I Melt With You

Chapter Eight

The next morning, I woke up with a smile on my face. All night, I had dreamt of Harvey--that beautiful, chiseled bad boy. I had thought about the revelation I had about loving him...was I truly in love with him? I had mulled it over for hours and concluded that I was. I was in love with Harvey Hotstud. Even his annoying quirks were beginning to appeal to me. I had never imagined I'd find someone so special and so perfect. My world was just getting better and better.

I snapped out of my Harvey-themed reverie and turned my head to see Alia collapsed on the floor next to my bed. We had stayed up so late that she decided to spend the night. She was sprawled across my carpet, her long hair spread messily around her head. I sat up and stepped out of bed, tapping her on the shoulder with my foot. She stirred and opened her eyes.

"Can I just chill here all day?" she said groggily.

"I mean, I guess," I said "But I'm going to school to see Harvey!"

She groaned and sat up.

"I guess there are cute boys there," she said "Maybe Eli Harrington will finally sit with me at lunch. A girl can hope."

Alia hoisted herself up and stretched, walking downstairs with me to get breakfast. My father was frying eggs at the stove and gave us a friendly wave.

"Care for some fried eggs?" he asked "They've got my special seasoning."

Alia gave me a concerned look.

"We're good," I said to my dad "But thanks."

"More for me!" my father said, shrugging.

Alia and I grabbed some yogurts out of the fridge and quickly gulped them down. After eating his eggs, my dad drove us to the high school, whistling merrily along the way. Upon arriving outside the school, I could already tell something strange was going on. There was a large crowd gathered on the left side of the front doors. I squinted and saw that there was a person on the roof of the building. Alia and I ran closer to see what was going on. I gasped upon seeing who it was.

Harvey was standing at the very edge of the roof, a grin spread across his face. Kids were shouting left and right. One of Harvey's macrame buddies was standing at the front of the crowd.

"Don't be a pussy and just jump already!" he yelled.

I pushed next to him, looking up at Harvey.

"Harvey, what's going on?" I screamed at him "Are you okay?"

He began chuckling.

"Frank here bet me fifty bucks that I wouldn't jump off the roof of the building!" he yelled back at me "I'm about to show him just how badass I am!"

"No, Harvey," I screeched "You could really hurt yourself!"

Harvey seemed to pay me no mind. He raised his hand to silence the crowd.

"Watch this!" he yelled out "Suck it, Frank!"

In a swift motion, Harvey jumped off the roof and into the bushes down below. They seemed to cushion his landing a fair bit, but I still heard a yelp of pain when he landed. He rolled out of the bushes and hobbled to his feet, raising both his fists in triumph.

"I win!" he yelled.

Cheers erupted from the crowd. Harvey walked towards me, but his left knee buckled and he fell to the pavement. I bent down and helped pull him back up.

"Your leg is hurt," I said "We should go to the nurse."

"The school doesn't have a nurse, remember?" he said "Principal Clark sacked her last year to cut down on funding."