Here's chapter 6!
Shoutouts
Thumbsucker Snitch – Tell Sita I'll sik SuperHyper!Dutchy on her if she doesn't read. Wow! I have a fangirl…that makes me happy beyond belief…one question, though…who is Ellen? I wanna hug her.
Eagle Higgins-Conlon – Pie liking Snitch? Nah, sorry…just friends there. However, if you keep your eye on Pie and Itey…
Saturday – Glad you like the detail. I included it for a reason. And yes, if you knew Pie's sisters, you'd COMPLETELY understand why he ended up gay.
Matchin' Laces – If you have ideas for slash stories, then write slash stories! We wanna read 'em!
Alexandria Duncan – It's killing you? YAY! ……….You? Doe eyes? Pshaw.
Erin Go Bragh – Aw, I'm glad I could make your day! And believe me…I was a marching band kid in high school too. I know EXACTLY what you're talkin' about. Like our trombonists saying stuff like "Feel free to touch my boner anytime." I loved the trombonists…but anyway. I love the Cavaliers!
Hepheastion – Your mom too? Aw, poor lady! Give her a hug for me!
Oxymoronic Alliteration – Wow…thanks a lot. Handcuffs? Condoms? The closet? Snittery? Now I have to go take a cold shower. Pshaw.
Cynic – You're not forgiven. Who are you, to think I would forgive you for THAT? I will drag you through campus tied to the back of my bike and sacrifice you to Frog Baby.
SarBear22 – I'm attempting to revert to my older days when I was known as Dakota Jones, Mistress of Suspense and Queen of Updates. I've been lurking, so I'm making up for it now.
I went to the Atrium, one of the closest places to eat, and I quickly spotted Itey sitting at his usual perch. He always sat at one of the tables for two on the edge of the upper level, overlooking the whole cafeteria and a beautiful view out the glass to the outside just past that.
I got my food and sat down with him, smiling but not saying anything. Itey is normally pretty quiet, and if he's in one of his 'contemplative moods', you really don't want to get him started.
"I heard about what happened," he said after a minute or so of silence.
I rolled my eyes. "What, is Specs telling everyone?"
"He told Dutchy."
"That counts as telling everyone."
He laughed and picked at his salad a little. "Well…are you gonna try and talk to him about it?"
I considered the question for a moment. If I told Itey about the note, he'd tell Specs or Dutchy, and then everyone would end up knowing. That would make it very likely that Spot would bust out his beloved video camera and hide in the bushes near Frog Baby; I didn't doubt that he'd tape every word and show it to anyone who was interested.
So, I opted to just not mention the note.
"Eventually I might."
Itey nodded. He opened his mouth as if to say something, hesitated, and then finally spoke. "When's Pie gonna be back from class?"
I grinned mischievously. "Does somebody have a crush?"
"No, I just wanna talk to him again…"
"Sure," I said, winking at him. "Sorry, but he has classes till 6:30, and then he goes to work at 7. Won't be back until after one in the morning."
He nodded again, looking quite disappointed. I really wanted to be able to say something to cheer him up, but the truth was, I didn't want to get his hopes up. Even if Pie liked him back, there was that whole situation with Pie's scholarships…it just wouldn't work.
I looked outside and realized that it looked like it was about to rain. That was really bad for me, since I didn't bring an umbrella or a jacket.
We were silent for another few minutes, barely eating but not talking either. And then Itey looked up at me with a smile. "Hey…my brother's birthday party is tomorrow night at his frat house. You're welcome to come if you want."
"A frat house? Wouldn't it be better described as a 'kegger' instead of a 'party'?"
He smiled even more and shrugged. "Come on, Snitch…you can't go through your freshman year of college and not go to a single kegger. Specs and Dutchy are going, and so is Spot."
"Dutchy and alcohol? That's not a good mix…"
"But it'll be fun! Come on…at least come for a few minutes and hang out. You don't have to drink."
Now, this was peer pressure personified. But it couldn't hurt to drop by for a few minutes and just make sure none of my friends were getting completely smashed, right?
"Alright, I'll drop by. I probably won't stay, though."
"Awesome!" He said, and he told me where the party would be at, and then I finished my lunch and quickly left. I had to get to German class.
I was sitting by Frog Baby at seven o'clock on the dot, working on my German assignment in the fading sunlight. I was nervous, but at least trying to concentrate on a foreign language was somewhat getting my mind off it.
And thank God the rain had held off. I was only hoping it would hold off just a little longer. I pulled my jacket tighter around me and shivered as a breeze blew against me.
"Snitch?"
I looked up and Skittery was standing there, his hands shoved in his pockets and his already unruly hair being tousled even more by the wind. I closed my German book and shoved it in my backpack, smiling up at him.
"Hey."
Cue awkward silence.
"So…you wanted to talk to me?" He asked, and I raised an eyebrow.
"No, uh…I came cause you left that note on my door, dude."
"What note? I got a note from you…"
Oh, no. This wasn't even happening. It couldn't be.
But then I remembered that first day in Astronomy, when Specs accused me of being smitten. He'd asked where Skittery dotted his I's, and I'd told him…
A little to the left.
"Those bastards," I snapped, and Skittery shifted his weight nervously.
"What's going on?"
"We got set up, Skitts."
He looked surprised, but I knew I didn't. I should've expected it from the start. I stood up and looked around for the red blinking light on Spot's camera.
"Where are you, huh? You enjoying this?!" I yelled at them, knowing they were there somewhere, I just didn't know where. Then, I felt a hand on my shoulder.
"Calm down. It's not a big deal," Skittery said, and I turned to face him. "I, uh…I wanted to talk to you anyway."
I eyed him suspiciously for a moment, but then I nodded. "Yeah…I guess I wanted to talk to you too."
"I'm sorry about kicking you out like that. I mean…I should've at least helped you with the rest of the assignment."
I snorted and threw my hands up in the air. "Is that all you're worried about? The damn assignment?!"
He cringed at the tone of my voice, but I was pissed and I wanted him to know it. "I…well, no, but…"
"Look, Skitts, it's great that you want to help me pass Astronomy, but that has nothing to do with why we're here. You kissed me back, damnit, and then you go and kick me out?!"
"I know!" He yelled right back, the first time I'd ever heard him raise his voice. It certainly shut me up, that's for sure. "I know, okay! And I'm sorry!"
When I spoke this time, it was much quieter, my fists clenched at my sides. "So that's it? You just want to say 'I'm sorry', and let that be it?"
"That's all it can be."
Hearing him say that was as bad as if he'd punched me in the gut. I stood there for a moment, staring him down, and then I forced down any hint of tears and turned away, shaking my head.
"Fine. You know what? That's fine. It's not my fault you can't be yourself," I said as I pulled on my backpack.
"What's that supposed to mean?" He asked, his tone dangerous.
I practically laughed as I walked back to him, getting within a foot of him. "Doin' everything for your dad, aren't you? You don't want to be a doctor, anyone can tell. But you're gonna earn that degree, because it's what Daddy wants. And you know what? Daddy wants you to be straight, so, surprise surprise, you're gonna be straight. You don't even fucking know what you want."
"That's not true!" He screamed, shoving me backwards. I stumbled and almost went into the fountain, but managed to keep my balance.
"Whatever. You watch…you're gonna be miserable the rest of your life. And you'll have no one to blame but yourself because you don't have the guts to do what your heart tells you to."
I turned and walked away just as rain began to fall into Frog Baby's pond, unable to hold back my tears any longer.
I skipped English class the next morning. The last person I wanted to see was Skittery, certainly not the day after the fight at the fountain. I went through all my other classes in a daze, confused, hurt, and angry.
And by the time evening came, I decided to go to that party. I was willing to do anything that might help me get my mind off the situation I was in.
Just as I'd suspected, it was a full blown kegger. People were already spilling out onto the front steps, beers in hand, laughing drunkenly. I pushed past them and went inside, hoping to find one of my friends somewhere in the mess. Not that I would've been able to talk to them; the music was so loud that I could barely hear myself think.
I spotted Dutchy and Specs through the crowd, but decided not to bother them, considering they were quite busy with each other on the sofa.
"Hey there."
I turned around and found myself face to face with Jack Kelly, one of the senior members of the frat house I was in. He smiled and handed me a plastic cup with punch in it, and I smiled, glad to see someone who wasn't completely plastered.
"Hey."
"What brings you here?" He asked. I smelled the drink he'd handed me, but it didn't smell weird or anything, so I went ahead and took a drink.
"I'm a friend of Itey's. You seen him?" I asked, having to shout over the music.
"No, man, I haven't yet. You having fun?" He asked as I took another drink.
"Only been here a couple minutes," I said, and within minutes we were having a conversation.
Also within minutes, I was beginning to feel a bit confused. Lightheaded. But at the same time, it wasn't a bad feeling, so I shrugged it off.
Jack's eyes studied me carefully, which should've made me uncomfortable, but for some reason it didn't. Then he grabbed my hand, tugging me through the people.
"Come on, let's get you out of this crowd. You're lookin' a little flushed," he said, and I was too dazed to really object. He led me through the kitchen, and once we got to the stairs I got the vague feeling that something was wrong. That I shouldn't be going with him.
But I was too dizzy and confused to ask where we were going or why. I just…indifferently followed him. It felt as if I couldn't fight him.
Soon he had me up the stairs and pressed up against the wall, and I felt his lips on my neck, kissing and biting my skin. I tried to push him away, but my hands just wouldn't move that forcefully, and he was just too strong.
"No…stop it," I demanded, but it came out weak and shaky. And just a few seconds later, he pushed me into an empty bedroom and shoved me on the bed. The room was spinning around me, and I couldn't figure out what was going on.
Just as he finished unbuttoning my shirt I heard the door open, but I was too weak to turn my head and see who it was. I lay there panting, still weakly protesting.
"You BASTARD!" I heard a voice yell, and then someone punched Jack and sent him to the floor. I heard a few more thuds, but I couldn't concentrate on what was going on…the whole thing seemed so distant…
"Snitch? You okay?"
Something finally clicked. I realized that it was Skittery standing by me, buttoning up my shirt, looking at me with concern written plainly on all his features.
I really wanted to talk, but not only could my brain not form words, but I couldn't remember what I wanted to say. I couldn't remember where I was, who I was with, who I was…anything.
As Skittery lifted me off the bed into his arms, the whole world faded to white, then black.
Um…I think I have a new muse, people. Cause that came outta nowhere. And for those of you who didn't figure it out (hope you all did), Jack spiked Snitch's drink with Rohypnol, better known as the date rape drug.
One more chapter to go (or so I hope)!
Review, please!