A/N: I know you all are expecting a secret from James, but due to the course of the plot, it won't come for several more chapters. Sorry about that. Enjoy the ones I've revealed so far! DON'T BE SO UNGRATEFUL! Sheesh.

LOL.
Naw, 'one' of James's secrets will be revealed in the chapter after this one. Have patience.

Read on:

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Chapter 16:

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"Joe!" James called when he found his friend at last, wiping his vintage Cobra down with a cloth, making the black paint job shine through in all it's glory. Joe's garage was large, filled with his many cars, everything from Porches to rusty heaps of metal that happened to have wheels. Joe loved every one of them like children. James would not dare even touch them, and took extra caution to walk slow to be sure he didn't. Joe watched James with a strict eye, to make sure of this. James was one of the few who were allowed to even stand inside the room.

"Where have you been?" James interrogated. "The others have been looking everywhere for you, I've been worried sick, and here you are playing with your cars! I demand answers."

Joe bent back down over his Cobra, concentrating on a nasty streak of dirt.

"A woman," he stated very simply.

It was all the answer James needed, and he instantly knew everything. He knew better than to ask anything more. Still, he wanted to hear it come from Joe's mouth.

"The 'Mysterious Blonde'?" James asked, sticking his hands in his pockets. He thought he saw a flicker of a grin on Joe's lips, but if it was there, it was gone now.

"Yeah," Joe replied.

James wasn't pleased with that answer, furrowing his brow.

"How deep are you in?"

"I don't know."

James didn't buy it.

"What do you mean: 'you don't know'?"

Joe seemed distressed by James's tone.

"I mean, I don't know because I've never felt like this before, okay?"

James drew back in surprise. Those were words he had never expected from Joe. Joe was not romantic. He was logical. This was completely the opposite.

"Joe," James said. "You signed your life away to keep your place in the Covenant. Now you're telling me two days later that you're going to throw that all away for some girl?"

"I'm not throwing away anything," Joe said very calmly. "Don't speak of things you don't understand."

"What don't I understand?"

Joe sighed impatiently.

"I appreciate your concern, but I'm not going anywhere with this relationship," he assured James. "It's just a phase."

James looked at Joe through narrowed eyes and doubted his words. Joe was lying. He could see it very plainly in his eyes that this was not just a 'phase'. This was dangerously a whole lot more. James decided it best not to anger his friend by accusing him of speaking untruth, and let it go.

"It had better be," James warned. "For both your sakes."

-

James sat with Glenn, Wayne, and Joe on the bleachers during P.E., watching the cheerleaders practice their routines. Mostly they would argue about certain parts or stunts, but occasionally they would perform for them, much to their enjoyment.

The four boys waited their turn to run drills, but for now, the coach was concentrating on another group, allowing them to have some rest.

"That's Rosie," Glenn pointed her out to his friends proudly.

"She's pretty," James said approvingly, just to humor his friend.

"I've seen prettier," Wayne grumbled.

The others gave him strange looks.

"What's got you so upset?" Joe was the first to ask.

Wayne opened his mouth to answer, but instead spotted something elsewhere and exclaimed:

"Geez!"

Then he suddenly dived to the left just in time to avoid a flying volleyball aimed at his head.

All eyes looked in the direction the volleyball had come from, and saw Beatrice standing with her hand on her hip, looking their way with immense disdain. James threw the volleyball back her way, his face expressing confusion.

"Okay," James said. "I know she's always hated Wayne, but she never used to make attempts on his life before."

He looked to Wayne for an explanation, but Wayne was getting back up, seemingly in deep thought. James noticed he was also frowning. Wayne didn't often frown.

"I have to go," Wayne said, heading over to where Beatrice was playing with the other girls. James tried to call after him, but Wayne didn't listen. He just stormed right up to Beatrice, grabbed her by the arm, and whirled her around to face him.

"We need to talk," he said hurriedly.

Beatrice didn't move.

"So talk," she commanded.

"Beatrice!" the coach called. "This is P.E., not social hour!"

"I've never said this to anyone before, but: I love you, Beatrice."

She gasped.

"What did you say?"

"What, did I say it wrong? I said: I love you. It's pretty plain English. Should I use smaller words?"

Suddenly Beatrice slapped him across the face. Hard. Now it was everyone else's turn to gasp. The room fell silent to watch.

"Get the hell away from me," Beatrice said, sounding near tears. "Right now!"

"Aww, Bee--"

She slapped him again.

"Ow."

"Get out of my face! For crying out loud—you're spoken for!"

"You don't understand!" Wayne protested in a low voice. "I can't explain here. Just meet me later outside your room. Please—at least give me a chance to defend myself."

"Miss Foxx!" the coach called. "Would you like to join us sometime?"

Beatrice studied Wayne's face, still scowling at him in disdain.

"You'll get five minutes, that's it."

"Sounds like a deal," Wayne agreed happily.

"Yoo-hoo!" Desiree called from the distance. "Way-ayne!"

Wayne winced at the voice. He hadn't even seen her come in. Beatrice scowled, and glared flames at Wayne.

"You're wife is calling," she sneered.

"She's not my wife…" Wayne grumbled. "All I did was sign a paper."

He frowned again as Desiree walked up and rubbed Wayne's shoulder affectionately. She shot a look toward Beatrice.

"You again?" she said to Beatrice. "Little adulteress. Trying to go after a married man?"

Beatrice inhaled abruptly in offense, and took one last look at Wayne before storming off back to her team.

"What was that all about?" Evelyn asked Beatrice as she came back to the court.

"Nothing," Beatrice muttered.

-

Evelyn gathered her things in the locker room, having spent all day trying to cheer Beatrice up. It was quite a feat, but by now they were laughing again like nothing had ever happened.

Then Meredith, a friend of a friend she barely knew, came up to her and Beatrice with purpose in her eyes.

"Hey," she said naturally, sizing up the two girls as if preparing to start a fight. "You two are friends with the Ipswich Sons, right?"

"We've been known to hang out," Beatrice replied with confusion. "All except for Wayne Parry, that is. Why?"

"That Garwin boy," Meredith shifted her weight nervously. "He's pretty sexy."

Beatrice exchanged glances with Evelyn with confusion.

"I guess…" Evelyn humored her. "So?"

Meredith cast her eyes anywhere but on them, and started to tap her foot as if impatient.

"So do you know if he's like… seeing anyone?"

"Don't know," Beatrice admitted. "He's never around anymore, and even when he is, he doesn't talk much. Especially not about his love life. You'd have to ask him."

"Yeah, whatever," Meredith snapped, and stalked off.

Evelyn and Beatrice exchanged glances once more.

"Ohh-kay…?" Evelyn muttered, and the two friends laughed it off together.

"So why don't you spill?" Beatrice punched her friend's elbow playfully as they began to head out of the locker room and into the halls. "How are you and James doing, huh?"

"I couldn't say," Evelyn admitted with a growing smile. "We've never really finished a date. He's always off with some emergency, and lately he hasn't been around at all."

Beatrice laughed at the look on her friend's face.

"Something tells me that doesn't matter to you."

Evelyn blushed and hid her red face behind her towel, causing them both to laugh some more.

"I don't know," Evelyn said once they had stopped laughing. "There's just something about him, you know? That thing that makes you put up with anything just to have a few moments with him."

Beatrice sighed.

"I know what you mean."

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Signed,
--RedRogue