Hey guys! I know, this chapter has been a loooong time coming. Sorry to
those of you who have been anxiously awaiting it. This might be a little
confusing, but I decided to start up the story after Holiday and
incorporate all the events of recent episodes into the plot. In other
words, the garage sex, rave hook-up, and all of Holiday actually happened.
This takes place soon after Craig loses both girls. Enjoy!
Chapter 6
Three months later.
Brrrring! The jarring sound of the phone ringing caused Emma to wake with a start. She looked frantically around, as though expecting some sort of an ambush, then settled her sleepy eyes on the camo-phone that Mr. Simpson, er. Archie had given her for Christmas. 'Jesus.what time is it?' she thought to herself, flipping on the lamp beside her bed and reaching for the noisy device. "Hello?!" she barked into the phone, reluctant to give the person on the other line any courtesy.
"Emm.?" came the soft reply, and Emma heard the unmistakable sound of sniffling. "I-I'm sorry for calling so late. I needed someone to talk to." Emma was torn as she recognized Manny's voice at the other end. The other girl had barely spoken two words to her since their confrontation in the school hallway nearly a month ago, and Emma was reluctant to put aside her residual anger at the description of herself as a "stuck-up prude princess." But as she listened to the muffled sobs that her ex-best friend was emitting, Emma decided to swallow her pride and give Manny the benefit of the doubt.
"What is it Manny? I'm listening." There was silence on the other end.
"Emm. can I come over?" Emma glanced at her watch (which read 2:10 A.M.) and sighed. It was going to be a long night.
Ten minutes later, Emma had allowed her ex-best friend to enter through the basement window, and the two were sitting silently on Emma's bed. Manny glanced at the blond girl out of the corner of her tear-filled eye, took a deep breath, and steeled herself for the judgments that she knew would be passed in a moment's time.
"I-I know you don't want to hear about me and Craig, but there are things that I need to tell you. I know I don't deserve it, but I need you right now, Emm." With a nod of her head, Emma silently communicated that she understood and was prepared to listen. "Here goes." Manny murmured, feeling her chest tighten in anticipation of the information she was about to reveal. "After the night that the four of us went to that club, when Craig first kissed me, I couldn't get him out of my head. It was as if I ran into him everywhere I went.I couldn't escape him.
Remember when you asked me what happened at Paige's surprise party? Well, Craig and Ashley broke up, and he was upset. I went after him, half hoping to comfort him, half hoping he would come to his senses and realize I was the one for him. I was so wrapped up in all these emotions that night, it was like I couldn't separate right from wrong, and I." Manny trailed off as though too embarrassed or afraid to continue.
"You what?" Emma prodded her gently.
"I had sex with him." The confession was accompanied by a good sixty seconds of silence. Emma's eyes had widened to the size of golf balls.
"You.you."
"I slept with him. I thought I loved him and I was ready. After that, there was no convincing me that he didn't want a relationship with me. He and Ashley got back together, but I didn't care. Because he kept coming back to me, over and over, and I knew I that if I was patient then I would get what I wanted most. I would get him." Emma didn't say a word. She didn't even breathe. When she had come home from the rave and caught Manny and Craig playing tonsil hockey on her own bed, she was sure it was just Manny being selfish and boy-crazy like she had been for the past couple months. Never would she have believed that her friend was in this deep.
"So you and Craig. what are you now? Is that still going on?" Manny sighed and shook her head.
"I thought we were.he told me that he'd made a mistake. That it had always been me. And like an idiot I believed him. But he was playing me and Ash at the same time, and I deserved it. You'll be happy to know that I broke it off. I threw the stupid Christmas gift he got me on the floor right in front of him, just to make sure he got the message loud and clear."
"That's great, Manny. I'm proud of you. You deserve much better than to be the 'other woman'. you deserve a guy who is going to make you his ONLY woman." Manny smiled half-heartedly as Emma gave her hand a comforting squeeze.
"I know, I know. It just hurts that's all. And the sad thing is, I'm not even that mad at him. He may have led me on that night at the club, but I took it further. I didn't want to let go." Emma nodded sympathetically.
"Listen Manny, It's late. Why don't you sleep here tonight and call your mom in the morning?" Manny considered the offer and attempted a smile, but all she could do was try and fight back the tears that were threatening to spill. Emma wrapped a blanket around the distressed girl and passed her one of her pillows. She waited until she heard the sound of Manny's steady breathing before she allowed herself to close her eyes and drift off into a restless sleep.
Joey's House
"Craig, wake up! You said we could go to the park!" Angie's voice guided Craig back into unpleasant consciousness, and he fought the urge to kick his little sister out of the room and bolt the door. He groggily rubbed his eyes and began to sit up, until he realized that he had a splitting migraine. Suddenly, events of the previous day came flooding back to him, and he let out a painful groan. How the hell could he have been so stupid? Did he think he would actually get away with having two girlfriends at once? Reluctantly, he got out of bed and made his way to the bathroom, and was surprised to see Joey and Caitlin canoodling on the couch. He noted that Caitlin seemed to be wearing the same outfit that she had had on the previous night. 'Well, at least one couple can have their happily-ever- after,' he thought grumpily to himself.
Later that morning, Angie dragged her brother to every inch of the park- from the sandbox to the monkey bars and back again- before he told her he had to take a quick walk around while she played with another little girl on the swings. Craig spotted Spinner and Jimmy on the basketball court, in what appeared to be a heated game of one-on-one. When the two spotted him, they immediately stopped their game and gave each other uneasy looks. "Hey man," Jimmy called out hesitantly as Craig ambled over.
"How you doin?" Spinner asked him purposefully. "We heard about what happened at the assembly, dude. That's brutal." Craig shrugged, reluctant to further the conversation.
"You must be really upset about Ash. You guys seemed really happy," Jimmy remarked, a flicker of hurt in his eyes. "I mean, you must be beating yourself up over losing her." He waited for a reaction from Craig that would confirm his statement, but the other boy appeared almost indifferent. Spinner looked at Craig for a moment before grinning.
"Dude, I knew it! It's not Ash you miss, it's Manny." Jimmy regarded his friend with surprise.
"Manny? It was Manny you were cheating on Ash with?" Spinner nodded knowingly before Craig could respond.
"Yah. I caught the two of them making out at the ice-pageant-thing. I knew you were really into her. I mean, she's hot." Craig had had enough.
"Okay, first of all, we were not 'making out', and second of all, I do feel bad about Ash. She was awesome and I was so lucky that she was even interested in me. It's just. I don't know. It's like I'm drawn to Manny by something bigger than I can explain. And the past couple of months, it felt so right to be with her. And the idea that I won't be able to see her anymore.it's driving me crazy!" After that outburst, Craig fell back onto the grass, completely exhausted. Jimmy and Spinner exchanged looks again, though this time they were more confused than uneasy.
"Wait a minute," Jimmy began. "You are drawn to Manny, you need Manny, and you want to be with Manny. So why didn't you just break up with Ash and date Manny?" Craig's friends were now looking at him as though he were some bizarre science experiment.
"I couldn't just break up with Ashley. I mean, she's amazing. I was lucky to even have a girlfriend like her, right?" Jimmy appeared lost in thought, but Spinner just squinted his eyes.
"Dude, I don't think she's that great. I wouldn't date her," Spinner replied. Jimmy rolled his eyes.
"I think what this loser is 'trying' to say is that you don't give yourself enough credit. You're not below Ashley or anything. You just made some bad choices."
"Umm. no. That's not what I was trying to say at all. I just wouldn't date her."
"Okay!" Craig exclaimed, suddenly desperate to end this line of conversation. "I appreciate the advice, but I think I just need a little time to figure everything out." The boys were silent for a moment, contemplating the complexities of high school relationships.
After a beat, Jimmy wondered softly, "So what are you going to do now, man? Try and get them both back?" Craig shook his head and began messaging his temples.
"Not likely. Ashley and I are over, I made sure of that when I fooled around on her; she's not the type to forgive that kind of betrayal. Besides, I've known the relationship was ending for a long time, I just didn't realize it yet. As for Manny." he trailed off, as though his feelings on the subject were beyond explanation. "I hurt her. A lot," he murmured, choking up a little despite himself. "She won't want anything to do with me. Not now, not ever." Spinner bounced the ball on the pavement and took a wild shot, barely grazing the backboard.
"I think you underestimate your powers of persuasion, my friend," he called as he jogged away to get the ball. "If you and Manny are drawn together like you said, then it'll happen. Trust me." Craig contemplated the uncharacteristically wise words of his friend Spinner as he ran a hand through his dark curls. Maybe Spinner was right. If they were meant to be, then they would be. Only time would tell.
Chapter 6
Three months later.
Brrrring! The jarring sound of the phone ringing caused Emma to wake with a start. She looked frantically around, as though expecting some sort of an ambush, then settled her sleepy eyes on the camo-phone that Mr. Simpson, er. Archie had given her for Christmas. 'Jesus.what time is it?' she thought to herself, flipping on the lamp beside her bed and reaching for the noisy device. "Hello?!" she barked into the phone, reluctant to give the person on the other line any courtesy.
"Emm.?" came the soft reply, and Emma heard the unmistakable sound of sniffling. "I-I'm sorry for calling so late. I needed someone to talk to." Emma was torn as she recognized Manny's voice at the other end. The other girl had barely spoken two words to her since their confrontation in the school hallway nearly a month ago, and Emma was reluctant to put aside her residual anger at the description of herself as a "stuck-up prude princess." But as she listened to the muffled sobs that her ex-best friend was emitting, Emma decided to swallow her pride and give Manny the benefit of the doubt.
"What is it Manny? I'm listening." There was silence on the other end.
"Emm. can I come over?" Emma glanced at her watch (which read 2:10 A.M.) and sighed. It was going to be a long night.
Ten minutes later, Emma had allowed her ex-best friend to enter through the basement window, and the two were sitting silently on Emma's bed. Manny glanced at the blond girl out of the corner of her tear-filled eye, took a deep breath, and steeled herself for the judgments that she knew would be passed in a moment's time.
"I-I know you don't want to hear about me and Craig, but there are things that I need to tell you. I know I don't deserve it, but I need you right now, Emm." With a nod of her head, Emma silently communicated that she understood and was prepared to listen. "Here goes." Manny murmured, feeling her chest tighten in anticipation of the information she was about to reveal. "After the night that the four of us went to that club, when Craig first kissed me, I couldn't get him out of my head. It was as if I ran into him everywhere I went.I couldn't escape him.
Remember when you asked me what happened at Paige's surprise party? Well, Craig and Ashley broke up, and he was upset. I went after him, half hoping to comfort him, half hoping he would come to his senses and realize I was the one for him. I was so wrapped up in all these emotions that night, it was like I couldn't separate right from wrong, and I." Manny trailed off as though too embarrassed or afraid to continue.
"You what?" Emma prodded her gently.
"I had sex with him." The confession was accompanied by a good sixty seconds of silence. Emma's eyes had widened to the size of golf balls.
"You.you."
"I slept with him. I thought I loved him and I was ready. After that, there was no convincing me that he didn't want a relationship with me. He and Ashley got back together, but I didn't care. Because he kept coming back to me, over and over, and I knew I that if I was patient then I would get what I wanted most. I would get him." Emma didn't say a word. She didn't even breathe. When she had come home from the rave and caught Manny and Craig playing tonsil hockey on her own bed, she was sure it was just Manny being selfish and boy-crazy like she had been for the past couple months. Never would she have believed that her friend was in this deep.
"So you and Craig. what are you now? Is that still going on?" Manny sighed and shook her head.
"I thought we were.he told me that he'd made a mistake. That it had always been me. And like an idiot I believed him. But he was playing me and Ash at the same time, and I deserved it. You'll be happy to know that I broke it off. I threw the stupid Christmas gift he got me on the floor right in front of him, just to make sure he got the message loud and clear."
"That's great, Manny. I'm proud of you. You deserve much better than to be the 'other woman'. you deserve a guy who is going to make you his ONLY woman." Manny smiled half-heartedly as Emma gave her hand a comforting squeeze.
"I know, I know. It just hurts that's all. And the sad thing is, I'm not even that mad at him. He may have led me on that night at the club, but I took it further. I didn't want to let go." Emma nodded sympathetically.
"Listen Manny, It's late. Why don't you sleep here tonight and call your mom in the morning?" Manny considered the offer and attempted a smile, but all she could do was try and fight back the tears that were threatening to spill. Emma wrapped a blanket around the distressed girl and passed her one of her pillows. She waited until she heard the sound of Manny's steady breathing before she allowed herself to close her eyes and drift off into a restless sleep.
Joey's House
"Craig, wake up! You said we could go to the park!" Angie's voice guided Craig back into unpleasant consciousness, and he fought the urge to kick his little sister out of the room and bolt the door. He groggily rubbed his eyes and began to sit up, until he realized that he had a splitting migraine. Suddenly, events of the previous day came flooding back to him, and he let out a painful groan. How the hell could he have been so stupid? Did he think he would actually get away with having two girlfriends at once? Reluctantly, he got out of bed and made his way to the bathroom, and was surprised to see Joey and Caitlin canoodling on the couch. He noted that Caitlin seemed to be wearing the same outfit that she had had on the previous night. 'Well, at least one couple can have their happily-ever- after,' he thought grumpily to himself.
Later that morning, Angie dragged her brother to every inch of the park- from the sandbox to the monkey bars and back again- before he told her he had to take a quick walk around while she played with another little girl on the swings. Craig spotted Spinner and Jimmy on the basketball court, in what appeared to be a heated game of one-on-one. When the two spotted him, they immediately stopped their game and gave each other uneasy looks. "Hey man," Jimmy called out hesitantly as Craig ambled over.
"How you doin?" Spinner asked him purposefully. "We heard about what happened at the assembly, dude. That's brutal." Craig shrugged, reluctant to further the conversation.
"You must be really upset about Ash. You guys seemed really happy," Jimmy remarked, a flicker of hurt in his eyes. "I mean, you must be beating yourself up over losing her." He waited for a reaction from Craig that would confirm his statement, but the other boy appeared almost indifferent. Spinner looked at Craig for a moment before grinning.
"Dude, I knew it! It's not Ash you miss, it's Manny." Jimmy regarded his friend with surprise.
"Manny? It was Manny you were cheating on Ash with?" Spinner nodded knowingly before Craig could respond.
"Yah. I caught the two of them making out at the ice-pageant-thing. I knew you were really into her. I mean, she's hot." Craig had had enough.
"Okay, first of all, we were not 'making out', and second of all, I do feel bad about Ash. She was awesome and I was so lucky that she was even interested in me. It's just. I don't know. It's like I'm drawn to Manny by something bigger than I can explain. And the past couple of months, it felt so right to be with her. And the idea that I won't be able to see her anymore.it's driving me crazy!" After that outburst, Craig fell back onto the grass, completely exhausted. Jimmy and Spinner exchanged looks again, though this time they were more confused than uneasy.
"Wait a minute," Jimmy began. "You are drawn to Manny, you need Manny, and you want to be with Manny. So why didn't you just break up with Ash and date Manny?" Craig's friends were now looking at him as though he were some bizarre science experiment.
"I couldn't just break up with Ashley. I mean, she's amazing. I was lucky to even have a girlfriend like her, right?" Jimmy appeared lost in thought, but Spinner just squinted his eyes.
"Dude, I don't think she's that great. I wouldn't date her," Spinner replied. Jimmy rolled his eyes.
"I think what this loser is 'trying' to say is that you don't give yourself enough credit. You're not below Ashley or anything. You just made some bad choices."
"Umm. no. That's not what I was trying to say at all. I just wouldn't date her."
"Okay!" Craig exclaimed, suddenly desperate to end this line of conversation. "I appreciate the advice, but I think I just need a little time to figure everything out." The boys were silent for a moment, contemplating the complexities of high school relationships.
After a beat, Jimmy wondered softly, "So what are you going to do now, man? Try and get them both back?" Craig shook his head and began messaging his temples.
"Not likely. Ashley and I are over, I made sure of that when I fooled around on her; she's not the type to forgive that kind of betrayal. Besides, I've known the relationship was ending for a long time, I just didn't realize it yet. As for Manny." he trailed off, as though his feelings on the subject were beyond explanation. "I hurt her. A lot," he murmured, choking up a little despite himself. "She won't want anything to do with me. Not now, not ever." Spinner bounced the ball on the pavement and took a wild shot, barely grazing the backboard.
"I think you underestimate your powers of persuasion, my friend," he called as he jogged away to get the ball. "If you and Manny are drawn together like you said, then it'll happen. Trust me." Craig contemplated the uncharacteristically wise words of his friend Spinner as he ran a hand through his dark curls. Maybe Spinner was right. If they were meant to be, then they would be. Only time would tell.