[A/N: I decided to use the tv series Merlin as the book she is reading in this chapter seeing as there were many Arthurian books in the 1980's even if this version wasn't there yet.]
Chapter 10
Rosana begrudgingly sat down on the carpeted floor in a deaden part of the library with an apple, a sandwich, and a can of soda hidden behind her bag so that if the librarian happens to walk by, she wouldn't see her eating there.
All throughout the past three periods, Johnny has been ignoring her, unsurprisingly while Bobby and Jimmy gave her half-smiles as if unsure of what to do. If they should still talk to her or not. And Rosana knew or hoped, that if she pushed to talk to them that they would ignore Johnny's sharp glares and talk to her because Bobby tried to walk to her once but she shook her head at him when she saw Johnny glaring at Bobby for his actions. Dutch and Tommy weren't rude but they glared at her slightly.
What made her day still okay was the fact that the boys may not have been talking to her but they were never too far, well... minus Johnny that is.
And to put the icing on today's shitty cake, her brother ignored and glared at her as well and walked right past her with that blonde he was eye flirting with at the beach. All Rosana wanted to do was go home and curl into a ball until her problem solves itself.
Rosana grumpily opens the book where she last read and holds it up with her left hand while she picks up her apple with her right and takes a bite out of it before hiding it behind her bag again.
"'You've had your fun, my friend.'"
Rosana looks up to see who the thick male voice belongs to and although she wasn't one to be tongue-tied by a guy but dear Lord, he was good-looking.
She wasn't looking at him in a way one would if you're attracted to the guy but in a way one would look at a beautiful painting because holy cow he was really nice to look at. But, then his words slowly registered in her mind, making her grin slightly when she remembered the book she was reading. He was quoting the second sentence Merlin tells Arthur when they first meet.
"'D-Do I know you?'" She plays along by saying the line Arthur had said to Merlin in the novel.
"'Uh, I'm' Oliver—" In the novel, Merlin had said his own name but the boy Oliver twerked it to his.
"'So, I d-don't know you.'" She broke him off just like Arthur did to Merlin and tried to sound as snobbish as possible.
"'No.'"
"'Yet, you called m-me friend.'"
And Rosana thought the situation and role-playing were humorous and a bit ironic because she really didn't know him. Much like Arthur and Merlin at this part of the novel.
"'That's my mistake.'"
"'Yes, I-I think so.'"
Both of them looked at each other seriously before he lets out a laugh that made his shoulders shake and a dimple pop out on the side of his cheek.
Rosana couldn't contain her own humour as she laughs softly with a shake of her head, making her honey brown curls bounce slightly.
"I would like to rectify my mistake. May I sit?" He asks politely, his laughter gone but it still remained in his emerald green eyes and his dimple didn't fade as he grinned at her.
"W-Would you be quoting more of Merlin if I said no?"
Oliver grins wider, "I want to say that I probably would but I'm afraid that you'll say no just so I do quote Merlin."
Rosana couldn't help but let out another small laugh at that, "Y-You caught onto me. You may sit."
Oliver fakes a groan and sits in front of her as she takes a bite of her apple, "Thank you, my lady, for putting me out of my misery."
"I'm Rosana but everyone c-calls me, Rose," Rosana says with a small smile. She couldn't help but feel proud of herself for not stuttering too much and not wanting to run from interacting with someone. Her smile slowly dropped as she thought about the reason why she found it so easy to interact with a stranger: Johnny and the boys. The thought of them reminded her that they still weren't talking to her.
"I'm Oliver. I love Merlin! I've read it about seven times," he whispers as if it were codes to launch missiles.
"I-I've read it nine times," she whispers back.
His eyes light up pleasantly before it goes back to its mischievous gleam, "But if you tell anyone I will deny it."
Rosana was quite amused by him and was thankful that he was taking her mind off of the sad thoughts in her head.
"You're such a b-boy."
"Pfft, I have a reputation to uphold. Imagine people finding out that their star Quarterback reads. Oh, the horror!"
"And imagine when they find out he h-hides in the library as well," Rosana giggles softly while tucking a stray strand of her hair behind her ear.
"Then y-your secret is safe with me. I d-do not want any more horrors in the world." She said just as dramatically as him.
Oliver's emerald green eyes softens at her, his grin turning into a genuine smile, "You should smile more often."
Rosana's eyes widened momentarily at his words before biting her lip in contemplation as a small blush appeared on her cheeks, "O-Oh..." she was speechless. This situation was completely different from the guys when they flirt with her, they always joked around but Oliver was boldly flirting with her for real, no joking.
Holy crap.
Oliver let out a small laugh, "You're very cute, you know that?"
"N-Not until you said it, no."
"Well—"
"Come on, Oliver, you can flirt later! If we get detention again for being late to class, Coach is going make as go ten laps around the field again!" Some boy yells a few feet away from them causing some kids close by to shush him.
"I'm going to kill him," Oliver mutters under his breath as he reluctantly stands up. He gives Rosana a warm and confident smile, "I would like to get to know you more. I have been trying to build up the courage to say that since yesterday when I saw the Merlin book in your hand."
Rosana smiles softly, "I-I'd like that." She said, surprising herself but she was trying new things and that meant trying to be social, if it turns out to be bad again like a few years ago then at least she tried.
"But," Rosana laughes behind her hand when she saw the boy who called him start to turn red, "I-I think you should go before your friend bust a nerve."
Oliver chuckles, "Okay. See you around, Rose."
"See you," Rosana says softly as she watches him walk away from her.
***
Johnny was in a mood all day.
He couldn't stop thinking about what Rosana said to him this morning and about the sadness and doubt Daniel had put in her eyes.
The boys had tried to cheer him up today but he knew that they were in much of a funk as he was since this morning. They wanted to talk to Rosana but they were worried he wouldn't like it. And he didn't. If he couldn't talk to her then they weren't allowed to either.
Although, he and the boys made sure they always had eyes on her in case she had another panic attack and needed them.
"So, Bobby, where did you go during lunch?"
"I followed Rosana to the library."
Johnny was immediately brought to reality by the name of the girl that was plaguing his thoughts, "And, did she seem okay?" He tried to act as if he didn't care about the answer but goddamn it, that girl had somehow placed a spell on him. Even though he was hurt and pissed at her, he cared about her safety. Just like this morning when he turned around and followed her to school. He doesn't even remember turning, he just remembers his hands moving on his own, his heart winning over his head as if he was enchanted.
"She seemed okay but a bit sad," Bobby answered hesitantly as he remembers Oliver talking to her and watched as she laughed and smiled up at him. Bobby got a hunch, a big one, that Johnny liked Rosana and if he knew Oliver was trying to move in on Rosana, it will mean trouble.
Dutch rolls his eyes, "Please, I don't think sad could cover it if you saw the way she looked when Danielle practically ignored her when she tried to talk to him. She looked utterly devastated."
"No. I think the worse was when Johnny didn't sit next to her in class today and threw away her note. Crap move, man." Jimmy adds for the fifth time today. The boys had been pissed at him for that as much as he was at himself.
Johnny's eyes darkened in anger and hurt, at her, at himself but mostly anger at Daniel. Rosana and he were completely fine if Daniel had just minded his own business. Fuck, he had hated the look on her face when he didn't sit anywhere close to her and when she passed a note with 'I'm sorry. Can we talk later?', he had looked her in the eye —his eyes cold and his face emotionless— and crumpled the paper up and threw it in the bin. And when tears gathered in her eyes he had almost gotten on his knees to ask her forgiveness. The keyword being 'almost'.
He had tried to get her after class but she practically ran away from him, leaving him cursing at his stupid actions.
"Shut up—" Johnny's words were stuck in his throat when he sees Rosana sitting on his bike, her eyes on that book she has been reading since yesterday.
Johnny's eyes take her in greedily as she puts her book down on the seat of his motorbike then stands when she sees them coming towards her. He wanted so badly to smile as she fiddles with her fingers nervously and move to her feet every few seconds. She was cute when she did that.
"Can w-we talk?" She tucks a strand behind her ear as she bites her lip.
Johnny looks at the boys, "You guys go and get ready for karate class. I'm going to drop Firebird. I'll see you guys there."
The boys smile reassuringly at her before leaving her alone with Johnny.
Johnny had so many things to say to her, so much anger for her assumption this morning but when her grey anxious eyes flitters up to him every few seconds, he couldn't bring himself to be mean to her. And every time he thinks of saying anything rude, that memory of her trusting him to hold her together, of her believing his words that he would always keep her safe made him not want her to ever doubt him or to break her trust in him.
Johnny silently retrieves their helmets while Rosana tucks her book into her bag and put it on her back. Rosana takes her helmet from him and put it on while he climbs on the bike and starts the engine. She climbs behind him and wraps her arms hesitantly around him like he had instructed her to yesterday.
***
When they came to the corner of her apartment complex, both Johnny and Rosana got off the bike —their helmets off— and stood opposite each other.
"Anna, about the note in class—"
Rosana shakes her head, "No, Jay, let me t-talk."
Rosana felt like throwing up because of how nervous she felt. Johnny has been ignoring her the entire day and had tried to stay clear of her and the incident in class made her wary that he might not forgive her.
Between her brother and the boys not wanting to talk to her made her feel awful. She just wanted to make things right. She wanted to have both her brother and her friends without having to choose between the two. She knew that she might need to but right now she was just confused and... gah! She wanted to pull her hair out at how frustrating her thoughts were becoming.
"I shouldn't have said those things to you this morning. I am so sorry. I was hurt by Daniel ignoring me and the argument he and I had gotten into the day before. A-All my life, all I had was Daniel. He's my other half, my partner, my person. He has always protected me, cared for me, been the shoulder I always cried on or the person I'd go to if I had nightmares. I w-would do anything for him but when he asked me to stay away from you and the guys..." Rosana takes in a deep shaky breath, "I-I couldn't believe that I hesitated to do as he asked, that I refused to stay away from all of you. I felt l-like I was betraying him and I was wondering if me choosing to remain friends with all of you means that I might lose my brother..."
"That's why you wanted to be alone this morning, to think," Johnny says in realization.
She nodded solemnly, tears burning her eyes as she swallows the grieve in her throat, "I can't lose him, Jay. I can't. But I don't want to lose you or the boys after everything you guys have done for me. After the possibility that I might belong somewhere... I am just so confused, Johnny... I don't know what to do."
Johnny could feel the familiar rage eating at his stomach; biting and clawing to the rest of his body before it settled in his chest like a living being, his fists clenching and unclenching by his side.
Why couldn't Daniel just mind his own goddamn business? Everything would be fine if he had just butted out.
Johnny's jaw tightened as he sees a tear falls down Rosana's cheek. She reaches up to wipe it away but he catches her wrist and uses his free hand to wipe the tear away with the pad of his thumb gently as they stood an inch away from one another.
His thumb remains on her soft cheek as he slowly opens his fingers to let it smooth over the skin of her cheekbones before cupping the side of her face into the palm of his hand.
Rosana forgot how to breathe as Johnny's furious body almost touched hers, his breath fanning her lips and his blue turbulent eyes clash against her stormy grey ones in a swirl of violence and passion that left her gasping for breath. Despite the anger in his eyes and the tension in his shoulders, his touch was inviting and soft and firm and caring.
"I forgive you for this morning, Anna. I understand but I can't forgive Daniel for making you cry, for hurting you. Brother or not, I'm going to make him regret it."
Rosana felt a warmth spread through her before it quickly turns to dread at the thought of him beating Daniel up again.
Rosana's eyes fills with panic and quickly grabs Johnny's hand when he removed it from her cheek, "Jay, no! Don't hurt him, please. Not Danny."
"We're friends aren't we?"
"Yes, Jay, but—"
"And friends protect each other." Maybe one day we can be more than friends. When that day comes, I won't let him hurt you. Not now, not ever. He thought.
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