New Chatracters:
None!
More Random Background Info:
Holly's, Jayden's, and Landon's birthday is December 3rd. They are currently fifteen, but will be turning sixteen in a few months.
Chapter Six
Jayden brushed his fingers across the page, sighing in boredom. He was reading a collection of Shakespeare plays for literature, and he was currently reading Romeo and Juliet. Though most students adored the story (none of the boys would ever admit it, but Jayden knew they enjoyed it as well), Jayden couldn't stand it. Romeo was a sap, Juliet was overdramatic, and the two fell in love, married, and died within a few days' time. It was quite melodramatic in Jayden's mind. As his fingers ran across the braille words, he wanted to scream. Would this story ever end?
Suddenly he heard the sound of an approaching bicycle rounding on the driveway. He lifted his head from his place at the table and turned toward Landon, who was busily working away on his overdue paper. "Holly's home," he announced.
"Great!" Landon replied, setting down his pencil. "I can't wait to see how tryouts went."
"You mean you want a break from your homework," Jayden accused with a sly grin.
Landon laughed. "Well, that too."
The brothers waited as the door clicked open. Jayden jumped as Holly slammed the door. Though she was in the other room, he could feel fury coming off her in waves. He felt Landon start in surprise as Holly stormed into the kitchen and threw her bags onto the table. She was uncharacteristically silent as she plopped herself into a chair across from her brothers and pulled out her math homework. Landon and Jayden sat in shock for a moment. When Holly was upset, she never hesitated from voicing her feelings. She wasn't afraid to chew you out if you got on her bad side. "Holly?" Landon pressed tenderly after a moment. "Is anything wrong?"
"Wrong?" Holly echoed in a shrill voice. "Of course not! What made you think anything was wrong?" Jayden raised his eyebrow.
"We don't keep secrets from each other," Jayden reminded her. "Just tell us what happened."
Holly's pencil continued to fly across her paper. "I told you," she said, her voice now cold, "Everything's fine."
Jayden sighed and closed his eyes, focusing on his sisters' mind. He pressed tenderly against the mental barriers she had enclosed around herself. He could feel a mixture of embarrassment, disappointment, and anger surging from within her. He was trying to find a string of memories when Holly snapped, "Stop poking around my head, Jayden! It freaks me out!"
"Only if you tell us what happened," countered Jayden. There was a silence cold as ice for a long moment. Jayden could feel Holly's frosty glare, but he didn't back down. He waited patiently, feeling his brother tense beside him.
Finally Holly said in a tight, controlled voice, "It's really not a big deal, you guys. There were just a couple of jerks at tryouts, that's all."
"What? Did some girls laugh at you?" Landon wondered, sounding skeptical. Holly wouldn't be this upset over that. She would be annoyed, yes, but she would look at it as an opportunity to prove them wrong; she always did.
"No," she snapped.
"Then what happened?" Landon demanded.
"On my way out, I caught a few guys peeping on all the girls while they practiced," she admitted, "and when I confronted them about it, they acted proud. Ugh! It's so sick! They took the time to spy on girls bouncing around in short, tight clothing. And they told me I should be flattered!" Her voice went up an octave. "Flattered! Flattered that a bunch of perverts wanted to goggle over my body like it was candy!"
"Who told you that?" Landon demanded furiously. Jayden knew Landon was itching to punch someone in the face; he could be overprotective sometimes.
Holly muttered, "Nobody. It was just some guy."
"Who?" Landon insisted venemously.
"Ben Lake," she mumbled.
"I'm gonna kill him!" exclaimed Landon, jumping up from his seat. "No one does that to my sister!"
"Landon, please-!"
"Who else was there?" Landon interrupted. "Tell me, Holly."
"I don't think I should-"
"Tell me." Landon's voice was cold and commanding.
Holly seemed to sense there was no way around it. "There were a few guys I didn't recognize from other neighborhoods. The only other boy from Thunder Woods was Matt," she admitted quietly. When she said his name, Jayden could feel her mentally wince.
"I'll kill him too," Landon vowed, slamming his fist down on the table.
"Landon, calm down!" Holly begged. "I shouldn't have said anything. It's really not a big deal."
Landon opened his mouth to argue when the doorbell rang.
"I'll get it," Holly offered immediately, sounding relieved.
As she walked away, Jayden put his hand on his brother's shoulder. "Sit down, Landon," he murmured calmly. "You've got to calm down."
"Don't tell me what to do!"
"You're making Holly feel worse," he insisted. He felt Landon hesitate. Landon knew that Jayden could sense others' emotions and thoughts. If anyone knew what Holly was feeling, Jayden did. Finally, Jayden heard Landon grudgingly take his seat.
"Go away!" Holly was suddenly exclaiming.
Landon jumped up again immediately. Jayden touched his brother's arm gently. "Let her fight her own battles," he advised. Landon muttered something angrily under his breath, but returned to his chair once more. Jayden listened intently to the conversation down the hall, and started in surprise when he realized who was there: Matt.
Holly strode down the hallway, happy to be away from the ferocious Landon. She opened the door without a second thought, only to realize she had celebrated the temporary break from the tension too early. A tall, brown-haired boy -Matt Lake- was standing there, mouth open, looking uncomfortable. Before he could bring a word from his mouth, Holly narrowed her eyes and slammed the door in his face.
"Holly, please!" he begged, his voice sounding muffled because of the barrier that the wall provided.
"Go away!" she cried, trembling.
"I'm here to apologize!" he insisted. "I feel terrible!"
"Too late," she spat. "Now leave me alone!"
She expected him to turn around right then and leave, but he surprised her by saying, "I'm not leaving until you talk to me." She peeped through the glass and spotted him settling down on the porch steps stubbornly. She sighed and leaned against the wall. The last thing Holly wanted was for this jerk to be sitting at her house all day. After a moment of consideration, she took a deep breath and slipped out onto the front porch, closing the door tenderly.
Holly folded her arms and glared down at Matt. "I'm here," she announced. He glanced up at her, looking surprised she surrendered so easily. "Now get talking before I change my mind."
Matt stood up and looked Holly right in the eye. "What I did was wrong," he began. "And I'm really sorry." His blue eyes were filled with distress. Holly wanted to snap back a sarcastic reply, but those eyes…something about those eyes. They took on a note of honesty. Holly knew right then that he meant it. He was sorry. She gazed at him thoughtfully, mulling over what she should do. The silence stretched.
Finally she murmured, "That hurt me, you know. I thought you were different. I thought you respected me for who I was." She could feel her blazing green eyes beginning to sting, but she refused to show any weakness.
Matt took a step towards her. "I know," he told her sadly, "and it kills me that I let you down."
Holly kept her arms crossed. "What are you going to do about it?" she inquired.
"Do about it?" he repeated, looking confused.
"Yes," Holly answered. "Did you really think that you could come apologize, we would hug, and you'd be forgiven just like that?"
"Well…yeah," Matt admitted.
"That's not how it works," Holly informed him, raising her eyebrow. "Trust isn't a gift, it's a reward. You have to earn it."
Matt was quiet for a moment, seeming to consider this. After a long minute, he looked up and took another step towards her. His blue eyes were soft and tender. "You're right. I'll make it up to you and earn your trust." He took a deep breath, looking suddenly very nervous. "I'm taking you to dinner."
Holly toyed with her jet black hair, biting her lip. "So you peep on me, destroy my confidence in you, and ruin my entire day," she began harshly. Matt winced, and she continued, "and now you're asking me on a date?" Matt nodded and stared at the ground. Holly felt a grin grow on her face. "I accept," she smiled. Matt looked up at her in shock.
"Really?" he demanded, looking astonished.
"Really," Holly grinned. Now it was her turn to move towards him. "Pick me up on Friday night, seven o'clock sharp. Be there on time." She kissed him quickly on the cheek and turned back towards the house.
"I won't let you down this time!" he called after her.
"I trust you," she replied simply, closing the door with a smile.
A/N: What did you guys think? Did Holly make the right choice is accepting the offer? And how do you think Landon will react?