A/N: Sorry this took so long, I've been totally swamped with my Summer Homework, and Swim just started.
Reid stalked out of the classroom angrily when the bell rang waiting out side the door for Brody to come out. Brody strutted out of the classroom looking cocky. Reid's fingerless glove covered hand shot towards him and grabbed him by the collar and yanked him towards him. He knocked Brody up against the wall.
"Listen pal, you ever lay so much as a finger on Ari again, I'll snap your wrist; and that'll be the punishment if I'm being nice." Reid said, his blue eyes blazing. Brody nodded a wide-eyed agreement before Reid let him scamper away like a puppy. Ari walked out adjusting the strap of her messenger bag and looking around for Reid who slung his arm over her shoulder as soon as she removed her hands from the strap.
She looked up at him her eyes shining as she looked up at him. Her eyes were almost as light and volatile as Vin Diesel's in the Chronicles of Riddick, Ari's were sharper, though with an edge of danger that Vin Diesel's milky, mercury-like eyes had never possessed. Reid didn't realize he was staring until Ari quirked an eyebrow at him, her light red lips quirking into a smirk at his focused features
"Reid , you might want to watch where you're going," she said playfully staring back at him. She could never fully understand how someone's eyes could be like Reid's, so many shades of blue, the edges faded into green. She realized she was staring, but Reid was too and that made her feel like they were on even ground. Reid gave her a genuine smile, unaware of the girls in the corridor's sighs and their meaningful glares at Ari. The pair couldn't help smiling at each other as they walked through the halls to their next classes, they weren't in their next class together, but the classes were right next to each other. Reid gave her a peck on the cheek; she was still glowing when she walked into her class. She took a seat between two old friends, Liam and Roger. She nodded at them, Liam saluted her like an old sergeant, Roger extended his fist for a pound, which she gladly did, knocking her knuckles against his. She sat silently, ignoring the stares boring into the back of her head, doodling in her notebook again, then a perfectly manicured hand smacked on the desk, she didn't respond, already knowing who it was
"Hey slut, you're in my desk, so you best get goin'" said the voice that belonged to the hand
"Hey Kira, still the same bitter, conceited, bitch who never gets any?" Ari stashed her notebook and looked at her "looks like!" she said cheerily, Liam and Roger snickered, taking glances at Kira's anger ridden face, it made her look even less attractive
"Listen Mermaid" Kira said using her favorite nickname for Ariel "just because you came back all whored up, you think you're some hot shit, well you aren't. you're still just that pathetic little tag along and that's all you'll ever be." Kira said smirking like she'd struck a nerve, Ari listened with a bemused expression, sending soothing looks to both Liam and Roger, whose tempers were rising. Ari got to her feet and glared Kira in the eyes, that in itself was enough to make just about anyone rethink messing with her, it was enough to make Kira take and involuntary step back
"Listen you walking Herpes incubator, if you really think I'll ever do what you say than you have no idea what kind of person I am. So I'd suggest you get steppin', before I decide to start stepping all over your pretty little plastic face." Ari was practically snarling by the time she finished. Kira had backed down considerably during her speech; at the end she just nodded and found a different seat. Ari was scary as hell when she got mad. Ari sat down happy she'd gotten her point across. Liam held up his hand for a high five
"I hate that stupid ho," he said when Ari slapped his hand, Ari grinned, Roger nodded approvingly. The teacher walked in as the bell rang and started to talk. Ari started dozing, using her arms for a pillow, the teacher glanced over at Ari's red head down on her desk, gave her a deliberate look,
"And what does Mercutio call his fatal injury, Ms. Draven?" He said looking over the top of his glasses, Ari mumble something indistinct into her arms
"Please speak up, Ms. Draven, so the whole class can hear your undoubtedly correct answer." He said sneering at Ari a bit. Roger stifled a laugh New teacher.
"A scratch, Mr. Stick-up-my-ass, Mercutio calls his fatal wound a scratch. However it seems an odd question because we're reading To Kill a Mockingbird aren't we. I was sure I heard you explaining about the cultural atmosphere of the 1930's before you tried to catch me sleeping, silly teacher, tricks like that are for smart people." Ari said angrily before she put her head back down. The whole class was stifling laughter, Liam raised his hand, the teacher nodded at him to speak
"Bro, word of advice, Ari is always listening" he said smiling a little bit, the techer hadn't taken a breath since Ari started talking and he was beginning to turn purple
"A weeks detention Ms. Draven" he finally stuttered out, Ari lifted her head
"Whoop-di -fuckin'- do" she said twirling her finger in the air
"That's morning detentions Ms. Draven" the teacher said trying to regain his footing, Ari just put her head back down, luckily the teacher had learned his lesson the first time.
#
-Friday Night-Ari rushed up to her room, whipping off her clothes at a prodigious speed. Down to just her bra and underwear she started looking for something more comfortable to wear. she pulled on a pair of fitted denim shorts, tossed her studded belt over them, and started rummaging around for a top when Reid walked in she turned and looked for a brief moment
"Hey, what's up?" she said still digging around for a shirt, Reid shrugged as he plopped on her bed easily
"Nothing much, no swim practice today so we're going to do something." Reid said definitively, Ari shrugged
"Sure, but what?" she said holding up a blue shirt then discarding it
"What was wrong with that one?" Reid said tossing a baseball up and down
"Eh, the tag rubs me weird. AHH! I can't find anything since Lucy took over my wardrobe!" Ari said getting more and more frustrated "Finally!" she said pulling out an black and red Good Charlotte t-shirt and yanking it on over her head "I'm ready!" she said turning to Reid, he looked her up and down quickly
"Ari you're not wearing any shoes" he said frankly
"Details, details, let's go!" she said making her way towards the door, grabbing her red X-hi Converse with the checkered laces "I'll put 'em on in the hallway, let's go!" she said waving Reid out the door
"So what are we going to do?" Reid said looking down at Ari's little frame
"Well…" Ari said hopping on one foot pulling her socks on "How about we…" she starting pulling on her right shoe, her face screwed up in concentration as she hopped along the hallway, she got her right shoe on but left the laces untied while she hopped to get the other one on. The lace from her right shoe got caught under her shoe making her promptly fall over into the wall
"Ow, I think I hit my head" she said rubbing her head but staying sitting against the wall to finish pulling on her shoe and tying her laces, the shoes went almost all the way up to her knees. "Help me up." She said reaching her arms up for Reid, he grinned down at her and reached his hands down grabbing her and pulling her to her feet, sending her crashing into him for the second time that day, "Reid I'm starting to suspect that you're doing that on purpose" Reid shrugged putting his arms around her, holding her to him, Ari started to blush, but that wasn't a huge accomplishment
"How's Katrina?" Ari said referencing Reid's last hook-up
"Fine, but she's not right for me" he said, his eyes never moving from Ari's
"I told you that before you screwed her," Ari said turning to the side and sliding her arm around Reid, while his settled around her shoulders holding her body close to his, "Just like with Christina, Melissa, Brittany, Nicole, need I go on?" She said looking up at him
"Why don't you date Rei?" Reid said using his favorite nickname for her
"You date enough for the both of us, I'm covered" she said easily
"Seriously Rei"
"I don't know Reid, I hardly have enough time for my friends with Swimming and Field Hockey and homework…" she trailed off, grabbing a hair tie from around her wrist and tying her hair up in a loose ponytail "Besides you, Caleb, Pogue, Tyler, Jude, and all my other guy friends would automatically hate who ever I dated anyways so why bother?"
"You should at least give dating a try, come one Rei there has to be someone out there; besides you'll have to date eventually, why not start now?" Reid said as they walked out of the building and to the parking lot, Ari walked over to the bike rack, unlocked her combination that held hers and Reid's bikes to the bike rack.
"Because, I don't want to remember my High School years as a bunch of heartbreak and wrong guys, besides why the rush, we're only 14 Reid, what's the goddamn rush?" she said pulling her bike out
"How do you know that you won't find the right guy? He could be right in front of you, what about Liam, or Roger, or Jason, or Peter, or Danny? Or one of your other billion guy friends like James, of Will?" Reid said getting onto his bike
"Christ Reid! What is your rush to get me dating?" Ari said sliding a leg over her bike.
"I just want you to be happy, Rei. Let's go see a movie"
"We can get Chinese after, what movie?" Ari said as they started off down the road
"How about Pineapple Express? That looked funny" Reid said as they started off towards the movie theater
"Sure," Ari said shrugging
"By the way, why did Lucy want change how you look?" Reid said curiously, it was uncharacteristic for Ari to give in about anything, Ari shrugged
"In her exact words, 'Ariel Draven I'm not going to stand for you going back to school looking like that, I want people to see the real you' she tried to get me to get a haircut too but that's where I drew the line. If Lucy wasn't like a sister to me I wouldn't have even accepted the new clothes."
"So when are Jude and her going to get married?"
"This summer, in Ireland, they're planning on living there too, I'll be a bridesmaid. You coming?" she said looking back, Reid shrugged
"You want me to?"
"Of course, you're my best friend I almost died not seeing you all summer" Ari said turning back after she rolled her eyes at him
"Rei, we talked on the phone literally everyday."
"It's not the same," Ari stated simply
"Are you really planning on going through High School without dating? 'Cuz that's fuckin' ridiculous Rei, even for you." Reid said staring at the back of Ari's head. Air pulled her bike into the bike rack outside of the movie theater
"Maybe, it's just I can't be you. I can't go out with a bunch of different guys and then just leave them because they're not right, when I get into a relationship, or even dating, I want to know that it's going to become something. Two for Pineapple Express please" Ari said turning to the guy behind the counter, "I mean doesn't it ever get you down that you get with all these girls and none of them are right?" she said paying the man turning back to Reid and handing him his ticket, Reid shrugged
"Yeah, but eventually one of them will be right and I'm going to keep looking for her, because she's out there somewhere, but for now I'm just going to look for love wherever I can find it. Two large popcorns, two large cherry-coke slurpees, a box of mild duds, a bag of watermelon Sour Patch, two packs of Now and Laters, and … Anything else Ari?" Reid said at the snack counter turning back to Ari
"You forget the pixie stixs"
"Oh yeah! And a pack of pixie stixs" Reid gathered up most of the food off the counter, letting Ari carry her popcorn and putting some of the candy in her pockets
"That was deep Reid; I understand what you mean. I hadn't really thought of it that way before. Who ever gets you will be a lucky girl; but for now I don't think I'll date. Another thing, anyone ends up with us is going to have to deal with the baggage. What if you were totally head over heals in love with someone" her voice lowered to a whisper as they walked into the theater "and you told them about our abilities, and they flipped and fell out of love with you" they settled into their seats, putting their feet up on the seats in front of them and settling down sll the candy and holding their buckets of popcorn close to them
"Is it even possible to fall out of love with someone?"
"Sure, look at the 50 divorce rate" Ari said her eyes fixed on the screen as the previews started
"Hey I almost forgot to ask, I heard your dad got a new bike"
"Yeah, it's a 2005 black Suzuki Boulevard, my dream bike, he says I'll inherit it when I get my motorcycle license, shh… the previews are starting"
#
Ari was still giggling when the lights came on, all the food was gone, they went to dump the empty containers in the trash bin.
"What now? I'm too full for Chinese." Ari said rubbing her junk food filled stomach
"Let's just bike back to the dorms, we'll figure it out when we get there" Reid said stretching
#
"What now?" Ari said flopping down in Reid's bed
"How about Battle Ship?" Reid said pulling the box out of his closet
"I love Battle Ship!" Ari said sitting up
"I know." Reid said setting up the game
#
"I'm tired." Reid said flopping down on his bed
"Me too." Ari agreed flopping down next to him
"You gunna stay the night?
"Of course, you still have some of my pjs here?"
"Of course" Reid said yanking open a bedside drawer and pulling out Soffe shorts and a wife beater, Ari rolled off of the bed to start changing, Reid had seen her in her underwear plenty of times. She pulled on the worn clothes easily, and then fell back on then bed. she rolled over in bed to look at Reid, who'd already changed into his sweatpants
"What're you thinking about?" Ari said staring at Reid
"Rei…why do we act like we do?"
"Us in particular or people in general?"
"Us in particular"
"What about the way we act?"
"We act like a couple, don't we?" Ari shifted uncomfortably
"Yeah, we do sometimes"
"Why is that?
"I guess it just always felt natural to me"
"Me too, why is that Rei?
A/N: Hopefully my next update will be sooner! Review, tell em what I'm doing right and wrong, etc.