Disclaimer: I *wish* I owned Max Steel. And I don't own the song either.
Stuff between ~ ~ is song lyrics
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"Well?"
"She hasn't been alone all day," replied the man in the baseball cap. "There's always at least one N'Tek agent with her."
"One N'Tek agent shouldn't be a problem," answered the voice harshly over the earpiece.
"It's not only that, there are always too many people around. I'll keep following them, but I doubt there's going to be much of a chance to get her today. Besides, you said she's not an essential part of the plan."
"No, she's not, but insurance would be nice. She's Steel's only cousin and like a niece to Smith. And I'd hate to be the one to have to explain to Dread why we have to proceed without the backup plan."
"Alright, point taken. I'll keep trying, but no guarentee."
After the fair and air show, Kat suggested going dancing. And Mindy and Laura thought it was a great idea, much to Josh's chargin. He wanted Mindy home and safe. However, resistance was futile. So, off they headed to a club that admitted people under 21. They couldn't go to the nightclub Kat had first suggested, since all of them except her were underage.
Berto couldn't *believe* his day. How was it that he'd been talked into spending the day somewhere he didn't want to go in the first place and had now been talked into going out for what would probably be a late night at a dance club? Oh, yeah, Josh and Kat had ganged up on him. Why were they doing this to him? He'd tried to point out that he hadn't agreed to going anywhere other than the fair. When that didn't work, he'd tried pointing out that he couldn't dance to save his life. They didn't listen.
Once inside, they managed to find a table they could all sit at. Josh had to grab a couple of chairs from other tables first, but it didn't take long to get settled. Not long after, Kat got asked to dance. Laura went out on the dance floor next. Mindy just prayed that someone would ask her to dance before Pete did. No such luck. Pete asked, and it was kind of hard to tell someone you didn't want to dance when they already knew how much you loved dancing. So she reluctantly went out on the dance floor with him, giving Josh a death glare when he stiffled a smile.
"Now," said Berto the second he and Josh were alone at the table, "explain to me again why I *had* to come along tonight?"
"I told you, I want her to be as safe as possible today."
"Then you should've made her call it a night."
"Couldn't. Kat mentioned dancing."
"So?"
"That's pretty much her favorite activity. Believe me, if I thought I could have talked her into going home, I would have tried."
"She doesn't look like she's enjoying herself," said Berto, looking over to where she and Pete were dancing.
"That's because she's dancing with Pete. He's been after her since she got here and she doesn't want anything to do with him like that. I just hope he get's that she's *not* playing hard to get soon, or he may get hurt."
As soon as the song ended, Mindy headed back to the table before Pete could ask her for another dance. All these other girls, one of whom might actually like him, and he's still going after me. Oh, yeah, *this* is fair, she thought. Luckily, a girl asked him to dance before he could follow her all the way back to the table. Mindy breathed a sigh of relief as she plopped down into her chair. Maybe he would decide it was too much trouble to pursue her and stick with one of the girls he would meet tonight.
"Having fun?" asked Josh.
"Not yet, but the night is young." Glancing through the crowd, something caught her eye. It looked like a baseball cap. She tensed and looked again, but it was gone. Could it be that guy from the fair? She had spotted him several times today. Was he following them? She looked down at the pin Max had given her. Since she wasn't sure she'd actually seen the guy and he really hadn't done anything, she refrained from activating it.
When everyone was back at the table, except Kat and Pete, a slow song came on. Josh swallowed painfully as he recognized it. It was I Don't Want To Miss A Thing by Aerosmith. His and Laura's song. He stole a look at Laura. She was looking out at the dance floor. Josh wondered if she would want to dance with him.
Mindy cleared her throat. When Josh looked at her, her eyes darted to Laura then back to him. She gave him a meaningful look. He hesitated. A small grunt of pain escaped his lips when she kicked him under the table. He stood and asked Laura to dance and she went willingly onto the dance floor with him.
Berto cleared his throat to get her to look at him. "Is there some reason you have been trying to set them up all day?"
"Yes."
"And that would be...?"
"Because I want them to be happy. And the happiest I've ever seen them was when they were together. Is it that obvious what I'm doing?"
"Oh, yeah."
"Well, subtlty was never one of my virtues. I should really work on that," she said with a smile. "Of course, you probably already knew that since Josh has, no doubt, told you every single detail about me."
"Well, I don't know about *every* detail," said Berto. "Just enough so that everyone at work has been wondering what's so great about his cousin for him to adore her so much."
Mindy's cheeks reddened slightly. "What, *exactly*, has he told you?"
"A lot of interesting things. I have some questions about some of it."
"What do you want to know?"
"Well, first off, did you really break Pete's nose?"
"I did," she admitted with a hint of shame in her voice. "But he deserved it. He tripped me into a fountain in the middle of the mall. I might have over-reacted a little, but he's never tried to pull something like that on me, or anyone else, ever again."
He let out a laugh. "Kind of ironic, don't you think," he commented, "that he's now got a crush on you."
"I guess. However, ironic is not the word I would use to describe it."
"Do I even want to know how you would describe it?"
"Probably not. What else do you want to know?"
~ I could stay awake just to hear you breathing ~ Watch you smile while you are sleeping ~
~ While you're far away and dreaming ~ I could spend my life in this sweet surrender ~
~ I could stay lost in this moment forever ~ Well, every moment spent with you ~
~ Is a moment I treasure ~
Josh couldn't help but think how perfectly that described his feelings for Laura. How many times had they danced to this song before the incident with Rachel? How long did he take it for granted that they would always be together? He remembered that they had promised to never dance with anyone else when this song played. He'd kept his end of that bargin. Had she?
It was strange to be dancing in his arms again. They weren't dancing like they used to, holding each other like they never wanted to let go. There was a respectful amount of distance between them. Still, it felt wierd. She remembered a promise they had made a long time ago. She'd kept the promise, even though it was pretty much voided the day he cheated on her. It just didn't feel right to dance with someone else while their old song played, even if they weren't together anymore.
~ I don't wanna close my eyes ~ I don't wanna fall asleep ~
~ 'Cause I'd miss you, baby ~ And I don't want to miss a thing ~
~ 'Cause even when I dream of you ~ The sweetest dream would never do ~
~ I'd still miss you, baby ~ And I don't want to miss a thing ~
Somehow, Laura ended up with her head leaning against his shoulder. His cheek rested on her hair. Neither one knew it, but they were both fighting back tears.
Berto burst out laughing. "Are you serious?" he managed to ask.
"Oh, yeah. He was the *worst* snowboarder Del Oro has ever seen when he first started. He may be an expert now, but I will never forget that first time he tried it. And that poor fence Uncle Jeff had to pay for. Ugh."
"And here I thought he was a natural at any sport there is."
"Most of them, yeah. But there's always an exception. In Josh's case, snowboarding."
"Excuse me," said a voice from behind Berto. He turned to see an attractive girl about his age looking down at him. "I was just wondering if you knew what time it is." She batted her eyelashes.
Mindy rolled her eyes. "Hello, Nalani," she said in a tone full of measured politness.
The girl glanced up. "Oh, Mindy. What a pleasant surprise." There was a hint of sarcasm in her voice. "I didn't know you were back in Del Oro. Visiting your cousin?"
"Among other things." Mindy debated telling her that she was moving back, but decided it would be more fun to see the shock on her arrogant face when she showed up at the university. Mindy was certain Nalani went there, despite the fact that the girl was a moron. Her father had connections and a lot of money, after all, as she just *loved* to point out to people. Something that had never impressed the McGraths.
Nalani turned her attention back to Berto. She flirted shamelessly. Mindy suspected that she had been recognized earlier and that Nalani had come over here with the sole purpose of taking Berto's attention away from her. She wasn't jealous or anything, just irritated.
"Um, excuse me," said Berto, "but, I was having a converstion with Mindy."
"Oh," she answered, glancing at Mindy. "Do you want to dance?" she asked, turning back to him.
Berto looked at her like she had grown a second head. He'd thought his hint had been clear.
"Ahem. I think what my friend here is trying to say is, we were having a private conversation." She emphasized the word private. "And for us to continue to do that, you would have to go somewhere that is *not* here. You know, as in away." Mindy maintained a mask of politness as she said this. She maintained the expression even when Nalani glared at her.
Berto was impressed. Most people would have gotten upset by now. Mindy had kept a cool head, though it was obvious that she and this girl were not friends. He had a feeling that this rivalry they seemed to have went *way* back.
"Well, when you're ready for some actual fun," she handed Berto a slip of paper, "give me a call." She walked away, making sure to swing her hips. Mindy was disgusted.
"Who the heck was *that*?" asked Berto.
"Del Oro's finest," she answered sarcastically. "A.K.A: rich snob who happens to hate me."
"Why does she hate you?"
"I don't know. I've never done anything to her. I guess she could hate me now because I wouldn't take her shit. I know her older brother hates Josh because Josh is better at everything than he is. Her, though... She could never stand the fact that I always had guys around me even though I was a tomboy and she was a child beauty contest winner. Most of those guys weren't the least bit interested in being more than friends, but she was too thick to notice that."
"She was jealous, huh?"
"Basically. Something else that always got to her was that her dad is rich and my family was always as broke as a two dollar watch. But since my uncle is one of the head honchos at N'Tek, me and Josh always got the latest sports equipment before it was even released to the public. Months ahead sometimes. She always had to be the first to have or do anything. I don't know what she was complaining about, she's always hated sports. And she sucks at them, too."
"Well, I won't be needing this." He crumpled the paper Nalani had given him and sat it on the table. Even if Mindy hadn't told him what that girl was like, he wouldn't have called.
Nalani watched from a distance. Her eyes widened as she saw Berto crumple the paper she had given him. Then her eyes narrowed. Didn't he know who she was? *No one* had ever turned her down like that before. Not only had she written down her number, she had given him her address, too, with a note that suggested he stop by and see her sometime. Her blood boiled. How could *Mindy McGrath*, the biggest tomboy Del Oro had ever seen, possibly get the attention of so many guys? Nalani wasn't blind. She saw how many guys looked at Mindy and obviously liked what they saw. She just didn't get it. Mindy was wearing only a little make-up, she wasn't showing much skin at all, and to top it all off, she was a freaking plus size! How could guys like her? Oh, well. Mindy might be oblivious to all the guys checking her out, but she seemed to be interested in the nerdy-looking, but cute, guy she was sitting with. Nalani was going to get him first. No matter what.
"Hey," said Josh as he and Laura came back to the table. "Was that Nalani Worthington that was just over here?"
"Unfortunatly," replied Mindy.
"What did *she* want?" asked Laura distastfully.
"She saw me talking to a guy and decided to come over and steal his attention away. By the way," she said turning back to Berto, "if she thinks we're interested in each other, she's going to go for the kill. I'd avoid her if I were you."
"Not a problem." He had spotted her out on the dance floor dancing like a stripper with some guy she'd probably just met. No way was he going near a girl like that. Especially if she gave her address to any guy who caught her eye. Who knew where she had been?
When everyone was sitting at the table, Mindy and Josh went to the bar and grabbed some sodas for everyone. Just as they were setting them down at the table, Nalani "accidentaly" bumped into Mindy from behind. Just hard enough to cause the soda she was holding to slosh all over her shirt. Mindy turned her blazing eyes to Nalani, who was walking away with a small smirk on her face. "Ooh, that girl is just asking for it," she said, dabbing at her shirt with a napkin. Well, better just her shirt than her pants. Mindy picked up her mini back-pack and headed for the ladies room. Kat and Laura followed.
"What was that bitch's problem?" asked Kat.
"She hates me because I used to have a lot of guy friends and I wouldn't fall for her "Do you know who I am?" crap. She hates Laura because she's always had a thing for Josh and Laura got him first. She probably hates you for the simple fact that you're hanging out with us," answered Mindy. "And to top it off, she's got her eyes on Berto, but when she hit on him, he told her he was talking to me."
"If she touches Berto, she is dead," stated Kat. Then she looked on, surprised, as Mindy pulled a tank top out of her back pack and changed into it. "You carry an extra shirt?"
"Well, I was afraid I might spill something on the other one by accident. I do that a lot."
As they walked back to the table, each girl was asked to dance at least once. When they got back, Josh stared at her new shirt and Nalani fumed at her own table. The shirt was black with smokey gray swirls going across it. It had silver glitter on it and hugged her figure more than the last shirt had. If it had been just a little looser, Josh wouldn't have minded as much, but it emphasized her hourglass figure and was drawing more attention from guys than he would have liked. At least she wasn't showing cleavage. "Where did that come from?" he asked.
"Always carry a spare," said Mindy.
Just then a familiar song came through the speakers. Footloose. They were all a little surprised since it was a pretty old song. But it was one of Mindy's favorites. She looked at Josh with puppy-dog eyes. The last thing he wanted was for her to work up a sweat in that shirt, but he would have an easier time fighting Psycho than that look she was giving him. He sighed in defeat. "Alright," he said. They went out on the dance floor.
Laura smiled. She remembered how Mindy had driven them crazy with this song and the movie. That was when Mindy had decided she wanted to be a dancer. None of them had argued with her because she was such a natural at it. She had often made Josh dance with her for practise, which had made him a pretty good dancer himself.
Nalani absolutly seethed as the crowd almost imeadiately formed a circle around Josh and Mindy. Determined to prove she was a better dancer, she grabbed a guy and headed out on the floor. To her dismay, people still watched the McGraths, even though she was wearing an eye-popping outfit and was doing all kinds of sexy moves. This wasn't fair! What infuriated her even more was that, despite the fact that she was dancing practically right in front of him, the guy with glasses was still watching Mindy and was obviously impressed with her skill.
Shortly after Nalani went out on the dance floor, Pete and Laura joined Josh and Mindy. Dancing was something Pete was actually good at. The four made a very impressive team.
When the song ended, almost everyone appluaded. Josh and Pete both bowed. Laura and Mindy started to walk away, but the boys made them take a bow as well. Both girls were a little embarrased by the catcalls and whistles that accompanied them as they left the dance floor. The look Nalani was giving them was not lost on them. None of them could help feeling just a little smug, even Pete. Nalani was one of the few girls in town that even he wouldn't touch.
"Josh, you didn't tell us you could dance," scolded Kat.
"You never asked."
"And you," She said, turning to Mindy, "where did you learn to dance like that?"
"I had a couple of lessons when I was younger. Mostly learned from watching other people."
"Only a couple of lessons? And you're that good?"
Mindy blushed. "I'm not that good," she insisted. "I would have taken more lessons, but money was kind of tight, so... Besides, the dance workouts I do are good enough for me." A flash of red caught her eye then. She looked over and saw the guy from the fair. He dissapeared quickly, but she was sure it was him. And he had been watching her again. This couldn't be a coincidence. "Excuse me," she said, abruptly standing and heading for the restrooms. As she went in she saw that her pursuer was discretly following her. Trying not to panic, she reached for the pin Max had given her. Her fingers felt only her shirt.
She did panic then. Where was it? Had she lost it on the dance floor somewhere? No, wait. She had left it on her other shirt. She pulled the still damp, folded as small as possible shirt out of her pack. Carefully she removed the pin and went into one of the stalls, away from the other women. Mindy activated the signal.
Josh heard the signal through his bio-link. He quickly excused himself from everyone and went out into the alley behind the club. After making sure he was alone, he changed into Max and slipped back inside. He headed to the restrooms, knowing that's where Mindy was. There were two guys waiting outside the ladies room. One of them might be waiting for Mindy. He amplified his sight and looked carefully at them. One of them had what appeared to be a hearing aid.
"Max?" The voice almost made him jump. "Max, are you there? What am I doing? You probably can't talk to me through this thing anyway. If you can hear me, I think there's a guy following me. He's wearing a red baseball hat and I've been seeing him all day. I'm not sure he's one of the guys you said were after me, but I don't have a good feeling about him."
The guy with the "hearing aid" had a red cap on. Upon closer examination, Max could see that was no hearing aid. Before he even knew what hit him, Max had dragged the guy outside. Once he started to register what had happened, he looked at his attacker. "Steel," he growled.
He rushed him, but Max knocked him out quickly. He looked at the guy, who was now laying in a pile of trash bags. What kind of idiot wore bright, flashy colors when they were tailing someone? Anyone who did that was just *begging* to be caught. Max used his bio-link to call for the guy to be picked up. Impatiently, he waited for help to arrive. He wanted to let Mindy know that the situation was taken care of. He realized he had spotted this guy several times at the fair, but hadn't thought much of it. He felt like such an ass. He should have paid more attention. This guy could've taken off with Mindy because he wasn't being cautios enough.
After a few minutes, Mindy ventured out of the bathroom. Her stalker was gone. Quickly, she went back to the table. The first thing she noticed was Josh wasn't there. She guessed he was in the bathroom. Kat and Pete were missing, too. "Hey," she said. "Where is everyone?"
"I have no idea where Josh went, but..." Laura pointed to where Kat and Pete were dancing.
When the song ended, another slow song came on. Pete noticed Mindy sitting down and started to make his way over. Mindy saw him coming and quickly turned to Berto. "Do you want to dance?"
"Oh, no thanks. I can't really-" Mindy cut him off by abruptly grabbing his arm and dragging him out on the dance floor. "No, Mindy, really. I can't dance very well."
"It's not so hard. Look, just put your hand on my waist." She moved his hand to her waist. "Now, take my other hand. Yeah, like that. And you're all set." Berto started to move, a bit akwardly, to the music. Nervously, he watched his feet. "No, if you look at your feet the whole time, you might get thrown off. Look at my face. And relax." Reluctantly, he obeyed. "See, you're doing fine," she told him a moment later. Surprised, Berto realized that he hadn't stepped on her even once, and it was more than a minute into the song.
Nalani watched them dancing. "Can you *believe* that slut?" she asked one of her friends. "Look at the way she's throwing herself at him." Her friends nodded in agreement, even though Mindy wasn't throwing herself at him at all. "She is just so wrong for him." Max walked back in and went past them, stopping a few feet away to scan the crowd for his friends. "Oh, maybe this night can be salvaged after all," said Nalani, eyeing him up and down. She started toward him, but he moved over to the table where Laura was sitting. He spoke to her for a moment, then Laura pointed to where Mindy and Berto were dancing. Max thanked her and went over to them.
"May I cut in?" he asked. Berto nodded, somewhat dissapointed. He had been doing so well.
"Well, at least we know the transmitter works," said Mindy as they began to dance.
"Of course it does. You know, being able to talk to you through it isn't such a bad idea. Just so you know, I took care of that guy who was tailing you. You were right, he was after you."
She let out a shakey breath. "I'm not completely safe anywhere, am I?"
He shook his head. "I'm so sorry this had to happen to you Mindy. We still don't know for sure what they want you for, but we're working on it."
Nalani watched, eyes blazing. If looks could kill, Mindy would have dropped dead a while ago. It wasn't fair! What was it about her that attracted guys? After the song ended, Max headed back the way he had come. Nalani tried to catch his eye, but he walked right past her and out the door. She couldn't believe it! Two guys had rejected her tonight! For Mindy McGrath to top it all off! What was the world coming to?!
Laura was pretty quiet as Josh drove her and Pete home. Max had showed up looking for Mindy earlier. It was kind of wierd that Josh was never around when Max was. *Really* weird, actually. Once he had talked to Mindy, he had left. Then Josh had come back, saying he'd been getting some fresh air. She was starting to see what Mindy was talking about. They were a bit alike. A brief, totally insane thought crossed her mind. What if...?
She nearly laughed out loud. That was just stupid! More than stupid, it was completey ludicrous! Max and Josh being the same person. How dumb could you get?
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Whew! Long chapter.
Okay, I just *had* to do that. I mean, come on. If you were in Laura's position would you want to believe something like that? Come on, tell the truth. I felt Mindy needed her own enemies, not just Max's. And just for the record, I have nothing against plus sizes. I am one myself. In fact, most women are and just don't know it. If you wear a size 9 or up, you are a plus size. And plus size does not mean fat, as most people believe. I'd like to thank the people who voted on a song. Thank you for your help. And then there's one person, who can pucker up and kiss it. o\/o It's not like you have exclusive rights to that song *honey*. I almost used the song just because she told me not to. But I felt that would be unfair to those who have been so supportive of my story and were nice enough to vote. I did, however, count it as a vote for that song. Be warned, I don't take kindly to people telling me what I can and can't do. Having you guys vote to help me out is one thing, being told "I already used it so you can't" is another thing entirely. Now, the reason I *did* use the song was this. I had a tie between it and From This Moment On. Since it's been almost a month, I read the votes looking for a tie-breaker instead of waiting longer. Only one person gave me a reason why they wanted the song they voted for and it was a good reason. So, that is the song I used. Now there wouldn't have been a tie if someone hadn't told me to find a different song, so if you don't like the song I used, you can thank her for it.
Rhiannon Faylinn
Stuff between ~ ~ is song lyrics
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"Well?"
"She hasn't been alone all day," replied the man in the baseball cap. "There's always at least one N'Tek agent with her."
"One N'Tek agent shouldn't be a problem," answered the voice harshly over the earpiece.
"It's not only that, there are always too many people around. I'll keep following them, but I doubt there's going to be much of a chance to get her today. Besides, you said she's not an essential part of the plan."
"No, she's not, but insurance would be nice. She's Steel's only cousin and like a niece to Smith. And I'd hate to be the one to have to explain to Dread why we have to proceed without the backup plan."
"Alright, point taken. I'll keep trying, but no guarentee."
After the fair and air show, Kat suggested going dancing. And Mindy and Laura thought it was a great idea, much to Josh's chargin. He wanted Mindy home and safe. However, resistance was futile. So, off they headed to a club that admitted people under 21. They couldn't go to the nightclub Kat had first suggested, since all of them except her were underage.
Berto couldn't *believe* his day. How was it that he'd been talked into spending the day somewhere he didn't want to go in the first place and had now been talked into going out for what would probably be a late night at a dance club? Oh, yeah, Josh and Kat had ganged up on him. Why were they doing this to him? He'd tried to point out that he hadn't agreed to going anywhere other than the fair. When that didn't work, he'd tried pointing out that he couldn't dance to save his life. They didn't listen.
Once inside, they managed to find a table they could all sit at. Josh had to grab a couple of chairs from other tables first, but it didn't take long to get settled. Not long after, Kat got asked to dance. Laura went out on the dance floor next. Mindy just prayed that someone would ask her to dance before Pete did. No such luck. Pete asked, and it was kind of hard to tell someone you didn't want to dance when they already knew how much you loved dancing. So she reluctantly went out on the dance floor with him, giving Josh a death glare when he stiffled a smile.
"Now," said Berto the second he and Josh were alone at the table, "explain to me again why I *had* to come along tonight?"
"I told you, I want her to be as safe as possible today."
"Then you should've made her call it a night."
"Couldn't. Kat mentioned dancing."
"So?"
"That's pretty much her favorite activity. Believe me, if I thought I could have talked her into going home, I would have tried."
"She doesn't look like she's enjoying herself," said Berto, looking over to where she and Pete were dancing.
"That's because she's dancing with Pete. He's been after her since she got here and she doesn't want anything to do with him like that. I just hope he get's that she's *not* playing hard to get soon, or he may get hurt."
As soon as the song ended, Mindy headed back to the table before Pete could ask her for another dance. All these other girls, one of whom might actually like him, and he's still going after me. Oh, yeah, *this* is fair, she thought. Luckily, a girl asked him to dance before he could follow her all the way back to the table. Mindy breathed a sigh of relief as she plopped down into her chair. Maybe he would decide it was too much trouble to pursue her and stick with one of the girls he would meet tonight.
"Having fun?" asked Josh.
"Not yet, but the night is young." Glancing through the crowd, something caught her eye. It looked like a baseball cap. She tensed and looked again, but it was gone. Could it be that guy from the fair? She had spotted him several times today. Was he following them? She looked down at the pin Max had given her. Since she wasn't sure she'd actually seen the guy and he really hadn't done anything, she refrained from activating it.
When everyone was back at the table, except Kat and Pete, a slow song came on. Josh swallowed painfully as he recognized it. It was I Don't Want To Miss A Thing by Aerosmith. His and Laura's song. He stole a look at Laura. She was looking out at the dance floor. Josh wondered if she would want to dance with him.
Mindy cleared her throat. When Josh looked at her, her eyes darted to Laura then back to him. She gave him a meaningful look. He hesitated. A small grunt of pain escaped his lips when she kicked him under the table. He stood and asked Laura to dance and she went willingly onto the dance floor with him.
Berto cleared his throat to get her to look at him. "Is there some reason you have been trying to set them up all day?"
"Yes."
"And that would be...?"
"Because I want them to be happy. And the happiest I've ever seen them was when they were together. Is it that obvious what I'm doing?"
"Oh, yeah."
"Well, subtlty was never one of my virtues. I should really work on that," she said with a smile. "Of course, you probably already knew that since Josh has, no doubt, told you every single detail about me."
"Well, I don't know about *every* detail," said Berto. "Just enough so that everyone at work has been wondering what's so great about his cousin for him to adore her so much."
Mindy's cheeks reddened slightly. "What, *exactly*, has he told you?"
"A lot of interesting things. I have some questions about some of it."
"What do you want to know?"
"Well, first off, did you really break Pete's nose?"
"I did," she admitted with a hint of shame in her voice. "But he deserved it. He tripped me into a fountain in the middle of the mall. I might have over-reacted a little, but he's never tried to pull something like that on me, or anyone else, ever again."
He let out a laugh. "Kind of ironic, don't you think," he commented, "that he's now got a crush on you."
"I guess. However, ironic is not the word I would use to describe it."
"Do I even want to know how you would describe it?"
"Probably not. What else do you want to know?"
~ I could stay awake just to hear you breathing ~ Watch you smile while you are sleeping ~
~ While you're far away and dreaming ~ I could spend my life in this sweet surrender ~
~ I could stay lost in this moment forever ~ Well, every moment spent with you ~
~ Is a moment I treasure ~
Josh couldn't help but think how perfectly that described his feelings for Laura. How many times had they danced to this song before the incident with Rachel? How long did he take it for granted that they would always be together? He remembered that they had promised to never dance with anyone else when this song played. He'd kept his end of that bargin. Had she?
It was strange to be dancing in his arms again. They weren't dancing like they used to, holding each other like they never wanted to let go. There was a respectful amount of distance between them. Still, it felt wierd. She remembered a promise they had made a long time ago. She'd kept the promise, even though it was pretty much voided the day he cheated on her. It just didn't feel right to dance with someone else while their old song played, even if they weren't together anymore.
~ I don't wanna close my eyes ~ I don't wanna fall asleep ~
~ 'Cause I'd miss you, baby ~ And I don't want to miss a thing ~
~ 'Cause even when I dream of you ~ The sweetest dream would never do ~
~ I'd still miss you, baby ~ And I don't want to miss a thing ~
Somehow, Laura ended up with her head leaning against his shoulder. His cheek rested on her hair. Neither one knew it, but they were both fighting back tears.
Berto burst out laughing. "Are you serious?" he managed to ask.
"Oh, yeah. He was the *worst* snowboarder Del Oro has ever seen when he first started. He may be an expert now, but I will never forget that first time he tried it. And that poor fence Uncle Jeff had to pay for. Ugh."
"And here I thought he was a natural at any sport there is."
"Most of them, yeah. But there's always an exception. In Josh's case, snowboarding."
"Excuse me," said a voice from behind Berto. He turned to see an attractive girl about his age looking down at him. "I was just wondering if you knew what time it is." She batted her eyelashes.
Mindy rolled her eyes. "Hello, Nalani," she said in a tone full of measured politness.
The girl glanced up. "Oh, Mindy. What a pleasant surprise." There was a hint of sarcasm in her voice. "I didn't know you were back in Del Oro. Visiting your cousin?"
"Among other things." Mindy debated telling her that she was moving back, but decided it would be more fun to see the shock on her arrogant face when she showed up at the university. Mindy was certain Nalani went there, despite the fact that the girl was a moron. Her father had connections and a lot of money, after all, as she just *loved* to point out to people. Something that had never impressed the McGraths.
Nalani turned her attention back to Berto. She flirted shamelessly. Mindy suspected that she had been recognized earlier and that Nalani had come over here with the sole purpose of taking Berto's attention away from her. She wasn't jealous or anything, just irritated.
"Um, excuse me," said Berto, "but, I was having a converstion with Mindy."
"Oh," she answered, glancing at Mindy. "Do you want to dance?" she asked, turning back to him.
Berto looked at her like she had grown a second head. He'd thought his hint had been clear.
"Ahem. I think what my friend here is trying to say is, we were having a private conversation." She emphasized the word private. "And for us to continue to do that, you would have to go somewhere that is *not* here. You know, as in away." Mindy maintained a mask of politness as she said this. She maintained the expression even when Nalani glared at her.
Berto was impressed. Most people would have gotten upset by now. Mindy had kept a cool head, though it was obvious that she and this girl were not friends. He had a feeling that this rivalry they seemed to have went *way* back.
"Well, when you're ready for some actual fun," she handed Berto a slip of paper, "give me a call." She walked away, making sure to swing her hips. Mindy was disgusted.
"Who the heck was *that*?" asked Berto.
"Del Oro's finest," she answered sarcastically. "A.K.A: rich snob who happens to hate me."
"Why does she hate you?"
"I don't know. I've never done anything to her. I guess she could hate me now because I wouldn't take her shit. I know her older brother hates Josh because Josh is better at everything than he is. Her, though... She could never stand the fact that I always had guys around me even though I was a tomboy and she was a child beauty contest winner. Most of those guys weren't the least bit interested in being more than friends, but she was too thick to notice that."
"She was jealous, huh?"
"Basically. Something else that always got to her was that her dad is rich and my family was always as broke as a two dollar watch. But since my uncle is one of the head honchos at N'Tek, me and Josh always got the latest sports equipment before it was even released to the public. Months ahead sometimes. She always had to be the first to have or do anything. I don't know what she was complaining about, she's always hated sports. And she sucks at them, too."
"Well, I won't be needing this." He crumpled the paper Nalani had given him and sat it on the table. Even if Mindy hadn't told him what that girl was like, he wouldn't have called.
Nalani watched from a distance. Her eyes widened as she saw Berto crumple the paper she had given him. Then her eyes narrowed. Didn't he know who she was? *No one* had ever turned her down like that before. Not only had she written down her number, she had given him her address, too, with a note that suggested he stop by and see her sometime. Her blood boiled. How could *Mindy McGrath*, the biggest tomboy Del Oro had ever seen, possibly get the attention of so many guys? Nalani wasn't blind. She saw how many guys looked at Mindy and obviously liked what they saw. She just didn't get it. Mindy was wearing only a little make-up, she wasn't showing much skin at all, and to top it all off, she was a freaking plus size! How could guys like her? Oh, well. Mindy might be oblivious to all the guys checking her out, but she seemed to be interested in the nerdy-looking, but cute, guy she was sitting with. Nalani was going to get him first. No matter what.
"Hey," said Josh as he and Laura came back to the table. "Was that Nalani Worthington that was just over here?"
"Unfortunatly," replied Mindy.
"What did *she* want?" asked Laura distastfully.
"She saw me talking to a guy and decided to come over and steal his attention away. By the way," she said turning back to Berto, "if she thinks we're interested in each other, she's going to go for the kill. I'd avoid her if I were you."
"Not a problem." He had spotted her out on the dance floor dancing like a stripper with some guy she'd probably just met. No way was he going near a girl like that. Especially if she gave her address to any guy who caught her eye. Who knew where she had been?
When everyone was sitting at the table, Mindy and Josh went to the bar and grabbed some sodas for everyone. Just as they were setting them down at the table, Nalani "accidentaly" bumped into Mindy from behind. Just hard enough to cause the soda she was holding to slosh all over her shirt. Mindy turned her blazing eyes to Nalani, who was walking away with a small smirk on her face. "Ooh, that girl is just asking for it," she said, dabbing at her shirt with a napkin. Well, better just her shirt than her pants. Mindy picked up her mini back-pack and headed for the ladies room. Kat and Laura followed.
"What was that bitch's problem?" asked Kat.
"She hates me because I used to have a lot of guy friends and I wouldn't fall for her "Do you know who I am?" crap. She hates Laura because she's always had a thing for Josh and Laura got him first. She probably hates you for the simple fact that you're hanging out with us," answered Mindy. "And to top it off, she's got her eyes on Berto, but when she hit on him, he told her he was talking to me."
"If she touches Berto, she is dead," stated Kat. Then she looked on, surprised, as Mindy pulled a tank top out of her back pack and changed into it. "You carry an extra shirt?"
"Well, I was afraid I might spill something on the other one by accident. I do that a lot."
As they walked back to the table, each girl was asked to dance at least once. When they got back, Josh stared at her new shirt and Nalani fumed at her own table. The shirt was black with smokey gray swirls going across it. It had silver glitter on it and hugged her figure more than the last shirt had. If it had been just a little looser, Josh wouldn't have minded as much, but it emphasized her hourglass figure and was drawing more attention from guys than he would have liked. At least she wasn't showing cleavage. "Where did that come from?" he asked.
"Always carry a spare," said Mindy.
Just then a familiar song came through the speakers. Footloose. They were all a little surprised since it was a pretty old song. But it was one of Mindy's favorites. She looked at Josh with puppy-dog eyes. The last thing he wanted was for her to work up a sweat in that shirt, but he would have an easier time fighting Psycho than that look she was giving him. He sighed in defeat. "Alright," he said. They went out on the dance floor.
Laura smiled. She remembered how Mindy had driven them crazy with this song and the movie. That was when Mindy had decided she wanted to be a dancer. None of them had argued with her because she was such a natural at it. She had often made Josh dance with her for practise, which had made him a pretty good dancer himself.
Nalani absolutly seethed as the crowd almost imeadiately formed a circle around Josh and Mindy. Determined to prove she was a better dancer, she grabbed a guy and headed out on the floor. To her dismay, people still watched the McGraths, even though she was wearing an eye-popping outfit and was doing all kinds of sexy moves. This wasn't fair! What infuriated her even more was that, despite the fact that she was dancing practically right in front of him, the guy with glasses was still watching Mindy and was obviously impressed with her skill.
Shortly after Nalani went out on the dance floor, Pete and Laura joined Josh and Mindy. Dancing was something Pete was actually good at. The four made a very impressive team.
When the song ended, almost everyone appluaded. Josh and Pete both bowed. Laura and Mindy started to walk away, but the boys made them take a bow as well. Both girls were a little embarrased by the catcalls and whistles that accompanied them as they left the dance floor. The look Nalani was giving them was not lost on them. None of them could help feeling just a little smug, even Pete. Nalani was one of the few girls in town that even he wouldn't touch.
"Josh, you didn't tell us you could dance," scolded Kat.
"You never asked."
"And you," She said, turning to Mindy, "where did you learn to dance like that?"
"I had a couple of lessons when I was younger. Mostly learned from watching other people."
"Only a couple of lessons? And you're that good?"
Mindy blushed. "I'm not that good," she insisted. "I would have taken more lessons, but money was kind of tight, so... Besides, the dance workouts I do are good enough for me." A flash of red caught her eye then. She looked over and saw the guy from the fair. He dissapeared quickly, but she was sure it was him. And he had been watching her again. This couldn't be a coincidence. "Excuse me," she said, abruptly standing and heading for the restrooms. As she went in she saw that her pursuer was discretly following her. Trying not to panic, she reached for the pin Max had given her. Her fingers felt only her shirt.
She did panic then. Where was it? Had she lost it on the dance floor somewhere? No, wait. She had left it on her other shirt. She pulled the still damp, folded as small as possible shirt out of her pack. Carefully she removed the pin and went into one of the stalls, away from the other women. Mindy activated the signal.
Josh heard the signal through his bio-link. He quickly excused himself from everyone and went out into the alley behind the club. After making sure he was alone, he changed into Max and slipped back inside. He headed to the restrooms, knowing that's where Mindy was. There were two guys waiting outside the ladies room. One of them might be waiting for Mindy. He amplified his sight and looked carefully at them. One of them had what appeared to be a hearing aid.
"Max?" The voice almost made him jump. "Max, are you there? What am I doing? You probably can't talk to me through this thing anyway. If you can hear me, I think there's a guy following me. He's wearing a red baseball hat and I've been seeing him all day. I'm not sure he's one of the guys you said were after me, but I don't have a good feeling about him."
The guy with the "hearing aid" had a red cap on. Upon closer examination, Max could see that was no hearing aid. Before he even knew what hit him, Max had dragged the guy outside. Once he started to register what had happened, he looked at his attacker. "Steel," he growled.
He rushed him, but Max knocked him out quickly. He looked at the guy, who was now laying in a pile of trash bags. What kind of idiot wore bright, flashy colors when they were tailing someone? Anyone who did that was just *begging* to be caught. Max used his bio-link to call for the guy to be picked up. Impatiently, he waited for help to arrive. He wanted to let Mindy know that the situation was taken care of. He realized he had spotted this guy several times at the fair, but hadn't thought much of it. He felt like such an ass. He should have paid more attention. This guy could've taken off with Mindy because he wasn't being cautios enough.
After a few minutes, Mindy ventured out of the bathroom. Her stalker was gone. Quickly, she went back to the table. The first thing she noticed was Josh wasn't there. She guessed he was in the bathroom. Kat and Pete were missing, too. "Hey," she said. "Where is everyone?"
"I have no idea where Josh went, but..." Laura pointed to where Kat and Pete were dancing.
When the song ended, another slow song came on. Pete noticed Mindy sitting down and started to make his way over. Mindy saw him coming and quickly turned to Berto. "Do you want to dance?"
"Oh, no thanks. I can't really-" Mindy cut him off by abruptly grabbing his arm and dragging him out on the dance floor. "No, Mindy, really. I can't dance very well."
"It's not so hard. Look, just put your hand on my waist." She moved his hand to her waist. "Now, take my other hand. Yeah, like that. And you're all set." Berto started to move, a bit akwardly, to the music. Nervously, he watched his feet. "No, if you look at your feet the whole time, you might get thrown off. Look at my face. And relax." Reluctantly, he obeyed. "See, you're doing fine," she told him a moment later. Surprised, Berto realized that he hadn't stepped on her even once, and it was more than a minute into the song.
Nalani watched them dancing. "Can you *believe* that slut?" she asked one of her friends. "Look at the way she's throwing herself at him." Her friends nodded in agreement, even though Mindy wasn't throwing herself at him at all. "She is just so wrong for him." Max walked back in and went past them, stopping a few feet away to scan the crowd for his friends. "Oh, maybe this night can be salvaged after all," said Nalani, eyeing him up and down. She started toward him, but he moved over to the table where Laura was sitting. He spoke to her for a moment, then Laura pointed to where Mindy and Berto were dancing. Max thanked her and went over to them.
"May I cut in?" he asked. Berto nodded, somewhat dissapointed. He had been doing so well.
"Well, at least we know the transmitter works," said Mindy as they began to dance.
"Of course it does. You know, being able to talk to you through it isn't such a bad idea. Just so you know, I took care of that guy who was tailing you. You were right, he was after you."
She let out a shakey breath. "I'm not completely safe anywhere, am I?"
He shook his head. "I'm so sorry this had to happen to you Mindy. We still don't know for sure what they want you for, but we're working on it."
Nalani watched, eyes blazing. If looks could kill, Mindy would have dropped dead a while ago. It wasn't fair! What was it about her that attracted guys? After the song ended, Max headed back the way he had come. Nalani tried to catch his eye, but he walked right past her and out the door. She couldn't believe it! Two guys had rejected her tonight! For Mindy McGrath to top it all off! What was the world coming to?!
Laura was pretty quiet as Josh drove her and Pete home. Max had showed up looking for Mindy earlier. It was kind of wierd that Josh was never around when Max was. *Really* weird, actually. Once he had talked to Mindy, he had left. Then Josh had come back, saying he'd been getting some fresh air. She was starting to see what Mindy was talking about. They were a bit alike. A brief, totally insane thought crossed her mind. What if...?
She nearly laughed out loud. That was just stupid! More than stupid, it was completey ludicrous! Max and Josh being the same person. How dumb could you get?
_______________________________________________________________________
Whew! Long chapter.
Okay, I just *had* to do that. I mean, come on. If you were in Laura's position would you want to believe something like that? Come on, tell the truth. I felt Mindy needed her own enemies, not just Max's. And just for the record, I have nothing against plus sizes. I am one myself. In fact, most women are and just don't know it. If you wear a size 9 or up, you are a plus size. And plus size does not mean fat, as most people believe. I'd like to thank the people who voted on a song. Thank you for your help. And then there's one person, who can pucker up and kiss it. o\/o It's not like you have exclusive rights to that song *honey*. I almost used the song just because she told me not to. But I felt that would be unfair to those who have been so supportive of my story and were nice enough to vote. I did, however, count it as a vote for that song. Be warned, I don't take kindly to people telling me what I can and can't do. Having you guys vote to help me out is one thing, being told "I already used it so you can't" is another thing entirely. Now, the reason I *did* use the song was this. I had a tie between it and From This Moment On. Since it's been almost a month, I read the votes looking for a tie-breaker instead of waiting longer. Only one person gave me a reason why they wanted the song they voted for and it was a good reason. So, that is the song I used. Now there wouldn't have been a tie if someone hadn't told me to find a different song, so if you don't like the song I used, you can thank her for it.
Rhiannon Faylinn