Hey readers, just getting over a mild case of writer's block…
Anyways, lots of thanks to those who had reviewed. A lot of you guys said that you wanted more chapters that involved only the parents, so I'll try to find more opportunities in the story to fit those in.
So, I hope you find this chapter interesting and enjoyable!
Disclaimer: I do not own the JL, only the teens in this fanfic
O~O~O
Chapter Eighteen: So it's a Date?
Ophelia's P.O.V
"And that students, is how you bake a chocolate soufflé," Ms. Juliennes, our home economics teacher, concludes. The bell rings on time, signaling the end of our class.
Angie, Lilly, and I clean up the mess off our table and make our way out the door. We were the last ones to leave the room and Lilly speeds towards the end of the hall to catch the door before it closed.
"Lilly!" Angie calls. "What's the rush? Someone could've seen you!"
"Don't worry, Angie. I'm practically the fastest girl in the world. No one could've seen me unless you were Val or my brother," Lilly reassures.
"Yeah, lighten up girl," I tease, as I give Angie a playful shove.
Ever since we've confided our secrets with each other, we've gotten rid of the strange awkwardness that was between us. We've made an oath not to reveal this secret to anyone else and have minded to take precautions. But that doesn't stop us from using our powers to have a little fun…
Because Billy and Lilly are like the fastest teenagers in the world, they often try to sneak in a little bit of their speed into their sports practices.
Maddox uses his abilities to win poker games and he's been more confident with flirting.
The rest of us aren't sure how we can use our powers and abilities without getting caught, but we've all been experimenting, which is how we've discovered some new things.
Valen realized that he can see objects from miles away and he can also see microscopic organisms. Rex, Angie and I are developing superhuman extrasensory abilities and reflexes.
"Hey guys, I'll meet up with you in the cafeteria. I need to stop at my locker first to switch some books," I say as I walk over to my locker. I make my way down the quiet hallways, but had a feeling like someone was following me. I turn the combination of my locker, trying to shake that feeling off.
Suddenly I hear faint footsteps coming up from behind me and I spin on my heel, turning to see who it was.
I caught Damien in mid-step, obviously surprised by my quick movement. I was a little shocked for a moment, realizing that we were standing so close to each other. Probably sensing my discomfort he takes a step back.
"Ophelia," he nervously chuckles. "I'm sorry; I didn't mean to startle you."
I try to laugh it off and pretend it was nothing. "Oh no, it's no big deal," I lied.
My heart was pumping faster and faster. It wasn't from the shock of him sneaking up behind me but it was from the fact that Damien Princeton, practically the hottest boy here at Trinity Union, was talking to me.
'Ohmygosh, ohmygosh, ohmygosh! Damien is talking to me, I think I'm going to faint! Wait, get a grip girl. You've spoken to him before; c'mon don't act like one of those fawning sheep. Pull yourself together!'
"Umm, Ophelia?" His voice snaps me out of my little pep talk to myself.
"Yes, Damien?" I say as I bat my eyelashes at him, turning on the charm.
"Yes, um, well," he begins, seeming flustered as he rubs the back of his neck. He gives me a sweet, innocent smile that makes me melt. "Uh, let me start over," he mumbles as he takes a deep breath before continuing. "Ophelia, you seem to be a very interesting girl. You're different from the rest. I know I just got here but in all honesty I would like to get to know you better. I would like to know about your likes, your hobbies…your friends over dinner tonight."
'So it's a date?'
"So it's a date?" I blurt my thoughts out accidentally. I feel a blush creep up my cheeks as I drop my gaze. He tilts my chin up and I blush crimson.
He gives a light chuckle and answers, "Yes you can call it that."
'AAAHHHHHH!!!'
"Well," I begin, trying to regain my composure. "Why not we go over the details over lunch, shall we?" I take his arm as we stroll down the hall towards the cafeteria.
Maddox's P.O.V
Rex, Billy, Valen, and I were eating lunch at our usual table in the cafeteria. Billy was talking with his mouth full while getting into a heated discussion with Valen over some new video game coming out.
"Dude, I'm telling you…this new game…is totally awesome," he swallows and takes another big bite off his cheeseburger. "I'm telling you Val. It's so much better than the first one."
"How is it so much better than the first one, if the first one didn't even have anything wrong with it?" Val questions.
Billy takes a sip of his soda before continuing. "I saw the graphics off the demo in the videogame store and it was so clear! It was so much less pixilated than the other one."
"But the other one wasn't even pixilated!" Val argues.
"Exactly! So imagine what this one looks like. Plus the sound quality is pretty good, too," Billy says as he continues to munch down on his food.
Val shakes his head and reasons, "Billy everything isn't about the quality. How about the storyline or plot? I doubt that they could top that off."
T-Rex rolls his eyes hearing their conversation and goes back to reading his book. I let out a sigh, knowing that they can go on for hours talking about this subject. Out of nowhere, Lilly comes up to our table and bangs both of her hands on the table, taking us all by surprise.
"Ugh! I can't take it anymore!" she lets out, sounding exasperated.
"What's up, Lil?" Val asks, sounding concerned.
"Yeah Sis, what are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be with Angie and Phee at your own table have girly talks or gossiping or whatever," Billy says irritably.
"Well, that's hard to do that when she's wrapped her attention around him," she says as she jabs her finger in the direction of her table.
I lean back in my seat and look across the cafeteria to see what she was talking about. Something in my gut tells me that I wouldn't like what I see. My feelings were confirmed when I saw Damien Princeton leaning in with his forehead pressed against Ophelia's. They seemed to be caught up in an intimate conversation at one end of the table with Angie far off at the other end, portraying the uncomfortable third wheel.
"You left Angie all by herself?!" Rex pointed out sounding upset for her.
"Yeah, I know I'll go back for her but right now…ugh! If I hear her talk about how awesome her date with Damien is going to be at the Platinum Clam tonight, I'm gonna blow!" Lilly complains.
Hearing her mention a date between Damien and Phee hit a nerve and made me have a knee-jerk reaction. I shot up out of my chair and earning myself a weird look from everyone.
"Uh, excuse me," I mumble to no one in particular.
For some reason, as a reflex I find myself walking towards Penelope's table. Heather, the loyal lapdog she is informs everyone of my arrival. "Oh Maddox, what brings you over here to our table?" she asks in a dramatic tone. Even though, I find her and the rest of the girls to be alright, their drama and behavior sometimes annoys me.
"Hello Heather," I answer politely. "Blair, Abigail…" I nod my head in their direction, acknowledging them as well. Penelope looks up from her Caesar salad and gives me a coy smile.
"What brings you here?" she asks demurely.
I cut straight to the chase. "Do you mind if we talk…alone?" I emphasize.
"Heather, Blair, Abby, go find yourselves busy," Penelope commands. The three obediently get up and make their way towards the jock table, giving us some privacy. I take a seat and take a deep breath, unsure about what I was going to even say.
'What am I doing here? I must be half out of my mind right now…'
I clear my throat before beginning. "So Penny, I was just wondering if you would do me the honor of accompanying me to-"
"Are you asking me out on a date?" she cuts me off. She apparently heard this line used before.
Sigh. "Yes, Penelope. I would like for you to go out on a date with me tonight…"
She sits back in her chair, probably amused and slightly shocked that I would make the first move. She says nothing as she continues to stare me down with a small smile on her face. I was unfazed by this façade. I had a feeling she has done this before with every guy who asked her out, just to make them squirm a little. I already knew though that she would accept.
"You're lucky that you're asking a girl like me out on a date," she finally speaks up, propping her chin on her hand. "I happen to be the type of girl that has connections and can get reservations at any restaurant you desire."
"Then how about a date tonight at the Platinum Clam?" I propose.
"Ooo my, don't you have some taste. The Platinum Clam is already the newest, hottest spot in Gotham City and reservations are tough to get, especially when they're last minute. But don't worry," she reaches over and gives my cheek a light pinch. "I'll get us a way in…"
The corner of my lips curls into a lopsided smile. "Good, that's what I like to hear."
"I'll send the limo for you are eight o'clock sharp," Penelope says as I get up from my seat.
"It's a date then," I declare as I walk back towards my table. I take one last look at where Damien and Ophelia were sitting. Angie was no longer there, but the two didn't seem to care. They were too wrapped up in each other to notice that she was gone.
'See you at the Platinum Clam tonight, Phee…'
O~O~O
Platinum Clam, 8:00 PM
"Wow, this place looks so cool," Ophelia mentions in awe as she steps through the double doors with her arm wrapped around Damien's. She was wearing a short, red spaghetti strapped dress and black, strapped pumps. She wore a simple, yet elegant, black choker with a small, silver heart dangling in the center. She wore matching earrings and had her hair pulled up into a French bun. She had a little bit more make-up on than usual to accentuate he already pretty features.
"It already looks amazing from the outside. I didn't think that it could look even better on the inside," Ophelia says as she looks around her surroundings.
The Platinum Clam was designed to be an elegant but hip restaurant and club. It was built in the shape in a circular dome and there are two levels.
The first level has a red carpet by the double door entrance. Thee floors were a sparkling, black granite and the walls were white. Round tables were placed in a fashion that wasn't too spread out but were far enough from each other to give diners an intimate setting. There were white marble pillars that were surrounding the golden railing that overlooked the second level. A grand white marble staircase leads down into the second level. The second level had dining tables as well but in the center is a dance floor with a stage where a band occasionally plays. A bar is lined against the far corner Above in the center of the restaurant is a beautifully crafted domed ceiling that had an intricate pattern of clear glass and blue-green, green, and violet stained glass.
"The restaurant isn't the only thing that looks amazing tonight," Damien compliments.
Ophelia feels a light blush creep up her cheeks. She takes a quick look at him and sees him wearing a simple white button down shirt with the first few buttons undone. He wore a black suit jacket over it and had matching black dress pants and shoes.
A waiter leads them down to the second level and seats them at a table near the dance floor.
"I thought that we could do some dancing after we've eaten," Damien suggests as he pulls out Ophelia's chair for her. Once they've been seated, a waiter named Chloe introduces herself and hands them each a menu. Ophelia glancing through the menu and picked something that appealed to her. While Damien took his time choosing what to eat, Ophelia continued to look around and marvel at her surroundings.
She noticed that the restaurant had underwater ocean theme to it. All of the tables were identical, having rounded, velvet, royal purple tablecloths with another square, white silk cloth placed diagonally over it. The table cloth on top had blue-green, scalloped edges. The cutlery was gold and wrapped in a white napkin. In the center was a small ocean breeze scented candle surrounded by shells and starfish.
The walls on the first and second floor were lined from top to bottom with large aquariums filled with tropical fish. The moldings on the wall had little clams and starfish etched into them. The pillars were sculpted of mermaid and fish. The lighting in the room was dim but was tinted with blue-green and light purple so that it seemed like you were sitting underwater. To top it off, bubbles were floating around from the ceiling to make it even more authentic.
Just as this couple was getting comfortable another one enters through the doors.
Maddox wore a light blue, button down, long sleeved shirt with a blue and black stripped tie. He wore black dress pants and wore black shoes. His hair was combed back with a bit of it stylishly covering his left eye in the front.
Penelope clung to his arm. She was had her light brown, curly locks out for the evening. She wore a turquoise tunic dress and wore white stilettos. Her jewelry was composed of a white gold and diamond earrings and necklace set. She wore a lot of make up that gave her a beautiful dramatic effect.
"Reservations for King," Penelope informs the waiter.
"Ah, yes…right this way," he leads them towards their table.
Maddox was observing his surroundings while at the same time looking for a certain friend. When they were seated at a table that had overlooked the dance floor, to his luck he had seen Ophelia and Damien.
'This is perfect; I can keep an eye on them for the entire time,' he thought.
"Ahem," Penelope clears her throat, waiting for him to pull out her chair.
"Oh yes, of course," Maddox remembers as he pulls out her chair for her and takes his own seat.
Their waiter introduces himself as Richard and hands them each a menu. Maddox and Penelope looked through the menu and placed their orders. While they were waiting for their food, they tried to engage themselves in a conversation.
"So, uh, you never did quite tell me how you got us reservations here," Maddox inquires.
"Well, let's just say that my uncle owns the restaurant," Penelope "modestly" informs.
"Oh really," Maddox attempts to sound intrigued. "Wow, you really do know people in high places." He was trying to bait her into talking about herself that way she could do most of the talking while he kept his eye on the other couple.
"Well, you know…it's all about getting to know the right people, my father would often say. I, on the other hand-" Penelope drones, falling for the bait. Maddox pretends to listen as he looked through his peripheral vision once in a while to see what the other two were doing.
Damien and Ophelia were enjoying their conversation over dinner.
"And that's why the turkey crossed the road," Damien delivered his punch line.
"Hey, I heard that corny joke before, Billy uses that whenever he can," Ophelia giggles.
"He said they were a hit with the ladies," Damien chuckles.
"My advice, don't take any advice from Billy. He thinks the jokes on the back of the cereal box are hilarious."
"Well, they are classical sometimes," Damien jokes.
'Wow, this date couldn't go any better,' Ophelia thought happily.
"So tell me about your friends," Damien brought up.
"What? My friends?" she questions, caught off guard by his sudden change in topics.
"Yeah, Billy seems like a class clown and he's cool. Evangelia is smart as she is nice. But what about your other friends? They must be a great crowd if you're always hanging out with them."
She smiles, thinking that it was sweet of him to try to get to know her friends while they were becoming more acquainted.
"Billy has a twin sister, Lillian, but we all just know her as Lilly. Those two are total opposites. She's more mature and totally focused in school. Valen is Mr. Future Student Body President. He's really cool and all but he's the stiff in the group. Billy sometimes calls him 'Boy scout'. Rex, well, he has been going through a hard time lately. He may seem big and intimidating at first, but once you really get to know him he's a really sweet person."
"And how about that other guy you hang out with?" he asks.
"Oh him," I answer. I was a little bummed that he had to bring Maddox up.
"Ohhim, huh? That's a strange name," he jokes. Ophelia giggles at his silly attempt.
"No, silly, his name is Maddox," she explains.
"Uh huh…you seemed to be a little upset that I've mentioned him," he sounds concerned.
"Look, I don't want to talk about Maddox right now. We're on a date, right? So let's start dancing already. You promised we would," she reminds him, trying to change the topic.
"Yes I did. Alright then, since we're already done, may I have this dance?" he asks as he holds out his hand towards her. She gives him a small smile as she takes it and walks over to the dance floor.
Up from the main level, Maddox and Penelope were almost done with their meals as well. Just as he turned to have a small glance at Ophelia's table, he saw that the two were about to go dancing. He decided to think fast.
"Penelope, if you're finished, would you like to dance with me?" he asks in flirtatious tone. She grins from ear to ear and replies, "Why, I thought you'd never ask."
Those two make their way towards the dance floor. A fast, upbeat song was playing and everyone on the dance floor was having a blast. Maddox was surveying the crowd, watching out for Ophelia and Damien. He saw them all the way at the other end.
Penelope was shimmying up and down to the rhythm of the song. "C'mon lighten up will ya? Move those hips like this," she demonstrates as she tries to get him to dance. He dances a little to pacify her as he continues to watch the other couple.
She was beginning to get really annoyed with him. All night he had seemed to be distracted and have his attention divided somewhere else. She was wondering what had caught his attention. She watches Maddox and follows his gaze. She then realizes that his attention was towards Ophelia Queen the entire time.
This really had Penelope boiling mad. It was her date with Maddox and she had to be there and distract him from her. No wonder he hadn't complimented me once she thought with pure rage. She smirks as a plan concocted in her mind. Penelope grabs a drink from the bar and then drags Maddox over to where Ophelia and Damien were.
Maddox was tried to figure out what was going on and then he realized that this wasn't going to be good when they started to make their way towards the other couple.
'What is she up to?' he panics.
Penelope "accidentally" bumps into Ophelia and Damien as they were dancing, nearly spilling her drink.
"Oh my apologies," Penelope says. It registers in Ophelia's mind that Penelope was there and she saw Maddox standing right behind her.
'What is he doing here?' she asks herself. 'I mean, it's such a coincidence that he would be on a date with Penelope at the same restaurant, unless…'
It dawns oh her that the only reasonable explanation was that he had been spying on her the entire time. She was absolutely furious that he would do that to her. Ophelia keeps her cool though in front of Damien.
"What are you doing here?" Ophelia asks, using a tone that said "Get Lost."
"My uncle so happens to own the restaurant," Penelope explains in a snobby tone. "And my, don't you look pretty on your date with Damien," she compliments.
"Thank you…" Ophelia warily replies. Something didn't seem right.
"Our date happens to have a little problem though. You see, the entire time Maddie here has had his eyes only for you. But I know how I can fix that," Penelope says as she takes her drink and pours it over Ophelia's head.
Ophelia freezes up with shock and embarrassment as everyone around her begins to stare and laugh at her. She runs out of the restaurant with tears streaming down her face. Maddox follows after her and catches up.
"Ophelia wait, stop!" Maddox says as he grabs a hold of her arm. "Phee, I didn't know she was going to do that. I'm sorry."
"Go away!" she yells as she frees herself from his grip. "This is entirely your fault. Why did you have to come and be on a date with her anyways?! I tell you she's evil and you still hang out with her. You ruined this date for me. I hate you!" she sobs, making her way to her car.
Maddox was left all alone standing outside of the restaurant feeling pretty low. He wasn't sure what came over him to think of this hair-brained scheme to follow her on her date. He watches Ophelia's car speed off into the night.
'I'm sorry Phee, I never meant to hurt you. It's just that, I think...I-I think I love you…'
O~O~O
Drama.
Read and review plz!