Chapter 8

One thing registered on my mind.

Music.

And it was music that I knew well.

Groaning quietly, I rose from my sleeping bag, stretching my arms above my head. I grabbed my phone, looking at the time. It was a little after 11 am.

Looking around, I saw Alex still sleeping, but Jimmy was gone.

And the music ceased to go away.

I rose to my feet, taking the pillow I used to sleep on. I walked over to my best friend's sleeping bag. "Alex," I whispered, nudging her with my hand on her shoulder, "get up!"

She moaned, still asleep.

I sighed, walking away to grab a nearby bottle of water. Returning, I immediately dumped it on her head.

Alex sat up like lightning, her eyes wide in fright. When she found me chuckling, her eyes narrowed. "What was that for?!"

"I couldn't get you up," I laughed. "Now come on, Jimmy isn't here and I hear music. Let's check it out."

"Hmm...I hear it too," she mumbled. "Fine. But I'm getting you back for this."

We silently walked to where the music was coming from: the kitchen. Peering around the corner, we saw Jimmy dancing while holding a spatula, making pancakes...and singing.

"I got gloss on my lips,

A man on my hips,

Hold my tighter than my Dereon jeans!

Acting up, drink in my cup,

I could care less what you think!"

"I don't know what's scarier," Alex whispered, "the fact that he knows every word to Single Ladies, or that he can possibly move his hips better than Beyonce."

"Pssh, no one can beat Beyonce," I disagreed, "but those hips of his surely do not lie."

We continued staring, trying to keep from laughing. At the end of the song, Jimmy stood still, gasping for air. I'd be tired too if I did the dance he just did.

It was all quiet, until Alex broke the silence.

"My anaconda don't!"

Jimmy whirled around in surprise, a dark red blush overtaking his normally lightly tanned skin. Alex and I were crying with laughter, we were even on the ground.

"Oh my God!" Alex gasped, "why...how..?" She took a long look at Jimmy's still red face, "HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

I couldn't even form words, I was laughing so hard it was beginning to hurt.

"It's not that funny," Jimmy grumbled.

"YES IT IS!" Alex retorted, eyes squeezed shut while still laughing like a hyena...not that I sounded any better.

Finally, I managed to sober up, standing and wiping the tears off my face. "Okay. I'm done, no more."

A few seconds later, Alex did the same. "Alright, alright. That's it, I think I'm all out of tears, anyway."

"I was just singing and dancing while cooking, is there a problem with that?!" Our friend asked hotly.

"No...just do your own little thing," Alex winked.

I smirked while Jimmy just shook his head, "the pancakes are ready."

Monday was torture. I don't remember it being so hard to lift the covers off of me in my life.

Somehow, some way, I got ready for school. Once there, I banged my head against my locker, opting to just get some sleep right there.

"Didn't get enough sleep last night? That's not good for your beauty...then again, you'd look beautiful even if you hadn't slept in a week."

I smiled, despite not knowing who was speaking to me. "You know, somehow I doubt that."

He chuckled, and that's when the realization set in. Shocked, I raised my head from it's previous position to see Nick Lewis, who was wearing a cute grin, his green eyes sparkling with mirth.

"Nick!" I gasped, "what are you doing here?!"

He spoke, his grin never faltering. "My parents moved to this area, so I had to switch schools," he bent down, staring into my eyes. My breath hitched.

"It was totally worth it. So, will you help a poor fellow who can't find his way around?"

I gulped, taking a step back. "Uh, sure," I replied, my voice shaky, "let me see your schedule."

He reached into his pocket, then held out the folded piece of paper to me. After looking at it for a little bit, I realized something.

"Hey, we have all the same classes!"

"Really?" he smiled, "that's amazing luck. It seems that I've been lucky for awhile now," he smirked.

I felt even more heat rise to my cheeks. "Um, so school doesn't start 'till seven forty-five, we still have fifteen minutes left. I can show you the cafeteria if you want!"

Nick snickered, "shouldn't you put your backpack in your locker first?"

"Hm? Oh! Oh, yeah! Yeah, I should probably do that," I weakly smiled, "wouldn't wanna carry this thing around all day, I might get a hunchback!" Have I ever been this jittery?!

Now he laughed, "yes, we wouldn't want that to happen, I rather like the look of your back."

A few minutes later found me and Nick walking towards the cafeteria, talking pleasantly and making jokes. I'm so glad he moved here!

"Hey, I know this is off topic, but I want to ask you a question," he started.

"Yeah?" I asked. Please be what I think it is!

"Does this cafeteria have bagels?"

Oh. I frowned slightly, trying not to let my disappointment show. "Oh, uh, yeah. There's bagels."

Nick chuckled, "I was kidding! I want to ask you on a date!"

"Yes!" I suddenly blurted happily. Seeing my mistake, I visibly relaxed. "Um, I mean, sure. Why not?"

He shook his head with a smile, "great. I'll pick you up tonight at six. You still have my number?"

"Mhm," I nodded, biting my lip to keep my excitement in check.

"Great."

The bell rang.

"Shall we?" he asked, extending his arm.

I smiled, "we shall," I replied as I looped my arm through his.

All of a sudden, in the middle of the hallway, Walter ran up to us, with Ariel not too far behind him with their camera in tow.

I rolled my eyes while Nick just looked confused.

"This just in, Iridiumites! It seems that our new student, Nick Lewis, ex-Dolphin, is canoodling with our very own Rose Novoa! Could this be the newest 'it' couple blossoming before us? We'll keep you guys updated! This has been FYI."

I stared with my mouth open as Walter and Ariel dashed away, leaving me with Nick alone in the hallway.

"Oh my God, I'm so sorry about that. I know you must feel embarrased, and so do I, but-"

"Hey, hey, easy," he soothed, "I'm not mad or embarrased. In fact, this just made it easier to ask you to be my girlfriend."

I could've died.

"Sure!" I chirped happily while inside I was an ecstatic mess.

He grinned, "wonderful." And with that he kissed me on the cheek.

"Come on, let's get to class," he said, walking us away.

Of course, we were a few minutes late. But we managed to elude getting put in detention, since Nick was a new student. I'm actually surprised she did that for us, maybe she isn't completely heartless. He sat next to me, and with the rest of the class we began copying notes.

Until I was standing in the janior's closet.

My eyebrows furrowed, I was looking at the pencil still in my hand, poised to write. "What am I doing here?"

"I think you know," came Darren's cold voice, icy eyes freezing me in place.

My confusion turned to anger, "what was that?! How are you gonna explain my sudden disappearance?"

He rolled his eyes, "I sent a memory wiping spell their way, they won't even remember you were gone. Anyway, I thought I made it clear to stay away from Dick."

"His name is Nick!"

"Whatever. And what is he doing here, anyway?"

"His family moved, so he had to transfer here. I was showing him around, not that I need an excuse to be around my boyfriend."

His eyes slowly widened. He took a step back, looking as if I had punched him. It was weird, I've never seen him look so wounded.

Was that guilt I felt?

"Y-you're dating him?" he quietly asked.

I paused. "Yes."

Darren walked closer to me, locking eyes with mine. "Rose, you don't know him. What if wants to hurt you?"

My heart was pounding at the close proximity, yet I managed to still retain my wits. "Nick would never hurt me."

"Rose, please," he sighed, running a hand through his midnight locks. "Look, I'm not going to command you or try to force you to stay away from him. However, I don't want you to be hurt; I can't have you be hurt. Just be careful when you're around him, that's all I ask."

Wow. He's not going to try to order me around? He's letting me have a choice? What was with the change?

I doubted Nick would hurt me, he was so sweet, but I would do as Darren asked. After all, it wouldn't hurt.

"Okay, I'll be careful."

He smiled, "thank you."

A/N: It's pretty late, and I'm getting tired; I won't be able to reply to reviews. But do know that I appreciate EVERY SINGLE ONE, they always bring a smile to my face and motivate me to write more :)