Mother has declared me a sock goblin

“Carter!” A guy shouts loudly. I glance around me and notice a boy coming up to us. He clasps hands with Carter and they greet each other excitedly. 

“Jordan! Didn’t think you’d come to this kinda thing.”

“You know I never miss a party.” Jordan grins. “And you must be his girlfriend.” He says as he turns to me. He holds out his hand for me to shake. “I’m Jordan.” 

“Yup. This is Y/N.” Carter says. I smile and shake Jordan’s hand, feeling a little uneasy with Carter calling me his girlfriend. We’ve never talked about this. 

“Follow me. The rest of the guys are here as well.” Jordan says, motioning for us to come with him. I don’t really know anyone else at this party, so I follow along stiffly. I wave awkwardly at Carter’s friends when Jordan introduces me. I uncomfortably play with the hem of my shirt, hoping to look busy, while I listen to Carter laugh with his friends. 

I start to feel panicked when the crowd closes in around us. I look for a way out, when I feel a calloused hand grab mine. I glance up and my eyes meet those of Carter’s. 

“Do you want to get away from here, for a moment?” He says in my ear. I nod softly and he tugs me behind him. 

Carter steers us to the horse stables and pushes open the big barn door. “Do you want to feed the horses? I know that always calms you down.” He says, handing me a carrot. 

“Thank you for getting me out of there.” I mutter. “It got a bit overwhelming.”

“I noticed.” I hum in response and walk over to his horse. 

I rub its forehead a couple of times while he takes bites from the carrot I’m holding up for him. 

“Hey, what’s going on? You’re really quiet.” Carter says softly beside me. I bite the inside of my cheek trying to find the right thing to say. 

“Why didn’t you correct Jordan when he said I’m your girlfriend?” Out of the corner of my eyes I see Carter putting his hands in his pockets and leaning against the stall. 

“I uh…” I raise an eyebrow at him. He clears his throat and rakes a hand through his hair. “What if that’s what I am hoping you’d be?” He finally mutters out. 

I take a surprised step backwards. “What?” I ask perplexed. 

“Forget it,” He hurries to say, “It was stupid.” He tries to walk away from the conversation, but I stop him by putting a hand on his arm. 

“It’s not stupid.” I tell him. “I just didn’t think you’d see me in that way.”

“Why would I not?”

“We’ve been friends for a year and you have never even flirted with me.”

“Okay, ouch…I might not be the best flirt, but I definitely did.” My brows furrow, thinking back to our earlier conversations. 

“Anyways…” He mumbles as it’s clear I can’t recall any of those moments. “Do you hate the idea of being my girlfriend?” A blush slowly creeps up my cheeks, but as I stare at Carter, I can see the same thing happening to him. 

“I mean, I wouldn’t be opposed to it.”

“Don’t get too excited now.” Carter jokes. I roll my eyes at him half-heartedly. 

“Come here, you big sap.” I grasp his flannel shirt and pull him towards myself. Carter’s hands end up on my waist and our breaths mingle with the little space between us. 

“Are you going to kiss me or what?” I ask confidently. He dips his head and our lips connect. His lips are soft and smooth against my own and my hands reach up to curl in his hair. He walks me backwards until my legs hit a couple of hay bales. I jump up so I am sitting on them and Carter steps in between my legs. His hands run up and down my thighs sending shivers down my spine. His lips glide over mine, tongue slipping in every so often and I struggle to catch my breath. 

“Carter!” We jump apart as his mother, Beth, comes into view. “You know better than to hook up in a barn.”

“Sorry, ma.” Carter looks so uncomfortable right now. 

“In all fairness, I kinda initiated it.” I reply as I wipe my lips with the back of my hand, hoping that my confession would spare Carter the conversation later.

“And my son didn’t have any part in this? Yeah right.” Beth scoffs. I get down from the hay bale to stand next to Carter, who clasps my hand in his. 

“I need your help cleaning up after our guest. Say goodbye and come help me out.” Beth says, smiling as she notices our locked hands. She turns around and starts walking away from the barn. “You treat that girl right, you hear me?”

“Yes, ma’am!” Carter yells after her. 

We look at each other and burst out laughing, thinking of the situation we just got ourselves into. 

“So, can I officially call you my girlfriend now?” He asks, kissing the back of my hand. I pull him close and lay my head on his shoulder. 

“I think we’re at that point, yes.” Carter’s free hand comes up to cup my cheek and I lean up to kiss his lips. 

“Carter!” Beth roars through the night. 

“Right, yeah, I uh…Gotte go.” He mutters against my lips.