Ties of a Friendship
Chapter 13
Dinner wasn't as bad as Jude thought it could've been. He pictured it a lot worse than what actually happen which is good meaning it was a success in his mind. He decided he wanted to talk to Connor about the dinner and his situation with Trey. He knew Trey didn't have any hard feelings about it, but Jude wanted to know why Connor acted that way. It seems so unlike him, out of his character.
Science class started and Jude saw Connor. It was good because he wanted to talk to him anyway. Connor walked to their shared desk.
"Hey I was looking for you!" Connor tells Jude.
Jude gave him a puzzling look, "Really why?"
"Can we could switch partners?" Connor asked him. Jude paused for second, "It's just Daria asked she could my partner." Jude turned to face the 13 year old curly hair girl sitting with her best friend. Connor and Daria both looked back and forth at each other before Jude's eye shot back at Connor.
"Um…yeah it's cool," Jude gave in and allowed Connor and him to switch partners. Connor gives the okay and Daria gets up and goes over to where Connor is. Jude makes his way to her best friend.
"Um Jude?" Connor called out to him. Jude turns back around to face him, "The potato?" Jude completely forgot he was holding there project in his hand he hands it off to Daria.
"Taylor has yours," She gives him a smile and sits next to Connor. Clearly Jude was upset by the gesture, but brushed it off and sits down next to Taylor.
"Sucked being sexiled," Taylor tells him.
Confusion ran over Jude's face, he didn't understand the meaning of what Taylor meant, "Sexiled?"
"When your best friend ditches you for their new boo," She explains to Jude.
"When did they become…boos?" Jude asked her.
"Like five minutes ago, but if you ask Daria there OTP," She goes on to explain Jude just gives off a nod and Taylor shrugs it off, "But hey I'm down with being partners. If you are?"
It took Jude a second to process what was going on, but he quickly agreed, "Yeah…I'm totally down." Taylor smiles and begins to work on their project. For an instance Jude glared out of the side of his eyes at Connor and Daria, who were laughing about something, but he quickly snapped back to help Taylor with their project.
"Well let's get started I hear you're good at science so this won't be a problem for you."
Jude laughs and begins to work on the project along with Taylor.
As the day rolled on Jude wasn't able to talk to Connor because he was busy with Daria. He didn't understand where this coming from. Every attempt he tried Connor was with Daria or Connor was ignoring him it started to bother him a little bit.
It was lunch time and Jude went outside for lunch. He looked around for a place to sit. He saw Connor along with Taylor and Daria sitting down on a nearby table. He wanted to find another place to sit, but Daria soon spotted him.
"Hey Jude," She calls out to him, "Come here. Come sit with us." He obeyed and came towards their table, "Oh my God Taylor was telling us how funny you were in Science class today. Sit. Come have lunch with us."
Jude looked at all three of them, but he focus on Connor. Connor gave him a smile which assured him it was okay to have lunch with them. "Okay." He places his tray on the table and enters the conversation.
"Guy get you're bulb lit?" Connor asked.
"Yeah. Creepy to think there's electricity in your french fries," He answers as they group burst into giggles.
"So who's dying to see Bright Lights?" Daria asked changing the conversation. Connor and Jude looked confused. "We read the book last summer and we are totally obsessed."
"What's the movie about?"
"It's a chick flick…" Connor explains to Jude.
"Hey why don't we all go see it tonight? As a group?" Daria suggested. Connor quickly agrees and Taylor had no objects. "Yeah?"
"I have to make sure I can," Jude tells her.
"Well there's 7'oclock one and my mom can totally drives us! Here just put your number in my phone." Daria hands Jude her cellphone and he puts his number in her phone. Once he was done he handed the phone back to her, "Awesome. We have to go to the bathroom before class."
"I guess I have to pee," Taylor gives an awkward smile to Jude as the girls quickly rose from their seats. They tell the boys goodbye and leave.
"If you want I can say my moms' won't let me go?" Jude offered. He didn't want to go anywhere that would make Connor feel unconformable.
"No it's fine. I don't mind if you go," Connor replied.
"So is Daria your girlfriend?" Jude bluntly asks Connor.
"I guess," He thought about it for second.
"I didn't know you liked her," Puzzle of confusion rose on Jude's face. Connor was confusing him. He felt like it was backpack for dating Maddie when he had a crush on her.
"Well she's hot," Connor tells him. For second both boys stared at one of another causing tension between them, "Um do you like Taylor?"
Jude nervously nods back and forth, "Yeah she's nice."
"We're probably going to be the only dudes in the movie theater."
"Yeah probably."
With that the boys continued their lunch in silence. Jude didn't know what to think he wanted to say something to Connor, but he didn't know how to talk to him. With Daria in the picture he didn't want to seem jealous about the situation.
"You never did tell me how your family dinner with Trey went," Connor brought up. Jude completely forgot about the family dinner. "Did everything go well?"
"Um…yeah actually pretty good," Jude tells him Connor gives him a quick nice nod, "Callie was being her usually self. Overprotecting me she thinks I can't take care of myself or I'm some kind of baby."
"Wow really what did she say?"
"Not what she said that bothered me that much…" Jude trailed off before continuing, "We have Moms now. I know it's hard for her to stop parenting me it just gets frustrating. She attacked Trey she thought he wanted something from me, but I told her its nothing like that and we're just friends who love to read."
"Man reminds me not to make your sister mad at me!" Connor giggles. Jude giggles as well it was funny to see how he was threatened by her too. "Are you going to see Trey today?"
"No I have to get ready for this group date that we're going on."
"This is going to be exciting," Connor sighed in sarcasm.
As the day rolled on Jude made his way to the office Lena offered to take him home while older siblings had extracurricular activities. He waited in the waiting room until she was finish with the last of her work. Once she finish they headed to the car.
"Momma?" Jude begins he was nervous. He doesn't know why he figured she would say yes, but he was still shaking at the thought of going anywhere in a group.
"Yes honey?"
"Can I go to the movies with Connor, Taylor and Daria?"
"Of course honey." Lena answered back relief crept on Jude's face, "Do you want me and Mom to drop you off? Or…"
"Daria's mom is taking us."
"Okay I'll give some money so you can have snacks as well."
Once they got home Jude made sure his homework was done before anything else. Once his homework was done he headed upstairs to shower and change clothes there was no way he was wearing the same thing he had on at school. Once he was dried and dress he text Daria his address. He headed to the bathroom to fix his hair up.
While in the bathroom Jude was fixing his hair. Jesus walked in getting reading to study with Emma.
"Hot date?" Jesus asked.
"No me and Connor are going to movies with some girls…as a group!" Jude tells him.
Jesus wasn't buying that story. He played the game before so he knows that's not what they're doing, "As a group? That what people tell their parents when they don't want them to know what they're really doing."
Jude was puzzled by this notion of realization. There supposed to be going to the movies to hang out and watch a movie. Jesus tells him that there's more to it. "What are we really doing then?"
"Going to the movies? Going to a dark place. Do things with a girl you can't do in the light." Jesus grabs his cologne and spray himself. While Jude still puzzled and confused, "You know hooking up?" Jesus looks at the confused preteen and sprays his cologne and tells him to walk into it.
"Why?"
"Girls love a guy who smells good." Jude walks into the cologne and begins to choke on the smell. Jesus just laughs and leaves the bathroom.
Lena called Jude telling him that Daria's mom had arrived to pick him up. He quickly rushes downstairs. Lena hands him some money and tell him to be good as she kisses him goodbye on the cheek.
Jude got in the car Daria was sitting shotgun Taylor behind her Mom and Connor in the middle. He scoots in next to Connor. Jude's shoulder had touched Connor and he quickly moves away from Connor trying to brush himself as close to the window as possible.
"Hey Jude," Daria greets him looking at him through the mirror in the front. He gives a quick smile along with Taylor and Connor, "Alright guys let's go to the movies!"
Once Daria's mom dropped them off the boys went up to the booth to pay for the tickets. While the girls brought drinks and snacks a fair trade off. Soon they made their way to their movie. It was more crowded than the group though.
"Where do you want to sit?" Connor asked Daria.
"Where ever you want!" She replied, but quickly changed her mind, "Actually why don't we sit in the back?" She turns to Taylor and Jude who were both dumbfounded.
"Or we could sit there!" Taylor pointed to the bottom row of the seats near the exit.
Daria didn't like that idea, "Yeah, but if people are talking during the movie…it's quieter in the back. Taylor looked nauseated and Jude was already on edge.
"How does the back sound? Connor?" Daria asked him Connor was cool with the idea. Daria turn to Jude.
"Yeah I…yeah," He was kinda of lost for words at this moment he don't know what was going on in his head right now.
With the group all in agreement Daria leads them to the back of the movie theater. Once they got their Daria took the last seat on the edge of the row, follow by Connor Jude sat next to him and Taylor sat next to Jude on his left.
Once settled Connor pulled the armrest from behind him separating him and Jude. Jude brushed it off in annoyance from the behavior Connor was displaying.
"Sorry if they start making out it'll be weird sitting right there next to them," Taylor apologizes for Connor and Daria's behavior that might happen.
"Thanks it won't weird for me at all," He replied.
Soon the movie started and Jude looked over at Connor and Daria both were watching the movie. He places his hand on the shared armrest next to Connor. Soon Connor places his arm on the armrest as well. Jude notices this, but Connor was watching the movie so Jude pays this no mind and continues to watch the movie.
Connor looks down and sees Jude's hand resting or the armrest as well as his. Without making a move Connor moves his left pinkie closer and closer to Jude's until they touch. Jude caught off guard by the gesture he doesn't pull away. Connor begins to brush his pinkie against Jude's there was clearly emotionally exhilarating from both ends. Once that moment pass Connor hook his pinkie with Jude's entwining with one another Connor smiles to himself and Jude looks completely shock.
For most of the movie Connor and Jude's pinkies were entwined and nothing pulled them apart until the credits started to run. Once then Connor quickly unhooks his pinky from Jude and they all exit the theatre.
Now Jude was confused to the actions of Connor. Connor looks back at him like nothing happened, but Jude didn't press the issue he just wanted to go home and process what happened.
"Was that movie amazing?" Daria asked.
"It was okay. The book was better if you ask me," Taylor tells her.
"It was a nice movie only because I didn't read the book so I can't judge it on the book I can only judge on the movie," Jude explains.
"It's a chick flick so doesn't matter to me not one bit!" Connor tells them.
"You would," Jude tease.
"Well it's true, but most chick flicks are like that!"
Daria pulls her arms around Connor's, "I was hoping we could have something like they did in the movie Connor."
"I guess so maybe…" Connor replied sheepily.
"Daria you told you're Mom we're done with the movie you know it's a school night my Dad would freak if we're not back before 9:30!" Taylor reminded her.
"Yeah she's actually waiting for us to come out now."
Relief Taylor saw Daria's mom and the group got into the car Jude was dropped off first and he said his goodbyes and made his way home.
Once he entered he headed up to his room and went straight to bed. His Moms wanted to ask him about the movie, but he told them he was tired and he wanted to sleep. Flopping on his bed all he could think about was Connor's pinky entwining with his it was confusing to say the least. He wanted to talk to Connor about, but decided against instead he decided to fall asleep and try to forget about the night at the movies.