Chapter 32-
Saturday.
The day of the homecoming dance.
The day I was finally going to tell Justin that I was in love with him.
When I woke up in the morning after the party, I had a slight
hangover. Justin was still there with me, and he helped me a little
through it.
The bad thing about that morning was when my dad came over to the main
house to see if I was awake and saw Justin in my room with me. That
didn't go over so well. My dad started yelling at me, and it wasn't
pretty.
I don't know why or how, but he called me a whore.
That's when Justin got into the fight. Well, vocally anyway. He
started yelling at my dad, telling him that he had no right to say
anything like that to me. He also mentioned how my dad couldn't come
back on a whim and try to tell me what to do. With that statement, I
couldn't agree more.
They didn't get physical, but they did yell pretty loudly. Everything
settled down after 10 minutes, though Justin was still pissed.
After everything was done, my dad walked out of the kitchen mumbling
under his breath, then left the house with a big slam of the door.
That day, not even extra-strength Tylenol could help me with my
migraine or my upset stomach. I was never drinking again. Later that
day – after Jenifer called Justin and told him he had to be home – I
went to the cemetery to visit my mother’s grave site. I remembered to
get the flowers I picked out on the computer, and I placed them next
to her headstone.
I talked to her, like my councilor advised me to do when I was
younger. It was almost second nature for me now.
Surprisingly, my father showed up. Not at the same time I did, but he
was there nonetheless. We said a few words to each other, but not
many.
School that week was weird to say the least. Justin and I were
talking, but I made a no mouth-to-mouth contact rule between us. I
decided to tell Shane about what happened at the party. He wasn't too
thrilled to learn about it and decided to confront Matt about it since
they had a class together. That really didn't end in Matt's favor.
Matt ended up with a black eye and Chase's nose is going to take a bit
longer to heal than before.
I couldn't really remember much of what happened after Justin and I
left the party. I remember asking him to stay with me, and I also
remember talking about his parents.
Right now, it was Jessica and I in the big hallway bathroom, doing our
make-up and hair for homecoming. I was going for the more simple look
since most people sweat off their make-up or put their hair up into a
ponytail.
Jessica on the other hand was going all-out. She bought this
extravagant red dress, and is now in the process of curling her hair
to put it in an up-do.
I asked her why she's doing it, and she told me because it's her last
homecoming.
The thing that sucked the most was that I didn't have a date. It's my
senior homecoming and I’m dateless. Shane had a date but it even
shocked me when I found out who it was.
Jessica.
They started talking to each other at the party, and from there I
don't know what happened. They seemed to like each other, and I was
happy for them.
Justin also didn't have a date so we decided to just go there
together. Like a mini group of people except it was just us.
It was kind of confusing, to be honest.
We both didn't have dates, so why didn't we just go together? No, he
didn't want to 'rush into' things. Especially after the whole Savannah
issue.
I finally finished with my hair and walked over to the door to get my
silver dress. I slipped into it easily and turned around to Jessica.
“Can you zip this for me?” I asked her after she finishes up her last curl.
“Sure.” She set the curling iron on the table and walks over to me. I
turn around so my back is facing her. I listened as the zipper slid up
the tack and locked into place.
“Thanks. Now hurry up--they’re going to be here in five minutes.” I
warned Jessica as I picked up my cell phone and put it in the pocket
of my silver dress.
“What?” She stopped parting her hair and turns to me with her mouth
hanging open. I laughed at her expression and walked out of the
bathroom and into the hallway. Taking a deep breath to collect my
thoughts, I walked down the stairs where our shoes are.
I was sitting down in front of the three boxes of shoes I brought
down. I couldn't decide what ones would be better.
Finally, I picked the silver ones. After putting them on – which takes
me almost a minute for each shoe – Jessica finally comes downstairs.
Her hair was perfect and shiny, almost like she got it done at a
salon. Her dress looked amazing with her skin color.
No wonder Shane was after her.
Right after she put on her black peep-toed pumps there was a knock at
the door. As I walked closer to the door, I heard Shane yell out in
pain, making me laugh. When I opened the door, Shane was turned around
facing Justin, with his hand clutching the back of his head.
“What was that for?!” he asked him ad he rubbed his head.
“For being stupid,” Justin told him simply, crossing his arms.
“It's nice to see you guys, too.” I said, interrupting their
bickering. Shane looked at me with wide eyes. I rolled my owm eyes and
opened the door wider for them.
Shane walked in, and as soon as he saw Jessica, he smiled. It was too
cute, they were too cute. Every time they saw one another they
immediately smiled. I was happy for them. The one thing I wasn't happy
about was the way they acted when they were together.
I was starting to see how Justin thought Shane and I together was
annoying. Jessica was usually a pretty smart person, then again, so
was Shane, but every time they where together they acted like
toddlers.
Overly obnoxious toddlers.
They raced each other out the open door, laughing all the way. I
smiled and walked out of the house closing the door and locking it
behind me. Turning around, I saw Justin standing where he was when I
first opened the door.
I took this time to finally look him over. He was wearing a light blue
dress shirt, black dress pants, and some dress shoes. His hair was the
same it always was, making him look more natural.
I suddenly couldn't wait to tell him that I loved him.
I could feel him looking over my outfit, and it made my cheeks tinge a
light shade of red.
“Hey,” I greeted him with a smile.
“Hey,” he responded, smiling. He picked something up from behind him
and took a step closer to me.
His hand stretched in front of me and I smiled once I saw what it was.
A single white tulip; my favorite flower. He tucked my hair behind my
ear and placed the flower there.
“Beautiful,” he breathed once he backed away a bit. He grabbed my hand
and pulled me over to the car. I smiled the whole way to the car and
as I sat in the front seat.
The plan was to go to some Italian restaurant before the dance, and
Jessica was headed there now. I don't know how she ended up driving,
but I suspected it had something to do with rock, paper, scissors
though. It didn't take long to get there, and I was sad to say that I
was the first person out of the car.
There weren't many people from our school at the restaurant. Shane
walked up to the waiter and told him the name for the reservations.
He lead us to the back of the restaurant where there was a table for
four. One side of the table had two chairs and the other side had a
booth. I choose the booth side and Justin slid in next to me. We
ordered our food and drinks and just talked to each other across the
table until it arrived.
When we arrived at the dance, it was crowded. There was a big group of
people on the dance floor, the music was blasting, and the lights
where all dimmed--with the exception of a few flashing lights.
Jessica grabbed my hand and towed us to the dance floor. We started to
talk and dance together, laughing as we did so.
45 minutes into the dance, they played the first slow song of the
night. I didn't know if Justin wanted to dance with me, so I stepped
out of the big jumble of people and made my way toward the drink
table. I was thirsty, but I didn't trust anything on the table;
knowing most of it would be spiked.
Drinking didn't work out well for me last time, and I wasn't going to
do it again.
“Why aren't you dancing?” I heard Justin ask as he snuck up behind me.
I turned around to face him with a slight frown.
“I have no one to dance with. I’m dateless, remember?” I reminded him,
knocking the side of my head lightly to give it affect.
He rolled his eyes at me and took a step closer to me. “Why didn't you ask me?”
Looking up into his eyes, I decided to tell him the truth.
“Last time we danced, it all went down hill from there. That was when
I realized I liked you, and well, you see how it turned out.” I looked
away from him, then. In my mind, it sounded as if I was pressuring him
to be with me, but in reality I was just telling him how I felt.
It was all true, though. That first time we danced together was when I
realized I had feelings for him. Even though I was in love with him
now, dancing with him would just make those feeling stronger, making
it harder to stick to the no-kissing rule.
I felt his hand lightly touch mine. “Just one slow dance. Please?” He
twined our finger together and started to pull me toward the dance
floor before I could react. This caused me to smile, even though I
didn't want to.
I was still against the idea of dancing, but when Justin’s hand
touched mine, I felt the need to be closer to him.
I could feel the warmth from his body as he wrapped his arms around my
waist. Smiling, I looped my arms around his neck.
We didn't say anything, just danced slowly with each other; not once
breaking eye contact. Once the song was over, I was wishing that it
would have never ended. I think Justin felt the same way, judging by
his reluctance to let go of me.
We walked over to a corner of the room quietly. Now felt like the
right time to tell him, just not in here with all of these people.
“Justin, can we go somewhere to talk?” I finally asked him, looking
down at my fingers.
“Sure.” He pulled me along beside him out the door and into the
hallway. It was a bit quieter in the hallway, but not what I was going
for. I needed somewhere more secluded and private.
Tugging on his hand, I led him down the hallway toward the foreign
language department. Being the student council president had its
perks. For example, I got a master key that fit every door in the
school.
I pulled the key ring out of my pocket, and unlocked the door to the
French room. I pulled Justin in and shut the door behind us. Sighing,
I leaned back on the door and looked up at him. The lights where off,
making it hard to see. Thankfully, there where plenty of windows and
the moon was starting to shine brightly, making it easier to see.
We didn't say anything at first, just looked at each other. I decided
to suck it up and get it over with. Taking a deep breath, I found a
good way to begin what I was going to say.
“I have something to tell you!” we both said at the same time. I
looked at him and smiled a little, and he did the same, before looking
away.
“You go first,” I muttered to him. He took a small step closer to me
and sighed, grabbing my small hands in his big ones.
“Before I start telling you this, can you promise me it won't change
the way you feel about me?” He looked into my eyes, pleading as he
spoke. I’m not going to lie, the way he was talking scared me to
death. What did he have to say that was so bad, it would change the
way I feel about him?
Looking into his eyes, I saw how hard this was for him, and nodded.
“I promise,” I whispered to him as my eyes scanned his face. There was
this twisting feeling in my stomach, making me feel like I needed to
puke.
He let go of one of my hands and slipped his gently into my pocket. I
don't know why he did it, but I guessed it was to buy time.
“I don't know how to say this without confusing you too much. Just
stop me if you need something explained.”
I nodded, my eyes never leaving his face waiting for him to speak again.
“I--” he paused for a moment before continuing. He looked away from me
and dropped my hand. “I was sent to meet you. To get to know you, and
make you trust me.”
My mouth dropped open. It was as if time itself froze. My heartbeat
picked up pace, and I just stared at him, not knowing what to do or
say.
This wasn't what I expected to hear. I was completely confused! What
the hell was he talking about? Who would send him to lead me on, to
try and gain my trust? Hearing those words made my heart break. Why
would he tell me this now, and not sooner?
What the hell was he even talking about?!
Why now, when I finally knew I was in love with him? I finally thought
of something to say. Just one simple word that kept ringing through my
mind.
“Who?” I asked him quietly while looking down at my feet. “Who sent
you to, 'get to know me’?” I asked him, quoting what he had said.
“My uncle,” he said slowly, turning his head to look at me.
“And why the hell would your uncle send you to get to know me?” I
asked him in exasperation. He took a step closer to me, and I
retreated a small step away from him.
“I don't know. The only thing I know is that he's fascinated with you,
and was paying me to get close to you.”
Now I was even more confused. Why would his uncle want me? How did his
uncle even know me? Then a major question hit me. Was everything he
said or did a lie? Did he like me at all? Was he playing me the whole
time?
My eyes started to water, and I looked down at my feet. I didn't want
him to see my face, not when I was about to cry over him for the
second time this month.
I seemed to be crying a lot lately.
“Was it all a lie? Was everything you told me all made up? The things
about you and your sister? Or about you really liking me?” I asked
him, the hurt filling my voice. I’m pretty sure he could hear my voice
cracking from crying.
He came closer to me and cradled my face between his hands. I tried to
move my head out of his grip, but two things stopped me. One, his hold
was strong. Two, no matter how bad I didn't want him to touch me, I
needed it.
“That wasn't a lie. Alexa, I have never lied to you. You don't know
how hard it is to tell you this. I’m afraid that you'll never want to
see me again.” He made this noise in the back of his throat that
sounded as if he was about to cry.
I knew I was crying; I wasn't making any noises, but I could feel the
hot tears streak my face. Justin swiped his thumb lightly across my
cheek, wiping my tears away.
I didn't know what to do, say, or feel. The only thing I felt was
confusion. There was this loud knock on the door, causing me to jump.
I backed away from Justin, and wiped my tears away, trying my best to
clean up my messed-up appearance.
With a sigh, Justin opened the door; standing there was Mr. Daniels. I
was confused as to why he was there until he spoke.
“Alexa, I’ve been looking for you everywhere. The art show is about to
start,” he told me impatiently, looking down at his watch. I nodded
and stepped out of the room, without taking a second look at Justin.
I quietly walked down the hall with Mr. Daniels and out the door. The
art shows were usually held in the separate building the school had
for the arts programs. So if the choir was having a show, or the band
and orchestra were performing, it was held in there. It was a quick
walk across the parking lot to the arts building.
He unlocked the door and opened it. This confused me, why was the door
looked if there were other people inside for the show?
As I stepped into the room, I got this bad feeling in the pit of my
stomach and wanted to turn around and run out of the room. That didn't
happen, though. Because once I was inside, Mr. Daniels shut and looked
the door.
I couldn't see anything but I heard the door click, signaling that it
was locked. My heart started beating frantically. Once I heard him
talk, I wanted to have a heart attack.
“Alexa...” He let out this eerie chuckle and continued. “I never
thought you could be this stupid.”
I was about to have a panic attack. That sinking feeling in my stomach
just got ten-thousand times worse. I turned around and started to run
in the opposite direction, toward the emergency exit. A strong pair of
arms wrapped around my waist. I opened my mouth and let out a scream,
he quickly slapped his hand over my mouth to shut me up. It wasn't
gentle either.
He yanked my head back so it was leaning on his shoulder. His mouth
found its way to my ear, and he gently breathed on it; an act that
disgusted me.
“Scream, and you'll make it ten times worse.” His voice scared me and
I started to shake. I wanted to cry for the second time tonight.
He started to drag me toward the emergency exit, and I began to kick
and flail, trying to stop him. This did nothing for me, though, since
he easily picked me up and carried me the rest of the way.
The thought that ran through my head at this second was short and simple.
Crap.
[A/N: Ok, go yell at me. I’ve haven't uploaded in forever. But I have a really good reason!! School just started and I’m still trying to get adjusted to it.
No matter how much I don't want to put school ahead of writing, it is important. School matters and I can't afford to fail this early in the year, or at all for that matter. School is first no matter what.
Vote, comment, vote, comment, fan. Comment vote and fan. And comment and vote, again!
Remember!!
A Vote a day bring the smiles my way!!!]