Confessions of a Klutz: Confessions, #1

By Garnet Davenport

Best Friends to Lovers

Being in the friend zone sucks. 

However, Clay was the one who put himself there. It's not like he had a choice. They were only five when they came into each other's life and he hadn't left her side since. By the time Clay wanted Haley for more than best friends he was too afraid to make the move. The only person who couldn't see his feelings had changed was Haley.

Haley's problem was simple--She was a KLUTZ.

One night changed everything. One kiss.

He finally had his klutz within reach and he wasn't willing to let her get hurt.

Contains mature content. 18+ only. Happily Ever After Included.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Garnet Davenport
• Release date: Jun 29, 2021
• ISBN: 9798201671907

Book preview

Chapter 1

Haley

Ten chairs, all facing one another in a circle, was the most intimidating thing I’d seen in a while. We were all here for some awkward social reason. I was told this would be a great group to join. But, of course, it would be my mother who would think I need it.

It will help you feel not so alone. You’re not getting any younger. That’s what my mom told me just last week.

I looked around, to my left an older woman who can’t take her fingers out of her mouth long enough to introduce herself. I decided she must be a wolf biter. Dermatophagia is the condition. Her fingers looked raw. How unfortunate.

Next to her was a man who keeps crossing and uncrossing his legs. Just awkward, nothing unusual, but then he stood and turned in a circle before sitting back down and continuing to cross and uncross his legs all over again. That seemed more annoying than anything. I would hate to have to feel like moving when I’m absolutely exhausted. Not unlike today. Not getting much sleep lately.

A laugh makes me jerk my head to my other side, a woman who looks a lot like Janice from Friends and sounds like her laugh as she flirts with the man who I’m guessing leads the group.

Now, he doesn’t seem to have anything that’s off-putting or socially awkward. He’s tall, dark brown hair styled, coffee-colored eyes, and dressed professionally. Especially for this group. Decently attractive. He probably doesn’t have a hard time in social situations.

And then there were a couple of others who were already sitting, waiting for SAA to begin.

The eldest woman in the room wearing everything possible with monograms. KYS stitched into her shoes, soft pants, shirt, jacket, purse, and yep, I see it on her socks just barely sticking out from the bottom of her pants. That’s a lot of monogramming. And if you were curious—and I know you are—it was a track suit. Like nineteen eighties. Forty years later and she’s still rocking it.

It’s time to get started. We have a new member tonight. The man who I thought would be leading the SAA group motioned for everyone to sit and then stared straight at me.

Why am I here again? Oh, that’s right, I’ve got to get my unfortunate klutzy life back in control.

Go ahead and tell us fellow Socially Awkward Anonymous members a little about yourself, the one man that didn’t look a bit like he was part of the SAA said.

Hi, yeah, my name is Haley Lutz, and I’m an unfortunate klutz.

Hey, Haley, the circle greeted.

As long as I’ve known what a klutz was, I’ve been an unfortunate fumbling mess—my last name doesn’t help. Let me take you back to when it really hit me that I would be labeled a klutz for the rest of my life.

I begin to lay out how I unfortunately became a Klutz. Not a Lutz.

It all started in kindergarten. I know. I know. I had just turned five and had a hot pink cast on my right arm. That was due to me falling out of my mom’s minivan last weekend. I wouldn’t have fallen, but my patent leather shoe strap got caught on the lever that moves the seat back and forth. I went to leap, but my foot was still caught inside the minivan.

That first day of school, where my nerves were already twisted with anxious excitement, I was ready to barf everywhere. But that’s not what happened. I wish it would have been.

I was so adorable in my pale blue dress, pigtails, and dark rimmed glasses. My teacher was taking roll call, and we were all supposed to stand up and say something about ourselves. I was ready. I wanted to tell them how much I loved to read.

Clayton James? Ms. Adler called out.

Here. The cutest boy I’d ever seen stood, I love to play baseball.

Fun! I like baseball too, Ms. Adler replies.

I was ready. Alphabetically, I should be soon. I moved my feet so I could stand up quickly.

I heard it.

Haley...

I started to stand. But I hadn’t moved my foot in a good place. I tripped on the desk leg and started to fall forward.

Klutz?

I heard as I was in mid-fall and turned my head around, looking at Ms. Adler’s hand going to her mouth as she gasped.

I hit the floor with a thud. That sound echoing inside my own head. The pain reverberating through my broken arm. When I regained composure, I pushed myself up and stood. Tears barely holding back.

The kids in my class were laughing at me.

Are you Haley Klutz? Ms. Adler asked, rushing over to me, making sure I was all right.

It’s Lutz. Haley Lutz. I could hear my emotions coming out in my voice.

She looked at the paper, examined it, and said, I’ve got Klutz. She showed me the paper.

There’s the mistake—Haley K Lutz. My middle name is Kathryn. Somebody messed up. One period. That’s all that was missing. That’s how I became Haley Klutz.

With the classroom pointing and laughing, one girl said, Sounds like Klutz is a much better name.

I hate mean girls, and this girl is a MG in making. At five, you really shouldn’t be a Regina George but this girl… definition of.

Ms. Adler?

Yes, Clayton?

I changed my mind. I don’t like baseball as much as I hate bullies.

Clayton’s eyes met mine. We had a moment there. He stood up for me.

The classroom all made Oooing sounds at the mean girl.

All right. All right. Settle down. Ms. Adler tried to get the classroom to calm down, which is pretty impossible for twenty five-year-olds.

God bless our teachers.

I looked back at the boy who stood up for me and knew I wanted him to be my friend.

Chapter 2

Clayton

Knock. Knock. I open Haley’s apartment door to wish her a good morning as part of our regular routine.

Nothing. She was nowhere.

Haley? I look around.

I started by popping a pod into her Keurig. A simple breakfast blend she likes those the most. Then I grab the bag of bagels out of the bread box. Yeah, she’s got a bread box. And we do play the is it bigger than a bread box game quite a lot. I pull apart a pre-sliced bagel and drop it into her toaster.

Haley? I called out one last time.

Mmm, I heard from her bedroom.

The forbidden zone. As long as I’ve known Haley, she hates it when I go into her bedroom. It’s like it’s some sort of secret sanctum of vigilante bad-assery. That’s it; she’s got to be a superhero in hiding. And I’ve just never figured it out all these years. Yep, twenty years later and her secret identity is still a mystery.

Haley? Babe? I call out, getting a little closer to the forbidden zone.

I crack the door to her bedroom open and see her starting to squirm under her sheets. She’s beautiful. She’s always been. From the day I first met her, I thought she was absolutely amazing. Beautiful, smart, funny, and exactly everything I knew I wanted in my life.

Haley?

Mmm, she moaned.

I moved toward her slowly. I honestly didn’t want to wake her up. I could enjoy her just like this forever. I ease down on the edge of her bed and gently move a strand of dark auburn brown hair from her face.

I went to lean down to kiss her forehead. Just my luck, at the last minute, her eyes shot open, and she bolted straight up, knocking me right in the nose with her head. I jerked back, my hand covering my bloody nose and her hand on her forehead.

Oh my God! Clay, I’m so sorry. Are you okay? she asked, looking up and under her hand covering her forehead.

I’m okay. I’m okay. I got off her bed and went into her bathroom still holding my nose.

I’m not prone to nosebleeds, but since knowing this beautiful mess, I’ve had at least two a year just from the secondhand klutziness alone. Along with a few broken bones and some minor scrapes and burns. Yes, burns. Only God knows how she’s capable of all the destruction.

Just as I stuff a tissue up the nostril that was still bleeding, I hear a thud from the bedroom. I can only imagine her falling off the bed. Heading back into her room, I see her looking for her glasses. Or I should say feeling for her glasses. She’s got her hands extended, touching everything on her nightstand, trying to find them. I can see her squinting from where I am, and she’s not going to find them because they fell onto the floor.

My gaze moves over her bare legs and up to her long night shirt that just barely covers her perfectly shaped butt. She bends over to search the floor, and I catch a glimpse of her pale pink and white cotton panties. I adjust myself in my jeans. She has no idea that I’m in love with her, and it’s just not the right time to say, Hey, I’m in love with you, and here’s my cock.

I pull the tissue out of my nose and toss it in the trash bin.

I clear my throat and move toward her. Hold on, let me grab them.

She stopped where she was and froze as if she forgot I was in her apartment.

I reached around her and picked up her glasses off the floor. She hadn’t moved. She was standing so close to me. When I turned around to hand them to her, all I could think about was putting them on to her face for her. I slid the earpieces past her cheeks and over her ears. Her eyes stayed shut the entire time, and I’m almost certain that she held her breath. I knew she doesn’t necessarily like having things done for her, but I like to do things for her. She blushed, and it’s an amazing sight to see.

I took my fingers off the sides of her glasses, and that was when she opened her beautiful, dynamic blue eyes. She looked up at me for a moment. She’s about eight inches shorter than me so I’m looking down at her, and we’re close. Like control yourself close. Down boy.

And then it was like a switch was flipped. All of a sudden, she blinked and started to look around her room as if realizing where we were and that I was standing too close to her for just friends.

Wha-what are you doing here? she asked.

It’s Saturday. We’re having breakfast together. I’ve already started your coffee and bagel.

She visibly relaxes. Is the idea of waking up to me that horrible? I’m not a bad looking guy. I’ve been told by several exes that I’m a catch but just not their catch because I’m in love with my best friend. They all see it. Why doesn’t she?

Oh, I forgot. I was up late last night working on a website. She motions to her laptop on her bed. I probably need to plug it in. She starts to reach for it, but at the last minute, I see how she’s managed to spin and tangle herself into her bedsheet. I reach out and stop her by putting my arm around her.

Hold on, I say, picking her up and letting the sheet untangle and fall off her foot.

She looked down, noticing the entanglement that could have happened. Thanks. She sighed, I just don’t know how it keeps happening.

I do, but I’d never tell her that she’s a klutz. Because who loves a klutz? Me. That’s who. Haley is the absolute everything, but she has this small, little problem that has plagued her through just about every moment of her life. I took another step back. It felt like I had to physically pull myself from her. All I wanted was to be near her, but every time we get close, she tenses up, and she just acts like an awkward middle schooler. And I knew her in middle school. She was even more awkward. But it’s cute. Especially with her.

Let me get changed. I’ll be out in a minute, she said, looking toward her bedroom door.

Sure, I can take a hint. Okay. I’ll just got get my eggs started.

Ooo, would you scramble me one? I’ve been in the mood for scrambled eggs, and you make the best.

I brushed the imaginary dust off my shoulder and said, It's all in the spatula work.

She laughed.

That’s all I needed. Her laugh is magnetic. Seriously, it really is. When she laughs, it’s like people are magnetized by her and they can’t help but to be around her.

Clay. She scolded.

I put my hands up as she starts to push me toward her door. I would move faster, but her hands are on me, and it takes a lot for her to feel comfortable even touching anyone. I’m pretty sure it took us a few years before she would even sit next to me. Now, nearly twenty years later, I’m allowed to touch but not in the way that I want.

Clay, give me five minutes. I’ll be right out.

Okay. Okay. I stood at the edge of her door with a grin the size of Alaska on my face.

What are you smiling at? She got right up close and tilted her head straight back so she could glare at me properly.

You like me, I said in a teasing manner.

Her cheeks turned as red as a tomato.

I grinned even bigger.

I do not, she said with such fervor.

You do. I grinned. I pointed at my cheek and tapped twice. I wanted a kiss, and she knew it. It took me fifteen years for her to kiss my cheek, and I get one almost every day. She crossed her arms over her delectable chest. I looked down for a moment. Not trying to give too much away. Then, I placed both my hands on either side of the door frame and leaned in toward her. Do it. I paused as she thought about it. Or I won’t make you scrambled eggs.

Fine. She huffed.

She lifted herself on to her tiptoes and gave me the quickest peck on my cheek that she’s ever done. Oh, she’s mad. Good. I like when she gets mad. Her frustration makes her distracted, and I’ve got to watch more closely to make sure she’s not going to do something klutzy and hurt herself.

That’s when she turned on her heels and closed her bedroom door in my face so she could get dressed. Didn’t I tell you—who wouldn’t love a gorgeous klutz like Haley?

Chapter 3

Haley

That boy infuriates me. However, if he wants a kiss on the cheek to make me some scrambled eggs then he’ll get his kiss. I walked into my bathroom to go through my morning routine. As I passed by the mirror, I got a good look at the hot mess I had become overnight. My hair up in a messy-bun but a few of the strands had found its way loose, and a green-gray colored dry facial mask covering my face and some of the old t-shirt I was wearing.

Well, that’s attractive, I said to myself and got started washing my face clean.

Gah, no wonder I can’t find myself a boyfriend. You’d think at the age of twenty-seven I would have had at least one serious relationship. Alas, no. Every time I think I’m getting close, something klutzy happens, and then he’s running for the hills. Or the hospital. Not going to lie, that’s happened more than once. The last time was when I tried to make dinner for Mike. He was really sweet. I thought we could have had something special. Nope. I tripped over my own foot, and the steak knife I was holding leapt from my hand and went catapulting across the room. No, that’s not how he ended up in the hospital. I wish. I fell to the floor, and when he came to make