More Than Meets The Eye

Dedicated to Tangy,
and the kicking party we'd throw BD

Chapter Nine

Steinbeck High was without a doubt huge compared to Gallagher Academy, but after two months of club meetings and sport practices and games, I knew nearly every student. People cheered for me on the volleyball court, said hi to me in the hallways, noticed me when I was hanging out with Danielle and Maddie, called the Goodes' to ask if I wanted to hang with them.

Zach was getting the same amount of attention, if not more; the guys easily got along with him and the girls giggled and fawned over him. It didn't surprise me—the girl fawning, I mean. Every girl I met asked me questions about him (like if we were going out, to which I answered no every single time) and babbled about how they were going to fall madly in love and their children would be beautiful.

After conversing with Macey, she told me it was perfectly normal for me to want to claw every girl's eyes out. Bex encouraged me to do so, and Liz said, "Ooh, that's so cute!" referring to my being jealous, not clawing eyes out.

I thought it was ridiculous and I wasn't jealous.

-

"I'm so full, I could die!" Maddie moaned at the end of lunch one October afternoon. "Never eat four orders of French fries and two corn dogs ever. Not even if you woke up late and didn't have time to eat breakfast and you're stranded-on-a-deserted-island hungry. Ughh."

"I told you so," Mike mocked.

"Eat a rock," Maddie shot back half angry, half exhausted.

Mike grinned and picked up Maddie's tray to throw away. Ever since that second day of school, he had latched onto Maddie like a leech.

"Mike's pretty cute," Danielle said, winking at Maddie.

I laughed and Maddie blushed.

Danielle spotted Zach across the lunchroom helping a girl pick up her books. "He and Zach are very chivalrous…" Danielle continued.

Carter slid next to Maddie with an unusual ear-to-ear grin. "Yo, w'sup, peeps."

"…Unlike some people I know," Danielle finished in a mutter.

"Hi, Carter," Mike said as he returned to his seat on the other side of Maddie.

"Mike, my man!" Carter reached across Maddie and bumped Mike's fists in an elaborate combination.

Everyone raised an eyebrow; Carter hardly knew Mike.

"What's with you?" Maddie inquired.

"Oh, nothing," Carter replied in a tone that totally didn't mean Oh, nothing.

"You're going to tell us eventually," Danielle said, "you're too much of a braggart."

"What did you call me?"

"You're full of yourself," Zach clarified, settling down at the table.

"Why, thank you," Carter smirked. "But that doesn't answer my question—what's a braggart?"

Everyone groaned.

"Just tell us," Danielle ordered angrily.

"I just met Chole Martin at the water fountain near the janitor's closet upstairs and you know what people do there—"

"Ew!' Maddie squeaked. "That's disgusting!"

The Janitor's Fountain, as it came to be called, was known as the school's infamous make-out spot. At all times of the school day, couples could be caught lip locking there.

"What were you doing there with Chole?" There was a certain resentfulness in Danielle's voice.

"Oh, nothing," Carter said in the same tone as before.

Maddie smacked his arm.

"Okay, okay, sheesh," Carter said, brushing off his arm. "We weren't really getting it on, if you know what I mean"—he winked while everyone else rolled eyes—"she asked me out."

"She has horrible taste in guys," Danielle said.

"I know! They're all stupid! At least I'm passing Geometry," Carter said.

Maddie sniggered, "Barely."

"Why does she want to go out with you?' Danielle asked.

"Who cares? I've got a date with senior hottie, Chole Martin this Friday, do you?" Carter looked at Danielle, realized he was, and turned to Zach.

Zach shrugged, "She's not that hot."

"Dude, are you blind?" Carter questioned incredulously. "Chole is the hottest girl at Steinbeck!"

"I've seen better," Zach replied. His eyes locked with mine.

-

On the following Monday, Carter slammed a lunch tray on the table.

"You'd think he'd be giddy after his date with Chole," Danielle said, "and sharing every single detail even though we all don't want to hear about it."

"Shut up," Carter muttered, shoving a spoonful of mac and cheese in his mouth.

"Come on, now," Danielle prodded, "Just get it over with. Tell us that she looked hot. Tell us when you kissed her it was like heaven. Tell us she begged you for another day, even though none of us will believe you."

Carter was silent.

"Oh," Danielle said, realizing things must not have worked out between him and Chole. "Sorry."

"Sucks for you," Zach said (Sucks for you? Is that supposed to make him feel better?), clapping Carter's back in a brotherly way.

"She's not that hot," he voiced the same words Zach did last week. He pounded his hand on the table suddenly, "Let's have a Chole Martin Sucks party!"

"Okay!" Maddie agreed immediately. When everyone looked at the sweet freshmen questioningly, she said, "What? I can't not like anyone? She bumped me that one time!"

"Holding grudges isn't good for the soul," Mike chimed.

"Says who?"

Mike shrugged.

"Hold all the grudges you want, Mads," Carter said, "you and everyone at this table are invited to my Chole Martin Sucks party this Friday."

"I'll bring the cake!" Maddie volunteered.

"I'll bring Twister!" Mike announced.

"Twister?" I asked.

"Yeah, you know, the game," Mike clarified. "No party's complete with out it!"

"No, we are not playing Twister at my party," Carter said.

"Well, I'm not playing spin the bottle with you." Maddie stuck out her tongue.

Carter, Maddie, and Mike argued about the party's festivities and Danielle turned to me. "You have to tell me if it's any fun."

"He may be mad at you about, you know," I said referring to the kidnapping, "but he invited everyone at the table. I'm pretty sure that includes you."

"I know, but I have plans." Danielle broke into the same grin Carter wore last week when Chole had asked him out.

"Plans?" I raised an eyebrow.

"I have a date!" she said excitedly.

Carter suddenly choked on his lunch. "You? A Date? Hah!"

"Yes, Carter, I have a date," Danielle scoffed, "You're not the only guy at this school."

"Okay, which one of them asked you out?"

"Um, well, actually—"

"Aha! You don't really have a date! You're just jealous I had one with Chole, and you didn't want to be left out. Boo hoo."

Danielle flushed in anger. "I was not jealous of you and Chole, and I do have a date."

"With who?"

Carter looked Danielle in the eye, before hers turned away to the person sitting next to him.

Zach.

I felt like an arrow had pierced my heart. I know Zach isn't a normal boy, I know I'm not a normal girl, I know our relationship isn't normal, but now I don't know what we are, normal or otherwise. Is that normal?

He didn't look away when our eyes met. With all the emotions swirling inside me—betrayal, jealousy, anguish—I kept my composure.

Carter caught on and looked at Zach in disbelief. "You and her?" he asked.

Zach replied simply, "Yep."

Carter thought for a second. "Fine, we'll double."

This time Danielle choked. "What?"

"We'll double with you," Carter repeated.

"You can't be talking about you and Chole," Danielle said.

"No, not her," Carter said distaste on his lips, "Me and Cammie," and I was the third one to choke at the table.

"What?" I spluttered.

"Oh. Wanna go out?"

Unbelievable.

I stared at Carter in disbelief, waiting for him to say "Just kidding," and continue to plan his party, but I knew Carter wasn't that type of guy. Maddie and Mike started to arrange their own platonic plans. Danielle's gaze shifted from me, to Carter, then to Zach. My eyes flickered to him sipping his soda straw, he didn't make any movement to protest or say anything, he was enjoying this.

Never mind all his fawning girls, I wanted to claw his eyes out.

-

a/n: I know, I'm late. x-x I just got busy the last weeks of summer and now I'm busy more than ever with school. I want to wrap up this story as quickly as possible, but I don't know when I'll get the chance to update again, ): I'm going to try my best though, don't worry!