Authors notes: Hey all, me again. This is the sixth chapter of When Lightning Strikes and, in my opinion, this is when it starts to get good. I thank you all so much for your input and reviews, I appreciate each and every one and want to thank everyone whose ever reviewed my stories. I just wanted to say a special thanks to Moonchaser for your great review. I think it's the best one I've gotten. I don't want to neglect all my other reviewers, because of course I wait eagerly for what you have to say as well. But as soon as I read Moonchaser's I was like 'Wow, I have to say thanks.' So thank you, and thank everyone and I hope you like this chapter, and this story.
Close Call
We had just reached the school when Matt finally said something. "What is your mother going to say?" he asked as we pulled into a parking space and he turned off the engine.
"I won't lie to you, my mother is Trish Stratus twenty years from now." I replied reluctantly. Matt's only response was to sigh and shake his head. "Your regretting it now, I bet." I said morosely, leaning up against the bike.
"What do you mean?" he asked, eyes meeting mine once more.
"I mean your probably regretting ever stopping into the garage last night. What with Trish, Dean and my mother I'm not the easiest girl in the world to – uh, date." Where we dating yet? Last night could definitely be considered a date but did that count as 'Dating'? Or did there need to be at least two dates to be considered a couple? These are things a sixteen year old girl should know.
Matt gave me a full fledge grin as he took a step closer to me. "I wasn't looking for the easiest girl in the world to date," he chuckled. "I don't want an easy girl. I kinda like you." He reached a hand out to rest on the right side of my neck where his thumb could caress my cheek.
"Well, that's good. I'm glad we're on the same page, then." He said, voice dropping to a whisper as his face inched closer and closer to mine.
I was about to reply with 'Me too' or something equally as witty, but our lips touched and all thought flew from my head. I wrapped my arms around his neck as his other hand came around my waist, pulling me closer. His lips were just as soft as I remembered and I felt like sighing into his mouth.
After kissing for a bit, Matt replied me, but still stayed close. "You should probably go find Trish and explain." He suggested.
"Oh, yeah. That'd be good." I replied with a nod.
"I suppose your walking home with her too, huh?" he asked as we made our way through school hand in hand.
"No, actually. Cheerleading practice until three thirty, then she goes into work." I replied happily and Matt returned my enthusiasm.
"Great, want to do something?" A number of things, mostly involving your mouth on mine.
"Sure" I smiled up at him just as the bell rang. We were just at the beginning of the hall my homeroom was in. "This is my stop." I said with a gesture.
"I'm one down. See you at lunch?" he asked as kids filed past us trying to beat the bell.
"Yeah. First lunch?" I asked. Trish had second and so I didn't really sit with anyone.
"Yeah, I'll find you." He replied as he bent down to give me a quick kiss and then he was gone.
As soon as attendance was taken, Trish hissed at me "Where were you?" I explained how Matt had come by, then Dean, and how by the time Dean drove off we barley had time to make it to school before the bell rang.
"I looked for you, but I guess you were already in class." I said apologizing.
"Geez, so I guess you and Matt really are a couple, huh?" she asked sounding disapproving.
"Looks like it." I grinned back at her.
Trish had pulled out her math book and started to finish up the work. Since I had already finished all my homework the night before, I took out a book, Jenny Carroll's 'When Lightning Strikes' and begun reading where I had left off.
"Do you know how people are going to talk when this gets out?" Trish asked after a few minutes had passed.
"Trish, when have I ever cared what people think or say about me?" I asked in reply, chuckling.
"Still, I'm just letting you know what to expect." She said gravely.
"Well, thank you Miss Cleo." I replied, earning a snort of amusement from her. "Besides, you said so yourself, people already think I'm a Buzzer, so who's going to care if a potential Buzzer goes out with another more established one?"
"Oh, my god Amy. Your dating a Buzzer!?" Stacy, a friend of Trish's from the Cheerleading squad asked, totally interrupting our, hello, private conversation. Not to mention the fact that she said Buzzer like it was a bad word. Which, depending on how you look at it, is true.
"Uh, yeah. Matt Hardy." God, just saying his name made me smile. Embarrassing, I know but who cares?
"Oh, my god." She repeated. Was that all she could say? 'Just go back to reading and ignore her' I told myself. Yeah, right.
"So?" I said sharply.
"Well, hello? He's a Buzzer." She said like that explained it.
"And?" I bit back.
"And you're a Townie. God Amy, are you really that desperate? Or is it more of a charity case?" I was up and out of my seat before I even thought to do it.
"Miss Dumas! Sit down this instant." Mrs. Brown ordered, standing up herself.
"Take that back you air-headed, stuck-up little Bitch." I spat at Stacey, who by now looked up at me with widen eyes. Most of the class immediately erupted in chants of 'Cat fight'.
"That is enough! Amy, go see the consoler, now!" Mrs. Brown was already signing the form. I glared at Stacey an moment longer then snatched up my stuff, grabbed the note from the teacher and left, slamming the door behind me.
I fumed all the way to the office and while sitting in Mr. Zebrowski's office, waiting for him to come back from breaking up a fight between two freshmen. While I sat there waiting, though, I realized my error. If I caught Mr. Z on a bad day, I could be sent home and that meant a call to my mother. A call to my mother meant no sitting with Matt at lunch, no riding home from school with him and definitely no hanging out afterwards.
However, if I played my cards right, I could get a slap on the wrist and a send off to my next class. He would probably have his hands full with the two fighters and my 'Crime' sort to speak, would doubtless pale in comparison.
"Miss Dumas, pleasant surprise. What can I do for you today?" Mr. Z had walked in while I was lost in thought. So far so good, he looked like he was in a good mood anyway. He came around to sit on the opposite side of the desk.
Mr. Z, I have to say, has a great body. He was still pretty young, twenty- seven or twenty-eight with short blonde hair and light blue eyes, you could so see the surfer kid in him. Most of the girl population had a crush on him, a fact I'm sure Mr. Z was aware of himself. He was married, however, to a female teacher everyone loved and always hoped to get. The same girls with crushes on him thought it was so cute when they would see him having lunch with her, or when one would stop into the others office or classroom.
"Well, Mr. Z" I started, a sheepish smile on my face. "I'm sorry to say I haven't started the day off very well." He returned my smile. He was notoriously nice to those on his good side and equally as scary to the troublemakers of the school. As one of the strongest men in the school, It was either Mr. Z or one of the male PE teachers who was called in to break up a fight.
"I had a feeling this wasn't a social call. What happened?" he asked, slipping on his reading glasses and holding his hand out for the note. I handed it over while explaining.
"I sort of blew up at Stacey Keibler, sir. I was just in a bad mood and took it out on her when the opportunity presented itself. Things are a little tense at home, see and I'm afraid I'm not taking it as well as I should." I said the first thing that flew into my head and tried my best to look sorry. I don't think he would have much sympathy for me if I had said she was insulting my boyfriend.
"I see. Air-headed, Stuck-up Bitch, is she?" He asked, looking like he wanted to smile. 'Little bitch' I wanted to correct him, but wisely kept my mouth shut. Instead, I played sheepish and threw in some more embarrassment for good measure. "Well, I can understand how good it seems to vent your anger onto someone else, but try to handle it differently next time, will you?" he asked looking at me over the top of his glasses.
"Oh, yes sir." I replied, trying to look earnest. Mr. Z, in the two years that I had been coming to his office almost always fell for my innocent girl act, If I had calmed down enough to play it up for him.
"Well, the bells about to ring, why don't you go onto your next class; and I don't want to hear about anymore altercations between you and Stacey. Scratch that. Make it anyone." He said signing my note and handing it back to me. I gave him a grateful smile.
"Yes sir. I'll be on my best behavior." I assured him, then got up to make my way to next period.
Authors notes: With all that rambling I did before the story, I forgot to talk to you about Mr. Zebrowski. He is, in fact, a real person. He was my eighth grade dean in middle school and is about true to life as I tried to portray him here; from his looks to his attitude. So what I'm getting at is I don't own him, and if he's reading this (Yeah, right) Sorry for using you without permission, Mr. Z. :)