Chapter 12 is up! Late Merry Christmas, everyone!

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I'm not going to lie, this isn't my best work. I have a tendency to type these chapters out really late at night, in the space of a couple of hours, and this one is no exception. So if the writing isn't that good, or the descriptions are lacking, that's why. Just thought I'd warn you guys ahead of time ;) Oh, and there's a bunch of songs in this chapter, and they're not there randomly, they're there to describe James and Katie's emotions and feelings towards each other.

Enjoy the chapter!

Chapter 12: Karaoke Night

James' POV

There was no doubt about it. None at all.

I had fallen hard and fast for Katie, and if the fact that she had been leaning in when we had almost kissed, she had fallen just as hard and fast for me.

The almost kiss was on my mind during the drive home, constantly replaying in my head. I found myself running through different scenarios in my mind, scenarios where we had actually gotten to have the kiss, without something interrupting us. So…damn…close.

"You've been really quiet," Shane commented as I pulled into the driveway. I frowned a little as I noticed a dark Toyota Yarus parked on the curb in front of the house. Shane glanced out the window, seeing it too. "That's weird," he commented. "Think Mom has a friend over?"

I looked at the house. All the windows were dark, the only light coming from the house being the porch light. "Doesn't look like it. Maybe one of the neighbors' has someone over and they parked in front of our house for some reason."

"Yeah, maybe."

I parked the car and shut off the ignition, before climbing out. Shane followed me. We headed inside and he closed and locked up the door while I flipped off the porch light.

"So," Shane said to me as we crept upstairs, "anything happen with Katie?"

"A few things…"

"Oh?"

"Yeah, but not what you're thinking. But we were thisclose to kissing when we were interrupted – Kyle texted Katie to let her know that you guys were ready to go."

Shane winced. "Oh, man, talk about bad timing…"

"I know…"

"I'm sorry."

"It's okay, it's not your fault. But we talked and she showed me the high school theater and she talked me into taking a drama class next quarter."

Shane grinned at me. "About time. I've been trying to talk you into it for ages."

"I know. But seeing the theater tonight…Dude, I had to do it again. I did a monologue from All's Well That Ends Well and it was incredible. I have to get back into it, I can't let that feeling go, not again."

"Good. You should have never had to give it up before in the first place."

I sighed. "I know. But Dad – "

"Well, screw Dad. He doesn't have control over you anymore. And Mom wants you to continue with it too."

"Yeah. Well, I'm going to. You and Mom are both going to get your wishes." I grinned at him, and he grinned back.

"About freaking time."

"Agreed." I nodded. We had reached our bedroom doors by this point. "So…how was the making out?"

Shane's grin widened, blushing a little. "It was…um…pretty good."

"I bet. Looked like you two were enjoying yourselves."

"Just a little." He blushed even more.

I grinned again and opened my door. "Have fun dreaming about Kyle. Good night, little brother."

"Have fun dreaming about Katie," he retorted as he opened up his own door. "Good night, big brother."

I went through the usual motions to get ready for bed, and crawled in-between the sheets. Another night, another dream, dedicated to Katie Knight…What the hell was I going to do about her?

"James…" her voice was breathy, but whiny at the same time as I pushed my body up against hers. She stumbled back slightly, gripping my shoulders tightly, before falling into the desk. Katie looked up at me, chest heaving as her fingers scrabbled, trying to get my shirt off. She finally got the buttons undone and dove for my jeans, pushing them down my legs. "Wanted you like this for so long…" she moaned out, before pressing her lips to mine, pulling me down so that the desk was holding both her weight and a good portion of mine. "What took us so long?"

I got her ice skating dress off, letting it fall to the floor. "I'm an ass and you're a brat?"

"Yeah, that works." She kissed me passionately, trying to bring me down even closer to her. I moaned licking at her bottom lip. She opened her mouth at once and I slid my tongue in, trying to crawl on the desk even though it was rocking slightly under my weight.

"Don't break it," she laughed slightly.

"Well, lay somewhere else."

She pulled back. "Make me."

"Get on the floor or something."

"You're not fucking me on the floor."

"Well, apparently I can't fuck you on the desk."

"Figure something out," she retorted. "Because you're not fucking me on the floor."

"How about against the wall?"

"No way." She pushed me off of her and sat up.

"Fine. On a desk." I spread her legs, but she swung around on the desk, away from me.

"I've changed my mind."

"You've – what?!"

She picked up her ice skating dress. "I don't date or sleep with hockey heads, and you're one of them. I'll go find someone else, I guess."

"But – but – "

She slipped into her dress. "Now, maybe if you were into theater or something, then maybe we could do this."

"But – but – I am! I'm going to take a drama class next quarter!" I protested.

She shrugged. "Or maybe if you were a football player…"

"What?!"

"Eh, whatever. You're not really that attractive anyway. Bye!"

I woke up, hard and stiff and gritting my teeth. What the fuck had that dream been about?! Katie and I had been about to…do stuff…and then I had gotten cock blocked, by a fucking dream, no less! Un-fucking-believable.

I groaned, rolling over gingerly and checking the time. It was nine-o-clock AM. Fine. I'd get up. Or maybe I'd just finish what the dream had started.

Ten minutes later and I was still gritting my teeth. Every time I'd start on a new fantasy, Katie would just argue with me in it. This. Wasn't. Working! With a sigh, I decided to just let it run its course and see where that led me. Maybe there was something buried deep in my thoughts and subconscious that would help.

And help it did. Turned out, in my fantasies at least, that Katie and I were amazing at anger sex.

Fifteen minutes later, I drudged out of my room to go downstairs. At least, because I was prepared and awake this time, there weren't dirty sheets for my mom to wash.

Speaking of my mother…

Or lack thereof…

…When there was a total stranger in the kitchen, wearing nothing but boxers and a t-shirt, and flipping pancakes. If he was a thief, then he was pretty bad at it. Criminals don't usually come into people's houses and make breakfast.

I cleared my throat. "Who the hell are you?!" Where, oh where was a hockey stick when you needed one?

The man turned around, looked at me for a long moment, and then said, "You must be James. I'm making breakfast."

"I see. What's your name, and who the fuck let you into the house?!"

He gave me a confused look. "My name's Brad…and your mom let me into the house…last night."

I dry gagged. "Wait – you're the friend my mom was going out with? I thought – I thought – I thought her friend would have a vagina!"

"Sorry to disappoint…"

"Hey, what's all the noise?" Shane stumbled into the room wearing flannel pajama bottoms and a white t-shirt, rubbing his eyes. He blinked when he saw Brad standing at our stove, cooking breakfast. He immediately turned to me. "You hold him down and I'll punch him."

"Mom will kill us."

"Why? She hates when we stand around in our boxers in the kitchen. What makes you think she's going to be okay with a trespasser doing that, especially while handling our cookware?"

"He's the friend Mom went out with last night…"

Shane's eyes widened. "Ohhhh…"

"Yeah…"

Shane turned to Brad. "Are you gay?"

"No…"

"Yeah, you can't keep hanging out with our mom. Sorry. She only dates gay guys."

"Who only dates gay guys?" Mom bustled into the kitchen, wearing a silk robe. "Oh…I see you three have all met…"

Shane and I glared at her, while Brad just looked back and forth between us all, completely confused.

"Thanks for telling us about your friend," I said coolly.

"I was going to…I just didn't get the chance…"

"Uh huh, sure," Shane replied skeptically.

"I was!" Mom protested.

"Right, sure. Because that's why you didn't mention the fact that you were going out with a guy last night."

"I – well – this isn't the time or place to be discussing this," Mom finally retorted.

"Of course it's not," Shane mumbled. "Whatever." With that, he stalked furiously out of the room. I threw a glare at Mom and Brad, and followed him out.

The rest of the weekend passed by tediously. Shane and I barely talked to Mom, and by Sunday she had given up on reasoning with us. She ended up going out to dinner and a movie with Brad, who it turned out happened to be a firefighter. Perfect. Just fucking perfect.

Don't get me wrong. It's not that we don't want her to be happy with someone else, because we do. Our dad had remarried a couple of years ago, and we had both long since agreed that we wanted her to move on. But it wasn't exactly pleasant to just randomly find your mom's secret boyfriend cooking pancakes in your kitchen, half naked, without any warning. It had come as a major shock, and neither of us were getting past it any time soon.

As a result, it was quite a relief to get to school on Monday morning. It was raining lightly and for the first time since we had moved to California, the drive to school required windshield wipers and the heater and fan to be on, so that the windows didn't get too badly fogged up.

Shane stared out the window, not saying much. He had spent the better part of the weekend texting with Kyle, or chatting with him online, or talking to him on the phone. I, for my part, had wound up spending quite a bit of my time talking to Katie. We had texted back and forth, and then had interrupted our texting conversation to continue it online. Neither of us had mentioned the almost-kiss, but that was okay. I was hoping that that would change before long. The only downside to the weekend, besides my mom dating some firefighter, was that the dreams with Katie cock blocking me continued on. Well, no, that wasn't exactly true. She didn't cock block me in all my dreams. Sometimes we would get interrupted by my mom, or by Shane, or by Kyle, or by Kendall. But as a result, we never actually finished. Needless to say, this did nothing whatsoever to help my sexual frustration.

We finally reached the school and I parked. Shane and I headed inside together, and were immediately flagged down by Katie, Kyle, Camille, and Logan. Shane and Kyle grinned at each other, but since we were in the middle of a crowded hallway, they didn't do anything. Instead, Shane just moved a little closer to Kyle, who in turn shifted nearer to Shane.

"So," Camille began enthusiastically, "we were just talking about this new event that happens down at La Castillo College."

"La Castillo College?" I asked blankly.

"Yeah. It's the local community college. A lot of La Castillo High graduates go there for their Associate's Art degree before continuing on to a university. It's just across town. We have a lot of parties together. They supply alcohol, and we supply sleazy, desperate, insecure high school girls, so it all evens out." As she said this, she pushed her chest into Logan's side, who turned bright red, but he didn't try to push her away.

I grinned at him, before turning back to Camille. "So, what about the college? What new event happens there?"

"They have Karaoke Night on Saturday night."

"Ah. Sounds like fun."

"Right? So, I was thinking that it'd be awesome to go sometime. From what I've heard, you don't need to be legal to get in, and it goes from seven PM to midnight."

"Ah."

She nodded eagerly. "And Katie told me that you did some singing when you were younger, so…"

"I mentioned that he did choir," Katie groaned. "I didn't mean for you to go searching for karaoke events for him!"

"I didn't. I heard about it on Facebook. Anyway, we should all go sometime. It'll be fun."

"Right." Katie rolled her eyes. "Getting up on a stage in front of complete strangers and singing off-key to lame pop songs. Sounds like a blast."

"Oh, come on, K, live a little," Kyle spoke up.

"I do live a little. I live enough to keep on breathing."

"Consider it your way of making fun of all the auto tuned songs that you hate."

"I don't hate auto tuned songs. I just think they don't sound as good as songs without auto tune do."

"Exactly. Come on, it'll be so much fun. Right?" he turned to Shane, who was biting his lip nervously.

"I'll go…" he said slowly. "But I'm not singing. That's James' area of expertise, not mine. I get stage fright."

"You and me both, bro," Katie told him with a nod. "But I'll watch."

Camille turned expectantly to Logan and me. "So, you guys will come, right? We can make it a little karaoke party."

Logan sighed, but I could tell he was about to relent. Sure enough, a moment later he said, "All right, I'll go. But I'm not singing either. I'll sit with Katie and Shane and watch."

Camille beamed, before looking at me hopefully.

"Fine," I said reluctantly. "But don't get your hopes up for a performance worthy of American Idol. I haven't sang in years."

"He sang last night," Shane said immediately.

"I meant, I haven't sang in front of an audience in years. And I haven't done any vocal exercises either."

"So? You still sound amazing. You'll probably be the best in the room – no offense," he added to Camille or Kyle.

"None taken," Camille replied, waving it aside. "So, we'll try to do it before Christmas break, okay? This Karaoke Night thing might only last this quarter, I'm not sure."

We all nodded, before Katie checked the time and informed us that we had five minutes to grab our stuff and get our asses to homeroom.

Despite Camille's insistence that getting to Karaoke Night was urgent, we didn't get the chance to go for the next month. Thanksgiving passed by, and before long, it was time to begin shopping for Christmas gifts. Shane and I still weren't happy with Brad, but we barely had to see him, and Mom didn't mention him very often, thank goodness. In the meantime, Katie and I continued to grow closer, talking on the phone almost every night, and texting each other off and on during homework. We'd hang out on the weekends, but always with Shane and Kyle, or with Logan and Camille, or sometimes both couples. Because of this, we didn't get the chance to have any more close kissing calls, or, well, to kiss at all. The sexual tension was rising every day, and I was beginning to think that if nothing happened to uncork it, it would be like the science experiment we had accidentally blown up in Chem. – it would explode. And I wasn't sure what that would mean for us.

But another problem was that, as stupid as it was, I was worried that if we didn't get together soon – if she even wanted to get together – then our friendship would dissolve. It had all but been formed on the basis of our sexual tension, and if things went bad, our friendship might disappear. I didn't want that to happen, not in the least. I liked being friends with Katie. At the very least, it was a step up from being pelted with volleyballs and dodge balls.

I probably would have actually made a move by December if it had been any girl, but the problem was, it was Katie Knight. Every now and then I would try to broach the subject of us possibly moving past friendship and into relationship territory, and she would remind me that she didn't date hockey players faster than you could say rejection. Not pleasant.

I got that she was afraid of what would happen if she dated a hockey player and he got injured, I did understand that. But I wished it didn't affect her decision making and her judgment so much. All I wanted was for her to give it a chance, which was why I kept pressing her about it.

Nevertheless, on the Thursday afternoon before Christmas break, I decided to try my luck again. We had had a test in English the day before, so we were really just doing a quick review of everything we had learned so far. Our finals weren't until January, which actually kind of sucked, but that was when we would get winter break, so that was something, at least.

"So…" I began, clearing my throat a little nervously. "I read somewhere that a lot of girls would love to date athletes."

Katie immediately glanced at me sideways, giving me a slightly annoyed look, as if to say, Oh, dear God, are you starting this again? Not exactly a positive reaction.

I plowed ahead anyway. "Especially hockey players. Girls love to date hockey players."

"Not this girl," she replied, sucking on the tip of her pen. "I'm never dating a hockey player."

I felt like banging my head against the table. Why did she have to be so fucking stubborn?! Why couldn't she just acknowledge the fact that there was something extremely powerful between us and just agree to go with it?! If I could do it, then why the hell couldn't she?! Why couldn't she just agree to date me?

"Right…Of course…I forgot." Grumbling under my breath, I turned back to my English textbook, trying to hide a slight scowl.

Katie tapped her pen against her paper. "Okay, you know what's really annoying?"

"What…?" I asked hesitantly, afraid that she would say You and your constant pushing.

"My parents and my brother. Kendall's convinced my mom to take him up to our uncle's for the weekend, so once again, I get to stay with my dad, who's hardly ever home."

"Why can't you go with them?" I wanted to know, looking up at her curiously.

"Because they need guy time."

"Unless your mom got a sex transplant, she's female."

"She'll hang out with my aunt, but my aunt and I don't really get along. Something about me being a facetious little brat."

I chuckled. "You are a facetious little brat."

"And she's a loud mouth lazy ass bitch. I think we're even."

Before I could respond, I felt a body drop into the chair beside me. I glanced over in that direction and saw that Logan and Camille had joined us.

"So," Camille said in a hushed voice, leaning in from where she was now sitting beside Katie, so that we could all hear, "I was thinking that we go to Karaoke Night this Saturday. You guys game?"

I nodded. "Sure, I'm up for it. Katie?"

"Yep. I'm looking forward to seeing you guys make asses out of yourselves," she grinned.

"Thank you so much for your resounding support."

"Not a problem."

Katie's POV

Saturday night came quickly. Camille insisted on coming over to my house that evening so that we could get ready together. Shane and Kyle were planning on driving over to the college together, and I knew Logan and James were going to take separate vehicles, so that Logan and Camille could go off somewhere afterwards and be alone. I wasn't sure just how much exactly I was looking forward to being alone in a car with James for a good fifteen, twenty minutes. Our tutoring sessions were getting harder and harder to handle, thanks to his constant hinting that we should maybe-possibly-definitely date.

I was aware that we should maybe-possibly-definitely date! I was very aware of it, as a matter of fact. But that didn't mean I was going to change my mind for one guy. I still didn't like hockey, and I wasn't going to get involved with someone who played it. The second we got into a relationship, my emotions, my feelings, for him would increase dramatically, and if he got hurt, I would be devastated. The idea of him getting hurt during practice or a game already scared me senseless. I didn't want to think about what would happen if we began to date and he suffered a concussion or some such injury. I just wasn't ready or willing to deal with it.

And yeah, maybe I needed to tell him that, but I had already let him know once. If he didn't remember, then that was his problem, not mine. Or maybe he was just hoping that I would change my mind for him.

I sighed as I worked my way through my closet, doing my best to put together a cute outfit. I was beginning to crack; I could feel it. I was getting pushed closer and closer to the point where, the next time he hinted that maybe we should start going out, I would reach over and kiss him senseless. That was what I had secretly wanted since the moment I first saw him, and that fantasy liked to make appearances at the most inopportune times – during algebra when I was texting him under the desk, while playing dodgeball with James in PE, while being tutored in English by him, while talking on the phone with him.

"You should sing tonight," Camille told me as she worked her way into her bustier top.

I stared at her. "First off, no way. And second, you're seriously wearing that?"

She nodded. "Yes, you should. And I found out on Halloween that Logan loves bustiers, but this is the first chance I've really gotten to wear one. I can't wait to see the look on his face when I take off my coat." She cackled and reached for a pair of skinny jeans.

I shook my head and let the subject drop, instead focusing on my clothes. I ended up settling on a pink and black skirt, a black t-shirt, black nylons, and black ankle boots. Pink hoops hung from my ears, and pink and black bracelets clunked on my wrist, while a black star necklace dipped down into the collar of my shirt.

I spun around in my mirror, making sure that the outfit looked absolutely perfect, before grabbing my makeup and heading into the bathroom.

When I came back out, Camille looked like she had just stepped out of a guy's wet dream. Her long, brown hair was all over the place in wild curls, her eyes were outlined in smoky eyeliner, and her lips were a deep red. The bustier top pushed her chest up, making it look like she was twice as large as she was, and the skinny jeans clung to her hips and ass.

Next to her, I looked like a prepubescent thirteen year old girl.

"Maybe I should change…"

Camille shook her head at once. "Are you kidding? You look amazing! James isn't going to be able to take his eyes off of you."

"I don't know…"

"Believe me, he's going to be drooling all over himself. I'd be very surprised if he doesn't slam you against the wall and have his wicked way with you."

I blushed. "Camille! Shut up! We're both virgins – you know that!"

"So? Maybe by the end of tonight you won't be."

"Shut up! My dad's home! I don't want him to hear us talking about James slamming me up into a wall and having his wicked way with me."

She shrugged. "Well, something to keep you warm tonight."

I shook my head. "Come on, let's head downstairs. The guys should be here any minute."

"Kay."

We made our way down the stairs, to the living room. Dad was on the couch, watching some weird movie from the '70s. All I knew was that it involved cars, cars, and more cars.

He put the movie on pause as we reached the living room. He smiled at me. "Hi, sweetie. Wow – you look beautiful."

I smiled back. "Thanks. You really think I look okay?"

"Well, you don't look as – interesting – as Cami, but you look gorgeous."

Camille beamed at Dad. "You really think I look interesting?"

"Yeah…no doubt about that…"

"Thanks, Mr. Knight!"

Dad chuckled and shook his head. "What time are the boys picking you girls up?"

"Any second now," I told him.

"Okay. Well, remember your coats. It's going to get cold out tonight."

"We will." We grabbed our coats and purses from the coat closet, and a moment later, the doorbell rang.

Camille immediately threw the door open. "Oooh, it's both of our guys! Hi, Logie," she purred.

"Hey, Camille," Logan replied, wrapping an arm around her waist.

"Yo, before you start making out, my dad's here," I informed him.

Camille pouted. "You don't mind though, right Mr. Knight?"

"Go out to the car, Camille," Dad replied.

"Fine. You're no longer the cool dad."

He laughed. "I didn't know I was ever the cool dad."

"Well, you're definitely not now." She grabbed Logan's hand and stalked out, swishing both her hips and her hair indignantly.

James and I looked at each other and simultaneously busted out laughing.

"Oh, gotta love Camille," James grinned.

"Always."

"You about ready to go?"

I opened my mouth to say "yep", but before I could, Dad got to his feet and walked around the couch to join us at the door.

"Hi," he said to James. "I'm Katie's dad, Kevin Knight."

"Hi, Mr. Knight. I'm James." They shook hands, and Dad nodded at me, before kissing the top of my head.

"Have fun tonight, sweetie." He headed back to watch his movie, and I stepped outside, closing the door behind me. James led me out to his car and we got in. We buckled up and he started the car, before pulling out of the driveway.

He reached over and switched on the radio. "Go ahead and pick a station," he told me, and I blinked. Shane had informed me once that James didn't like anyone touching his radio, and yet here he was, letting me play DJ. Something about this didn't make sense.

I hesitantly began flipping through stations, eventually settling on a station that played a combination of both rock and pop. An Avril Lavigne song was playing at that moment, and I leaned back into the seat, willing myself to relax. I wasn't the one who was going to be performing that night. But that still didn't explain why I was so anxious.

About halfway through town, James asked me to direct him to the college, so I acted as his human GPS, telling him when and where to turn, and when it would be a good idea to go straight. I had only been to the college a couple of times, both times when they had been holding bake sales and my dad had dragged me there because he loved sweets, so I wasn't too familiar with the area, but I still managed to get us there in one piece, and on time as well. It was a miracle.

We parked in the visitor parking, right in-between Logan and Camille, and Kyle and Shane. The others were all gathered around, obviously waiting for us. We climbed out of the car and joined them, before letting Camille lead us to the building where Karaoke Night was located.

The building was titled the Recreational Center, though once we stepped into the main room, it didn't look like a Recreational Center at all. It had a club atmosphere to it, complete with disco balls, flashing lights, and a stage. Someone was already up on said stage, belting out a Carry Underwood song into the microphone, horribly pitchy and off-key. But hey, that's karaoke for you. You're not supposed to be good – karaoke was created so that you could get up onstage and make a complete idiot out of yourself and no one could laugh at you.

Sounds like my kind of activity.

Logan, James, and Kyle headed over to the bar to get drinks, and Camille, Shane, and I took seats at a round table towards the back. I tried to watch the guy who was performing, but my eyes kept wandering back to James. I could see him chatting and laughing with the guys as they waited for the drinks to come up.

I subconsciously licked my lips and let out a low breath. At that moment, one particular song popped into my head, and I decided right then and there that, no matter how awful I was, I was going to sing.

The guys returned a couple minutes later, passing the drinks around. James took a seat beside me, and I felt his leg brush against mine. I was seriously beginning to wonder if my rule about not dating hockey players was actually a good one. I definitely wasn't going to go through this for the rest of my life without some kind of outlet.

To distract myself, I took a sip of my drink, and turned back to watch the girl who was now onstage.

Unfortunately, having James beside me was a huge distraction. Every now and then, our legs would brush up against each other's, and maybe it was just me, but it kind of felt like our chairs were getting closer and closer together of their own accord. I certainly wasn't moving my chair closer to his, and it didn't look like he was doing it either. But for some reason, we went from being about a foot away from each other, to having about an inch of space between our seats.

Before our chairs could bump up against each other and act out the sexual frustration between James and me, I leapt to my feet. "I'm singing next."

Camille grinned and clapped. "Go Katie!"

"I was hoping you would," Kyle smiled at me.

"Have fun," James told me.

I nodded at all of them, before making my way up onto the stage. I knew from watching the other performers that we were each allowed two songs per turn, although we could come back up at any time for another turn. However, two songs were perfect for me. I had my songs picked out and ready.

I walked over to the guy who was controlling the tracks. "Do you have any Lesley Roy songs?"

He nodded. "Which ones do you want?"

"When You Look At Me first, and then Thinking Out Loud after."

"All right. Good luck."

"Thanks…"

I grabbed the microphone and braced myself. I had sang in church choir in elementary school, but once I had reached middle school, I had devoted pretty much all of my time to ice skating. So, I could sing – probably – but I wasn't going to be any good.

I looked out at the audience, searching for my friends. I quickly found them, and my heartbeat sped up as I locked eyes with James. Oh man…

The music swelled behind me, and right on cue, I began to sing:

"'Everybody knows, everybody knows
You're the kind of guy, kind of guy that a girl like me goes for
Everywhere you go, everywhere you go
People wanna know why you're alone
Hanging out on the dance floor
Ripped up jeans, tattooed sleeves
So James Dean
But you got it 'cause
You're so hot
I could die

'Cause when I look at you
I wanna get a room, I wanna get a room
Under all that cool
I know you want it too, I know you want it too
What's a girl gotta do to get you out of her mind
And into the groove?
'Cause when I looked at you
I knew(Ha ha)
(Ha ha)I've been waiting all night, waiting all night
For the right time, right sign
Just so I could finally make a move
Cheesy lines from the wrong guys, drinking cheap wine, wasting time 'til the moment I can get to youI walk over
Now I get in closer, I'm trembling
Now I see heaven in your eyes'Cause when I look at you
I wanna get a room, I wanna get a room
Under all that cool
I know you want it too, I know you want it too
What's a girl gotta do to get you out of her mind
And into the groove?
'Cause when I looked at you
I knew
I knew, I knew
I knew, I knew
'Cause when I look at you
I wanna get a room, I wanna get a room
Under all that cool
I know you want it too, I know you want it too
What's a girl gotta do to get you out of her mind
And into the groove?
'Cause when I looked at you
I knew
'Cause when I looked at you
I knew
'Cause when I looked at you
I knew(Ha ha)
(Ha ha)
(Ha ha)
(Ha ha)
(Ha ha)'," I finished with a deep breath. I'm not sure, but I had a distinct feeling that I had never looked away from James. He was still staring at me, at the very least, and even in the flashing, multicolored lights, I could see that his eyes were dark and smoldering. Okay…okay…focus…I had one more song to do. I could do this…

The applause that had erupted when I had finished singing died down as the next song began:

"'I've been losing my mind
I've been living a lie
I've been running away for so long
I try to put on a face
And cover my heart
But I'm needing it now, so bad

I don't know
How I feel
Maybe I'm mad
Or maybe I'm proud
Can't find the truth
Can't speak my mind
Don't know what I say
I'm just thinking out loud
Thinking out loud

No, no I can't explain
What's happened to me
I feel like I'm right and wrong
Inside everything's upside down
Everything spinning around

And it's freaking me out

I don't know
How I feel
Maybe I'm mad
Or maybe I'm proud
Can't find the truth
Can't speak my mind
I don't know what I say
I'm just thinking out loud

If only for a day
I could be free
I'll bet you'll feel the same

If you were me
I'm gonna scream it out
Just let go!

I've been losing my mind
I've been living a lie
I've been running away for so long

I don't know
How I feel
Maybe I'm mad
Or maybe I'm proud
Can't find the truth
Can't speak my mind
I don't know what I say
I'm just thinking out loud
Yeah, I'm thinking out loud
Thinking out loud
Can't find the truth
Can't speak my mind
I don't know what I say
I'm just thinking out loud'."

The room broke out into applause and I gave my friends a wide smile, before hooking the microphone back up and jumping off of the stage. I walked over to them. "So…what'd you guys think?"

"You were incredible," James told me before any of the others could so much as open their mouths. "You were amazing." He smiled at me, and his eyes were bright, shining happily. He was proud of me for something that wasn't passing my English test…

I smiled back at him and sat down beside him. I had chosen the songs with him in mind, hoping that he would get what I wanted to say to him, but just couldn't quite put into words.

James' POV

Camille went on next. In usual Camille fashion, she chose a Lady Gaga song as her first choice, and she made a huge production of strutting her stuff across the stage.

But, admittedly, I was barely paying attention to her. I was too busy thinking of Katie and her songs. I was pretty sure she had never looked away from at all while she had been singing, like she had been singing to me. It made me wonder if she had directed the songs at me specifically. If so, that, in a way, had cleared some stuff up for me. She was definitely attracted to me – although, with our almost-kisses, there had hardly been any doubt left in my mind about that – but she was still confused as to what she should do.

I decided to use my song choices to let her know what I wanted and was hoping for, and I had two in mind.

Camille finished her set a couple minutes later, and Kyle jumped up, heading up to the stage. I smiled a little as I realized that his first song was Adam Lambert's song Better Than I Know Myself. I could see Shane's face splitting in a wide smile as he listened to Kyle sing. Whether or not Kyle was singing about him – and I had a feeling he was, considering the fact that Katie had most likely been singing to me, and Camille had definitely been singing to Logan – Shane's night had been made, and that alone was enough to make me happy.

But the night wasn't over yet.

Once Kyle finished his set, I got up and headed up to the stage.

The guy who was controlling the music looked at me. "What songs would you like?"

"Do you have Jason Derulo's song In My Head and Lit's song You Tonight?"

"Yep. Jason Derulo first?"

"Please?"

"You got it. Lots of luck."

"Thanks." I walked over to the microphone and picked it up. Damn…I had missed being onstage…I had really missed it. It was nice to be back on one. I felt both comfortable, and yet elated, as I stood there, looking out at the audience and waiting for the music to begin. I quickly found Katie, and she grinned at me, giving me the double-thumbs up sign.

A moment later, the music began, and I started to sing:

"'Everybody's looking for love, oh.
Ain't that the reason you're at this club, oh.
You ain't gonna find it dancing with him, no.
I got a better solution for you girl, oh.Just leave with me now, say the word and we'll go.
I'll be your teacher, I'll show you the ropes.
You'll see a side of love you've never known.
I can see it going down, going down.In my head, I see you all over me.
In my head, you fulfill my fantasy.
In my head, you'll be screaming ohhhh
In my head, it's going down.
In my head, it's going down.
In my head, yeah, in my head, oh yeah.Some dudes know all the right things to say-ay.
When it comes down to it, it's all just game.
Instead of talking let me demonstrate. Yeah.
Get down to business and skip foreplay. Yeah.Just leave with me now, say the word and we'll go.
I'll be your teacher, I'll show you the ropes.
You'll see a side of love you've never known.
I can see it going down, going down.In my head, I see you all over me.
In my head, you fulfill my fantasy.
In my head, you'll be screaming ohhhh
In my head, it's going down.
In my head, it's going down.
In my head.Break it down.
Ay-oh-oh come on. Ay-oh ooh Ay-oh.
You singing to me baby in my head right now.
Ay-oh. Ay-oh ooh. Come on.
She'll be screaming out when it all goes down.Just leave with me now, say the word and we'll go (we can go.)
I'll be your teacher. I'll show you the ropes.
You'll see a side of love you've never known.
I can see it going down, going down.In my head, I see you all over me.
In my head, you fulfill my fantasy.
In my head, you'll be screaming ohhhh.
In my head, it's going down.
In my head, it's going down.In my head, I see you all over me.
In my head, you fulfill my fantasy.
In my head, you'll be screaming ohhhh.
In my head, it's going down.
In my head, it's going down.
In my head.'" I finished with a grin, and the audience exploded with applause. I gave a bow, chancing a glance at Katie, who was grinning while biting her lip. Yeah, I had a feeling my message had gotten through.

But in case it hadn't…

The next song began:

"'Take another look
And do you like what you see
I've been standing here watching you watching me
We can skip the get-to-know-you tell me everything
I don't even need to know the truth
Cuz all I wanna do is take a chance on youThe party ain't over
But it's time to go
Let's slip out the back
And I'll drive you home
We'll lock up the bedroom
And leave on the lights
I want you to see everything
When I…you tonight
[ Lyrics from: . ]
Take another step
A little closer to the edge
I'll be waiting here just hanging on by a thread
You don't need to say another word it's understood
Turn around again I love the view
And all I wanna do is put my hands on youThe party ain't over
But it's time to go
Let's slip out the back
And I'll drive you home
We'll lock up the bedroom
And leave on the lights
I want you to scream out my name
When I…you tonightI've been standing here watching you
And all I wanna do is put my hands on youThe party ain't over
But it's time to go
Let's slip out the back
And I'll drive you home
We'll lock up the bedroom
And leave on the lights
I want you to see everything
And I want you to scream out my name
And I don't want you missing a thing
When I tonight
When I…you tonight'." The music died out and everyone began clapping and cheering. I set the microphone back in its hook, and jumped down from the stage. I made my way over to the others and sat down beside Katie.

"Well…" she said, licking her lips, trailing her tongue slowly, tantalizingly over her mouth, "you could audition for American Idol and win with no problem."

I grinned. "Thanks."

"You're welcome."

After that, things began winding down in the makeshift karaoke club. People began to trickle out, slowly at first, and then in herds. Shane and Kyle decided to head out for some alone time – although, since Logan and Camille were with us, they told us they were going to go get hot chocolate or something – and Logan and Camille left for some spot in the hills surrounding La Castillo, where everyone ended up when they wanted to get it on with no parents walking in on them.

That left Katie and me. By the time Logan and Camille disappeared through the door, we were the only ones left. Even the DJ guy had vanished into thin air. We were all alone in the Recreational Center.

Katie got to her feet, stretching. "Come on, we should go too. We don't want to be kicked out, right?"

"Right…Um…" I licked my lips, feeling nervous again. Maybe it was just me, but it seemed like our feelings towards each other were right out in the open, and that now might have been a good time to make a move. "Are you sure you won't change your mind about dating a hockey player?"

She turned to look at me, her eyes darkening with anger. "I'm positive," she said in a steely voice, though I thought I caught a look of uncertainty flit across her face. "You need to stop asking me that, because it's never going to change."

Okay, fuck subtlety. She liked me. I liked her. End of story. It was as simple as that. She was the one who was making everything so fucking complicated.

"Oh yeah?" I challenged, crossing my arms over my chest. "So you make a habit of almost kissing guys who you'll never date?"

"That – that was a moment of – of weakness…"

"And you always sing songs about how much you want them, to them?"

"That – you can't prove I was singing to you, about you."

"But you were." I took a step towards her. "You were singing about me, to me."

"Good luck getting me to admit it," she shot back, holding her ground. "Why can't you just accept that you and I will never happen?"

"Because you want this as badly as I do. I can see it in your eyes. You want me. Why can't you just accept that that's never going to change?" I took another step closer to her.

"I don't date hockey players," she said simply, still not moving. "And you can't change my mind."

"I bet I can," I retorted, placing my hands on her shoulders and backing her towards the wall.

"I'd like to see that."

I've never been one to turn down a challenge, which is why I chose that moment to press my lips roughly against hers while slamming her into the wall simultaneously. She pulled me with her, yanking my body against hers, trapping herself between me and the wall.

I deepened the kiss, crushing our bodies together. She nipped at me, winding her arms around my neck to pull me even closer to her, and a moan escaped me. I nipped back at her once before pulling away.

I rested my forehead against hers, breathing heavily. "Why do you have to be so fucking stubborn?" I murmured.

"That's one of the things you like so much about me," she replied, closing her eyes, still not letting me go.

"Touché."

"In your defense, you changed my mind about kissing a hockey player." And the next thing I knew, I was the one backed up against the wall, with her pressing up against me as she kissed me forcefully.

That was how the janitor found us, still kissing, Katie's hands on my chest and my arms around her waist.

He got our attention and informed us that we needed to leave.

The only thought that crossed my mind as Katie and I walked out of the Recreational Center, my arm around her shoulders, was that there was no way in hell I was going back to the friend zone. No way.

Okay...so...yeah, okay. They finally kissed. About time, right? ;) And yeah, okay, I'm kind of squealing inside because yeah, they finally kissed. Anyway...did you guys enjoy the chapter? Are you happy that they finally kissed? Let me know, okay? The review button's depressed because Christmas is over, and I love hearing from you guys; it always makes my day that much better :) Love you guys!