Chapter 16
Chris glanced down at his watch, tapping his foot impatiently. It was after school, and he was waiting by Trish's locker. Nearly a month had passed since the last little incident with Steph and Paul, and Chris was still dating Trish. He just couldn't seem to find the right way to break up with her, and until he found what he felt was "the right way," he was stuck being her boyfriend...
"Finally! Where have you been?" Chris asked when Trish walked up to him.
"In class, where else?" Trish snapped. She wasn't in a very good mood and she had no problems letting him know that.
"So, you wanted me to meet you here after school. You said it was important," he reminded her. "What's up?"
"Nothing's up," she said, opening her locker and putting her books in. "It's just, you're my boyfriend, right?" When he didn't say anything, she looked at him. "Right?"
"Yeah, I'm...that," he answered finally, nodding a little. "What does that have to do with anything?"
"You're not acting like you're my boyfriend. You don't act the way that you used to act," she said, closing her locker and leaning against it. "Ever since that little bitch got here, you've been acting different."
"Don't insult Steph in front of me, Trish. Don't you ever do that," he said in a low, dangerous voice. "You don't have the right to even talk about her."
"I have every right to talk about her. She's trying to steal you away from me!" she said angrily. "You're mine, Chris, not hers! And yet, you've spent more time with her in the past month than you have with me..."
"Steph and I have always been friends... Really good friends," he pointed out. "I've always spent time with her. I mean, her brother is my best friend. I've known them both since I was, like, eight years old!"
"Ok, but that doesn't change the fact that you're with her more than you're with me," she went on. "I don't think it's fair that I have to share you all the time. When's the last time we went out on a date? When's the last time that you met up with me after school at my locker without me having to practically beg you to be here, huh? When, Chris?"
"I don't know, ok, but I don't have time to stand here and argue with you about this. Steph is a huge part of my life. You can either deal with it or move on, it's as simple as that," he said, starting to walk away. "But either way, Steph is going to be a part of my life...with or without you in it."
"Where are you going?" she asked, following him and grabbing his arm. "We're not done here!"
"There's nothing more to be said here, Trish! You're really... I'm just getting fed up with this whole thing," he said, shaking her hand off of him. He looked down at his watch again. "And it's nearly 2:30. I'm late meeting Steph down in the parking lot..."
"See, that's exactly what I'm talking about, Chris! You can't even stay here for ten minutes to talk to me without worrying about being late to meet her," she said crossly. "It's like I'm the friend and she's the girlfriend. What the hell is up with that?"
"I don't have time to deal with this right now," he said, shaking his head at her. "I have to go."
"But Chris, we're-"
"I'll call you tonight, Trish. Steph is waiting..."
Trish sighed as she watched Chris walk away and leave her behind for what seemed liked the millionth time since the school year had began. She didn't know why he would choose to hang out with an unknown freshman instead of a popular senior like herself, but his reasoning didn't matter. She was going to find a way to make him stay away from Steph for good...
"So he walks away from you yet again," came the familiar voice from behind her. Trish turned around to see Paul leaning against the brick wall with his arms folded and a somewhat smug look on his face. He was chewing gum and smirking at her as he looked at her.
"How long have you been standing there?" she demanded.
"Long enough to know that he just walked away from you to go be with Steph...again," he replied, walking over to her. "I wonder what those two have going on. I mean, he seems awfully attached to her..."
"Obviously, she wants him and he feels sorry for her," she said, rolling her eyes at the thought of Steph. "But there's no way he would cheat on me, especially not with a freshman..."
"I wouldn't put it past him. He seems like he's perfect and charming, but those are the ones you have to watch out for," he said, now leaning against her locker. "The ones that you think would never cheat on you... They're the ones who can cheat and get away with it."
"Whatever. How's the whole bet coming along?" she asked, quickly changing the subject. She was confident that Chris wouldn't cheat on her, but hearing Paul suggest it kind of made her wonder... And she didn't want to be second-guessing herself.
"That's actually what I wanted to talk to you about," he said, his whole demeanor seeming to change.
She picked up on this change and looked at him suspiciously. "What about it?"
"I need more time," he said bluntly.
"How much more time?" she asked, one eyebrow raised.
"A few days, a few weeks, hell, give me another month," he said, sighing.
"No way! We had a deal. You've had almost an entire month already," she pointed out.
"Yeah, I've had a month, but I haven't really made any progress towards getting Steph. Your boyfriend is always in the way whenever I try to make a move," he complained. "I've been laying low, watching her to find out what she likes and what she doesn't like, but I can't get close enough to approach her because wherever Steph goes, Chris is sure to be with her. He's, like, her personal bodyguard or escort or something."
"Tell me something I don't know," she said, sighing as well. "I just want my boyfriend back. I'm tired of sharing him with her."
"And you'll get him back, if you give me a little more time," he promised.
"Fine. I'll give you two more weeks, Paul, but that's it," she emphasized. "I mean it. In two weeks, if you haven't gotten Steph in your bed and things aren't back to the way they used to be with Chris, we're going to play this game by my rules."
"Thanks. All I need is a little more time," he said confidently. "I'll have her crazy about me sooner than you think..."
"And how do you plan on making that happen?" she wanted to know. "Because the only guy she seems to be crazy about right now is my boyfriend."
"You know her birthday is next Saturday, right?" he asked.
"Of course I know that. It's all Chris has been talking about lately. He has a freaking calendar in his car counting down the days until her birthday," she said, rolling her eyes at the thought of Steph again. "Today's Thursday, so that makes it nine days away..."
"Right. Well, I was thinking that I could buy her something for her birthday, something she'll love," he went on.
"Go on," she prodded. "What are you going to get her?"
"I don't know yet," he confessed. "That's why I need you to go shopping with me this weekend."
"That's the last thing I want to do, go shopping for that little bitch," she said, shaking her head. "I'm not doing that. Why don't you ask someone else?"
"I'm doing this to help you," he reminded her. "If you really want Chris back, you'd do this..."
"Ok, whatever," she agreed finally. "Walk me to my car so we can work out the details..."
"Great, so here's what I was thinking..."
In the student parking lot...
Chris hurried out of the school and to the student parking lot, making a beeline for his car. He could see Steph leaning against his car, looking off into space as she waited for him. He was glad to see that she hadn't decided to just catch a ride home with Shane, but he was sorry that he'd made her wait so long... It had become a routine for him to give her a ride home after school every day, and to him, it was the highlight of his day...
"Sorry I kept you waiting," he said as he walked over to her.
"That's ok. I'd wait forever for you," Steph replied, still looking off into space. After a minute, she turned to look at him. "How'd everything go with Trish?"
"The usual... Like hell," he said, leaning against the car and rubbing his temple. "Every single conversation we have turns into an argument about you... It gives me a headache."
"I'm sorry I'm causing so much trouble for you," she said apologetically, looking away again. "I mean, I never wanted to be a problem for you..."
"You? A problem? No way, Steph," he said, pulling her into his arms and hugging her. "You're not a problem... You're, like, the only person who keeps me sane these days."
"Really?" she asked, looking up into his eyes.
"Yes, really," he answered without hesitation, looking down at her and smiling. "Are you ready to get out of here?"
"Am I ever!" she said with a laugh. "It's been a long day. I'm so glad that tomorrow's Friday!"
"So am I," he said, letting her go. He opened the door for her and helped her into the car. "What are you doing this weekend?"
"I don't have anything planned yet," she answered as he closed the door. He jogged around and got in on the driver's side, and she looked over at him. "Why? What are you doing this weekend?"
"Nothing yet," he replied, looking over at her. "But I was wondering if you wanted to maybe catch a movie or something?"
"Like...a date?" she asked carefully.
"Exactly like a date," he said, nodding his head in agreement. "Not just like a date... A real date."
"I've never been on a date before," she said, looking out the window. "Especially not a date where the guy has a girlfriend."
"You know how I feel about my relationship with Trish, Steph... I'm not into her anymore," he said, studying her profile as she looked out the window. He reached over, touching her face softly and gently making her face him. "You know you're my girl, Steph."
"Then why won't you break up with Trish?" she asked quietly.
"I'm just waiting for the right time, that's all." He saw the disappointed look on her face and felt bad. "I know it's hard for you, Steph, because it's hard for me, too. I don't want to hurt her when I break up with her, but I know I'm hurting you by staying with her... I don't know how to do this whole breaking up thing, you know?"
"I understand," she said, looking away again. "Just know that I'll be here waiting for you once you decide to end things with her."
"It'll be well worth the wait, I promise," he whispered, leaning a little closer. She turned to look at him again, and his face was a few mere inches away from hers. "It'll be well worth the wait," he repeated, kissing her near the corner of her mouth.
"I'm going to take your word on this," she said with a little smile.
"That's all I ask," he replied with a little smile on his face as well. He touched her face again, and looking into her eyes, he couldn't resist kissing her. He kissed her softly, and he smiled against her lips when he felt her begin to kiss him back. He pulled her closer to him and deepened the kiss, kissing her until they were both breathless.
"What was that for?" she gasped when they broke apart.
"I don't know. I just wanted to kiss you," he said, panting a little. He grinned at her, touching her hair. "Now, about that date... Will you go with me?"
"I'll have to ask my parents, but I'll definitely go with you," she assured him.
"I can't wait," he said, finally cranking up the car. He didn't speak again until he was pulling out of the parking lot. "You and me... We're going to have so much fun..."
As Chris pulled out of the parking lot, Stacy Keibler stood on the sidewalk staring at the spot where Chris's car had been parked. She didn't know what the two had been saying to each other, but she'd seen them kiss, and it hadn't been a short, friendly peck, either. She pulled out her cell phone and dialed her best friend's number.
"Yeah?" Trish answered her cell phone as she and Paul emerged from the school. She could see Stacy standing on the sidewalk ahead of her.
"Oh my gosh, Trish, you won't believe what I just saw!" Stacy exclaimed. "Where are you?"
"Behind you," Trish replied, hanging up her phone.
Stacy turned around quickly, immediately noticing Paul standing there next to Trish. "Hey, Paul... How's it been?" she asked in a flirty voice.
"It's been great," Paul replied, smiling brightly at Stacy. The last time he'd had a conversation with Stacy had been at a party at Randy Orton's house, and he'd been practically banging her brains out in Randy's parents' bedroom at the time... His smile got bigger at the memory of that night. It hadn't been much of a conversation, really...
"You look great," Stacy said, stepping a little closer to him and licking her lips.
"Stace... You said you saw something," Trish reminded her, annoyed at how easily her friend could get distracted. "What was it?"
"Um, I don't remember," Stacy replied, looking at Paul. "What are your plans for this afternoon?" she asked him.
"I'm going to work out today, and catch up on some homework," he answered. "Why? Do you have something else in mind?"
"As a matter of fact, I do," she replied, stepping even closer to him. "Me and you... My place, around seven?"
"Sounds good to me," he agreed, nodding at her. He looked over at Trish. "So, me and you this weekend at the mall?" Trish nodded at him, and he left, winking at Stacy.
"What are you two doing at the mall this weekend?" Stacy asked curiously.
"Shopping for Steph's birthday present," Trish answered with a sigh. "He wants it to be perfect for her..."
"Speaking of that little bitch, I remember why I called you now," Stacy said seriously.
"So what'd you see?" Trish wanted to know. "Was it Steph?"
"Yeah... I saw her kissing a guy," Stacy gushed excitedly.
"Oh, really? What guy?" Trish asked, also excited. Maybe Steph had found herself a guy and decided to leave Chris alone... Stacy looked a bit uneasy at this point, which annoyed Trish almost as much as Stacy's ability to get easily distracted. "Well?" she persisted. "Who was the guy?"
"It was Chris..."
A/N: Ok, this chapter has been started, erased, and restarted sooo many times, and I'm still not satisfied with what happened. I just needed to get some stuff out of the way so I could get on with the rest of the story, if you all know what I mean... I'm sorry it took me so long to update this. Thanks for sticking with this story. Whatever comes next will be better than this chapter, I can say that much... Also, please review!