Author: HEARTgoesBOOM
Rated: T for Teens
Disclaimer: I do not own anything from The Covenant. All original characters are mine.
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Slip inside the eye of your mind
Dont you know you might find
A better place to play
You said that you've never been
But all the things that youve seen
They slowly fade away
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"Have you guys seen the new girl yet?" Tyler asked as he dropped down into the empty seat beside Reid, the blonde boy sprawled across his math textbook in a futile attempt to get some shuteye.
"Yeah," he mumbled into his book. "Heard she's a real nutcase. What's-her-name … Melanie down in Administration said she caught her talking to herself while she was waiting for the Provost this morning. And shit, Brody Williams tried talking to her this morning during English Lit but she spazzed out on him, even threatened to castrate the poor basturd if ever tried talking to her again."
Sarah tore her eyes away from her Fashion homework and glared at Reid, irritation apparent in her eyes at the description of the new girl. "You can be really insensitive sometimes, you know that, Reid!" She snapped at the blonde, her blue eyes narrowed slightly. When Reid rolled his eyes at her, she sighed, giving up. It was impossible to get through to him sometimes. She turned to Tyler, the dark haired boy looking at the dark haired girl sitting five rows down. "It seems you've met her already … what's she like Tyler?"
"Well …" the blue-eyed boy started and Sarah couldn't help but follow his eyes.
Adelaide was sitting with her legs propped up on her desk, the sleeves of her white oxford shirt rolled up to reveal tattoo sleeves of images Sarah didn't want to think about. A set of DJ style headphones was placed strategically around her neck and a half eaten sandwich could be seen in one of her hands. Her altered uniform brought a small secretive smile to Sarah's face. The girl had guts, she wasn't going to lie.
"That's her, over there." He said simply, nodding to her with his head. "Adelaide McCarthy."
The rest of their group who had been listening in on their conversation turned their attention to her, their eyes widening slightly.
"That's her?" Caleb asked, surprise evident on his strong face as he blinked a few times just to make sure what he was seeing was real. He shook his head slowly. "That can't be her … Professor McCarthy is … this girl is … wow." He finished lamely.
"Are you sure that's her, Tyler?" Sarah asked, her pale blue eyes roaming over the new girl's form. " Well … she doesn't seem all that dangerous, you know, if you get over the busted lip, tattoo's, dark make up and force field of doom that kills anything in a ten foot radius."
Without a word, Tyler gathered his books and was already standing by the time everyone had collected themselves and gotten over the fact that the girl he had pointed out to them was indeed their math teacher's daughter.
"What are you doing?" Reid asked, peeling himself off his books.
"I'm going to go over there," Tyler said after watching her for a few seconds.
"Are you crazy?" Pogue questioned, his brown eyes beaming concern for his friend's well being. "I mean, I know she's new and all but she kinda gives off the impression that she doesn't want any company. I don't think she's looking for any friends."
"I don't think anyone was offering to be her friend, Pogue." Reid smirked, crumpling up a piece of lined paper and tossing in Adelaide's direction. "The girl's a bitch Ty; you're only going to get your heart broke if you go over there …"
Tyler shook his head, shouldering his backpack. "I'm willing to take that risk …" he said, before giving them a small wave. "I'll see you guys at lunch." He bid, before making his way down toward the dark haired girl, a fear filled lump settling in his throat growing with each hesitant step he took.
"Ten bucks says she decks him …" Reid bet, slapping a crisp ten onto their desk.
"Ten bucks says she threatens his man hood … and follows through." Caleb added with a reluctant sigh.
"Ten bucks says he doesn't make it back alive." Pogue grinned, adding his bet to the pot.
Sarah stuck her hand in her pocket and retrieved a ten-dollar bill despite her obvious distaste for their lack of enthusiasm toward the new girl and encouragement towards their friend. "Ten bucks says this is going to be the start of something beautiful …" she smiled, slapping her ten down on the desk, ignoring the pointed looks the three boys sent in her direction.
"Women …" the murmured, training their eyes on today's entertainment.
Things were definitely going to get interesting.
-
"Finish ogling me?" I asked, my eyes momentarily flickering over to the group of teens looking over at me with curious eyes before returning to my novel as though they were nothing more than a figment of my imagination. Although, I wish they were because at least then if I blinked they would cease to exist and I wouldn't have to deal with their harsh judgemental stares.
Oh, the angst of it all.
Tyler blushed, swallowing thickly as he reached for the empty chair across from me. "I-Is this seat taken?" he asked, his backpack sliding off his shoulders as he slowly slid the chair out from under the table.
"Nope," I said as I folded down the corner of my current page and looked up at him. This boy, Tyler Simms, he probably would have settled himself into that empty chair if I hadn't continued. "And I'd like it to stay that way. I'm sure you're friends wouldn't mind so either." I grunted, turning my eyes back to the page I knew I wouldn't be finishing anytime soon, my eyes aimlessly rolling over random paragraphs in an attempt to shut him out.
I knew that wasn't the reaction he was expecting, but after this morning what exactly was he expecting from me? Though he was acting like a real wanker right now, I knew he wasn't going to give up despite how scared he probably was of me. I knew he was going to sit down and have his way with me because I'm assuming he feels he deserved a chance to get to know me …
… I love proving these bitches wrong.
Tyler Simms dropped his backpack onto the carpeted floor and despite my warning settled into the seat beside me. As soon as I was sure he was sitting, I looked up and set a scowl into my soft features. "I thought I made it clear to you that I did not, and will not ever, want the company." I grumbled, my eyes narrowing dangerously at him.
I watched with almost amused eyes as he fought not to burst into flamed under the intensity of my glare as he shifted in his seat, his chin held high. "I-I heard what you said but I'm choosing to ignore it. And despite what you might think, being a bitch isn't going to make you seem more appealing to us, so m-maybe you should just drop the act."
"Drop the act, hm?" I said in a voice that was not my own as I snapped my book shut, pulling my feet off the desk. "I hate to break it to you, blue-eyes, because it seems to me you think you have me all figured out … but this isn't an act. And I don't care what people around here think about me because I like who I am and what they say, what you think, is not going to change that." And with that, I gathered my things off the floor and rammed my novel into my satchel from his morning. "And you, and your little friends over their," I pointed into the direction of his little entourage, who at this point in time saw it fit to pretend like they were actually involved in their work. "can take your pity and wipe your asses with it because I sure as Hell don't want or need it."
He just sat there, shocked as I manoeuvred my way around the table and trudged my way across the room. I didn't need to turn around to know his eyes were trained on me as I stormed out of the Study Hall doors. I tried not smile at what I had just done, it was mean and cruel, but the bout of whispers that followed me through the door was the cherry on top of my sundae.
Who knew humiliating someone in front of an audience could feel this good?
As I made my way down the hall and settled down in front of some lockers to continue my novel, I couldn't help but let my mind wander to Tyler Simms and how he was feeling at this very moment in time. I don't suppose he meant for his little friendship speech to come out so badly and he probably did try to make me feel like a complete idiot, so I guess I should give the guy some credit for having the balls to talk to me after I told him I'd practically blind him if he ever spoke to me again. And I don't suppose me meant for it sound like the only reason he wanted to be friends with me was because no one else would. He doesn't seem like the type of person to do that, but I could be wrong. And I don't suppose he meant to hurt me no how much I'll deny it if he ever asks.
Adelaide McCarthy doesn't get hurt, she gets even.
When one is deep in thought, one does not pay attention to their surroundings. So when I finally broke from my sympathy induced daze, I found Tyler Simms staring down at me with those bright blue-eyes of his.
"Adelaide …" he said softly, his voice dripping with concern and self-doubt.
"What? Come for round two?" I asked, my eyes narrowing at he sight of him.
Though I probably should feel good about him coming after me like this in order to set things straight, strangely, I'm not. I rolled my eyes and grabbed my satchel when he made no move of tittering off anytime soon. I was about to get up and leave, when his hand on my shoulder stopped me.
I looked up at him, distaste and annoyance evident on my face. "If you want to keep that hand I suggest you get it off me …" I hissed, pushing him away from and standing to my full height. But despite my attempts to come off as intimidating, I was a good five inches shorter than him.
Tyler Simms cheeks tinted a brilliant shade of mauve as he hooked his hands through the looks of his backpack strap like a little child and in that moment I almost felt sorry for what I had just done … almost. "I …" he started softly and even though my head told me to walk away, my feet stayed glued to the ground.
"You what?" I asked impatiently, my hands tightening around the straps of my satchel.
He looked down at me, something fierce surfacing in his eyes. It felt a lot different than I had expected it to. I … I felt ashamed. "Forget it," he said, re-shouldering his backpack, the once timid boy a figment of my imagination. "I'm not going to waste a perfectly good apology on someone who obviously doesn't deserve it. You're defence mechanism has to wear down sometime, Adelaide, and when it does and you get tired of living this lie, you're going to find that it's a very lonely world out there." He shook his head and smiled almost sadly at me. "But I guess you already knew that …"
And those last words, more than I think I deserved, he turned on his heel and walked away.
But he wasn't going to get away that easily, not after what he just said to me. No one gets away with humiliating me like that, no one.
I adjusted the strap of my satchel and took off after him and when I was close enough I reached out and grabbed his arm, spinning him around. "You must be out of your fuckin' mind if you think you can just walk away after saying something like that to me …" I hissed, his hand tightening around his upper arm.
Tyler looked down at me, peering at me through a haze of confusion before he easily yanked his arm away from me. "And you must be out of yours if you think I'm going to stand here and get abused by some … shrimp who thinks she's all that." He shot back. "All you do snap, growl and grunt and it's really starting to grate on my nerves-"
"Believe me, the feeling's mutual." I cut in.
Tyler's eyes narrowed at me. "-and despite what I said back there I know you don't mean it when you tell me leave you, so I'll ignore the ice queen act and go with my gut. I know you don't want me to ditch you because then you'll have no one to push around and show off for …" he trailed off, turning his head away from me momentarily, probably gathering his thoughts, before turning it back. "You need me to inflate your ego, feel good about yourself and I have no objection to that. I know what it's like to be alone in a sea of people, and I don't want you to feel like that because I consider you a friend even though you consider me nothing more than the dirt beneath your feet."
I snorted at Tyler, catching his eyes. "Just because you're good at making speeches, doesn't mean I'm going to give in to your badgering, mate. You're a meaningless nerd who's got some serious attachment issues he needs to talk over with his therapist. Besides, if you want to be friends with me, you better get used to this," I motioned between our faces with a slender finger. "because this is how I am."
To my utter surprise, Tyler matched my gaze, annoyance and anger swirling in the depths of his bright blue pools. "And you better get used to this," he copied my motion, his finger pushing mine away. "because this is how I am." He retorted, his tone forceful and stern.
I couldn't stop the amusement that rose in my eyes and I'm sure I was smiling too. This guy … he wasn't like the all the others. He didn't give up just because things got a little tough and he sure as hell didn't take any of my bullshit. I smirked and wrapped one of my arms around his, turned both of us around, and started dragging us down the hall not knowing if we were heading in the direction of either of our next classes or not.
Things were starting to get interesting.
"You've got balls, Tyler Simms, I'm impressed." I said, ramming my free hand into my pants pocket. "You got a story that goes along with that whole cock and bull bit you gave a second ago?" I asked, my smirk turning into something of a grin as he looked down at me with surprised eyes. "I've got time to kill, blue-eyes, don't get your hopes up."
The corners of his lips tugged in the gentlest of manners as he gently shifted his arm underneath mine. "I appreciate the effort, but I don't like being humoured."
"You're the one that wanted to be friends, and sharing is one of the benefits that come with it. So, spill if you want me to stay because my unfed curiosity is the only thing that's keeping my hip glued to yours." I grunted, gluing my eyes onto the dark haired boy's for extra effect.
And I did, you know, want to get to know him. I didn't have to like getting to know him but he was the taking the time to get to know me despite my pathetic attempts to keep him at bay. I figure the least I could do for his troubles is hear him out, see why exactly he wants my company and go from there. Besides, it's not like I have anything better to do.
Tyler sighed. "Well, I've lived in Ipswich all my life. I've got a great group of friends … Pogue, Reid, Caleb, Sarah and Kate. They're great, and, I'd do anything for them but … even though I'm friends with them and we have some common ground, I still feel like I don't belong with them. I mean, Pogue's the life of the party, Caleb's super smart, Reid's got all the charm, and me? I'm just … Baby Boy." He chuckled at himself and then at me. "But when I saw you walk through that door … somehow, that all changed …"
The loneliness that radiated off his voice like warmth from a flame was enough to make me choke. Despite wanting to close myself off the world I wanted to know more about him, about what compelled him to say the things he did to me. Inadequacy, I feel, is a common trait among teenagers. But with Tyler Simms I knew it was a lot more than that. I knew that like me, something had triggered this constant state of self-doubt and low self esteem. And though I'd made my mind up before coming to Spencer that nothing and no one could ever make me feel like that again … I wasn't so sure anymore.
"So," Tyler said, breaking me from my thoughts. "What brought you to Spencer?"
I swallowed. "This is normally the part where I'd tell you to fuck off and mind your own damn business," I sighed. "but since you shared something personal with me I'm sure I can make an exception …" We turned a corner. "My grandparents kicked me out." I said simply, hoping that maybe he would leave it at that.
"You'll like it here." He said, obviously feeling my discomfort on the subject.
"I don't think so, but kudos for trying." I said as we turned another corner, this time feeling as though maybe there was purpose to what we were doing in both a physical and metaphorical sense. I unlinked my arm from his and stuffed in into its matching pants pocket. "So … this whole, trying to be friends thing … you think it'll actually work?"
Tyler shrugged. "Why wouldn't it?"
"I don't know …" I murmured, copying his motion. "For one thing I'm a stark raving mad, attention-craving bitch who has nothing better to do than make everyone around her miserable. I figure hanging around with me, even uttering my name out loud knocks you down at least fifteen notches on the social ladder. Another reason being, I don't particularly like you." I had to keep up my image because here in Ipswich … it was all I had.
"Well, we're going to have to work on that." Tyler smiled.
I felt my chest tighten at his words, something awful bubbling in the pit of stomach. It could be hunger, all I've had to eat in the past couple days was a granola bar, but I doubt it. Did I really want to be friends with someone who could open up to me with ease? Did I really want to carry his emotional baggage and go through his hardships with him when I have enough of my own and then some? Did I really want to give my heart to someone else and hope that maybe, maybe they wont be as careless with mine as I would with theirs?
"Listen, Tyler," I said, my smoker's voice harsher than usual. "I think that despite what I want to feel right now, you're the coolest rich kid I've ever met. But … we're too different. I'm the school psycho and you're a prince, and you talking to me like this has been one of the best bloody experiences of my life but … despite how extremely generous you are with your sympathy, empathy, whatever people these days call it," I swallowed down the thick lump that had settled in my throat. "I'll never be able to get over that fact. And I-"
His hand covered my mouth, cutting me off. I glowered up at him, my brows furrowed in confusion and anger. "I'm not asking you to marry me, Adelaide, I'm just asking you to let someone in."
"Rut tif I runt? Rut tif I ront runt to?" (1)
"Well then," the blue-eyed boy grinned as he took his hand away from my mouth. "That's something we're going to have to work on as well, won't we?"
I swallowed and sighed. I didn't know what to say. Being this nice was completely unlike me and see if I don't beat up this basturd for bringing out the lady in me. I still don't understand what made me go after him in the first place even if it was to yell at him, but whatever it was, part of me is thankful it decided to surface when it did. Because if it didn't, I don't think I'd have gotten to see the my seed of anger bloom into something beautiful … something I don't think I ever want to die.
Just as I was about to open my mouth and snap at him for touching me so inappropriately, the bell rang. In a matter of seconds the hall was flooded with students. He looked down at me, curiosity lighting up in his bright blue eyes.
"What class do you have next?" he asked, retrieving a folded sheet of yellow from his pocket.
I copied his motion, retrieving my own. "World History, with Professor Diesel."
Tyler grinned, neatly plucking the crumpled paper out of my hands. "Looks like we're going to be seat mates," he teased, before he turned his eyes to both out schedules. A small gasp escaped his lips. "You'll never guess what?"
My mouth opened slightly. "Don't tell me …"
Tyler nodded, his grin widening. "Yeah …"
"Fuck me!" I groaned, covering my face with my hands. At my outburst, Tyler blushed. "You know I knew they'd so something ridiculous like this. The one person I'd like to see as little as possible has the exact same schedule as me. Screw the Provost's warning about my potty mouth, I'm going to follow through on my threat and shove my foot so far up his-"
Tyler looked down at his watch. "As much as I'd like to hear you bad mouth the Provost, we're going to be late for class. And as one of the Prince's of Spencer it's my duty to arrive to an appointed destination on-"
"Just shut up and walk." I snapped, grabbing him by the collar of his shirt and dragging down the hallway, numerous people staring at us as though we'd sprouted extra limbs. But I didn't care, I was used to the attention and despite what anyone says about me, I love it. Tyler on the other hand was redder than a tomato.
As soon as the hall cleared a little I let him go, allowing him to follow me on his own. He didn't say anything as he straightened out to his full height and fell into step beside me though I knew he was more than itching to give me a piece of his mind.
"Are we going in the right direction?" I asked, ramming my hands into her pockets of my pants.
"Yeah, it's just up ahead." He said, pointing off into the horizon.
In a matter of minutes we were standing outside the World History room. Tyler overtook me and made a beeline for the room, grabbing the handle and holding it open as though he wanted me to go in before him. What the hell did he think this was? Men didn't go around opening the door for woman anymore-
"We're here." He said, breaking me from my thoughts once again.
I smiled.
No we aren't … not by a long shot.
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Don't Look Back In Anger © Oasis(1) What if I cant? What if I don't want to?