Chapter 9: Early Day

*AN- Hey guys, so I'm going to be honest this chapter was rushed to completion so that I could give you a life update. I broke one of my fingers at work the day before this chapter goes up. I know I don't update very often, but until my finger heals I won't be doing much writing at all. I do hope you enjoy the chapter though, despite the somewhat abrupt ending. Hope you all understand. Enjoy!*

Second period was nothing special, just physics class. Normally I had no problems, but after the dream I'd had I found it hard to focus. All I could think about was that damn dream. Why, out of all the girls in the school, did it have to be Kate? I was disgusted at myself. How would Lilly feel if she ever found out? I would just have to make sure she never did.

It was almost a relief when the lunch bell rang. Seeing Lilly would no doubt make me feel better. I practically ran to the cafeteria, I couldn't wait to see her. Unfortunately, I ran into the last person I'd ever want to see.

"So, you think you're hot shit huh," Garth smirked as he stepped out of a converging hall to block my path. A large bandage ran across the bridge of his nose, an almost amusing reminder of watching him get decked. I frowned and narrowed my brow.

"Yeah, I do," I replied as smugly as I could. He hissed and cracked his knuckles.

"Don't get too confident there you scrawny ass piece of shit. I can't think of anything I'd rather do than imprint that ugly mug of yours into the nearest wall. I'm already pissed off that fuck boy friend of yours hit me-"

"More like knocked the fuck out of you," I smirked as he grabbed my shirt and lifted me. Fear crept up my body, but I refused to let him see that he scared me.

"Shut the fuck up you little worm. Now you listen and you listen good. Don't think that because you're dating my prize that I won't get into that tight little snatch. And if you try to get in my way, I'll break every bone in your body and make you watch me fuck her." he snarled and threw me backwards into the wall. I yelped as the crash send waves of pain through my back and chest, but managed to stay on my feet.

He strolled off before I could muster the strength to retort. I'd be dammed if I ever let him so much as breath in Lilly's direction. I took a deep breath and tried to overpower the pain in my chest. I took a few shaky steps and managed to maintain a somewhat normal looking gait. I didn't want Lilly to know what had just happened, or any of my friends for that matter.

Despite the fact I'd practically bolted towards the cafeteria, I managed to be there seemingly last. Sure that run in with Garth slowed me down, but it had hardly been a couple minutes. It was hard to miss Lilly, even among the crowd. Her snow white fur made it hard for her to really blend into a crowd, but I never considered that a bad thing.

Of course she was in her usual spot, towards the back at a table small enough for just a handful of people. She was very introverted and liked to try her best to hide in big crowds. She smiled when she saw me, and moved her purple backpack from one of the seats. Also seated at the table were Percy and much to my surprise, Alex.

"Looks like Romeo finally decided to show up after all," Alex smirked as I took the seat Lilly had been saving for me.

"You're one to talk, didn't think you were coming today," I teased.

"Wasn't going to, but I had to surprise Percy with his new ride."

I hadn't noticed but Percy was hiding his face in his hands. I could just barely see the set of keys he was holding, and I could tell he was trying his hardest not to bawl in front of everyone. I couldn't help but smile. Alex may have had the worst temper out of our group, but when it came to Percy he had the biggest heart.

"Well that's great, what did you get?"

"2019 Corolla, doesn't even have 100 miles on it. And the best part, it was completely free." he bolstered proudly. My eyes widened with shock.

"How on Earth did you manage that?!"

"I won it. Couple weeks ago I saw some guys from King's Toyota at the mall selling raffle tickets. I bought a few because I figured it was at least worth a shot. Turns out I won. I was going to give it to mom, but she insisted I keep it, so instead I gave it to someone else who I thought would like it," Alex smiled and wrapped his arm around his twin.

"I l-l-love you s-s-s-so much A-A-A-Alex," I heard Percy choking back his tears before sniffling.

"Alex, that is honestly the sweetest thing ever," Lilly was practically on the verge of tears herself. Percy was such a sweet kid, and he got so much shit he didn't deserve because he was gay. Even before he came out he was bullied, and he'd always been too nice to fight back to defend himself.

"Anything for my baby brother," Alex chuckled, I could tell even he was getting emotional.

"Only by t-t-two minutes," Percy finally let out a laugh. He pulled his face from his hands and I could tell he was an emotional mess, but not in a bad way. He hugged Alex tightly before looking at the keys with sheer delight. I almost couldn't believe it myself. I'd been to the lot before, when mom bought her car, and they seemed nice sure. But to just raffle off a car like that? Maybe it was time I got something new.

Before our conversation could continue, the lights began to flicker. A few confused students began looking up towards the lights when suddenly every light in the building went off. There were a handful of screams or cheers, but for the most part everyone seemed to just ignore it.

"Guess they forgot to pay the power bill," Lilly chuckled.

"Well guess that's my signal to make my great escape," Alex gave a sinister smile before grabbing his bag. Sadly, he'd barely stood up when the principal made an appearance.

"May I have everyones attention. We're unsure what has caused the power outage, but I would like to ask that you all please return to your home rooms until we figure out what's going on. Thank you."

Everyone groaned and stood, cleaning their tables before slowly trundling back to their home rooms. Home room was completely separate from our normal class schedule, and we'd often only go to our home rooms a handful of times a year.

"Come on Lilly, I'll walk you," I offered, taking her hand softly into mine. She blushed and nodded, grabbing her bag as we parted ways with the twins. As we slipped past the glass wall separating the cafeteria from the hallway I caught a glimpse of Garth glaring at me. I could see a slew of emotions on his face, anger, jealousy, but most of all confidence. It made me feel uneasy. Garth was dangerously unpredictable and, even though I knew Lilly would never go for someone like him, I felt as though that wouldn't really be enough to stop him.

But surely even he wouldn't stoop that low.

I dropped Lilly off with a kiss on her cheek and made no effort to rush to my home room. When I got there I was a bit shocked to find Candu and Jason casually sitting in the back of the room. I hadn't seen Jason all day, and was almost positive he hadn't even come to school. The two smiled at me when they saw me.

"Hey there casanova," Candu smirked.

"Shut up," I blushed throgugh a smile.

"Easy there Hutch you'll start a fire blushing like that." Jason chuckled "Hear any rumors about what's going on?"

"I heard a few people saying something about a car crashing into a sub station in town. But that seems a little far fetched," Candu shrugged.

"Well it doesn't seem like the power's coming back on anytime soon in any case. I think some of the teachers know what's up because I heard a couple of them saying something about school being dismissed for the day. So much for coming in," he sighed.

"You doing okay," I asked softly.

"Sorta. I'm more pissed than anything. I gave her everything I had, and she just threw it all away for some dick," I could tell he was getting pissed just thinking about the situation.

"I still can't believe that bullshit," Candu hissed sourly. "Don't worry about it, me and Hutch will hook you up, right Hutch?"

"No need, I've already got a sort of date set up for Saturday," Jason practically boasted.

"Oh yeah? Well that didn't take you too long. Who's it with," Candu asked raising a brow.

"Reba Collins."

"Hold on a second, like drop dead gorgeous Reba Collins, the class president?" Candu seemed a bit star struck.

"That's the one. Like I told Hutch last night, I was suspicious for a while she'd been cheating on me. So, for the past couple of months I've been talking to a few other girls. Just talking mind you. Reba and I have been chemistry partners for a while so we're pretty close. The fact that they used to be friends just rubs a little salt in the wound."

"Well it fucking should. Fucking little cu-"

"Alright everyone could I get your attention for just a couple of minutes?" our teacher interrupeted Candu, finally arriving to the room.

"So, the power outage is affecting most of the Jasper City area, and we're not sure what's caused it to go out. Since there's no power we're going to be sending everyone home. School is already called off for tomorrow as well, seince from what we can gather it will be a while before power is restored. The busses are on their way for anyone who doesn't drive to school, if you do you can go ahead and leave, just be careful on your way home."

Candu and I were already out the door before Jason had even stood up. Seemed neither of us was going to sit around hoping the power was going to come back on. After all what could they do if we left before then? We weren't alone though. Dozens of people who either drove, or knew someone who did, were piling into the hallways. I practiclaly ripped my locker door off it's hinges and crammed everything I needed to inside.

Somehow through the chaos, Lilly managed to find me, wrapping her arms around my left.

"Huuuuutch," she smiled widely up at me, I could tell she wanted something.

"What's up pup," I giggled down at her.

"Sooooo mom can't leave until everyone else does, and I don't wanna be stuck around here until then. Soooooo will you take me home?"

"Needy as can be aren't you," I rolled my eyes playfully. "You know I can't say no to you."

"You're the best," she squealed happily.

"I wouldn't say the best, but I'm alright," I smirked.

"Shut up you're the best and you know it," she slapped my arm.

"Help I'm being abused," I called out.

"That's what you get. Keep talking like that and I'll do it again," she huffed.

Naturally the student parking lot was a disaster zone. Normally there were people who stayed at the end of the day. People working on assignments in the library, sports team members staying for practice, and those who just stood around in the parking lot conversing. Today, however, everyone who drove was trying to leave at the exact same time.

We climbed into my old truck and as soon as I had it started and in gear she grabbed my right hand and held it tightly. Her hands were small compared to mine, and were as smooth as they could be. Her grip was almost unrelenting, as if she were afraid I'd let go at any moment. I could assure her though, I never planned on letting go.

"This has been the best day ever. I got out of school early, and I got my man," she sighed happily, almost as if monologuing. I felt my heart flutter.

"Your man, huh?"

"Well duh! Didn't honestly think there was anyone else I was after did ya?"

"Hadn't really thought about it," I lied. I had thought about it before, and hadn't considered myself to be the one catching her eye.

"You're so oblivious," she rolled her eyes and kissed my cheek.

It took nearly ten minutes for us to leave Jasper High. The streets were chaos for the first couple of miles. No power meant no street lights. Thankfully as it was still early, around 10 a.m. at that point, so traffic was quite light. Further into downtown police were setting up to act as traffic directors and there were more cars filling the streets. I hoped that my house still had power, would be a shame to sit around on a day off with nothing to do.

"Dad just told me a truck crashed into a sub station which is why the powers out. He also asked if you'd sit with me until the power came back on," she beamed over at me devilishly. Something told me that second part wasn't entirely true.

"Sure, I'd love to," I smiled at her.

Her house sat in an eerie state of silence when we got there. Winston's cruiser was gone, as was Lilly's Jeep. I could see Eve's Ford Focus sitting in the garage, but I knew she wasn't home. Every house on the street seemed quiet. Most of the residents would've either been at work or out taking care of daily errands. I watched Lilly climb out as I shut off my vehicle. Somehow she managed to look even more beautiful than usual.

"Come on slow poke. It's chilly out here," she groaned and darted for the door. I shook my head and lazily followed behind her. She unlocked the door and practically drug me inside and up to her room. They had a very nice house. The inside was very modern and sleek. Tile flooring with lots of exotic and decorative rugs and pottery. The living room was the first room you came in to, and a staircase lined the wall bordering the dining upstairs had a fairly simple layout. At the top was a door and a hall leading to the left and right. The door lead into the upstairs bathroom, to the left were Kate and Lilly's rooms, and to the right was the master bedroom. Lilly's room was located before Kate's, and it was just as pretty as she was.

Everything, and I mean everything was purple. The walls, the rugs, her sheets, her curtains, pretty much everything but the hardwood floor. Her bed was in the center of the back wall, stretching out into the middle of the room. To the left of the bed was a window, under which was her turtle tank. The right wall held her dresser and the door leading into her closet. The left side is where her TV stand and computer desk were. It was always much cleaner than I felt my room was. Almost made me feel ashamed to keep my room untidy.

"I'm glad we got off so early, really wasn't feeling today," she sighed pulling her shirt off, revealing her purple bra.

"Oh my bad I didn't know you were changing," I blushed and started to step back out of the room.

"What, am I not pretty enough for you to gawk at," she teased. She took my hand and pulled me back in the room, shutting the door.

"No it's not that, I just-"

"Oh I know, you feel left out because you have your shirt on too, well we can fix that," she smirked, grabbing the bottom of my shirt and pulling it over my head.

"H-hey!" I protested to no avail.

"Hehe, I can't believe you're all mine," her giggle was cut short when her face was buried into my chest and her arms wrapped around me like a vice. I sighed and tossed my shirt off so I could hug her back.

"I feel kinda dumb for not having asked you sooner," I admitted, guiding us slowly to the bed.

"I was honestly scared you didn't like me," she said shyly. "I was always jealous of Kate because you were so crazy over her. When I saw how hurt you were when she started going out with Humphrey, I just wanted to do everything I could to make you happy."

"I think you're doing a pretty good job. I love you," I smiled as she buried her head into my chest. We held one another for hours. Just enjoying each others company. I felt so wanted and loved. I was going to do everything to make her feel the same way.