My Complicated Love

Chapter Twenty: A different Conner

*Chapter Twenty: A different Conner*

"So you think that you're actually going to break up with Miles?" Caleb asked Alex that night. She had stayed late so she decided to just sleep over. "Yeah, I think so... I mean, I care about Jace so much more than Miles... God, how did we get here? Just a couple months ago, I wouldn't have even thought about choosing Jace over Miles..." Caleb laughed, shaking his head. "Yeah, I know. Crazy things can happen in just a couple months..."

She laughed slightly and nodded. "Yeah... Well, I think I'm going to go to bed... Night!" She left his room to go to the guest room. She knew Miles would be pissed if he found out she was sharing a bed with another guy. "Good night..."

She walked to the room. It was plain. The walls were white, the sheets were white, the only thing that had a splash of color were the baby blue flowers on the comforter. It was annoyingly plain compared to the real rooms in the house.

Caleb's was painted dark blue. He had pictures all over one of his walls, most of them taken by Alex or with her. The ones that didn't have her either had people from the play or his siblings. Jace's walls were a light brown color, with, thanks to a bet he lost with Angie, purple polka-dots. He tried to cover up as much as he could with band posters. Rock bands, of course, they were his favorite. It was one of the things he had in common with Alex. Lucas's was painted green. He had playbills of every play he was in pinned to his wall and pictures from them on his desk. Angie, of course, had her walls painted pink with posters of guys all over them.

Alex would rather have been in any of their rooms than this plain white one.

The next morning, she woke up earlier than she had to because of the brightness. She figured she'd borrow Angie's curling iron and make herself look semi-nice that day. When she was finished getting ready, she walked downstairs and made herself some Frosted Flakes. Caleb, Jace, and Lucas were already downstairs. "Morning," she said brightly. Jace looked up at her and froze, his forkful of eggs left hanging halfway to his mouth. She looked beautiful. She hadn't curled her hair since he could remember. "What?" she asked Jace as she grabbed the box of Frosted Flakes. "Uh, nothing," he said, before shoving the eggs in his mouth. She rolled her eyes, laughing, before pouring the bowl of cereal.

When they were all done eating, they all piled into Jace's car. Alex sat in the front because she made it there faster than Caleb. On the way there, she fell asleep, probably because she was so tired from waking up early that morning. She didn't even notice when they got to school, it was only when someone started shaking her saying, "Wake up sleepyhead!" She groaned, opening up one eye to look at Jace. "What?" she asked stupidly. He laughed. She was always crabby when she was forced awake. She loved sleep more than she loved most people. "We're at school! It's time to take on the day and all that crap..." She sat up and unbuckled herself. "I'd rather sleep," she said dryly. He smiled down at her. "Yeah, I think we all would. But, we can't! So let's go!"

She finally got out of the car, scowling at how happy the boy was. "Nobody should be happy in the morning. What is wrong with you?"

He shrugged, the smile never leaving his face. "I don't know... I just feel like there's a reason for me to be happy for the first time in a while..." She looked up at him in surprise, but he was staring straight ahead of him, his hands shoved in his jacket pockets. When they got inside, they quickly said goodbye to each other and went to their separate locker hallways. As soon as Alex got to the eleventh grade hallway, she was greeted by Miles. Guilt seeped into her stomach at how happy he was to see her. She forced a smile as he kissed her on the cheek. "Hey, we need to talk," she said. He looked at her worriedly, but nodded. She took his hand and led him to an empty hallway by the auditorium. It was always empty in the mornings.

"Look," she sighed, deciding it just needed to be done. She had to do it quickly, like ripping off a Band-Aid. "I think we should break up..." He froze, his smile dropping immediately. "Oh..." he said, his voice slightly raspy. "Why?"

"I just... I don't think I'm ready for a relationship right now." That was probably the worst lie she could come up with. She saw his face harden. "It's because of him, isn't it? That Jace guy?"

"What?" she said stupidly. Her shock and idiotic behavior only angered him more. "I see the way you fucking look at him! You two are like dogs on heat when you're around each other. But I tried to ignore it. I said that I was just imagining things and it wasn't true. But now I know. You guys are probably going to go fuck in a bathroom as soon as you leave, huh?"

She was absolutely shocked. Was this the same guy she'd liked for years and agreed to date? "You're fucking insane!" She suddenly felt a sharp pain on her cheek. She had never been slapped before, so it took her a minute to realize what had just happened. That Miles had just slapped her. She looked back up at him, the tears stinging her eyes. As Alex looked back up at him, she could see the rage still present in his eyes, when suddenly he was tackled and being punched in the face.

She gasped, immediately recognizing the attacker. "Conner! Stop, get off him!" He obliged, after getting a few more good hits in. "Stay away from her... If you ever fucking touch her again I will end you." All she could do was stare at him with her mouth wide open as he grabbed her arm and led her away. This was a Conner she had never seen before. He was always so laid back, never letting his temper get the better of him. He never swore, and it seemed like he'd never hurt a fly. "Conner!" she finally spluttered out. He put his hands on her shoulders, leaning down so he was eye to eye with her. "Are you okay?" he asked, examining her cheek. He flinched, and she guessed she had a red hand print on her cheek. "I'm fine. Are you?" she questioned, taking his hands in hers and looking at his knuckles, which were cut up and bruised. He let out a breath of laughter and she looked up at him in surprise.

"Alex... You just got hit. I did the hitting. I think I'm in better shape than you." That's when she remembered what just happened. She was just hit by the guy she was dating just ten minutes ago. She suddenly burst into tears, flinging herself to him and hugging him tightly. He hugged her back, telling her it was going to be okay and shushing her. Suddenly, there was a voice. "Conner? What happened?" She turned around, looking at a worried Drew, Caleb, and Jace. Jace surprised her by being the first one to come up to her, holding her chin and looking at her red cheek. "What happened?!" he asked again. She explained what happened, trying to keep her voice from shaking. She looked up at the three boys, who looked murderous. "Don't do anything," she warned them, pointing a finger at them threateningly. "Alex, this guy hit you! How can you expect us to not do anything?" Caleb questioned. She bit her lip, trying to hold back her tears. "Conner's done enough, you guys. And I'm fine! It didn't even hurt really, it was more just... shock..." They sighed and agreed not to hurt him. Alex looked up at Jace, who was staring down at her.

She smiled at him, reaching out and grabbing his hand. "Um... I have to pee," Caleb said awkwardly. "Me too!" Drew and Conner said and they walked away. Jace and Alex burst into laughter at their idiotic friends. Suddenly, Jace turned serious, staring down at her. He put a hand on her cheek that wasn't slapped, caressing it softly and stroking it with his thumb. "You don't have a boyfriend anymore," he said lowly.

"Yep," she said, wrapping her arms around his waist, "And you don't have a girlfriend anymore..."

"Yep," he replied, grinning. He leaned down, placing his lips on hers softly. She smiled into the kiss, wrapping her arms around his neck and tangling her fingers in his hair. They pulled away after a little bit, breathing heavily. He rested his forehead on hers, unable to hold back his smile. "Finally," he mumbled.