Chapter Seven
Reunited
I took a deep breath as I pulled up to the address Dinah gave me and found it to be a large, industrial warehouse. I prayed I was at the right place and parked. I walked into he warehouse and found it packed full of goths, huddled together and dancing to an eerie funeral song. It was the right place, but I didn't know how I was going to find Raven in that mass since everyone wore the same thing. I searched for a few minutes, but go nowhere. Deciding to take a more aggressive approach, I shoved my way through the mass, pushing past tall men in dark coats, girls in leather corsets and what looked like an albino clown.
I spotted Raven standing at the other end of the room, thankfully. I shove out of the herd and waved to her.
"Raven!"
Her mouth dropped as I walked up to her, her face a mixture of shock and surprise.
"Jason?What are you doing here?This place is for goths only!"She exclaimed.
"Well in that case..."I grinned. "I guess I'm just going to have to be a goth for the night!"
"You'd do that?For me?What if someone on your team found out about this?"
"I don't care what they think. I want to be with you, Raven. That's what matters... That's all that matters." I said, my grin turning into a gentle smile.
"Jason... I... I..."
Raven quickly closed the distance between us and immediately kissed me. She pulled away and smiled shyly.
"I missed you too. And I'm so, so happy you're here!"
"So, is there some sort of special vampire dance I'm supposed to know?"I asked amusingly.
"Follow my lead!"Raven wrapped her arms around my neck and I put mine around her waist as we swayed gently to the music. After a few minutes, she looked up at me guiltily.
"I'm so sorry I pushed you away... It was such a mistake... I just... I was just afraid of change... But now I realize that I was just afraid of losing you."
"Just don't let it happen again, okay?"I grinned.
"I promise!"She beamed.
We continued to dance for a while and then, the singer tapped the mic and a spotlight shone down on me. "What's going on?"
"Attention everyone," The singer announced. "We've been given some very disturbing news. According to some complaints... We've got an imposter in our midst!"
He hopped off stage and strolled towards me through the crowd. The music stopped and everyone just stood by and silently watched as he walked up to me.
"The rumor going around is... You don't belong here!"
"What?I belong here!I even bought novelty vampire fangs!"I pulled them out of my pocket and showed him.
"Pointy teeth do not make you a Nosferatu!"He frowned.
I simply lifted an eyebrow. "Would it look bad if I admitted I have no idea what you just said?"
"There's only one way to settle this!"The singer announced.
"A fight to the death?"I offered.
"No!Vampire trivia!"
"Oh boy."
"Answer these three questions and perhaps you will be spared!"He hissed. "Which of these does not hurt a vampire?"
He read off the answers and they were all the stereotypical things in movies that hurt vampires. Garlic, sunlight, stake through the heart and silver bullets. I went for the last one and watched the singer frown.
"Impressive.. But a lucky guess! Before entering a stranger's house, a vampire must..?"
I knew this from a movie I had watched. "Be invited in first."
"That's correct... But anyone could have guessed that!Which of these is not a famous vampire?"
I had to laugh when he said one of the choices was Edward Cullen. But I knew the answer to this one as well.
"Otto von Bismark."
"Yes, yes...That's correct." The singer seemed to be reluctantly giving me credit. A hushed silence filled the room as the he reviewed my score.
"Well... Did I pass?"
The singer looked at me wide-eyed. "You... You did!I can't believe it!You're a real vampire!"
"I am?"I said before correcting myself. "I mean, uh, I am!And, uh, how dare you even question my authority!I'm a, uh, Super Cleric Ultra Vampire!Rank Five!"
"My apologies, my lord!My deepest apologies!I had no idea!"
"You're lucky I don't strike you down right here, you cur!Now go back to making merriment!Chop Chop!" I clapped my hands.
"Of course!Forgive me!"The singer bowed before me and then quickly returned to the stage and started another song. Everyone went back to dancing and didn't pay me any more attention.
"Wow!"Raven smiled. "That was amazing!How did you know what to say?"
"I don't know... Maybe I'm just a natural!"I grinned.
"Well then... How about showing me how a natural vampire dances?"She challenged.
"You're on!"
We began swaying to the music again and this time, we were uninterrupted. The Vampire Ball ended a few hours later and I drove Raven home once it did. We sat on her porch for a few moments before she smiled at me.
"Thanks so much for coming, Jason. I had a really good time."
"Does this mean we're officially back together?"I inquired.
"Well... If I know my vampire lore..."
She stood on her toes and bit me on the neck. I looked at her wide eyed and rubbed my neck, but she simply grinned.
"Now we're officially back together!"
"You're insane, you know that?"I chuckled. "Insane."
"Heh. See you around, Jason!"
Raven kissed me on the cheek and went inside. I stood on her porch for a few extra moments, took a deep breath and then walked to my car. This was turning out to be a pretty good night after all.
The next day in class, I didn't mind the history quiz we had coming. I was still hung up over last night and it pretty much brighten my entire mood up. Mrs. Swovelin walked up and stopped beside me with paper in hand.
"Okay, Jason. Here we go. The Battle of the Bulge took place in..."
"World War 1?"I shrug.
"That's wrong. Who led the Greek city-states in the Battle of Thermopylae?"
"Sparta!This is Sparta!"I shouted while throwing my fist up, though a little louder than I wanted. Mrs. Swovelin frowned at me and I just smiled sheepishly.
"Final one... That Mason-Dixon Line was commonly seen to separate..."
"North and South America."
"Correct. You got two of three right... Keep it up, Jason."
The rest of school flew by in a blur and next I found myself at practice after school. It last half an hour and was pretty brutal compared to others. After it was over, we headed to the locker room where I noticed something was off.
"How come Adam wasn't at practice today?He never misses practice."I inquire, looking around.
"You don't know?"Bryce said. "He's in the library... Studying."
"What?"
"Adam's failing algebra." He explained.
"If he doesn't get his grades up, he's not going to be playing in the game this Friday." Chuck said.
"I hate to say it, but we're really going to need him in that game..." Howard sighed.
Chuck tried to rally the troops. "All right, team. We've got to pull together."
Howard looked at me. "Hey, Jason, you're a smart guy. Aren't you aceing your classes?"
"Uh... I guess I'm doing all right. But Adam and I don't exactly get along."
"Come on, man. I know you guys have had your differences, but our team needs this win... And we both know it's going to be a lot tougher without Adam."
"Yeah, so how about it?Are you going to help?"Chuck asked.
I thought it over for a minute, weighing my options and just decided what was best for the team. "Sure. I'll help him. He and I don't always get along, but this is about doing what's best for the team."
"Awesome. I'll let him know." Chuck said.
The next after school ended, I met Adam at the library and we sat down at a table.
"Uh, hey." He seemed pretty nervous.
"Hey."
"Look... This is really decent of you, kid. I guess I had you pegged wrong." He admitted.
"No problem. Let's get to work."I said.
We spend the next half hour working on different problems and sets. I helped Adam along the way by showing him how to work the answers out and showed him what he was doing wrong.
"That looks right..."He commented on a problem he solved by himself. I looked at it and then grinned.
"Yeah... I think you've got it."
"Good thing you're better at math than you are at football." He said.
"Hey!"
"Just messin' with you, meat. You really came through for me today." Adam rubbed his neck. "Thanks."
"Don't mention it. Anything for the team, right?"I shrugged.
"Right. I guess you really are a team player."
The next day at lunch, I was sitting down eating when Raven sat next to me.
"Heya. You got plans this Saturday?"She asked, poking my side.
"Nope!Let's hang out." I offered.
"Sure!What do you want to do?"
Thinking of my options, I decided to go out on a limb and suggested the mall. She seemed reluctant to agree.
"The mall?Seriously?"
"I promise you it'll be fun. I went to your concert, didn't I?"I said.
"Well, okay... But just this one time!"She gave in.
After school, when I hit the gym, I noticed the Buff Club guys hanging out in the weight room. I waved as I entered.
"Jason... You're here on a truly great day for the Buff Club!"Chuck exclaimed.
"Today we're trying to bench press... A cheerleader!" Zach explained.
"Uh, yeah.. About that." I was surprised to see Paula standing by the wall. "You can lift Amanda. Not me."
"Uh... Yeah. And I'll just watch from way over here." Taylor said, stepping away from the group.
Amanda simply clapped her hands cheerfully. "This is going to be fun!"
"Just don't get too grabby, Jason!She is my girlfriend!"Zach warned me.
"Oh, relax, sweetie... I'm only here because I heard lifting weights helps you get in good shape." Amanda said.
I raised an eyebrow. "Uh, yeah, but not if you are the weight."
"Okay, Jason... Time to see if you can lift Amanda!"Zach said.
I shrugged and laid on my back on the ground. Amanda stood beside and prepared to fall. Zach counted to three and then she fell. Fortunately, I was strong enough to catch her and lift her up. She giggled and clapped her hands.
"Wheee!This is fun!It's just like when Jacob and I went to the cave at the beach!"
Zach frowned as he looked between Amanda and Jacob. "Wait, what?What cave?What beach?What did you and Jacob do?"
"Aw jeez, Amanda, you weren't supposed to tell him about that.."Jacob sighed.
"Tell me about what?"Zach scowled. "What did you do with my girlfriend?Get over here, you little..."
"No!Don't hit me!I'm an easy bruiser!I have very delicate skin!"Jacob pleaded as he dove out of the room, followed by Zach sprinting like a bull after him.
"Don't hurt him, Zach!We need him for the team!"Chuck called out before chasing after them. In the meantime, I gently set Amanda down and got up, brushing myself off. I saw Paula rolling her eyes at the sight.
"Ugh, boys are so dumb..."
"Yeah, but look how strong Jason is!"Taylor grinned. "Check out those arms..."
I simply grinned back, glad that all that hard work was now paying off.
"Hee!I love the Ruff Club!"Amanda giggled. "When do the puppies get here?"
At lunch the next day, I sat with Howard and some of the guys from the team.
"Man... I'm so pumped for the Homecoming Dance in a couple weeks..."Howard beamed.
Chuck smiled. "Me too!I'm going solo and hoping to pick up a lonely girl on the dance floor..."
"I might do that too..."Jacob nodded. "Or I might wait for some girl's boyfriend to dump her... And then swoop in and look like a hero!"
"Guys!What's wrong with you?"Howard said. "You need to find a sweet girl like I did and take her to the dance!"
"It's gonna be fun... I wonder who's going to be Homecoming King and Queen.."Jacob said.
"Maybe it'll be Jason." Chuck laughed.
"Haha!Nice one, Chuck. No offense, Jason, but you're not exactly the most popular dude at school."
I shrugged it off and continued eating. Soon though, the bell rung and that meant no more food.
The big day for the football game arrived and me and Howard headed to the field to suit up. When we got there, I saw the twins waiting for us by the locker room entrance.
"Howard!"They yelled as they ran up to us. "We need money for... Snacks."
"If I give you some money, will the two of you please lay off the pranks?" He asked.
"Sure!"Kel grinned.
Reluctantly, Howard handed them a few bucks and watched as they ran off giggling. "Let's hope that keeps them out of trouble... This game is going to be tough enough without any distractions."
We walked over to where the team was gathered after suiting up and arrived just as the coach began speaking.
"Okay, team. This isn't going to be easy, but I think we can do it."
"Good thing we've got Adam here with us." Chuck commented.
"It's all thanks to Jason." Adam said.
Coach smiled. "Good to see everyone getting along for once... Now get out there and win this game!"
We cheered and ran out onto the field. The game started and we set off to win us a game. It was an easy win for us, as the final score turned out to 49-21. After congratulating the other team on a good game, we jogged over to the sidelines and celebrated with rest of the guys.
"Good work out there, Jason!"Coach commented.
"You really pulled your weight this game!"Bryce said, slapping me on the back.
"At this rate, we just might beat Wilson High."
Chuck grinned. "Are you kidding?They don't stand a chance."
Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted Kay and Kel running up to Howard with big smiles on their faces.
"Good work, Howard!"Kay said.
They handed him five bucks and patted his arm since they couldn't reach his shoulders. "There's your cut. Just make sure you keep winning."
"My 'cut'?What are you talking about?"Howard asked. "Were you betting on the game?"
"Of course... We had to make it interesting."Kel shrugged.
Howard frowned. "I thought I told the two of you to stay out of trouble!"
"We thought you'd be happy... At least we were betting you'd win!"
I couldn't help but laugh at the sight. Those two sure seemed like a real handful.
Saturday came and I spent most of the day studying. Who knew a 'jiffy' really existed?Not me. After a few hours of reading, I checked the time and smiled. It was time to hit the mall. I grabbed my keys and drove on over to Raven's place. After she got in and we exchanged greetings, I sped off. Luckily, I was able to park up near the front entrance when another car pulled out.
"Awesome parking spot!It always takes me half an hour to find the perfect spot..."Raven commented as we got out.
"Yeah, but you drive around in an old hearse!"I grinned.
"Says the guy who drives around in a rust bucket,"She countered. "Anyway, what store do you wanna go to first?"
"Hmm... How about Sparkle, Glitter, Halter Top?" I offered, more out of humor than actuality, as we walked into the mall.
"Seriously?"Raven lifted an eyebrow.
I shrugged. "I mean, I know it's a reach and it's probably not your kinda store, but..."
"No, no, you don't understand." She smiled. "I love that place!It's totally the best place to people-watch!You hear people say the most ridiculous things!"
So we made our way to the second floor and found the store. We walked in and when nobody was looking, quickly hid inside one of the shirt racks. A few minutes later, we had our first victims and I grinned when I heard who it was.
"Omg, Taylor, you can't seriously be thinking of wearing that to school on Monday..."Paula said.
"Why not?"Taylor replied. "It's a cute pink strapless top, and Monday is 'Cute Pink Strapless Top Day', isn't it?"
"No, idiot! That's the third Monday of the month, not the second!Second Mondays are for 'Tops That Are Just Too Revealing For School, But We Wear Them Anyway!'. Do you need me to get the spreadsheet?Because I'll go get the spreadsheet..."
We listened for a few more minutes and when the two weren't paying attention, we snuck out the back of the rack and out of the store.
"Point proven?"Raven grinned as we began walking.
"Point proven." I chuckled.
The mall was pretty crowded and we had to weave our way through random patches of people as we browsed the area. After a while of doing so, Raven tapped my shoulder.
"Hey, while we're here... My aunt is getting married in a couple weeks, and I sort of need to pick up a dress..."
"Black fishnets and a choker aren't cutting it?"I grinned.
"Real funny. Do you mind if I duck into this dress store?"She pointed to the place just ahead.
"Sure, lets do it!"
We headed into the classy store and were amazed at how big the inside was. It was like a combination of the last few stores we went to put together.
"Wow, this place is big..."Raven commented. "Jason, can you give me a hand?"
I stared at her for a minute before she continued. "Why don't you go check over there for a dress you think I'll look nice in, and I'll check over here." She said.
"Uh... Okay." I shrugged, walked to the far side of the store and started flipping through the racks. I noticed a few that I thought were good; A black one that had a low cut and another that had a vintage feel to it. For a few minutes I stared at the two and pondered over which to bring. I eventually decided on the vintage, as I thought that if I brought the other one, it might look like I was more concerned with how hot she'd look instead of something for a wedding. So I grabbed the latter and walked over to Raven, who was still flipping through dresses.
"Hey... What do you think of this?"I asked.
She looked at it and then smiled. "Oh, Jason... It's lovely!"
"So you like it?I was afraid it was a little dated..."
"Are you kidding?I love vintage clothing!This thing's a great find!"She beamed and kissed me on the cheek. "I'll go try it on, okay?"
I watched as she walked off to the changing rooms and shut the door. It took a few minutes for her to change, so I rocked on my heels and looked around as I waited. A couple moments later, the door opened and she came out in the dress. I almost dropped my jaw when I saw her.
"Wow... You look... You look..." I cursed myself for not being able to form the right words. It seems I never was good in situations like this.
"What is it?Do I look okay?"She asked, slightly worried.
"Yes!Of course!You look... Amazing!"
"Really?You think so?"
"I really do. You look absolutely amazing."I grinned.
"Thanks, Jason!"She smiled. "This dress is a keeper!"
I lifted an eyebrow. "Promise you'll wear it for me sometime?"
"Only if I can get you in a velvet cape and some black leather!"She countered.
Shrugging, I walked to the cashier and paid for the dress. Leaving the store, we bummed around the mall for a few hours until it closed and then I drove Raven home. I walked her to her porch and instead of going inside, she turned to me and smiled.
"You know, I'll be honest. I thought that was going to be kind of lame... But it was actually a lot of fun."
I chuckled. "I told you the mall can be a good time."
"I don't know if it was the mall..."She shrugged. "I think I just had a good time with you."
"Maybe." I grinned as I leant forward and kissed her on the lips. She smiled shyly at me when we broke away.
"Good night, Jason."
"Good night, Raven. See you around."
Winking at her, I turned and walked back to my car, though I didn't leave right away. I simply sat in the driver's seat and sighed, leaning back and closing my eyes. For the next few minutes, I wondered if I could make this last forever and never let this day end. Unfortunately, I didn't have that kind of luck and one look at the clock motivated me to start the car and head home.
End of Chapter Seven