Note: chapter 14 edited! (July 27 04)
Strap in!
Disclaimer: I own none of the characters: they all, along with School of Rock, belong to Mike White and Paramount Pictures, except for Kaleb Brown and Mrs. Teltrin (neither of whom are mentioned in the forthcoming chapter). They're mine. I also own the plot and a couple names, but other than that, nada.
Chapter 14 - A Long Time Coming
Pink… Or blue?
Summer looked down at her bathroom counter in confusion. Looking back and forth from two different eye shadows, she realized she had no idea which one to wear. Looking down at her attire, a tan coloured halter dress she had bought especially for the occasion, Summer couldn't tell which colour would coordinate better.
After a couple more minutes of deliberating, Summer sighed and picked up the phone, dialling Marta's number.
"Hello?"
"Hey, it's me. Can I come over yet?"
Marta paused. "I'm still in a towel… But yeah, come over, you can help me decide what to wear!"
"Awesome. And you need to help me with my make-up. I'll be there in a few."
Summer sighed in relief as she hung up the phone. Finally… Marta knows make-up better than anyone.
Summer grabbed all her make-up, a couple different purses, three pairs of shoes and stuck it all in a backpack. She quickly bade her mom goodbye, saying she'd call when she needed to be picked up, slipped on a pair of flip-flops, and scurried over to her best friend's house.
Marta opened the door immediately, and the two made their way down to the basement, Marta's bedroom. There, Summer saw a spread of about seven outfits Marta couldn't decide between.
"Let's get started."
And that they did. The two questioned, reckoned, suggested and argued for forty minutes before everything came together.
"Okay," said Marta, slightly out of breath. "So you think I should wear the black halter with the red ruffled skirt?"
Summer reconsidered. "No, I changed my mind. Try the black shoulder top with the tan ruffled skirt."
"Long sleeved or short sleeved?"
"Short."
"Dark tan or light tan?"
"Umm… Light."
Marta nodded and complied. Summer sat back once her friend tried the outfit on. "Yeah, that's the one."
Marta smiled, looking down at what she was wearing. "Excellent. I'll dress it down a little bit with flip-flops, though."
"Me too," Summer agreed.
"And you're going to wear my green eye shadow, right?" Marta asked.
"That's what we decided. And my black armpit purse."
Marta cackled quietly. "Eleni's going to be so pissed off!"
----
Summer looked up at the large house looming in front of them. Music could already be heard coming from inside, and Summer could sense her courage failing. "Marta, maybe we shouldn't do this, I mean, we weren't invited…"
Marta snorted. "Don't be a chicken. Zack's in there, just think of that."
"That doesn't help, Twink," groaned Summer. It had only been three days since their last practice, where Summer had blown up at both Zack and Eleni, but the silence between Summer and the boy of her dreams had been bordering on painful. She tried to catch his eye a couple of times at school, but he just avoided her gaze.
Eleni definitely seemed to know what was behind Summer's anger, and routinely shot her ugly and teasing looks during class.
"Oh, Christ, Summer, either get used to seeing the two of them together, or do something about it," said Marta in exasperation, reading her friend's mind. "You can't sit around like you have been." She looked pointedly at Summer. "I, for one, am going to the party. You can come if you want."
Summer though about her choices for about two seconds before jogging to catch up with Marta. "You'll be fine," her friend assured.
The large oak door stood tall in front of the couple, but Marta didn't hesitate to knock on it, three times. After a few anxious moments of waiting, the door was opened by someone who could only be Eleni's mother.
"Hi, girls!" Mrs. Afflerbach had to practically yell over the loud music. "You're here for Eleni's birthday?"
Summer smiled sickeningly sweetly, ecstatic at the woman's negligence of the guest list. "Yes, ma'am. Where should we put the presents?" Marta and Summer showed her two hastily wrapped gifts. Mrs. Afflerbach didn't seem to notice, though, as she pointed to a room off of the main hallway. "Right in there, sweetums, and then after you do that, everyone's downstairs!"
The girls smiled in thanks as they quickly threw their presents into the side room, and made their way down the stairs.
"This," said Marta, "is going to be awesome."
And with that, the girls stepped onto the landing.
The scene was hard to take in - there was so much going on. Some people were dancing to the extremely loud rap music, while some were sitting in front of a big screen TV, playing video games. Others, still, were loitering around a pool table which had been covered with a pink tablecloth and tonnes of snack foods and drinks.
"Hey!" exclaimed Freddy as he spotted the girls from his position playing "Gran Turismo 3." He quickly paused the game and made his way over to the pair. "I'm glad you guys came," he said, picking Marta up off the ground into a hug.
"Well, if it hadn't have been for you, Freddy…" Summer started, but was stopped when she realized her voice had turned the heads of her other band mates.
The band rushed over to the three by the stairs, all exclaiming, in turn, their happiness at Summer and Marta's arrival. The only one who didn't say anything stood on the edge of the group, looking at the ground: Zack.
He's not saying anything at all… Summer looked at him sadly. It was like torture, really: he was wearing another golf shirt. This time, though, it was a bold shade of pink, yet another one of Summer's little innocent fetishes. He wore simple black jeans, and his Converse high tops on his feet.
The group's happy babbling quickly quieted down, however. Summer, confused, turned her head to see what was gong on. Alas -
"What… the hell… are those two doing here?" Eleni asked through gritted teeth as she walked out of what looked to be a bathroom, fists clenched.
She didn't wait for an answer as she pushed Lawrence out of the way and stepped right up to the couple. "You weren't invited."
"Funny thing, 'Leni," Marta started off, sarcastically acting buddy-buddy with the birthday girl, "Summer and I, we have these things called 'friends.' They're like what Michelle is to you, except our parents don't pay them off."
Eleni's mouth hung open. "Why, you litt--"
"Anyway," Marta went on as if Eleni had never opened her mouth, "your lovely invitation was, how do I put it… Extended to us."
Eleni's eyes were shut in frustration. "You two better get out of my sight and this house within the next ten seconds, or I'll--"
"'Len, don't worry about it. What can they do? Just let them stay."
Summer tried to hide the goofy feeling of happiness welling up inside her. Zack just stood up for us!
The frown on Eleni's face deepened, but she didn't say anything in reply to Zack. Instead, she turned to Marta and Summer, her eyes shooting daggers at both of them. "If you two so much as annoy my pet gerbil, you'll be out of here before you can say 'whipped.'" She finished her threat looking pointedly at Summer.
Marta scoffed. "We brought presents, calm down."
----
"I'm bored," said Marta rambunctiously.
Summer laughed: she, herself, had been fairly quiet all evening, hanging out with either Katie and Lawrence or Freddy and Marta. Her friend, on the other hand, really had it on her agenda to crash the party. She had been complaining loud enough for Eleni to hear all night.
Gordon and Frankie, of all people, nodded and mumbled their agreement. Eleni sat back and pouted. "Well, then, what do you guys want to do?" she asked as Zack's arm found its way around her shoulder.
Summer's eyes narrowed, but she didn't say anything.
"I think I know," said Alicia, pausing the video game she was playing with Billy and Frankie. "How about 'Spin the Bottle?'"
Eleni's face clouded over, but she couldn't open her mouth to deny the request quick enough, as Freddy and Marta both exclaimed enthusiastically. "Yes!"
Summer's face fell. "I don't know about this, guys," she said slowly.
"I agree," said Billy. "I'm not playing."
Katie looked at Summer. "C'mon, Tink, it'll be fun!"
Marta clapped her hands. "I love it. Big circle, everyone, I'll go find a bottle."
Most of the class got up eagerly and made a circle on what had been the dance floor. Billy, however, sat adamantly at the video game console, while Summer and Eleni, though neither would admit it, were both having the same hesitant feelings, even though they sat down with the rest of the class.
Marta came into the room with an empty glass Coke bottle. "Well, Alicia Jane Allen, this has to be one of your best ideas, ever."
Alicia nodded, but didn't look at Marta. Suddenly, her eyes grew wide. "Oh my God, I have an ever better idea. You guys ever heard of 'Seven Minutes in Heaven?'"
A look of recognition crossed everyone's face. "I thought it was 'Seven Seconds in Heaven…'" said Michelle.
Alicia shrugged. "I've heard both… But 'Minutes' is a lot more fun, don'tcha think?"
Katie was squirming with excitement. Following her gaze, Summer noticed the bassist's eyes kept darting over to Freddy.
Marta started to smile. "Well… If there are no objections, let's get started!" She tore the Coke label off the bottle and ripped it into pieces, and grabbed an empty bowl. "All the girls' names into this bowl."
Marta handed around the pieces of paper, and one by one, the girls put their names into the abandoned chip bowl. Once six slips of paper were apparent, Marta smiled, closed her eyes, and picked out a name.
"Summer."
Duh. Of course, Summer thought sarcastically as her stomach plummeted. Truth be told, she wasn't at all comfortable with playing any kissing games. At age fifteen, she had never kissed anyone, and she didn't want her first to be with someone she didn't even like.
"Alright, all the guys in a circle - who's going to… play… with Summer?" Alicia asked with a grin. All the boys, except for Billy, did what they were told, and with a sharp breath, Summer watched the bottle spin, spin, spin, until it stopped, pointing to…
Zack.
CHRIST! It's like a bad, bad, bad, bad, BAD movie.
Marta's mouth was wide open, Zack was looking at his feet, and Eleni looked ready to shoot someone. Summer held in a groan.
"Well, guys, there's the closet, see you in seven," said Alicia with a devilish wink, pushing the couple towards a door down a hallway.
The last thing Summer heard was Eleni. "Are you sure it's not 'Seconds?' That makes way more sense," she protested.
Before Summer could hear any replies, though, the closet door was shut.
Summer looked around. The dark room they had been shoved into was a roomy walk-in closet, and she quickly scampered over to the opposite end as Zack, curling into the fetal position on the floor.
Zack copied her stature. "So…" he said.
"God, this is horrible," was all Summer could say.
"Is it?" Zack asked quietly.
"Yes," she replied shortly. "I can't be in here with you, Mooneyham."
Zack shook his head, obviously holding himself back from saying something.
Summer was feeling far too irritable to tolerate his behaviour. "What? What is it?" she snapped.
"God Summer… God. Why do you act as though you hate me? Why is it that you like to act like you don't want to be near me? Why do you see my girlfriend as scum? Why do you think I'm stupid? Why do you--"
"BECAUSE I LIKE YOU, OKAY?" Summer shouted, unable to hold it back any longer. "I like you… I like you so much, Zachary Joseph Mooneyham, and I have since, like, forever!"
Zack was quiet for a moment. "Why did you tell Freddy you didn't, then?"
Summer laughed in her hysterics. "Freddy and I are close, but not that close. I'd never tell him who I liked, especially because it was his best friend."
Zack didn't move. "So… That explains why you don't like Eleni…?"
"Yeah, I'd hope it would."
The closet was silent for a moment. Summer could hear laughter outside. I don't think I'll ever be able to laugh again. She let her head roll back and hit the wall behind her.
"You know," Zack began slowly, "I never would have asked Eleni out if I had known that--"
"I don't need your pity, Zack."
Zack shook his head again. "You don't understand." He stood up slowly, making his way over to the other end of the closet, brushing the coats and scarves aside.
He squatted in front of Summer, and hesitantly cupped her face in his hands. Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God, oh my God, oh my God. Summer tried, unsuccessfully, to mask the fear in her eyes. She noticed the nervousness in his as well.
"Um… Er…Is… Is it al-alright if I--"
Summer cut him off once again. Gulping, she said, "Only if you mean it."
"Well, in that case -"
Oh my Go--
Summer wasn't sure if she ever really felt his lips press into hers. She did, however, feel herself sinking, as if on to a deep, plush pillow. Her lips felt like exploding, and electricity flowed from Zack's lips to her own.
She had no control anymore, and she felt her arms snaking their way around his neck, pulling him closer. Zack, in response, placed his arms around her waist, pulling her closer to him once more.
The kiss became more and more passionate. Summer leaned into Zack as if he were her only source of air, and he did the same. The two of them, though, began to feel the need for fresh oxygen, and Summer reluctantly pulled away.
Zack rested his forehead on hers, breathing deeply. "Wow."
Summer gulped for air. "Ditto," she said shakily.
"You know," he said between breaths, "Eleni was starting to get really annoying. You were right about her… Everything you said… I mean, she really tries to control me, and she has Michelle right under her thumb, and everything."
Summer nodded. She summoned all the courage she had. "I have to ask, though - why her?"
Zack shrugged. "It was a rebound thing, once I read what you told Spaz…"
Summer smiled, leaning in to give him another quick kiss. "I'm sorry."
"Don't be." And with that, Zack pressed his lips once again onto Summer's.
Summer sighed in happiness as she subconsciously intertwined her fingers into his hair. I could stay here forever…
And that was indeed the plan, as Zack didn't seem to foresee an end, either. The couple continued to kiss as Summer thought, Now I see why Marta likes this so much…
The door to the closet suddenly opened, but both Zack and Summer were hesitant to pull away. Summer squealed, however, when she saw who the looming figure was.
"Oh… Eleni," Zack said, not completely separating himself from Summer. "Has it been seven minutes already?"
Eleni just stood there, mouth opening and closing like a fish, face extremely red. No sound came out of her mouth, until she finally squeaked, "My… Birthday…"
"Oh yeah," pitched Summer, enjoying every second of torturing Eleni. "Happy birthday."
Eleni could do nothing but gape, look from Zack to Summer, than back to Zack, and gape some more. Summer could hear questioning voices asking, "What's going on?" in the background.
"Are you done?" Zack asked Eleni rather impatiently. "We'll continue on, if you want."
Eleni's eyes seemed to ignite. "Zack Mooneyham, you're just doing this to make me jealous. Well, let me tell you something, if you don't come out here this instant…"
Eleni continued to ramble aimlessly. Under his breath, Zack said to Summer, "I get this all the time." And with one quick last look at the girl who had caused Summer so many problems, Zack leaned in to claim Summer's lips once again.
When Zack heard Eleni gasp, he pulled away from Summer, rolled his eyes, reached up and closed the door on Eleni himself.
Summer laughed as Zack turned back to her. He raised his eyebrows up and down comically before asking, "So, how are you?"
"Shut up," was Summer's reply, as she wrapped her arms around his shoulders, hoping they would be allowed another seven minutes…
A/N - Well, if you guys didn't enjoy that, I'm totally sorry, but I had the time of my life writing it! Hahaha... I'm so happy!! It was another fairly lengthly chapter... Please review, tell me if you enjoyed it as much as I did, and all that, and next chapter will be up soon, I promise!! Thanks so much, guys!