Chapter Nine - Failed Pickup Lines
*Xavier's POV*
Even after I denied any relationship between me and Kylie, the paparazzi still pestered me about it. Why did I wish for the paparazzi to come anyway? I forgot how annoying they could be.
I never learned.
Luckily, Mr. Anderson managed to call some police officers to discourage paparazzi from the school grounds, which means that I'm safe at school. It didn't even matter if people gawked at me in the hallways or ask me dozens of questions. That was still better than what the paparazzi would do.
I even arrived at school early today to avoid running into the paparazzi. Early. Now that's dedication.
Rides to and from school were a hassle. Once I was off school grounds, I was up for grabs. I basically had to sneak out or I had to lose them by making a bunch of turns so that they couldn't follow me back to the farm. I refused to let them follow me back there.
With nothing else to do, and nobody in sight to ask for my signature or something like that, I reluctantly headed up to the library. There was some homework I could do. "Could" was the key word. I am not a morning person and homework is the last thing I'd do in the morning.
But before I made it to my destination, I felt myself being yanked into a side hallway. I didn't even have a chance to recover from the abrupt action before I was shoved into the wall.
"Why the hell are they following me?" a familiar voice hissed. "Make them go away."
It took me a second to realize that it was Kylie who was demanding answers from me. Her green eyes were flaming with anger, as usual. But this time, there was a hint of exhaustion hidden behind the fire.
With her being so close to me, I couldn't help but be reminded about what happened last time. The image of her body was imprinted into my mind.
It wasn't that I've never seen a female body before, courtesy of some acting roles I've had, but it was a different scenario where a girl was half naked in front of me and it wasn't because of a role or a scene. I didn't even make it that far with my ex. I'm not even sure why this, she, affected me so much.
I found it hard to concentrate with thoughts of her body in my mind. My voice got stuck in my throat. This was much worse than last time. Damn it. It wasn't supposed to work this way. She should be flustered by my presence, not me by hers.
Her proximity certainly wasn't helping.
"What?" I asked, not remembering what she had asked because of my distracted thoughts.
"The reporters," she enunciated clearly. "The pizza or whatever they're called again. They are following me and bugging me and they won't leave me alone. How do you make them stop?"
I almost choked on laughter when she said pizza instead of paparazzi. But I forced myself to be serious. As much as I hated to admit it, it was my fault that she was in this debacle.
"I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news but the paparazzi aren't going to leave you alone until they get information," I said apologetically. "Either that or you have to wait it out, which may take some time."
She huffed in annoyance. "This is all your fault," she said, releasing me and leaning against the wall a few feet beside me. "I'm already sick of them and it's only been one day."
I didn't even know what to say to that. Back home, in California, the people I hung out with were already in the spotlight. My partner in crime, and best friend, is an actor as well and was used to the mobs of people. My ex-girlfriend is a singer. My PR manager takes the paparazzi in stride, without even batting an eyelash.
My parents, however, wanted to avoid them as much as possible, which was why I tried not to reveal anything about them to the public.
But Kylie was just a random girl living her normal life. Well, mostly normal. She was missing the part where average people had the ability to recognize me. That in itself was unusual.
And then yesterday happened. So far, the only thing I know about the effects was that she was now being stalked by the paparazzi. But surely, there were other effects.
I was proven right when a nasally voice interrupted the silence.
"You're such a slut Kylie. You've only been single for a day and you're just going to rub it in Seth's face about how you've been cheating on him. It's a good thing I told him about that before it went any further," Hannah's voice sneered.
I don't think she saw me because I was halfway behind a corner and Kylie was in front of me, blocking her view. I was appalled at Hannah's tone. She had never spoken anything like that before when I was in her presence.
Eyes widened, I glanced over at Kylie to see that her jaw was clenched, along with her fist, and that her tired expression was wiped away by anger. Her eyes turned cold.
Then, I realized what Hannah had said. Kylie was single. And I wasn't thinking of it as the perspective that Kylie was available - which I'm sure she isn't to me, based on how she treats me - but as in she no longer had a boyfriend.
They broke up. And it was most likely because of yesterday's incident. We hadn't even done anything and from the time I've known her, Kylie wasn't the type to be disloyal.
Guilt and horror settled in my stomach uncomfortably. It was such a strange feeling. It's been a while since I've felt anything like that.
"Why don't you shut your mouth before I do it for you," Kylie suggested, darkly.
Her entire mood was a different demon. I thought I had experienced her rage before but that was nothing compared to now.
"You know, poor Seth is just so heartbroken that you abandoned him for a famous celebrity. Even I didn't know that you were that cold hearted," Hannah kept on taunting viciously.
I don't think I've ever met anyone this ruthless. Hannah had been the one who told Seth and now she was placing the blame onto Kylie. It was no wonder Kylie's eyes lit up and she sprang at the blonde.
Without even realizing it, I lunged after her and caught her in my arms before she could do anything. While Kylie struggled against my arms, desperate to introduce her fist with Hannah's face, Hannah's eyes widened when she saw that I was there.
"Let go of me!" Kylie snarled, trying to break out of my unexpected restraint. It was actually difficult to keep her from getting closer to Hannah.
"Xavier, I didn't even see you," Hannah exclaimed lightly, as if she hadn't just taunted Kylie. "Thank you for saving me."
I have her a cold look, which she seemed surprised by. "I'm not saving you. I wouldn't care if Kylie beat the shit out of you. I'm saving her from getting into any more trouble, no thanks to you."
I don't know who was more stunned by what I said: me, Hannah, or Kylie, who froze in my arms. Probably me.
Hannah was shocked into silence and stillness, which I took advantage of by dragging Kylie past her. I think the only reason Kylie allowed me to do that was because she was surprised as well.
I made sure that we quickly escaped the hostile atmosphere, turning a corner and heading straight down the hall. Once we were far away from Hannah, I let go of Kylie's hand and stopped.
We were now in a rather secluded hallway. It wasn't off limits or anything, but there were only two classes over here. The quiet setting was a relief from the tense situation from a few seconds ago.
Now here comes the slightly awkward part. I hesitated to look at her, but when I did, she didn't seem to be angry anymore.
"Why did you do that?" Kylie asked softly. She sounded more confused than accusing. Or maybe that was vulnerability behind her voice?
"Because as much as I'd hate to admit it, it's my fault you're suffering right now," I said, looking away. "And like I said, you'd probably have even more problems."
She accepted my explanation quietly. "Thank you. Even though I still want to punch her."
I let out a chuckle before becoming serious once more. Weird feelings were becoming a thing this morning. I don't remember feeling this serious in a long time.
"I'm sorry about your ex. I can go explain to him if you want," I offered seriously, feeling generous as well. Perhaps I can absolve myself of guilt if I fix one consequence of my mistake.
"It's fine," she said immediately. "I don't want him back. He didn't even bother listening to me. I don't think I can handle that anymore," she admitted, although tears started glistening in her eyes.
Ah shit. She's crying. What do I do? Crying females were difficult to deal with. They were like a ticking time bomb. I could end up saying something wrong and it would only get worse. Do I console her or do I stay silent?
Panic alarms rang inside me and my thoughts were all over the place to deal with the problem in front of me.
Maybe pissing her off would be better. I was pretty good at that. Anything but crying. Or maybe I could make her smile or laugh. Wouldn't that be something rare.
What would make her smile? A joke?
Or maybe I could try out some pickup lines with her. Those normally cheered girls up, especially if they came from me. Although, Kylie wasn't a normal girl, in my opinion. It was entirely possible that they wouldn't work and she'd get annoyed.
But anything was better than crying so I went for the opportunity.
"Have you seen the matter sexy today?" I asked. Kylie paused in her crying and gave me a confused look.
"What's the matter sexy?" she asked.
"Aw, nothing much. You?" I replied, smirking at her look of realization.
She groaned, her sadness forgotten. "I can't believe I fell for that."
"So then you're a snowflake," I stated, ready to keep on going. Another look of confusion appeared.
"Because I just know that you're falling for me," I winked.
"That was both terrible and cheesy," Kylie complained. "Surely you can think of something better."
Okay then, challenge accepted. I'll use the ones I know and wait until she thinks one is good. Surely I haven't lost all of my tricks. I'm a natural charmer. Even if I use cheesy pick up lines, they should work.
"I lost my number. Can I have yours?" I asked.
Kylie smirked. "Sure, it's 9 double 1." I was almost glad that she gave me a number until I realized it was the number to call the police department.
"There's something wrong with my eyes. I can't take them off of you," I said smoothly. Surely she will think this one is good.
But Kylie took it in stride. "I'm having a problem with mine too. I can't see you getting anywhere with me."
My eyebrows raised involuntarily. Nice, but that wasn't going to stop me. "Do you have a map? I'm getting lost in your eyes."
She smiled. "Sorry, no map. So why don't you just get lost?"
"Here I am! What were your other two wishes?" I was getting more and more determined.
"That you'd be charming and handsome. I guess not all wishes come true," she shrugged casually. I really hope she was joking on that one.
"Do you believe in love at first sight? Or should I walk by again?"
"Go ahead. I need to practice hitting a moving target," she replied, making a motion as if she was using a bow and arrow.
"If I could rearrange the alphabet, I'd put U and I together," I added a wink. All of these were just reflecting off of her.
"That's sweet. If you asked me, I'd put N and O together."
"Did it hurt?" I asked. "When you fell from heaven?"
Kylie gave me another smirk. "Actually, I crawled my way out of hell."
I paused. "That's actually really good," I admit, impressed. She was very good with her comebacks.
Maybe I should give up then. I've lost my touch if all of my pickup lines failed. "You win," I sighed, deciding not not let her dent my ego anymore. Although, she was constantly doing that anyways so my efforts will probably be futile.
But my temporarily wounded ego was worth it. I owed her. And really, I should feel great because I accomplished my original goal. Kylie didn't look sad anymore.
Suddenly, the bell rang. We both jumped at the sound. Did time really go by that fast?
"I've got to go," Kylie said immediately, spinning on her heels and quickly walking away. But after three steps, she paused and looked back at me before heading to her first class.
Meanwhile, I had to go the opposite way for math. I still dreaded that class, but since Kenna - and that one time Kylie helped out - started tutoring me, I've been getting a better grade.
Well, if a C+ is considered a good grade. The rest of my classes were either A- or B+. All except for drama, which, of course, had an A. All of the students in that class were awed by the fact I was there. It was in that class that I was probably idolized the most.
However, now that I think about it, Hannah is in that class...along with math. I doubt I'd ever look at her the same way.
As usual, when I entered the classroom, I saw a group of girls surrounding my desk. Kenna looked uncomfortable being squished in between a bunch of people.
I decided to go save one of my biggest fans - there were a lot of them out there so I wasn't quite sure if they really were. I gave the group a charming smile.
"Good morning," I greeted. One of them let out a little sigh. "Can I get to my seat?"
And just like that, they opened up a path for me, clearing up some breathing space for Kenna as well. She threw me a grateful look. I sat down beside her in my own seat and set my things to the floor.
The tardy bell rang and my fan club reluctantly headed to their seats. Mr. Adams wasn't here today so we had a substitute teacher, who started playing a math-related video from YouTube after taking attendance.
The sub was very surprised to read my name off and blinked several times at me.
Once the video was playing, I tuned out, along with half of the class, and decided to quietly chat with Kenna. Before I could even start, Kenna beat me to the punch.
"How are you this morning?" Kenna asked politely.
"I'm feeling fine because my favorite fan is here," I grin cheekily at her. She gave me a sly look in return.
"Oh really?" she sounded cheerful. "Do I get some sort of prize?"
I chuckled. "Isn't tutoring me already a prize?"
Kenna pretended to think about it for a moment. "Nah, I think that for it to be a prize, we need to be relaxing. Do you really consider the quadratic equation a prize?"
My smile withered at the mention of the quadratic formula. It wasn't that the equation was hard, but it was math. Enough said.
"No, that's not a prize," I agreed. "What would you prefer instead?"
Kenna didn't even spend much time to think about her answers before she replied. "A trip to the frozen yogurt shop and a round of 20 questions."
At first, it didn't sound too bad. It was always risky when I asked what someone wanted because I've gotten some pretty weird replies before.
But it was mid October in Minnesota, which meant it was chilly. Well, at least to me, a native Californian. Sometimes it could get cold back home, but not like it did - and would - over here.
As the days passed by, temperatures outside were getting closer and closer to freezing. I had to go buy some winter clothes yesterday, which was why I was even at the mall, endangering myself to the paparazzi.
"It's cold out," I couldn't help but complain. Who eats frozen yogurt when it's freezing out?
Kenna threw me an expectant look. "No it's not. It's not even at freezing yet," she stated, as if it was obvious.
"You forget that I'm from California," I reminded her.
She simply waved her hand and said, "You'll get used to it here. Besides, we can eat inside the shop. There's also a coffee place next door if you want to warm up."
I thought about it. The idea of it sounded nice...but it was in a public place. It was highly likely that the paparazzi would follow us there and then hound us. Kenna would end up becoming like Kylie - although less accidentally scandalous.
The paparazzi would probably also think I was dating Kenna or cheating on Kylie - even though I blatantly denied everything to them yesterday. They were good at fabricating stories and rumors, some being more outrageous than others.
"It sounds great, but I don't want a repeat of yesterday," I said carefully, mentioning the mall incident.
Kenna seemed to understand. "Oh yes, I almost forgot about that. And speaking of which, I'm just curious, do you have any, uh, feelings towards Kylie?"
I almost choked on my spit. "What?" I spluttered unattractively. Where the hell did that come from?
I quickly thought about it though. Kylie was attractive, even though she wore hoodies and sweatpants almost all the time and looked like she didn't even try to bother with her hair. Her hair was usually pulled back in a ponytail, but I could still see her lack of effort when I noticed all of the tangles.
Granted that she had anger problems, I saw the witty side of her this morning. She was actually entertaining once she relaxed. Her confidence and honesty was admirable, even if it was harsh sometimes. Not to mention, she was amusing to annoy once I got over the initial shock of her rudeness.
"I know Kylie already told me her side of the story but I wanted to know how you felt. You were in a small place with a barely dressed girl," Kenna reminded.
I inwardly cursed. I couldn't last long without mentally picturing the scenario when everyone kept reminding me of it. How was I supposed to focus?
"I felt the same as what Kylie probably told you," I settled for saying. I doubt she had anything nice to say about the incident. She probably said that it was uncomfortable and embarrassing.
Kenna's eyebrows raised, amused. "Actually, when I asked Kylie if she felt anything for you, she immediately said no and claimed that she couldn't possibly like anyone who reeked of smug vanity," she informed.
My first thought was: that definitely sounded like something Kylie would say. My next was: wait, smug vanity? I was appalled by her word choice. What did smug vanity even smell like?
But even though that was an insult, why did I want to enjoy it? Somehow, I turned into a guy who enjoyed being insulted by a girl. Or maybe I hit my head harder than I thought when I landed on the ground yesterday.
"Okay, maybe I don't feel the same way as Kylie does. She actually took it more smoothly than me," I admit.
"Does that mean you like her?" Kenna asked, her voice gaining excitement. She didn't even let me answer before she said, "Oh that's wonderful. You two are finally on the path to getting along. We are closer to the day where I can meet up with both of you without you two going at each other's throats."
Oh, she meant it that way. Why did I jump at my previous conclusion?
But Kenna was right about one thing. Usually encounters between me and Kylie involved someone's throat being attacked - mine. She had a grudge against me every single time we happened to be at Kenna's house at the same time - although I doubt that was a coincidence, based on Kenna's goals.
At least, that applied to all of the other times except for today. Well, after I escorted her away from Hannah, Kylie acted civil.
The only thing I didn't know was how long that relative peace would last. Maybe this morning was a one time thing. If I was being honest with myself, I hope that it wouldn't.
I would like to return to an atmosphere where someone didn't constantly antagonize me.
"Anyway, I'll think of something else. But we are still going to do that 20 question thing. I'm determined to learn more things about my idol," Kenna smiled at me.
"Of course," I replied, a little glad about the change in topic.
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A/N
Yay! Updated!
I'm hoping to get back to the lighter and funnier mood soon (was this chapter a good start?)
Please vote and comment!! :D
1/15/15