Thanks for the reviews guys :) I think this chapter is the best chapter so far but I'll let you guys decide. I also put a little of Paul's perspective in this time. Hope you enjoy :)
"There are times when I can't decide whether to see you or not, I want to see you because I miss you but there are times when I don't want to see you because every time I do, the fact that you don't see me the way that I see you hurts me even more."
The cool breeze hit Stephanie out of nowhere and she felt someone's arms around her as she began to shake a little from the cool air.
"Why is she shaking? What did you do to her?" A male voice practically shouted.
"Nothing. She's just cold. Chill out" replied another male voice as she felt something warm cover her.
She had no idea where she was or what was going on. The last thing she could remember was going to the bathroom.
"Steph? Are you okay?" Asked one of the male voices she finally recognized as Paul.
"I'm fine" whispered Stephanie as she opened her eyes and seen Ryder's face inches from her. Ryder was holding her and she felt suddenly awkward. She quickly looked across from her and seen Paul and he wasn't too happy at all.
"You can let her up now. I think she's fine" said Paul clearly upset.
"Yeah she's fine that's why she passed out" replied Ryder sarcastically.
"I passed out?" Stephanie asked.
"Yeah you were on your way back I guess and passed out. We found you near the bathroom. I'll remember not to let you drink that much next time" laughed Ryder as Paul became even angrier, clenching his fists at his side.
"Next time? I don't think there will be a next time" replied Paul.
"What? You are going to forbid her from hanging with me?" Ryder asked with a smirk.
"Guys stop fighting, it's really getting on my nerves and I have a headache" said Stephanie as she took in her surroundings. It looked like Ryder had carried her outside and they were sitting on the porch as he held her. There were no chairs outside or porch swing so Stephanie guessed he had just held onto her to make sure she was okay. Suddenly realizing Ryder was still holding onto her the awkward moment came back so she decided to try and get up.
"Are you sure you can stand by yourself?" Ryder asked concerned.
"Yeah just help me" replied Stephanie as Paul came over and gently put his hand on her arm and helped her up too. Just as she stood up everything became dizzy and she felt like she was going to vomit.
"Are you okay?" Paul asked concerned by her facial expression.
"Yeah I think I'm going to be sick" replied Stephanie covering her mouth feeling nauseous.
"I'm going to take her home and get her in bed" said Paul.
"I can do it, besides she came here with me" replied Ryder.
"I said I'll take her home and get her in bed. I know her family and you don't. What are they going to think with some strange guy taking their daughter up to her room?" Paul asked as Ryder shrugged.
"I guess it would be better for you to take her then" agreed Ryder although he wanted to take her home. He really had wanted to talk to her and make sure she was okay but Paul wasn't going to let him leave with her it was clear. Paul and him might not be on the best terms right now but Paul was his best friend and he didn't want it to end up in a fight.
"Okay then are you ready to go?" Paul asked Stephanie as she nodded her head as the nauseous feeling passed for the time being.
"I'll see you later McMahon" said Ryder as Paul gently grabbed hold of her arm to steady her as they walked.
"Wait. I forgot to give Ryder his jacket back" said Stephanie realizing she still had his jacket draped over her.
"You can give it back to him at school" Paul replied as they kept walking.
Paul helped Stephanie into the car and she immediately rolled down the window after he shut the door. Seconds later Paul was in the car and started the engine as they drove away from the party Stephanie suddenly remembered something.
"Didn't you and Nikki come together?" Stephanie asked looking over at him.
"Yeah but I couldn't find her. I think she might have got too drunk and one of her friends might have driven her home" replied Paul.
"You're not worried about it?" Stephanie asked curiously.
"Well yeah but this isn't the first time it's happened. I know she is okay I'll just check with her in the morning" replied Paul with a sigh. Stephanie could tell Paul had something on his mind but she wasn't sure if he would talk to her about it. Usually he would just come out and say it but she didn't feel as close to him anymore.
"Anything on your mind that you want to talk about?" Stephanie asked hoping he would open up to her.
"I just….. I don't know" Paul trailed off lost in his thoughts.
Stephanie remained quite it obviously looked like things had changed just like Paul had said it would.
"I just want to know why you suddenly started hanging out with Ryder" said Paul breaking the silence.
"I don't know. I guess it's because we are both kind of in the same situation. You have stopped hanging out with both us so we just started hanging out with each other and he started talking to me and it just went from there" replied Stephanie, it was half the truth at least.
"Do you like him?" Paul asked.
"Yeah he is cool to hang with" replied Stephanie.
"No I don't mean like as a friend Stephanie" replied Paul as he glanced over at her. The question took her by shock she didn't know how to answer. The only person she liked in that way was sitting in the car with her but he could never know that.
"I've never looked at him as other than a friend" replied Stephanie. "Why?"
"Ryder is a bad influence Stephanie. He is my best friend but I've seen him with girls and I just don't want you getting hurt. He's not someone you should be hanging out with, trust me" replied Paul.
"I think I can make my own judgment on that" argued Stephanie. Stephanie shook her head feeling irritated. Paul made her feel like she should sit around and be miserable and it really got to her. She had never once told him that he shouldn't be with Nikki or hang out with his friends.
"I'm not going to argue with you Steph, just be careful" replied Paul as they spent the rest of the car ride in silence.
When they arrived at Stephanie's house Paul shut the engine off and sighed.
"How am I going to explain this to your parent's?" Paul asked nervously.
"They're not here. They went on a weekend vacation, it's only me and Shane" replied Stephanie.
"That makes things easier" said Paul sighing in relief as they both got out of the car.
"I think I make it by myself" said Stephanie as she started walking up to her house.
"I'm going to make sure, I don't want you passing out again" replied Paul as he followed behind her.
Stephanie turned the doorknob to the front door and opened it. Shane must have noticed she was gone and left it unlocked for her. Once they were inside Paul went into the kitchen and grabbed a glass from the cabinet and filled it with water.
"What's that for?" Stephanie asked.
"This is for in the morning when you wake up with a hangover. Do you have any Tylenol?" Paul asked as they headed upstairs to her room.
"Yeah it's in my bathroom" answered Stephanie.
"You go in and lay down and I'll get it for you" replied Paul as they made it to the top of the stairs and Stephanie headed to her bedroom.
Stephanie slipped off Ryder's jacket and her shoes and grabbed some sweats and a t-shirt to change into to sleep in. After Stephanie changed and crawled into bed Paul came into her bedroom and sat the water and bottle of Tylenol on her nightstand.
"Thanks" said Stephanie as Paul sat down on the bed beside of her.
"That's what best friends are for" replied Paul as he smiled at her.
"What are you going to do for the rest of the night?" Stephanie asked as Paul shrugged.
"I can stay here for a little bit if you want" replied Paul.
"Sure" said Stephanie as Paul took off his shoes and laid down beside her pulling the blanket over them. Stephanie instantly cuddled up to him laying her head on his chest. She didn't know what had come over to just make the move she had did. Maybe it was the alcohol still in her system that made her braver than usual. She hadn't cuddled up to him like that since she was fifteen; she was kind of worried about his reaction but it faded as he put his arm around her. She breathed in his cologne as he laid his head on top of hers and she felt his fingers slowly and gently gliding up and down her lower back. She felt like she was in heaven, he was sending chills up her spine through her whole body that she had never felt before. Stephanie closed her eyes as she started to drift off to sleep feeling as if she had forgotten something important about that night. Whatever it was she wasn't too worried about it at the time being, she was lost in the moment.
Paul sat his keys down on his dresser in his room and pulled his shoes off making his way to his bed. He had just left Stephanie's and even though he felt exhausted he just couldn't sleep. Tonight had not been what he expected and he was still irritated over it. He had expected to spend the night at a party with his girlfriend but instead he ended up spending it with Stephanie. He wasn't arguing about that part, he had missed her. The part that bugged him was that she had been with Ryder. He didn't know if he should thank Ryder because he got to hang out with Stephanie or punch him because he knew Ryder was up to something.
Paul sighed as he lay back on his bed staring at the dark ceiling. There was so much going through his head and he didn't know how to sort it out, he was confused. It wasn't just about Ryder's actions he was confused about either but his own feelings towards Stephanie. How could he ignore it though when every second Ryder was questioning his feelings towards Stephanie? Was he actually jealous? Jealous that Stephanie and Ryder might like each other? He didn't know. He probably wouldn't even be thinking about it if he hadn't of felt what he had felt earlier that night when Stephanie was laying in his arms. The smell of her hair, the softness of her skin drove him crazy, even now just thinking about it. Tonight was the first night he had ever felt something more than just friendship towards her. He felt guilty for even thinking about it and wanting her. She probably wasn't thinking about him at the moment or even felt remotely close to how he felt earlier. "You have a girlfriend" Paul reminded himself trying to shake the thoughts and feelings away. Paul nearly jumped out of his bed as he heard his cell phone ring. He had forgotten about it and really hadn't expected anyone to call at this hour. Paul got up from the bed and grabbed his phone from the dresser and looked at the caller I.D. It was Nikki; he felt disappointment as he realized he was hoping it was Stephanie. He quickly pushed the feeling away as he answered the phone.
"Hey babe" greeted Paul.
"Hey, I'm sorry I didn't call sooner. I hope you weren't asleep" said Nikki.
"No I just got home" replied Paul as he sat down on his bed.
"Awww. Did you have fun without me?" Nikki whined.
"I looked everywhere for you at the party I couldn't find you so I hung out with some friends" replied Paul running his hand through his hair.
"I'm sorry baby. Jen thought I was too drunk and pulled me away from the party when I started throwing up. I didn't get the chance to say anything and when I got home I just crashed" explained Nikki.
"It's okay. I assumed that's what happened. I was going to call you in the morning and make sure you were okay. I wanted you to get some rest" replied Paul.
"Well since I'm up and my parents are asleep….why don't you come sneak in and I'll make it up to you?" Nikki asked seductively.
"I would but I'm exhausted and I don't feel like driving anymore tonight" replied Paul.
"Paul…"whined Nikki "you never pass up the chance to sneak in."
"I know but I'm really exhausted. I'll make it up to you okay" Paul promised as he heard her sigh in frustration.
"Fine" Nikki replied as she hung up the phone and he rolled his eyes.
She was a drama queen and usually he would have rushed over to be with her but he didn't want to be with her tonight. The person he wanted to be with tonight was Stephanie. He was sure the feeling would pass, he had to make it. Stephanie and him were only friends and that was the only way she seen him was as a friend and he couldn't complicate that. Besides he wasn't sure if his heart wanted her or his body did, either way it didn't matter right? He just needed to get that idea out of his head and fast.
"Did you have sex with him?" Ryder asked out of the blue.
"Excuse me?" Stephanie asked turning her attention to Ryder shocked.
"Something changed. You're staring a hole through him more than usual" replied Ryder looking across the cafeteria at Paul.
"No nothing happened" said Stephanie as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and looked down at her lunch tray. The weekend had passed all too quickly for Stephanie. The weekend was supposed to have been more about getting over Paul but she somehow had fallen for him even more, if that was possible. Paul had been right though, she woke up with a hangover. She didn't know if she would ever drink again. She was disappointed when she woke up and he was gone but what else did she expect? She hadn't heard from him since that night either and she was afraid she had scared him with her actions that night.
"Liar" Ryder replied.
"I didn't have sex with him. I was drunk though and I ended up cuddling with him" Stephanie blurted out.
"So that's how he wants to play it" muttered Ryder.
"What?" Stephanie asked confused.
"Nothing, don't worry about" replied Ryder as he took a bite of his burger. They sat in silence for a few moments as Ryder eyed her.
"What?" Stephanie asked.
"I just….I need to be honest with you about something…."
"Hey guys" Paul interrupted.
"Hey" replied Stephanie shocked that Paul had come over to them.
"Do you mind if I sit with you guys?" Paul asked looking at them.
"What about your girlfriend? Won't she get lonely and sad without you there to tell her how pretty she looks today?" Ryder asked sarcastically.
"I think she will survive. She's sitting with her friends today. I think she's upset with me" explained Paul.
"No" Ryder said pretending to be shocked as Paul rolled his eyes.
"You can sit with us" said Stephanie as Paul laid his tray down beside of her and sat down.
"Now if your girlfriend sees you over here sitting by Stephanie she is going to get jealous. She might go bang all the guys on the football team…..oh my bad, she already has" Ryder said with a smirk as Stephanie tried hiding the smile that was forming.
"Ryder now, be nice" replied Stephanie eyeing him.
"That was me being nice" Ryder replied with a smirk.
"I'm sorry we can't all be like you Ryder. Trash our GPA's and get criminal records with no hopes of a future and live off mommy for the rest of our lives" Paul shot back as Ryder glared at him.
"You know what Paul, fuck you" replied Ryder angrily as he got up from the table and walked off. Stephanie became defensive and hurt by what Paul said. Ryder's mom was dying; he couldn't live off of his mom because she might not even live one more year. It hurt Stephanie even though it wasn't her mother but she suddenly felt over protective.
"Why did you have to say that?" Stephanie asked tears forming in her eyes.
"He deserved it. He goes around making rude comments all the time, it's about time I said something and put him in his place" replied Paul.
"You didn't have to go that far Paul. You know nothing" replied Stephanie almost in tears as she got up from the table and went after Ryder to make sure he was okay, leaving Paul stunned.
Stephanie knew where to find Ryder it wasn't a hard guess as she exited the building. She saw him in the parking lot pacing back and forth by his car. She watched him kick the side of his car as she got closer.
"Ryder. Are you okay?" Stephanie asked as he kept pacing.
"Does it look like I'm okay?" Ryder asked angrily.
"I'm sorry" Stephanie apologized.
"Don't be. Don't feel sorry for me. It's not your fault and you shouldn't be the one apologizing" replied Ryder as he tried keeping his voice calm towards her. Stephanie stood there quite as she watched him pace back and forth. Stephanie leaned against the side of his car at the end waiting for him to calm down. It seemed like ten minutes had passed before he finally started to slow his pacing down.
"There was something I wanted to say before Paul interrupted us earlier" said Ryder as he stopped pacing and turned to look at her.
"Okay. What was it?" Stephanie asked unsure.
"I told you I needed to be honest with you about something. So here goes….the time I've spent with you lately McMahon has really showed me what kind of person you are. I thought I knew you before but I was wrong, I've seen the real Stephanie. You're smart, funny, beautiful, and caring. I've done nothing but think of you lately. You make me laugh and you are the only person who understands me and believes in me and puts up with my snide comments. I like you Stephanie. I like you in a way that Paul doesn't" explained Ryder as Stephanie felt her heart sink.
"I don't know how you feel about me" replied Ryder as he stepped in front of her and cupped her face in his hands and stared into her eyes. "But I can give you something Paul can't and won't. If you don't want me to kiss you then tell me."
Stephanie stared into his eyes knowing that it was true. Paul was never going to give her what she wanted because he didn't care about her that way. So why she stop herself from maybe caring about Ryder or anybody else for that matter? It seemed like Ryder did like her and maybe she liked him too and maybe that was why she hung out with him so much. Why should she stop herself from possibly being happy? Ryder leaned closer to her as she closed her eyes and felt their lips met. His lips were soft and warm as he gently kissed her.
In the distance Paul stood watching them furious. He had come out to find Stephanie because he hadn't meant to hurt her feelings. He knew she had gone looking for Ryder so he knew where to find them. He was even going to apologize to Ryder because he didn't mean to hurt his feelings but now he was pissed. Paul clenched his fists tightly as he headed towards the two with pure hatred on his face.
"Game on" muttered Paul.