It was time for lunch but I didn't go to the cafeteria with the girls. Instead, I went to the old chemistry lab and found Toby waiting. I enjoyed my time with him just like I always did, but I could still feel the cloud overhead.
"What's wrong, Spence?" Toby asked me when I let out a sigh and leaned my head on his shoulder.
"I'm just going to miss this." I shrugged.
Toby had been doing home school since he got out of jail. But with recent events, he was feeling more and more like an outsider in his own house. So he was working on getting his G.E.D. so that he could get a job and a place of his own. Jason had offered him his place, but it only had one room and the mattress on his futon really sucked. Usually I took Jason's bed and he opted for a sleeping bag on the floor with lots of pillows when I stayed over.
"I will too, Spence. But I can always stop by during lunch if the girls let me steal you away." He said trying to cheer me up.
"That might be easier said than done." I teased.
"I'll find a way to make it work." He laughed. "And I know it might not be the same but it's for the best."
"I know it is, and I'm happy for you, really. I know you put a lot of thought into your decision, and that a G.E.D. takes a lot of work to get. But I'm proud of you, and I know you can do it." I told him as I placed my hand on his cheek.
"If I pass, it will only be because I had you as a tutor." He told me as he removed my hand only to place it on his lap intertwined with his.
"Oh, you'll pass alright. Like you said, I'm tutoring you." I told him very confidently. "And once you've passed, you'll get a job doing what you love."
"And once I've saved up enough money, I'll get my own place. I know Jason is your escape from your parents and Melissa, but I think you need an escape from Jason sometimes too. And we'll both need an escape from him once the two weeks is up."
"Don't remind me." I said shaking my head. "But it will definitely be nice for you to have a place of your own. I guess I'm just in a sentimental mood today. And it's kind of bittersweet to think this might be the last time we hang out in here."
"This won't be the last time, Spence. Like you said, it won't be the same. But it won't be the last, I promise." He assured me and placed a kiss on my lips.
"Toby, I'm so sorry!" I cried as soon as he opened door.
I knew it was risky coming to his place after what happened today, but I just had to see him.
"Spencer, what are you doing here?" He demanded. "Jenna will be back any minute. You being here will only make things worse."
"I know, Toby, but please just give me a minute. I understand that you're mad, but I didn't mean for this to happen. I had no idea, Toby, honest. I'll leave you alone, if that's what you want, but please tell me that you believe me."
"Of course I believe you, Spencer. And I'm not mad you, but Jenna is. I don't want you two crossing paths anytime soon." He sighed and as he let me into the house.
"I can handle Jenna." I told him and couldn't help rolling my eyes. "But will you be okay?"
It was then that I noticed his face. A bruise was starting to form on his left cheek. And I knew it was most likely caused by Jenna.
Today at school Alison looked through my texts and read all the messages that Toby and I had sent each other. By the time lunch rolled around the damage had already been done. Ali never said a word but I knew that she knew about me Toby. With every jab and snide comment I knew she was planning on making me and Toby miserable.
But that wasn't the worst of it. She saw a few texts where Toby and I briefly mentioned Jenna. So Ali used that as a way to finally get back at Jenna. Jenna blamed Toby and I saw her yelling at Toby in the hallway. I budded in and that only made things worse instead of better. Now, Ali was shutting me out and I knew consequences would come. And Jenna was angry at both me and Toby, but she would take it out on him.
"I'll be fine, Spence. I'm more worried about you. I know that you don't want to hear that but it's true. So do me a favor, and please stay away from Jenna." He told me and pleaded with his eyes.
"Well, I won't go picking a fight with her, but I'm not going to stand aside if there's a repeat of this afternoon." I stated. "And speaking of keeping away, maybe we should stay away from the library, my house, and the hill. I don't know what texts Ali read and I don't want her telling my parents her version of things."
"When can I see you then, Spencer? I understand that we need to be really careful but I'm not letting Alison come between."
"She won't, we just need to lay low for a little while."
"Spencer, we've been laying low since the get go. That's not going to make things better. This won't be the last time you and I see each other just because she stole your phone. The best thing we can do is go on hanging out like nothing happened. It won't exactly be the same because now she and Jenna know. But we have to show Alison that she can't control us and Jenna just…"
"I just what?" Someone asked and both Toby and I turned to see Jenna standing in the doorway.
"Need a taste of your own medicine!" I said quietly but the threat was clear as day.
Toby tried to stop me but he wasn't fast enough. I swung my right arm and my hand connected with her cheek, hard. Jenna gasped and I couldn't help a smug grin when she stood there in shock. I had wanted to do that ever since I found out what she did to Toby.
Jenna's shock didn't last long and immediately she went to take a swing at me. But this time Toby was fast enough and he stopped her before her hand came anywhere close to me.
"What the hell, Toby?" Jenna shouted at him. "She slapped me but you're defending her?"
"That's enough, Jenna." He shouted back when she tried to get at me again. "Spencer hasn't done anything to you that you didn't deserve. Now, leave us both alone."
"Tell Ali she won't get away with this." Jenna warned and then stomped into her room. "And the two of you won't either."
"I should probably get going." I sighed.
"Yeah, that might be a good idea." He nodded. "So, will I see you tomorrow?"
"This won't be the last time we see each other." I assured him. "But I do hope that this is the last time we have to deal with Jenna."
"Me too, although I think you might have enjoyed slapping her. Remind me to never get on your bad side." He teased.
"You could never be on my bad side." I laughed. "I'll see you tomorrow."
Toby POV & Time Jump
"Hey, Toby, I need a break from studying. Want to go for walk outside?" Spencer asked as she closed her braille text book.
"Spencer, it's freezing outside. Why do you want to go for a walk?" I asked skeptically.
"The cold air will clear my head and it will only be for a few minutes." She tried to convince me.
"Alright, but it will only be for a few minutes. I don't want Jason or your parents holding me responsible for getting you sick." I gave in and grabbed our jackets.
I held her hand as we walked out the back door together and around to the front. I was opening up the gate when Spencer stopped me.
"Toby, wait!"
"What is it, Spence?" I asked feeling really confused; seconds ago she was begging to go for a walk.
"Well, this is going to sound weird, but you have to do exactly what I tell you to." She stated.
"Okay, what do you need me to do?"
"I want you to unlock the gate, but don't open it. You can't open the gate unless you have your eyes closed. And believe me when I say this, I will know if you're peeking, Cavanaugh." She instructed.
"My eyes are closed, Spencer, I promise. And the gate is open. But isn't this taking the phrase, blind leading the blind a little too literally?"
"We're not actually going anywhere. We're just going to stand here and you can open your eyes as soon as you hear it." She explained vaguely.
"As soon as I hear what?" I asked just as I heard a car horn beep twice.
Spencer nudged me and I took that as the cue to open my eyes.
"Spencer!?" I gasped when I opened them.
In front of me was a tan pickup truck. The exact one I showed Caleb a few days ago. How did she know about it? Jason stepped out of the truck with a satisfied smile and passed me the keys.
"Take it, it's yours." Spencer told me with the wide smile. "Congratulations on getting your G.E.D. I'm so proud of you."
"Spencer, are you crazy? Do you know how long it will take me to pay you back?" I questioned her.
"Well, Caleb mentioned something about you wanting the truck so you could get a job." She shrugged.
I let out a small laugh and shook my head. She knew me so well. And I knew her. She didn't care if I never paid her back, it wasn't about money. But I still wanted to and she didn't fight me on it. That's how well we knew each other. And I loved having someone in my life that knew me better than I knew myself. Spencer was my other half and I right now I couldn't wait any longer to tell her.
"I love you, so much." I told her as I wrapped my arms around her waist and stared at her in awe.
"I wanted to say that first." She fake whined and her smile widen even more, if that was possible.
I tightened my arms around her and leaned in to kiss her. She quickly returned the kiss with equal passion. Somewhere in the back of my mind I remembered that Jason was still around and the thought made me deepen the kiss. I was glad Spencer hadn't waited until tomorrow to do this because today was the last day Jason couldn't tease us and I was taking full advantage. No doubt tomorrow would be a long day but right now I didn't care. All I cared about was Spencer. How lucky I was to have her, how amazing she was, and how much I loved her.
I thought 100 reviews felt good but 110 and counting feels even better. Keep them coming! All if you are amazing and to quote Toby "I love you so much!" Speaking of that how many of you loved that he finally said it. Only took 20 chapters. And how many of you loved that Spencer slapped Jenna? Shout-out to prettylittlespoby13, I totally had you in mind when I wrote the flashback. Next chapter is pretty crazy and will include a new POV I've never done before. Anyone want to guess who's it will be? Well you'll find out on Tuesday!