It was a dismal, rainy day in England with dark clouds overhead followed by the sheets of rain and occasional crack of lightening which kept most of the students of Covington inside for the afternoon , which suited Chase's mood just fine .
With most of their classes out of the way , the teenagers congregated in the common room which Chase figured was just a fancy way of calling it a lounge except it was more out of Harry Potter than PCA with the fire crackling in the fireplace plus the lack of brightly colored walls and a Blix machine .
Blue walls , several fancy couches and a table added to the ambiance of the common where they could still hang out, watch TV, and drink hot tea .
He was developing a taste for the stuff and someone had mentioned a crumpet earlier which had made Chase think of Lola and her awesome British accent she had mastered for PCA's production of A Crumpet Among Us and had set him off in peals of laughter .
He fired up his laptop, hoping he could catch one of his friends today and talk .
Chase was really missing everything today .
Home , PCA, and more importantly , his friends .
Teddy and Vivian, who were the steadiest couple at this school and the most popular, had found a corner of the room to make out in , oblivious to all of the others and reminding him of Michael and Lisa .
He really hoped Lisa kept Michael from doing something that would get him in trouble .
The Breakfast Club was the movie of the hour playing on the big screened television and the soundtrack to his newly angst filled life or it felt like that anyway since he had found out about Zoey . His little white lie to her hadn't helped his nerves either .
He was a bad person . Why had he lied to her ?
Right he was still angry about her moving onto a new guy and because he still loved her.
Hannah wadded up a magazine page , smiled slightly at him, and tossed it at his wild hair .
" Gah ! Who did that ?" Chase waved his hands around as if he was swatting some of Quinn's killer bees and not a piece of paper then caught the teasing grin on Hannah's face," really , Hannah ? "
Hannah 's hoops dangled in her ears as she slid off the arm of the couch and scooted closer to her friend, hoping he would catch a clue that she liked him .
His clumsiness was adorable and he had to be the nicest guy she had ever met .
" I thought I was going to have to call Mars ," joked Hannah , nudging him with her elbow ," come on, you still cant be down about your fib to Zoey. You do not owe that girl anything and I wish you would stop moping about over her ! "
Chase let out a resigned sigh," I'm not moping ! "
She shot him a withering look that had his ears turning red ." Fine then you are being a bloody idiot , Chase ! A flumping one at that ! "
He winced at hearing Hannah utter one of Michael's ridiculous new slang words and shook his hair ." We really shouldn't try to make flumpy a thing over here either ," told Chase , matter of fact ," its not cool in America or England . I thought we'd already been over this …."
" I happen to find it quite funny " told Hannah , " don't be grumpy, Chase , and please talk to me . I enjoy your funny , silly stories of your friends back at your home and you make me laugh …."
" Michael would love that you are amused by his stupid word " said Chase , taking a moment to really lean forward and study Hannah .
She really was striking with the red hair , the kindness behind her green eyes, and the smattering of freckles across her nose and realized that he might be into her .
It was unnerving especially in the way as he hadn't really found other girls attractive in the same way as Zoey .
Gretchen didn't count because he was using her as his Zoey substitute until Michael and Logan's intervention had knocked his brains and senses back into his head .
He needed to move on like Zoey obviously had no problem with doing .
Boy, he was feeling the bitterness today big time.
" Have I told you about Michael ?"
Hannah placed a tentative hand on his leg and sent him a warm smile .
" Your best friend and roommate since the sixth grade ..you might have mentioned Michael a time or a hundred "
Colin, bored with the going ons in the common, and intrigued by the flirtatious tone that Hannah was directing at his roommate, set his jaw and looked up from his perusal of Splashface to growl at the American to join in their conversation.
Hannah never smiled at him like that and he had known her since forever !
Stupid bushy haired nit !
" He laughs like a hyena and that Logan person annoys me "
Chase was getting good at ignoring his roommate's constant dislike of him . He roomed with Logan Reese for years so he could take any kinds of crap that the Brit could throw at him and not be offended . After all under all of Logan's ego and money , he was a good guy ( he would die before admitting that ) and his friend so he had hopes that under Colin's grouchiness and bitterness was a decent dude .
He hoped so , anyway , or else he was way off about people .
" You annoy me, Colin "
" Boys , shut up ," intervened Hannah, giving them both looks that had them thinking twice about arguing with her ," will you close those stupid laptops and watch the movie with me , please ! "
" You've seen this movie a hundred times, Hannah, and frankly , I don't understand the appeal " remarked Colin, but there was no bite to his words , just teasing .
" In a minute …oh wait, I got a text coming in " Chase held up his phone, excitedly then flipped it open ," cool, Quinn has time to chat with me ."
" Can I say hi ?" asked Hannah, leaning close to him and not noticing the angry expression that crossed Colin's face or the oblivious one on Chase's face .
" Watch Judd Nelson be a jerk ," said Chase , moving himself and the computer into a corner , hoping to cut down on the noise in the room," I'm going to talk to Quinn really fast then I promise I will join you ."
Colin made a strangled noise and moved closer to Hannah, in attempts that she might actually notice he exist beyond the friends mode she seemed to put him into.
It had taken him a bloody year to get Hannah to tease him !
Now Chase was trying to ruin everything and he didn't like it one bit .
*******************************PCA**************** ******************
Chase ignored their ramblings waiting for Quinn's pretty face to appear on his screen .
He didn't have to wait long before her face filled his screen, her brown eyes sharp behind her wire framed glasses , and her long brown curls brushing her shoulder .
" Hello Chase "
Quinn glanced furtively around the dorm room, glancing at the door as if expecting Zoey or Lola to burst in on her any minute now though she knew both were busy this afternoon .She settled on the computer chair and relaxed , comfortable now .
She turned her attention back on her friend. " Sorry , Chase ," apologized Quinn," I didn't know what you wanted to talk about and Zoey should be gone for a little while . She has a meeting with Mr. Bender about plans for the Harvest festival so it should be safe…if you wanted to talk about Zoey ."
" It's good to see you, Quinn," smiled Chase , meaning it ," it's raining and storming like mad over here so we're all hanging out in the ..common lounge ."
Leave it to the scientist to bring up the one person he didn't want to talk about today.
The scientist smiled brightly at him. " I had a free period so your timing was impeccable ."
" I heard about what happened with you and Del Figgalo ," started Chase , feeling like he needed to say something to be a good friend ," sorry about that but you know, it's for the best . It's weird but ..good about you and Logan though …I mean, it is good ."
Quinn paled , color draining from her face, as her brown eyes widened in shock .
No one was supposed to know about her and Logan ! They were supposed to be a secret .
She shook her head, vigorously, as she tried to figure out why Chase would say something like that …he was in England, for goodness sake !
How could he even be suspicious of them ?
" W…what are you talking about , Chase ," demanded a panicky Quinn, reaching for her phone as her temper started to rise ," me and Logan ..haha ..that's funny. I don't like Logan ..we cant stand each other and why would you ask me that ? "
She chewed on her bottom lip, nervously . " That's crazy and absurd, Chase …..wait , how do you know ? "
Chase made a face and was glad he wasn't back home for Quinn to retaliate with something exploding . Quinn was a sweet girl but it was never good to get on her bad side .
" Quinn, don't freak out ," Chase grew serious , wanting her to understand ," your secret is still safe . I swear I haven't told anyone …..and don't be mad at Logan ! "
" Logan told you about our relationship ? " Quinn crossed her arms over her chest , temper starting to flare along with the jab of hurt .
She had actually trusted and started to believe that Logan was taking their relationship seriously.
Yet he had told Chase about them dating behind her back. She had believed Logan was being honest with her but …apparently he didn't think this was important enough for her to know .
How could she trust him ?
Chase saw the hurt , cursed himself for just handling things badly, and tried to fix them before he screwed up his friends relationship in the process .
" Quinn, don't kill Logan or be mad at him ," explained Chase ," he needed to talk after you guys kissed so he called me . Logan really likes you, Quinn ."
Quinn bit her bottom lip, apprehensively . " Logan told you about that ?"
She scooted closer to the screen as if the proximity to it would make Chase tell her the truth . Not that she thought her friend was lying because he had always been honest but it unsettled her that Logan had talked to him about their relationship.
They hadn't wanted their friends to know for a reason so what did this mean ?
Chase nodded , empathetically ." Logan isn't the conceited jerk he used to be, Quinn," amended Chase , trying to fix his mistake ," well, not all of the time anyways . How do you feel about Logan ?"
Quinn was taken a back, momentarily ." We've only been dating for a little while, Chase, and I just got out of a two year relationship ," says a practical Quinn, the image of Logan's coppery curls and sexy smile making her blush and just thinking about the tenderness when he held her in his arms making her go weak ," I'm trying not to dive headlong into us ..I mean, my relationship with Logan ."
" Can I give you a little advice , Quinn ?"
She frowned at him, not understanding ." What kind of advice ?"
" Stop thinking ," stated Chase , flatly ," thinking with your brain isn't good with love. Every mistake I made with Zoey was because I thought too much about it instead of just feeling and following my heart . So how do you feel about Logan ?"
He watched the wariness disappear from her as a softness reappeared in her brown eyes, her smile shining in a way he had never seen before in all of the years he had known her , not even when Quinn had proclaimed she loved Del Figgalo .
Chase had a sneaky suspicion that Quinn and Logan were more involved with each other than just the dating .
It was weird but in a good , new way and he hoped they made it .
" Logan is much more complex than I ever knew "
" You like him " realized Chase as she tried to hide the color rising to her cheeks .
Quinn regained her composure and decided now was the perfect opportunity to bring up the tenuous Zoey situation that suddenly had seemed to have risen between them all.
He was being nice and supportive of her and Logan so she needed to do the same for him.
No matter how uncomfortable it made her , she wasn't betraying Zoey and Chase was her friend as much as Zoey was as well .
" Yes , I do ," Quinn was all business now , " now putting aside the secrecy of my relationship with Logan, how are you ? I heard how difficult your conversation with Zoey was and she is just a mess about it, Chase ."
Chase sat up, ignoring the din of noise from the chess playing nerds in the corner and focused on Quinn. She really was too brilliant sometimes .
So much for ignoring and forgetting Zoey.. Maybe he should have called Michael instead and they could have talked about anything but the girl he loved ..
" Zoey said our talk was a mess ? " Chase laughed, nervously as he dragged a hand through his hair ," it was awkward, Quinn. That is what a mess our discussion was and her heartfelt apology over her falling in love with the new guy just wounded me . "
He folded his arms over his chest ." I know I agreed we should be mature about the date other people thing but I never thought she would move onto a new guy so soon after telling me she loved me ! "
Hannah turned her eyes on him, concerned ." Why are you yelling ?"
It was terribly difficult to listen in when she was all the way over here but she didn't want Chase to think she was rude either .
" Still talking to Quinn so just watch the movie " answered a frustrated Chase , turning back to the screen ," and sorry, I don't mean to yell at you , Quinn. It's just much harder than I thought it would be and I guess I still hurt …I'll get over her eventually ."
Her face scrunched up in sympathy and she sent him a warm smile ." I don't think that Zoey expected to have feelings so soon for James but it happened, Chase . You know that you still mean everything to her … this is a fact ."
" He takes good care of her ?" asked Chase ," not that Zo ever needs taking care of in the first place but you know what I mean .."
" He is good to her, yes , but Chase, I really think you and Zoey should clear the air " suggested Qunn, thinking of her friends meltdown earlier," I think it might help."
."
" Once I can figure out how to breathe again and not be in love with her, I'll do that, Quinn "
" Good "
There was a knock on the door then Logan swept in, handsome in red and white cargo shorts and a red muscle shirt showing off his physique , backpack loose over a shoulder as he zeroed in on his girlfriend as he shut the door, ducked his head to drop a short but gentle kiss on her lips then grinned at Chase .
" Hey"
" Logan , what are you doing here ? Anyone could have seen you or us !" hissed Quinn, slightly irritated but smiling at him as he slid a hand around her waist .
" I was careful ," answered Logan, unphased ," I got your text saying you were talking to Chase ….. I thought it was the perfect opportunity for us to be alone . "
" Chase knows about us " She tried to glower at him but couldn't when his nearness reduced her to a puddle of goo so she managed an accusatory look instead .
" I had to tell her, man ," explained a sheepish Chase ," sorry but I'm on your side . Not to mention that you kissing her in front of me might have tipped her off that I know about you guys being together , man."
Logan ignored his friend, frowned , and hoped that his girlfriend wasn't too pissed off .He really hadn't thought everything through when he got the text , he had just wanted to spend some alone time with Quinn.
" I probably should have told you, babe, but I was processing you and me at the time . I knew Chase wouldn't give me crap about us and he is happy we're dating ! I didn't think it was bad but I should have known that he couldn't resist being a pain ….thanks a lot, Chase ."
She twined their fingers together ." I'm not angry at you, Logan . "
" You aren't ?" asked a flabbergasted Logan, who had expected her to be pissed off at him . He should have known that Chase wouldn't be able to resist teasing her .
" No , I'm not ," says Quinn, realizing it was true ," it is actually sort of sweet ."
They shared a smile, their connection and awareness heightened between them as they relaxed in the warmth of the quiet room , alone , together . It was easy to forget that Chase was on the webcam when they could hardly tear their eyes away from each other .
Logan nuzzled the curls against her cheek and Quinn couldn't resist leaning in for the softest of kisses as her heart tumbled a bit in her chest .
Chase heaved a painful sigh, bit back a sarcastic remark , and judging by what he was seeing with his own two eyes, knew that Quinn and Logan's relationship was so much more than just simple dating .
If he didn't know any better, he would think that Logan was already close to falling in love with Quinn and didn't even know it yet .
Or he did and was happy about it but it was getting a bit much watching them kiss .
He coughed , loudly ." Yeah, your secret is safe with me but that doesn't mean I want to see you guys make out ," joked Chase , earning him a scowl from Logan and more blushing from Quinn," thanks . Look , my friends are going to kill me if I don't get off of her e and join them in this crazy 80's movie marathon happening over here ."
" You'll talk with Zoey ? " asked Quinn, relaxing in Logan's embrace .
" Zoey shouldn't worry about me ," dismissed Chase , trying to act more casual than he felt ," sorry I made her feel bad but she knows I can be a moron sometimes . I'm not going to stop being her friend over this stupid situation but she will just have to deal with the awkward until I move past her , Quinn."
" Not unless she and James break up first ," offered Logan , as Quinn smacked him ," what ? You never told him they were fighting ? Cause dude , they totally got into it …."
" Zoey apologized , Logan, and they are fine ," interjected Quinn, rolling her eyes upwards at him," don't give Chase false hope . That isn't right ! "
" He should fight for Zoey is all I'm saying , Quinn " argued Logan , passionately .
" He is still right here , you guys ," Chase peered into the screen ," and I think its better if I just move on once and for all . It will be easier on all of us ….. And there is this girl here that is pretty cool and pretty . I'm going to start the process by asking her out that way Zoey has someone and I have someone …"
" I don't know if that is such a good idea ," says a leery Quinn, " if you and Zoey just talked about things , I really think it would help the situation ."
" He should keep fighting for her ! Real men fight for the women they love ! "
Quinn stopped her rant, a dreamy expression crossing her face at the passionate tone in his voice and the intense way that he stared at her that had her shivering all over . She hadn't ever felt even a fourth of what she was feeling now when she had been with Mark .
Would he ever fight for her ? She was an independent woman and as fanciful as it was it touched something within her that Logan would care that much about her and his jealousy was extremely attractive in ways she never even considered before . Mark never exhibited the slightest bit of jealousy , not that she ever had guys dying to date her in the first place , but it was nice that Logan cared enough to get jealous .
It was old-fashioned and barbaric but she couldn't help but think how romantic the sentiment was and be moved by it nonetheless. Quinn thought that he would and couldn't help but to think about all of the different sides of Logan that she was seeing and wondered if they had always been there or if he was just real with only her .
" It's a difficult situation, Logan, and I think we should do our best to be supportive with the choices that Chase and Zoey have made ," says a practical Quinn," no matter how tricky it may be …regardless of whether we agree or disagree with them. It's actually none of our business ….."
" We're all friends, Quinn," Logan let go of her," of course its our business ! "
" Hey ," cut in Chase , not in the mood for their fighting over him," stop it ! Logan, I tried to fight for her and I did the grand romantic gesture by transferring over here but that didn't work out. I'll get over her eventually …you two be good to each other ."
" Chase ! " called an annoyed Hannah ,over her shoulder," its been 10 minutes ! "
" Later , guys , and tell Lola I want to be kept in the loop about all the gossip I'm missing out around there " With one last request , Chase signed out, shut down his laptop, and settled between Colin and Hannah ," ah fighting in the library . I haven't missed much ….is there popcorn ?"
Colin scowled at him. " No, there isn't popcorn ."
Hannah moved closer, slipping a hand through his arm and beaming at him . " More trouble on the PCA home front ?"
" No," declared Chase , aware of their arms brushing and her move . He wasn't so out of the loop that he couldn't recognize when a girl was flirting with him and Hannah was being pretty flirtatious this afternoon," this movie would be much better with popcorn and some Blix . Where would I go and who do I talk to about getting those put in around Covington ?"
" Take charge Chase ," muttered Hannah , " I really like the sound of that ."
" That's me Chase the leader " He didn't know if he was being serious or sarcastic .
**********************************PCA************* *********************
Logan walked across the room, flipping the lock to secure that he and Quinn had some privacy and didn't want to take the chance of anyone of her roommates interrupting them.
Quinn had shut down her computer and moved to the couch, arms folded across her chest , and an expression that he couldn't quite read on her face .
He couldn't help but notice how pretty she was even in her quirky outfits that he used to think were weird but now he realized it was just her style . Today she was dressed in a pair of jeans, an off the shoulder mint green shirt with some lacy top over it , brown hair soft and brushing her shoulders , and an array of colorful bracelets on her wrists and her ever present zap watch..
" Quinn, I thought you weren't mad at me " Logan moved beside her , flashing her an irrestible smile and tracing patterns across her hand , softly ," I talked to Chase before we talked about us . You know that he wont tell anyone . "
" You could have told me ," murmured Quinn, quietly ," Chase scared me when he started talking about us being together . Do you like to give me heart attacks ?"
Logan put an arm around her shoulders, gazing into her eyes and seeing more than he ever imagined that he wanted . He resisted the urge to run screaming across the campus , deny the rapid thundering of his heart, and go back to dating brainless bimbos but knew that he was done with all of that .
It had been only three weeks since they had gotten together and he knew he only wanted Quinn .
I'm sorry "
" Logan, did you just apologize to me ?" says an surprised Quinn, touched as he rarely ever admitted he was wrong , let alone apologizing , even to his friends ," You did ."
" Quinn, don't make a big deal out of it ," Logan tried to blow it off ," I said I was sorry and I mean it but ..let's not talk about it anymore . I want to kiss you …"
" Kissing doesn't get you out of everything , Logan "
" You love it when I kiss you, Quinn," Logan nibbled kisses along her jaw," you know you cant resist me . Come on, babe, I skipped class so I could be with you ."
" Logan, you cant keep skipping classes like this " protested an outraged Quinn, between kisses ," I know you are much more than an average student . I believe in you ."
He lifted his face from hers, something twisting in his gut and caught a curl around his finger .
" You believe in me ?"
Quinn took his face in hers , kissing him, tenderly ." Yes, Logan, I do "
" Maybe you can tutor me or we can tell everyone your tutoring me " declared Logan, gathering her in his arms and kissing her with every once of feeling for her in his veins," might help us with the sneaking around ." .
" That is a good idea , Logan ," Quinn wound her arms around him," smart too ."
He grinned sexily right back at her ." Extremely good looking and smart "
Quinn giggled with happiness and lost herself in this moment in his arms , her heart twisting ,falling , and spinning around and she was helpless to do anything to stop it ...
*******************************PCA**************** ******************
Outside the campus was a flurry of activity , students rushing across the crowded quad en route to classes or meetings or being lured into a game of Frisbee or the half -priced smoothies on sale at the coffee carts as a late afternoon sale and attracting most of the student body . There was a tiny nip in the air, suggesting that fall was in coming and a reminder that football and the festival would be here before they knew it .
Zoey knew this better than anyone since she had gotten chosen to lead the committee for the fall festival and thinking maybe this time she was taking on more than she could handle . Which wasn't normal thinking for her .
She was Zoey Brooks , she took charge and fixed things .
It was what she did .
She took a sip of her apple berry Blix and began taking notes on possible activities .
" Is apple bobbing too Halloweeny ? " asked Zoey as Michael and Lisa joined her a their usual table ," the lower class students might like it but its lame . Is it lame ?"
" It is lame " agreed Michael, taking a bite of his hamburger ," Harvest festival planning , Zoey ? A dance would be cool …..we all like dancing ."
Zoey took a note ." I think I can safely put together a dance ," smiled a relieved Zoey," you guys did say you would help me , please ."
Lisa laughed ," Michael and I will be glad to help with anything ."
" I think the clubs are going to set up booths and sell stuff ," said a thoughtful Zoey," that's always fun. I haven't talked to anyone yet but I have a big list of who's in charge of what that I need to talk to….was hoping I could get some help with it ."
Michael put an arm around his girlfriends shoulder ." My Lisa is good with people , Zo. She'd be a lot nicer than Quinn chasing after folks screaming at them to sign up …and I mean that in the nicest way . You know I love Quinn….."
Zoey smiled , recalling Quinn's approach to getting petition signers when their dorm advisor had gotten fired briefly .
" We all love Quinn , Michael, and I'm actually hoping to distract her by getting her to talk to Firewire and the science club about their booth ," went on Zoey with a sheepish smile," she intimidates the nerds with her genius . I think it'd help her right now .."
" I didn't think Quinn was doing so bad " brought up Lisa, conversationally ," she didn't really talk much about Mark the other night when we were shopping . I thought she seemed pretty happy actually …"
Zoey put down her pen, contemplative ." Quinn seems back to her normal self but I just feel like there's something else bugging her , you know ?"
Lisa took a drink of her Blix and caught what Zoey was trying to say. " You think there's another guy and Quinn's not talking "
" Maybe but I don't know ," hedged an uncertain Zoey," Quinn bought two new dresses, Lisa . I cant help but think there's a guy but I haven't seen her really looking or talking to anyone new …"
" What about Firewire ? I heard he wanted to date Quinn after Del Figgalo broke up with her ?" suggested Michael, munching on his French fries and wanting to be a part of their girl talk.
Zoey and Lisa looked at him as if he suddenly grown two heads and turned into something freaky like a zombie .
" Quinn would never date Firewire " insisted Zoey, matter of fact ," I cant believe you even suggested that, Michael ."
Michael shrugged, nonchalant ." Well, I don't know who would be into Quinn."
Lisa leaned into him , nudging his arm , playfully ." I thought you and Lola were up on all of this stuff , Michael . Don't you have a better guess ?"
" Someone super smart " deadpanned Mike , kissing her , lightly .
He really needed to figure out how to approach this whole romantic being together thing without flubbing it up though he supposed renting some of those chic flicks might be helpful for information . Lisa loved all of them and he'd even sat through Pearl Harbor with her twice and he still didn't find out how the woman loving two dudes during the war was romantic . She would hang him by his toenails if he cheated on her .
So it was either talk to Zoey or maybe Lola to get the girls point of view ( they hadn't steered him wrong with the apology flowers ) and worse case scenario, talk to Logan.
His friend could be a jerk but he did know women, sort of .
" That's helpful, Michael " smirked Zoey, with a sigh," so how is the comeuppance coming along ? You and Logan have a real plan yet ?"
" Don't encourage him, Zoey " said Lisa, making a face at her friend ," he doesn't need anymore detention ."
" It was only a few times ," defended Michael ," Logan and I were bored ."
" Hall hockey and golf cart joyrides …" reminded Lisa , stealing a French fry after a moments hesitation. She had been considering the vegan lifestyle but wasn't sure if it was for her or not and it wouldn't help that her boyfriend enjoyed his meat and potatoes .It might make her really tempted to eat what he was having .
" Bored and fun ," answered Michael then turned back to Zoey," Logan and I are working on something but we've got to put it together first ."
" Michael ! "
" Zoey "
" Dustin, hey " Michael greeted Zoey's younger brother with a grateful smile having saved him from a possible lecture from Lisa about revenge and detention .
" Hi guys " Dustin was fourteen and had the same blonde hair as his sisters only cut in a shaggy style, dressed in a pair of shorts and a tee shirt ," Zoey, can I borrow some money ? Logan didn't need me to do anything for him and I'm a little short this week ."
From time to time, Dustin worked for Logan doing whatever the rich jerk didn't want to do himself , which could be anything from laundry to lugging things but he'd given him five bucks last week to stay out of his way .
It was weird but then so was Logan so Dustin didn't think too much about it .
Michael leaned back in his chair , baffled by this statement ." Logan just gave you money for no reason ? Something is up with him….Logan is acting weird lately ."
" What did you spend all of your money on ? " asked Zoey, going into big sister mode , her expression bordering on affectionate and dubious . She loved her little brother but he didn't have the best budgeting habits or the healthiest .
" A case of Bing Bongs " answered Dustin with a shrug ," then I used the five I got from Logan to buy a Blix for me and Jessica "
" I can give you ten dollars but spend it wisely ," cautioned Zoey, doing her best not to mom him as Chase had once accused her of doing and embarrassing her younger brother ," you know , maybe buy some actual food to go with the Bing Bongs ."
Dustin grinned , accepting her money ." Yeah, thanks ," said the younger boy, pocketing the money ," so, are you planning cool stuff for the festival ? Walking for cake might be fun …..I bet kids would pay a buck or two to try to win cake .."
Michael's eyes lit up at the idea making him nod his head, vigorously .
" Can't go wrong with cake walk ," agreed Michael, " I would do it ."
" So, is this going to be a lower case activity ," Zoey picked up her pen again," cake walk booth for the 8th graders ?"
" Sure ," said Dustin, readily ," I cant bake or anything but I bet Jessica and some of her friends would help us out with it . You can count us in, Zo "
" Cake walk "
" Cake walk," pondered Michael, testing the words ," we're walking for cake though its super delicious and doesn't have legs , makes you wonder . Doesn't it ?"
" You'll be first in line " teased Lisa , checking her watch," I've got to go to dance class . Talk to you later "
" Love you " Michael kissed her then she was off, weaving her way to the arts building .
Dustin grabbed a handful of his sisters grapes then with a wave took off in search of his own friends and the girl he was currently sort of seeing . James waved at his girlfriends brother then made a beeline for the table, dropping a kiss on her cheek as he sat beside her . He glanced around the table, noting it was mainly the three of them.
" Hey Cuteness " smiled James, reaching for Zoey's hand ," where is everyone today ?"
" Lisa just left ," answered Michael between mouthfuls of his meat ," don't know where Logan is ..probably working on Alyssa ."
Zoey raised a brow ." She's still hitting on him ? I'm surprised she hasn't been his latest conquest " She stuck out her tongue at the disgusting of it ." I've heard her talking about being into him which is gross but then she's as gross as Logan is too ."
" I figured he'd already made his move but if he has, Logan isn't telling ," added Michael , thoughtfully ," which is just another weird thing with him ."
" Lola is probably off in the drama department working on mastering Desdemona or something ," decided Zoey, matter of fact ," Quinn is probably working on a new Quinnvention and lost track of time ."
" So, I am ready and on board to set up booths and sets for the Harvest Festival ," James tried to break through the subtle wariness his girlfriend was giving off though they had made amends ," reporting for boyfriend duty, Zo."
" Thanks , James, and as soon as I figure out what exactly I am doing , I will put you to work on any of those things " managed Zoey, not quite meeting his eyes .
Things were okay with them after they had made up but one part of her couldn't help but consider what Quinn had suggested about Chase and niggling doubts about her feelings for her best friend was enough to make her wonder if she had leaped without really thinking .
Was James really the guy for her ?
She wasn't quite sure and it was making her question all of her decisions about her life these days . For being one of the most confident young women on campus, Zoey felt anything but and glanced at James, his smile warm but didn't quite send her pulse racing or send her heart thundering in her chest but that didn't mean she didn't love him .
Or did it ?
*********************************PCA************** ******************
Lola avoided her friends table like the plague as she wondered around the campus in search of Vince, her mind a whirlwind of feelings and thoughts about the cutie , and decided it was plain silly not to do something she wanted to do just because her friends were sure to hate the whole idea . Logan was their friend but they did hate him more often than not so if you thought about it in the same thingie as Logan then anything was possible . All she knew was that there was something about Vince that she liked and she wanted to go out with him.
Lola found him studying at a table in the far corner of the quad, the slight wind ruffling his reddish brown hair, and he looked handsome in a pair of jeans and a red polo shirt , which was both casual and not stuffy , which was a biggie for her .
She didn't like stuffy guys….Quinn liked the boring type of dudes .
" Hey you "
Vince looked up, smiling into her eyes , and stood ." Lola, this is a surprise ."
" I decided I wanted to see you " announced Lola , rambling as she did when she just wanted to take the plunge into something new ," I can forgive you for beating up my best guy friends because I know you wont do it again . Your not a bully anymore …yes, I believe you."
" I'm glad you wanted to see me , I wanted to see you again too " admitted Vince , touching the small of her back," so now we're seeing each other ."
He ushered her into an empty chair and sat beside her. " I spoke with Michael and Logan ," brought up a resigned Vince ," they didn't accept my apology . You were right about that and they really do hate me but they think a lot about you, Lola ."
" It was sweet of you to apologize to those two morons , Vince " sighed Lola , noticing how his blue eyes sort of crinkled like he had a secret when he looked at her and she wanted to find out what it was ," they'll get over the whole you hurt them thing eventually . So, I'm done talking about them and I made up my mind that I want to go out with you .."
Vince moved closer to her , mouth curving in a semi-smile ." Not playing hard to get ? "
" I don't do that " Lola stated , her voice hard ," I don't care what you've heard but I am just really picky about who I go out with but I am not a skank . If you want to think that about me, Vince, then this is so not going to work with us ."
" Whoa, pretty lady , I don't think any of the sorts ," Vince was quick to defend himself before he ruined any chances he had of getting to know her much better ," I think kids like to listen to the gossip here more than the truth . So does this mean that I can buy you lunch and we can start talking about going on a date , Lola ?"
" Lunch is good ," told Lola , nervously ," and so is a date , Hot Stuff ."
His grin was boyish ." We can do anything you want , Lola, and I am perfectly alright with you calling all of the shots of our first date . I'm just really glad that you changed your mind about me …..why don't I go get you that drink now ."
" I want a blueberry Blix and some French fries ," stated Lola, " and you shouldn't be offended too much if my friends don't like you right off the bat . They'll come around eventually but you might be able to convince Zoey and Quinn your not the same guy you were last year …after I tell them we're dating ."
" You really are cute " Vince captured her lips in a searing kiss that had her legs going all tingly and holding onto his hair as if to support her ," thanks for giving me a chance ."
" Wow "
" I'll go get you that lunch now " declared Vince , heading back inside to the cafeteria .
Lola took the alone time to collect her thoughts , her usual guy theories flying out of her head because they clearly didn't apply to Vince and was afraid her heart was in jeopardy for the first time in a really long time .
He wasn't trying to treat her like some flaky girl and somehow he saw her -Lola Martinez .
She had dated numerous guys , had a lot of fun with them, but there were none of them that had her questioning her heart or wanting to take risks to be with them .
Maybe the fact was that Lola hadn't ever really been in love with a guy before and Vince was making her think about the love word and they hadn't even gone on a real date yet .
No apple tasting kiss ability tests could tell her what she needed to know so she was simply going to follow her heart's lead on this one and see where it happened to go.
Love was a funny , wacky thing .