Dedicated to Charles for wanting to be a character in this story:) Thanks, dude, you're the best:)
"Why do I have to do this?" Massie whined.
"Be-cuhz!" Antonette answered.
"Smooth answer," Kristen grumbled.
Claire grinned appreciatively. "Why does she have to do this?" she asked. The seven teens—Antonette, Derrick, Josh, Claire, Cam and Massie—were in Starbucks where Antonette had instructed Cam to drive them. Antonette, Massie, Claire and Kristen were near the restrooms. Derrick, Josh and Cam were near the entrance door.
"I still don't get it," Derrick grunted in anger. He didn't want to be in Starbucks, let alone be in Starbucks with all these people. Right now, all he wanted to do was hold Massie in his arms forever…
"Dude. Dude," Josh interrupted.
Derrick shot him an aggravated scowl which Josh returned. "What?" he hissed.
Josh rolled his eyes. "Nothing, you just looked like you smelled Massie's hair."
"What?" Derrick said, his voice two octaves higher.
"What?" Cam asked, slipping himself between the two boys.
"Nothing," Derrick muttered.
Josh narrowed his eyes slightly and dropped his head. "No, it's not nothing," he practically growled.
Derrick ignored him, but Cam couldn't help but ask what was wrong.
"It's just the fact that Derrick here still loves Massie," Josh pointedly said.
Cam just nodded. "I'd be more surprised to hear him not be in love with her."
Derrick sighed. "I'm not in love with her, okay?" he whispered.
Josh and Cam skeptically stared at Derrick and then turned to each other. "Ninety bucks says they end up together," Cam and Josh simultaneously said.
"Hey, I said it first!"
"No, I did!"
They glared at each other menacingly until Claire came bouncing over.
"Wow, I only thought that happened in movies," she jabbed.
"Apparently, Josh and Cam are a movie," Derrick said.
Claire giggled. Oh, my gosh, Claire. Stay cool. He's actually talking to you.
Cam stared at Claire. No one knew that he liked Claire, maybe even loved. He's kept this a secret when he first met Claire in the seventh grade, back when Derrick had moved.
But obviously, she had taken a liking towards Derrick, he thought. He bit his bottom lip and looked away.
"So…" Claire said, trying to start off a conversation. "Is Minnesota cool?"
Derrick was staring at Massie who was chuckling about something with Kirsten and Antonette.
Without thinking, Claire reached out and poked his ribs. He looked her way, a wary smile on his face. "Huh?"
"I asked you if Minnesota was cool," Claire repeated.
"Oh, yeah, that place. Yeah, I guess so."
Claire nodded. "I've heard that it gets really cold there. Did it remind you a lot of Westchester?"
"Yeah, I guess so."
"Wish you could've gone to a warmer place, then?"
"Yeah, I guess so." Massie flipped her hair.
"Derrick, are you okay?"
"Yeah, I guess so." Massie looked behind her and smiled at Derrick.
His eyes widened and he looked away. Away to Claire's frozen face. Her navy blue eyes were lighter and her lips were parted. She broke out into a grin and hugged Derrick. "I know just what we can do," she murmured.
Derrick, still in a trance, stared at Massie's face: eyebrows slightly knit together, lips pursed, hurt in her eyes. But the weirdest thing—he felt it. He felt what she felt; betrayal, concern, awkwardness… Hurt… Love.
Massie swallowed and turned away. Why was Claire hugging Derrick? Wait a minute, why do I even care? Ugh, where's Chris? Oh, wait, no, I can't think about him either. Ugh. La, la, la, la, la! Massie bobbed her head to the light tune and smiled.
Next to her, Kristen was seething with anger. Why did Claire hug Derrick? What is up with her? How could she betray me? She knows that I like him! What the hell!
"I need to go and do something," she muttered. She turned away and speed-walked to Derrick.
"Okay, so all you have to do is get a guy's phone number," Antonette said.
Massie's jaw dropped slightly. "But why?" she whined.
"Because I said so. And you need to see your true potential. Chris isn't the only guy on earth."
Massie's heart cracked at the mention of Chris's name. Chris is such a jerk. Why bother crying over him? We're so over.
Massie inhaled. "Fine. I'll do it."
Antonette smiled. "Good. Cute guys at three o'clock."
Massie turned around. Sure enough, three guys were at a table. Unfortunately, two of them had girls giving them numbers. Once the two slutty girls left, the two of them walked out, too. Massie sighed. "What's the chance that I get him?"
Antonette peered at the singly guys at the table. "Ooh, I like that guy. Go get him, kid."
"Do you even know him?"
"No, do you?"
"I don't know… He looks familiar, though. So you don't know him, right?"
"No… but he's cute."
"Ish?"
"Ish," Antonette agreed.
Massie sighed. "Whatever. Just his number, though, right?"
"Yeah. But don't you think he's gonna want to go out with you, too?"
"Yeah, maybe…"
"This is really stupid. Just go to him, okay?" Massie rolled her eyes. Inching forward, she gulped. I can do this, I can do this. All I have to do it walk forward, flirt a little. Nothing too big. Just walk.
"What is she doing?" Derrick asked Kristen. The five teen situated themselves on table nine, five tables away from where Massie was standing. Cam sat next to Josh who sat next to Claire who sat next to Kristen who sat next to Derrick. Kristen and Claire followed Derrick's gaze.
Massie was sitting across a guy with jet black hair and blue-gray eyes. They were both laughing, both looking like they were having a good time.
Kristen raised her eyebrows. "I'm not surprised. Massie always has guys hitting on her. She's a freaking guy magnet."
"Don't be so mean. She doesn't get all guys," Claire noted. She didn't get Derrick.
Kristen scoffed, "Yeah, she kind of does. Remember Connor Dale?"
This sparked Derrick's interest. "Who's that?"
"Connor Dale is—was—the hottest junior at Briarwood."
"Was?"
"Yeah, was. That's 'cause you came along," Claire flirted. Hey, I could get used to this.
Derrick emptily stared at Claire, whose cheeks were now burning. I can't get used to that, though. Kristen rolled her eyes. Cam's nostrils flared and he gripped the edge of the round table until his knuckles turned white. "He's a senior now, right?" Josh asked.
Kristen smiled at Josh. "Yeah, he is." Josh smiled back. He was able to catch her eye for a while, until she turned back to Derrick. Josh gritted his teeth together. "Well, moving on, Allie-Rose Singer used to be Massie's friend," Kristen continued.
"Yeah, we were all pretty close, too," Claire added, just to make sure Derrick knew she was social.
"And then Massie met Connor."
"More like Connor saw Massie and fell instantly in love with her," Claire teased.
Kristen chuckled. "Whatever. Anyway, Connor met Massie at the Halloween dance. They hit it off pretty well and even secretly dated."
"Yep, she's scandalous," Josh muttered.
Derrick kicked him from under the table. He flinched but continued to listen.
"Anyway, Connor and Massie really liked each other, but Allie-Rose told us that she liked Connor."
"And then?"
"Massie broke it off with Connor, even though she really liked him."
"And then?" Derrick pressed.
"And then Allie-Rose tried to date him but all he wanted to do was see Massie," Cam continued. Kristen and Claire looked at him.
"How do you know that?" Claire inquired.
"Harris."
Kristen's eyes widened. "Harris is your older brother?"
Cam nodded, duh written all over his face.
"Okay, back to Massie," Derrick demanded.
"You guys are talking about Massie behind her back?" Antonette asked. She pulled a chair from the next table and sat next to Derrick.
"No. Just talking about her past love life," Derrick hurriedly said. "What did Connor do next?"
Kristen gulped. Should I talk about Massie with Antonette here? Can we trust her?
"You can trust me. Massie and I are friends now," Antonette said, as if she read Kristen's mind.
"Whatever," she sighed.
"Can you please tell me about Connor?" Derrick begged.
Cam rolled his eyes and elbowed Josh lightly. He looked his way and shrugged just enough so that only Cam could see it.
"Derrick, why do you even need to know?" Claire asked.
Antonette pulled out her customized pink-with-purple-crystals iPhone. She had a new text message from Charles, her gay best friend.
Charles:
Hey, chicka! I'm w/ Justin. Where can we meet u?
Antonette smiled at the message. Charles always knew how to make Antonette laugh, and right now, she needed a good laugh.
Antonette:
Meet me Starbucks. Around people. And hurry, ok? =P
She sent that and listened to the conversation.
"So Connor admitted his love for Mass, but she moved on. It definitely wasn't easy. Now Allie-Rose hangs with the other cheerleaders," Kristen finished.
"And what about Connor?"
"He still loves her."
"How do you know?"
Claire cleared her throat. Kristen shifted in her seat uncomfortably. Cam sighed, exhaling from his nose. Josh pressed his lips together. Antonette and Derrick exchanged confused glances.
"You know the guy that she's sitting with?" Josh asked slowly.
"Yeah…" Derrick hesitantly answered, afraid of what was coming next.
"That's Connor," Claire finished.
Derrick's jaw dropped. Antonette's lips parted. There was complete silence around the table. "Are you lying?" Derrick asked, silently hoping that they were.
Each one of them shook their head. This information gnawed at Derrick's insides. Massie actually had a love life. Massie is a guy magnet. Guys probably tried to kiss her all the time. Or worse…
Derrick imagined guy after guy after guy try and cop a feel.
"It's not like it matter, you know," Claire muttered angrily.
"Yes, it does matter."
"In what way?" Antonette pressed. She had always known that Derrick had a thing for Massie. She saw it in the way he looked at her, especially when she saw him over her earlier that morning.
Derrick glanced her way. "It just does, okay? I'm her best friend!"
Claire nearly fell off her chair. Kristen furrowed her eyebrows. Josh and Cam nearly busted out laughing. Antonette sat there, a small smile Krazy-glued to her face. Derrick Harrington was going to break soon. And Antonette was going to make sure he broke because of her.
_xoxoDDLSG_
Massie laughed at Connor's impression of Squidward from SpongeBob Squarepants. "That was horrible," she chuckled.
Connor laughed along with her. "I know, but you looked like you needed a laugh."
She nodded. "Was it that obvious?"
"No," he lied. "Just the fact that you were stuttering over your words and that your eyes are red gave me the illusion that you were angry at something."
"More like someone."
"Oh."
"Yep."
"The dude you dated after me?" Connor half-smiled.
Massie nodded. "He cheated on me."
He nodded understandingly, sympathy in his eyes. "Lemme guess. Skye Hamilton?"
She shook her head.
"Olivia Ryan?"
She shook her head again.
"Dylan Marvil?"
Shake.
"Livvy Collins?"
Shake.
"Alexandra Regan?"
Shake.
He blew out his cheeks.
"Give up?" she asked.
He quickly shook his head. "No. Is it Nina Callas?"
She smiled. "Close."
"How close?"
She rolled her eyes and giggled. "Second cousins close."
Connor raised an eyebrow and then smiled. And then he frowned. His eyes glazed over with anger. "Alicia Rivera?"
Massie bit her lip and nodded slowly. "Ding, ding, ding."
There was silence for a minute. Then two minutes. Two minutes and thirty seconds. Two minutes and forty-three seconds.
"Are you okay?" he asked slowly.
"Yes."
"Not angry?"
"A little," Massie hesitated.
"Oh."
More silence. It felt like hours before Connor smiled and asked, "What's your number?"
Massie breathed a sigh of relief. She gave him her number which he gladly returned with his own. "I need to go now," he admitted.
Massie's lit up insides came crashing down. She was having such a wonderful time with her ex-boyfriend. And since Allie-Rose is dating Maxwell Thompson…
"Massie?" Connor waved his hand in front of her face. "Are you alright?"
Massie, dazed, look him in the eye and nodded. "Yeah, yeah. Thanks for today, Connor. I missed you."
Connor smiled softly. "Ditto." He stood up and Massie followed him. Hey grinned and hugged each other. "I'll be calling you," he whispered into her hair.
"Good. I'll be waiting for it," she murmured back. It was exactly like when they first started dating. It felt like the world was better again. Like it was right again.
They let go of each other, Connor's hand still entwined with hers. His eyes lingered on her face for seconds too long, but not long enough for Massie. "I really have to go now," he said.
"Okay. Bye."
He didn't move for another five seconds until Derrick came and wrapped his arm around Massie's shoulder.
What the hell?
"Hey, I'm Derrick," he introduced.
Connor finally let go of Massie's hand. "Hey," he nodded. He jammed his hands into his pockets. "I'm Connor."
Derrick nodded. "I know, I know."
Massie's nostrils flared. "Derr-ick," she said through clenched teeth, "what are you doing?"
Derrick tightened his grip on Massie's shoulder. "What are you talking about, babe?"
Massie's heart skipped seven beats. She thought she was going to die. Since when was I Derrick's babe?
"So you guys are together?" Connor asked awkwardly.
"No," Massie stated.
"Yes," Derrick announced at the same time.
Massie widened her eyes. She directed a glare to Derrick who half-smiled comfortably.
"Massie?"
"Yeah, Connor?" Massie replied, staring him right in the eyes.
Her piercing amber eyes caused Connor to look away. He stared at her nose. "I think I really need to go now."
"Oh… Okay. But, we're not together. I mean, I just broke up with Chris, so how can we be together, right?"
Connor nodded once, his jaw clenched. He turned around and left.
"Jerk, much?" Derrick asked.
Massie wriggled out of his grip. "It depends on who you're asking," she growled.
Derrick look taken aback. "If I said him?"
Massie cocked her head sweetly. "I'd say he was utterly nice and I'd love it if he called me."
"And if I said me?"
Massie straightened her head and sneered her answer. "You are an annoying brat that I hate so much and would love to kill."
Derrick's heart shattered into pieces. But I only did it because l love you! I care about you! If you only know how I feel. If only you know how much it hurts to hear about all these boyfriends in your life. God, Massie, don't you see my feelings for you?
"So what, Derrick?" Massie asked. "What are you gonna do about it, huh?"
"Do about what?"
Massie shook her head. "Derrick Luke Harrington, my presence here on October 18, 2009 at 2:36 PM officially vindicates my hatred towards you. Goodbye." Massie, with tears in her eyes,turned on her heel and ran out of Starbucks.
Claire and Josh trotted over. "What happened, dude?"
"Where's Massie going?" Claire asked.
Derrick stood there, staring at the empty space Massie had just passed by. He wasn't surprised that Massie ran away. She always did. He was surprised because he knew why she was running away.
AN: :)
Was that good? I thought that everything in this happened too fast. Is it happening too fast? I don't want it to happen too fast. Hmm... Anyway, please please please read BEHIND ENEMY LINES after this because I'm finally posting it up! Yes, I'm happy for it, too. It's not like it's two chapters, just the trailer and if I get at least six reviews, then I'll put on the next chapter. And I'm sorry, Desiree, it's just that I wanna try and say that! Don't you just love Connor? He's really sweet, I love him! But Derrick and Cam and Josh can kick his ass anytime(=
Oh, and remember in the trailer of this story, I said that Cam has dark brown hair? Haha, my mistake! I'm changing that to jet-black hair, like Connor. And don't you like Connor's eyes? I know I do!! Heehee;) Well, reviews make me smile :). Buuuuuuut....
LOTS OF REVIEWS ME ME SMILE LIKE THIS :D.
Wouldn't you like it if I smiled like that?
You do?
Then review!
(unintentional rhymes rock, huh?)
