I'm a stripper, doesn't mean I'm a slut

James' baby

"Yeah but that was before they were clean. And now that they're clean, taking them on a dirty bus filled with drug dealers and sweaty hobos who haven't bathed in weeks."

"Have you even been on a bus before?" I ask. Seriously, drug dealers and hobos?

"We're taking my ride." he says grimly, ignoring my comment. "I'm not taking any chances. C'mon." he grabs my arms again and pulls me along.

"Get off me!" I say as he drags me.

We get back to the school car park and stop at a shiny black motorbike with crisp leather seats and a black helmet slung onto the front.

I give a low whistle. "Nice ride."

"Isn't she?" James grins.

"How'd you manage to afford a beauty look this?" I ask impressed. 

"Present." he expalins shortly.

"Oh yeah, I remember - you're loaded." I roll my eyes at my forgetfullness. "You must get a sports car for each birthday present or something."

James frowns. "Not really - this baby was sort of a "please forget you saw me in bed with my secretary" type of present from my dad."

"Oh." I didn't know that someone like James would have actual problems in his life. He's rich and popular and gets good grades and has a hot girlfriend. Then I remember that that was basically my life before I ran away from home and came here.

Rich, poor, popular, loner, nerdy, stupid - everyone has problems regardless. How could I forget that? I should know - of all people - I should know the most.

"That's rough, bro." I say, awkwardly patting him on the back.

"Yea," James says looking at the ground and scuffing the toe of his shoe on the pavement. He looks so sad - like a lost little boy. For once, he's not oozing confidence and charm, acting and talking like a grown up.

He just looks like a sad kid.

I try to take his mind off his sudden depressing mood. "I used to have a bike too you know.

"Really?" he asks.

"Yeah," I nod. "Used to drive it all the time. Drove my dad nuts - he thought it wasn't 'lady like'". I rolled my eyes. "Of course, this was all before -"I stop mid sentence.

Shit. I almost gave away the reason as to why exactly I had moved away from my home, ran away from my school and "friends" and "parents" (note the quotation marks). I forgot I was in enemy territory.

Seeing James show actual human emotion made me forget for a moment of how much of a douche bag he was. After all, he did threaten to out my secret if I didn't obey his ever whim and will. How could I be so careless?

"Before what?" James asks curiously.

"What's the horse power on this thing anyway?" I say, quickly changing the subject.

He starts ranting excitedly about his baby, his grey eyes shining with enthusiasm, making his whole face seem brighter, his smile bigger, his face cuter, his body ...

"Anyway, we better be going." he says.

"Yeah." I say, getting pulled out of my trance. Woah, I really need to get out more if I've sunk so low that I'm checking out James. Sigh, me and my hormones. "Yeah, we should."

He hops onto his baby and grabs the helmet that was hanging on the front, holding it out to me while gesturing at the back of the bike. "Get in loser, we're going shopping."