CHAPTER 1!
"I'm slipping into the lava, I'm trying to keep from going under, baby you turn the temperature hotter…"
Ugh! Is that seriously my alarm…you've got to be kidding me, and why on earth did I set my alarm to Jonas Brothers? Like seriously I could've at least picked high school musical or something. I look over at the clock, it reads 5:30. MAN! I do have to wake up! There's nothing worse than a morning. No wait actually there is. A Monday morning is the worst thing ever. It's like two of my least favorite things combined into one horrific awakening after two days of luxurious sleeping in.
"Ding"
I gasp as I scramble out of my bed and reach for the phone. It's a good morning message from Jacob; now I remember why I get up every morning. Jacob is the love of my life, he's everything a boy is supposed to be: insane hot, romantic, and he cares about me so much. He even stays up late all the time just to talk to me, and he goes out of his way to come see me at work. It's really quite amazing that I have him as my boyfriend.
I mean look at me. He could do way better than Kelsey Zhao and my frizzy curly red hair. Now that I come to think about it I do have a very odd appearance, especially since I'm a quarter Chinese. Red hair from my mom and blue eyes from my dad, that doesn't even sound Asian at all when I come think about it. Whatevs, I really should be thinking about what to wear. It's Monday and I have to look like a 10 even though I feel like a 4.
I immediately turn on my "get up and go, go, go" playlist and crank up the cobra starship. I sing along since this is seriously the best song in the entire world. And just to foreworn you; in my world every song on my IPod is the best song in the world.
"I came here to make you dance tonight; I don't care if I'm a guilty pleasure for you."
I skim through my closet deciding on my Skinny jeans and a pink and white rugby striped sweater. I look at my outfit in the mirror; it really needs something more; something sparkly. I reach for my black belt with the rhinestone buckle and put it over my sweater so that it just hits my hip. And as if by perfect timing or magic, "too cool" from camp rock comes on. Just as I turn around and look at my super fab outfit the chorus plays and I walk across the room to text Jacob back; keeping perfect time with the music of course.
"I'm too cool, too cool to know you. Don't take it personal, don't get emotional. You know it's the truth, I'm too cool for you."
I go to the bathroom and grab a brush and begin attacking my unruly hair with it. I straighten my hair just enough so that it's still wavy but not spiral curled. Then I spray it with some Fructics wave enhancing spray and brush it through watching my waves perfectly frame my face. I grab my vanilla brown sugar body splash and sprits on my wrist and behind my neck. I splash my face with water, pat it with a towel, and dab some concealer on. Then I dust my face with some translucent powder.
Perfect. I give a wink to the mirror, and rate myself as a 10. I dump my phone, IPod, and compact into my XOXO TJ max bag and head upstairs. I ravenously eat my breakfast and-"DING!"- Another message from Jacob!! He asked me what I was wearing! Awwww isn't he adorable? I sigh to myself as I text back my exact ensemble picture and all.
SHOOT! I look at the clock and grab my backpack and purse and run out the door in my black ballet flats.
It doesn't even hit me until I get on the bus that I forgot my jacket at the house. Whatevs, I can just borrow Jacob's. I love how I can say that with so much ease and that I know it's true.
When we finally arrive at school I find Jacob already waiting for me at my locker.
"You look cold Kels, you wanna borrow my jacket?"
HA! What did I tell you! But I can't let him know that I knew he'd give it to me, I have to act mysterious.
"Jakey, I think I'll be fine," I say with the most sincerity that my acting skills can provide.
"Baby," he argued as he touched my arm ever so gently, "you're freezing."
He slips off his jacket with the most grace I've ever seen and places it over my shoulders as I slip my arms into the sleeves. I smile up and look up at him as his 5'8 frame towers over my petite 5'3 height. I gaze up and look into those beautiful green eyes hidden by his gorgeous chestnut hair that's swooped across his face so that it barely grazes the tips of his eyelashes. He lets his hand slowly slide down my arm and twists his fingers into my hand, and he just stays there intertwined with me. I can't help but to blush. We ignore the jealous stares we get from the passing people in the halls and the shaking heads of teachers as he pulls me closer to him-"DING!"-the first bell rings.
Jacob giggles with his laugh that I can't help but to find sexy and kisses the top of my forehead.
"Be good," he tells me as he holds on to my hand loosely and gives me a wink. Before I know it he's in his Biology class and I'm left to power walk my way to the other side of the school to what I like to call "Dumb Science."
Chapter 2!
I can't help but to think of him the whole time in matter and energy. I try my hardest to focus on what my teacher's talking about. Something about gravitational potential energy, ah yes, I remember reading about this last night. Well now that I know that I honestly don't need to pay attention I won't.
See I may seem like the typical ditzy freshman, I'm really not. I'm really intellectual and it's just, well I hide the real me in a box. Then I paint the box pretty colors that the world seems to like and enjoy and duct tape it shut. The only people to see the real me all the time are Jacob (of course) and my best friend Rosalind (it's pronounce RAWZ-AH-LIND but it's Ozzie for short.). I do this because, I just want to fit in, and I'm really glad I can rely on these two people to keep the real me a secret. If people found out how smart and weird I was, I'd never be popular, and frankly I'm enjoying my high status in society right now.
I glance back at my "notes" which is really just a compilation of verses that I might use for songs later, Jacob's name surrounded by hearts, and a bunch of doodles. I love writing songs, but it seems the only songs that turn out good are the ones about Jacob and my love for him and how I never ever want to let him go.
"DING!"
Yes! Finally time for Spanish, a class I actually enjoy somewhat. I catch up to Ozzie in the hallway.
"OZZIE OZZIE OZZAYYYY, Na, Na, Na, Na, Na, na!" I exclaim at her. It's been our inside joke ever since The Kaiser Chief's song "Ruby" came out. It was just dying for Ozzie's name to be put into it, trust me.
"Kelsey, love, I saw you two lovebirds this morning. And BTW thanks for ignoring me," she says sarcastically.
"Sorry Oz," I say to her as we head to Spanish, "it's just when I'm around him, it's like we're the only two people on Earth."
"Okay, you've been reading too many romance novels or you saw that episode of Hannah Montana last night," she replied with a grin.
"Hannah Montana all the way!" I say as we both burst out into laughter and head into Spanish.
"BUENOS DIEZ CLASE!" exclaims Ms. Kornpoor. Okay, I love Ms. Kornpoor and everything but that voice, that voice, I don't even know how to describe it at all. It's like something out of a horror movie where the teacher has a really annoying voice. But I mean I've gotten used to it now so I don't really mind it that much, but still it's not something you really want to hear 2nd period.
Ozzie and me take our seats, which are side by side of course, and I pull out my Spanish binder. Ms. Kornpoor picks on yet another unfortunate soul to pass out today's agenda and then when that poor soul is finished passing out papers she will claim that they have done it wrong and will get scolded at. It's actually pretty hilarious to watch, but it's not so hilarious when you get picked to do so. As soon as we get the warm up we start working on it, see how much of kiss ups we are. Then as soon as she thinks the class as done with the warm up she starts talking, in that voice, oh lord.
"TODOS! REPEATE!" she says in that god awful voice of hers, "Me gusta bailar."
"Me gusta bailar," we reluctantly repeat.
"IDK how much more of this I can take Ozzie!" I write on a note and pass it to Ozzie.
OMG I know Kels! I might die by the end of the period!
NO!! oz don't do it!! You are NAWT going to leave me alone with ms. Kornpoor!!
Okay fine! I'll try not to die on you! U know ILY anyway! I'd never do that 2 U!! Plus Ur JAKEY bear wuld die w/o U!! JK JK
-GASP- you did not just hate on jakey and me!! Wait a minute... how do you know about my pet name for him?
I have my ways…-shifty eyes-
Do you know how weird you are?? JK JK ILY too!!
Oh lord when is this class OVER!?
Not for another like 20 minutes!! UGH!! Yeah but do u really want this class to be over?? Think about it then we have to go gym and play basketball…wait come to think about it. I'm actually kind of beast at basketball.
Sure…
Yeah I know Ur jealous of my mad skills…LOL!!
Okay, I hereby grant you all bragging rights…
HAHA! AH-GREED!!
YES!! 16 minutes baby!!
OMG!! HSM3!! 16, 16, 16 minutes left…
What're we gonna be? T-E-A-M TEAM!!
Oh, lord. You do know that that song is going to be eternally stuck in my head for the next like 5 days.
But if it's only going to be stuck in Ur head for 5 days…how is it eternally??
Okay, point!
-GASPERS- 5 minutes!! YES!!!!
YES!! Cinco minutes!! See those mad Spanish skills? LOL
I stash the note away in my binder and eagerly wait for the bell to ring. I try to attempt a Spanish worksheet she's given to us, and I breeze through it insane fast. Ozzie just stares at me and I can tell she's giving me her WTF look again like she always does when I get all nerdy. But I don't really cares, I know she doesn't mind. Just a few more seconds until the bell-"DING!"-
"YES! Sweet victory!" exclaims Ozzie.
"I KNOW!!!" I exclaim as Jacob comes barely comes into my sight,
"ohmygod…Ozzie, Oz!! He's walking towards us, omg he's almost here!!"
"Oh, good lord Kels, he's your boyfriend for heaven's sake."
"OMG!! Did you just see him?! He did the hair flip, you know he only does that around-oh Hi Jakey!"
I can't believe he's there. Him and his gorgeous self looking at me with those emerald eyes; I can feel my head spinning, and my temperature rising as he purses his lips as he's about to talk to me.
"Hey Kels," he says in his perfect velvety voice, "missed you."
"Missed you too Jake," I blurt out, embarrassed by my bright red face.
"Let me walk you to gym, I could really care less about being late," he tells me.
"Agreed, Jakey," I tell him as he takes my hand, "so have you seen the new panic at the disco vid?"
"NO WAY?!" he exclaims, "for what song?"
"Northern Downpour."
"You do know that's my favorite panic at the disco song off of "pretty. Odd."
"Yeah I know," I say while biting my lip.
Just as we're about to reach the locker room door he gently puts me up against the wall. He grabs my hand and kisses the top of my hair, and then my cheek, and then my lips. He lets his lips linger there just long enough for me to practically faint in his arms. When his kiss ends and he's still an inch away from me he whispers, "hey moon, please forget to fall down, hey moon don't you go down," which is the chorus from "Northern Downpour." He softly kisses my forehead as he says, "goodbye my love," he lets go of my hand and walks off to class.
"OW!!"
Did that ball seriously just hit me? I mean really? How many times am I going to get hit in this 45 minute block? Oh no, they are not about to pass to me, oh no, it's coming towards me…I put my hands out in an attempt to catch the basketball and I miraculously catch it.
What do I do next? Oh that's right. I dribble it for like 2 inches and then pass it to David; Adorable, Asian David, who's freakishly good at basketball. I'm so glad he's on my team, without him, we'd lose, no lie. I watch him dribble it up court. He passes it back to me. I pass it to Peinan who passes it to David. David makes the shot…but it doesn't go in. I fight for the rebound and…YES I've got it. I shoot…and YES!! I make it!
"Good Shot Kels," David says to me with a hint of a smile.
"Thanks," I say almost flirting back. The voices in my head remind me of Jacob and how I really need to stop flirting.
Our gym teacher, Mr. Lang, walks by and tells me, "You know, Kels, girl's basketball tryouts are in a couple weeks. I think you should really consider trying out."
"Really?" I say surprisingly, "I mean I can't be that good."
"I see a lot of potential in you," he says as he hands me the tryout information, "Why else would I stick you with David here?"
"Wow, thanks Mr. Lang," I say with the utmost sincerity and this time I do not need my acting skills to perform this action. I catch up with Bri just as she's about to head into the locker room.
"BREEEEEEE!!" I say to her.
"KEEEEEEELSSSSSSSS!!" she exclaims back, "I saw you get hit like 5 times today.
"Yeah I know, it takes some real skill in order to accomplish that, you'd be surprised Bri. And plus, Mr. Lang gave me tryout information for the girl's basketball team," I say as I wave the tryout information like a flag of victory.
"NO WAY!" she exclaims, "You on the basketball team??"
"Yeah, I mean I'm not sure about it. He said I had "potential," but I mean IDK," I modestly explain.
"WHAT?! Kels you need to do this, think about how much fun it would be. Plus, joining sports give you a great workout," she said.
"Okay, okay fine, I'll do it," I say with a slight smile.
We head out the locker room door only to find Jacob standing outside the door waiting for me.
"Jacob, did you cut class?" I ask him.
"No," he says, "I just faked sick to get out of French." He says this all with a slight grin as he gently takes my hand.
"Jake. You bad boy." I say to him with a wink. I can't help but to fall in love with bad boys, I guess it's just something I've picked up on from bad Chick Flicks. Plus, I know he's not really a bad boy, I mean it's not like he's doing drugs or anything.
"What's that?" he asks me, "Is that tryout information…for basketball?"
"Maybe," I say while playfully biting my lip, "Mr. Lang suggested I try out; apparently I have "potential."
"Have fun with all those tall people," he says to me as he chuckles.
"HEY1 I'm not that short!" I say to him as I playfully hit his arm.
"You're 5'3."
"Okay, point, but-"
"Just kidding baby, geez," he says with a smile and squeezes my hand a little tighter.
"I know," I say with a little giggle as I squeeze his hand back.
"Ready to kick it up in Algebra?"
"You know it!" I laughingly agree.
As we make our way to room 39, where we first met, the stares happen again. Maybe I should explain our current situation. Here's the thing; Jacob is everything: he's Mr. Popular, handsome, a football player, a poet, smart, an artist, and guitarist. He's just too good for me. Before we started going out I was, let's face it, a loser. I was a nobody and unpopular. But luckily I was the new girl who got into the magnet program and nobody knew anything about my loser past. Jacob apparently saw something in me that nobody else did back in middle school, and when he asked me out my self-confidence rose up tremendously. For once in my life I was popular, I was the envy of everybody. Together Jacob and me are "Jelsey"; everyone loves to hate us. I love this feeling, having tons of friends, never being home on the weekends, and being on top of the social ladder. But our relationship goes deeper beyond looks and popularity and all that. We understand each other, we know everything about one another; I know his secrets and he knows mine, he knows I'm not ditzy and I know he wants to go to Princeton; we're meant for each other. As corny as all of this sounds every single word of it is absolutely true.
Time flies incredibly during this class and before I know it the bell rings and we're off to lunch. Lunch is possibly the best thing ever invented. Our circle sits right in the middle of the hallway for everyone to see because nobody eats in the cafeteria. We sit in a circle with Jacob and me next to each other against the wall, which is the "head" of the circle. Bri sits on my left with Jacob on my right and Nathaniel on Jacob's right. Nathaniel has been Jacob's best friend since pre-K and they get along so well. Directly across from me is Kyle, the funny guy who's just so likeable. And in between is the rest of the populars; mainly a portion of the girl's soccer team, a few Asians, a few cheerleaders, and any guy with good hair and/or on the football team.
"Hey Kels," I look. It's that nerdy girl from orchestra who's ALWAYS asking me for advice. Ugh. What was her name again…oh yeah it's ummmm…it's Caitlin! That's it Caitlin.
"Caitlin," I say with an eye roll, "What do you want?"
"Well ummm…I was just wondering if you could help me with-"
"Whatever it is, go find someone else. A little busy right now in case you couldn't notice," I snap back at her.
She turns and walks away. Then I notice her outfit, Wal-Mart no doubt. Just as she's almost out of earshot but can obviously still hear me I tell her, "Oh and BTW Caitlin. Just because you're poor doesn't mean you have to make it that obvious. I mean look at me, do I not look clearance-rack chic?"
"SCOOORREE!!" yells Bri.
"I think you look like a million bucks, not clearance rack chic," Jacob whispers in my ear.
"Thanks sweetie," I whisper back. Then I see Caitlin about to burst into tears, "Oh come AWN! I'm just trying to help you not look so…so…cheap. Don't take it personal GAWD."
"Awww. That's so sweet," says ditzy cheerleader Amanda, "helping the poor; you should win the polster prize."
"I think you mean Pulitzer Amanda and that's for writing achievements, what I really think you mean is the Nobel Peace Prize." I explain to her. Ugh. Sometimes I miss hanging out with nerds. I mean really polster? How dumb can you get?
"Look, helping people again, how sweet?" Amanda says, "Thanks" she says all of this with a smile that's so sincere I can't help but to say, "you're welcome, Amanda," even though I'm insanely irritated. I can see it in Jacob's eyes too that he really wants to leave. He instantly grabs my hand as if he knew I were ultimately agreeing with me and tells me, "let's get out of here."
As we stand up I can see Bri shaking her head at me and all I can manage to protest is "Whatevs," because Jacob's spell over me is incredibly dizzying.
He squeezes my hand tighter as we come closer to our destination; the back of the school. I can tell he's excited with anticipation from his suddenly clammy hands. He quickens his pace a little having us jog to our usual section of the wall. But there's something different about today-he doesn't immediately start kissing me like he always does as soon as we get there. He's taking something out of his pocket.
"I wrote this for you in Bio today," he says as he hands me a piece of lined paper with writing on it. I immediately start to blush as my clammy hands open the folded paper up. I nearly faint as I read the words he written just for me in his loopy script that's reserved for me and his philosophy class:
"Let's Never Change"
As I'm sitting here,
My thoughts of her turn into fear.
I don't want her to change,
I want her to stay the same.
She's becoming somebody she's not,
I hope the real her isn't lost.
Maybe it's time for her to come out of that box,
Stop the pretending,
And all the conflicting messages she's been sending.
But I know she's not really gone,
I can see her in her new eyes,
That are today lined with brown eyeliner
And were yesterday lined with purple.
Her eyes still sparkle the same when she's with me,
The same way they did before she became "popular"
But I really, really shouldn't complain,
Because I've been hiding
Practically the same way.
Let's just hope that forever and ever we stay the same
And forever and ever we never change.
"What are you trying to say Jacob?" I ask him, "Do you really think I'm changing?"
"You don't act the same, you're acting kind of mean now to other people. I mean look what you did to poor Caitlin a few minutes ago, she almost started crying," he explains to me.
"Look I have to keep up the whole popular mean girl thing, now that I actually am somewhat," I rebuttal against him.
"Why?" he questions me, "why hide yourself? Who cares anymore? We're together and you shouldn't let other people judge you because of that. Nobody is telling you to act like that Kelsey except yourself."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, ever since you've become popular and my girlfriend you think you need to fully act out the role. Look, I know how good of an actress you are, and how you've got all those people fooled that you're just like them, ditzy and confident. But I hate it. You've even got me thinking that you're actually like that sometimes and I don't want you to be like that. I want you to be the same girl I girl I fell in love with the first day of school. What happened to the girl whose poems I found and loved? The girl who loved Hemmingway and Jane Austen? The girl who didn't think it was weird that I read Edger Allen Poe?"
"She's still here Jacob. She just can't adequately express herself without receiving multiple stares from anyone not in AP Lit. I've been a loser and a nobody my entire life up until now Jake. I really don't want to change; I don't know what's happening to me. But whatever it is I want it to stop, because now that I come to think about it, I am changing and I don't like it one bit. I still want you to be my "Mr. Darcy" Jake don't forget that."
"I know, I'm sorry for sort of going off on you like that," he said apologetically.
"No it's okay," I tell him and I really do mean it, "I know I've been acting like a jerk recently, and it's going to end. That I can promise you."
"You know what I can promise you?" he asks me with his crooked smile that he knows I love.
"What?" I flirtatiously ask him.
"That I will always love you," he tells me. I know he means it I can tell by his eyes and how they're bursting with honesty.
Chapter 3!
The rest of the day is practically a blur to me after that whole "I will always love you" remark. The words just kept repeating in my head for the last half of day. The time whizzed by in English… "I will always love you…I will always love you…" before I knew it those five words were on my "notes" and after about ten minutes I had practically written at least a ¼ of a song. I'd gotten most of the chorus down:
"What is going on tonight?
I ask you as I walk into the light
Walk into the light.
I don't ever want to say goodbye,
Not to you, not to you.
So let's not fight,
We're in love right?
No goodbyes,
Not tonight."
I know it's not very good; I mean come on I wrote it English class while Ms. Fig was discussing indefinite articles. I already learned all this stuff in Latin in like 7th and 8th grade; why are we doing this again? I swear if we read one more short story about immigrants or learn about more useless grammar I am going to die. I know I'm being a little mellow-dramatic but I can't help it; I'm a damn thespian for crying out loud.
I glance over at Kyle who looks like he's about to die any minute now too. Then Ms. Fig decides to talk about her boyfriend…again.
"You know, I'm always trying to tell my boyfriend this; it's actually kind of annoying but he never listens-" oh GOD, shut up! I mean do they have romantic candle light dinners about grammar or something? I mean really? If I were her boyfriend I would be hanging from the top of the staircase-oh wait I forgot-Paintsville high school doesn't have a second floor. So I would be stuck in her desolate land of grammar and "awkward phrases." Then this whole thought process of me thinking leads me to a Killers song that's off their B-sides album:
"And she says to me-Kill me now, kill me now, kill me now."
Suddenly I realize that she's giving out directions and that I should probably be paying attention, "now I'm going to let you pair up with someone nearby you to do these grammar exercise." Yes! I glance over at Kyle-I mean he's nearby…sort of…
"Partners?" I ask him.
"Haha, you know it!" he joyfully replied.
"Okay you do know that we're not actually doing work right?
"Well duh."
"IKR! That's a given."
"I swear if that women talks about her boyfriend one more-"
"Oh, hey guys!" Ms. Fig says with her way to fake smile, "how's the grammar going?"
"Oh just great Ms. Fig, I'm really starting to get the hang of it," I say to her somewhat sarcastically.
"Super guys! Keep up the good work!"
"Oh, good lord, that women is INSANE!" said Kyle.
"Tell me about it, the only good thing her boyfriend's done is told her to buy those caramel covered apple lollipops," I reply.
"Oh my god, yes!" he exclaims.
"Okay, so can you name three indefinite articles?" I sarcastically ask.
"Kiss. My-"
"DING!"
YES!! Onto sixth period orchestra…oh great now I have to face Caitlin, which I really, really do not want to do at all. Just as I'm on my way to the orchestra room I see Jacob in the hallway. He gives me a quick hug and hands me a note.
The 7 Things I love about you
The seven things I love about you:
You're red hair,
You're blue eyes,
As a pair they're too expensive even for Paris to buy.
You're laugh,
And that flirty smile that lets me know I've got you high,
High on my love.
You let me see you cry,
You never ever have to lie
Around me, no never around me
And the seventh thing I love the most that you do
You make me fall in love with you.
It's obviously a parody of Miley Cyrus's 7 things, but who cares? It's amazing and Miley would be so incredibly jealous. It takes me about two minutes after falling under his spell again to realize that there's a note at the end of it:
Yeah I know I stole it from Miley, but come on, you've got to admit I pretty much made it Pulitzer worthy. xD I wrote it in History I hope you like it. And I really hope you didn't get mad about the whole little fight thing we had today at lunch. I never want to leave you, you and you're beautiful blue eyes.
That note reassures me that he really does mean forever and that I'm so not good enough for him. And I agree he did pretty much make it Pulitzer worthy. And that last line, "you and you're beautiful blue eyes" I could change blue into green and so use it in another song about him-"DING!" Oh Shoot! I'm late to orchestra; I'm never late! I run to the music room and take my seat and find that nobody notices I'm late; either that or they just simply don't care. I go to my violin locker to retrieve my violin and go back to the very first chair of the very first row. I love being first in case you haven't noticed especially when it comes to violin. I pull my music folder out and set it on the stand and begin doing my scales.
"Hey Kelsey, ummm look, I was just…I just wanted to say I'm sorry for bothering you at lunch today," Caitlin says looking at the floor the whole time.
"Why are you sorry, I was the one being a jerk to you. No need to apologize; just don't talk to me in front of my 'friends,'" I say with award worthy air quotes.
"Oh…um okay Kels," she says.
"Let's start with 'Anvil Chorus' shall we," says Mr. Lopez, the orchestra director. I rummage through my folder to find the music I'm looking for. I've written various notes all over it as to where I'm supposed to lift my bow and phrasing notes. I lift up my violin and place my bow on the string and finger the very first note. I listen to the tempo and match it with my foot; I wait for his signal, and Bam! I'm off. The notes come out with such fluidity and make everyone else sound like mush. I play the 16th notes with such precision that took me over three hours to accomplish successfully yesterday. Finally we reach the easy part; the staccato section with the scale slurs. Oh no, fast again. I lose my fingering for about two measures but then I pick it back up again. I can hear the second violins behind me getting totally off tempo and it's really starting to bug me and make me go off. I try my hardest to stay on and I some how do. We almost reach the end, where we play the eighth note chord. BAM! I hit it! AH-MAZING if I do say so myself.
"Not bad you guys," he says, "But I could hear those seconds getting off towards the end. Listen to Kelsey; she was on beat the whole time."
I get stares from the girl who has second chair the senior who pretty much hates me for taking away her spotlight. I can't blame her though; if I lost first chair I'd be pretty upset too. I get stares from everybody but I could care less honestly. I know they're just jealous; jealous that I have everything they don't. I'm pretty, popular, smart, 1st chair, and the only jealousy I have is "Jelsey."
"Let's move onto 'Dance of the Tumblers,'" Mr. Lopez says.
I once again scramble for my music and take it out. This is my favorite song. I've played it at least four times but it is by far still the best piece of music I've ever played in orchestra. I listen for the tempo and me and the rest of the first-violins start off. I hit the slurs perfectly and so does that senior girl. I can tell she's getting mad at me and the fact that I'm playing the piece perfectly.
"CLANK!"
She kicks over my stand, and I know it's her too. Especially when I see her mouth the word "Oops" to me. But it doesn't matter, I have this piece memorized already and I continue to play until we reach the end of the piece. Once we're all done and my violin is in my lap I tell her with an eye roll, "Back off; no need to be jealous."
"Puh-lease," she says to me trying her best to imitate the confidence in my voice, "I am NAWT jealous of you."
"Really?" I reply to her, "so that's why you kicked my stand over a few minutes ago and why you're trying to copy the way I talk? That's PUH-THETIC even for a despie wannabe senior like you."
I can see the sadness in her eyes but I don't really care but I suppose I should say something and stop being a jerk to her, "Look, okay, just don't mess with me anymore. Back. Off."
We run through a few more songs and then I hear the bell. I immediately pack up my things and feel relieved that the class is finally over. I head out the door avoiding the jealous senior wannabe as much as possible and my eyes immediately divert to Jacob who's waiting for me right outside.
"Hey Kels," he says to me as he grabs my hand. My heart skips another beat and I can tell he's feeling something too by the way his palm suddenly gets clammy.
"Hey Jake," I say as I lace my fingers into his.
"So how was orchestra? Oh wow…that was a stupid question…I mean of course it went well…you're so good-" I cut him off.
"Jake," I say while putting a finger to his mouth to make him stop talking, "No need to get so nervous, I'm your girlfriend for heaven's sake."
"I know, it's just-I guess I just over think things too much sometimes," he said.
"Sometimes…?" I ask him with a sly smile.
"Okay well-"
"I was just joking," I reassure him with a light tap on his arm. And I know he knows I am when he kisses the top of my head and lets his lips linger there for a few extra seconds. And in those extra seconds I can feel my heart thumping and my face flushing; I feel as if I might pass out.
"We better get to class," he whispers to me.
"Yeah, we should I guess," I tell him emphasizing on a certain word.
"Look, I want to skip class with you, I really do, but I do not want to get you in trouble. You, missy, need to go into your history class and learn," he tells me with a smile. When we finally do reach room 44 he kisses me on the cheek and heads off to his English class which is coincidentally adjacent to my classroom right now.
I take my seat diagonally across from Kyle and adjacent to Gigi but behind Bri. I get out my afternoon classes binder which is the pink one with the pictures of me and Jacob from the photo booth at the mall attached to it.
"Hey guys!" I say.
"OMG. Kels. When can we take pictures for our photographic essay thing?" Kyle asks me.
"Umm IDK I'll get back-"
"Enough chit-chat Ms. Zhao. I don't want to have to move Kyle again," Mr. Turner says as he interrupts me. My face turns tomato red from embarrassment but I maintain my cool and shut my mouth. I can see Kyle out of the corner of my eye laughing at me.
"WTF Kyle! This is you're fault!" I whisper yell at him.
"Now, Ms. Zhao," Kyle imitates, "Do not make me move you to-"
"Okay, Kyle that's it. Move to the front of the class!" Mr. Turner says to Kyle.
"Look who's laughing now," I tell Kyle.
CHAPTER 4!
A few more weeks pass by and it's now just a couple of days until our 5 month anniversary. The crisp November air and faint wind make me think of pumpkins and everything else I love. I'm taking a stroll outside taking pictures of the leaves and foliage when my phone rings; it's Jacob. My heart skips a beat as my sweaty hands search my bag to retrieve me phone.
"Hello?"
"Where are you Kelsey? I need to talk to you," he says in a tone that really, really concerns me.
"On the path around the lake by my house. Why? Is something wrong Jacob?" I ask him with so much concern.
"Stay where you are, I'll meet you there," he says and then hangs up the phone without even saying goodbye.
My head thinks irrational thoughts while I wait there for him to come. Did I do something wrong? No, surely, I haven't done anything wrong. It must be a surprise early anniversary present; yes that's exactly what that is. I take pictures aimlessly as I anticipate for him to come meet me. I try hard on resetting the camera functions and to not worry about Jacob. Suddenly I hear someone coming and I know it's him. It must be; I can tell by the way the leaves crunch.
"Kelsey!" he says to me, "Thank god you're here."
"Jake," I look at him, he looks dirty; his hair isn't brushed, his clothes unkempt, then I notice the tear in his sleeve. He's bleeding, "Jake are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm okay. Do you mind if we sit on that bench over there?" he tells me as he gestures towards the bench. He shows practically no pain though I know it's there.
"Jake," I say as we both sit down on the bench, "You're not okay. Look at you, you're bleeding! Jake what happened to you?"
"It's a long story but here's how it goes. My dad and I got into a fight, I got angry at him and I left the house. I've actually been living out here all weekend. My shirt got snagged on the way here. It's nothing really," he says trying to assure me but I know there's something more going on.
"I know there's something more, but I know you won't tell me. That's fine, just know that I will always be there for you Jake no matter what," I tell him while putting my arm around him.
"I don't know what to do Kels," he tells me, "I don't want to go back to my dad but I have nowhere else to go." I know all about Jake's alcoholic father and it really makes me feel bad for him. He's been through so much and has practically seen it all. He's been abused both physically and mentally. I'm the only one outside his family to know that his bruises aren't really from football and I love that he knows he can trusts me that much.
"Well you can't live out here that's for sure. What were you thinking?" I say to him with extreme concern in my voice, "Jake, it's getting worse. Why don't you come home with me and I'll get it cleaned up for you."
"I don't want you to get in trouble Kels," he tells me, "I mean it's fine really."
"No it's not and plus my mom like loves you and she's not even home right now. Jake you need help; stop being so stubborn. Do you want to die or something?" I say as I grab his hand and start walking back to my house.
I listen to him protest about how he doesn't need my help and he finally shuts up only when I tell him to drop the whole "bad boy" act. When we finally reach my house I go to the kitchen and get out the first aid kit. I pull out some alcohol swabs and a big bandage.
"Jake, come here. Let me clean you up," I tell him as I watch him sit down on a table in the dining room.
"You're going to have to take your shirt off," I tell him with my face burning red from embarrassment.
"Oh, can you take it off? I don't want to get blood on it or anything," he tells me with a wink. Even when he's in pain he's still sexy. Ah-Mazing. I pull off his shirt and look at his chiseled Abs.
"It's going to sting a little," I tell him just as I'm about to wipe his cut with the alcohol.
"It's okay I can take it," he says. I wipe it over his cut watching him cringe and wince from the pain then I place the bandage over it.
"You feel better?" I ask him.
"Oh totally because bandages fix everything right?" he says sarcastically as he leans into to kiss me. After his lips part with mine he says, "Now I feel better."
"My mom's not going to be home for like 5 hours so I mean if you want to go take a shower or something…I'll stay upstairs…I mean, ummm just…" I tell him nervously.
"Thanks I'll go take one. You know what you can do though? You could try power washing my clothes," he tells me with a smile.
"Let me show you where the shower is," I tell him while grabbing his hand, "Take your shoes off I don't want you tracking dirt upstairs. My mom would freak."
I hand him a towel and watch him go in the bathroom. My bathroom. He hands me his clothes while cleverly using the door to cover him so that just his head peeks out and I head downstairs to the washroom. I put his clothes in the washer realizing a little too late that it's going to take at least 2 hours before they're dry. Oops. Then suddenly I start to panic when the shower stops. But when Jake comes downstairs he's practically fully clothed. Oh duh. That backpack of course; he must've had extra clothes with him. Wow I cannot believe I got so freaked out over that.
"I'm done," he says smiling at me. He looks so adorable with his hair wet and slightly wavy. I can smell the cleanliness of him even where I'm standing and he looks amazing. Dressed in the ripped jeans I love on him and a striped button down Hollister shirt only buttoned up halfway I nearly dropped dead when I saw him.
"Hey," and a flirty smile was all I could manage at the time since I was still stunned of how absolutely amazing he looked and how that absolutely amazing guy was looking back at me with the same flirty expression I was giving him.
"So what do you wanna do? I mean since we have to wait for my clothes to finish drying and stuff," he said.
"Ummm…I don't know. What do you want to do?" I ask him hoping he'll catch on. Suddenly pins me down on the couch and kisses me softly on my forehead, then my nose before he asks me, "So when's your mom coming back home again?"
"10 at night," I say with a giggle as I playfully kiss his lips.
"Good," he says to me with a huge smile as he lays me upright again, "I don't want to crush you like that."
"I really don't mind," I say to him. He grabs my hand as I rest my head on his chest. I feel his warmth through his unbuttoned shirt and it comforts me. I don't want him to leave; I want him to stay here with me forever. I want time to be frozen so that this moment of pure perfection lasts all eternity.
He kisses my hair as he whispers in my ear, "I love you; always and forever." Then he kisses my ear as I turn around to say, "I will always love you too. Even if the world were ending you'd still be the only thing on my mind." He looks right into my eyes and he knows how much I mean it. He realizes how much I love him and how strong the bond between us is. Then I sense the pain that's still bothering him from what's happened between him and his dad.
"Everything is going to be okay Jacob. I'll do anything to make sure that that's exactly how it turns out," I tell him with all hope that it'll stay true. He doesn't say anything but he rubs his hand up and down my arm.
"Let's go to your room. I think I'm in need of a little nap," he tells me as I grab his hand and lead him downstairs to my room. He picks me up and places me on the bed before lifting up the comforter and adjusting the pillows. I lay down in the middle of the bed and I watch him lay down next to me. He wraps his arm around me and pulls me closer. He kisses my forehead and then my lips.
"Goodnight, my love," he says to me before he closes his eyes. That's exactly how we stay. I love the warmth I get from him and the way he feels so strong like he could protect me from anything. It doesn't take me long before I end up joining him in his sleep.
CHAPTER 5!
"Kels," I hear Jake say to me, "Kelsey, sweetie, wake up."
"What?" I say half awake, "Jake what time is it?"
"Almost nine," he says, "I should probably get going now in case your mom comes home early."
"Go where Jake?" I ask him, "Not back in the woods I hope."
"Where else am I going to go Kels?" he says.
"Jake, I would rather…never mind."
"Rather what?"
"Nothing Jake; I just don't want you to get hurt that's all."
"You want me stay the night don't you? I want to Kels, but I don't want you to get in trouble."
"Jake you might as well, and come on my mom's not going to notice just hide in my closet or something if someone starts to come downstairs," I tell him hoping he'll agree with me, "My mom never comes downstairs anyway when I'm sleeping to come check up on me or anything. Trust me."
"Okay, but if you get in trouble this whole thing was your idea," he says to me with a smile. He goes picks me up out of the bed and carries me upstairs.
"Must you act like Prince Charming so much all the time?" I ask him sarcastically.
"Oh you know you love it," he tells me before giving me a light kiss.
"I do," I tell him as he lays me on the couch.
"Do you want anything to eat? I mean you haven't had dinner or anything yet," he said.
"Oh yeah. I guess I sort of forgot about eating. And now that you mention it I am pretty hungry," I tell him politely
"You want me to make you grilled cheese? I know it's your favorite," he said.
"Okay, just don't burn the house down. Wait do you want me to make you anything?" I ask him.
"No, it's fine I can just me a sandwich too, and don't you think that you're more likely to burn the house down?" he asks me jokingly.
"Okay true…but I mean…I'm still the iron chef of anything from the toaster or microwave," I tell him while I watch him get the cheese and bread out of the fridge.
"Okay Kels. If you say so," he says jokingly. He turns the stove on and about 10 minutes later he has dinner ready for the both of us. Yummy grilled cheese and plain lays all served on one plate of course.
"One plate, that's clever Jake," I tell him, "Oh and would you mind getting me a diet coke please?"
"Diet? Kels you do not need diet but whatever," he says as he grabs a diet out for me and another one for him. He sits down on the couch next to me and casually wraps his arm around me. I pick up my sandwich and eat the first half in less than a minute.
Just as I'm about to start the second half Jake says to me, "Geez, maybe you do need diet after all."
"Jake!" I say with a gasp jokingly, "that was extah-reem-lee rude!!"
"Kels! So not cool! I nearly spilled my chips," he says back to me jokingly, "Oh shoot! Kels, look at the time."
I look at the time and exclaim, "Oh shoot! Jake my mom's going to be home any minute! Ummm… okay go hide in my closet or something just…put your phone on vibrate and I'll text you when it's okay for you to come out."
"Okay, okay James Bond. I'll see you in 0:15 minutes or so," he says before giving me a light kiss and heading down stairs.
I sit on the couch, turn on the TV, and casually flip through the channels as I watch my mom open the door.
"Hey Kelsey. Why aren't your pajamas on?" she asks me suspiciously.
"Oh umm…I fell asleep on the couch earlier and I guess I lost track of time. Oh, look at that, it's almost 9:30. I guess I'll just head downstairs to my room then and change," I tell her hoping I don't give away the fact that I'm a little too eager to go downstairs.
"Okay then. Goodnight Kelsey," She tells me as I grab my phone and head downstairs to my room. I practically sprint down the stairs trying not to trip on my way down while texting Jake to tell him he can come out of his hiding place. I hear the door of my closet opening as I walk down the basement hall into my bedroom. I look at my bed and there's Jake lying there perfectly illuminated by the light of my Chinese lantern. I watch as his shadow on my pink walls mimic him as he gets up to greet me.
"Jake," I say smiling right at him as he gives me a hug.
"I can't believe you talked me into doing this," he says as he pulls away and kisses me with just a hint of tongue, "But I'm so glad you did."
I touch his chest lightly as I tell him, "Jake I need to get my jammies on. You didn't bring yours did you?"
"Well I don't really have any," he tells me as I grab my pajamas, "I mean, I usually just wear my boxers and whatever shirt I wore that day."
"Oh I mean, well if you don't…I mean like…ummm…-"
"No, Kels, it's totally okay. I thought you were going to be the one like all weird about it. I'm not weird about really."
"Kay," I say as I give him a light kiss, "Be back in a sec." I go the bathroom adjacent to my room and close the door. I slip everything off except my underwear and slip my silky hot pink empire waist nightdress from Victoria Secret that hits 2 inches above my knees almost. I brush my hair, reapply concealer and vanilla lip-gloss, and sprits my tiny bottle of Chanel no.5 on my wrist and dab some behind my knee and neck. I only use that perfume for special occasions and this was definitely a special occasion. I look at myself in the tiny mirror on the medicine cabinet, "Ah-mazing," I think to myself, "I have the hottest and best guy ever in my bedroom. How did this happen? Oh right because I'm Kelsey "Kick Butt" Zhao that's why." After my reassuring pep talk to myself I head out the bathroom door to find that Jacob already fixed the comforters and pillows and things for me; More importantly though he has his shirt off.
"Wow. Kels. Wow… I mean-" he tells me before I cut him off with a kiss and join him on the bed.
"Come on Jake, it's not like I'm a Victoria secret model. And please, you look ah-dorable yourself," I tell him.
"You're right you're not a Victoria secret model. You're 20 times better; not only are you extremely gorgeous you also have brains. And that is sexy to me," he tells me as he wraps his arms around me and pulls me closer to him. I gently kiss his lips and move even closer to him. I love his warmth and how, right now, everything was perfect. Just I and Jake side-by-side, just holding each other, thinking about how we loved one another, that's what made this moment perfect. I wanted to drift off forever and ever into this world of extreme bliss and happiness, but I didn't have to. With Jake I was always there and right now I never wanted to leave.
I rest my head on his shoulder as he runs his fingers through my hair, "Your hair is amazing just like you," he whispers in my ear to me. I can't help but to feel tempted to kiss him again and I do. Something is different about this kiss though, Jacob wasn't holding back. He gently pushed me down so that he was on top of me. He continued to kiss me, pushing into my mouth to suck and swirl on my tongue. My heart started to race as he kissed down my cheek and up my nose. His labored breath invaded my mouth and I could taste his arousal. I kissed him back and then softly bit his full bottom lip. It was my turn to feel his tongue against mine and to taste him. He pulled away as a soft groan escapes him. I whimper a bit as well. I don't want this moment to end. He kissed my nose before he said, "Baby, am I going too far?"
"Not far enough," I told him with a flirty smile. That's when I let go of everything and just kissed him. Our tongues played a dangerous game, fencing each other and sucking. His mouth moved away from mine. I moaned a little and that made him move down my throat with feather-light touches. I could feel his breath on my ear as he playfully bit it. "Do you like it when I do this?, he whispered. His mouth left scorching holes of pleasure in me. How could I not like it? I grab his face and bring it up to mine. I kissed him with no worries, no fear, and no inhibitions and it felt amazing. His mouth left a wet trail down my neck and shoulder. And when he touches me through the dress, I moan. His fingers twist my hardened nipple. I gasp as he chuckles. His hands slide up to my He took one of my dress straps and slid it down my shoulder as I moved my arm out of it. Then he did the same with the other one. His hands slowly moved down my chest, he grabbed the dress and pulled it off of me so that I laid there in his arms with nothing but my underwear on.
"Is this too far?" he asked me as he took his jeans off.
"No," I tell him.
"You look extremely gorgeous Kelsey," he says to me. I know he means it, you could see all the sincerity in his eyes and you could hear it in his voice.
"Just shut up and kiss me." I press my lips against his but this time I'm on top of him. He doesn't hold back. His fingers squeeze my nipples, twisting them under his exquisite touch. I moan loudly now. I can feel his caresses in my womb now. Each touch sending a streak of pleasure through me. His hands move from my chest to my back and down further until he reaches the elastic on my underwear and starts to pull it down. His hands stroke my ass. I shiver with expectancy. This is the farthest I've ever let him go and I'm excited. I don't mind it. I keep kissing him. He pulls them off completely and then gets back on top of me.I let his fingers explore my hips and my pelvis until his hands reach my mound. His fingers pet and stroke me until I'm shaking beneath him. I kiss him again.
"Jake, that's enough. I don't want to go too fast. I mean I don't want to have sex, well not tonight at least," I tell him. I was afraid it was going to keep going and eventually lead up to something that I wasn't ready to do.
"I knew I was pushing my luck there Kels. I'm sorry," he said.
"No, no it's okay. I mean, I'm glad you understand, it's just…ummm…"
He cuts me off with a kiss and then tells me, "Go to sleep Kels. It's a school night and frankly I think you've had too much excitement for your own good."
"I suppose you're right but you have to keep me warm," I tell him with a wink, "But I could've taken maybe a little more excitement." He gets off of me and puts his arms around me pulling my bare body towards him. He kisses my hair and tells me, "Goodnight." I drift off into sleep in his arms and I feel the happiest I've ever felt in my entire life.