Chapter 3

Chuckie couldn't help but think about Marina the whole time he was working, and he was surprised when he had gotten as much work done as he had. He kept thinking about how Marina had looked, and he realized that she was everything he wanted in a girl. She was sexy, seemingly nice, and popular in the goth and punk crowd. Chuckie hadn't one clue why Marina was even interested in meeting him. He offered nothing that anyone else could. Marina could take any guy she wanted, and Chuckie didn't get what she saw in him.

Chuckie stood in front of the large window looking out into the darkening sky, and he saw his reflection in the glass. He pushed his small-framed glasses up and sighed. 'I need to start wearing my contacts more.' He tilted his head and brushed his hand against the stubble on his chin. 'Maybe I should shave, too.'

Kimi had called her parents, and they had been okay with her staying at Phil's house for a few hours. She flopped down on the couch in the living room and said, "So, what are we going to do?"

Phil swiped the television change up off of the side table. "How about a movie?" He shook the changer a little bit as he spoke.

"What movie?"

Phil stepped closer and leaned down until his eyes met Kimi's. "Your choice," he told her.

"'How to Deal.'" Kimi replied. She really loved that movie.

Phil sighed. "Since you're the guest, we'll watch that one."

"Come on, Phil, it's a great film. Who believes in love," Kimi gave a disgusted expression, "anyway."

"Yea, and Mandy Moore's pretty damn hot." Phil replied as he flopped down sought "How to Deal" out on the many movie channels.

Kimi laughed. "Do what?"

"Well, not as hot as you, chick. But, Mandy's got the looks."

Kimi laughed. "Why do you call me chick?"

Phil shrugged. "I don't know because you're the only girl I've known practically my whole life, except Angelica. But, why bring that up?"

"Angelica is not as mean as she used to be as a kid." Kimi added.

"I know, but I don't need a special nickname for her. She will always be Angelica."

Kimi felt flattered that Phil had given her a nickname, but she quit conversations when Phil was finally able to track down How to Deal. He enjoyed seeing Kimi so happy over the movie, so he didn't mind he was watching a so-called "chick flick." Just being that close to Kimi was enough for him, even if he would never admit it to anyone. Phil would have given anything just to have the guts to reach over and take Kimi's hand in his own.

A few hours later, Lil and her boyfriend Dustin dropped in, and Phil sighed. Kimi glanced over at him, and he rolled his eyes. Kimi then moved her glance over to Lil and her boyfriend. Lil saw her and smiled. "Kimi! I haven't seen you around much lately, other than school."

"I know. It's a shame." Kimi replied.

Lil glanced over at her twin brother, who just appeared to ignore her. "Hey, Phil," she told him.

Phil halfway turned, forced a smile, and half-heartedly waved. Lil snorted angrily and ignored Phil. "So, how are you, Kimi? Do you have a guy yet?"

Phil glanced over at his sister and Kimi at the question because he was dying to know the answer. He knew that Kimi didn't have plans, but that didn't leave out the fact that she could be crushing for someone at school. Phil was clueless that Kimi had secretly been crushing over him.

"No." Kimi said, and Phil let out the breath he was holding. "But, I don't mind. I'll find someone eventually."

"Well, that's for sure. You're very pretty." Lil replied. "I'd like you to meet Dustin." She glanced over to Dustin. "Dustin, Lil. Lil, Dustin."

"Hey." Dustin replied with a wave of his muscular arm. Kimi noticed he had a nice tan and well managed hair to go along with his muscular body. Kimi had a feeling Lil was getting something more than dates out of the boy; his body was just designed for more.

"Hey." Kimi replied nervously.

Phil felt jealous to say the least. Kimi was melting in Dustin's presence, and he had never seen her act like that before. So to protect the slow progress he was making on winning Kimi over, Phil decided to butt into the conversation. "Kimi, what time did you need to be back?"

Kimi glanced down at her watch. "Oh, shoot, soon," she said. In reality, she had time but didn't want to stay there. She felt out of place there, and she wondered if Phil ever felt out of place or if he just was ignored.

Phil jumped up off of the couch quicker than the remote could turn off the television. "Then, we'd best go."

"Yes. Well, Dustin, it was nice meeting you. And Lil, it was good to see you again." Kimi replied before following Phil, who was quickly heading for the front door.

"We have to see you more." Lil told her.

"Of course." Phil shot back. "But, she has to get back before she gets grounded."

"I wasn't talking to you, Phillip!" Lil retorted.

"I don't give a damn, Lillian!" Phil replied before slamming the door shut.

Kimi let out a long sigh. "That was awkward," she said.

"Yea." Phil replied glumly.

Kimi walked over to Phil's truck and climbed into the passenger door. Phil climbed into the driver's seat. He pulled out his keys and brought the vehicle to life. Kimi glanced over to him. "Where's Dustin from?"

Phil glanced over at Kimi. His face was illuminated by the soft blue light of the radio. "He's from Rockburrow."

Kimi sat up straight and furrowed her eyebrows. "They're our biggest rival. We've lost many basketball tournaments to them."

"Where do you think Lil met him?" Phil replied.

Kimi felt a bit betrayed that her friend would date an enemy of their high school. "I can't believe it."

Kimi was quiet for a while before she turned and looked at Phil. "How serious is Lil with that guy?" The question was eating Kimi alive.

Phil glanced over at Kimi. "Serious enough for four months," he answered.

"No, I mean how serious is she about him? Has she--"

"Fucked him?" Phil replied never taking his eyes off of the road.

Kimi nodded. "To put it vulgarly, yes."

Phil let out an angry sigh. "Yes, Lil screws that guy all the time since our parents have decided traveling is fun. Hell, all I ever hear is the sound of her mattress squeaking and the headboard thumping against my wall. It's sick.

Kimi didn't know what to say to that, but she had more problems waiting for her. She glanced up and saw an unfamiliar car in the driveway to her house. It wasn't long before she recognized the person in the car, though. "Oh my God, Phil, that's that girl! The girl that was talking to Chuckie today. What does she want? She couldn't wait to talk to him tomorrow?"

Phil set aside his anger to be sympathetic and caring for Kimi. "You want to go somewhere else, like the arcade. Just so we can both blow off some steam."

Kimi took a deep breath and glared at the red car in her driveway. "Yes," was all she said to Phil, and the truck sped right on by the driveway leaving Marina sitting there in her red car patiently waiting for Chuckie to get there.

A/N: Sorry about the foul language in this chapter. I don't like the "F" word, but guys use it a lot and it fit into the particular place in the conversation. It's probably the last time I use it, though. As always, I appreciate reviews and I'm glad that xXCocoPuffXxX enjoys my story so far.