Mina smirked at her classmates' behavior. Hilarious really, how everyone waited for the weekend to come only to wind up drunk and doing things they'd love to forget by Monday. Only they'd done them in front of half the school so everyone knew by Tuesday.
Take Lynda for example.
Currently she was latched onto the arm of Mike Wilson, flirting for all her worth. Batting her eyes and displaying a healthy amount of cleavage to the linebacker.
Just five minutes prior she was exiting one of Keith's guest rooms with Mike's best friend.
Mina sadly contemplated her friend as she took slow sips of her punch, mindful of the Everclear.
When had Lynda changed from Mina's outgoing, fashion forward friend into Rivercrest High's sexpot? School slut if she kept up this behavior.
Though she was tempted, Mina held herself back from dragging her friend outside. She'd made that mistake before.
Lynda had ignored Mina's well meaning warnings, and gone straight into attack mode. Even going so far as to slap Mina and call her a jealous bitch. Reasoning hadn't worked and eventually the two girls were hurling bitter accusations at one another. Mina was ashamed to remember the word slut coming from her own lips.
The two hadn't been as close since.
When the dice were laid out on the table, Mina didn't like Lynda at all. Not the person she had become anyway. She was petty and cruel and viewed every tiny thing as a competition. But Mina could still remember the girl Lynda had been. It was the only reason she continued her friendship with the girl.
"You look like you could use some company."
Mina looked up from her glass. Beside her was a boy she'd never seen before. She hadn't been missing much. He had dirty blond hair, cut too close to his head and brown eyes. Not bad, but no hottie. "Not really, but thanks for the offer."
His smile grew determined and he held up a thermos. "Okay. I was just wondering if you wanted a refill."
Mina almost accepted, but her brother's voice filled her head before she could.
'Never. Ever. Accept a drink from an open container. You're too smart to wind up like a girl on one of those Lifetime movies.'
Mina smiled at the memory of Jed's lecture. Her brother and his ridiculous obsession with girlie television stations.
She shook her had at the boys offer. "No thanks. I was just about to get myself a drink."
"I'll go with you. I'm Caleb, by the way."
Mina shrugged. She wanted to tell him to go take a short walk of a long cliff but that was more of a Rei thing to do.
She scanned the crowd for any sign of her new friend or her brother. The two were nowhere in sight.
She sighed as she poured herself more punch. Her life was crap tonight. Her best friend in the world had become a bitch, her big brother had ditched her, and creepy staring guy was not going away.
She spared him a glance. "Well. Thanks for walking me all the way to the punch bowl and all. But I'd really like to be on my own."
"Do you dance?"
Mina stared forward at the dance floor. "Not a bit." She lied easily.
"I could teach you."
Mina resisted the urge to childishly stomp her foot. "I'd step on your feet."
'GO AWAY!' She screamed mentally, hoping that he was a psychic.
No such luck.
"I wouldn't mind."
Mina sighed again. It would be best to just nip the bull by the tail. "Look, you seem like a nice guy," She began.
'If you like stalkers!' Her mind chimed in.
"But I don't do the whole random hook up thing." She smiled, glad to have it out. Only a moron wouldn't take that giant hint.
Unfortunately, this guy was the King of Idiots. He was also a duke in the land of sleaze.
"Oh, that's too bad." He grabbed her waist and dragged her forward. "Maybe I can change your mind." He crushed his mouth over hers.
That was about the time that Mina realized that some people are beyond subtlety and need a hard kick to the ass to get the point.
Or fist to the stomach in this guy's case.
"What the hell was that for?" He wheezed.
"You should be happy. If my brother saw that you'd be in worse shape." She informed him.
He grabbed her wrist and she struggled to get away. "You're nothing but a tease. A stupid slut," he hissed.
Mina's eyes narrowed. Enough was really enough. She'd tried to be polite. He hadn't taken the hint.
She tossed her punch in his face.
It did nothing to cool him off. In fact, it enraged him more. He bruised her wrist as he brutally tugged her foreword to hiss another insult.
His squeak of pain didn't carry over the music.
Smiling in triumph Mina left him by the punchbowl, gingerly cupping his manhood. Her smile turned to a scowl as she noticed that she'd gotten punch on her brand new top when she tossed her cup in the guys face. The stain had already set. It was ruined.
This night sucked.
Keith wouldn't have shared Mina's opinion had she imparted it upon him.
At least, not until he found himself in the middle of a fist fight in his parent's living room.
He still wasn't quite sure how he'd gotten to this point. His confusion was due to the massive amount of alcohol he'd consumed. That and because the guy had punched him in the back of the head. He might even have a concussion. It wouldn't be a good thing. Pretty much the opposite.
As Keith dodged his opponent's blows, his honored guests formed a circle around the fight.
"Kick him in the head!" A girl screamed. Keith hoped she was rooting for him since it was his beer she was spilling all over his couch.
The guy darted forward, faking a punch towards Keith's stomach but aiming for his jaw at the last moment. Keith barely dodged it and decided to quit playing around and just end the damned fight. He was drunk, and bleeding, and the sooner he knocked this guy out then the sooner he could pass out and forget about the bleeding part until morning.
He charged at the guy and had him unconscious in three blows. As the kid was being dragged out onto the front yard came the announcement that ends every party.
"We've got a floater!" Was the cry from the porch where the keg was housed.
Keith's house was pretty much empty in fifteen minutes.
Keith stumbled to the bathroom to get a better look at his mangled face. Mina opened the door from the inside, startling them both.
"What happened to you?" Mina asked, taking in his bleeding forehead and ear. It looked as though a bruise were forming on his left cheek.
He opened his mouth to answer, then grimaced as his semi-healed lip reopened, spilling blood onto his chin.
Mina's stomach (which was already queasy from the Everclear) lurched violently at the sight. Sympathy quickly overwhelmed the nausea.
"Never mind, let's get you cleaned up.
Keith moaned in gratitude and sat down on the toilet seat. He allowed Mina to fuss over his bruised and battered face, thankful he didn't have to deal with it himself. Left to his own devises he would have frowned at his reflection, spread a towel over his pillow to catch blood, and gone to sleep.
The split lip pretty much stopped bleeding on its own. Mina did what she could with the gash above his eye and the torn ear lope.
"You'll have to get stitches tomorrow for your eye. It won't bleed much more but it won't heal properly without them. I'd suggest we go right now but neither of us is exactly sober.
"I r oh ill ear?" Kevin asked, mindful of his split lip.
"Huh?"
"Why are you still here?" He tried again, this time succeeding in an actual sentence.
"Oh. Jed left without me. Something big must've come up."
"I think I saw him run after that Rei girl. She looked upset."
Mina nodded. Something big had happened then. And she'd have to wait until tomorrow to find out since she was stuck here.
"I'll take you home in the morning."
Mina blinked.
"I'd do it now, but like you said, not sober at the moment."
She smiled at him. "Thank you."
Keith smiled back then hissed at it pulled open the split lip he'd tried so hard not to reopen.
"That's it," He muttered. "I'm no where near drunk enough to deal with this." He contemplated the benefits of raiding his parent's liquor cabinet against the size of his hangover in the morning.
Mina read his mind. "Not a good idea. Tomorrow is going to be hellish enough."
Keith nodded grudgingly. "You're right." He fingered the bruise on his cheek. "I don't even remember how I ended up like this."
He was apparently drunker than he let on or else suffering memory loss from repeated blows to the head.
"You," She pointed at Keith. "Were. Fighting." She said with exaggerated slowness and mimed punches.
He frowned down at her. "I know that. I just don't know why. One minute I'm just standing there and the next some guy walks up and punches me in the back of the head." He threw his bruised hands up in disgust. "I mean, who does that?! Who's crazy enough to walk up to a guy my size and start hitting him?"
Mina shrugged.
"He had to be extremely drunk, crazy, angry, or embarrassed. Hell, probably all four!"
Mina gulped. "Did he have dirty blond hair and brown eyes?"
"I dunno. I guess."
"Was he wearing a red shirt?"
Keith's eyes narrowed. "How did you know that? I thought you missed the fight?"
"I did. It's just that I kinda sorta maybe pissed him off before he hit you."
Keith sighed. Naturally. After all, this was the same girl who dropped a ten pound book on his foot in the eighth grade. He experimentally wiggled his toes. Come to think of it, the middle one had never quite been the same after that encounter.
"What'd you do?" He asked in a defeated tone.
Normally Mina's rarely seen temper would have made an appearance at such a question. But Keith was looking bruised and bloody and rather ridiculous holding a pink towel filled with ice to his bruised cheek.
"I didn't do anything! Except maybe knee him in the groin. But he totally deserved it!"
Keith did his best to control the automatic male wince of sympathy. After all this was the same guy who punched him in the head.
So Mina told Keith the entire ordeal, pausing to lament the loss of her new top before getting back to the point. Keith didn't say anything, but took her hands and turned them up to examine the bruises left on her wrists from the guy's grip. Then he stood up and walked out of the room.
Mina followed at his heels. "Where are you going?"
He didn't slow his stride. "To pick that guy up off my front lawn and hit him a few more times."
Mina darted in front of him and shoved him back with all her might, hoping to stop him.
He picked her up and placed her to the side, out of his path. She grabbed his hand a tugged with all of her might.
And succeeded in toppling him off balance. He landed with a loud thud. Mina took advantage of his surprise and plopped herself on top of his stomach. When she was younger it had been the only way to prevent Jed from destroying her dolls.
Keith was not her brother. He was above all things a male. Mina had his undivided attention.
"You're not going out there Keith. He's already unconscious. There's not much else you can do to him without breaking a law. Please just leave him alone."
Keith nodded slowly.
"I'm tired, aren't you?" She glanced at the hall clock and winced. "It's four in the morning. Can we just go to bed?"
Keith nodded again.
Mina beamed at him. "Good. I'll tuck you in and then find a couch to crash on."
"Nonsense. I'll show you to a guest room."
She stood and offered him a hand up. He accepted and allowed her to pull him to his feet. And if he stumbled and made a show of being a bit drunker then he actually was he figured it was acceptable.
After all would there ever be another time when Mina Hathaway forgot her grudges and urged him to lean on him for support?
This was possibly the best night of his life.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Running into Keith again was the last thing Mina wanted. This morning had proved that without alcohol in her system and injuries to mend, she had very little to talk with Keith about.
If there was one this that Mina Hathaway hated, it was an awkward situation. And Keith Taylor was the very definition of awkward situation. The best thing to do would be to minimize exposure to him in group situations and avoid seeing him alone. Life would be just orangey if she could manage that.
Mina made the mistake of forgetting that life hated her and was therefore surprised when her brother dragged her and Rei towards Keith's table at Rendezvous. One look at Keith's bruised face was all it took to convince Mina to flee to the dance floor, dragging Rei along with her.
"What was that about?" Rei shouted above the pounding music.
Mina smiled widely and innocently. "Nothing just felt like dancing."
"Maybe I didn't." Rei muttered darkly.
Before Mina could reply, Lynda pushed her way between the two girls and Rei was dragged further onto the dance floor by an unwanted partner.
"I didn't expect to see you here." Lynda stated, eyeing Mina's new top with envy.
"Why wouldn't you?"
Lynda smiled, her white teeth gleaming purple in the club lighting. "I just assumed you'd be busy entertaining Keith. Wouldn't want him to lose interest."
Mina's back went up in response to the way Lynda said entertaining. "I hope you're not implying what I think you are. We both know I'm not *that* girl in our group."
"Just drop the little Mary Sunshine act." Lynda hissed at Mina with narrowed eyes. "Everyone knows you spent last night at his house."
Mina gasped in protest.
Lynda's eyes slit further. "Bridget Fields lives next door to Keith and saw you both leave his house together this morning." She shrugged and took on an air of nonchalance. "It's not as though I care. Some girls will go to any lengths to get a guy."
Before Mina could accuse the pot of calling the kettle dirty, a voice whispered in her ear.
"May I have this dance?"
It was an absurdly formal question that was better suited for a waltz at a ball than Days Go By at a club.
But Mina had two choices. She could stay and listen to someone she had once considered her best friend say awful things about her or she could dance.
Mina chose dance and turned into the waiting arms without a backward glance. Admittedly, she wasn't paying much attention. She was tired and miserable and just wanted to go home and curl up in bed.
Without bother to look further then her dance partner's chest, she made her excuses. "I'm sorry. I have to go." She mumbled.
He laid a hand on her arm, stopping her. "What's wrong Mina?"
Her eyes darted to his face. She shouldn't have been shocked to find that Keith was her dance partner. But she was and it added humiliation to her list for the evening.
"Nothing's wrong. I have to go. Bye." She darted off before he could stop her.
"Mina's always been a ditz." Lynda commented appearing beside him.
He stared after Mina. "On the contrary, she's a breath of fresh air compared to other girls." He didn't bother to veil the insult as he had little patience for girls of Lynda's character.
She smiled triumphantly. "Yes. I suppose you would say that after last night."
Her meaning hung heavy in the air between them.
He shook his head. "Your implications are not only inaccurate, they're uncreative. Your friend," He allowed sarcasm to linger on the word. "Stayed behind to help me with my injuries. Something I imagine any decent human being would have been inclined to do."
He looked down at Lynda's smirking face. "You know Lynda, we should really stop meeting like this. Or at all."
Lynda's smile fell from her face ad she quickly backpedaled. "I'm sorry if you thought I was implying something Keith's. Mina's my best friend." She looked at him watery eyes. "I only meant that you must be grateful to Mina after she helped you out last night."
Keith nodded curtly and headed back to his table, tired of dealing with Lynda and people in general.
Author's Notes
I know I said on my author's page that this would be posted last night. So very sorry. My computer threatened meltdown and I spent roughly six hours and $140 on software to make it work. Only to find the software was incompatible and the problem's basic enough to solve without. Oh I hope, I hope that crap is returnable.
Erm, once again I left off the disclaimer for this story. Luckily I own nothing but this computer, $140 worth of crap software, and a 1983 brown Buick Skylark. So if you feel like the Skylark's worth it, then by all means sue me. Because the only character that belongs to me is Lynda.
K.Wyse- Nope, not a Shakiara song. That would be Underneath Your Clothes. If I could write a decent love (Wink,wink. Nudge, nudge.) scene, it'd make a nice little interlude. Sadly, any attempts towards that type writing has left me in tears. Of laughter. I have a childish habit of inserting amusing made-up words instead of proper descriptive nouns. Hehe, manpole.
Arashi- Yep, the girl with black hair was Rei. I'm glad you picked up on it!
As far as the challenge went, as I said in chapter one, it might be hard to get until chapter three, but himitsu-no-hi is on the right track!
And to everyone else who replied, thanks so much for taking time to drop a line. I heart you all in the way of Jonathan Rhys Meyers, whom I heart way too much. Mmm, Jonathan. Mmm, reviewers.
Mmm, donuts.
Take Lynda for example.
Currently she was latched onto the arm of Mike Wilson, flirting for all her worth. Batting her eyes and displaying a healthy amount of cleavage to the linebacker.
Just five minutes prior she was exiting one of Keith's guest rooms with Mike's best friend.
Mina sadly contemplated her friend as she took slow sips of her punch, mindful of the Everclear.
When had Lynda changed from Mina's outgoing, fashion forward friend into Rivercrest High's sexpot? School slut if she kept up this behavior.
Though she was tempted, Mina held herself back from dragging her friend outside. She'd made that mistake before.
Lynda had ignored Mina's well meaning warnings, and gone straight into attack mode. Even going so far as to slap Mina and call her a jealous bitch. Reasoning hadn't worked and eventually the two girls were hurling bitter accusations at one another. Mina was ashamed to remember the word slut coming from her own lips.
The two hadn't been as close since.
When the dice were laid out on the table, Mina didn't like Lynda at all. Not the person she had become anyway. She was petty and cruel and viewed every tiny thing as a competition. But Mina could still remember the girl Lynda had been. It was the only reason she continued her friendship with the girl.
"You look like you could use some company."
Mina looked up from her glass. Beside her was a boy she'd never seen before. She hadn't been missing much. He had dirty blond hair, cut too close to his head and brown eyes. Not bad, but no hottie. "Not really, but thanks for the offer."
His smile grew determined and he held up a thermos. "Okay. I was just wondering if you wanted a refill."
Mina almost accepted, but her brother's voice filled her head before she could.
'Never. Ever. Accept a drink from an open container. You're too smart to wind up like a girl on one of those Lifetime movies.'
Mina smiled at the memory of Jed's lecture. Her brother and his ridiculous obsession with girlie television stations.
She shook her had at the boys offer. "No thanks. I was just about to get myself a drink."
"I'll go with you. I'm Caleb, by the way."
Mina shrugged. She wanted to tell him to go take a short walk of a long cliff but that was more of a Rei thing to do.
She scanned the crowd for any sign of her new friend or her brother. The two were nowhere in sight.
She sighed as she poured herself more punch. Her life was crap tonight. Her best friend in the world had become a bitch, her big brother had ditched her, and creepy staring guy was not going away.
She spared him a glance. "Well. Thanks for walking me all the way to the punch bowl and all. But I'd really like to be on my own."
"Do you dance?"
Mina stared forward at the dance floor. "Not a bit." She lied easily.
"I could teach you."
Mina resisted the urge to childishly stomp her foot. "I'd step on your feet."
'GO AWAY!' She screamed mentally, hoping that he was a psychic.
No such luck.
"I wouldn't mind."
Mina sighed again. It would be best to just nip the bull by the tail. "Look, you seem like a nice guy," She began.
'If you like stalkers!' Her mind chimed in.
"But I don't do the whole random hook up thing." She smiled, glad to have it out. Only a moron wouldn't take that giant hint.
Unfortunately, this guy was the King of Idiots. He was also a duke in the land of sleaze.
"Oh, that's too bad." He grabbed her waist and dragged her forward. "Maybe I can change your mind." He crushed his mouth over hers.
That was about the time that Mina realized that some people are beyond subtlety and need a hard kick to the ass to get the point.
Or fist to the stomach in this guy's case.
"What the hell was that for?" He wheezed.
"You should be happy. If my brother saw that you'd be in worse shape." She informed him.
He grabbed her wrist and she struggled to get away. "You're nothing but a tease. A stupid slut," he hissed.
Mina's eyes narrowed. Enough was really enough. She'd tried to be polite. He hadn't taken the hint.
She tossed her punch in his face.
It did nothing to cool him off. In fact, it enraged him more. He bruised her wrist as he brutally tugged her foreword to hiss another insult.
His squeak of pain didn't carry over the music.
Smiling in triumph Mina left him by the punchbowl, gingerly cupping his manhood. Her smile turned to a scowl as she noticed that she'd gotten punch on her brand new top when she tossed her cup in the guys face. The stain had already set. It was ruined.
This night sucked.
Keith wouldn't have shared Mina's opinion had she imparted it upon him.
At least, not until he found himself in the middle of a fist fight in his parent's living room.
He still wasn't quite sure how he'd gotten to this point. His confusion was due to the massive amount of alcohol he'd consumed. That and because the guy had punched him in the back of the head. He might even have a concussion. It wouldn't be a good thing. Pretty much the opposite.
As Keith dodged his opponent's blows, his honored guests formed a circle around the fight.
"Kick him in the head!" A girl screamed. Keith hoped she was rooting for him since it was his beer she was spilling all over his couch.
The guy darted forward, faking a punch towards Keith's stomach but aiming for his jaw at the last moment. Keith barely dodged it and decided to quit playing around and just end the damned fight. He was drunk, and bleeding, and the sooner he knocked this guy out then the sooner he could pass out and forget about the bleeding part until morning.
He charged at the guy and had him unconscious in three blows. As the kid was being dragged out onto the front yard came the announcement that ends every party.
"We've got a floater!" Was the cry from the porch where the keg was housed.
Keith's house was pretty much empty in fifteen minutes.
Keith stumbled to the bathroom to get a better look at his mangled face. Mina opened the door from the inside, startling them both.
"What happened to you?" Mina asked, taking in his bleeding forehead and ear. It looked as though a bruise were forming on his left cheek.
He opened his mouth to answer, then grimaced as his semi-healed lip reopened, spilling blood onto his chin.
Mina's stomach (which was already queasy from the Everclear) lurched violently at the sight. Sympathy quickly overwhelmed the nausea.
"Never mind, let's get you cleaned up.
Keith moaned in gratitude and sat down on the toilet seat. He allowed Mina to fuss over his bruised and battered face, thankful he didn't have to deal with it himself. Left to his own devises he would have frowned at his reflection, spread a towel over his pillow to catch blood, and gone to sleep.
The split lip pretty much stopped bleeding on its own. Mina did what she could with the gash above his eye and the torn ear lope.
"You'll have to get stitches tomorrow for your eye. It won't bleed much more but it won't heal properly without them. I'd suggest we go right now but neither of us is exactly sober.
"I r oh ill ear?" Kevin asked, mindful of his split lip.
"Huh?"
"Why are you still here?" He tried again, this time succeeding in an actual sentence.
"Oh. Jed left without me. Something big must've come up."
"I think I saw him run after that Rei girl. She looked upset."
Mina nodded. Something big had happened then. And she'd have to wait until tomorrow to find out since she was stuck here.
"I'll take you home in the morning."
Mina blinked.
"I'd do it now, but like you said, not sober at the moment."
She smiled at him. "Thank you."
Keith smiled back then hissed at it pulled open the split lip he'd tried so hard not to reopen.
"That's it," He muttered. "I'm no where near drunk enough to deal with this." He contemplated the benefits of raiding his parent's liquor cabinet against the size of his hangover in the morning.
Mina read his mind. "Not a good idea. Tomorrow is going to be hellish enough."
Keith nodded grudgingly. "You're right." He fingered the bruise on his cheek. "I don't even remember how I ended up like this."
He was apparently drunker than he let on or else suffering memory loss from repeated blows to the head.
"You," She pointed at Keith. "Were. Fighting." She said with exaggerated slowness and mimed punches.
He frowned down at her. "I know that. I just don't know why. One minute I'm just standing there and the next some guy walks up and punches me in the back of the head." He threw his bruised hands up in disgust. "I mean, who does that?! Who's crazy enough to walk up to a guy my size and start hitting him?"
Mina shrugged.
"He had to be extremely drunk, crazy, angry, or embarrassed. Hell, probably all four!"
Mina gulped. "Did he have dirty blond hair and brown eyes?"
"I dunno. I guess."
"Was he wearing a red shirt?"
Keith's eyes narrowed. "How did you know that? I thought you missed the fight?"
"I did. It's just that I kinda sorta maybe pissed him off before he hit you."
Keith sighed. Naturally. After all, this was the same girl who dropped a ten pound book on his foot in the eighth grade. He experimentally wiggled his toes. Come to think of it, the middle one had never quite been the same after that encounter.
"What'd you do?" He asked in a defeated tone.
Normally Mina's rarely seen temper would have made an appearance at such a question. But Keith was looking bruised and bloody and rather ridiculous holding a pink towel filled with ice to his bruised cheek.
"I didn't do anything! Except maybe knee him in the groin. But he totally deserved it!"
Keith did his best to control the automatic male wince of sympathy. After all this was the same guy who punched him in the head.
So Mina told Keith the entire ordeal, pausing to lament the loss of her new top before getting back to the point. Keith didn't say anything, but took her hands and turned them up to examine the bruises left on her wrists from the guy's grip. Then he stood up and walked out of the room.
Mina followed at his heels. "Where are you going?"
He didn't slow his stride. "To pick that guy up off my front lawn and hit him a few more times."
Mina darted in front of him and shoved him back with all her might, hoping to stop him.
He picked her up and placed her to the side, out of his path. She grabbed his hand a tugged with all of her might.
And succeeded in toppling him off balance. He landed with a loud thud. Mina took advantage of his surprise and plopped herself on top of his stomach. When she was younger it had been the only way to prevent Jed from destroying her dolls.
Keith was not her brother. He was above all things a male. Mina had his undivided attention.
"You're not going out there Keith. He's already unconscious. There's not much else you can do to him without breaking a law. Please just leave him alone."
Keith nodded slowly.
"I'm tired, aren't you?" She glanced at the hall clock and winced. "It's four in the morning. Can we just go to bed?"
Keith nodded again.
Mina beamed at him. "Good. I'll tuck you in and then find a couch to crash on."
"Nonsense. I'll show you to a guest room."
She stood and offered him a hand up. He accepted and allowed her to pull him to his feet. And if he stumbled and made a show of being a bit drunker then he actually was he figured it was acceptable.
After all would there ever be another time when Mina Hathaway forgot her grudges and urged him to lean on him for support?
This was possibly the best night of his life.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Running into Keith again was the last thing Mina wanted. This morning had proved that without alcohol in her system and injuries to mend, she had very little to talk with Keith about.
If there was one this that Mina Hathaway hated, it was an awkward situation. And Keith Taylor was the very definition of awkward situation. The best thing to do would be to minimize exposure to him in group situations and avoid seeing him alone. Life would be just orangey if she could manage that.
Mina made the mistake of forgetting that life hated her and was therefore surprised when her brother dragged her and Rei towards Keith's table at Rendezvous. One look at Keith's bruised face was all it took to convince Mina to flee to the dance floor, dragging Rei along with her.
"What was that about?" Rei shouted above the pounding music.
Mina smiled widely and innocently. "Nothing just felt like dancing."
"Maybe I didn't." Rei muttered darkly.
Before Mina could reply, Lynda pushed her way between the two girls and Rei was dragged further onto the dance floor by an unwanted partner.
"I didn't expect to see you here." Lynda stated, eyeing Mina's new top with envy.
"Why wouldn't you?"
Lynda smiled, her white teeth gleaming purple in the club lighting. "I just assumed you'd be busy entertaining Keith. Wouldn't want him to lose interest."
Mina's back went up in response to the way Lynda said entertaining. "I hope you're not implying what I think you are. We both know I'm not *that* girl in our group."
"Just drop the little Mary Sunshine act." Lynda hissed at Mina with narrowed eyes. "Everyone knows you spent last night at his house."
Mina gasped in protest.
Lynda's eyes slit further. "Bridget Fields lives next door to Keith and saw you both leave his house together this morning." She shrugged and took on an air of nonchalance. "It's not as though I care. Some girls will go to any lengths to get a guy."
Before Mina could accuse the pot of calling the kettle dirty, a voice whispered in her ear.
"May I have this dance?"
It was an absurdly formal question that was better suited for a waltz at a ball than Days Go By at a club.
But Mina had two choices. She could stay and listen to someone she had once considered her best friend say awful things about her or she could dance.
Mina chose dance and turned into the waiting arms without a backward glance. Admittedly, she wasn't paying much attention. She was tired and miserable and just wanted to go home and curl up in bed.
Without bother to look further then her dance partner's chest, she made her excuses. "I'm sorry. I have to go." She mumbled.
He laid a hand on her arm, stopping her. "What's wrong Mina?"
Her eyes darted to his face. She shouldn't have been shocked to find that Keith was her dance partner. But she was and it added humiliation to her list for the evening.
"Nothing's wrong. I have to go. Bye." She darted off before he could stop her.
"Mina's always been a ditz." Lynda commented appearing beside him.
He stared after Mina. "On the contrary, she's a breath of fresh air compared to other girls." He didn't bother to veil the insult as he had little patience for girls of Lynda's character.
She smiled triumphantly. "Yes. I suppose you would say that after last night."
Her meaning hung heavy in the air between them.
He shook his head. "Your implications are not only inaccurate, they're uncreative. Your friend," He allowed sarcasm to linger on the word. "Stayed behind to help me with my injuries. Something I imagine any decent human being would have been inclined to do."
He looked down at Lynda's smirking face. "You know Lynda, we should really stop meeting like this. Or at all."
Lynda's smile fell from her face ad she quickly backpedaled. "I'm sorry if you thought I was implying something Keith's. Mina's my best friend." She looked at him watery eyes. "I only meant that you must be grateful to Mina after she helped you out last night."
Keith nodded curtly and headed back to his table, tired of dealing with Lynda and people in general.
Author's Notes
I know I said on my author's page that this would be posted last night. So very sorry. My computer threatened meltdown and I spent roughly six hours and $140 on software to make it work. Only to find the software was incompatible and the problem's basic enough to solve without. Oh I hope, I hope that crap is returnable.
Erm, once again I left off the disclaimer for this story. Luckily I own nothing but this computer, $140 worth of crap software, and a 1983 brown Buick Skylark. So if you feel like the Skylark's worth it, then by all means sue me. Because the only character that belongs to me is Lynda.
K.Wyse- Nope, not a Shakiara song. That would be Underneath Your Clothes. If I could write a decent love (Wink,wink. Nudge, nudge.) scene, it'd make a nice little interlude. Sadly, any attempts towards that type writing has left me in tears. Of laughter. I have a childish habit of inserting amusing made-up words instead of proper descriptive nouns. Hehe, manpole.
Arashi- Yep, the girl with black hair was Rei. I'm glad you picked up on it!
As far as the challenge went, as I said in chapter one, it might be hard to get until chapter three, but himitsu-no-hi is on the right track!
And to everyone else who replied, thanks so much for taking time to drop a line. I heart you all in the way of Jonathan Rhys Meyers, whom I heart way too much. Mmm, Jonathan. Mmm, reviewers.
Mmm, donuts.
