A/N: Hey! I'm sorry that it's been over a year since I last updated, but in hope that I can kind of make it up to you guys, this chapter is the longest chapter I've ever written. It's mostly present-day Spinelli with only a couple flashbacks this time.

I wasn't even planning on updating this story, but for some odd reason, I had a spark of imagination, and I just ran with it. So we'll see how this ends up.

Anyway, thanks for reading my story, and don't forget to review… read on!

Chapter 6

I went on a run, which was unusual because I can definitely categorize myself under 'definitely not a runner, hook me up with some fried chicken instead'. I could run-slash-sprint short distances, but running for miles and miles was definitely not my thing. But nevertheless, I went on a run.

I'll admit, I didn't know where I was going when I started, but somehow, by getting lost in the music of my iPod, and by following the path that started at the edge of the entrance to my neighborhood, I ended up on the blacktop of Third Street Elementary School. Why?

It was a Friday night, and I assumed that all the teachers had left for the weekend, because everything seemed lifeless. I walked slowly across the blacktop, headed for the swings, trying to catch my breath. I was breathing so hard. God, I am so out of shape. I am not a runner, why am I doing this to myself? I picked a swing and sat on it, staring at the school and everything that had once meant the world to me, which wasn't much considering they had renovated it when my class was in eighth grade.

To start, Old Rusty was no more. Apparently it had been vandalized with 'crude language' or whatever, to the point where the administration couldn't fix it. I don't know if that's true or not, but that was what I was told. I was too busy dealing with my own problems at the time, and I couldn't have cared less about the old playground that I once loved. But now, looking at the brand new, completely different one that they had replaced Old Rusty with, it made me sick to my stomach. There was nothing for me to miss anymore. I had no connection with this 'New Rusty' or whatever they call it now; therefore, I have no memories- nothing to miss. It seemed like I had never went to Third Street, ever.

I turned around and faced away from the school and started swinging- I had nothing else better to do anyway. In the distance, I saw 5th Street Middle School and laughed about how awkward middle school was. I look back on those two years and mostly think, wow, I am so embarrassing. And I was a total jerk during that time to, especially to that one guy, Dan. I threw my head back on the forward swing and laughed about how stupid I was and about how all the drama a single boy caused me. Seventh grade ended up being a terrible year, just because of him alone. Don't get me wrong, I actually started to like him, but that just ended up making things worse. See, when I start to like someone, I freak out and don't know how to handle the situation, and I bet we can all see how a situation like that ends up…

"Oooh, cheese bread and marinara sauce, my favorite!" I said, moving slowly through the lunch line with Andrea. I have said it many times and I will say it again. Fifth Street's food is and always will be way better than Third Street's, it's as simple as that.

"Ehh, it's okay," Andrea replied, grabbing a tray for me and herself. "I always like the pizza days." I shrugged with a smile because it was true. Randomly, the lunch ladies would bring in boxes and boxes of pizza, not home-made but like, corporation-made and it was delicious. But I still loved cheese bread and its faithful marinara sauce.

We got on the subject of upcoming tests and how both of us are going to fail every one of them, when I heard my name softly coming from behind me. "Spinelli?"

I turned around to come face to face with Dan and an empty plate. Oh geez. "What?" I asked, a little harsher than I intended to be. Actually, I wasn't even mad at him, it was just awkward. What is he doing here? His plate is empty, does he want my food? No way, he can get his own. Why is he standing there? Gosh, this is awkward. A thousand thoughts like these were running around in my head when his shy voice interrupted me.

"Do you know if the pizza comes with fries?" He pointed to the crappy home-made pizza sitting under the heating lamp.

Eager to get out of this situation, I just nodded and said, "Yeah" (even though I really had no idea if you had to pay extra for the fries or not), and quickly turned back around to finish talking to Andrea. Whew, that was close. I don't know where he went after that, but after I got my tray of food and said goodbye to Andrea, I made my way to my own lunch table and plopped down right on the end.

I wanted to get the encounter with Dan out of my head, because I knew I acted like a jerk to him, but for some reason I couldn't control myself, and now I felt really bad. And now it looked like TJ had witnessed the whole thing. Fantastic.

"So how's the thing going between you and Dan?" TJ asked, as he shoved a forkful of rice in his mouth.

"What?" I gasped. "Nothing is going on between me and Dan," but I could feel my face start to get hot, and I didn't know why. I wasn't lying! I violently ripped a piece of bread and half and shoved it in my mouth. "Trust me."

Vince smirked. Oh, geez, did he see what happened too? But it was TJ who responded. "Don't act dumb, Spinelli. We saw you in the lunch line talking to him. Obviously something is going on." I don't know if it was my imagination or what, but his voice seemed a little tense. Or maybe it was just my hopeful longing of him to be jealous that his voice seem- Oh my gosh, what am I saying? I did not mean to say that. You know what? Just forget it. Oh my gosh…

I didn't know I was actually shaking my head in reality, until Gus piped up and said, "C'mon Spinelli, spill!" I glared at him across the table, and he sunk in his chair and stared at his plate that consisted of something with fries. I don't know.

"There's nothing to spill," I said angrily as I shoved the other half the bread into my mouth. "Just drop it."

TJ shook his head. "Not until you tell us what you two were talking about," and I rolled my eyes.

"He asked me if fries came with the pizza." I quickly glanced at the table across the cafeteria that Dan was sitting at, and noticed that he was staring at me. In the same half-second I turned back to face the gang. "It's no big deal."

"Well, what did you say?" Mikey joined in. He looked intrigued, that lummox.

Was this a trick question? "Um, I said yes..." I looked around at all the faces that were so interested in my awkward story.

"Did you hear that?" Mikey exclaimed. "She said yes!" TJ, Vince, and Gus started clapping and cheering. What is going on?

"What, why? Why is that such a big deal?" But before anyone could answer my question, Gus exclaimed, "I hear wedding bells!" WHAT?!

I stood up abruptly and threw down the piece of bread that was in my hand onto the plate. "WHAT?" I screeched, clearly upset. "It's not like I accepted a marriage proposal! I lied to him! I don't even know if the fries came with the pizza!" I could feel my face getting redder and hotter, and I was getting worked up.

"Don't you worry, my dearest Spinelli," Mikey said, creepily calm. "It's only a matter of time before-" I did not like where this was going.

"NO! STOP! AHHHHH!" I picked up my tray and pushed my chair in. "I hate all of you!" I didn't mean it, but I was so mad at the time.

"Spin, wait, where are you going?" TJ asked, grabbing my arm. It made me pause, but only for a second.

"No, don't touch me," I spat, yanking my arm from his grasp. "I am going far away from you guys, because… because… UGH!" I couldn't even get the words out. I marched up the stairs and left the cafeteria, not knowing where to go. Obviously I wasn't going to eat the bathroom. Only people with no friends ate in the bathroom, and well, I had friends. I just didn't want to sit with them at the moment.

Still hungry and only having five minutes left of lunch, I just plopped down right in the middle of the hallway and continued eating my cheese bread. The door that separated me from the cafeteria slowly opened and a sandy-blonde-haired boy peeked his head around. I closed my eyes. What now…

"Hey Spinelli, are you okay? I saw you run off and you looked upset, but I don't know…" Dan trailed off as he closed the door behind him, and stood by my tray and towered over me.

Will I ever be able to finish my lunch? I looked down at my tray, and nodded ever so slowly. "Yeah, I'm fine. My friends were just annoying me." I was wishing so hard that he would just go away because I didn't want to say something that I would regret. An eternity passed, and I thought I was in the clear when he spoke up again. "Then maybe you need new friends."

Who is this guy? I forced a laugh out, because surely he was joking. "It's not like I don't like my friends," I started. Dan tilted his head and I took a deep breath. "Everybody's friends annoy them every once in a while. It doesn't mean you drop them and search for new ones. Do that and you'll never know who your real friends are. See what I'm sayin'?"

Dan sat down across from me. Oh, goodness. "I see what you're saying, but this isn't the first time you've gotten mad at them and left them, am I right?"

I shoved the last of my cheese bread into my mouth and stood up, wiping my hands on my dress. "Look, you're probably a great guy, and that is great," I swallowed. "But you don't know me or my friends, so you have no reason to talk." I grabbed my tray and walked to the door.

"I just don't want to see you get hurt," Dan said, and I was starting to lose it.

I stared at him straight in the eye. "You don't know me at all. If you did know me, you'd know that I can take care of myself, and if you don't watch your step, I'm going to make you regret you ever gave me your number in the first place. Got it?" Ay, look at that. Spinelli's ruining another possible friendship. Old habits die hard, right?

Not waiting for a response, I turned and walked out the door back down to the lunch tables to dump my tray…

I jumped off the swing and headed towards the kickball field, kicking rocks as I passed over them. Seventh grade was also the year that I went the longest without getting a detention. That is, until Anna wanted me to fight her. That bleached-blonde princess who had a thing for Dan, found out, I guess, that he liked me and wanted to fight me. I assumed that she hadn't gotten the memo that I beat up kids for a living in elementary school, but she got the idea once I broke her perfect little nose and gave her a black eye. It awarded me my first detention of the year, but it was worth it in my eyes, because she never crossed my path again. I saw her a couple of times at the beginning of this school year in the hallways, but I heard she moved to 18th Street High School in November and was pregnant by January. It must've been an interesting winter break.

A ball was hiding behind the back board, so I went and rolled it out onto the dirt with my foot. I dribbled it like a soccer ball to the home plate and sat down on the base with the ball in my hands. And I just stared at it for the longest time.

Why did people have to grow up? Why couldn't we all stay little kids? I would much rather be running around during recess than getting ready for finals in two weeks.

My eyes were focused intently on the field in front of me, although, I don't know what I was hoping to see. My mind was going crazy and I kept seeing the old gang and I and Lawson and every other opponent we used to play, out on the diamond playing without a care in the world. We didn't know what the future consisted of. We only cared about the present. From this spot, I could see everything- the place where Old Rusty should've have been, but isn't any longer, the new playground, the swings, the basketball hoops, where the wall for wall-ball should've been (yeah, they got rid of that too), I could see it all.

My eyes landed on something that I never thought I would see again, and put the ball down beside the home plate. I walked over to the pile of tires and just smiled. That's all I did for a solid minute- smile. I circled the clubhouse, trying to remember how to get in, and I was about to give up when I finally found the entrance. I couldn't believe I was doing this. I got on my hands and knees and crawled through the tire hole, only a bit surprised that I could still fit. I hadn't grown much since sixth grade- I was still pretty tiny.

I dropped into what used to be the Ashley Clubhouse, and just sat there, taking it all in. It wasn't how I remembered it, but then again, this probably hasn't been used since it belonged to the Ashleys back in sixth grade. Everything that was once pink and decorated was gone except for a few lingering ribbons here and there. I looked up at the ceiling's tire and remembered how back in fourth grade I tried to scare the Ashleys with a rubber spider. I was such a kid.

Now, the only thing left from when I still went to school at Third Street in this clubhouse was the Ashley Rule Book that was hidden in the corner under some dirt and leaves. What is that doing here? Out of all the things that have been removed, why was that left behind? I picked up the book out of the puddle of water it was sitting in and tried to clear it of dirt, but it was obvious this thing hadn't been touched in years because the dirt was practically glued to it. I opened the book but all the pages were yellowed and falling out, probably due to the water. Laughing, I closed it and put it back where I found it. I had spent the last half of my elementary school life trying to figure out the Ashleys' secrets, but how important could they be if they left their book in the clubhouse? More importantly, why hadn't anyone found it after all these years? Aren't kids adventurous anymore?

After taking one last look around the former clubhouse, I climbed out and stood up on the grass and started to walk back to the swings. Man, things sure have changed.

"Sp- Spinelli?" A voice startled me so much, that I whipped my head around so hard to where I thought the voice was coming from, that my neck cracked. Ow. I didn't think anyone would be here I mean it's after hours, it's late. Who could it be- oh. Oh. I saw who the voice belonged to and I was too shocked for words. Well not necessarily scared-shocked, but more like 'what should I say because It's been a long time' kind of shocked. "What are you doing here?"

I looked at the boy who I thought I knew so well, but turned out to be so wrong about. I opened my mouth to reply, but I couldn't figure out the words to say without me sounding like a freak. And I couldn't tell him I went on a run, because he knew me too well to know that I went on a freaking run. I am no runner after all. He wouldn't believe me, or think I was psycho, or both. Instead I sat down on the swing and stared at my shoes. Minutes passed and he just stood there, so I sighed. "I went on a run and I ended up here. I dunno." I couldn't look at him in the eye.

He laughed with disbelief. "You went running?" He laughed again. I guess he thought my willing to get exercise was so hilarious. "I can't believe it! Since when have you started running?" He couldn't stop smiling as he sat down on the swing next to me. God, this was awkward.

"I'm not the same little kid anymore, TJ! I've grown up; I do different things now. You of all people can relate to that!" I regretted the words as soon as I said them, but they needed to be said. At least this way, the shot was indirect, and I wasn't sure he'd be able to pick up on what I referring to.

That shut him up for a solid two minutes, but he continued to stare at me and I felt his eyes burning a hole into the side of my head. (I turned back to my shoes after I faulted him) TJ sighed and started pumping his legs to get him airborne. "So what are you doing here, Spinelli?"

I looked around. "I'm just looking at how everything has changed. I thought seeing this place would make me feel better, but it only makes me feel worse." This was the most I've talked to him in years, and it felt… good? I don't know, but it wasn't terrible. It was almost like a piece of me was starting to reform again. But this time, I had to be careful. I turned to look at him, "What are you doing here?"

TJ shrugged and started to slow his swinging down until he came to a stop. "Same thing as you, I guess." He squinted his eyes. "It's weird! Everything looks the same… but different. Where's Old Rusty?"

"They got rid of it, remember? Too much vandalizing…" How could he have not heard about it?

"When?" Seriously, dude?

I dropped my head back and looked at the darkening sky. What time is it? How long have I been here? "I believe it was a couple weeks before eighth grade started."

"Oh…" I could hear the realization in his voice. I looked at him. "You don't remember, do you?" I asked.

"That was the year, wasn't it… the summer…" He was searching my face for answers, but I didn't want to give anything away. "…that's why I don't remember."

I closed my eyes and just said, "Yeah." I was getting tired, and it was getting late. I should probably start heading home soon. I probably wasn't going to run the whole way back. My level of exhaustion was ridiculously high. After a couple of minutes of sitting in silence, I stood up. "Listen, Teej, it was great talking to you again, but I've got to start heading home."

The smile came back. "You're gonna run home?" I nodded. "Are you sure you don't just want me to drive you home?" He jutted his thumb toward his car that was parked across the street. I gave a tiny shake of the head. "Oh c'mon Spin."

My heart jumped. TJ hadn't called me that since seventh grade- another result of having a weird first year of middle school. I really didn't want to ride with TJ in his car, but on the other hand, I didn't really feel like running home either. He was right- I was not cut out for running. I finally made a decision after having an internal battle in my head. "Fine," I stated, rolling my eyes, "you can take me home."

TJ gave a little half smile and pulled his car keys out of the pocket of his over-sized basketball shorts. He doesn't play, but he wears them all the time, along with a navy blue high school soccer sweatshirt from last season. I never bothered to watch him play soccer, but I heard he was pretty good. We walked to his car, and he went to open the passenger side door for me, but I didn't let him get too far.

"I got it." I knew he was trying to be a gentleman, but I just wasn't ready for that yet.

He looked kind of taken aback, but he just shrugged it off. He got in, I got in, and we started home. Could this get any more awkward? I was perfectly happy with not talking the whole way home, but TJ being TJ, he was sure to start up a conversation… and I was right.

"So…" He started. So… "…what have you been up to?" Why do you care?

I kept staring out the window, trying to focus on the trees flying past and not the fact that my mind was going to explode. I was dying to ask him one question, but I didn't know how he would react. "Nothing much," I said simply, watching an old lady walk her cat. "You?" Actually I have 'been up to' a lot recently, but nothing I'd like to share with him.

From my peripheral vision, I saw movement, so I assumed he was shaking his head. "Nothin' much," he said softly. The silence was deafening and hung in the air. I felt so uncomfortable.

And pissed off. Why couldn't I talk to him normally? What had broken us so terribly that we couldn't even talk to each other about what had been going on in our lives? More than that, why were we not a part of each other's lives?

I couldn't take it anymore, so I took a deep breath and turned to face him. "Do you remember that promise you made us say that one day in sixth grade?" I blurted. My question caught him so off guard that he swerved the car a little, but he got it straight again.

He nodded, but he didn't say anything. I had no idea what he was thinking about, so I just turned back towards the window. At least he remembers.

What seemed like ages later, TJ pulled onto my driveway and turned the car off. He still hadn't said anything, so I got out of the car and was about to slam the door shut, when he stopped me. "Spinelli, wait. I-"

I shook my head and forced a smile. "No, it's okay, TJ. I get it." I get that he was right all those years ago. What made me think that we could stay friends? My brothers? Right, because that ended so well. I went to shut the door, but he spoke again.

"No, Spin, you don't underst-"

I gave a little smile. "Bye, TJ. Thanks for ride." And I slammed the door, not hard, but with enough force to end the conversation. I walked into the house quickly because I didn't want him to see me cry. That would probably cause even more problems.

My parents weren't home; they went… somewhere. So as soon as I saw TJ leave my driveway, I let out a scream. I hadn't punched anything in a while. In fact, my violent tendencies had kinda let up over the years, but I felt like punching something. I searched for something I could let my anger out on, but the only thing I could hit and not get in trouble for by my parents was the couch. Oh, what the hey… I walked over the couch and just swung at it. My fist came in contact with the cushion and I felt my pain slowly leave by way of my fingers. It felt so good. I swung again… and again… and again. With each hit, a tear would drop down my face, but I quickly wiped it. Ugh, what was happening to me?

I sat down on the floor when punching the couch didn't feel like a solution anymore. Sure, I felt better, but you can only punch something for so long before you start to question your motives. I felt terrible.

DING. I fished my phone out of my pocket to see that I got a text from Mandy, asking if I wanted to go see The Quiet Ones. Thank God. Anything to get my mind off of TJ. I quickly typed a response and went up to my room to change into something that wasn't sweaty and smelling of BO.

I grabbed some sweatpants off the back of the chair at my desk and picked up the t-shirt that I was wearing before I went on my run. Don't worry, it was clean. I ditched my old style of the red dress, red and yellow striped leggings, boots, and my orange hat back in eighth grade. I even gave my brother's boots back to him, even though I knew they wouldn't fit him anymore. I just didn't want them. I didn't have my beloved orange hat either, and I didn't know where it was. I lost it a long time ago, and I never bothered to look for it.

My phone received another text from Mandy saying she was in the driveway, so I quickly ran a brush through my mid-back length, raven-black hair (I wear my hair down a lot now), put my tennis shoes back on and ran out to her car.

"Hey girl…" Mandy started, with too much enthusiasm I'd say.

"…hey," I finished, closing the door behind me. We always would do that when we saw each other. It was so embarrassing.

"Are you ready to see this? I heard it's so good!" She squealed as we drove down the street to the movie theatre.

But I wasn't really paying attention. "Yeah," I said absentmindedly, as we passed by TJ's house. No, I thought, and I looked away from the window.

I'm pretty sure Mandy kept talking for the whole drive, but about what? I don't know.

Soon, we were in our seats at the theatre- popcorn in our laps and our Icee's in our cup holders, but as the movie started, my mind could not focus on the screen. My mind was jumping from topic to topic until it landed on TJ, a thought that I came to this movie to get away from.

It was near the end of seventh grade when he started to change. Or, I started to change. I don't really know, but either way, I'm pretty sure it was the first major unfixable dent in our friendship. It went a little something like this…

My eyes were glued to the clock that was hanging on the wall in the third-hour Reading classroom. Three minutes. There were three minutes left until the class was over and I could go to lunch. I could hear my stomach growling, and I'm pretty sure the girl sitting next to me could hear it too, because she kept giving me weird looks. I responded with a fist held up, even though I wasn't going to hit her. Two minutes and thirty seconds.

I groaned. This, by far, was my longest period of the day because I hated Reading, absolutely hated it. The teacher was mean, and she was young, which meant she wasn't going to retire anytime soon. I also didn't like reading in general. You know, books? Sure, I liked reading on my own time, mainly comics, but I hated reading for those stupid, good-for-nothin' AR points. For every book we read we had to take a quiz over it and get points. We all needed a certain number of points by the end of the school year. The idea was terrible. One minute left.

Closing my eyes, I focused on myself running to the beginning of the lunch line, first to get my food for the day.

Br-Ringgggggggg. FINALLY! I jumped up, grabbed my folders and notebooks and rushed out the door. I needed to get to my locker to put my stuff in there before I went to lunch so I didn't have to lug it around. I reached my locker, and opened it up on the first try. I had no problem with my combo now. I was about to shut the door, when someone slammed it for me… I guess.

"Hey!" I blurted. The slammed door almost took one of my fingers. I turned to see who shut my locker and was about to chew him out, when I realized that person was Vince. Instead, I punched him in the shoulder. "What was that for?"

Vince shook his head and laughed. "C'mon, Spinelli, let's go to lunch," he said, not answering my question. I just squinted my eyes at him and followed him down the stairs to the lunch room.

So much for my plan to be first in line. The cafeteria was practically already full, and that meant I'd have to wait probably ten minutes to get my food. I looked at Vince and he shrugged. Vince was smart. Vince brought his lunch from home. I playfully shoved him toward the gang's table and went to go stand in line for the burgers. And I was right. About ten minutes later, I was out of the crowd with my burger and fries and headed over to the table where everyone was already eating. I was about to sit down when… there was no place for me to sit down. Huh? I looked around the table, and every chair was taken. That's weird. Our table is normally full, but only with me sitting at it. I tried to find who the odd person, who wasn't supposed to be there, was, and I found him… sitting next to TJ. They were laughing and talking about something, but the cafeteria was too loud for me to hear.

I caught Vince's eye and made a gesture with my shoulder (because I was holding my lunch tray) as if to say 'who is this guy? And where am I supposed to sit?' Vince nudged TJ with his shoulder and once he got his attention, nodded at me… who was awkwardly standing there with no place to go. Like, hello?

TJ looked around as if a chair would just magically appear that I could sit in, but after a couple head spins, he turned back to me. I rolled my eyes. It's a full cafeteria, of course there wasn't going to be an empty chair sitting randomly at a table next to us. He was just wasting time. "Sorry, Spinelli, but I have to talk to Derek about some stuff. It's just for today." He gave me a sympathetic smile and turned back to 'Derek' or whatever his name was.

"Yeah, sure, whatever." I turned around. So what now? What was I supposed to do? I was standing in the middle of the lunch room, by myself, with a full tray and nowhere to sit. For some unknown reason, I turned to face Andrea's table. I didn't expect to find an empty seat there, but she was my only other friend that I was even the slightest bit comfortable sitting with. I quickly scanned my eyes across the chairs… and yes! There was an empty seat next to Andrea. I casually made my way over to her table and when I got close enough, I said, "Hey, Andrea, can I sit here?" Please say yes, please say yes…

Andrea looked up from her chicken with a smile on her face. "Sure, Spinelli! Have a seat." She patted the spot at the table next to her, and I sat down graciously.

"Thank you so much." I quickly started eating because I couldn't waste any more time.

"No problem," she replied, in between bites. "You can sit with us whenever you want."

"That's okay. It's only for today." I looked down at my half-eaten burger, just wanting this day to be over.

So the day went on, and I even made a couple more friends at that lunch table, but it didn't matter to me. I had my own friends at my own lunch table. I didn't need anyone else.

Alright, so the next day. Lunchtime again. I wasn't as late as I was yesterday, so I was near the front of the line. But most of the gang brings their lunch from home, so I had no one to stand in the line with. I finally made it to the end with my tray of food and headed towards my table.

And I could not believe my eyes. I walked up to TJ. "Um, excuse me? I thought you said 'just for today'? Well, that day was yesterday, so what's your excuse for today, Teej?"

TJ just shrugged his shoulders. "Sorry, Spinelli. Just one more day, I promise."

"Yeah, well… that's what you said yesterday." I looked at the other members of the gang sitting at the table, but they all wouldn't look at me. Apparently their food really interested them. As I turned to walk away, I heard Derek laugh behind me and TJ join in a couple seconds later. Jerks.

I wandered over to Andrea's table and hesitated by the chair for a couple seconds before I sat down. "Um, hey."

Andrea looked surprised to see me, and I knew why. "I thought you said you were going back to your table today?" She took a bite of her salad and looked at me with big eyes.

I sighed. "Yeah, so did I."

The rest of the week was pretty similar. It got to the point that if I saw Derek sitting in my spot, I would just spare them their excuses and go straight to Andrea's table. I always felt bad, but with each day it got easier. Now, I had a decision to make.

Our school has 'assigned' lunch tables which mean that after the first week of every quarter, we have to stay at the table we picked and write our names down. This week was the 'free' week, so I got to sit wherever I wanted, but starting Monday, I had to pick a table and stay at it. So, the gang's table… or Andrea's table?

I thought about it the whole weekend, but I was torn. Although, I knew deep down that if TJ, Vince, Gus, and Mikey still wanted me at their table, they would've let me sit there. Monday morning classes went by in a blur. Which table?

The bell rang for lunch and I walked slowly out of the classroom, still trying to wrap my head around the decision. I just have to do it. I just have to walk in there and DO it. I skipped down the stairs and spotted the table I was going to sit at. I took a deep breath and walked straight up to my chair and sat down. "Hey guys."

Andrea squealed. "You're gonna sit with us? Yay, this is going to be so much fun!" She threw her arms around me and hugged me. Ew, get off of me, get off me. I am not a hugger.. ahhh! I mentally screamed. She released me with a huge smile on her face and handed me the piece of paper and pen that I had to sign with. I carefully wrote out 'Spinelli', well, this is it.

I nonchalantly glanced over at TJ's table in search for Derek, but he was nowhere to be found. Instead, I got an angry-slash-confused look from TJ himself. I just shrugged at him and got up to go get my food. Even though it was only 10:55 in the morning, I was starving.

I was almost through the line and so close to getting my food, when TJ grabbed my arm. "Hey, Spin, can I talk to you for a minute?"

Glaring in his general direction while trying to load my tray with the fatty stuff, I said, "I thought you brought your lunch."

"I did, but I really need to talk to you."

"TJ, I don't wanna hear it. Sit with Derek, I don't care. I've got a new table now." I thanked the lunch lady for my food and went to pay for it.

But TJ wouldn't let me pass. "It was just for that week, Spinelli! You can come sit with us again!" Well…

I just stared at him for a couple seconds, but then I rolled my eyes. "That's great and all, Teej, but I don't want to be friends with people who ditch me for other guys." As soon as I walked away, I heard and realized what I had just said. Oh, no.

Remembering what Dan had told me months before, I shook my head. No. What? Could Dan be partially right, if not all right? No, it was just a little fight. I'll get over it. TJ will get over it. We're still friends… right? NO, I don't need new friends. But as I looked at my new spot at Andrea's table, I wondered if I had already done what I told Dan I didn't need to do. New friends…

The screams of people in the theatre pulled me back to reality, and I wondered how much of the movie had passed. I looked over at Mandy, and she was covering her face with her hands, but I didn't find scary movies all that terrifying.

About ten minutes later, the movie ended, and as we were throwing away our empty popcorn bags and cups, Mandy kept saying how scary it was. I couldn't really give my input on the matter because I was thinking about other things about ninety-five percent of the time. I just kept nodding and saying "yeah".

The car was quiet all the way home. I think Mandy knew something was wrong, but she didn't ask or say anything about it. This time, I was careful not to look at TJ's house as we passed it, and when we reached my driveway, I thanked her, told her I had fun, got out and shut the door. I watched her drive away and crept quietly in the house. It was midnight and surely my parents were asleep. The whole house was dark.

I tiptoed up the stairs to my bedroom and quietly pulled the door behind me before I turned on the lights. Lights on, I started getting ready for bed, when I noticed that my window was slightly ajar. What. I walked over to pull the window closed, when I saw something on my bed.

My breath caught in my throat, but a tiny little gasp escaped my lips. There, sitting on my bed, was my orange ski cap that I had lost long ago.

And just nestled on top of the hat… was a note from TJ.

Well, there's chapter six. I hope you like it! I've been really busy with AP testing and whatnot, so I'm kinda surprised that I wrote this in three days.

Don't forget to review and tell me what you think! I'd really appreciate it… THANKS!

-ecStarz