Hey… okay… let's see… I would love to write more often, I would, but the number of replies I got for the last chapter really wasn't a booster. I mean I LOVE movies and I have Netflix… when I get new movies I'm like "YEAY!" (lol) and basiclly the replies either make me go "Okay… people are actually wanting the next chapter! I'll watch the movie later" but now I was just like "Okay… not a lot of people are excited for this fic/actually care… (pops in movie)" and I'm not making this up… I know there are those of you who HATE it when I say this but it's completely true… I'm excited to write the next chapters (I so far actually know what will happen in chapter 41) but the replies are what motivate me to actually write a chapter. Planning, that's done during my classes! (hehe) but writing is at home when I actually can chose what to do! So consider that… I hope you enjoy!
For All You're Worth
Chapter 29
No one knew what she went through with Kyle, no one knew how she still had feeling for him, and no one understood why. She was the only one. She couldn't ask her friends for help because they didn't understand her anymore. And her parents; she couldn't go to them; they wouldn't understand anything.
Haley looked at her reflection in the mirror and straightened up. She was done feeling sorry for herself; she didn't need that. She could be without him. She didn't need him, she wanted him of course and she wanted him to want her but sitting there and just wishing for that would be a lost cause. She didn't need anyone but herself. After all, no one understood her like she did. No one- not even her friends.
If she'd close herself to everyone in her life, they wouldn't get a chance to hurt her or take a part of her like Kyle did.
It was only her and herself; no one else.
"Take out the rough drafts of your essays," Mr. Thompson told the class as the students did as they were told.
"Now, I've decided to do something that we haven't done all year. Instead of critiquing your essay yourself, I have divided the class into pairs. Now, I hope everyone has their drafts here today. Did anyone not do it?" After looking at the class he smiled, "Good, works perfectly. No one's absent either. Good, good.
"So let's see, John and Melissa, Katie and Jessica…"
Haley looked down at her essay. She worked on it for at least three hours, and it was already perfect and ready to hand in for a perfect score.
"Haley and Aundrea," Haley looked up immediately. No, no, no! With her luck this was bound to happen. She looked over at Aundrea who seemed to hate the idea as much as her. Stupid peer review! Who needed those anyway?
"Okay," Mr. Thompson said as he finished reading the names of the pairs. "So, look for errors, ways to expand on the points your partner is trying to make and mark whether something is unclear."
All the students got up and went to sit near their partners. Haley and Aundrea, on the other hand, went quickly to Mr. Thompson. As Aundrea sat in the front row, she reached him before Haley.
"Mr. Thompson," Aundrea started.
"I can't-" Haley said when she got to him.
"Work with her," Aundrea continued.
"Of course you can," he laughed.
"No, I can't," they both said at the same time.
"Look-"
"Please," Haley begged.
"Look," Mr. Thompson said once again a little more frustrated. "You two are my best students. Pairing you with anyone else will just be a waste of time."
Aundrea and Haley looked at each other angrily knowing that there was no way to get out of it. They walked towards Aundrea's desk and an empty desk next to it and turned them towards each other.
When they sat down they snatched each other's essays aggravated and took out their red pens.
'Mines better,' Haley considered as she marked up Aundrea's essay.
'This is complete crap,' Aundrea thought as she crossed out a sentence.
"Times up," Mr. Thompson called after what seemed like at least ten minutes. "Hand your partner their essay back and discuss."
They grabbed their essays back from the other and saw red ink in every single corner of the paper. They looked up at each other and then looked back down at their essays.
"You have got to be kidding me! How is this awkward?" Aundrea pointed to one of Haley's comments.
"Because I had to reread it a few times until I got what the hell that sentence was talking about."
"Then your dumber than I thought considering this sentence is completely straight-forward."
Haley rolled her eyes and looked back at her essay. "What the hell?!" she looked up after a few seconds. "This is exactly what you wrote!" Haley pointed to the beginning of her thesis sentence.
"No it's not," Aundrea protested.
Haley grabbed Aundrea's essay, "In Shakespeare's plays Much Ado about Nothing and The Merchant of Venice…" she now took her own essay, "In Shakespeare's plays The Merchant of Venice and Much Ado about Nothing," she put her essay down. "Exactly the same."
"Well it will sound better when he'll read it from my paper," Aundrea snatched her essay back.
"That's just ridiculous," Haley said annoyed. "Like half of the comments you made on mine."
"Well looks like we've got a winner considering ALL your comments are complete crap. You couldn't find anything wrong with my essay that you had to make shit up."
"Oh believe me that I didn't have time to make anything up. I was too busy trying to finish up reading the essay because I was stopping every few seconds to point out an error."
"I bet that if you could you'd say I wrote the date wrong," Aundrea spat out.
"You wrote the date just fine. It's your name I'd mark wrong," Haley shot back.
"You're so pathetic!"
"You're one to talk-"
"Okay, go back to your seats," Mr. Thompson told the class as Haley got out of the seat, put it back in place and walked to her seat.
Once everyone returned to their seats Mr. Thompson spoke again. "So since this was the first time we did this I want some feedback. Was this method effective?"
"No," Aundrea and Haley said at the same time.
"And what would help it be more effective?" Mr. Thompson asked laughing. "Haley?"
"Choosing our own partners," Haley shrugged.
"Don't kid yourself; no one would want to work with you."
"And with you they would? People only talk to you because they're scared of you."
"They are not!"
"HEY!" Mr. Thompson yelled. "Would you two cut it out?" since when were they like this? His two best students acting like, like two teenagers.
Haley and Aundrea quieted down immediately still fuming.
Mr. Evan's Chemistry class settled down as they sat in their seats and waited for him to start his instructions.
"New quarter, new marking period, new start. Good thing, right?" he smiled at his students. "You know what this means; new seats!"
The class protested but knew nothing would help. He started going around the classroom and calling out names.
He got to one of the lab benches, "Aundrea Jones," he walked to the seat next to it, "Haley James."
Haley buried her face in her hands. Not only was she going to sit with Aundrea the whole quarter but she'd have to work with her on the labs as well. After all, that's what the seating was for.
She hoped Mr. Evans would be more understanding than Mr. Thompson.
"What about Beverley? Obviously you don't hang out with her," Zach lay down on the grass. "Kyle, you and her were the ultimate threesome."
Nathan fantasized for a second. "Threesome you say? How about you give me two girls and not Kyle," he laughed.
"Not like that," Zach chuckled.
"She moved in Seventh grade."
"Oh, no wonder she disappeared."
"So back to that threesome," Nathan joked.
"How do you know she still looks good?" Zach smirked.
"Because she looked good in Sixth grade."
"Nah doesn't count. A lot of the girls that have a killer body now were okay looking in middle school; especially in Sixth grade where you can barely tell a thing."
"Got a point," Nathan thought. "You have a girlfriend?"
"Yeah."
"Really? Who?"
"Jayme Miles," Zach said proudly. "For almost a year actually."
Nathan whistled, "I didn't know she was yours. I guess this would be the time to tell you that I slept with her a few weeks ago," he joked.
Zach side-kicked Nathan. "How about you? You have a girl?"
"Had," Nathan closed his eyes. "Aundrea Jones. But it wasn't really working out."
"Why?"
Nathan shrugged. He didn't want to start explaining Zach what happened. "I do have my eyes on someone else though."
"Who?"
"Haley James."
"Kyle's ex-girlfriend you mean?"
"News travels fast," Nathan said surprised.
"Like lightening. But wasn't this a while ago?"
"Not that long ago but it's not that recent either."
"That's why you broke up with Aundrea then."
"Something along those lines."
"Meaning?"
"Meaning it's a VERY long story."
"I've got all of fifth period," Zach laughed.
"Look, it's really complicated and paints me in a really bad light. We just started talking and this will really push you away."
"You don't have to tell me."
"Thanks."
"It's your business," Zach chuckled. "After all, we don't owe each other anything.
"Mr. Evans, please!" Haley begged.
"No Haley, I'm not changing the seating chart."
"There has to be something I can do! I-I- can't see well."
"Your other seat was further back then your seat now and you didn't complain."
"I can't sit there though!"
"The only way I move you is if you get your parents to write you a note with a good excuse."
Haley sighed angrily. "Thank you," she walked out the class knowing that she'd be stuck in her seat next to Aundrea.
"You don't learn, do you?" Aundrea said from behind Haley.
"What are you doing here?" she jumped.
"Listening to your conversation with Evans praying he'll let you move. What makes you think he'll let you change your seat? Just like Thompson wouldn't let us work with someone else." Aundrea left before Haley could respond.
Haley walked to the docks to see Nathan waiting for her once more.
"You feeling better?" he asked her.
She continued walking towards him and gave him a kiss on the cheek, "Thanks to you."
"Me?" Nathan asked confused, both at the kiss and what she said.
"Yeah, you," she smiled as she looked at his eyes.
"For what?"
"For reminding me who I am."
Nathan laughed, "I didn't know you forgot. And you keep ignoring me when you see me at school."
"Well I can't say hi, you know how things get around."
"Yeah, like lightning," he remembered what Zach told him.
"Exactly," she sat down. "And the last thing we need is Lucas finding out I'm tutoring you."
Nathan nodded as he sat across from her. He took out his books and handed her a quiz his teacher returned. He looked at her as she checked his work. It made him content that Haley was feeling better and was on the road to being herself.
"Not bad," Haley handed him back the quiz. "What's your French homework?"
"Oh umm, I wasn't in class today."
"Why?"
"Ditched."
Haley laughed, "Is there a certain reason you didn't show up?"
"Just wasn't in the mood," Nathan smirked. "Studying, you know? Kind of makes me want to die."
"So you want to die now?" Haley raised a brow.
"Nah, you see this is different."
"How?"
"Because you're here."
"So?"
"So I can stare at you and dream."
Haley blushed. "Dream what?"
"That you say 'yes' when I ask you to go out with me."
"So if your teachers looked like me, you'd pay attention?"
"No."
"Why?"
"Because they're not you."
"So what?"
"So they only got your looks. That's not the only thing I like about you."
"You like me?"
"What do you think?"
Haley smiled and looked at the notebook in front of her.
"Would you go out with me?"
"What?" she looked up at him.
"Go out with me."
She looked into his eyes. He got her to realize that she couldn't be hung up on Kyle. He gave her back a piece of her that was missing. He made her laugh, he made her smile and made her feel alive; all this after feeling dead for so long.
"As long as you don't take me to a fancy restaurant," she smiled.
A/N: YEAY! Who was waiting for that since like forever ago? Haha… okay… so I want to point out a few things… one… although it didn't seem like it… the beginning of the chapter is SUPER important for the entire rest of the fic so don't think I just put it there for no reason cuz it does seem just a bit out of place. And the second thing… if you don't get the last line of the fic… think! REAL hard. And if you still don't remember… go check out chapter seven :p. So comment please!
