Part Three: Let's Go

Friday's finally over, and school's out. It's the weekend, but Emma doesn't particularly care. The whole school day, she hasn't been able to stop thinking about Jay. The way they almost kissed, the awful way his mother treated him, his rage at her when she tried to offer sympathy. She wishes she could just get him out of her head. But even more, she wishes her best friend would just leave her in peace.

Manny's been pestering her all day, trying to find out what happened, but Emma doesn't want to talk about it.

"So where were you last night?"

"Nowhere."

"Come on, Em. You told me to say you were at my place if your parents called looking for you, and they did, so I had to lie. I covered for you, the least you can do is tell me where you were."

"Later," Emma says to Manny, as she catches sight of Jay stalking down the hallway. Manny follows her gaze and quickly puts two and two together. "You were with Jay?" she gasps.

"It wasn't like that, we were studying," she mutters, as Jay walks past them, glancing at Emma and then looking quickly away.

"Jay Hogart, studying?" Manny says, her voice full of contempt as Jay rounds a corner and disappears. "The only thing he wants to 'study' is your anatomy. The guy's a total bottom-feeder, Emma, can't you see? He's-"

"You don't know, Manny!" Emma shouts. "You don't know anything!" Stunned by Emma's sudden outburst, Manny doesn't know what to say. Emma runs away from her, after Jay. By the time she catches up with him, he's at his car.

"Jay-"

"What do you want?"

Emma pauses. What does she want? "Um … how'd you do on that test?" She can't think of anything else to say.

"Got an A, actually." He shrugs, giving his usual show of indifference, but Emma thinks she detects a faint note of pride in his voice. Emma smiles at him hesitantly. "I knew you could."

But he doesn't smile back. In fact, his expressions darkens. "What am I to you, Greenpeace? A project? Some poor, abused, misunderstood bad boy that Emma the Crusader has to save?"

The vehemence with which he says it takes Emma by surprise. "No …"

"Let's get something straight, little girl. I'm not a nice guy. I'm not someone a little goody-goody like you wants to pal around with, normally. But I know why you're here. You wouldn't be here unless you were desperate. You just need a distraction to keep from thinking about the shooting, don't you? Don't you?" He shouts.

Emma can't help it then; she starts crying. Jay's trying hard to still be angry at her, but he can't quite succeed. "Look – I'm not gonna – just because you're crying, doesn't mean I feel – Don't. Don't cry," he says his voice growing softer, his tone switching from angry to something like tenderness. "Don't cry, Emma, don't – I'm sorry, okay? Just don't cry …"

He closes the distance between them, and kisses her.

He tastes her tears, slips his arms around her slender waist as he feels hers twine around him. His kisses quickly go from soft to hard and demanding as he plunges his tongue into her mouth, sweeping, exploring, laying claim. He spins her around so that Emma's back is up against the car, and they continue, their bodies pressed close, kissing each other breathless – hungry, hot, urgent.

"Emma," he breathes in her ear, when they come up for air, "Let's go."

"Where?"

"We had a deal, baby. You said you'd come to the ravine with me. It's early … there's a spot there … we'll have some privacy." Emma shivers involuntarily at the implications of what he's saying, and Jay notices. Still, his lips find her neck, and he wants to devour her. And she wants him to.

"Come on, Emma. We'll just … make out. Fool around. It won't be a big deal. Okay?"

"Okay," Emma whispers. So they get in the car, drive off, barely resisting the urge to touch each other and they speed away to the ravine.