The third chapter is here... As promised. I really enjoyed writing this chapter so hopefully you enjoy reading it. I'm working on the next update now so fingers crossed you won't have to wait long :)
Chapter 35 - Deals & Misunderstandings
"Oh my word." Tessa breathed out a sigh of admiration. I felt myself exhale in relief. She liked it.
We stood in the dressing room of some posh looking shop Tessa had dragged me into. After we had skimmed through the many racks of expensive clothes, I spotted this dress immediately. It was a shimmering grey colour, that clung to my curves and the hem ended several inches above my knee. It was sleeveless and had a sweetheart neckline which made the simple design of the dress a little more intricate.
It showed just the right amount of cleavage without leaving me feeling uncomfortable. And I loved it.
"You look hot." Tessa complimented, swirling her finger in a circle motion, wanting me to turn around. I grinned, feeling a light feeling in my chest as I happily obliged to her order. I had to admit that shopping was pretty therapeutic, no matter what anybody else thought.
"I feel good." I admitted, running my hands down my sides. My early morning runs helped me keep a semi fit figure even though I ate like a horse.
"Damn girl you have some serious curves!" A voice exclaimed. I looked behind me to see Piper standing beside Tessa with a smirk on her face. I felt my grin get larger. I don't know how she knew to come here but I was glad that she did.
"Hey what are you doing here?" I asked, stepping forward to pull her into a hug.
"Tessa called me. She told me about your plan and I did not want to miss out on something like this." Her smirk grew larger as she folded her arms. I looked at Tessa and gave her a grateful smile. I didn't even know they both knew each other but I was glad that they did. It was nice to have them both by my side when I needed them most.
"Scott is going to faint when he sees you in that dress. And Ryan was surely appreciate it as well." Tessa commented with a cheeky wink. Piper's face screwed up in confusion.
"Wait what? How is Ryan involved?" She questioned, looking at each of us in turn. I felt a smile tug at the corner of my lips but I keep it in check.
"He's her date." Tessa informed her moving forward to play with my hair, most likely wondering what way would compliment my outfit better. Piper's mouth formed a perfect 'O' shape so I quickly began to explain.
"It all started after rehearsals today..."
"I feel so proud." I admitted, crossing my arms in front of my chest as I surveyed our work. Rehearsals finished early today as Piper thought we deserved a break which everybody was happy about. So Ryan and I decided to take the time to finish of the scenery which was now laid out on the ground in front of us completed. With Ryan's artistic flare and my ability to follow his orders, the sceneries looked incredibly neat and professional.
Ryan, who stood beside me nodded in agreement.
"Yeah we make a pretty good team." He replied with a carefree smile on his face. My gaze lingered a bit on his cute smile. Why couldn't I like someone uncomplicated like Ryan. When we had our after school art sessions, we always got along easily and had fun doing it. Why didn't I feel the same attraction I do for him like I do for Scott? Ugh!
Ryan noticed that my face had pulled down into a frown.
"Hey, is something wrong?" He asked seeming worried now. I turned my face away and tried to sound upbeat again.
"Sure never been better." I replied. He seemed to accept that and we lapsed into a silence. I was grateful for the peace but I knew that he was thinking and I wasn't totally off the hook yet. My suspicions were confirmed a second later when he spoke again.
"Are you sure? Because I'm not really interested in all of the gossip you hear around this school but I heard about Scott. Well actually, I saw it. When he and your brother had their little argument in the hall..." He trailed off, seeming uncomfortable. I knew he wasn't used to trying to get emotions out of people so I appreciated the fact that he was trying for the sake of me.
"Thanks Ryan but I'm fine." I told him, turning to look him in the eyes again. "I mean it." I tried again to reassure him but he only nodded.
"Well if you do need anything, don't be afraid to ask." He told me, sounding pretty serious when he did. I gave him a grateful smile as we both set about putting away our equipment. As I began crawl along the ground to pick up the paintbrushes scattered about the stage, I thought about his offer. What was it that Tessa had said? To walk into the party with some eye candy?
My eyes trailed over to where Ryan was currently picking up the sceneries and placing them backstage. I should really have been helping him but I was too busy sizing him up. He definitely counted as eye candy with his silky black hair that fell into his blue eyes. And the way his muscles contracted when he lifted the canvas would make any girl swoon. But he wasn't Scott. Could he be the eye candy that I needed though? I really didn't want to lead him on by asking him out on a real date so I decided it would be better to have everything out in the open.
"Are you single?" I blurted out, focusing my attention on picking up the paintbrushes and not him. I heard his movement stop as he looked over at me. This had to be the single most mortifying thing I had ever done in my life.
"Um yes." He replied after what seemed like a year of silence. I breathed a sigh of relief. That was good. At least he was available for me to even ask this.
I got to my feet and brushed off my jeans, moving to stand in front of him. He watched me with caution, obviously having no idea where this conversation was going. I placed my hands on my hips and looked up at him. Be strong Morgan. Be strong.
"Good. Because I've got a favour to ask. I need you to be my date-" I let it all out in a rush but felt my words come to a halt when he began talking.
"Morgan stop. I can't date you." He interjected. I felt my face fall and reasons for his rejection swum around in my head all at once. Sure I wasn't asking him out for real but it still hurt that he wasn't interested enough to even let me finish my sentence. Was I not his type? But he's a guy, shouldn't all girls be his type? Suddenly realisation dawned on me and my mouth opened in shock.
"Are you gay?" I gasped, mortified that I had just asked a gay guy out. What was wrong with me? My gay-dar was mostly quite good and never had I had such a blunder like this one.
I awaited for Ryan to nod his head, to suddenly burst into a heartfelt story about how he had kept it a secret so long and how he was so happy he could finally tell someone but for some reason that moment never came. Suddenly he burst into a fit of hysterics and actually fell to the floor in a heap, grasping his stomach while laughing like a mad man. I looked down at him confused. What was happening?
"Oh god... You thought... I mean... Really?" He gasped. I took his outburst as the answer for my question. So I'm guessing he wasn't gay. How self centred did that make me look? He told me he couldn't date me and I immediately jumped to the conclusion that he must be gay. Not that he just wasn't attracted to me. Nope, I thought he was simply attracted to men. I pleaded with the ground to eat me up at that exact moment.
"I'm sorry." I mumbled. "I just thought..." Before I could say anything more stupid and horrifying I decided to just shut my mouth and wait for him to compose himself. After a few more loud chuckles he stood to his feet and tried to withhold a grin.
"Just to clarify, I'm not gay." His words just added to what I already knew. All I wanted to do was leave and that was exactly what I planned to do next.
"Good to know. Okay well I better be going." I muttered, about to turn and scamper out of the auditorium as soon as possible but he didn't let me. He grabbed my wrist and held me in place.
"It's not that I'm not attracted to you Morgan. Because you know you're beautiful. It's just I kind of have this thing going on with another girl." He scratched the back of his neck and looked adorably sheepish. His hand dropped from my wrist as I held myself in place looking at him with confusion.
"But you said you were single?" I questioned before crossing my arms tightly over my chest and giving him a disapproving look.
His eyes were locked on his shoes, not daring to look me straight in the eye
"It's not official. She doesn't even want anybody to know about us. That's why I said I was single." He admitted. I could see a pink tinge spread to his cheeks. I knew immediately that he hadn't talked about this girl with anybody else and I felt honoured that I was the first to know.
"Why doesn't she want people to know about you two?" I asked, not really understanding. He shook his head as if he didn't understand either.
"Beats me. But she's something special and I don't want to ruin it with her. I'm sorry." His blue eyes looked at me apologetically. It almost made me forget what I was about to say. Between me thinking he was gay and him telling me about his mystery girl, I had forgot to tell him that I didn't actually want to date him for real. I just wanted Scott to think that.
"For the record, I didn't want to date you. I just needed you to come to the party with me to piss off Scott." I sighed, feeling stupid about the whole entire thing. He gave me a double take.
"Wait... So you don't want to date me?" He sounded confused.
"No. Like I said, I just wanted to get back at Scott for hurting me because I am totally not fine about what happened. So if you really want to help, then you'll do this for me." I spoke in a rush feeling awful for pressuring him like this but not giving up because I needed him. I didn't want to end up going with some guy I hardly knew who would try to hit on me and make me feel uncomfortable all night. Ryan would make me feel like I'm just having a good night out with a friend. The added bonus was that it would piss Scott off to no end.
"Plus it would make that girl you're seeing really appreciate you and she'll want every single person in school to know you're hers after she sees you with another girl." I sang, trying to sweeten the deal. I could see him eyes begin to ponder the idea and after a moment of deliberating he sighed in defeat.
"Fine. But if Scott Williams tries to kick my ass because I'm with you, you better have my back." He warned. I felt a giddy smile overwhelm me and I threw my arms around him with a shriek of happiness.
"Thank you!"
"...and that's how it happened." I finished with a happy smile. Tessa was still fiddling with my hair while Piper stood listening to my story with a mildly curious look on her face.
"You asked him if he was gay?" She clarified. I winced at my dumb question and nodded my head in shame. Suddenly she was chuckling and shaking her head. "You sure are one enigma Morgan Peters. But more importantly, Scott is going to have a hissy fit when he sees you in this dress with Ryan on your arm. Are you sure you're up for it?" She inquired with a raised eyebrow. Even Tessa stopped messing with my hair and looked at me with concern.
I felt my shoulders fall back and my chin lifted an inch. I was confident and ready to unleash a whole lot of pain of a unaware heartbreaker.
"Hell yes." I agreed, turning back to look at myself in the mirror. A girl wearing a kick ass dress with determination burning in her eyes like an fiery orange flame and a knowing smirk stared back at me. She looked ready and waiting for any challenge that came her way. "Scott Williams won't even know what hit him."
The party is in the next chapter. I can't wait to see what you guys think of it. :D