"Who's this?" Jay asks. I sigh. "My ex. He cheated on me with the Alyssa girl I mentioned. Moved schools. Seems everyone prefers the bitch over me. Either that...or they're insanely desperate." I reply casually. Jay blinks at me before standing and punching Jeremy.
I stare. "Dude! What the fuck!" He exclaims. I giggle and stand. "You deserved it." I answer. Jay glares at my ex. "Don't you ever cheat on a woman again. Have some respect." He says. He grabs my arm and pulls me out.
"Wait!" Someone yells. We turn. Natalie is running over with a...sharpie? She takes Jay's arm, writes something and runs back inside. "Dude...seriously? And she isn't even that hot." Jay whines, staring at the seven numbers on his arm. I shoot him a look and get in the car.
---------------------------------
"Let me get this straight..." Nick starts.
Leah leans forward in her seat and takes a cookie from Damien. He shoos her away. "You told a drunk guy, Brody, that you didn't want to attend the stupid dance with him...so he chased you in his car then got shot at by some guys. Then one of the guys, Jane or whatever- "
"Jake"
"Whatever took you on a date to a cafe where some girl hit on him before telling you to shut up and stomping away. And if I understand correctly, this is when your ex asshole Jeremy appeared and Jackson-"
"Jake"
"Whatever stood and punched him? Let's not forget that Natalie chick wrote her number in sharpie on his arm....why do you always have interesting nights? Uncool man." Nick sums up.
I stare at him and take a cookie from my younger brother. "You remember the desperate girl's name but not the dude who saved my life and took me out? Seriously?" I ask, completely amazed. Leah chuckles.
"Where has Colton been?" Damien asks me. I stop eating the cookie and clear my throat. "Oh...he took your sister on a date then kissed her enemy. Happens like all the time. Actually, it happened with your parents as well. History repeating itself." Leah says. She chuckles slightly and nonchalantly eats another cookie.
Damien, Nick and I stare at her. Is she for real? "What?" She asks. Nick scoffs. "You sound so inconsiderate." He mutters. She blushes. "Sorry."
"Hey fellas!" My uncle yells. Uncle Noah, Aunt Kenz and Dominic waltz in. "My mom texted me. I need to go. Bye guys!" Leah yells. She wiggles her fingers at us and struts out. "Weird. Anyways, Henry is waiting at Starbucks. We ready?" Dom asks. The three of us stand and nod.
"Before you go, I need you to stop by the studio tonight. For dress fitting." Aunt Kenzie says. I groan and whine before she shushes me...by hitting me with a newspaper.
"Can I bring a friend? Or...a few." Aunt Kenzie shrugs at me. "Why not? WCR could use a few new models anyway." She says. I sigh. Would Ellie even like modeling for them? Guess we'll find out. The four of us teenagers head out to meet Henry at Starbucks.
"Hey guys!" Henry greets us. I hug him.
"Feels like I haven't seen you in forever!" I exclaim. He chuckles and nods. We all order and take a seat. "I can't wait until next weekend!" Damien says. We all murmur agreements.
So, it is Friday. The dance is next weekend and we all honestly are super siked. I'm also supposed to hang with Ellie for a girl's night and I was going to introduce her to Leah but since Aunt Kenz wants me at the studio, I'll just bring them along.
"So, when do I get to meet your friends?" Dominic asks. I eye him distastfully. "Never Dom...never. You idiots will scare them away." I say sweetly. Nick scoffs. "We haven't scared Leah away." He retorts. I smile way too cheerfully.
"She's terrified of you. Y'all are hideous. She's just too nice." They all scoff loudly, making me laugh. Except Damien. He pouts. "I'm hideous?" He asks. I frown.
"No no. Of course not D. I meant Nick, Henry and Dominic." I assure him. He smiles widely again and begins eating his breakfast.
"Naomi." I groan extra loudly for dramatic effect and stand. The boys flank my sides. "Leave her alone Douglas." Henry sneers. "She doesn't want to see you." Nick scowls. "Or speak to you." Dominic finished. Damien just squeezes my hand and glares up at Colton.
"Seriously dude, give her space." Duncan says, appearing beside his leader. My family nods a greeting towards him. "I have." He mutters. I laugh bitterly. "No you haven't. Unless you're counting when you seemed to avoid me after the date and kiss a certain bitch." I reply. Colton winces.
"And I'm sorry. But can I have one more chance?" He begs. I release a sigh. Everyone deserves a second chance, right? "You have three hours to prove to me you actually love me." I decide. My brothers and cousins stare at me in complete shock. Colton grins. "Thank God...um so can I have like an hour or two to prepare?" He asks.
I shrug. "Pick me up at school in two hours." He nods and walks away with a hop in his step. Duncan chuckles and shakes his head at me. "I wouldn't have given him another change Naomi." He says. I shrug. "I'm not you." He smiles and follows his boss.
"Are you insane?" Nick exclaims.
"Yep."
"You're crazy Naomi!" Henry whines.
I grin. "Noted"
"You're going to get your heart broken." Dom mumbles.
I smile wider. "I'll risk it."
"You're brave." Damien says.
I chuckle. "Thanks Damien"
---------------------------------------
I've been watching the clock all morning. One more minute and it will hit Colton's two hour mark. And.....
Now.
"Can Naomi Cooper please report to the office for dismissal. Naomi Cooper for dismissal please." I laugh. How'd he pull that off? I stuff my work in my backpack and leave class. Why is my mom here?
"Oh sweetie! C'mon. You have that doctor's appointment with Doctor Douglas." She says cheerfully. I stifle a laugh and follow her out.
Colton is leaning against his motorcycle with his arms crossed. His face lights up when he sees me. "Naomi!" He exclaims. Mom steps in front of me.
"Take care of my baby Colton. If she comes home crying again, I won't stop my husband from finding the bat." She threatens. Colton visibly gulps.
"Yes ma'am." He mutters. She smirks in triumph and turns to me. "You got your gun?" I internally laugh. Her mission to scare Colton is definitely working.
"Always Mama." I reply. She nods and hugs me quickly before scurrying away. "Do you really carry a gun?" He asks. I laugh and nod. "In my glove box. Yeah. Ready?" Colton helps me onto his motorcycle before climbing on himself.
-------------------------------------------
"So...how did you meet Leo's gang exactly?" Colton asks. Translation: How did you meet Jay. He may seem genuinely curious as to how we met...but his clenched fists say other wise. "Bumped into Leo's not girlfriend Elaina and she introduced us." I say nonchalantly.
Colt had been guiding me through the forest for like twenty minutes. In complete silence I may add. Until now. "And...you're bringing this Jake guy to the dance?" He asks. I try not to smirk and just simply nod "Correct." I answer. "Do you um...do you like him?" He presses. I sigh.
"Colton, if you're trying to earn my forgiveness then intruding on my life and feelings isn't the way to proceed." I answer, successfully avoiding his question about liking Jay. Truth is, I'm not sure if I like him or not. He's nice, charming, flirty and definitely good looking.
Plus he stood up for me and punched Jeremy when it wasn't needed. But...he isn't Colton. This stupid idiot has been clouding my mind for like...forever. It's unnatural if you ask me. Although, I think I may have developed a teenie tiny crush on Jake. Not that I'll tell Colton obviously. That'd be stupid of me.
"Are we almost there?" I whine. Colton sighs. "Almost." He mumbles. I groan. "I'm cold." I complain. He huffs and hands me his jacket. I grin and pull my arms through the sleeves. After a few more minutes I subtly smirk. "My feet hurt Colton." I pout.
He groans and picks me up. I'm not being a spoiled brat by the way. I'm purposely doing this. I said he could try and earn my forgiveness, I never said it'd be easy. My jaw drops when we reach a clearing. I recognize it instantly.
"Colton Douglas! I thought I said-"
"I know I know. A hot air balloon picnic wouldn't make you forgive me. I spoke to your mother and she said you're the sentimental sappy type though, adorable by the way, so I decided, upon seeing the photo in your living room, to set this up." He explains. I avoid his gaze, knowing if I looked at him I'd probably give in.
He takes my hand and leads me to the balloon. "Don't think I forgave you." I mutter. He smirks and helps me into the balloon. As he sits down, I stand and watch as the ground gets further away. I sigh and turn to sit. My jaw drops, just as it did when I first noticed the hot air balloon.
"You literally managed to get every single food my dad got my mom?" I ask, astonished. He shrugs sheepishly. "I asked your mom about it. I would have asked your dad or brothers for advice but...well neither of them like me very much." He says.
I scoff. "None of my family like you. At all." I answer. I open a package of sweetheart candies and pop one in my mouth. He watches and smiles. Creep.
"That is entirely my fault. And I'm sorry." He says. I sigh. "Colto-"
The unmistakable sound of a gun shot cuts me off. I scream and duck my head. It takes a moment for me to register that someone is trying to shoot down the balloon. "Fucking hell!" Colton yells. He pulls out a gun and looks down at the ground, in the direction the bullet came from. Considering it came from the forest, the shooter is difficult to find.
I sigh and pull out my extra gun. Colton raises an eyebrow in questioning. I chuckle. "I'm in a gang now Douglas. You have another gun holstered on your other side if I'm not mistaken. Never carry just one weapon." I explain. He smirks and turns his attention back to the shooter...who is still unseen.
Another gun shot rings out. A sharp pain shoots down my arm. "Shit." I hiss. I drop to the floor of the balloon and tear off a piece of the cloth from the blanket. I tie it tightly around my wound and take the safety off my gun. "You alright?" Colton asks without turning to me.
"Don't worry about me Colton. Just find the damn culprit." I grumble. He shoots me a withering glare. "Do you want us to die?" I sneer. Colton rolls his eyes and aims his attention back at the forest. I stand up and start bringing the balloon to the ground, before the shooter does it with force.
"I see movement." Colt says. I scoff. "Good for you. Care to kill it?" I say sarcastically. He huffs. "Naomi shut up, will you? I'm trying here!" He exclaims. "Trying what? Because so far whatever you've been trying to do obviously hasn't been working." I scowl.
I hear the sound of his gun go off a few times before he turns to me. "Why can't you just forgive me?" He asks, exasperated. I laugh bitterly. "Because you kissed my enemy after taking me on a date...is that guy dead?" I ask. Colton nods and helps me bring the balloon to the ground.
------------------------------------------
"What happened to your arm?" Leah asks me on the way to the studio. I picked her and Ellie up about five minutes ago. "A glass bowl fell on me." I lie. Ellie eyes me curiously, obviously not buying it. Leah frowns. "Looks like it hurts." She says. I shrug.
I park the car and get out. My friends follow me inside. "Oh! Naomi!" Aunt Kenzie exclaims when we walk in. "Hey Auntie. This is my friend Elaina, and you know Leah." I introduce. "Call me Ellie." Ellie says. My aunt grins and leads us to a room in the back. My other two aunts are bustling around and scolding some workers.
"Finally! We've picked out some dresses for you two to try on for the dance." Aunt Riley informs Leah and I. "Cool. Aunt Ri, this is my friend Ellie. She's volunteered to model for you. And we can get some male models if you need them as well." I say.
Aunt Gia joins us a moment later. "Perfect perfect. My models!" She announces. Aunt Riley scoffs. "I'm taking them first. For dress fitting. It's the most important part of the dance." My mom's sister protests. Ellie seems uncomfortable as my aunts bicker back and forth non stop.
"
Let's go." Aunt Kenz whispers. The three of us teenagers follow her to the jewelry section. "I just finished some beautiful pearl necklaces with pastel colors and I need your opinions." She informs us. We watch her open a maroon wooden case and take off a gorgeous necklace.
Pretty white and pink pearls hang from the silver chain. "That's pretty." Ellie says in awe. Leah and I nod our agreement. Aunt Kenzie smiles. "Glad you girls think so...it was supposed to be a birthday gift for you Naomi but...well I'm giving it to you early." She says.
My aunt places it in a faded pink leather case and hands it to me. I take the delicate piece and slip it into my backpack carefully. "As for you, Leah, I have this." Aunt Kenzie says. I nearly laugh at her distasteful tone. She's never liked Leah that much. She once told me that my friend reminds her too much of my Uncle Noah's ex girlfriend.
Aunt Kenzie pulls out a lace black choker necklace with a single silver star dangling from the front. My friend squeals. "I love this!" She exclaims. Aunt Kenzie waves her off. "Now, Ellie was it?" She asks. My new bestie nods. "WCR is looking for some new models. Our old ones well...we need new faces to put it lightly. My niece has informed me that you'd be willing?"
Ellie nods her head. "I'd love too. I can get some guy models too. That would be no problem. I'm sure my friends would be...delighted." She says happily. Aunt Kenzie clasps her hands together excitedly. "Perfect. I can fit them in for modeling next weekend while everyone is at the dance."
"Um...one of the boys will be with me during the dance." I point out. My aunt frowns. "I thought you were bringing that Brody kid." She says. I tense and Ellie seems to sense my discomfort. "Want to see a picture of the boys?" She offers. I shoot her a smile of gratefulness and bring Leah to my other aunts.
"Where have you two been?" Aunt Ri asks. "Kenzie was showing us some jewelry. Can I see my shoes next?" Leah gleefully asks. Gia leads her to the shoe section while Aunt Riley drags me over to the dresses. "Based off the necklace that Kenz told me she was giving you, I found the perfect dress." She informs me.
She searches through a rack of dresses before pulling off a pale pink dress for me to see. The very top and sleeves are see-through with little flower designs. The dress itself would reach a few inches below my knees. "That's beautiful." I whisper.
Suddenly, Ellie rushes over in panic. "Naomi! It's Leo, he said Colton is in the hospital!"