Chapter Three

Lacy was disappointed that Mike hadn't written her back. Whenever she had free time at school, she would find herself wondering why he hadn't. When she did, she would end up getting herself down. Then a line from his only email would jump to the fore front of her mind.

That's what happened when she was at her locker swapping out books in her back pack for the ones that she would be needing to do her homework later that evening. Feeling alone, she started to close her locker when that one little line decided to make it's presence in her mind known. 'Don't let yourself get down.'

Smiling, she began to think out loud. "You know he's right." Unfortunately Lacy had not heard the sound of the falling footsteps that were coming up behind her. "Who's right?" 'Oh not today...please give me patience.'

Turning around, she faced the person that had spoken. " What do you want Mia?" Mia was everything that Lacy wasn't. Who was tall, blond, she had the perfect curves, but what really made the icing on that cake, was the fact that Mia was a huge bully. Who for some reason, had been targeting Lacy ever since she had moved here three years ago.

it seemed to Lacy and Cierra that the only reason Mia and her little group of minions got up each morning, other than to admire themselves in their mirrors, was to make Lacy's life a living hell. Both in and out of school. Lacy knew that she shouldn't let them get to her, but she couldn't help it. It had gotten so bad lately that Cierra, Lacy's only friend, had started trying to stay by her at all times. Cierra had even switched some of her classes around so they could be in the same classes. Unfortunately she couldn't be there all of the time. Like this afternoon.

"What's up?" Mia paused long enough to throw her hair over her shoulder, before she continued. "What's up is there's a party this weekend, at Chris Casina's house. Every one is going to be there."

"Oh yeah?" Mia started to pretend to examine and pick at her perfectly manicured french tipped nails. "Yeah, it's gonna be great." Mia began nodding as she spoke. "A hell of a bash." She shrugged one shoulder and raised her eyebrows as she said the next part. "It's just too bad you weren't invited."

With that, Mia and her cronies walked off down the hall, leaving Lacy to stand there slammed her locker shut and walked out of the building to where Cierra was waiting to give her a ride home. Getting in the car and closing the door, Lacy let out a frustrated sigh.

Cierra started the engine and got in line to exit the parking lot. "Okay I saw Mia walk out right before you did. So tell me what happened."

"She was born that's what happened. Well, you know what? It works out great that I wasn't invited, because I wouldn't have gone anyway."

Cierra quickly glanced over at her friend. "You still haven't heard from him?" Lacy shook her head as they turned onto her street. "No, but he's probably really busy. I mean I'm lucky he wrote me back the first time."

"Mabey his computer got messed up or something? I mean he may have a legitimate reason for not getting back to you." That thought made Lacy feel a little better.

She smiled and became animated once again. "Yeah! He He might not have wrote me back, because he couldn't write me back."

"That's the spirit." Lacy started cracking up, and Cierra looked over at her after she put the car into park outside of Lacy's house. "What is so cotton picking funny?"

"You just sounded like FLo off of that Progressive insurance comercial." Cierra stuck her tongue out at her friend and got out of the car, the girls went upstairs to Lacy's room and decided to put off doing the homework for the time being.

Lacy signed onto her email account, to check it and was once again disappointed. "What if he hasn't written me back, because I told him that I'm still in school?"

"Lacy I highly doubt that." Seeing that her friend needed a something to occupy her mind for the moment, she made a suggestion." Hey, let's go ahead and get that physics shit out of the way." Lacy messed up her face as though the thought disgusted her. "Ugh...I hate physics...do we have to?"

"Yes. Then we chill."

After the girls dove into their work, they were thankful that it didn't take more than a half of an hour to do. "Hey Lace, do you want to go to the mall and get our nails done?"

"That sounds really good actually. Let me go run my flat iron through my hair real quick like." She went into her bathroom and plugged in her Straightener so it could warm up. Then she touched up her make-up by running a tube of clear lip gloss over her lips.

"Hey CC take care of my inbox for me... just in case something shows up." Cierra sat down at the desk and Lacy heard her straightener beep which brought her back to the task at hand. Taming her long mane of hair.

She had gotten half way done, when she heard Cierra say something. "What did you say?"

"I said that he wants your cell number. Do you want me to give it to him?" 'Very funny CC. Well two can play at that game.' "Yeah, go ahead." Lacy thought that she could hear Cierra typing on the key board. 'Keep it up Cierra. If she thinks she's going to fool me, she has another thing coming.' After finishing her hair, she walked back into her room and grabbed her purse. "Okay you ready to go girl?"

She saw Cierra fixing to close out her inbox. "Did I get anything?" "Yeah I told you he wanted your number." Lacy closed her bathroom door. "Okay Cierra. Pull up the email then."

Cierra just shrugged her shoulders. "Okay." Then moved the mouse to pull up the inbox again and clicked on the newest email for her friend to read it. "See for yourself."

Hey Girl,

I'm sorry that it's taken me like a week and a half to write you back. My sister, Devan, was carrying my laptop into the house for me, (after I got released :)) and long story short, sadly it ended up in a mud puddle that was like five inches deep. I just wanted you to know that I wasn't ignoring you or any thing. It's completely gone *sigh* may it rest in peace. So to get revenge I've very recently barricaded myself in their room, she shares a room with our sister Arista (by choice, crazy I know), and took over their computer. Muah ha ha ha. Sorry had to gloat for a moment. Yeah it's going to be a short lived victory. Unfortunately, I have no idea when I'm going to get the chance to go and get another one. So I was wondering if I could get your number, so we couold stay in touch until I can ...you know get another laptop. Oh no I gotta go...it sounds like W.W. III just started in the kitchen. Girls are yelling, things are breaking... yeah I have to go save my house.

Hope to talk to you soon,

Mike

"Oh my..." Lacy didn't know what to think. She just stood there with her hand over her mouth in shock, as she stared at the glowing screen.

Cierra waved her hand in front of Lacy's face a few times. "Hello? Earth tho Lacy. What's wrong? I mean, I told you what he wanted."

Lacy didn't even look at her when she replied. "I...I thought you...were joking." Cierra cocked her right eyebrow up and put her hands on her hips. "Now why would I do that? I know how you feel about the man."

Lacy was still looking at the computer screen. One thought was screaming through her mind. 'Oh my god! He really wanted my number! And she actually gave it to him! Oh God! Oh shit! Oh no! Oh God!'

"Lacy, let's go already. My feet are screaming pedi!" Cierra took Lacy by the arm and gently shook her. This seemed to draw Lacy out of her stupor.

She shook her head to clear it of the million and one thoughts and turned off her computer. "Yeah, I know what you mean girl. My fingers need to be pampered before softball season starts."

They went downstairs and told Katherin where they were going. Lacy had conveniently left out the part about the email and Cierra giving out her number. 'He's not going to call. He was just being nice.'

They rode half way there in silence. It's funny how something so quiet can be so loud. The silence seemed to be deafening to Lacy. So she reached over and turned the radio on, leaving the volume low for some background noise.

Cierra pulled into the mall parking lot a few minutes later and pulled into a space. After Lacy had gotten out, closed the door and turned around, she realized that they were parked in front of the bookstore that was in the mall. 'I need to remember to go in there before we leave.'

Cierra got out of the car and walked around the front of it. Lacy linked her arm through Cierra's and said to her very humorously, "Shall we?"

Cierra nodded and grabbed Lacy's arm with her other hand, then replied, in an overly enthusiastic voice for effect,"Oh yes! Let's!" The girls laughed and playfully pushed each other away. The incident from earlier out of Lacy's mind for the moment.

Walking into the nail salon, they started looking through the different colors of nail polish, until some nail techs became available. "So I'm thinking I'll get a mani and a pedi."

Lacy rolled her eyes. Cierra always acted like she was only going to get one or the other, but always ended up getting both. "Woman you always say that. Are you going to do them both the same color or what?" 'Seeing as how you have three different colors in your hand.'

Cierra shook her head."Nah," she put one back."I think I'm going to get her to paint my tips with these, and then paint the whole toe nail with them too." Lacy had to think about that for a moment. 'She is so confusing!' "So your gonna get her to alternate the colors?"

Cierra nodded as though it were the best idea ever. "CC then why didn't you just say that?"

"Because then I wouldn't have been able to witness the smoke coming out of your ears while you thought about the confusing speech I gave." 'Oh, so there's a method to her madness. Joy!' Lacy rolled her eyes. "Ha ha!"

A lady motioned for the girls to sit down at two different stations. Lacy just decided to get french acrylics put on and be done with it. 'Keepin' it simple.' She was glad when she was done about forty five minutes later, the scent of the chemicals were starting to give her a head ache.

She paid the nail tech and looked over at Cierra, who was currently climbing into a huge pedicure chair. 'Great, another fifteen to twenty minutes.'

She walked over and stood nerxt to her friend. "Hey C, I'm going to head over to the book store." Just as she had finished her sentence, her cell started ringing. Digging it out of her pocket, she answered it with out looking at the number on the screen. "Hello?"

Her jaw nearly hit the floor and her eyes nearly popped out when she heard the voice on the other end of the phone. 'No fucking way!' All she could do was look at Cierra with a horrified expression on her face.

"What? Who is it? Is it Mmm...oh my god." Cierra started cracking up, but stopped when she saw her friend standing there gap mouthed and heard some one on the other end of the phone trying to get Lacy's attention. "Lacy! He's talking to you."

Lacy swallowed and looked at the phone then her friend. "What do I do?"

"You talk to him. Look go to the bookstore and I'll meet up with you when I'm done." Lacy nodded and headed for the bookstore." Hello?" "Lacy?"'Okay you can do this..just calm down, don't talk about wrestling, just be the adult that you are and don't say anything stupid.' "This is she."

"Hey this is Mike. Are you okay?"

"Yes, why?"

"I don't know thought you might have dropped the phone or something."

"Oh no. I was just kind of shocked that you actually called." Lacy's voice sounded strangely calm even to her own ears. She was surprised, considering that inside, it felt like thousands of butterflies had decided to take flight in her stomach.

"Well I did say that I'd call."

"There's a funny story about that actually. I was getting ready to go get my nails done, so my friend was on the computer and she said that you wanted my number, but I thought she was just trying to pull my leg." 'Please stop rambling. You sound like an idiot.'

"That sounds kinda mean." "Yeah well, we do that kinda stuff to each other all the time, so me being me, decided that I wasn't going to let her get me this time. So I was like yeah go for it." She could hear him laughing softly.

"How'd that turn out?"

"Oh she brought up the email. That knocked me down a couple of notches."

"That sounds like what me and some of my friends do. So are you getting your nails done right now or what?"

"It's funny you should ask. I'm actually in a bookstore, trying to find this book that I had heard about."

"Stocking up are we?" Lacy giggled, feeling a little more at ease. 'he's really easy to talk to.' "You could say that. This guy said that the Lord of the Rings series is really good." 'Oh my...am...am I flirting? He's probably at his parents house!.'

He was once again softly laughing on his end of the phone. "Oh he did, did he?"

"Oh Yeah. Said that they were his favorite."

"Yeah, well. So who are some of your favorite authors?" Lacy liked talking to Mike, they were talking with such ease that it felt like they had known each other for years. Instead of two people that met by unbelievable coincidence.

"Oh you don't want me to get into that. I could talk about books all day. I'd end up boring you." No one could have prepared her for hat Glen said next.

"I don't think that you could never bore me Lacy."

'You need to quit getting your nails done, those fumes have killed your brain cells.'

"What did you say?"

"I said you could never bore me. I'd be very glad to hear you talk about books all day. Books are awesome. Reading is a great pass time. Why do you like to read?"

"It would sound childish to you. You wouldn't be interested."

"Lacy. I wouldn't have asked if I weren't interested."

"Oh straight forward are we?"

"Yes. Now stop evading the question. Why do you like to read?"

"Because in books, there aren't any limits. No limits on where you can go. Who you can be."

"They make it okay to slay dragons, because it all happens where it's nice and safe?"

"Exactly."

"Exactly." Now he deffinitly thinks that there is something wrong with you.' "So, Mike. You know what I'm doing. Now I want to know, what you are doing?"

"Well that's easy. I'm sitting on the couch trying to think of something to watch."

"Another thing I could talk about all day." Lacy paid for the book and left to sit on the little bench out side the store to wait for Cierra. "What's you favorite genre?"

"Horror and gore mostly."

"That's weird."

"Why?"

"Mine too. So have you seen Silent Hill?"

MIke couldn't get over how easy Lacy was to talk to. 'She seems a lot older than what she is.'

He was also glad when he found out that they had quite a bit in common. They both like books, horror movies, playing first person shooter games, and sports. She plays basketball, he played basketball. She plays softball, his sisters play softball.

The ease with which they spoke on the phone was as though they had known each other for a long time. Like they had been friends for years.

'That's so strange.'

He knew that it sounded crazy, but he found that he really wanted to see the face behind the emails and the mesmerizing voice. He wanted to meet her, but the question was...when?

A/N: Okay there you go.. another chapter up. Like always I hope you are enjoying it, but the only way I know is if you tell me so Click on the link under this and let me know. (I told you that the chapters would get longer didn't I? I actually had to cut this one short, because it was going to be too long if I didn't.)