Much Ado About Nothing
Chapter 5: "Improvisation"
"Hey," Val said, stepping up to Tyler anxiously. He stopped looking through his locker and turned to her, brightening.
"Hi, Val!" Val, in return, bit her lip. This was very awkward.
"So, Tyler… I think that, you know, yesterday? We need to talk about it, because—" But Tyler didn't get to hear why they needed to talk, because the bell rang.
"We'll talk later, okay? I'm already late for Calc," he said before pushing off into the crowd. Val looked after him with a sad expression on her face.
"Whoever invented the expression 'saved by the bell' was very much mistaken," she said crossly.
*
Val didn't see Tyler for a whole two periods, because her History class was in a different hallway than Tyler's, and then she had Spanish, and Tyler took Latin instead of Spanish. Luckily for her, they both had sixth period lunch, and she tracked him down then.
"Tyler," Val greeted him, coming up from behind in the lunch line. Apparently he had been startled, because an apple went tumbling over his shoulder. Val neatly caught it, handed it to him, and balanced her tray for her apple.
"Thanks," he replied politely as the cafeteria worker gave him green beans. "You surprised me."
"And here I was, thinking you were totally under control," teased Val. Tyler scrunched his nose like he had been about to make a face and stick out his tongue but thought better of it. Val stifled a giggle before remembering exactly what she had wanted to talk to Tyler about. She accepted the chocolate pudding placed haphazardly on her plate before breaking from the line with Tyler.
"There's Hank," Tyler said enthusiastically. Val tugged his arm before the wave could attract Hank's attention.
"I need to talk to you, Tyler," she informed him. "Without Hank. Without other people. Privately." Her grip on his arm helped her direct him into courtyard. Val sat down at a picnic table and motioned for him to sit across from her.
"So," she began awkwardly, "about yesterday."
"Oh—right. Look, Val, I understand if you really don't want to—"
"No." Val shook her head with vehemence, sending a blond strand whipping across her cheek. "Nothing like that."
Tyler was relieved, and it was evident in his features.
"Okay, then… what?" He was puzzled.
"I don't know," Val said tearfully, burying her face in her arms. Tyler had never seen her so shaken before.
"Look, I know it's not easy, but…well,
Alex said it was okay," finished Tyler helplessly. "And I really, really do
like you, like, a lot and so…do you want to go out sometime?" Whoa. Where had
THAT come from?
"What?" Val looked up. "Go out? As in, with you?" Oh dear. This was odd.
"Well, sure. I mean, I'm really trying to, um, be sensitive, but it's not really working. So I'll just ask you out. Right. Yeah." Tyler shifted uneasily. This was very, very messed-up. "Uh huh. That'll work. And, um, I'll try to be sensitive if you want that instead." He was turning red now.
"You're blushing," Val accused him. He put his face in his hands.
"This really isn't what was supposed to happen, you know," he informed her, mumbling through his hands.
"Okay, sure."
"Sure what?"
"Sure, I'll go out with you." Val smiled. This was too funny. Way too funny.
"You will?" Tyler looked up from his hands in a state of shock.
"Sure," Val said for the third time. "I'd love that."
"I'm supposed to kiss you now, right?" Tyler asked. Val smiled again, her eyes laughing. This was some sort of comedy…but a very nice comedy at that. Very fun. And the most fun part was coming up…
"Ideally," she said. He matched her smile with one of his own.
"It's not in the script," Tyler informed her teasingly. "I think maybe we should pay attention to the script."
Val reached out and buried her fingers in his hair.
"Improv," she said before his lips stopped her voice.
*
"Right," said Mr. Edwards. Um, we'll start from where we were last time. You can go back a few lines to get in character if you want…action."
"…Ready stand/To smooth that rough touch with a tender kiss," Tyler said, picking a starting point several lines before the kiss.
"Good pilgrim, you do wrong your hand too much/Which mannerly devotion shows in this/For saints have hands that pilgrims' hands do touch/And hand to hand is holy palmers kiss." Their hands intertwined in front of them.
"Have not saints lips, and holy palmers too?" The role was very easy to get into when he had kissed Val again at lunchtime that day.
"Ay, pilgrim, lips that must be used in prayer." Her voice was dry as she read for some reason. It might be the way Tyler was boring into her eyes like he could see her soul. Val swallowed.
"O, then, dear saint," Was this play trying to hurt him with reality? Because Val certainly WAS a saint, "let lips do what hands do/They pray, grant thou, lest faith turn to despair."
"Saints do not move, though grant for prayer's sake," Val said, returning the soul-searching gaze.
"Then move not while my prayer's effect I take."
For once while they had been practicing that line, no one interrupted them before their lips connected gently.
And stayed connected. And stayed connected. And stayed connected. And stayed connected… as they fell to the floor, still clinging to each other.
"That wasn't in the script," moaned Mr. Edwards, looking down at the oblivious couple.
"Improvisation," Caitie cut in with a smile.
*
That was THROUGHLY messed up. Oh well. Live… and die… with it. I'm not in a good mood. It's Flame Ivy Leaves week or something, because I have two flames on Miracle and two on SWFY. *breaks down in tears* Don't you people have anything BETTER to do with your time than flame? I mean, come on. It's not very nice. I'm going to undergo an oppressive state of self-pity in which I eat lots and lots of ice cream soon, and I'm not kidding.
---IVY
P.S. – Just to all the flamers, I am AWARE it sucks. No need to tell me again. There IS such a thing as constructive criticism, and if you don't know what that is, well, then, don't review. I'd rather have less reviews with compliments than lots of reviews with insults. I'm not trying to be a bad sport or anything, but it can be hurtful, okays? Look, never mind. Forget it. I don't care. I'll just go see what ice cream we have in the freezer. *grins*