Aaron didn't show up to school Thursday. Or Friday. Lexi told everyone he was sick, but I figured there was a different reason for not showing up. Probably afraid of the ass-kicking Chris was planning on giving him. The rumors were still swirling around and quite a couple times I caught a few girls giving me death glares. Each time I had to resist rolling my eyes at them. That kind of jealousy was clichéd. The guys, on the other hand, had taken a sudden interest in me, much to Chris's chagrin. It was funny how some things worked out like that. It wasn't that bad, but it was getting annoying fast and Chris was being grumpy. The guys would come up to me and tell me how awesome I was for secretly dating the teacher, or how badass and hot it was, and a few of them were even brazen enough to ask me out because of it. Unfortunately for them, I had to tell them that the rumor wasn't true and that I was his cousin. That made their shoulders sag.
When school ended on Friday, I made a beeline for my car. It had been a long day full of ugly accusations that were a pain to clear up. If one more person asked me about Jeremy, I was going to shoot myself. It would only take about a minute to leave the building and another minute to make it to the vehicle. Then it would be the weekend and hopefully the rumors would disperse.
On the brighter side, for the beginning of March the air was pleasantly warm. Not the exact temperature I liked, but close enough. I tugged at the collar of my hoodie, debating on whether or not I should take it off as I approached the doors leading to the outside. Underneath it was a long sleeve shirt, so I wouldn't get too cold...
"Holly!"
At the sound of my name I paused, cringing at the prospect of being harassed by strangers again. When I turned, I felt relief wash through me as I realized it was James. He trotted up to me, a grin slowly spreading across his face and causing dimples to appear. "Hi James," I greeted reluctantly, shuffling my feet.
"How are you?" he asked, coming to a stop a few feet away from me, shoving his hands into his jean pockets.
"Pretty good, about to head home because I have a, um, doctor's appointment," I hinted, glancing over my shoulder at the door. "Have a good day."
James continued to smile at me, not noticing my farewell. "Hold on. I heard that you're dating Mr. Ross? Is that true?"
Here we go again.
"No," I said in a weary tone. "We're cousins. It was just a set up to get me in trouble."
"Get you in trouble?" James responded skeptically. "I can't see why anyone would want to do that. Seriously, I can't think of anyone who hates you."
I shrugged. "S'pose we all can't be liked, right?"
He still looked doubtful. "I guess... I heard a few guys have asked you out."
"Yep," I replied, realizing I wasn't going to be leaving any time soon. Once James started talking, he could keep going forever and I was too polite to tell him to shut up.
"Did you say yes to anyone?"
Rolling my eyes, I shook my head. "No way. I'm not interested in kids younger than me."
The corners of James' lips quirked up. "You prefer older men?"
"James."
"Sorry," he apologized, letting out a laugh. "Nothing exciting ever happens in this school, so it's hard to let it go so easily, you know?"
Yeah, I knew that. Obviously, since people still believed the rumors even though Ms. Clemm made an announcement stating that they weren't true. A stray piece of my hair fell into my face and I brushed it away, glancing down the hallway as I did so. My old environmental science teacher was studying me, a smile on his lips. An involuntary shudder went through me. Enough was enough!
"Hey, it's Holly," an amused voice started and I felt an arm being slung around my shoulder. "What's up, teacher's pet?"
Shoving the arm off me, I turned my head to see one of the juniors that'd asked me out earlier in the day smirking at me. What was his name again? Jake? Julius? Justin? John? I frowned. Why did it even matter?
"You know Holly, Jonah?" James questioned, crossing his arms.
"No, but I want to know her," Jonah said, his eyes going back to me. "Have you reconsidered my date?"
My head was starting to throb, giving me a heads up of the headache that was sure to come. Jonah waited for my answer, cocking an eyebrow. James had an uncomfortable expression on his face, looking like he was about to run away. I hoped he didn't.
"Umm, I'm going to go," he told us, slowly slinking sideways, "so I'll see you two later..."
Our gaze met and I tried to beg him to stay with my eyes. He didn't get the message. After receiving a goodbye from Jonah, he began to jog away from us.
"So," Jonah started, gaining my attention again. "How about it?"
"I... I have a boyfriend," I murmured, dropping my gaze. This wasn't good. I wasn't too great at confrontations. So far Lance, Chris, or Casey had been by my side when someone had approached me- heck, even Lexi had come to my rescue a few times. Now I was by myself.
Jonah let out a quiet laugh. "You mean you did have a boyfriend. Don't you guys have to break up?"
"We weren't dating," I snapped, confidently returning my gaze to his face. "I told you. I'm his cousin."
"Sure."
I clenched my fists. "Whatever, John, I have to go."
"Wait," he demanded, grabbing my wrist. "You haven't given me an answer. And my name is Jonah, not John."
I tried to tug my wrist out of his grasp, suddenly feeling an overwhelming weight falling onto my shoulders. "I said no!"
"Why?"
"I'm not interested in younger guys!"
"I stayed back a grade. We're the same age."
"Jonah, no, let me go."
He shook his head. "You have to say yes first. Could you imagine the guys' faces when they hear I'm going on a date with the legend who dated her teacher?"
Yep, I definitely was going to have a headache soon. The throbbing was augmenting with each word that spewed from his stupid mouth. "That's shallow," I told him, once again yanking my wrist away in hope of breaking free. "More reason not to date you."
"Come on, Holly Dolly," he pressed, taking a step closer to me. "One date, okay? Just one."
"I don't know you," I protested weakly, the weight on my shoulders seemingly increasing with my headache.
"We can get to know each other."
It was a good thing all guys weren't as pushy as Jonah, otherwise it'd probably be the end of mankind. "I really have to go, Jonah. Let go," I told him firmly, giving him the most threatening glare I could muster.
His eyes crinkled as he grinned. "You're surprisingly cute. I wonder why I never noticed you before."
"Come on!" I cried, shoving him away with my other hand. "I won't go out with you Jonah, or anyone else for that matter! I've never dated Jeremy and I never will!"
The grasp on my wrist tightened. "Jeremy? Don't you mean Mr. Ross?"
My teeth ground together in irritation. A mix of emotions was swirling through me. I was tired. I was angry. I was annoyed. I was worn out. What I really wanted to do was punch him and run, but I was afraid of getting myself into more trouble with the office then the scare with Jeremy. "Seriously, Jonah. Let me go."
"Seriously, Holly," he mocked. "Come on. One date. I wasn't supposed to tell you, but I made a bet with my friends that you would agree to it, so if you would just say yes-"
"A bet?" I repeated, my eyes widening. Now there were bets being made about me?
He nodded enthusiastically. "So all you have to do is say yes-"
Sometimes persistence was cute. This wasn't one of those times. Especially when it was because of a bet. "No, Jonah. I don't know how many times I have to say it. I don't want to go on a date with you."
"Holly," he started, his dull brown eyes staring straight into mine. "I have fifty bucks on you."
"Mr. Bergeron, Ms. Evers, is everything okay?" a hard voice questioned.
Jonah turned, but didn't let go of my wrist. "Ah, Mr. Heywood. Everything is quite alright, right, Holly?"
"No," I said bluntly, not liking the cold look in Chris's eyes. "Mr. Heywood, Jonah's sexually harassing me-"
"What?" Jonah cried, letting go of me. "I am not! Holly! Don't lie like that!"
"It got you to let go, didn't it?" I responded, giving him a flat look. "Now leave me alone."
He scowled at me. "I-"
"Move along or get a detention," Chris ordered, his piercing gaze turning to Jonah. "Now."
"Why have you been in such a bad mood lately?" Jonah complained, shooting Chris a dirty look before pacing away. "Geez," he muttered just loudly enough for us to hear. "You'd think it was you who was caught with Mr. Ross, not Holly..."
Even though he was annoying me, I couldn't help but smile at his words. Chris just scowled after him, apparently not finding his last comment as amusing as I did. When Jonah was out of sight, he turned back to me. "Are you okay?"
"I've been better," I admitted, rubbing my eyes. "I didn't realize guys don't like the word no."
"Most guys don't," Chris admitted, running a hand through his messy hair. "You really shouldn't let guys keep the advantage over you. Learn how to be more assertive. Have a backbone."
I pursed my lips at him. "Hmph. Easier said than done. Especially when coming from an ex-gangster."
He smirked. "Well..."
"And I wouldn't be the one to talk, Mr. Heywood," I started, lowering my voice as a group of giggling girls hurried by us. "You're the once who almost forced to lick the one little drop of ice cream he spilled off the floor!"
"I have a no eating policy in my classroom."
"No you don't."
"It was amusing," he confessed, grinning at the memory.
I frowned at him. "Yeah, maybe because it was Lance. But you also nearly gave Sarah a heart attack when you snapped at her for not finishing one problem on the homework. And then putting that no talking rule in effect in class? Seriously, you're going to make yourself hated."
"I'm doing it for you, you know," he replied, sounding a little offended.
"I don't want you to be hated in order to help me."
"I want to."
After a quick glance around to make sure no one was watching, I lifted my hand up to his face and brushed his cheek with the tips of my fingers. "I know, but I can handle it..."
A dubious expression not unlike the one James had given me earlier spread across his face. "Can you? I've never seen one student here say a bad word to you and now suddenly the few idiots are badmouthing you every time you walk by and those bastards are asking you out just because you seem like a challenge."
"It's weird," I admitted in a mumble. It really was weird. I'd never had so much attention in my life. It was like a lifetime movie, or clichéd story. One of those things you thought never happened in real life. "And troublesome, but whatever. It will go away."
"Do you want to come over tonight?" he asked.
I hesitated. "I don't know..."
A weary expression washed over his face. "What is it, Holly?"
"What if Aaron somehow gets a picture of us together? I know you said confidence goes a long way, but so do incriminating photos, Chris."
"He doesn't know where I live..."
We both came to a sudden realization. If Aaron was that close to Holly, chances were he knew where Chris lived. Now that Aaron knew I wasn't actually dating Jeremy, he might assume I'm dating Chris. What if he acted like the creep he was and staked out at Chris's apartment, waiting for a chance to expose us?
"I could go to your house," Chris offered.
"No!" I said quickly. "Maybe we shouldn't be together for right now."
He stared at me.
A startled gasp left my words. "No! That's not what I meant. I meant like, alone. Now like that."
"Oh," he responded, letting out a deep breath.
I smiled softly at him. "Nothing Aaron can do could stop me from wanting to be with you, Chris."
"Hmm, I think that's the most romantic thing you've said to me in a while," he commented thoughtfully.
A warm blush spread across my face. "W-what? I say plenty of romantic things!"
He chuckled, reaching over to ruffle my hair. "I've missed your blush. Seeing your worn out expression every day had gotten me feeling tired too. Smile more."
"I want to kiss you," I whispered, taking his hand off of my head and squeezing it.
I could tell he was torn between wanting to kiss me too and the rational thing- which was to say no. At the moment I could care less about being rational. After all that had happened over the past three days, all I wanted to do was curl up by Chris's side and stay there. An impossibility since we hadn't even hugged during the whole time period in concern of being caught.
Suddenly he let go of my hand, turning on his heel. My heart sunk in my chest as I watched his retreating form.
That is, until he beckoned for me to follow him.
Excitement coursed through me as I slowly started to follow him, making sure there was enough space between us so it didn't look like I was trailing him. The school building was nearly empty now aside from the faculty, making me wonder how long Jonah had kept me. Chris abruptly stopped, taking a quick look around the Holly and sending me an implying look before slipping into a door on the right side. After a few moments I casually strolled up to it, briefly peering around the hallway before turning to the door. Janitor was carved into the oak. In one swift motion I was inside, closing the door securely and encasing the room in darkness. Chris's arm brushed by my side and soon after I heard the click of a lock.
"A janitor's closet?" I whispered, turning around to try to see him, but failing to do so because of the lack of light.
"It's kind of risqué, isn't it?" he murmured, his breath blowing gently on my ear.
"Since it's during the school day," I returned, my heart starting to beat faster in my chest.
Chris chuckled. "That's not what I meant."
"What did you mean then?"
"Nothing," he said simply.
"But-"
The rest of my objection was severed when I felt his soft lips press against mine. My arms immediately shot around him, pulling him closer to me. I'd missed his kiss more than I'd anticipated. The slightly chapped skin, the way we fitted together perfectly... How had I managed to go three days without it? It was a mystery to me.
Chris pulled me away from the door, never letting his lips disconnect from mine. Slowly and cautiously he maneuvered us further into the closet. After a moment he pulled away, inhaling sharply. Just as I was about to ask what was wrong, I felt myself falling. A low groan came from Chris as I heard him hit the ground and he emitted another as I landed on tope of him.
"Smooth move," I whispered, my heart beginning to sprint again. How much noise had that made? Did someone outside notice? What if they were entering now?
Chris seemed to be thinking the same thing because he stayed dead silent, aside from the sound of his breathing. When he was satisfied no one would come barging in, I felt his hands on the back of my head, bringing it back down to his. My lips, instead of connecting with his, met the side of his face, right under his ear.
His knee went straight into my gut.
I gasped, pulling away from him. "Ugh, Chris..."
"Sorry," he muttered, removing his knee. "You just surprised me."
"How?" I demanded in a snippy tone. It felt like he'd broken a rib!
He didn't reply. Instead, he tried bringing my face to his again. This time I placed my hands on his face to feel for the location of his lips and I managed to have ours meet. Now Chris moved, rolling to the side so that he could be the one hovering over me instead of vice versa. He deepened the kiss, leaving me struggling to breathe. When I couldn't take it anymore I yanked his hair roughly, making him pull away.
"Ow," he said in a what-the-heck voice.
I inhaled deeply a few times, trying to regain my breath as soon as possible. Too soon, Chris tried to kiss me again, so I turned my head so he was kissing my cheek instead. My face scrunched up in disgust at the wet feeling. Making out was actually a pretty gross thing if you thought about it... It was a good thing you didn't think about it when you actually did it. I kissed Chris's cheek softly, before moving toward his jaw, then up, back to the base of his ear.
Once again he kneed me.
"Shit," he swore quietly. "Sorry. Stop doing that."
I winced. "Sorry... I didn't realize you had a reflex arc at the bottom of your ear, Chris."
"I don't," he told me, sounding embarrassed for some reason.
"Hmm..." A small smile spread onto my face. If he didn't, that meant that was his weak spot. Without warning him, I pressed my lips back to the spot, harder than before. To my amusement, he let out a strained groan.
"Don't do that, Holly."
Ignoring his order, I trailed kissed down to the bottom of his jaw then back up to his special spot, eliciting another smothered moan. "Why not?"
"You know why."
"No I don't."
"Yes you do."
"You don't like me having the advantage over you?" I guessed, using my fingertips to brush against his face in search for his lips. As soon as I found them, I gave him a quick kiss.
He tried to respond, but I pulled away. "No, I don't, so stop," he told me, pushing his lips back to mine.
I smiled through the kiss, giving him a gentle nip on the lip. He returned it with a lot more force. "Ow!" I cried, my voice muffled by our kiss.
He broke away for a split second. "Don't try that either."
"No fun," I mumbled, allowing him to dominate the kiss and send thrills down my spine. No matter how much we kissed, he still always managed to give me that thrill of excitement. It was even more powerful today because of the time we'd spent apart. That and the fact kissing seemed to be a stress reliever for me. I hadn't noticed before, but when I was kissing Chris, nothing else mattered. Which was exactly what I needed at the moment.
A few moments later, I heard a voice on the other side of the door. My eyes flew open in panic, but I still couldn't see anything. Chris heard it too, because he froze, our lips still connected.
"I just don't understand why kids still come to school when their sick," someone, one of the janitor's, sighed from the other side of the door.
"Probably just to make our life hell," a second person responded.
The first one laughed. "I bet."
There was the jiggle of the lock. My heart lurched.
We were so screwed.
"Did you lock this, Tim?" the first man asked.
"No."
"I don't have a key."
A little sigh of relief left my lips.
"I have one," the second man stated. "I've got it."
So much for relief. I struggled to sit up, but Chris held me down firmly. What was he thinking? I had to hide, or something! We couldn't be caught together by the janitors! There was no way we could pretend we were cousins like I could with Jeremy!
The door began opening and I could my heart stop. I clung to Chris, pressing my head into his chest and closing my eyes. He placed his palm against my cheek in a calming manner.
This was it. We were screwed. Chris was going to be fired. I was going to be expelled halfway through my senior year. Wasn't the whole thing with Jeremy enough? Did I really have to be punished even more? I couldn't think of anything I'd done to deserve it! Tears were starting to well up in my eyes. Life was so unfair sometimes...
"What's going on here?" a gruff voice demanded, this one different than the first two.
I shook my head in disbelief. Three people had to catch us? Just as I pulled away to reply, someone else did for me.
"G-Gary, you scared me! Do you need something?" the first man said quickly.
"Yes. I need you two to clean up the puke in the music hallway."
There was a brief moment silence. "We are getting the buckets-"
"Everything is already there. Get a move on."
"Yes," I heard the first and second man say together.
The sound of the door closing again met my ears and I let go of Chris, letting my head fall back to the hard ground. I hadn't realized I was holding my breath. It came out in a quiet whoosh. Chris collapsed heavily on me, nearly knocking the air out of me once again.
"That was close," he whispered in amusement.
"It's not funny," I snapped back quietly.
Without warning the door opened again, wide enough so that light spilled into the room, revealing both my legs and Chris's. My heart flew into manic mode. This calming-exciting thing surely wasn't good for it.
"Hey, Gary!" a familiar voice called in a frantic voice. "The water fountain on the third floor is spewing water everywhere!"
"Are you kidding me?" Gary responded in an aggravated voice. He swore quietly before shutting the door again.
Once again I slumped to the ground. Chris tapped his forehead against mine. Yes. This definitely wasn't good for my heart.
Now, the telltale squeak of the door opening shouldn't have come as a surprise the next time, but it still did. However, this time an aggravated and frustrated moan left my lips before I could stop it.
"Did I interrupt something I shouldn't have?"
My eyes flew open and I looked past Chris, up at Jeremy. He grinned evilly down at me. In my eyes, he was God. "Oh, Jeremy!"
"You shouldn't cry out my name when you're with another guy- ah!" he exclaimed as Chris swung out his leg and nearly knocked him over.
"You're funny," Chris growled, pushing himself to his feet. He held out his hand and I took it, being easily yanked to my feet.
"You could say thank you," Jeremy sniffed. "I stopped Gary from coming in here."
I gave him a thankful look. "Thank you, Jeremy. That scared the crap out of me."
He smirked. "I figured. I was watching the whole time. The door just kept opening and opening-"
"I know," I responded flatly.
He laughed. "You guys better get out of this closest while you can. What were you even doing in here in the first place?"
"What do you think?" Chris asked grumpily.
"Aww, are you mad I ruined your precious time with Holly? Isn't it better that I did instead of you being caught?" Jeremy inquired, grabbing Chris's shoulders and marching him out of the janitor's closet. "You should be grateful I'm your best friend and got here in time."
Chris grunted. I frowned at him. "I'm thankful, Jeremy," I told him, offering a small smile.
"I know you are, Holly," he responded, winking at me.
"Don't wink. It's not attractive."
"It can be," Jeremy pressed.
Chris sighed, shaking his head. "Whatever. I have papers to grade. I'll see you later, Holly... Maybe."
"See you," I responded glumly.
He smiled gently, running two fingers against my lips briefly. "I love you."
"I love you too-"
"I love you both!" Jeremy cried loudly, flinging arms around both of us and pulling us into a group hug.
Chris struggled out of it after a second and started down the hallway. "Bye, Holly."
"Bye, Mr. Heywood."
Jeremy ruffled my hair as Chris turned the corner and out of sight. "How are you doing, kid?"
"Good. Thanks for that," I added, nudging him in the side with my elbow. "With you starting the hug, it wouldn't look suspicious."
"I'm here for you, bud, since it's my fault you've been having such a stressful week."
"It's both of our faults," I corrected, frowning at him. "We've been over this. It's fine, Jeremy."
He gave me a one-shouldered shrug. "If you say so. I've gotta head to the office, so talk to you later."
"Okay. Bye."
"Oh, and it's raining, so put your hood up!"
"It's raining?" I repeated in disbelief. "But the weather was so nice earlier!"
Jeremy laughed. "Things change, Holly."
I grumbled at him before turning and heading back to the exit. Rain poured from the sky, proving Jeremy's words true. I nearly sprinted to my car, cursing the rain the whole time. It made my hair curly and staticky. Fortunately my car started in one try for once.
My windshield wipers sped across my windshield as I pulled out of the school parking lot. Since I was already running late, I decided on a pit stop to Subway to pick up dinner. My mom wasn't going to be home until midnight, so I was on my own, which wasn't that unusual, but I didn't feel like cooking. There was virtually no traffic as I went through the downtown area. Usually it was filled with pedestrians, but even those were missing in action. Except one hooded person, slowly ambling through the torrential rain. I slowed down as I drove past the individual, afraid her or she might not notice me and try to cross the street.
My caution proved to be useful because just as I was passing the figure, it turned and stepped into the street. I slammed on my breaks, coming to a stop a few feet away from the hooded person. He, I guessed by his attire, looked up at me, a glare on his face. It took me less than five second to recognize him as Aaron. Before I knew what I was doing, I was blaring my horn at him. He jumped back in surprise before narrowing his eyes and marching toward my car. I rolled down my window and he leaned in, a malicious look on his face. "Holly-"
"Get in," I ordered in the most commanding voice I could muster. My hands were sweating as I gripped the steering wheel.
He blinked at me. "What?"
"Get it," I repeated, holding my back straight. "Now. We need to talk."
He smirked. "What makes you think I'll listen to you?"
I shrugged, pulling the keys out of my ignition. Then I pressed the alarm button. Aaron jolted at the loud noise. "Stop trying to rob my car!" I shouted at him.
"You..." he started in a growl, looking around him. "Fine. I'm getting in."
He moved away from my window and around to the passenger's side. After I unlocked the door form him, he slipped in, pulling his hood off his head. Pecan colored hair spilled out from under it. Swallowing nervously, I turned on my car and rolled my window back up.
What was I thinking? Inviting Aaron into my car? What if he tried to make his crash? I had no idea what he was thinking about the whole Jeremy thing. But I did want answers...
"Where are we going?" he asked in a bored tone.
"To Subway, because I'm hungry, and then back to my house to talk."
He crossed his arms, letting out a frustrated huff of air. "Whatever."
My hands tightened on the steering wheel. I could do this. Aaron wouldn't scare me off. I needed to find out what was happening... I could do it.
__________________________________________________________________
Pheww! It's been awhile, but alas, an update! As a lot of you know, I had writer's block with this story. I still do, but I wanted to get something out there. I'm pretty okay with this chapter though. I liked it.
So yeah, I got out of school last Friday and vacation has been awesome so far. Been with my friends every day so far and met a new guy ;) He's really awesome and speaks French, which I used to think was annoying, but now I find it incredibly sexy, haha. He's got the perfect accent when he speaks it because he's French and yeah... I'm excited because we're hanging out tomorrow.
Anyway. Thank you for all the comments from the last chapter :D I do read all of them, but I don't have time to reply to them because that would involve me sitting at my computer for hours, which I can't do unless I'm writing my stories :P
Facebook in external link ;D
Every Single Dollar - We the Kings