Author's Note: Now is finally the wrap up to the school president storyline which I am more than happy about myself. Also, I decided to skip onto Friday because I didn't feel like the auditions for Eddie's band needed to be written and I just want to wrap this storyline up already.
Anyway disclaimer: I don't own kickin it or any of the character but my oc's which I'm sure you guys know now. Also I DON'T condone underage drinking or drugs, say no to drugs and drinking kids, but I believe if you're 18 years or older then the choice is up to you since you're officially an adult.
Now onto the story,
Theatre 1 Class
Friday, September 21st, 2012
"So, we narrowed the fall production choices down to, Nice if You Can Get it and The Addams Family. Next Tuesday we'll vote on which play we should do then go from there, either way my goal is to have auditions the second week of October." Mrs. Evanheart informed the class as she walked around the room
"For the students that are in my theatre classes remember that today is the deadline for your set ideas for the two plays and remember the homecoming parade if you are participating or not." She continued
Kim just wanted this day to be over with already. After the disastrous debate yesterday where not did her index cards mysteriously disappear despite that fact that she put it in a safe spot but a terrible rumor about her was posted on SDL. She didn't know about the post until Kelsey told her at lunch so before then she was completely dumbfounded at the looks and whispers that followed her around all her morning classes. It wasn't just her either, she heard the girls gossiping about Grace but then again that wasn't anything new. Only this time it wasn't over her outfits, friends, or wondering if her and Brad are finally together but over a crazy rumor that was also posted on SDL. Which the blonde found a little funny since she's friends with Tj or at least part of the same social circle, which she thought meant he wouldn't post anything bad about her. Only it appears that not even Grace is free from Tj's gossip site which pleased her more than it should. When Kelsey showed her the newest post from Tj Milton also fell victim to it but not a lot of the students cared since a lot of them forgot he was even running, they cared more about the rivalry between her and Grace. Also compared to the rumor spread about Grace and her his was more tame claiming Milton doesn't shower after gym class.
So, for whatever reason the anonymous source that gave Tj the information seemed to have it out for all the freshman presidential candidates. Kim tried to push away any negative feeling about the rumor in order to nail the debate but that didn't work out well either since her index cards went missing which had the outline of her debate on it. She tried to push through it and just come up with something on the spot only never really was good improvising under pressure and seeing all the judge-mental looks mixed with the whispers bothered her more than she thought it would. Her mind went blank, losing all the preparation she did with Kelsey and Donna for the debate questions. Grace seemed to look cool under pressure the only hint that any of the rumors got to her was the finger tapping against the podium and fidgeting with her bracelet. Milton on the other hand, was the calmest and collected out of the three of them. He didn't even seem bothered by the rumor spread on SDL and he completely nailed the debate, not batting an eye at the snickering and ribbing from the crowd.
Kim envied Milton's ability to do that, stay calm under pressure but then again this was Milton she was talking about. The boy always knew how to keep a level head in stressful situations and there was the fact that his rumor was less interesting compared to Grace and hers. After the joke of a debate Kim ducked for cover in a bathroom stall to try and calm herself down and keep from having a full meltdown then sucked it up for the last three class periods. With persuasion from Kelsey and Donna she ditched karate practice to have the two girls come over her house to binge 'Friends' for the millionth time while eating cookie dough ice cream. Luckily the blonde was also able to persuade her parents into having Donna sleep over while Kelsey had to go home. By the end of the night Kim was laughing in her bed with Donna next to her saying something that made her laugh even louder than before. The boys blew up her phones with questioning texts wondering why she was MIA at practice but she ignored them all. Kim did for a brief second contemplate texting Jack back but Donna stole her phone before she could even open the messaging app.
For a brief second yesterday she was able to forget all that happened at school when she was in the comfort of her two best friends. Then reality set in when she opened Facebook late at night when Donna was asleep and saw the new status updates and messages on her timeline about the stupid rumor. Kim stopped herself from looking too long at the messages and instead tried to force herself to fall asleep which was an epic fail despite her desire to torture herself more by looking at Facebook. When she finally did manage to fall asleep it was around one in the morning after hours of tossing and turning and pacing her room while Donna slept on, completely knocked out.
When she woke this morning it was to Donna- who was already fully dressed in her change of clothes and ready to go, shoving her off the bed. Kim debated staying at home claiming a stomach ache or fever but dismissed the idea when she remembered how much of a terrible liar she is. So with a groan of frustration she picked herself up from the floor then went to the bathroom to start her morning routine, but not before tripping her raven-haired friend out of the bathroom on her out for payback for pushing her out the bed. Once she was finished in the bathroom and clothed in an acceptable outfit for school, the two girls made their downstairs for breakfast. Food and drinks were consumed, conversations were held then the girls were driven and dropped off to school with a kiss goodbye. After a promise of the two girls meeting up with Kelsey later tonight to catch a movie, they parted ways; Donna to art club and Kim to drama.
"Now I'm afraid that's all the time we have for this meeting. Anyone interested in participating in behind the scenes work for the play please come up and sign this sheet for the position you want." The teacher continued on, holding up the sheet she was talking about
While the rest of the class filed out Kim walked over to her teacher, as well as Ember, Desiree, and Brody to fill out the sheet.
"You wanna do behind-the-scenes work? I would've pegged you to be up onstage front and center." Kim told Desiree who chuckled at the observation
"While I do love to act, singing isn't my forte, I'm more of a straight play kinda girl. What about you? You have the face for the stage."
This time it was Kim who chuckled, "Yeah I'm not good at acting and that's putting it lightly. I've realized that after what I like to call The Red Riding Hood Incident."
"What happened?" The junior asked, curiosity piqued
"We don't speak of that. My friends and I made a vow to never bring it up."
"It was that bad huh?"
Kim huffed a laugh, "You have no idea but I do like singing."
"Are you in the school choir?"
"Oh no I like to sing in private not in front of people or with others."
"I get that." Desiree nodded in understanding
Once Ember fished writing on the sign up sheet and greeted the two other girls who echoed back their greeting Desiree got the sign up sheet next.
"What are you signing up for?"
"Stage manager, and you?"
"I don't know, I'm not good with tech or creating stuff that well so I was thinking maybe assistant stage manager."
"Having a grade nine at my beck and call, I'll try not to abuse that power." The head of the new station teased
Kim just chuckled but didn't say anything. For now she was just glad to be able to even tease and feel happiness, to ignore the giant elephant in the room. That Desiree didn't bring it up or try to offer positive and inspiring words of bullshit like all her friends. After Desiree finished signing she handed the clipboard to Kim.
"I'll see you later Kim."
"Kay, later." The blonde scanned all the positions on the paper. Costume crew, lighting and tech, set design, makeup, house and publicity managers.
The blonde wrote her name down next to assistant stage manager then turned around to give the clipboard to the person behind her but quickly scowled at who she saw; Brody.
"Can I have the board?" The boy asked, the girl in question glared then shoved the board in his chest
She attempted to stalk away but a hand on her forearm stopped her and she nearly flipped him but stopped herself at the last minute.
"What do you want?"
"I just wanted to say that I'm sorry for the rumor that was posted on SDL. I don't believe it for a second and I'm the sure the people who mattered don't believe it either. Tj is just a jerk who's desperate for any gossip he can get his hands on."
Kim jerked her arm away from the boy so she could cross her arms over her chest and glare at him.
"And how do I know that you weren't the one who sent him the rumor?"
"Why on earth would I even do that?"
"Because you're an awful person who gets off on hurting good people for selfish reasons? To spite me? And you decided to do the same for Milton and Grace just to cover your own ass." Kim listed off
Brody gave her an incredulous look before barking out a cold laugh then shook his head,
"Why do I even bother with you? No matter what I say all you think of me is the petty naïve middle schooler who was blinded by the chance to be part of a popular dojo. You can't let things go, you're stubborn and you seem to want a reason to hate me. I hope eventually you'll learn to grow up and move on." After that the boy turned his back on her, shutting her out
Kim stood there for a moment, shocked by his outburst and not really knowing what to do or say. Finally she decided to huff out a breath then turned on her heel and stalk out of the classroom.
Outdoor Amphitheatre
2nd Lunch
"Dude I can't wait until tonight." Jerry enthused to Randy as he sat down on the steps next to him with his lunch tray
"Same it'll be epic." Randy agreed with a huge smile on his lips before scooping up some spaghetti from his lunch tray then shoving it in his mouth
"What are you guys talking about?" Eddie spoke up in confusion as he too came over to sit next to them
"Mika the hot new transfer student invited us to a party at the ravine in the woods behind the school. Did you know we had a ravine? Cuz we both didn't." Jerry informed him
Eddie nodded, "Yeah I know about. My explorer scout troop and I had to clean it to earn a badge last year." He told the boys as he squirted mustard onto his sandwich
"Oh."
"So, both of you guys are going a party? Like an actual teenage party? You guys know what happens at parties right?" The yellow belt pushed on the conversation
"Yah hookups and man do I want to hook-up with Mika." Randy answered with a scoff like that was a stupid question to ask
"Right? She looks like she knows a few things or two about-" The dancer agreed with his fellow troublemaker friend
"No! I mean yes that does happen but that's not what I'm talking. I mean drugs that can lead to an overdose and drinking that can lead to alcohol poisoning or drunk driving and sometimes even fights. At least that's what my mom tells me as well that she'll whoop my butt into next year if I even think about going to one." Eddie swiftly interrupted what Jerry planned on saying
Randy rolled his eyes at the yellow belt, annoyance clear as day on his face
"There's nothing wrong with drinking or doing drugs as long as you take small doses." Randy told Eddie dismissively
"Haven't you ever listened to a single say no to drugs speech that this school outs on every single year since seventh grade?" Eddie shot back in disbelief
"No, I tune them out." Randy answered and Jerry nodded in agreement as he dipped his chicken strip in barbecue sauce before taking a bite from it
Those stupid assemblies were all very boring and he ended up zoning out most of the times. Either way he knew that he wasn't missing much and they were just all saying the same thing, drugs and alcohol are bad and you shouldn't do it.
"I end up falling asleep." Jerry added in agreement
"Well they're deadly, you shouldn't do it, or if you must wait until you're an actual adult. Do you know what they can do to your brain?" Eddie insisted with a confused look on his face, it matched the one he himself wears a lot
Randy looked done with the conversation and unscrewed the cap on his water bottle to take a long sip from it.
"Like I said as long as you do it in small doses it's not that big of a deal. I know I've tried both before." The shaggy haired skater continued
That grabbed both Eddie's and Jerry's attention as they both turned to look at Randy with renewed interest.
"Wait you what?" Jerry asked his voice clear showing how impressed he was
"You tried drugs before?!" Eddie's voice was more filled of horror
"Just weed, Destiny's boyfriend's friend is a drug dealer and when they both over my house during the summer he offered me a blunt." Destiny Coleman was Randy's half-sister but he hates to even acknowledged the fact that they are related and makes sure to point out that they were only half related.
Most of the fact has to do that Destiny came from a secret affair his mother but didn't ever tell anyone until his dad found out when Randy was in sixth grade. His mother continued having affair but got sloppy and when his dad found out it was a big blowout that ended with him running out the door into the rain to drive away that ended his life in a fatal car accident. Randy's world was turned upside down when he found out that not only was his dad dead but his mother is having an affair and he also has an older half-sister that he never knew anything about. A year later Randy and his mother moved into her lover's middle-class house. Randy and his mom tried to lay low for a few months since the whole event was the talk of the city for a while.
Randy was never the same after that.
"You never told me this." Jerry commented to his shaggy haired friend who just shrugged
"Guess it slipped my mind, but man it was an experience I tell you. Then a while later at a fourth of July beach bonfire they were smoking weed and drinking you know shit like that so I decided to try a beer as well. The taste is weird is very bitter and the aftertaste is bread like if that makes sense. I hated it so I tried a bottle of Jack Daniels instead while that was strong as hell it gave me a hell of a good time." Randy shared with a grin
"Randy are you insane?! You're fourteen years old you shouldn't be drinking, especially something as strong as whiskey. Don't you know what that can do to you?" Eddie exclaimed to the boy
The boy in question rolled his eyes in annoyance at the yellow belt,
"Of course you'll say that mommy's boy, the worst thing you ever done was probably not kissing your parents goodnight. Jerry why do you keep inviting him to hang with us? He's a downer." Jerry looked startled at having the attention back on him
The Columbian was at lost as to what to say, he considers both Randy and Eddie to be some of his closest friends. The two people have very different personalities, Randy being more fun loving and a troublemaker while Eddie was more cautious but liked fun as long as it had limits. He loved hanging out with the both of them but having them together, near each other wasn't a good idea. Jerry looked between the two boys, at lost as to what to say. He shoved half a chicken strip in his mouth to keep from answering a little while longer.
"He's not all bad, I mean you try out for his band so that has to mean something." Was what Jerry came up with
Randy nodded in agreement proving that Jerry said the right thing and a quick look at Eddie showed that he was scowling into his water bottle.
"The band is the only thing that seems cool or at least cool for him. As long as we don't sing any show tunes or gay shit then there won't be a problem." Randy retorted back, ignoring the glare he got from Eddie or just not caring
Jerry's eyebrows scrunched up in confusion,
"What's a show tune?" He asked Randy who opened his mouth to explain but Eddie spoke up before he could answer
"I love how you guys talk about me as if I'm not right here." The sarcasm in Eddie's voice was clear as day
Jerry shot him an apologetic look, "Sorry man." he apologized
Randy patted him repeatedly on the arm gaining his attention in slight annoyance and confusion. The boy's gaze was focused on somewhere far out.
"Dude, dude over there look." Randy demanded and Jerry slapped his hand away irritably but complied
"Damn can that guy shoved like half his subway sandwich into his mouth into his mouth." Jerry was both in awe and slight disgust, he never tried eating that fast before but did manage to shove four falafel balls in his mouth without choking
Puking on the other hand he might've fell spent time hugging Falafel Phil's toilet.
Randy shot him a confused look, "No, I mean over there."
Jerry pointed to the left of the subway boy and there he saw the current object of his affections sitting at one of the picnic tables by herself scrolling through her phone.
"It's Mika." Jerry spoke in awe
Randy turned to him excitedly, "We should go over there and talk to her."
"Definitely." Jerry agreed and was about to get up to leave when he remembered that Eddie was also sitting with them
"Wait Eddie do you mind if I leave?" He asked his fellow Wasabi Warrior
"No not at all it's fine, I got to check out a book from the library for Eng-" Eddie assured him but Jerry didn't let him finish his sentence as he quickly shot up to leave
"Awesome later bro." He interrupted and Randy was right on his heels, both boys speeding over to join Mika at her table
Once they were near Mika looked up from her phone and gave them both a small smirk.
"Jerry and Randy, to what do I owe the pleasure of having the both of you coming over to me?" She asked them, her words curling around her Hachmaki accent
"Nothing we just wanted to see your pretty face." Randy answered smoothly
"Oh is that so? I'm flattered to have so many guys wanting to eat lunch with me." Mika faked coy while batting her eyelashes
"Really? Who else wanted to eat lunch with you?" Jerry finally spoke up as he slipped onto the bench next to her, Randy was quick to do the same on her other side
"These guys named Ethan and Zane. Ethan was telling me about how he's one of the three sophomores on the varsity football team, whatever varsity means. He was the one who told me about the party. I met Zane in what was the word-gym class! He was very helpful showing me how to shoot a basketball." Mika displayed faux bashfulness as she explained the guys
"Oh." Was what Jerry came up with, his mind already going over all the possibilities as to why the two boys wanted to be with her
"But they left me to go do something together so I wouldn't mind your guy's company." She cooed
"Glad we can keep you company." Randy told her
"I'm really excited for the party tonight, I can already tell it's going to be swasome." Jerry almost let it slip that it'll be his first real party but didn't think that admitting that would impress her
Mika turned to look at him and cocked her head to the side in confusion,
"What is swasome?" She asked him
"It's a word I made up myself it's a mixture of sweet and awesome." The Columbian explained with embarrassment creeping in his voice
Mika gave him a fond smile "That's adorable."
"That's not really the word I was hoping you'd use but I'll accept it." Jerry replied back, the last time he got called adorable was when he tried to hit on one of Camilla's friend and that was one of the top five worst ways he got rejected
"Have you ever been to a party before Mika?" Randy inquired
"A few back home but I can say that this will be my first American high school party. You boys would help show me around right?" She looked at them both with wide innocent eyes hooking them both in even farther
"Definitely." Jerry promised
"Of course." Randy answered at the same time
Both boys looked at each other while Mika smirked privately to herself.
3rd Lunch
Auditorium
Kim hummed quietly to the Ed Sheeran song blasting in her earphones from her iPod touch. After barely surviving her morning classes and the looks and whispers that came along with it, Kim didn't feel like sitting in the cafeteria or the amphitheater with the other students. She just wanted to be alone and the best place she could find that to be was the school's auditorium, no one thought about coming in here. If the blonde was being honest with herself it wasn't just not wanting to be around the students but more of a specific student' Milton. She knew she was being stupid, she had no right to be mad at Milton since he won fair and square but she couldn't help it. She really wanted to be president but she lost and Milton won, to add fuel to the fire Brody was also the vice president.
Kim sighed, leaning back into the auditorium seat then closed her eyes. She spent all this time and effort into being president, so now what does she do? She felt a movement to her left side which caused her to open her eyes and raised her fist to attack which was caught by Jack who raised a brow.
"Geez Jack you can't sneak up on me I nearly attacked you!" Kim admonished then put her fist down
"I would've been able to defend myself if you did. Also, I didn't sneak up on you I've called your name three times now." Jack retorted back as he unzipped his backpack to fish something out
"Oh, I didn't hear you." Kim lamely told him as she took one earbud out
"Clearly, you were too busy listening to who? Taylor Swift?" Jack teased lightly after pulling out his lunchbox
"First of all, don't make fun of Taylor she has some good songs and second of all no. I was listening to Ed Sheeran." Kim shot back, already feeling a little bit better at being the presence on her crush
"Ugh that's even worse." Jack playfully groaned causing Kim to lightly smack him on the arm while chuckling
"Shut up." Kim felt a warm feeling bubble up in her chest at how simple it was to just joke and laugh with Jack
"If I were you a good band to listen to when you're in a pissed mood is-" Jack began but this time Kim rolled her eyes more seriously
"I swear Jack if you say Kung Fu Lighting I will hurt you." She threatened him
It was bad enough hearing Jerry and him talk praise the band or more specifically Izzy Gunnar like he's some God during karate practice, she didn't need to hear it now when she didn't have to
"I wasn't going to say Kung Fu Lighting." Jack insisted but his voice went high in the way it does when he lies
Kim gave him a look and Jack quickly crumpled as he rubbed his neck in embarrassment and avoided eye contact,
"Okay fine maybe I was." The boy admitted
Kim chuckled, enjoying the easy banter between them and the fact that they were ignoring the elephant in the room. She appreciated the fact that Jack didn't question why she was in the auditorium, that he just tried to cheer her up without stating why. That just added to the already long list of reasons why she had a hopeless crush on him, but they might as well talk about it. If she was being honest she needed to or it will drive her insane.
"How did you find me?" She asked the boy curiously, she made Kelsey and Donna promise not to tell anyone
This time Jack was the one to give her a look as well as a grin. The same one that turned her insides into jelly which she refused to tell anyone because that sounded insanely girly.
"Because I know you Kim and I know that when you're sad you find comfort in watching watch Broadway movies but since you can't do that then you must be in a place that has something to do with the theatre. My first guess was the drama room but then when I thought further my second guess was that you would want to be in a secluded place and I realized that you must be in auditorium." Jack listed all while taking his sandwich out of his Ziploc bad
Kim was stunned into silence at what he just said which definitely didn't help at all with her trying not to sound girly at the way the words made her feel. She was relieved that Jack was looking at his lunch and not her because she knew her face resembled a tomato right now.
"You came up with that all by yourself?" The blonde asked once she composed herself and found her voice
"Like I said I know you." This time Jack looked at her, brown on brown and Kim broke eye contact suddenly finding her lock-screen very interesting
"You hungry? You can have half my sandwich since I figured you didn't bring any food with you to the auditorium." Jack explained then held out half of it
"Thanks, you figured right, but you do know there's no food allowed in here, right?" Kim arched a brow questioningly but the boy just shrugged his shoulders uncaringly
"Yeah, but I don't see any cameras, this can be our little secret." Jack leaned in to whisper to her and Kim took the other half of the sandwich in agreement
The two sat in silence, both savoring the turkey sandwich and lost in their thoughts. Jack still didn't ask her why she was here and it was getting on her nerves that he didn't yet, she was just waiting for the other shoe to drop already. Kim took another bite before the need to ask finally got on her last nerves.
"So are you going to ask or what?" The blonde blurted out
Jack looked at her curiously, "Ask what?"
Kim scowled, "Don't play dumb, are you going to ask me why I'm here alone instead of eating lunch with the rest of you guys?"
Jack sat the remainder of his sandwich down then turned to look at her,
"I wasn't going to say anything unless you spoke first. I figured that you didn't want to speak about it." He told her softly
Kim nodded, "Yeah, you're right, I guess I was just waiting for you to say something like the rest of you guys."
"It's pretty obvious why you're here, and I don't blame you. I would do the same thing, only I would be on the track and listening to Izzy Gunnar." The shaggy haired boy joked causing the blonde to roll her eyes
Despite at first not wanting to talk about it, now for some reason she wanted to say something and just spill her guts out. Maybe it was because of Jack's caring gaze, or comforting words, or just simply because he took the effort to come find her all on his own. Whatever it was, she was aching to talk.
"I can't stand all the looks and whispers that follow me around all because of the stupid gossip site ran by Tj Nixon. I wanted to hurt him when I found out and I still want to the only thing that's keeping me from doing so is the reminder that karate isn't meant to hurt people unless strictly necessary…also because I don't feel like getting suspended on the third week of school because my parents will ground me like two months."
"I wanted to hurt Tj for the dumb rumor he posted about you too. I didn't even know that SDL was a thing until Audrey told me about it, I never pay attention to rumors anyway. I think if you do it just gives them power."
Kim only heard the first part of Jack's sentence, the fact that he wanted to hurt Tj in her honor. She usually would be pissed if a guy tried to stand up for someone in her honor because to her it means that they think she can't handle her own problems. In any other circumstance she would have a few choice for Jack but now thought she enjoyed that Jack wanted to defend her because it was just more proof that he did like her more than a platonic friend should.
"You wanted to beat him up for me and Milton, right?" Kim sought for confirmation to see if it was reading too much into it
"Yeah Milton too of course." Jack hastily added, a blush of his own creeping up his neck
Kim couldn't keep the smile from forming on her lips because what she thought was proven true, it was just for her, it wasn't just a friend thing. The smile quickly faded though when she thought more about Milton which led to the presidency and her failure.
"I feel bad, I love Milton of course he's one of my best friends but right now I can't stand being in the same room with him after…" Kim trailed off
"After he won presidency." Jack finished for her, Kim nodded, fingering her earbud string
"I want to be happy for him, I do but I really wanted to win too. I really think I could make a difference and I had a lot of ideas but now it doesn't matter. After the horrible debate and even more horrid rumor people voted for him instead."
She didn't want to even think about the debate and how that had to be the third most embarrassing moment of her life. The first two being the Red Riding Hood Incident and when she got stuck in the banner for the Lady Killer Whales pep assembly after Truman covered it in glue or whatever sticky thing it was making her a human burrito in front of the whole school.
"If it's any consolation I voted for you." Jack's voice drew her out of her thoughts
Kim's eyebrows rose in shock, "Really? Even after how crazy I acted?"
Jack laughed, "Kim Crawford admitting she was acting crazy? Hell must be freezing over."
Kim rolled her eyes, "Don't get used to it, but yes I do have some self-awareness you know?"
There was also the fact that Kelsey and Donna both hammered into her at how bitchy she was acting during their sleepover.
"Well this is a day of surprises, to answer your question yes I did even after that. That's just part of your natural charm." Jack promised her
Kim smiled but the fact was still ingrained in her brain, she treated Milton the worst in her quest to win. Milton being Milton took it and never spoke up of how rude she was being because that was just the type of person he is.
"I need to apologize to Milton, I treated him pretty badly." She spoke out loud as more of a statement instead of a question
"Yeah you did." Jack agreed causing Kim to look at him in surprised
The boy shrugged unabashedly,
"Just being honest, knowing Milton he'll forgive you easily." Jack assured her
"After school today I'm going with him to that boring exhibit that he keeps blabbing on about that nobody wanted to go to. Then I'll take him to the Froyo Den my treat." She informed him
"That's pretty brave thing for you to do." The boy deadpanned
This time Kim was the one to shrug
"It's the least I can do, it'll be torture but I'll do it. Let's just hope I don't die of boredom." She wasn't being dramatic
Jack chuckled in amusement
"Especially with the fall festival next week, this year there's going to be a Ferris wheel for the first time ever and you wouldn't want to miss that."
At the mention of the Festival her pact with Kelsey suddenly came to mind for the first time since she made it. She doesn't think Kelsey ever got the courage to ask Eddie to go with her.
"I never pegged you for the type to enjoy Ferris wheels." Kim told him
"I'm not normally but I guess it really just depends on the company."
Kim busied herself with tearing at the piece of loose lettuce that fell off her sandwich so Jack won't see just how nervous she really feels.
"You plan on going with anyone special? Please don't tell me you're still crushing on Cathy Davis." If he still liked her all hope was lost because Cathy was a clone of Lyndsey and in some cases could be worse than her.
Jack shook his head vehemently,"No I got over her last year when she changed for the worse. Though if I'm being honest I don't think I ever really liked her, I was just attracted to how she looks."
"Oh, good." There was still hope left
Kim saw Jack shoot her a nervous look in the corner of her eye
"Though there is someone that I like and wouldn't mind going to the festival with." Jack mentioned with force casualness
Kim froze, was this really happening "Really?" She asked and Jack nodded
"Yeah I had a crush on her for a while but I was always too afraid to say anything or make a move." The boy explained, still not making eye contact instead finding his lunchbag to be very interesting
This was really happening, they were finally having the long waited conversation that should've happened ages ago. They were actually acknowledging the big elephant in the room and Kim was shocked, in the good way. If they were going to have this conversation then she needed to let a few things off her chest.
"Why? Do you think she doesn't like you back? Because if you're talking about the girl I think you are, I'm one hundred percent sure she made her interest in you clear." Kim couldn't help the irritation that crept into her voice
Jack winced but nodded his agreement, "You're right she did but I guess I've always been afraid." He confessed
"Afraid of what?" She challenged
"That if things go as planned this person will be my first girlfriend and I have no idea how to be someone's boyfriend. And if something happens and we break up I don't want to ruin our friendship, that means a lot to me."
Kim was a little taken back at that, out of the explanations she thought of, ruining their friendship never crossed her mind. She'll admit that that was a good point and something that she never thought of herself.
"You should of told her that, maybe she never thought of it that way and instead was just confused by your mixed signals." The blonde told him quietly
This time Jack finally raised his gaze to meet hers again and this time she didn't want to break it,
"I never meant to give her mixed signals, honestly I was just afraid." The sincerity in his voice was unmissable
"What made you change your mind about finally deciding to make your move?" Was her next question
"I decided that I'd rather go for it then spend the rest of my life wondering what if. I hope that I haven't caused too much confusion that she decided to give up trying altogether."
There were times where she was fed up with his hot and cold act that the thought of giving up sounded good to her. Then of course Jack does something sweet making her fall hard once again continuing the endless cycle.
"If you mean what you say and there's no more confusion then I'm sure she'd give you another chance. Though she won't give you multiple chances if you mess up." She warned him
"I wouldn't expect anything less from her, her conviction is one of the many qualities that I like about her." Jack replied back with a smile tugging at his lips
"What are the other qualities you like about this girl?" Kim asked curiously, she'll also admit that she liked hearing people compliment her but then again who doesn't
"Her stubbornness, strong will, sass, loyalty, bluntness, bravery, lovely singing voice, and how even though she's a terrible dancer she still does it in public." Jack said the last part with a smirk
"She is not!" Kim exclaimed, raising her hand fist with the intention of hitting him but Jack being Jack with his quick reflexes dodged her attempts to hit him
"Kim she is, she really, really is Denial isn't just a river in Egypt." He told her after he finally stopped laughing
"Well you're not any better at dancing them her." She shot back in a tone that definitely wasn't petulant
"I know, which is why I try to keep it in the privacy of my house because I accept that fact." Jack retorted and Kim just made a face in him
The two sat in silence for a while, the only sound coming from Kim's earbuds as Rihanna sung about finding love in a hopeless place. She turned the song off not enjoying the irony. Her heart was beating so fast and loud that she was sure that Jack could hear it, she tried to take a few quiet steadying breaths.
"So." Kim spoke out loud to break the silence
"So." Jack echoed teasing grin but Kim didn't know what to say next
"I should probably go and ask her to the festival now, huh?" Jack asked and Kim nodded her agreement
"Yeah, don't want to keep her waiting." She added
Jack turned to look at her, "Kim?"
"Yeah?" This was actually happening was a running mantra in her head
Jack took her hand and looked her straight in the eye,
"Do you wanna go to the fall festival with me as my date?"
This time Kim didn't mind the fact that a huge grin broke across her face and that Jack saw it
"I would love to."
Seaford Ravine
As soon as Jerry got into the ravine he heard loud rock music blaring in the air. He wasn't in the clearing where all the other partygoers were occupying but near them enough that he could see the fire but he decided to use his phone flashlight still. Also judging by the ground he was near enough where people left empty beer bottles and condom wrappers, lovely. Surprisingly it was rather easy sneaking out of the house to head to the party. His mami had some of her amigas over to do whatever it is old ladies do for fun, Talia and Cat were staying over at Daphne's while Paula was over at Leslie's. Val being Val preferred to spend the weekend studying in peace and knowing she won't get that at home she's at Ezra's house. All Jerry had to do was tell his mom that he was going to spend the night at Jack's and she was distracted enough to not notice the fact he was lying.
"Hey Jerry you made it!" Randy's voice brought him out of his thoughts
He lifted his gaze off the ground to see his shaggy haired friend coming towards him holding a gray flask in his left hand. As he came closer Randy also noticed how flushed his cheeks were, his hair was practically painted to his face from the sweat that coated it. He looked like he has been at this party for a while, which was strange considering what he told him before leaving school today.
"Yeah Randy I thought you said that you weren't going to come until nine?" Jerry asked his friend, trying to keep his voice light and even
"I decided to come early, was excited ya know?" Randy replied with his head turned to the left, his eyes trailing to Mika who was dancing with another girl that he couldn't make out from the firelight before snapping back to look at him
"Yeah excited." Jerry echoed flatly following his friend's gaze. He fought back a frown, Jerry from time to time may be a little slow but it was clear to him that Randy was into Mika and the reason he came earlier than what he said was so he could spend more time with her. More time without Jerry there.
"And from the looks of it you really got yourself comfortable." Jerry added looking at the flask in his hands and still trying to keep his voice even
Randy nodded enthusiastically, "Yep, this is filled with whiskey in case there wasn't any here and turns out I was right, all they have is beer. I hate beer it taste so funny and gross."
"So you told me." Jerry replied back
"You want some? I don't mind sharing as long as you don't drink too much." Randy offered, handing the beer out for him to take
The Columbian eyed the flask hesitantly before shaking his head. He wasn't ready to drink yet, especially something as strong as whiskey after hearing Camilla talk about how it effected her. He only came to spend time with Mika and hopefully hook up with her, he didn't want to have a bad start by being wasted.
"Um, no thanks." Jerry declined
"You sure?" Randy pressed skeptically, Jerry nodded
"Okay, whatever you say, now c'mon let's get to the party." Randy enthused, leading the Columbian further into the clearing where the partygoers where at
Jerry took in the sight before him. Right in the middle of the clearing sat four logs surrounding the fire in a misshapen square while a few feet behind it were two picnic tables in a row with a speaker on top of one and two more picnic tables stood by where Jerry was standing. A few feet away on the right side of the misshapen square sat an abandoned van with the backside doors wide open. After having his fill of the sights he sought out Mika, the whole reason he came to the party to begin with. Randy has long since abandoned him to do who-knows-what, maybe also to find Mika before he did. After glancing over the people sitting at logs he saw that none of them were the object of his affections, but he did do a double take when he saw none other than Julie as in Julie Fisher occupying it with Cathy Davis. Jerry walked away from where Randy was leading in order to talk to the girls.
"Julie?! What are you doing here?" He asked the girl as he walked toward the log she was occupying
He took in her outfit; she was wearing a short black flowy skirt paired with a gray tank and black ankle boots. Her hair fell down her shoulders in waves and her face was done up in heavy makeup. Cathy wore skin tight jeans that basically molded into her legs with a red shirt and a black leather jacket with black combat boots to finish the look. The two nursed a drink in one of their hand and their phones in the other.
"The same as you moron, I'm here to party." Julie answered rudely
"Since when are you the party going type? You used to lecture me and Randy for even wanting to go to one, listing all the bad things that could happen at one."
Jerry honestly missed that Julie, the nicer, geekier one who only cared about school, soccer, and her nerd love with Milton. Even when he found her to be annoying with her nerd babble he would take that over this girl in front of him any day.
Cathy snorted next to her, "Seriously Jules?" the girl snorted causing Julie to look embarrassed and glare at him
"That was the old Julie the boring lame one now I don't see a problem with partying as long as you do it smartly." Julie snapped
That was something he wasn't supposed to mention from the looks of it. The fact that Julie used to be a nerd, used to be the female version of Milton. Speaking of Milton,
"Does Milton know you're here?" Jerry asked the girl
"Of course, I don't hide things from my boyfriend what are you implying Jerry?" The girl in question hissed out
Apparently, that was also something he wasn't supposed to say judging by the glare he got from Julie. Cathy looked completely bored of this conversation as she brought out her phone and began snapping pictures of the party. He found it so weird that Jack could have a crush on a girl like that.
"I don't know what implying means but I'm a go head and assume that it means why I'm asking the question." Jerry began
"You're such a simpleton." Julie snarled out
"Once again don't know what that means but back to what I was saying. I asked that question because I wouldn't think that Milton would be happy to have you coming to this party, or any party at all for that matter."
Milton followed his parent's rules strictly and was the teacher kissing ass type so the mere thought of steering off that paved road would be frightening for him. The thought of a party, drugs, sex, and alcohol would send him into a heart attack.
"He wasn't happy yeah, listing all the things that could go wrong so I offered for him to come here with me to make sure nothing happens to me. Also so we could celebrate him winning the election but he claimed that he wasn't in the mood to do any of the above. In fact when I brought up the election he seemed to completely shut and wasn't happy about it at all." Julie's face scrunched up in thoughtfulness as she pondered the last part of her sentence
"Yeah same yo, when I congratulated him for his win he didn't look happy at all. That's strange I thought he's being having a nerdgasm or something."
When he congratulated Milton the boy looked seconds away from puking and mumbled some excuse before dashing away. Jerry didn't think much of it and instead hurried over to dance practice before Layla snaps at him again.
Cathy made a disgusted face, "A nerdgasm?" The blonde was now interested in the conversation again
Jerry nodded with a smile, "Yeah it's a mix of nerd and org-"
"We get it you pig. We had enough of your irritating presence go bother someone else now." Cathy dismissed him with a wave of the hand like he's a fly
"Perras." Jerry whispered under his breath
After giving them both a look he obeyed and stepped walked away from the logs in search for Mika. Thankfully he didn't have to search for long as he neared the benches he saw the object of his affections grinding against another guy. He froze in place, eyes widening at the sight, this wasn't what he was expecting. Mika's hands were clutching onto Ethan's shoulders, laughing when her eyes met his, widening.
"Jerry! You made it!" Mika exclaimed upon seeing him, she pushed away from her dance partner which upon further inspection was Ethan Love
Ethan Love otherwise known as a member of The Elite and captain of the JV football team. He was also a player who hasn't had a girlfriend but instead just many flings since for some reason girls seem to love him. Jerry doesn't see the appeal; sure he clear perfect skin, warm chocolate and a cupid bow mouth that most girls find irresistible but he had bushy eyebrows. There's also the fact that his hair was similar to Justin Bieber which made him look stupid.
"Yeah I told you I would." Jerry answered lamely, then jumped in surprise when the girl launched herself into his arms for a quick hug. Jerry barely had time to reciprocate the hug when she pulled away in order to grab his hand.
"Let me introduce you to my new friends that I made." Mika urged, dragging him to the crowd she was with who were sitting at the picnic tables
"This is Zane he's also new to Seaford after getting expelled from his last school," She pointed to a boy with light brown skin and short black, curly holding a slice of pizza "That's Ethan I'm sure you know him already he's apparently popular," Ethan nodded his welcome before walking over to the table to grab a slice of pizza himself "…and this is Erica. We just met like what ten, fifteen minutes ago but I can tell we're already going to be what's the word? Best friends."
Erica sat in between Ethan and Zane and just rolled her eyes at him before focusing her attention back on her phone. At least she tried before Mika ran over to her to give her a side hug that the girl reciprocated, wrapping her free hand around the other girl's slim waist.
"Erica? Surprise to see you here." Jerry knew he shouldn't be too surprised because if Cathy and Julie were there then of course Erica would be near.
"Can't say the same to you Jerry." The girl quipped back and Mika looked between the two of them in confusion
"You two know each other?" She asked
"Barely but she's friends with Julie who's dating one of my best friends." There was also the fact that her brother, Victor was a Black Dragon who helped in making Jerry's life a living hell
"Like he said we barely know each other and I was hoping it would stay that way." Erica repeated, Mika nodded her acknowledgement then walked away from the girl in order to turn her attention to Zane and talk to him instead
"Please don't tell me your evil twin is at the party too." Jerry groaned, he didn't feel like dealing with a Black Dragon right now, especially one who was also one of Frank's minions
"No, Victor's grounded so he won't be going anywhere for a while so we won't get to see you get your ass beat, sadly. " Erica answered with a smirk then grabbed her phone which promptly shut him out
"Good to know?" It came out more as a question than an answer
"Anyone up to getting high?" Ethan called out to the group, pulling out a pipe
Jerry studied it, it was a simple looking glass pipe painted inside with stripped swirling strands of color; one strand striped black and white, another with blue and green, and a third with gold and silver blending together towards the end point with specks of forest green around the bowl shaped end.
Zane smirked, "Hell yeah man." He quickly agreed
Mika looked at the pipe curiously, "What is that?" she asked after stepping away from Zane to get closer to Ethan and the pipe
"This right here gorgeous, is a weed pipe, it will help you enjoy the party more." Ethan explained, handing the pipe over to her
"How do you use it?" She twirled the pipe in her hand curiously
"Simple, fist your left hand, flex your index finger and thumb like you're making a loser sign," Ethan explained. "Good, now curve your index finger with the thumb covering the hole…that's it." He praised watching Mika pick up easily." Alright you're going to take the lighter, tilt the flame on the green, suck in gently keeping your thumb on the hole until you see the green catch a little burn, you'll now when the tips start to glow. Then take the flame off, release your thumb, and inhale, I'll walk you through it."
"What's greens?" Erica asked the football player
"The first hit, getting it while it's fresh and not practically charcoal."
"Okay, care to spot me?" Mika purred, batting her eyelashes
Ethan grinned, giving her a quick once over,
"Go for it." He retorted back and Jerry never wanted to punch someone so badly in his life
Mika flicked the lighter, the flame was lit, she tilted it as Ethan had told her to do; inhaled, and when she saw the green catch a fire ember on the edge she pulled the lighter away.
"Great job now take your thumb off and start inhaling, but slowly, don't want you to-" Ethan started but Mika pulled the pipe away coughing out a huge puff of smoke
"Bust out coughing." Ethan finished chuckling to himself
After passing it to Zane still coughing, Erica handed Mika her bottle of water who gratefully took a swig out of it. Once Zane was finished and managed to not cough he passed it to Erica who copied the movements of Zane and Mika but also coughed after inhaling. The cheerleader then passed it to Jerry, who nervously grabbed it, willing his hands to stop shaking. He heard Milton's voice in his head scolding him for even holding the pipe and thinking about taking a hit from it. They listed all the reasons he shouldn't be doing it; his age, the side effects, how disappointed Heather would be in him, his padres will react. At the thought of his padres something hardened inside of him, knowing them they wouldn't even notice something is wrong with him. They spend most of their time yelling and trying to one up each other they wouldn't even notice him, or any of his hermanos acting differently. The thought of that strengthened his resolved then he brought the pipe to his lips and mimicked the others movements.
After inhaling the boy was met with a searing smoke that clenched his throat and made his eyes water. He understood now why everyone minus Zane coughed as he too did the same before passing it to Ethan,
"It's like swallowing stink gas." He sputtered out in between coughs
"Hey watch what you call Mary Jane or she'll get you later." Ethan joked but Jerry was just confused, who was Mary Jane
Ethan smoothly brought the pipe to his lips and inhaled without coughing like the rest of them, minus Zane. Despite the stink bomb taste, Jerry couldn't shake that there was a certain pressure pressing and curving in his chest that felt good in the middle of his coughing spasm. Once he managed to get a hold on his coughing the pressure was released and caressed up his throat and clouded his brain.
"How did you two managed not to cough?" Erica demanded Zane and Ethan with narrowed, accusing eyes
"You get used to it after a while." Zane answered and Ethan nodded his agreement
"We have enough for a second round, you guys wanna go again?" Ethan asked and the group all murmured their agreements
The second try wasn't too bad; the heat from the smoke didn't burn his throat as badly this time but still enough to make him cough after holding it in after only three seconds.
"See you're getting it." Ethan praised but Jerry still wanted to punch him
Mika managed to do better as well, managing to hold the smoke in for six second before coughing it back out again. Once the pipe was passed around to everyone Ethan placed it on the table then grabbed another slice of pizza. In the background the song on the speaker changed to and Rihanna's voice sang over the speakers. Mika perked up instantly with a huge grin on her face.
"I love this song so much! Jerry come dance with me." Mika demanded, giving him no choice once she grabbed his hand and dragged him away with surprise strength in her small frame.
She dragged him to an empty spot on the dance floor and started bouncing away without a care in the world. Jerry copied her and was surprised at how free he felt, it was like his body turned to air and everything was weightless. He felt the same head rush he used to get when he held his breath for as long as he could only it was better, like ten times better. So, this was what is was like being high, he couldn't understand why the teachers made it sound so bad he felt amazing and free and weightless and he loved everything about it.
Jerry laughed out loud and Mika gave him a look before giggling herself.
"Why are you laughing?" The girl asked him
"I don't know I just feel airy and good, you know?" Jerry enthused then spun and dipped the girl who burst into more giggles
"I do, I feel amazing, being high is fun." The girl agreed, swaying her hips to the rhythm of the music
The two continued laughing over nothing as they danced along to the song, enjoying each other's company. If there was a doubt in Jerry's mind about going to the party was the wrong thing, it was completely gone now.
Please leave a review I need the validation! (I'm only half joking) and I'll try to post the next chapter soon!
