Chapter 2

Later that night the two girls were at Emma's getting ready to go to the ravine. Manny had changed at least three times. She didn't understand why she was so nervous. After all it was only Jay.

Yea ONLY Jay. Only the guy you haven't been able to stop thinking about for almost a year, she thought to herself before shaking that thought off. That didn't matter. Jay had a girlfriend and she had already been down that route once. She'd never make that mistake again.

She looked into the mirror and put the last touches on her lip gloss. If it doesn't matter why are you getting all dressed up? That little voice in her head really needed to be quiet.

She put the cap back on the lip gloss and turned to see Emma still sitting there on her bed. "Em what are you doing? We have to get going if we want to meet them." she told her.

"I don't want to go Manny. You go ahead and tell Sean I wasn't feeling good or something." she told Manny flipping through a magazine.

Manny rolled her eyes. "So you can sleep with the guy but not hang out around him? Come on Em. It'll be fun and you could use so of that. Besides it'll give you a chance to talk to Sean without Ellie around."

"Manny please." Manny shook her head and pulled her up off the bed.

"No we are going to the ravine and we are going to have a good time." Manny told her going over to her closet and picking out something for her to wear. "Now go get dressed." she said shooing her into the bathroom.

She sat down on Emma's bed and sighed not knowing what tonight would bring but wanting to prepare herself.

"Why did you have to invite them?" Sean asked Jay as they were getting the bon fire started for the night.

Jay shrugged not wanting to tell him his reasoning. "Why are you complaining? Aren't you wanting to be with Greenpiece?" he asked him raising an eyebrow.

"I'm with Ellie. Besides she turned me down remember." Sean told him sadly.

Jay shook his head. "Whatever man. Just make up your mind. Meanwhile I'll be off with Ms. Santos." he said smirking.

Sean looked over at him. "Watch what you do with her man." he warned him. "The last guy she was with screwed her over so whatever you want with her take it easy." he said before going over to the cooler to get something to drink.

Jay put another log on the fire as what Sean said played back in his mind. His normal tricks wouldn't work on Manny. Besides, he thought, she deserves better than someone like that. She deserves someone that'll treat her right.

He laughed the thought away. Jay Hogart never thought that way about anything. Besides this was just another girl, just another notch in his belt, just another stain in the carpet in the broken down van.

Jay nodded to himself before going over to grab a beer before the girls showed up.

A couple drinks later the two boys were over by the bon fire talking and joking around when Jay looked up and his breath left his body.

Walking into the woods was the object of his lust and affection. He had seen her last year as she went from the innocent little girl into the beautiful woman she was now but never had she looked better than she did in that moment.

"Hey guys." she said as he regained his composure.

"Hey." the blond next to her whispered looking at Sean next to him. Jay rolled his eyes at her slightly before grinning and wrapped an arm around Manny's shoulders like he had earlier in the caf.

"So could I get you two gorgeous ladies something to drink?" he asked. Manny nodded slightly and Emma reluctantly agreed. "You want to come with me?" he asked Manny and she followed him over to the cooler by his car.

"Is this what you do every night?" she asked sitting on the hood of the orange civic as he grabbed a bottle of beer for himself and a couple sodas for the girls.

Jay shrugged. "Most nights. Don't really have anything better to do." he said popping the top off of his beer. "Besides don't you do this every night?"

Manny looked out at the fire and shook her head. "I used to but some stuff happened and I haven't really been in the mood to party for a while."

"Why'd you come tonight then?" he asked her taking a drink.

"You invited me." she said smiling slightly at him and he felt his heart skip a beat. "Besides might do some good to get away from everything for a little while." she said looking back over to where they had left their friends. She watched as they kissed and was about to interrupt when Jay stopped her.

"They're happy right now, Santos. Don't mess that up for them." he told her before smirking. "Besides it gives us a little more time to get to know each other better." he said looking her over.

Manny chuckled slightly and leaned up to whisper in his ear. "In your dreams Hogart." she said her breath blowing slightly in his ear before walking off.

Jay groaned before adjusting himself before gearing up to go play nice with the two girls. Maybe if he was lucky it wouldn't be just his dreams that were interrupted that night.

TBC...