing for you.”
                   
“And you,” he pointed out.
                   
“Yeah,” I was nodding.
                   
“You owe me a kiss when I see