The next day...
Since she didn't have anything too big planned to do this morning, Katie decided to take this time as an opportunity to sleep in; because of the fact that she had to wake up very early yesterday, she felt like this was totally warranted. Not to mention, the atmosphere right now felt so perfect for a few more hours of sleep; the air wasn't too hot or too cold, the sunlight wasn't shining through her curtains and waking her up, and there wasn't a single sound to be heard, other than the birds chirping outside. Needless to say, this was a moment that the tomboy wanted to enjoy for all that it's worth.
While she was laying there, Katie couldn't help but hear a loud buzzing sound coming from somewhere nearby; she tried to ignore her as best as she possibly could, but no matter how hard she tried, the more it kept going and going. She tried to cover her ears with her own pillow, but found this to be completely futile; because if it didn't work for her whenever her dorm had a party, it definitely wasn't going to work now. Eventually, she just gave up on trying to get extra hours of shut-eye and immediately got up to investigate her bedroom, trying to find where this strange buzzing was even coming from. She searched for a bit, until eventually, she found the source of the buzzing; her Smartphone.
Katie picks up her phone and then sat down on her bed, checking to see who it was calling her at this time; and when she saw who it was, she discovered that it was just Crystal. Since it was just her best friend and not some random dude pulling a prank on her or something, she went ahead and answered the call. "Hey, Kate; am I interrupting anything right now?" The latter of the two asked.
"Well, if you consider calling me unexpectedly while I was trying to receive some additional hours of sleep, then...no, you're not." Katie said in a sarcastic tone. "Anyway, what's up?"
"I was just checking to see if you were awake yet or not; also, I was wanting to see if you were willing to go to the Boardwalk later today."
"You want to go to the Boardwalk?" Katie asked with an eyebrow raised. "I thought you hated that place."
"Obviously, I do; but last night, while I was paying Goth Boy a visit, I discovered that he and Yuki have both got jobs down there together. Goth Boy's now working at the 'Turkey-on-a-Fork' cart, and Yuki is now working at that scuba-gear stand that's at the very end of that row of stores along the bay...you know, where the concrete is."
"I know what you're referring to."
"Anyway, I'm not going to be there long; I was going to just to give them a surprise visit during their shifts...and I also wanted to mess with Goth Boy, since he has the more embarrassing job between the both of them..." A slight chuckle was then heard from the rebellious tomboy, causing the studious one to roll her eyes.
"So, you're just wanting to go there just to mock and tease someone who's not only one of your closest friends, but also one of your own crushes too?"
"Well, I wouldn't exactly say he's my crush anymore, because...uh, he and Yuki are dating now..." Crystal mentioned in an awkward tone.
"Ouch..." Katie says softly, before sitting up on her bed. "So, I'm guessing this means Ray is going to be the one that you'll wind up-"
"Ray's unfortunately taken too..." Crystal immediately interrupts, still in an awkward tone. "According to Yuki, that guy's now dating Raven Wright; she's that one goth girl with the red hair who used to be in the same math class as you, the one who would usually be seen writing poetry to herself whenever she felt bored during class." She then paused for a minute to sigh. "To be honest with you though, I was kind of already expecting them to wind up together one of these days; those two were pretty close ever since...before I've even met them.
"So, I'm guessing that means you're not going to be with any of the three who were on your list of crushes, huh?"
"I'm afraid so..." Crystal admitted softly.
"Eh, don't feel too down about it, dude; I'm sure you'll be able to find the right person for you someday."
"Thanks." After this was said, Katie got up from her bed as her best friend decided to ask her something. "So, do you want to go or what?"
"I appreciate the offer, but I believe I'm going to pass; if the only reason we're going is just to bother someone during their job, I rather not be involved." A smile then appeared on the studious girl's face. "I'll tell you what though; if you want, we could always go down to the skatepark together, just like old times."
"Katie, you have got to be the best person I can turn to whenever it comes to good ideas."
"Just let me stop by the coffee-shop first so I can get myself some breakfast, then I'll meet you there."
"Awesome." After that was agreed on, the two tomboys proceeded to end their conversation there. "I'll see you soon, Kate."
"Same to you too, Crystal." Once that was said, their phone-call came to an end, allowing the two to get themselves ready for the day.
Before she went ahead with her usual morning routine, Katie decided to first see how her new neighbor was doing right now; because after what had happened last night, it only felt right for her to check up on him, just in case he was upset with her over it. She went over to her window and peeked through the curtain to make sure that the same mistake didn't wind up happening again; but upon looking, she noticed that nobody was in the room this time. Upon seeing this sight, Katie thought her neighbor wasn't home, but she knew that couldn't be the case here; the guy's car was still parked in the driveway. She didn't know why, but the tomboy just remained standing there, waiting for something to happen; lo and behold, something eventually did.
After about another minute or two had passed, the neighbor from last night came into the room, alongside another person whom Katie never seen before. The person was a man who has dark-blue hair and appeared to be a little less brawny than his friend; and he was wearing what seems to be an orange hat that resembles that of a dog, with a matching orange long-sleeved shirt and dark-blue overalls. It was still currently unknown to her, but Katie assumed that this guy was probably the person that her neighbor was previously talking to last night; strangely, he wasn't somebody that she expected a guy like him to have as a friend.
As she continued to stand there peeking through her curtains, Katie couldn't help but watch as the two men were just talking to each other while pacing the small bedroom; what they were talking about was something she didn't know, but she knew it was most likely about what had happened last night; the fact that her window was pointed at a few times during the conversation only further proved this point. Strangely though, unlike his friend, the man with the blue hair didn't seem all too upset; although, it's pretty clear from the look on his face that he was concerned about this nonetheless. This conversation went on for a few more minutes, before it eventually came to an end, with both men exiting the room to presumably go downstairs; and then after that, the tomboy glanced down towards where the driveway was, seeing that the two men were now exiting the house and getting into their car, which was when they proceeded to drive off someplace.
'Well, at least I don't have to worry about either of them coming over to confront me...yet.' Katie thought to herself as she backed away from her window, now deciding to finally get herself ready for the skatepark.
After about twenty minutes later, Crystal finally arrived at the town's Boardwalk...
Upon entering the pier-area, Crystal remained standing there for a few minutes to take in the atmosphere, all while the song 'Despacito' by Luis Fonsi (featuring Daddy Yankee) was currently playing on the loud-speakers that were on top of the local shops nearby. Now, as previously stated before, Crystal wasn't all too fond of this part of town; the main reason being that one of her worst enemies from high-school works down here as one of the lifeguards. Thankfully for her though, she and Katie would usually only hang out around the pier-area whenever they came out here, mostly either to enjoy something at the snack-bar, check out some of the tattoos at the tattoo-parlor, or practice some skateboarding in the parking-lot; the only times that they would go down to the shore was whenever they wanted to play volleyball together. Now that Goth Boy and Yuki have jobs here too, she apparently now has another reason to come here.
Speaking of which, Crystal heard the sound of one of them from close by right now. "I was wondering if you were going to show up." Yuki says as she walked up to her rebellious friend, only to frown when she noticed that something was amiss. "Yuki thought you were bringing Katie with you."
"I invited her, but she turned me down." Crystal replied. "I'll be meeting her at the skatepark after my time here though."
"Oh, okay."
"So, anyway...where's Goth Boy?" Crystal then asked as she and Yuki were now beginning to walk towards where the scuba-gear stand was located.
"He should be right over...there." Yuki then points towards the direction of the Surf-Shop, where they both could see her boyfriend standing next to a yellow cart; Goth Boy was now wearing a yellow hat with a turkey printed on the front, with a white polo-shirt with a red bow-tie, black dress-pants, and a yellow apron. "So, what do you think?"
"Man, you weren't kidding when you said that your boyfriend looked cute in his uniform..." Crystal comments as she chuckled at the sight of her clique-leader from afar. "Also, by 'cute', I actually mean that he looks super dorky in that."
"Well, Yuki thinks the exact opposite; Yuki thinks he looks cute...as a bunny."
"Did you even hear the words that came out of your mouth, dude?" Crystal asked, now giving her friend a very perturbed look. "There are a lot of things out there that are way cuter than bunnies."
"Like what?"
"Well, gee, I don't know...bats, dragonflies, Goth Boy whenever he's not in that shitty uniform..." Crystal glanced over to Yuki for a second, seeing that the goth girl with fangs was now glaring at her for that last example. "Also, uh...you..."
"Did...you just call Yuki 'cute'?" Yuki asked, now blushing after hearing what her rebellious friend had just said.
"Well, yeah...I mean, it's cute whenever you're out there, threatening to bite people in the face, it's just adorable." Crystal then turned away from her friend for a second, before immediately turning the subject back over to Goth Boy at his job. "Anyway, I think I'm going to say 'Hi' to our 'Turkey-on-a-Fork'-working lad over there now."
"Okay." Yuki then stepped back towards the wooden-rails behind her, allowing her friend to go off and meet up with boyfriend.
While that was going on, the two men that Katie had previously seen, from both last night and minutes ago, suddenly came walking through the harbor-gates. "So, let see if I get this straight; this contraption that you're planning to make is supposed to be a...'Gyro-Dance Sphere'?" The blue-haired man asked, looking at a blueprint that was in his hands. "No offense, dude; but isn't this a bit...you know, dangerous?"
"Tim, dude, you've known me for a long time..." The man with the leather jacket said, wrapping an arm around his best friend. "Of course, it's gonna be dangerous..." He then said in a very blunt manner.
"I don't know about this, Chaz..." Tim then stated, while putting the blueprint away. "After what happened last night with the 'Flaming Hoop and Ramp' stunt we tried to pull last year...and it ending in disaster...I'm not sure attempting another one of these is a good idea."
"As you said, that happened last year, meaning that the folks around here have probably forgotten about it by now." The two men were just passing by Yuki, as Chaz continued with his explanation. "Besides, nobody got hurt when that incident happened...well, except for that one dude who was in the parking-lot by the time that burning palm tree collapsed..." Tim then gave his friend a glare after that was said. "Hey, at least it was those dogs that got him and not the tree itself."
Tim then sighed as he pulled out the blueprint again. "Are you sure your girlfriend's okay with this?" He asked. "I'm not even sure if she's forgiven for that whole incident last year."
"Don't worry about that, dude; because I have asked her, and she's totally cool with us making the 'Gyro-Dance Sphere'; just as long as we keep away from everyone else."
"So...like last time?"
"Exactly."
It was around this time, the two were now walking right past the spot where Crystal currently was, while she was currently talking with an irritated Goth Boy; and needless to say, she was immediately awestruck from the sight of one of those two men...it probably should be obvious which one she had her eyes on. "Holy shit..." She whispered as she stared at the duo passing her by.
"Oh, please..." Goth Boy muttered with a scoff. "It's just Chaz McFreely; the supposed 'coolest guy in school', all because he was the only student who had a motorcycle and a tattoo at the same time...which isn't really all that impressive..."
"Are you kidding me, dude?" Crystal then asked her clique-leader. "Everything about him is cool, from his hair to his jacket, and from his motorcycle to his car."
"What about his girlfriend?" A smirk then appeared on the male goth's face. "Also, need I remind you who his girlfriend is?"
Before Crystal could say anything, she overhears Chaz talking from her spot. "Hey, I think I'm gonna go see how Summer's doing." The latter told his friend. "Do you think you've got unloading the pieces out of that box handled yourself?"
"Of course, I do." Tim said as he was about to walk into the alleyway he and his friend were standing next to. "Just be sure to come back once you're done talking to your girlfriend."
"Will do, man." After that was said, Chaz went down to the shore below, while his friend went off to the lot that was behind the row of buildings nearby.
"In case you need to be reminded, Fonzie over there is dating Summer Baxter; the most popular girl in school, and the now former captain of the cheerleading squad, and-"
"My worst enemy..." Crystal muttered, finishing the rest of that sentence for her former clique-leader. "I get it..."
"Yuki's surprised that they're still together after all this time." Yuki chimes in, leaning against the side of her boyfriend's cart. "They've been together since Senior Prom-"
"Which I completely missed out on..." Crystal muttered, interrupting her friend in the process. "If Rosalyn hadn't made it mandatory to wear a dress to that stupid dance, I'd probably already be dating Chaz by now..."
"I'm pretty sure even if you did, you wouldn't have had the chance to ask him out anyway." Goth Boy stated to the rebel. "I don't think there was any other girl that Chaz was into more than Summer Baxter, not even any of the other girls on the cheer-squad with her."
"Right; because the coolest guy in school would rather go out with someone like her over me; the coolest girl in school." The tomboy snarked, bitterly. "I mean, what the hell does that bitch have that I don't?"
"Hmm, let me think...she's nice, she's friendly, she's got a great sense of fashion, she's sexy-"
"So, I'm none of those things?" Crystal interrupts in anger, before suddenly calming down when she noticed something about what her clique-leader had just said. "Also, did you just call Summer 'sexy'...in front of your girlfriend?"
"Well-" Before he could finish his sentence, Goth Boy was suddenly whacked in the back of his head. "Ow!" He then turned his head towards his girlfriend, who was giving him a very angry frown, most likely due to that last example he said seconds ago. "Well, fuck...I didn't actually mean it..."
"No girlfriend likes to hear their boyfriend call another girl that right in front of them; you should've already known that by now, dude." Crystal says as a smirk formed on her face; immediately afterwards, her expression faltered as she pulled her phone out, letting out a sigh as she did. "Well, as much as I'd love to stay around, I'm afraid I gotta go now; I have to meet Katie down at the skatepark in a couple minutes. I'll see you guys later."
"Bye, Crystal, come again another time." Yuki says happily, all while waving at the rebellious tomboy.
As she was about to make her leave, Crystal gave one more look out to the beach, watching as the biker was walking off into the distance, trying to find his girlfriend's tower; upon seeing this sight, all that the rebel could do was just shake her head and let out a depressed sigh. 'I don't care if you're still dating that fucking she-devil...I just hope that there's a chance for the both of us to have a relationship someday...' She thought, before proceeding to finally leave the Boardwalk.
Note: This one was a hell of a lot later than I hoped. Obviously, Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year, but it's also the most hectic time of the year too; and truthfully, I guess you can say that was a large percentage of why this chapter came out later than the day I've been usually posting. Regardless, I appreciate you all for your patience and I hope you guys had a wonderful Christmas.
So, let's take a look at what reviews we have for today...
lordgemini: Crystal was more disappointed at the fact that all three crushes she's previously picked were all taken, not just Yuki. Also, Katie doesn't end up meeting the neighbor yet; but eventually down the road, she will.
So, as it's pretty much obvious at this point that Chaz is the new neighbor, and since he was introduced in this chapter right here, he and Tim will be focused on in the next chapter. I'll see you all in the next chapter, and I wish you all a happy new year.