Chapter 24
What happens when you accidentally turn off your alarm and by the time your eyes decide to take a peak, you realize that you only have ten minutes before getting royally screwed? Chaos, that's what happens.
Scrambling like a headless chicken, I tried to do my morning routine as quickly as possible. Once I was done with my shower, the bathroom looked like it had a visit from a life-threatening tsunami. My clothes weren't exactly the kind I'd usually wear, but they were the first thing I saw in my closet. Grabbing my bag and slinging it on my shoulders, I made my way outside with a chocolate bar in between my teeth. Yeah, what a healthy way to start the day.
Since the bus arrived at the stop thirty minutes ago, I had no choice but to walk. It was a bit cooler now, but it didn't quite reach any extremes. I was wearing a collared blouse that was tucked into a black skirt. I had on a beanie, a coat, and a pair of stockings. Unfortunately, I was also wearing ankle boots with two-inch heels. My feet weren't made for that kind of torture. As I trudged along the sidewalk, I mentally cursed myself for being careless. I was mindlessly kicking a rock, until I felt something vibrating in my coat pocket. Someone was calling me.
"Hel-"
"Where the hell are you?!" It was Cindy, annoyed as ever.
"Aren't you supposed to be in class?"
"Aren't you?"
"Touché."
As I walked, she talked in a very rushed manner. She said I better be at school and I told her I was on my way. Of course, she guessed that I had a little problem with my alarm; which is why I sometimes prefered my mother over an alarm. She wouldn't stop until I'm up and fully awake. And exasperated, that too.
I tip-toed to my locker, looking over my shoulder far too many times than the average student. I probably seemed like a prisoner trying not to be seen. I was in front of my Math room in two minutes flat with sore feet and ankles. "Well, this is my own fault," I told myself as I twisted the knob quietly. When I thought it was going to be a success, it creaked as I attempted to slip through the small gap that I managed to create. I never should've trusted my luck in the first place.
"Thank you for joining us, Miss Walton," Ms Gilmore sneered. Her retro sunnies were perched above her head and they looked like the devil's horns. I tried not to laugh at how funny she kind of looked. "You should know by now that I don't tolerate tardiness."
I do. Now that I thought about it, I should've just skipped this period. "Sorry, Ma'am." I faced the floor as I sat on the only free seat. It was the one closest to her desk. Oh, boy.
A hand landed on my table. I jumped, not because it was so sudden; but because I saw the piece of paper on her hand. It was her detention slip. That was Ms Gilmore's weapon around here. She handed detentions more times than I trip over. Believe me, that is impressive. "Meet me here after your last class for the next three days."
"But I have tutoring sessions on two of those days!" I was already missing-in-action at yesterday's session. Missing on the other two? Well, let's just hope my grades don't take a head-first dive towards the fail mark.
Ms Gilmore smirked at me, her wickedness shining through like sunlight. Normally, she was sane. She was even nice to me because I'm not too bad at her subject. Being late just messed it all up. "Very well, I'll check with Mrs Hutchinson and have a word with you afterwards."
It was safe to say that I survived the last twenty minutes of Math. Though, the day dragged on slower than making molasses. People were looking at me funny, eyeing me like chewed gum that was stuck to a table. I was more wordless than someone who was trying to keep a secret for the rest of the day. Once the final bell rung and it was time to scurry on away from school, I found Cindy waiting for me outside by my locker, impatiently tapping her foot on the floor. Her eyes were fixated on me, so I grinned. It was pretty lopsided.
Her massive shoulder bag was resting on the crook of her elbow and I wondered how that didn't hurt her. "About time," she muttered with a teasing smirk. "Come on, grandma. I'm driving you home."
"I'm going job hunting, remember?" I told her and her eyes widened.
"So that's why you dressed up so fashionably!"
"Hey! Are you saying my clothes are tacky?" I said defensively. I crossed my arms, a tad offended.
She shook her head feverishly. "No! No! It's just that you...put in extra effort today. What happened to wearing demin jeans?"
While it was true that I wear jeans half the time, her comment still felt like a slap to my apparently unfashionable face. "Extra effort? This was the first thing I grabbed!"
"Calm yourself, woman. Okay, I'll just meet up with Ethan. I ain't driving with my overprotective brother when he knows I'll be with my boyfriend. You can babysit Charlie for me, right? Thanks, El. You're a life saver!" Cindy took off down the hall, escaping from me in a blink of an eye. She'll have an earful later.
Who said I agreed to it? Oh yeah, she did. I swear, sometimes that girl uses her knowledge for evil.
I spotted Charlie standling idly at the front of the school. He had one strap of his backpack slung on his shoulder and his phone clutched in his left hand. There was also a frown on his face. It was probably because he didn't want to accompany me in my job search. As I got closer, Charlie finally saw me. He didn't seem too happy to see me, but he did wave.
"You don't have to come if you don't want to," I quickly told him, trying not to sound embarrassed.
He shrugged. "It's fine. Got nothing to do anyway," he replied as he looked away, scowling at thin air. "Besides, I'll need a distraction. Who knows what Cindy's doing with her boyfriend as we speak?"
"Locking lips at his house?"
He glared at me in disbelief. "That's not helping!" Charlie snapped.
I huffed a laugh, even though it was an honest and innocent suggestion. It was a plausible one too. "Whatever, let's go."
Charlie was acting like a sour potato, but I guess that's what happens when he's in big brother mode.
Half an hour later, we were walking aimlessly up the street. I've handed in my resumé to most shops, but they all told me the same thing. "We'll get back to you," they would say. I'm sure they wouldn't, but that's fine. One, just one would do. But, for the mean time, I'll just keep trying.
So far, Charlie and I hadn't talked much, except for the time he asked me when we were going to eat. Which was now, I think. My feet were aching and I wanted to give them a rest, so I decided that it would be a smart choice if we stock up on our appetites.
Charlie wanted to eat some ice cream, so we went to SCÖÖP. It was a cute little frozen dessert shop with tons of options. They had the whole retro thing going on and I guess, I just missed going there. Penny and I used to eat there all the time when we were fifteen. She would always drag me along with her because the guy who used to work there looked like a Greek god, hands down. Once inside, I asked for caramel toffee, while Charlie got vanilla. Again. He paid, saying that chivalry wasn't dead. I rolled my eyes at him. He was such a boy sometimes. After I gave my resumé to the lady who worked here, the two of us sat on one of the booths beside the window. From there, Charlie struck a conversation.
You know, once upon a time, that would've surprised me - seeing that Charlie was somewhat distant before, despite the fact that he was always there. Nowadays, if we didn't speak to each other, it felt odd; as if something wasn't quite right and I had to find a way to fix it.
"So, are you ready for the challenge? 'Cause you're so fit and all," he joked, grinning as he winked at me.
I narrowed my eyes at him. "What are you trying to imply?"
He shrugged. "Nothing, Eli-cat. So...have you gotten yourself a partner yet?"
I refrained from licking my ice cream and uttered, "Nah, but I think Zeke wants it to be him."
Charlie smirked at me, his golden eyes twinkling. "Getting cozy with Vanderwall, I see." He shoved a small spoonful of his dessert into his mouth. "Tell me, what is it with him being a bad boy that you like so much?"
"Shut up, Charls. Zeke is a good guy," I defended, frowning at him. "Plus, there's a reasonable scientific explanation as to why bad boys are so...all that."
"Oh, do explain it to me, Ms Walton. But, let me take a wild guess. Is it your girly hormones acting up?" he taunted, most likely making fun of me inside his head.
Douche, I thought. "No, you idiot." I kicked his shin from underneath the table and he hissed at me. I ignored him and picked up where I left off. "It's because our brain picks up on danger and it releases 'adrenalin', which causes anxiety and excitement. Since bad boys - and that includes Zeke - basically radiate danger, we tend to keep an eye on them. Thus, people end up thinking of them and getting all giddy."
His mouth was slightly ajar, surprised by my little monologue. I laughed at the priceless look on his face. "Well, I didn't think you would get all technical with me," Charlie admitted. "Seriously, where the heck do you even get all of this?"
I avert my eyes from his, my cheeks flushing. "Oh, you know, Google."
"What exactly did you type?" he probed, his eyes filled with mischief.
"I forgot." Actually, that was a lie. I perfectly remember what I typed that day. I wrote "reasons why girls love bad boys" but I wasn't going to share that with Charlie. Or Cindy. Or Zeke, for that matter.
We left SCÖÖP after about ten more minutes. Charlie and I spoke about random things and he asked me about how I was going with Chemistry. When we arrived at my house, I asked him if he wanted to come in. He nodded and we started mindlessly watching television.
By the time Penny slammed the front door and went to her room - which Charlie, took great notice of - we were sat on my bed, discussing the subject of movies. Romance movies, to be specific. He kept arguing that there shouldn't be movies that only had drama and romance. He said a movie should have a different genre, like suspense or action, with only a romance undertone. Never a romance-drama. Never a romcom. I had to fight off slapping his head. I wasn't completely big on chick flicks, but even I thought that idea was bogus. Everybody needs their dose of heart-warming declarations of love and cute couple moments every once in a while.
I mean, what would Zeke have to say about that?
I honestly think Zeke would clock Charlie for saying all those things. Charlie basically kicked romance to the curb. Even though I've only known Zeke for a short time, I knew how soft he got when he watched romantic movies. It was cute, how he tried to hide his goofy smiles whenever the main characters told each other sweet words. I bet he was a romantic. I also bet that when he falls in love, the girl he loves would always be over the moon.
"Have you seen Titanic? What about The Notebook? Have you even watched The Vow?" I half-yelled at Charlie, looking completely outraged. I was getting really tired of all the romance hate coming from him.
"Yes, yes, and no. But only because Cindy forced me to." He leaned back against the pillows.
"You are such an as-"
Charlie hit my face with a teddy bear, effectively cutting me off. I hit him back with a stuffed octopus and soon enough, it was practically a war. We stood on my bed - good thing we took off our shoes - and hit each other repeatedly, mercilessly. When my foot slipped, I fell back against the mattress. Charlie raised his fists in the air, whisper-yelling in victory. I yank his foot forward and he lost his balance, belly flopping beside me. We both laughed at our childishness. I was glad my bed was big enough to fit three people. If it didn't, Charlie and I would be so squished together right now.
For the next couple of minutes, we just lay there with our laughter slowly dying down and our rapid breathing. I turned to my side to face him and he did the same. Not once did we touch. There were silly grins on our faces and I felt really happy. There was something about the way he made me smile. This time, it felt different, but I was contented.
But, of course, Charlie wouldn't be Charlie if he didn't open his mouth and ruin the moment. "I still think romance movies are pointless." Which is why he would never be in one.
I hit him in the head and he rolled his eyes. Gold, I didn't think it was possible but there he was - the boy with the golden eyes. "I still think you're an ass."
"But you love me," he teased, his dimpled smile now replaced with a smirk.
"Don't flatter yourself, Charlie."
Between bickering and laying on our sides, my lids increasingly got heavier. His did too, I caught them in the act. Sleep was about to take over me, but before that completely happened, I heard myself softly mumbling. "Charlie, I think something's changed," I murmured, eyes closed. I didn't know if I was incoherent or if he was asleep, but I didn't get a chance to hear him reply. As soon as the words left my mouth, I was out cold.
* * *
Hey there. c:
I'll admit, Chapter 24 is a bit of a filler. But they did have a moment, so that wasn't too bad. ;)
You can also let me know who you want as Eli's partner on the comments, if you want.
MBFB reached 10,000 reads! Let's get that number to 11K! Thank you for everything. <3
Dedicated to chelsey_cba! Thanks for following and thank you for the support.
Multimedia Weekly:
- a photo of a laughing-smiling-pouting Charlie
- I Don't Want To Wait by Paula Cole (I am currently obssessed with Dawson's Creek!)
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J~