Thin Lines - Chapter Ten
The situation they were currently in was obviously a very awkward one, and at the same time something both Trish and Dez couldn't believe they were apart of in the first place. If Kitty hadn't come and interrupted whatever it was they were actually doing, then who knows what it could have escalated to. Neither of them were ready to think about such things.
And it was safe to say, both were actually happy to see Kitty Glam for once.
"Well?" The girl in question stressed the word out in an accusing tone, "Explain yourself, Dez!"
"Uh..." Dez was dumbstruck. He chanced a glance at Trish and she too looked as if she'd lost a few brain cells. After a moment of silence, his brain reminded him to get it together and he spoke.
"She had water in her eyes. I was just helping her get it out."
Kitty narrowed her eyes in suspicion. As she looked over at Trish, it seemed as if she was unable to look directly back into her eyes and this didn't exactly help her case. Not completely convinced with Dez's excuse but at the same time not really caring either way, Kitty trained her attention back to Dez.
"It doesn't even matter that she's here. What does matter is the fact you didn't mention she was coming!" Huh? Confused, both Trish and Dez shared a look of bewilderment before they both turned to face Kitty again.
"Did you know I was going to be here?" Dez demanded more than asked. Kitty's eyes widened at his tone, quickly realising her slip up.
"Of course not...I-I didn't eavesdrop on one of your conversations with Austin...or anything?" It was Dez's turn to narrow his eyes and Trish had to refrain from scoffing. With a nervous laugh, Kitty flipped her hair behind her shoulder.
"Anyway," She was quick to change the subject "What's obviously more important right now is what is going on here."
"Nothing, okay?" Dez said with a distressed sigh, though he didn't dare look in Trish's direction this time, in case he gave any emotions away. "I already told you."
Kitty let out a 'hmph!' her eyes still darting back and forth between the two before she eventually stilled her gaze on Dez.
"Yeah, well, it better not be. Dez, come join me buy the shake shack. We can share a Strawberry Swizz." Kitty finished her sentence off with a grin. Dez squirmed under how intense her stare was, but managed to smile back awkwardly.
"Uh, in a sec. I need to dry myself off." If it was possible, her grin became wider. Before leaving the scene, she threw Trish a glare and then turned around to practically strut off.
Once she was a safe distance away, they both let out a sigh of relief. This prompted on a few laughs, as they walked further away from the shore.
"Please try and explain to me how you managed to survive going out with her?" Trish was still laughing as she shook her head. She found it bizarre that someone could even spend time with the girl at all, let alone consider dating her.
"Hey, she wasn't always crazy...I think." This caused Trish to laugh even harder and Dez tried not to focus too hard on how pretty she looked in that exact moment.
"So what are you going to do now?" She questioned him once her laughter had died down. "Are you going to go over there?"
With a grimace, Dez looked over to his far left. Kitty was in the process of buying the largest size of Strawberry Swizz milkshakes they offered at the 'Shake Shack'. She was even inserting two straws into the cup.
"I'd rather not."He answered, looking away with a shudder.
"You do realise she's probably going to kill you right? And maybe she'll even try to kill me!" Trish wasn't scared of the tall red headed girl in any shape or form, but she didn't really have the time or the energy to fend off Kitty's fighting attempts.
" Psh, she fawns over my every word. I can't deal with her later. Let's just quickly find Austin and Ally and get out of here before she notices how long it's taking me to head on over to her."
And with that, the two growing friends broke into a run, leaving there laughter ringing in the air.
-TXD-
Austin Moon's car stopped to a halt in front of the De La Rosa's household. After Trish and Dez had found Austin and Ally, they'd quickly explained the situation they'd managed to get themselves into with Kitty. Not wasting anymore time, the four quickly scurried off to grab their things and practically hopped into Austin's car. Once safely away, they'd decided to stop for ice cream on the way at the ice cream parlor.
Trish had been lucky to get the last of the cookie dough which just so happened to be Dez's favourite too. Needless to say, stopping his advances of getting a taste of her cone hadn't exactly been easy.
Now it was the evening and the calm ride home was significantly enjoyable for each of the four friends.
Both Trish and Dez weren't exactly sure on how it happened, but somewhere along the way Trish had shifted close enough to lay her head down to rest on Dez's shoulder. Such a gesture that would have been unimaginable merely three weeks ago, was now something that came natural to them.
Neither of them planned on moving away first.
"Okay, Trish we're here." Luckily for them, Austin was around to burst their dream bubble.
"Right...thanks, Austin." Trish moved out of her comfortable position with great reluctance and Dez tried, but failed to hold in the frown at the loss of contact. She quickly said bye to both Austin and Ally, and just as she was about to do the same to Dez, he spoke up.
"I'll walk you to the door." Trish stared at him blankly for a few seconds before involuntarily smiling.
"Okay." She hoped she didn't sound as shy to everyone else as she did to her own ears. Quickly, she opened the car door and Dez stepped out after her. The cool evening air hit both the teens as they walked up the narrow pathway that lead to Trish's front porch. Once they made it to her front door, there was an awkward pause.
"So..."
"So..."
"So...I'll guess I'll see you on Monday?" Trish said, not knowing what else to come up with. Dez nodded, scratching the back of his neck; the act had officially become a nervous habit of his the more time he spent around Trish.
"Yeah, I guess you will." Trish smiled faintly and he automatically did the same. Something about her smile just did that to him. With a quick punch to his shoulder, she muttered one last goodbye before she opened her door and closed it behind her. If not, she would have given into her urge of stepping into his arms for a hug.
What is wrong with me? This is Dez we're talking about. She shook her head and headed on upstairs to her room.
On the other side of the door, Dez had yet to move. He was staring at it like he wanted to knock just so she would open the door and he could her ask for a hug. Just like Trish previously had, he shook his head to rid himself of anymore crazy thoughts and turned around. This is Trish De La Rosa we're talking about. That's not an option.
-TXD-
Another week passed with very little of interest happening. Trish would receive death glares from Kitty, which she had pretty much become immune to at this point. Austin and Ally were still a sickeningly sweet couple, and Trish and Dez had somehow managed to become closer.
It was like everything they had thought about each other in the past was beginning to become a non existent thought altogether.
On a Thursday like any other, Dez grabbed his lunch tray with a smile after getting an extra helping of fries. He always had been good with sweet talking the lunch lady Ruth. As his eyes scanned the busy cafeteria, he quickly found the table he was looking for. His best friend was already sat there with his girlfriend and the two were laughing at something with the girl who was starting to become a big part of his life. Trish.
He hadn't seen her all day. Not even in homeroom that morning because he had been late, and now that he took his time to watch her he was glad he was finally seeing her. He bit his lip to stop himself from smiling like a crazy idiot at the way she threw her head back in laughter. He didn't even know why it made him smile so much, he just knew that he liked the way her brown eyes would light up significantly.
She's...pretty when she laughs. He absentmindedly thought to himself. He wasn't even going to try and deny it anymore. He found Trish De La Rosa pretty and he wasn't ashamed of the fact.
They were friends now anyway, he could appreciate the good looks of his lady friends without it meaning anything right? Right. He quickly halted his thoughts and began to make his way over to the table. He too wanted to join in on whatever it was that was so funny and -
"HEY DEZ! OVER HERE!" Dez quickly stopped in his tracks. He turned to see Dallas, a few tables down, waving him over with a grin. The the rest of his other guy friends were sporting identical inviting smiles. Upon the looks on their faces he was immediately conflicted. He of course wanted spend time with his 'bro's', but at the same time he wanted to sit at the table he'd been getting used to over the past few weeks.
Or if he was truly honest with himself, he just wanted to sit with Trish.
In all fairness however, he hadn't spent time with his guy friends in a while. And it wasn't like he could just snub them when they were literally waiting for him to walk over and sit with them. With a reluctant smile in their direction, he walked over towards the table he'd been sitting at for years but now suddenly felt foreign in doing so. Missing the frown on Trish's face in his direction as he went.
"We were beginning to think we'd lost you too." Dallas said with a chuckle once Dez was seated. The other boys across the table nodded in agreement and Dez felt bad once again.
"Sorry guys. I guess I got a bit caught up with supporting Austin and his relationship with Ally." Dallas and Elliot quickly glanced at each other, sharing a smirk.
"Is that the only reason?" Elliot spoke up, "We haven't exactly witnessed any arguments between you and Trish in a while." The change in Trish and Dez's relationship was quickly getting noticed by everyone, so it seemed, and Dez raised his eyebrows at what they were implying.
"Yeah, well, we figured life would be easier for everyone if we just got along better." He shrugged, putting a couple of fries in his mouth.
"And what, you haven't made a move yet? You're on her good side now dude. What are you waiting for?" Dallas exclaimed, giving Dez's shoulder a playful shove.
"How many times do I have to tell you guys? I don't like her like that." He said with a small laugh. Though as if couldn't stop himself, he glanced over at Trish. And as he took in the way she tucked her hair behind her ear and smiled at whatever Austin was saying, he was beginning to wonder how true that statement was.
-TXD-
Trish couldn't figure out why her stomach felt like it had been sinking when she watched Dez go sit with his friends (who were all still too ridiculously good looking.) It wasn't like he was obligated to sit with her (...oh right, and Austin and Ally of course) at lunch, but she was obviously really beginning to enjoy his company. Once she'd glanced up to see him standing with a lunch tray she'd felt herself perk up a bit. She hadn't seen him all day, and if she dared to admit...she'd actually missed his stupid freckled face.
He wasn't looking in her direction though, he was looking over at Dallas as the boy waved him over. He seemed hesitant to move for a split second but had gone on over to them anyway. And that's when she'd felt her mood dampen a little. After that she'd slightly tuned out whatever it was Austin and Ally were saying for a minute or two.
"Where's Dez?" At Ally's abrupt mention of the red head, Trish was snapped back into reality.
"Sitting with Dallas, Elliot and the others." She hoped her voice didn't sound too bitter, but from the way Austin and Ally thought they were discreetly sharing a knowing smile she obviously did.
"Oh, well I guess he should spend time with them. It's been a while since I have too." Austin said, and the blonde momentarily felt sad about the fact.
"Yeah, I guess you'e right." Trish agreed with a small smile of her own, tucking a few of her curls behind her hair.
She too didn't want him to drift away from his friends. She could only imagine how bad she'd feel if the same situation was happening between her and Ally. But she also wanted him to be close with...well her. Was that such a bad thing? She didn't notice the fact that Dez was looking over at her in that exact moment.
And just like that, another opportunity for the two to catch each other's eye was missed.
As Trish and Dez sat at their separate tables, both were unsure of what these thoughts and feelings meant. One thing was for sure, they both dearly hoped it was nothing. After all, they had only just become friends. They should definitely be fine with staying that way for a while...right?
Should or would. That was the question.
Author's Note: So...writer's block hit me again. I'm so sorry it took me so long to update, but I didn't want to publish anything until it was written well, you know? You guys deserve the best! I knew what I wanted to say but writing it down was the hard part that I finally managed to get passed. Thanks for reading :) Another chapter will be up soon. Hopefully sooner now that I'm finally finished my first year of university for the summer. Wohoo!