Hey guysss! SO! I really am so SORRY for the months of delay :(
Lot's of things have happened so far and I just don't know where to start :P
Been terribly busy with something called life -_- Kinda got too preoccupied with org life, and my studies demanded to much of my time :P I got 4 Research papers (all of which I am the leader of), a system to design, a network to propose and design, AND some community immersion services...
Gahhhh... I know, I know, I'm the lamest -_- I really am sorry! in an attempt to make up for the loss, I made an EXTRA LONG chapter! :D So yeah... I hope you guys do enjoy this one :) I know I did!
Pic on the right is of Lily Collins as the girl version of Andy, Andrea Carter ---->
Please do message, like, comment! and VOTTTTEEEE!!!
I love you guys so much! Thanks for all the support!
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~Chap 14: The Boys are Back~
~Andy’s POV~
Ugh. What is with that snoring sound? Seriously? How can I sleep with all that noise? I shifted uncomfortably at the mattress... I must admit that I was a little surprised to find out that the bed was pretty spacious. I moved around and found out that I was alone in the bed. For a while I thought I was alone... till I heard the noise again. Irritably, I threw a pillow at the sound.
Clang.
Wait a minute? What was that sound? Hesitantly, I opened my eyes. I squinted at the first sight of the sunlight through the window. I can’t help but wince a bit as I struggled to focus my eyes on the clang.
A trophy?
Huh. Last time I checked, our room didn’t have any trophies. Slowly, I adjusted my head to see the familiar scarlet wallpaper... the same mahogany headboard... the same windows... the same silk sheets, the same fighting gear—whoa. Fighting gear?
I quickly spun around and looked around the room. Dang. This was definitely not my room. Fighting gear? Medals and trophies? MMA certificates? And whoa. The familiar black hoodie of... Jace? Why am I wearing this? I risked myself a quick once over and found myself wearing some sweats and the black hoodie. Whoa, wait.
Suddenly, memories of last night flashed back into my mind. Me going to the party. Me drinking waaaay too much. Me kissing Sasha... oh fudge. I kissed Sasha. I dirty danced with Sasha. And then Liam...
“Oh DAMN!” I said, suddenly yelping up.
A figure from the other bed suddenly shifted, making the sheets fall of. Oh dang.
It was Jace. It was a boxer clad Jace.
Suddenly, I didn’t feel so well. My head spun around and I clutched the headboard for support. Why was I in his room? Oh my gosh. I stroked my head to ease the pain somehow, but what I found out seemed too surreal. I felt my hair. Lots of it. I pinched my arm just to make sure I wasn’t dreaming. Yup. It hurt. I was awake.
I stroked my head again and yes, it was still there. I nearly choked on my breath. My hair couldn’t possibly grow fifteen inches overnight can it? Hesitantly, I looked inside the hoodie.
WHAT. THE. HECK.
I’m a girl again. I’m a girl again! I have freaking mountains on my chest for crying out loud! To tell you the truth? I felt like a pervert looking at this now foreign yet, oh so familiar body. I can’t believe it! I was a girl again! Oh my gosh! I’m a girl again! Yay? Nay?
“Carter?” Jace groaned with his eyes still closed.
Fudge. Was he walking up? What do I do? What do I do?
Jace shifted uneasily in his bed and I quickly jumped off of mine. Now I know why I’m here! A sharp pang of emotions went through me as I remembered more about last night... turned out I got too drunk and puked on myself... well, it was on the floor, and then some on... OH DAMN! I puked all over Jace last night! Then he took me away from the party and next thing I know, I wake up in his room!
Dang dang dang. What do I do? I can’t let him see me as a girl! Heck, that would definitely cause a scene! I need to get out of here! Think. Think. THINK! Where in the world can I hide?!? Oh yeah! The bathroom!
With stealth that would make a Lion look like a kitty, I dashed from the side of the bed and into the bathroom. Yup. Just in time to find myself a hiding place in his dirty laundry. I carefully lift the lid up and climbed in like a ninja. Oh yeah. I was definitely a ninja.
As I tried my best to camouflage in my hiding place, I couldn’t help but notice the smell of Jace’s dirty laundry. I mean, call me weird but dang. It smelled good. Seriously, it’s definitely not daisy freshness(I mean duh, it’s his dirty laundry!), but the unusual manly scent that was there certainly smelled somewhat attractive. I heard some shuffling in the room and all I could do was to close my eyes as I held my breath.
If I was a swimmer, this would probably be the longest time I held my breath. After what seemed like an eternity, I heard the door close and waited about a minute more before I slowly crept out of my hiding spot. I gently peered out of the door and found out that Jace already left. Whew.
I rested my hands on the sink and looked up. Whoaaaaaaa. When have I ever looked so dang beautiful? I mean, yeah I knew I was pretty, but I’ve learned to appreciate how I looked like even more since I’ve spent so much time as a guy. This was definitely something new. I even liked that small mole I had on my upper lip!
I stood in front of the mirror and looked at myself adoringly. I would’ve looked at myself more if the shuffling from another room didn’t startle me out of my dream.
Oh yeah, now what? How in the world am I gonna get out of Jace’s room? I can’t possibly just walk out. I’m a girl now, and the strictly implemented “No girls allowed” rule—which was plastered on every floor—was definitely gonna be a problem.
I can’t jump out the window obviously, (even if I was deliberating on that). My newfound ninja skills might be of use... so I guess I’ll just run stealthily out of here. I stepped out of the bathroom and found out that it was 8:15 am... no wonder my head was throbbing! I’ve only slept for like, I don’t know, 5 hours?
So I guess I could use this time as an advantage. No one usually went out this early on weekends... with this comforting thought in mind, I quickly put up my hair inside a beanie I found lying on the floor—which I’m going to return back to Jace some other time—and wore my DM’s before stepping outside. Okay, so I was right! Haha! No one was out. I tiptoed lightly as I passed the doors of the hallway. I did this until I reached the bottom floor which was guarded by the Western Wing’s front desk. Basically the Eastern wing (my dorm) looked like this wing so I didn’t really have much trouble going out.
Okay. So maybe I spoke too soon. Apparently, the front desk dude noticed me. He was in his late fifties and all I could do was stand there awkwardly as he squinted his eyes out at me. He blinked a couple of times, as if assessing who I was and I quickly pulled up my hood to conceal most of my face. I then marched—in an awkward manly way, since my lady hips were making me strut involuntarily—for the front door.
“I thought I saw you go out for your morning jog McLunder.” The desk guy said.
Oh. McLunder? As in Jace McLunder? YES! He thought I was Jace! I knew this hoodie was so familiar! I gave him a sharp nod and muttered a quick “yeah” before heading outside. I was careful not to walk too quickly since my head was still throbbing. Dang. I should’ve drank some water or something. I sat down on the sidewalk to think for a bit.
“Wow.” I said, surprised at the sound of my old voice. I even sang a couple of lines from Payphone so I could hear my voice once more. “WWWWOOOOOWWW.” I repeated more clearly as I giggled.
“So good to see you so jolly on a Sunday morning Jace.” Said a voice with a thick southern accent.
“What?” I spun around turning to face the smiling old gardener. I quickly pulled my hood up to hide my face and he looked equally surprised to see my face.
He just gasped and widened his eyes at my female face in Jace’s usual sweatpants and signature black hoodie. Okay. So as it turns out, Jace’s hoodie was way too familiar. I guess going out in this wasn’t really gonna help me be inconspicuous. Dang. With much regret, I turned around and bolted away from there.
I ran for quite some time, and eventually jogged. So what was I going to do now? I can’t just walk around and pretend to be Jace... even if I did, they’d still notice how Jace shrank six inches and well... I dunno, grew manboobs? Sheesh. I needed to blend in...
Wait a minute. Is it just a coincidence that my feet led me to the girl’s dormitories? And more specifically, the girl’s laundry building? Well, I guess a missing shirt and skirt wouldn’t hurt right?
Stealthily, I sneaked in the building. I was starting to think that luck was definitely my friend now. I mean, the whole laundry room was empty! I quickly took this opportunity and grabbed whatever was near me. I then hid behind a rack and changed into a plain black v neck, and a short cargo skirt. I still wore my boxers and it felt a little weird to wear them under “my” skirt. Before going out, I took one of those canvas laundry bags and stuffed Jace’s clothes inside.
So now what?
Yeah. Great. So now that I have my disguise, what should I do? Should I go back to my old life? I mean, I think I could still talk my coach into letting me in the team... I could still catch up right? Right? Gah... with my growing relationship with my new friends? Suddenly, the idea didn’t look too great...
I gently backed away from the laundry room, cautious not to get seen or caught by anyone. I was starting to believe my ninja skills were way remarkable when suddenly...
Ahem. A female voice said behind me.
I quickly turned around guiltily and dropped the bag as I bumped into Rose. She looked at the bag of clothes then back to me. She just looked at me with a raised eyebrow.
“Oh, hey Rose!” I muttered, but clamped my mouth with my hand after realizing what I just did.
“How do you know my name?” She asked with a raised brow.
“Uhm, your nametag said so!” I squealed a little too guiltily.
“I don’t have a nametag.” She said, obviously finding this unusual. Talk about the understatement of the year! Dang, from the looks of it, she’s gonna bolt out of here in an attempt to free herself from a crazy stalker like me!
“Oh really? I must be seeing things then.” I stifled a nervous laugh.
“You must be... but how do you know me? You don’t seem like you go here.”
“Nah, You just look like a Rose type.” I said before bolting out like crazy.
I swept past her quickly. With my old—well, technically they’re new, but you get the point—toned legs, I was able to distance myself away from Rose.
Dang! I can’t believe I slipped like that! Again! This hangover is really starting to piss me off. I better get a drink or something. With a stinging head and wobbly feet, it’s a miracle I was able to walk to the gym. Dragging myself, I bent over the drinking fountain and gobbled up a pitcher’s worth of water.
Then, the most bizarre thing happened.
Zzzzzzz...
~Jace’s POV~
Last night was definitely something I won’t forget.
Of course I wouldn’t. It was the first time someone puked on me. Ever. Who could forget that? Huh.
Oh, and yeah, it’s the first time I’ve ever went to a party. Probably the first and last I’ll ever go to. Well, you can’t blame me. I mean, it wasn’t really my scene in the first place. That Carter kid practically forced me to come along.
Speaking of Carter, I didn’t know he was the type to party at all. Let alone, PARTY like an animal. Who knew he had it in him? He almost drank all the drinks in there... and boy, don’t even get me started with the dancing. If you even consider that dancing.
The whole room looked like they were watching the three of them grind at each other like a live show or something. Oh, and then there was that kiss between him and that Liam dude. Looks like that player got everyone he wanted huh? Oh well. It’s their lives.
Some kid Carter was... but why did he really want me to come to that party? I mean, I could tell that he really wanted me to come. Could he said that we were friends after all. Were we? Well, from the way he looked at me when I saw him kissing Liam—whoa, wait. Why did he even look at me like that?
He looked like he was worried or something. Not that I cared what he does and who he does it with. But why was I there yesterday? I could’ve just cancelled, that was easy. But why? Why was Carter able to make me go? Could it be possible that I didn’t want to disappoint him? I don’t know... there’s just something about that kid.
I put on my iPod at full volume and played “One More Night” by Maroon 5 and jogged my mind out. I can’t tell how long I’ve been running but by the time I stopped at my dorm’s entrance, it was about 10:15 am. Joe the gardener was looking—well, more like glaring—at me and I don’t know why, so I just hurried into my dorm.
“Ey, McLunder!” Simon, the front desk guy greeted.
“Hey Simon.”
“Thought I saw you go out twice this morning budd.” He grinned.
“Simon, you must’ve had a drink too many again last night huh?”
He just chuckled and replied. “Must be.”
I then headed for my room and opened the door quietly. Wouldn’t want to wake Carter up... I glanced inside and looked at the bundle on the bed. Huh, he sure sleeps quietly. Walking over to take a peek, I found yet again, another one of Carter’s surprises.
He was gone.
Where in the world would he even go? Oh, yeah... I guess it’s kinda weird waking up in someone else’s room after all... especially when it’s my room you wake up in. Oh well, maybe he went to his room already.
After making my bed, I decided to take a long warm bath. I took a quick shower last night and I guess it wasn’t enough to rinse off Carter’s puke off me. Shaking of the memory, I stepped in the warm tub.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
RINGGG! RIINGGG! RINNGGGG!
I almost jumped out of the tub when I woke up to a ringing sound. Oh crud, looks like I fell asleep. Wrapping myself with a towel, I went to my room to answer my ringing phone.
“Hello?” Huh, an unknown number.
“Finally, an answer.” Said a guy’s voice on the other line.
“Ask him where Andy is! C’mon! C’mon!” Said another guy from the other line.
“Who’s this?” I asked.
“It’s Cam. Carter’s roommate.”
“Yeah. Why’d you call?”
“Just checking in on my roommate. It’s 6pm and he still hasn’t shown up in here.”
“What? Isn’t he there?”
“What do you mean he’s not here? He’s been with you the whole day right?”
“Nope. I came back at 10am and he was gone from my room.”
“Dang. I kept calling his phone but he won’t pick up.”
“Maybe he’s just gone somewhere.” I thought out loud.
“He left his money here. And he can’t go off campus, he doesn’t have a ride. Besides, I bet he has a killer hangover.”
“Shit! What if slipped or something!” a familiar voice said from behind him.”
“Shut up Liam. You’re too noisy!” the Cam dude said.
“If he has a hangover, what Liam said could be possible.”
“You think so?” Cam replied, his voice suddenly becoming a little too hoarse.
“It’s a possibility.”
“He’s gonna owe me again for this...” he grumbled. “I’ll go look for him then. Thanks.”
“Wait.” I saida little too soon.
“Yeah?” Whoa, why did I stop him from putting the line down? What’s this I’m feeling in my gut? It’s like the feeling I get when someone’s stronger than me in a fight... Shit. “Yo?” Cam asked.
“I’ll come with you.” My mouth spoke again for me.
“Yeah sure. We’ll meet you at the quadrangle.”
“Okay.”
~Andy’s POV~
The sound of a basketball being thrown into a hoop made me roll down in surprise.
“Ouch!” I shrieked out loud.
I can’t believe I just fell down face flat on the floor board! I turned and rolled up grudgingly as I touched the sore spot on my forehead. Well that’s gonna bruise. No thanks to you dribbling basketball!
“Oh hey, you okay?” Said a voice from behind me.
“What?” I turned around quickly, making my head spin. All of a sudden, a pair of arms led me to the bench I just fell from.
“You okay?” said the voice that was starting to sound familiar.
I blinked hard a few times, only to find myself face to face with one of Tyler’s stuck up jock friends. He tilted his head and smiled a brazen grin at me. Irritably, I flipped my hair—thank goodness I had my long hair back now or else this would’ve looked much less dramatic—and raised a brow at him.
“Yeah I’m alright. No thanks to your noisy dribbling.”
“Oh, sorry.” He laughed. “But what are you doing here exactly? This is the boy’s locker room after all.” He said with a teasing look on his eye.
“Of course I knew that.” I shot back as I stood up. Of course I didn’t know that.
“Sure.” He grinned again. “So, you okay? I’m Jesse Colton by the way. You’re?”
“Late.” I said with a sarcastic southern cowbelle smile. “And yes, I’m fine now, now that I’m leaving.”
“You do know that’s the shower room right?” he grinned playfully.
“Course I do. Just testing if you do.” I retorted. Sheesh! What’s with this guy? He’s making me so darn pissed with the way he’s looking at me. I mean, c’mon, it’s not like I’m some gir—oh crap! I am a girl! No wonder he was grinning like crazy!
“Right.” He laughed. “I’ll see you soon okay?”
“Dream on buddy. Dream on.” I rolled my eyes as I jogged past him.
Ugh! How could I forget I was a girl now? Crap, now that you think about it, I still don’t know where I’m going... heading out, I was surprised to find out that the sun was already setting. How long have I slept in?!? No wonder I’m so hungry! And thirsty... thirsty... oh dang, why did I leave the gym too soon without having a quick gulp of water?
Shaking my head in disappointment, I almost jumped when I bumped into something hard.
“What the heck!” I yelped in surprise.
A strong hand suddenly caught me and spared me from having yet another bump on my head. For some reason, the grip I felt on my arm seemed unusually familiar... why is it so recognizable? Squinting my eyes to see clearer, I gasped at the sight of Jace. A just-got-out-of-the-shower Jace. Oh fudge.
“You okay?” he asked as he helped me stand properly.
“Yeah I’m alright.” I said, taking a leap back. From my sudden movement, he looked like he got surprised. Trust me, I was too. Turned out luck wasn’t on my side after all... Of all people! Why Jace?!? From the way he’s looking at me now, I couldn’t help but turn my head sideways to conceal my face with my hair.
“Have I seen you before? I swear you look like someone I know.” He said, raising a brow.
“What? Are you telling me my face aint unique or something?” I retorted in a lame attempt on the accent the Wayan brothers used in White Chicks.
“Uhm, no. I guess.” He said, confusion settling on his face.
“You guessed right.” I said, with the same escape plan I used on Jesse. Flipping my hair back, I marched away as quick as possible.
When the coast seemed clear enough, I turned around to see if someone was near. Hell yeah! My ninja skills were right! I’m alone! Now to trust my gut and look for a safe place. My feet wandered off, and I found myself at the rooftop where I first talked to Jace.
Of all places, why did I go here? I stepped out and walked over to a comfortable surface... and then, I cried. I cried. I don’t know why but, I just cried. I sat there, with tears flowing down my face... well, I’d be lying if I said I didn’t know the reason why I was crying...
I mean, after all... I left my old life out of anger. I just ran away from it all and built up walls to keep the pain in... but in reality? I’m as hurt as the first time I found out my boyfriend was cheating on me... I’m hurt that I had to give up my dream just cause of this sick genetic disorder... I’m hurt. And I didn’t know why it took so long for me to realize I was hurt.
I just sat there like some pathetic child, curled up in a fetal position, weeping my heart out. I just cried and let it all out... I cried and I cried when I heard a familiar beep. It was my ring tone!
I fumbled around my pockets and realized that the skirt I “borrowed” didn’t have pockets, so I guess my phone couldn’t be there. Whoa wait. I’m absolutely positive that that’s my ring tone...
Ahem.
Said a familiar voice behind me. I turned around and saw a panting Rose by the entrance of the rooftop.
“Oh my gosh! You scared the living socks out of me Rose!” Oops! Dang! I slipped again.
“I thought I’d find you here.”
“How did you know?” I asked, taken aback by her tracking skills.
“Simple. I just asked for a wobbly teenage girl, walking around campus, and voila! The janitor said she saw you head over here.”
“Why were you looking for me then?”
She then jumped like she got tazered or something and started fishing something out of her pocket. Then, with much distress, she handed out my phone. My phone!
“Where did you get that?” I asked as I tried to take it. She quickly pulled back though, refusing to hand me my phone. I shot her a confused look but she cut me off by saying. “This is Andrej’s phone. Why is it with you?”
Oh crap! How did she know? Shoot! Shoot! What am I supposed to saaaayyyyyy???
“I asked you first!” I said childishly.
“Fair enough.” She sighed. “You dropped it when you ran away from me this morning.” She said with a raised brow. “Now answer my question... why is it with you?”
I tried to weigh my options on this one... it’s either a) I use my ninja skills and jump off of this building, or b) I tell her the truth. Hmmm... the former sounds pretty cool but c’mon, let’s face it. I might end up looking like a squished fly. Okay... I guess it’s the latter then.
“Can I trust you?” I asked her. She was about to answer when I cut her off. “I mean, can I trust you not to think I’m crazy, or even laugh at me the slightest bit.”
“Well, okay. I give you my word.” She said as she studied me with her wise eyes.
She looked at me now with the same warm eyes she looked at me with when I was still Andrej. From the way she was gazing at me, I guess it’s safe to say that I can still trust her... no matter how hard it is to drop a bomb like this on someone, I knew she could handle it best. Her eyes told me so.
Holding my breath, I quickly said. “I dropped the phone because it belongs to me. I’m Andrej.” I said, and covered my ears to prevent myself from hearing laughter. But nada, nothing came. Instead, she just looked at me with curious eyes, intent on knowing what I was trying to do.
“Prove it then.” She said evenly. To tell you the truth? I wasn’t really expecting her calm answer. It seems like she was just having a casual conversation with me about the weather or something. Okay. That’s when I knew I could really, really trust her.
“Well, you work as the front desk lady at Rummer building. You first gave me my papers when I came here. After several minutes, I came down with my ‘accidental roommate’ Cameron Deverough to ask you if there was a mistake with the files. Then you said there was no mistake, and I threw a fit about sharing a bed with Cam.” I finished without breathing again.
“Oh.” She said, obviously surprised at how detailed my description was of the day we met. “Still not convinced as much... I mean, you could just be a pretty good stalker.”
“Fair enough.” I whispered, copying her tone. This just earned me a smile. “We share a secret.”
“Oh but I have many secrets too darling. Mind enlightening me with that?” she challenged playfully.
“Well, truth is, you’re hiding a stove in your room but you slipped and told me before, so now it’s our secret. Oh, plus, you make the world’s best cookies! EVER.”
With that, she sighed, and stumbled a few steps back. I went to her side quickly and helped her settle down on a pipe. “Could it be true?”
“As much as I hate to admit it, yes.” I said with a pout.
“Oh my! You just looked like Andrej just now! Do that pout again!” she blinked in surprise. “And you do have his eyes... don’t tell me you’re a cross dresser Andrej?”
“Oh, I’m not.” Well, I could’ve said yes, it’d be so much easier, but then again, I’ve decided to trust Rose. “I turned into a girl... well, technically, I turned back into a girl, after turning into a boy.”
Rose looked at me in confusion but I could tell that she was genuinely trying to make sense of what I’m saying. I don’t blame her though, this was pretty absurd news if you ask me... so that’s when I ranted on about how my family got this weird genetic disorder which was similar to slugs. She just listened intently, and let me go on. But something caught her attention when she asked me to repeat my middle name.
“Did you just say your middle name was Carmagnole?” she asked. I nodded. “That’s why! Now I remember! I knew your middle name sounded so familiar before!”
“Why? What’s so special about my mom’s name?”
“Back when I was still a little girl in France, I stumbled upon some history books my father used to keep. I think I read an article about the Carmagnole’s... they were described as ‘he who is she, fills she who is he. Liberation crawls up out, these two faced mystery’ It sounded so unusual before, but now I know why!” she said, clasping my hands in hers.
“How did you know it was us?” I asked.
“Simple, the description in the text, next to the picture were people dancing in the streets... and since it was at a time when the people where revolting, I could tell it was the Carmagnole. I guess I just connected the dots, with the pictures of people who were unidentifiable, gender wise.”
“Ohh...” I said, dumbfounded.
“There was an article about our family?” well, I knew my ancestors were pretty much living the life in France before, and that they got their fair share of attention, but I didn’t know they were popular enough to be mentioned in a history book.
“Yes, and it showed how a family, had two faces, one of which is hers, and one of which is his. I thought it was a riddle before, but now I know it’s something else! The Carmagnole clan are, well...”
“It’s some sort of genetic condition.” I supplied for her. “Some family doctors studied about our genes... they said our case was similar to the genderless slugs.”
“Oh...” Rose said, internalizing everything. I then spilled on everything that happened, about my life as a girl, and eventually told her the reason why I think I’d changed. We talked and talked until I heard something vibrate from the side of the bench we were sitting on.
“Oh crap! My phone!” I stuttered as I saw the battery icon of my phone blink, signalling a dangerously low battery level. Fudge! No wonder, it’ll have a low bat, I got 47 missed calls and 24 voice mails! My phone must’ve been ringing nonstop!
“Who’s calling?” Rose said as she peered over.
“Cam.”
“Oooohhhhhh...” she said as she wiggled her brows. “Looks like someone’s missing someoneee” she teased.
“Oh stop it you. Don’t make up such things Rose.” I said as I hit the end call button.
“So how do you go back now?”
“If I go back.” I said feeling a little sad now.
“Lighten up Andrej.” She smiled as she wiped a tear that fell down my face.
“I know, I know... it’s just so confusing that’s all... I just can’t figure it out.”
“Well, maybe you don’t have to figure it out on your own.” She smiled as she tilted her head to the door. Soon enough, several voices resounded from the staircase up to the rooftop. I concentrated on the sounds and picked out familiar voices.
“Carter? You there?”
“Carter!”
“Andyyyyyy! Come back pleaseee?”
“Oh fudge!” I yelped as I looked for a hiding place. They can’t see me as a girl! Rose was quick to pick up on my panic and helped me up on a vent.
Then, all of a sudden, Jace, followed closely by Cam, then Liam, then Tyler. They each wore their own version of worry in their faces, Liam being hysteric, Tyler scratching the back of his head, Jace with that same old expression of his plus a furrowing of his brow, and of course, Cam with his half annoyed, half worried look.
“Carter!” Cam kept calling.
I held my breath and just wished for them to look elsewhere... I mean, I want to see them, believe me, I do... but If I’m not gonna turn back into a guy, then I might as well, stop myself from letting them grow in on me...
But if they do leave, I could have a final look right? Slowly, I peeked between the gap in the vent. Clumsily, I gasped in surprise as warm air from the vent blew up on me.
“Carter?” Jace said, turning directly at my direction. “That’s you behind the vent right?” he said walking towards me.
Oh fudge. I looked hysterically at Rose but I could tell that she was as panicked as I was. But being the caring mother figure she was, she hopped down and diverted Jace’s attention to her.
“What are you doing here?” she questioned Jace.
“Rose!” Cam said, stepping forward as well. “Have you seen Carter? He’s been M.I.A. the whole day. Do you have any idea where he could be?”
“He’s right behind the vent.”Jace said, still pursuing my direction even if Rose was blocking the way.
“How are you so sure?” Cam asked.
“I just know okay?”
“Stop!” Rose said as she tried to hold Jace back. “No trespassing!”
Oh darn. He saw me. He’s looking at me through the dent! Oh fudge... Rose might slip or something from exerting too much effort... looks like I have no choice but to show myself...
“Hey guys.” I said as I stepped out of my little haven. I just closed my eyes, afraid of their expressions when they see a familiar looking girl staring at them. I braced myself, braced myself for the gasps, the faints, the rejection... but I was ultimately unprepared for what happened next.
“Dude.” Tyler said. “Why are you wearing a skirt?
What?!?!?!