Drive Me Insane

[Jen]

Thank you so much for the reviews so far guys!

Before I post the next chapter it seems a couple of you may be slightly confused. That I guess, is my fault for not explaining the bet-dare scenario clearly in the previous chapter.

Ok, the original set up was that Drew had a bet with Lucas that he could get Belle to go to the school formal with with (as his girlfriend). Secondly, Cassie dared Belle to be civilised towards Drew, since she thought Belle would fail.

Now, due to Drew's unusually nice behaviour (see bet #1) the girls think that someone tipped him off about their dare. Cassie and Belle think that Drew is being excessively nice towards Belle so whe will ultimately lose her temper (she has a relatively short fuse!( and therefore mean she will lose her dare to Cassie and have to kiss Drew as punishment (Not something she wants at this point).

As of the last chapter, Cassie is pleased that Belle can be civilised towards Drew and therefore tells her she needs to keep up the dare (ie. being nice in return) so she doesn't lose her temper in front of Drew, because that will mean (in their eyes) Drew would have caused Belle to lose (Win 1 Drew). Drew already gets all the girls, so this would be a blow. Drew remains oblivios to all of this.

Confused anyone yet?

Drew: Is being pleasant towards Belle in an effort to ask her the formal (and win $200).

Belle: Is being pleasant towards Drew because she doesn't want him to see her lose her temper and lose the original dare (see dare #2).

Cassie: Wants Belle to keep being nice towards Drew so that he doesn't think he can have control over all the girls.

Lucas: Wants Drew to lose (ie. Belle to turn Drew down) so that he will win $200.

Hope that helps a bit. If not, ignore what I have written. I hope you still stick with the story. The whole bet-dare-whatever becomes irrelevant later on. It's just a starting point.

Chapter 11 up soon .

[Jen]

Chapter 11 – If We Were A Movie

I was sitting there like a complete idiot. It seemed I had lost all my ability to sustain a normal conversation. And why? Because I was face to face with Boy Wonder and had nothing to say. My brain was spinning so ferociously, that it probably would have been just my luck if I had thrown up right there and then. I swallowed hard and attempted to recompose myself. Drew seemed oblivious to my internal mini breakdown as he perused the menu.

“Did you want something to eat?” Drew finally asked, breaking the silence.

I shook my head. Come on, Belle. Say something. Anything.

Drew placed down the menu to one side and folded his arms neatly onto the table. He leant in, staring at me once more.

“So,” I said, my voice shaking slightly. There was silence once more. I cursed myself for starting the conversation without actually anything to say.

“We really need to get better conversation starters,” Drew said smiling and shaking his head.

I remembered back to how Drew had asked me here this afternoon. Then it was him who didn’t seem to be able to string two words together, now it was me. We seemed to make a good pair.

“Yeah,” I replied, “Ok, from now on we are not allowed to use that word.”

“Which word?”

“That word.”

“And which word was that?” Drew asked with his infamous smirk overtaking his face.

“You know very well which one I’m talking about.”

“I’m a guy. I forget things easily. Like birthdays, anniversaries and any sort of word I have been forbidden to use by a girl I happen to be sitting across from.”

“Well, Mr Smooth Talker, the word which you are not allowed to use is the one which describes a needle pulling thread.”

I sat back smiling while Drew seemed to ponder this for a moment. His smirk became a smile as he replied,

“Very clever. A Sound of Music fan are we?”

“Come on, everyone has seen that movie like twenty times. It’s a classic.”

“And let me guess, you always wanted to be Gretl?”

“As if. Leisel was more my kind of character,” I replied sharply.

“So, sneaking off in the middle of the night to meet boys is your thing, hey? Good to know,” he said, nodding sensibly to himself.

I opened my mouth to retaliate once more, but Drew added in an undertone, almost to himself.

“Leisel was hot.”

“Excuse me?”

“What?” Drew asked, looking back over at me, “She was. Especially when she was all wet.” He trailed off, his eyes glazing over slightly, as if reliving his own very vivid memories.

“You do realise that she would probably be 50 now, don’t you?”

“Yeah, but she will forever be preserved on film,” he sighed, “You’ve gotta love that.”

I shook my head to myself and tore my own eyes momentarily away from his, as he ran his hand through his hair.

Who would have thought that one week ago I would be sitting here, in the Diner, with the one person who drove me completely insane, actually having a good time. If you had told me that this would be happening, then I probably would have laughed in your face and told you that you were dreaming. But surprise, surprise, it’s actually happening.

Drew smiled at me. I smiled in return, but there was a nagging feeling in the back of my mind. Don’t forget why you are here.

-

She seemed to be having a good time. I couldn’t help but smile at her. She smiled too. After a slightly bumpy start the conversation seemed to flow smoothly. Admittedly, the topic of choice wasn’t exactly what I had in mind, but none the less, it worked. When Belle Taylor relaxed, it was as if she forgot that she hated me, and allowed herself to have fun.

The conversation lulled into an awkward silence once again.

I opened my mouth to attempt to revive the chatter, but at my rounding mouth Taylor interrupted,

“Don’t even think about saying it!”

“How did you know I was going to that?” I asked in genuine surprise.

“You’ve said it enough times,” she said shrugging it off casually.

“Ok fine,” I said, “I’ve admitted my ultimate movie fantasy, time for you to fess up.”

“What?” she exclaimed. Clearly I had caught her off guard.

“Well, you know my movie fantasy, I only consider it fair that you return the favour.” I leant further forward, resting my chin in my hands and my elbows on the table.

“I don’t have any movie fantasies,” Taylor replied indignantly.

“Oh come on, every girl has an ultimate dream.”

Taylor shook her head and remained tight lipped.

“If you want to do this the hard way, you leave me no choice,” I said sighing and shaking my head. I saw the panic light up in Taylor’s eyes. I swept my hair out of my face once more and continued, “I’m going to have to guess.”

Taylor scoffed, as if daring me to tempt fate.

“Choice number one,” I began in my best voiceover impression, “Leonardo Di Caprio in Titanic?”

Taylor leant back in her seat and crossed her arms firmly across her chest. She remained smiling at me, her lips firmly together. She shook her head at my suggestion.

“No, you’re more a modern chick,” I said thinking out loud, “What about Brad Pitt, in pretty much anything?” I watched Taylor shake her head once more.

“You’ve only got one more guess,” Taylor added.

“Who says?” I asked.

“Me.”

“Ok fine,” I said, glancing around the Diner for some sort of inspiration. Many of the tables were now cleared. The light streaming in through the blinds was now orange, indicating that dusk had arrived. A couple at a table in the centre of the room had finished their coffees and they also left. We were the last ones left.

“Ok I’ve got it,” I finally said, “Troy Bolton.” I saw Taylor roll her eyes, but I continued; I certainly wasn’t going for any prizes in subtly, “Your fantasy was pretending to be Gabriella and meeting up with the jock in his secret rooftop garden. Am I right?”

“No,” she said simply, but then added, “I’m more concerned about the fact that you seem very intimately acquainted with the storyline of High School Musical.”

“In my defence, I have a younger cousin who adores that Zac guy. I personally don’t get what she sees in him.”

“You wouldn’t, you’re a guy,” Taylor said.

There was a loud cough. Our conversation was interrupted as we both looked around for the source of the noise. Irene was standing in the doorway of the kitchen, her apron coming loose as a sign of the end of the day.

“Before you two get started again, thought I should let you know that we’re closed,” she said rather grumpily, “And if you want a lift missy, the taxi is leaving in five minutes.”

“Sorry Irene,” Taylor said, sliding out of the booth and heading towards the door. She refused to look at me as she said, “A lift would be great.”

I quickly followed suite as I got up from the table and followed Taylor towards the door. The night wasn’t allowed to end like this.

“Hey Taylor, wait up!” I called as we left the Diner. The cool evening breeze rustled through the trees and the waves crashed in the distance. Belle had already started to head for the car park at the rear of the Diner, so I needed to jog to catch up.

When I reached her side, she stopped but didn’t look up.

“I had fun,” I said.

“Me too,” she replied rather shyly.

There was a bang as Irene closed the Diner door and pulled the key out of the lock. She headed straight for her car, the only one left, waving at Belle to hurry up. Belle spotted her and went to make a dash for the car. As she did I called out,

“Next time you’ll have to fess up!”

“You’re assuming there’s going to be a next time,” she said with a cheeky smile before disappearing into the car.

I stayed rooted to the spot as I watched Irene ferociously pull the steering wheel and drive off. I kept my eyes on the passenger’s window until the taillights faded.

* * * * *

A/N: Yes, a few movie references. I couldn’t resist.

[Jen]

Chapter 12 – No Pain, No Gain

Soft light was filtering in through my blinds; even through my closed eyes I could tell it was late. But I didn’t care. I just pulled up my sheet around my chin and snuggled further down into my warm bed, trying to ignore the constant ticking of the clock on my bedside table.

Whoever invented the weekend deserves a medal. When else do you get the chance to just sleep in and doing nothing? Never.

There was a loud crash followed by a distressed yelp coming from the kitchen.

Apparently even my Saturday mornings have plans that don’t involve me and remaining this bed.

Reluctantly, I opened my eyes and slowly rolled out of bed. My feet hit the icy floorboards beneath my feet, sending a small shiver down my spine. Even though summer was rapidly approaching, causing all the birds to wake up even earlier, the mornings were still cool, one of the many reasons why I tried to avoid them. Begrudgingly I wandered out of my room and into the kitchen, not even bothering to glance at myself in the mirror. Whoever was calling around this early in the morning was clearly insane and I would tell them to go away and come back later, after I had had a few more hours sleep. I didn’t feel like being polite at this time.

I entered the lounge room and saw Drew Curtis hobbling towards me, groping for a chair that was positioned at the kitchen counter. He grimaced when he saw me, and sat down awkwardly into the straw chair. He bent down and rubbed his toe, before saying,

“I didn’t mean to wake you,” the pain still evident in his voice. I rubbed my eyes trying to focus on the very awake Curtis. His largest toe had begun to turn an undesirable shade of purple and was swelling to twice its normal size.

“Are you okay?” I asked.

“Um … yeah,” he replied, swallowing hard as he tried to stand up. As soon as his foot hit the carpet he hissed in pain and quickly sat down once more.

“Stay there,” I said sternly.

“If you insist,” he said sarcastically.

I went to the freezer to retrieve a packet of frozen peas and wrapped them in a tea towel that was lying on the counter. I thrust them at Drew who gave me a quizzical look.

“It’s for your foot,” I said plainly.

“Gee, thanks,” he said dryly, “I’m overwhelmed by your hospitality.”

I sighed, and snatched the peas from his hands and bent down so I was kneeling at his feet.

“I know I’m great, but you don’t have to worship me,” Drew said smirking.

I smiled politely before forcing the homemade ice pack on his toe. Drew yelped once again, before quickly saying,

“Okay, okay, fair enough. I was only joking.”

“Don’t try and attempt humour at this time of the morning,” I said, looking up at him.

“Well, I’ve got to do something,” he said seriously, “My toe is killing me.”

“What were you doing anyway?” I asked.

“I came over to see you,” he said, a small smile appearing on his face.

“And did that involve you doing this?” I said, prodding his toe unnecessarily.

“I ran into the corner of the counter,” Drew said gasping in an effort to disguise his pain, “So much for trying to be quiet.”

I shook my head in disbelief, sighing. I removed the ice pack from Drew’s foot and examined the toe, which had now inflated to the size of a large grape.

“You’re going to have to see a doctor.”

“W-What?” Drew said, “I’m sure it’s really not that bad.”

I stood from the floor and took a step back.

“Fine then, off you go,” I said. Drew glared at me as he attempted to stand on his injured foot. He wobbled momentarily with both feet on the ground, before collapsing back into his sitting position, both feet now off the floor.

“Ok, you win,” he said reluctantly. I threw the peas back at him and smiling satisfyingly. I began to head to my bedroom, but Drew asked,

“Hey, where are you going?”

“To get changed. If you think I’m taking you to the hospital in my pyjamas you can forget it,” I replied patting him on the shoulder as I walked past.

“I’m in pain here!” he exclaimed, “Do it for me.”

I ensured the door of my bedroom was definitely locked before I got unchanged. Even though Drew was temporarily incapable of walking I wouldn’t have put it past him to make a miraculous recovery while I was naked. Throwing on a t-shirt, jeans and pair of thongs, I ran my hairbrush through my hair before reappearing.

“You took your time,” he complained when he saw me return.

“Oh, be quiet,” I replied, as I glanced around the lounge room for where I left my phone and wallet. Spying them on the coffee table I picked them up and walked back to Drew’s side.

“Need a hand?” I asked sweetly.

“A hand with what?” he asked.

“Getting to the bus stop,” I replied.

“I am not catching a bus like this,” Drew said indignantly.

“I thought it wasn’t that bad?” I said, shoving my possessions in my pocket.

Drew glared at me once more, but refused to move. He kept the peas firmly on his foot, but kept glancing from me to it, in case I decided to cause any more additional pain.

“Well, we don’t really have many other options. Irene’s at work, neither of us can drive, your mum is …?”

“Probably still in bed,” Drew muttered. Yeah, that’s right. Where I should be right now.

“So, are you coming or are you just going to sit there until your foot grows to the size of a watermelon?”

“Fine,” Drew replied reluctantly, and I held out my hand for him to use as leverage to stand. He placed his arm around my shoulder, keeping the weight off his right foot and hobbled out the door with me by his side.

-

I was sitting in a plastic chair opposite the hospital bed. Drew was lying back on the bed, eyeing me as I flipped the pages of the magazine I was reading. Nurses continued to bustle past the open door combined with the constant ringing of the phone at the nurse’s station was now how I had planned to spend my Saturday morning. I glanced up at Drew who was still staring at me.

“What?” I asked.

“Nothing,” he replied.

It had been like this since the doctor had examined Drew’s toe then left us alone in the examination room. Neither of us quite knew what to say, and frankly it was still far too early to be having meaningful conversations.

“Hey, Belle,” Drew began slowly, I looked up over the top of my magazine at him, “I’m sorry.”

“Sorry for what?” I asked.

“For waking you, ruining your morning, making you sit here with me, and melting your packet of peas,” he replied, counting them off on his fingers.

I smiled back at him, slightly touched by is moment of sincerity.

“I’ll be honest, this isn’t exactly how I imagined I would be spending my Saturday,” I said, “But I had nothing better to do.” I shrugged assuming that this was the end of our little chat and went back to my magazine.

“Yeah, but you didn’t have to help,” Drew continued.

“What was I supposed to do? Just leave you lying on the kitchen floor for Irene to find, no thanks.”

I tossed my reading material aside and smirked at him, before saying,

“Besides, it was kind of funny seeing you whimpering like baby.”

“Well, I’m glad some one’s having fun here,” Drew said defiantly, and attempting to sit up straight in his bed, “And I was not a baby. I didn’t even want to come here.”

“And yet I saw the tears in your eyes when that old lady knocked your foot with her walking stick on the bus,” I replied with a laugh.

“Hey, those sticks are dangerous,” Drew exclaimed.

There was suddenly a third voice, as Dr. Rachel Armstrong waltzed into the room, clipboard in hand. She looked up at the both us eagerly; clearly she was a morning person.

“Well Drew, the good news is that your toe is not broken,” I could see Drew sigh with relief, “We’re just going to strap it up for the next week or so until the swelling goes down, and then you can go home.”

“Great,” Drew replied, with not as much enthusiasm as Dr. Armstrong. I smiled sympathetically in his direction.

“You must have run into the corner fairly hard to do this sort of damage,” she said, “What were you doing?”

My mind had begun to wander. The prospect of going home and retreating to my bed, which I hoped would still be warm, for a few hours well earned sleep, was calling me. However my bed suddenly seemed a million miles away when Drew replied to Rachel,

“Trying to impress a girl.”

* * * * *

A/N: Don’t get me wrong, I really like Drew as a character, but I also like inflicting pain. I’m so cruel aren’t I? Remember, comments are love!

[Jen]

Chapter 13 – Take Your Sweet Time

She wouldn’t look at me the whole way home from the hospital. With my big toe on my right foot strapped together tightly with the next toe along, it looked as though I had three normal sized digits and one giant one. No matter how many times I tried to lighten the situation, by claiming that I should get an extension on my English essay, since my toe affects my thinking, or that I should be able to cut the line of the canteen because I couldn’t stand properly, or even suggesting to have Belle Taylor herself wait on me hand and foot until I had fully recuperated from my traumatic ordeal, she still wouldn’t crack a smile.

Why did I have to open my mouth once again and ruin everything? Things were becoming good between us. Not that there really was an “us”, but still we were able to be in the same room without exploding into an argument and even hold a steady conversation for more than two minutes without it becoming a yelling match. Now, we were back once again to square one - Belle was ignoring me.

I gazed around the Diner, people coming and going as freely as they pleased. My foot was propped up on a chair while I had the remnants of a full cooked breakfast in front of me. I was about to attempt to get up and walk out, when I saw Lucas wander in through the door. I waved ferociously at him, beckoning him to come over to my table.

“Hey man,” he said coolly as he pulled up another chair to sit opposite me. “What happened?” he asked, spying my largely bandaged toe.

“Oh you know, got attacked by a great white,” I replied smiling, “You know how it is.”

“Yeah, sure,” he said grinning, “But what really happened?”

“It was stupid,” I admitted, “I went around to Taylor’s house and ran front on into the corner of the kitchen counter. I went in one direction, the toe went in another.”

“Ow,” Lucas replied sympathetically.

“It looks worse than it is,” I said, shrugging.

“But what were you doing at Belle Taylor’s house?” Lucas asked, shooting me a quizzical look.

“Oh, nothing,” I said, trying to remain mysterious.

“Come on, man. ‘Fess up.” Lucas sat back casually in his seat.

I eyed him for a moment, before saying,

“I just went around to say ‘Hi’. You know, after our first date yesterday.”

Lucas’ eyes boggled, “You had a date with Belle Taylor?”

“Of course,” I said, “Don’t look so surprised.”

“Are you sure she knew it was a date?” Lucas asked, smiling, “You didn’t tie her up and hold her ransom until she agreed did you?”

“Of course she knew,” I replied, “I was actually going around to her place to ask her out today, but after this,” I nodded towards my injury, “Maybe fate is trying to tell me something.”

“What? Like don’t run around corners,” Lucas joked, jabbing my toe slightly.

“Oi!” I exclaimed, before saying seriously, “No. Maybe we just aren’t going to work out in the long run.” I remembered the look on Taylor’s face when I had foolishly admitted I was trying to impress her.

“The long run? Drew Curtis doesn’t normally consider the long run.”

Lucas was suspiciously eyeing me. The corners of his mouth were forming a grin, as if he thought I was joking. Only, I wasn’t. But he couldn’t know that.

What would he think if I suddenly admitted that maybe I had considered asking Taylor out multiple times before this bet was even formulated in my head? What would he say if he knew that the only reason I agreed to this bet in the first place was so that I would have an excuse to talk to her? He would laugh. I know it. To him, I’m the cool guy. The one who goes through multiple girlfriends in succession. The one who doesn’t know the meaning of the words “serious relationship”. But Taylor was different.

Lucas waving his hand in front of my face and calling, “Hey Drew, Earth to Drew!” interrupted my internal volleyball match.

I shook my head slightly, and refocused on Lucas sitting in front of me.

“Sorry man. What were you saying?”

“You and Belle Taylor?” Lucas probed again.

“Nah, I’m talking about long term as in the school formal. Nothing more serious than that. I certainly don’t want to have to fork up cash to you.” I smirked, hoping that my face wasn’t giving away what I was feeling inside.

-

The key to attracting the ladies was to take your time. Act like you were in no hurry, and they would always come back wanting more. That was the key to my own success. Why was I then finding it so hard to stick to this plan this time? Never would I tell a girl I was trying to impress her, let alone go around to her house the very next day to ask her to ‘hang out’ again. You were supposed to wait for her to come to you. Belle Taylor appeared to be the exception to the rule.

“Hey Taylor!” I called out.

She stopped walking and reluctantly turned around.

I had just left the Diner as she walked past. If I hadn’t called out she probably would have kept walking too. She was quite content to pretend as though I didn’t exist, I however was not coping.

I walked, as fast as was possible on one foot, towards her, as she remained rooted to the spot.

“How you going?” I asked awkwardly.

“Fine,” she replied, looking over her shoulder, as if longing to walk away.

“Thanks, for this morning,” I said.

“No worries,” she replied, politely, “How’s your toe?” She glanced down at my extra large digit.

“Fine,” this time it was my turn to be polite. This is getting ridiculous.

“I have to go,” Taylor said quickly and began to turn away.

“Taylor, wait,” I said suddenly, thrusting my hand out and grabbing her wrist. This action caught both of us by surprise. For a moment we both stood there; I was still holding Taylor’s wrist and she was standing there looking at me. There was a sudden surge of wind, as we both remained connected. The wind power seemed to run through my body and cause me to lose all track of time and place. Why was I here? Why was I not letting go? Why was I not talking?

I blinked and tried to gather some sort of comprehension as to what had just happened. She must have felt it too.

After what seemed like hours, Taylor wriggled her wrist out of my grip and began to walk away.

“I’m sorry for what I said this morning,” I blurted out. Taylor stopped and tuned back, but kept the distance of three feet between us.

“I blame the meds,” I added sheepishly.

“So you didn’t mean it?” she asked, her expression and tone was impossible to read.

What did she want me to say? If I admitted to her that it was true she would probably just laugh and use it as ammunition for the rest of my life. If I denied meaning it, was it possible she would be hurt? Not likely. Belle Taylor had thick skin. I knew that from the many times we had bantered back and forth. That girl dished out as good as she got.

“No,” I said. Was it just the wind, or did her lip just quiver?

* * * * *

A/N: Thank you so much for the comments and reviews Lise, Red Ranger 1 and Laura.

[Jen]

Chapter 14 – A Change of Heart

Drew Curtis is nothing. He means nothing to me. Then why am I so upset?

I kicked off my shoes ferociously and let them fly across the room. I slumped into the lounge. Moments later I stood up again and walked to the fridge. I pulled open the door roughly and examined the contents. I then closed to door again and went to my bedroom. I looked around aimlessly before returning to the lounge room. I sat back down on the lounge and picked up the remote. I switched on the TV scanned numerous channels before switching it off again.

My aimless wanderings were interrupted by a knock at the door. I looked over and saw Cassie standing in the doorway.

“Hey,” she said brightly, “You busy?”

“Not really,” I admitted.

Cassie swung through the door and came over, perching herself on the lounge next to me. Cassie was watching me. She was biting down on her bottom lip, as if contemplating something important.

“Are you okay?” I asked.

“Yeah, sure,” she replied, “I saw Drew.” She was waiting for my response, I could tell. It was then I realised that I hadn’t spoken to her since my rendezvous with Mr Curtis.

“Did you notice his toe?” I asked, unable to disguise the slight satisfaction in my voice.

“Yes, I did,” Cassie replied suspiciously, she too was now grinning, “That didn’t have anything to do with you did it?”

“Moi?” I asked innocently, “Now what would make you suggest such a thing?”

“Come off it Belle,” Cassie said, “It can’t be just coincidence that after you to have a little ‘meeting’, he winds up limping.”

“Let’s call it karma then.” Cassie was again eyeing me up and down. My smile was growing bigger as I thought of Drew hobbling around in pain all weekend. Finally, I couldn’t contain myself any longer, “He deserved it. Coming around here early in the morning, smashing up his toe and then denying that he was trying to impress me. I’m glad it hurts.”

“You’re a cruel woman,” Cassie replied shaking her head to herself. There was only a moment’s silence before it dawned on her, “Wait, he said he was trying to impress you?”

I nodded, “But then he denied it,” I added.

“Are you okay?” Cassie asked sympathetically.

“Sure,” I replied, my voice raising an octave as I spoke, “Why would I care anyway? Drew Curtis is a tool, and clearly less evolved than I gave him credit for since he can’t see to manage corners just yet.”

Cassie giggled at my bitterness, before hoisting her legs up onto the lounge to face me.

“So what’s next?” she asked eagerly.

“Next in what?” I was confused.

“The plan to get-Drew-back-and-play-with-his-emotions-so-that-he-doesn’t-think-that-he-can-mess-with-any-girl-he-wants,” said Cassie quickly, her eyes gleaming with anticipation.

“I dunno, Cass. I’m not sure I want to do this anymore,” I said reluctantly.

“But you have to,” Cassie’s face fell, “I thought you really wanted to teach Drew a lesson once and for all. Why the sudden change?”

“It seems like the day for people changing their minds,” I muttered angrily under my breath. Cassie gave me a look of concern, “There’s no rush. We need to make sure he’s fully convinced before we proceed any further. Clearly, I’m not doing a very good job, since he isn’t actually trying to impress me at the moment.”

Cassie’s face lit up once more,

“I like it,” she said nodding, knowingly, “Playing it coy. Make him work for it.”

“You forgot, give him the cold shoulder,” I added.

“It sounds like we’re planning an invasion.”

“Oh, but we are,” I replied dramatically, “The invasion of Drew Curtis’ mind.”

-

Saturday rolled into Sunday. Sunday melted away into Monday. So in no time at all I was back at school and felt as though the weekend had never existed.

It was with great pleasure that I kept my distance from Mr. Curtis. This was made easier by the fact that whenever I glanced down the hallway he was surrounded by no fewer than half a dozen girls, all wanting recaps of his heroic battle of pain and suffering to wind up with a swollen toe. All the girls gasped in the right places as he retold his tale of how he had been out for his morning 10 kilometre run when he was pushed from behind and fell down the stone pathway leading to the pool. He dramatically paused, all the mindless blondes hanging on his every word, before painting hazy images of how he stumbled, blood dripping everywhere, to the nearest place he felt safe, fearing that the offender might return. He obviously forgot to mention that I was part of his whole charade and that his injury was no more severe than a broken fingernail. But since I was playing the cold shoulder I had to bite my tongue, and ignore the purring of his female entourage as they murmured get well wishes and offers to cheer him up, should he need it.

I sighed, finally tearing my eyes away as a particularly leggy blonde was leaning in to kiss Drew on the cheek. I shook my head trying to remove the image from my mind, however I was interrupted by a sudden nudge in my rib, followed by a quick “Sorry”.

I looked up; ready to attack whoever had ran into me, only to be staring into the sincere eyes of Lucas Holden. He was carrying an armful of books that looked as though it was about to topple over. The stack was so high that only his crystal blue eyes were peering over the top.

“That’s okay,” I replied, “Do you need a hand?” I nodded towards his mountain of reading material.

“Nah, that’s okay,” he said, “I just need to put these back in my locker. But it’s currently surrounded.” He too was now staring down the rows of lockers where Drew and his posse were gathered.

“Oh, I see,” I said, “Do you know what actually happened?” I couldn’t resist knowing whether he had told anyone the truth.

“Yeah,” Lucas said, struggling to nod as the weight of his books appeared to mount, “Even though he’ll never tell anyone otherwise.”

“It’s amazing how the story just gets more and gorier each time he tells it. Soon it’ll be about how he single handedly fought off a shark and swam to safety, before noticing that it had taken a great chunk out of his foot.”

Lucas chuckled, but this was to his own detriment. The stack of books swivelled uneasily, before toppling out of his hands and onto the floor.

He sighed before bending down and beginning to collect them up. Instinctively I bent down to help as well.

“Thanks,” Lucas said with a smile as he stood up, the mountain of books now halved in height.

“Right, this has gone on long enough,” I said firmly. Carrying my half of the load, I stormed through the gathering of girls and towards Drew. He looked down at me and smiled, while the girls began to whisper ferociously behind my back.

“Don’t worry, you can have him back in a minute,” I replied hotly. The murmuring immediately stopped.

“Hey Taylor,” Drew Curtis said awkwardly, the smile quickly disappeared from his face as he realised that I wasn’t merely passing through, “Did you want something?”

This time it was my turn to smile,

“Yeah, I just needed to drop these books off,” I said sweetly.

Drew glanced around his groupies and smiled seductively at them.

“Well, I think we could work something out.”

No sooner had the words left his mouth I let the books fall. There was a loud bang as the hard covers hit the floor, followed by an extremely audible profanity escaping his mouth, even over the squealing girls, who pushed me out of the way to attend to the moaning Curtis. Heaven forbid, he should get hurt again. I was shoved out of the way as the girls cooed at Drew, but he wasn’t paying any attention to them. Although I was now standing back, his watering eyes locked with mine through the sea of bodies swarming around him. For that instant I felt all my anger and frustration disappear, only to be replaced by a sense of longing. This feeling however was quickly removed as I saw the same leggy blonde bend in, cupping Drew’s chin in her perfectly manicured hands, and kiss him.

I quickly turned on my heel, barging past Lucas who had come up behind me and pushing past the crowd that had formed to watch our spectacle as I felt my eyes start to fill with tears.

* * * * *

A/N: Thank you Lise and Red Ranger 1. Incidentally, I wrote this chapter way before the current Aus episodes aired .

[Jen]

Chapter 15 – Love Bug

I found her sitting alone in an empty classroom. Her face was glistening, indicating that she had been crying. The door creaked as I placed my hand on the handle and pushed it open. She looked up suddenly.

“**** off,” she said sternly, before looking away.

“If you didn’t want anyone to find you, you should have picked a better hiding spot,” I said, attempting to lighten to mood. Taylor glared at me once more, causing me to gulp unnecessarily.

I walked slowly into the room, very aware of Taylor still staring at me evilly. I sat down at the desk beside her. She turned away.

“What part of ‘**** off’ don’t you understand?” she asked angrily.

“It’s not that I don’t understand, it’s that I don’t believe you,” I replied, “Chicks are always saying one thing and meaning the opposite. It’s a fact.”

“Well in that case, that blonde must really hate your guts.”

My mind hazed over momentarily, recalling how moments earlier that girl had kissed me. Right there, in the middle of the hallway, in front of everyone. And not just in front of anybody, but in front of Belle Taylor.

I saw Taylor’s eyes being to shimmer once more. She blinked ferociously, trying not to let the tears pour out.

“She just caught me off guard,” Taylor looked at me for the first time since I had sat down beside her. “I don’t even know who she is,” I added feebly.

“Amber Westerly.”

“Huh?”

Belle sighed.

“Her name is Amber Westerly,” Taylor said quietly, “She’s year 10.”

I eyed Taylor sceptically. How did she suddenly who my random pasher was?

Taylor shrugged, “I overheard a couple of girls talking. You’d be surprised how much sound travels through these walls,” and she nodded towards the partially open door.

I tilted my head and considered this carefully, before saying, “A bit young for me.”

For the first time, Belle strained a smile. Her brow furrowed and her lips were pursed together, but still it was a smile. I sighed with relief as I watched her sit more comfortably. She wiggled down into the plastic chair and tucked one foot under the other.

“Listen, I don’t think I properly thanked you for the other day. You didn’t have to help me out, considering my err … history. So um, thanks.” I said uncertainly.

“It’s okay,” she replied.

“So, in my books it looks like I owe you.”

“I guess it does,” Taylor said, her smile slowly becoming more relaxed.

“So I was thinking,” I paused, my voice temporarily caught in my throat. I cleared before trying once more. “I was thinking we could go to dinner,” I watched carefully for Taylor’s reaction.

Her eyes locked with mine, and remained unwavering. It was as though she was trying to read my mind. Trying to see if there was any other ulterior motive. Suddenly self-conscious, I broke the stare, looking down at my shoes, scuffing them awkwardly on the floor.

“Are you paying?” Taylor’s voice echoed slightly in the empty classroom. My eyes snapped from my shoes, back into her hazel eyes.

“Of course.”

“Great,” she replied, her smile reaching full size.

I couldn’t stop looking at her. Her eyes were no longer swimming behind tears, but were sparkling once more. There was a buzzing feeling in my stomach, like there was a swarm of bees inside. It was like I had been bitten by some kind of bug, and now I couldn’t stop scratching. The more I scratched, the more of an itch it became.

I stood, shaking my leg slightly, as if removing an annoying critter that had been crawling towards me. I held out my hand and bowed slightly towards Belle,

“May I escort you to your next class?” Taylor stood and placed her hand carefully into mine. The itch seemed to have returned. I instantly wanted to scratch my arm, feeling the many feet creeping up my arm towards my shoulder.

I forced myself to try and ignore the tingling sensation as her hand remained perfectly still in mine as we walked out of the classroom and into the hall. Students were very fickle, so it seemed they had already forgotten what had occurred minutes before. Students were dispersed at their lockers, milling around different doors and also streaming slowly out of the corridors and into the bright sunshine.

We stopped in the middle of the corridor but our hands stayed connected. It was like we were suspended in time for an instant. Just standing, staring, no awkwardness, or anger; Just two people. She giggled and slipped her hand away, but the tingling sensation lingered.

“I’ve gotta go,” she said and took two steps away, heading down the hallway.

“Dinner. Tonight. Seven o’clock,” I called after her. She stopped and turned back to face me. Then with a small wink, she turned away and I watched her slowly grow smaller in the distance.

-

I was sitting at a table in the corner of the Diner; Alone. I kept flicking my eyes towards the door waiting anxiously for Belle Taylor to arrive. I looked up to see Irene Roberts approaching my table, again. She had already been over twice in the past 10 minutes.

“Can I get you anything, darl?” she asked, pulling out her pad and pen in an attempt to get me to order something.

“No thanks,” I replied, the same response I had given the previous two times as well.

She shrugged and turned away, beginning to return to the kitchen.

“Actually,” I called out before she could retreat. Irene turned her pen poised ready, but her face fell when I asked, “What time is it?”

She glanced down at her watch and replied without the presence of a smile, “Five past seven.”

“Thanks,” I said, feeling a knot begin to tighten in my stomach. Irene forced a smile (or maybe it was a grimace) before scuttling away, leaving me, once again alone.

She’s probably not going to come. I don’t even know why I even asked her here tonight. Actually, that’s wrong I know exactly why I asked her out. I was thinking with a part of my anatomy that wasn’t my head. Because I stupidly thought that since we sort of patched things up this afternoon, she might actually be considering me as more than that jerk who sits behind her in English class. Well, the fact that I’m now sitting here all by myself pretty much proves how wrong I was. She’s probably off somewhere laughing with Cassie Turner about how truly pathetic I am. There is no way we could ever be friends.

I pushed my chair away from the table and stood up, beginning to head to the door. If I could slip away unnoticed, no one needed to know that I was ever here. Well, except for Irene, who I noticed was watching me through the delivery window of the kitchen. I ran my hand absent mindedly through my hair as I pushed in my chair. But as I looked up, I saw those familiar hazel eyes looking back at me. Instantly my mood changed. The little black cloud that appeared to be hovering above me, suddenly disappeared and I couldn’t help but smile.

“Sorry I’m late,” Taylor began, swooping in on me, now standing awkwardly beside the table, “You weren’t leaving were you?”

“Nah, I was coming to meet you. You know, do the right thing,” I said in an attempt to save myself. Belle appeared unconvinced as she quickly eyed me up and down, before shrugging and pulling out the chair opposite the one I was previously occupying. I pulled out my own seat again, and sat down.

“So, what kept you?” I couldn’t help but ask.

“Oh nothing,” she replied casually, “I was just caught talking to Cassie.”

“Talking about me, eh?” I asked, smirking to myself.

“Don’t flatter yourself,” Taylor replied, mirroring my facial expression.

The last time I had seen Taylor out of uniform was the same day I completely humiliated myself, by not only injuring myself in her house, but also denying the fact that I was thinking about her the entire time. This time however, it appeared that Taylor had taken a bit more time in her appearance, rather than a rushed Saturday morning job. Her brown locks were hanging down to her shoulders, with her fringe swept to one side. She was wearing a denim mini skirt, showing off her legs, and a simple navy blue top, with her characteristic leather strap tied around her neck. Not that I know much about girls fashion, but she looked good.

She could tell I was staring, because she suddenly averted her own eyes away and lunged for the menu sitting in the middle of the table.

“Let’s eat,” she said abruptly.

“Sure,” I added, sweeping my hair out of my eyes to watch her carefully studying the menu.

Belle looked up, her eyes sparkling and a mischievous smile on her face,

“You’re still paying, right?”

* * * * *

[Jen]

Chapter 16 – One Track Mind

He was sitting across from me in his baggy jeans and plain white t-shirt, clearly oblivious to the fact that his hands kept wandering back to his hair. Whether it was to sweep a stray curl out of his eyes, or to tease his whole hand through his mane, it seemed that when Drew Curtis was worried, his hair seemed to suffer. Not that I really minded, his hair was one of those things that made Curtis, Curtis.

We had polished off our dinners in silence. The only time the silence was broken was when either of us would make a pointless comment about the food, weather, or something equally uninteresting. The other would then be forced to politely reply before the conversation lulled once more and the air was filled with the noise of metallic cutlery on porcelain crockery.

Now there were two empty plates sitting before us and neither of us was saying anything. I had to keep reminding myself not to continually stare at him. There were several times when our eyes would lock, before either one of us would quickly look away.

This was not how I thought the night would be. I couldn’t stand the suspense any longer. I swallowed any awkwardness that may have existed between us, by suddenly flailing my arm across the table and knocking the rim of Drew’s glass. It tipped over and hit the table with a loud clank and the orange drink that had once filled the glass was down spilling over the table and also covering Drew’s immaculately white shirt.

Drew stood up immediately, his arms outstretched as he watched the liquid absorb into his clothing. I quickly had to wipe the broad smile that formed across my face as Irene bustled out of the kitchen at the sudden disruption.

“What in blue blazes is going on here?” Irene demanded, her eyes wide at Drew awkwardly standing, with his shirt now a bright orange, matching the table and floor in his immediate vicinity.

“I’m so sorry. I was a complete klutz and knocked over his drink. It’s all my fault,” I quickly explained. I stood up, handed Drew a handful of napkins and attempted to mop up the mess. This however, caused the flow of liquid to intensify, spreading it further over the table and causing Drew’s glass to fall to the floor with a smash.

“Look, just leave it,” said Irene irritably, “Just get out. I’ll get a mop to clean up the mess.”

I didn’t need to be told twice.

“Sorry, Irene,” I said, grabbing Drew’s wrist and pulled him away from the orange tidal wave and outside.

It wasn’t until we were outside and in the fresh air that Drew seemed to come to his senses.

“What was all that?” he asked, his mouth still gaping as he tried to comprehend what had just happened.

“Come on,” I said, wandering away from the Diner and towards the wooden posts along the dunes, “Our date hasn’t exactly been a bundle of laughs so far. We needed something to lighten the mood.” Wait, did I really just call this fiasco a date?

“And this is your idea of lightening the mood,” replied Drew grumpily, staring down at his shirt.

“Yeah, sorry about that,” I added.

Drew looked from me back to his chest. He bundled his shirt together in his hands and attempted to wring it out by hand, while he was still wearing it.

“You’re going to have to take it off,” I said.

Curtis’ eyes immediately lit up,

“So, this is what it was all about? You just wanted to see me with my shirt off. You know, you could have just asked.”

“Do you think about anything else, except yourself?” I replied with a scoff.

Seemingly unphased by the cool breeze blowing from over the ocean, Drew pulled his arms threw the holes in his shirt and I was soon staring at his naked chest.

I blinked twice, attempting to draw my arms away from the chiselled body that was now before me.

“Sorry for ruining dinner,” I said quietly. I was not going to use that other ‘d’ word again.

“That’s alright. I’ll admit this wasn’t exactly how I saw the night panning out,” Curtis replied.

I let out a soft chuckle as Drew shifted from one foot to the other, and inadvertently moved closer to where I was leaning on the fence post.

The breeze picked up, and whistled between us, causing us both to stir. I looked up and was staring into his eyes, once again.

“Aren’t you cold?” I asked, as I rubbed my hands together for a bit more warmth. I inwardly cursed for wearing such a short skirt.

Curtis shrugged, but I could see the hairs on his arms standing on end.

I took a determined step forward, so we were now standing side by side. Carefully, I lifted my own hand and began to gently stroke his arm. I was barely touching him, but I felt a shiver radiate from my finger all the way up his limb. Drew looked down at me, and smiled before slowly beginning to lean in.

His lips were closing in on mine, but before they could even touch I turned my head away and said,

“You should probably get out of the wind before you catch a cold.”

Drew’s lips lingered for a moment, as if hoping I would change my mind. But I wasn’t going to. I took two large steps away from the fence.

“Well, despite the fact that that I got completely covered in orange juice and have goose bumps on my arms the size of large pinheads, I had fun tonight,” he said.

“If this was your idea of fun, then I’d hate to see what a bad day was,” I admitted, knowing full well that he was probably only being polite.

“You don’t want to know,” Drew said dryly, running his hand through his hair once more, making me smile.

-

I left Drew standing slightly bewildered outside the Diner. I made my way slowly home, taking my time by meandering along the beach, letting the cool night waves lap at my feet. It had certainly been an eventful evening.

Curtis was certainly a worthy opponent. He did not seem to even consider that I actually knew what he was planning all along. As far as he was concerned, Cassie and I were having our own battle to see how long it would take me to crack under his pressure. Little did he realise that the tables had been turned, and it was I who was playing with him all, pretending to actually be interested. As if, I would ever genuinely like Curtis. He’s rude, arrogant, completely obnoxious, and has the most amazing six-pack I’ve ever seen. Wait, what?!

This cannot be happening. I cannot be in my right mind. The cool breeze must be numbing my brain, because I could have sworn that I just considered the possibility of actually liking Drew Curtis. Which is completely ridiculous, considering I can’t stand the guy. The only reason I am hanging out with him is to show him that he is not the big-head-hot-shot that he thinks he is. He thinks he has everything sussed out, well I’ll show him how very wrong he is.

And I most certainly do not like him.

Without even realising it I was on the front porch, fumbling in my pocket for the key. I slipped it quietly into the lock and turned the handle. Even though I realised that Irene was probably still cleaning up my mess from earlier in the night, I tried to remain as quiet as possible.

I tiptoed into my room and flopped down on my bed, the soft bedding encapsulating me within it. I rolled to one side, and looking across my room began to stare at the photo that took pride of place on my bedside cabinet. A reflection of myself, arm tightly swung over Cassie’s shoulder, pulling her into a hug. The picture had been taken last summer. The summer in which, we actually became friends. It was now a strange feeling to even contemplate my life without her in it. Having her on speed dial in my phone, being able to bail her up in between classes so we could talk, even though we had just spent the entire previous period passing notes at the back of Mr. Brayburn’s Science class.

I would do anything for her, and that included getting myself intimately involved with Mr. Drew Curtis, despite the fact that I was fighting every bone in my body not to just slap him hard across the back of the head and tell him to get over himself. The only problem with our plan was that we hadn’t considered a very unique organ. The heart. And right now, that was beginning to disagree with what my head was telling me.

* * * * *

[Jen]

Chapter 17 – Why Don’t You Kiss Her?

Come on Curtis, you’re going to have to do better than that. It is going to take more than removing your shirt in the freezing cold for that girl to kiss you. However, it was that key ingredient that was required for this ‘relationship’ to go anywhere. It wasn’t a relationship per se, but a giant game of dare in which I needed her to trust me enough to kiss me, and then be my date to the formal.

It all seemed so straightforward in my head. Putting it into practice however, was much more challenging.

I tossed my shirt lazily into the washing basket that was already overflowing, and turned the tap on. Steam began to fill the bathroom as the water heated up. I slid easily out of my jeans, and kicked them to one side as I stepped into the shower.

The water was warm, as it cascaded easily down my back and trickled down my face. My normally curly mop, became a matt of dark hair plastered to my forehead and neck. Without even realising it, my thoughts seemed to wander once more.

Why wouldn’t she kiss me tonight? I thought she would have been eager to make things up to me, after having ruined our dinner by throwing orange juice all over my front. Has she ever had to walk home, having to endure the awkward stares of tourists who think that you don’t know how to control your own bladder? I didn’t think so.

But there was a moment. A look, as I leant in towards her, that I knew she wanted to kiss me too. It was her stupid pride that was standing in her way. The same pride that was holding her back from turning around to talk to me in class, or causing her to throw hard cover text books on my foot.

It seemed to all be a matter of circumstance. If that blonde chick hadn’t kissed me (I don’t even remember her name!) then she probably would have been more willing tonight. Or if I had just kept my big mouth shut at the hospital, then maybe I could have walked away a little less battle worn. But at the same time, if Belle hadn’t been mad at me for kissing some random, then she might never have agreed to go out with me tonight in the first place. It was all about circumstance. Create the right atmosphere, allowing her to lose her inhibitions, then things might begin to happen.

That was my next mission.

Shutting off the running water, I shivered slightly as I stepped out of the shower and wrapped a towel around my waist. I noticed my jeans still lying in a heap in the corner of the room and took two steps towards them. Still dripping slightly, I put my hand into one of the pockets and retrieved my mobile phone. I glanced at the screen, a split second of disappointment swept over me as I realised that Taylor was never going to call. I sighed, before tossing my phone back onto the denim pile.

I shook my head violently, letting the stray water droplets coat the walls and mirror. I glanced down at my phone, lying dead beside my foot.

It was all about atmosphere.

A sudden rush came over me as the perfect idea to get even closer to Taylor came crashing into my mind. I bent down and picked up my phone frantically and scrolled through my address book. I passed many numbers of girls that I had accumulated over the years; many I had never even called when I first acquired them. My thumb hovered over the green phone icon as I contemplated the call for a minute, before pushing the button and holding the phone up to my ear.

Before the person at the other end of the line could utter a single word I asked happily,

“Party time?”

* * * * *

A/N: First of all, I know this is a short chapter. Sorry about that, it's sort of just a filler. Secondly, thank you so much for the reviews Marc, Red Ranger 1, Adelle_fan1000, Laura, Bec, Bethany_Paige and Lise. You are all so awesome for commenting! Thirdly, welcome to my new readers. Thank you for joining this fic and I hope you like the direction it takes.

Yep, that's it for now.

[Jen]

Chapter 18 – Making a Move

"Time is ticking away, my friend," Lucas said smugly.

"Don't worry, man," I replied confidently, "Everything is under control."

We were sitting at the back of first period science as Mr. Brayburn droned on, seemingly oblivious to the constant buzz that was emitting from the desks behind him. He had his back turned, drawing complex diagrams on the board, while most of the class stared blankly at the board, whispering to their friends in desks around them. Despite this, Mr. Brayburn ploughed through his lesson. Determined to present the information, regardless of whether any of us were actually listening, let alone understanding any of the foreign terms that left his mouth.

From two desks to the left of me, there was a sudden high pitched giggle. Two short brown pig tails bobbled as Taylor covered her mouth quickly, trying to muffle the noise. Mr. Brayburn looked over his shoulder momentarily, as if he had heard chatter for the very first time. The whole class stiffened as he gave the class a once over with his eyes, before turning back to the board. The whole class seemed to let out a uniform sigh, before returning to their conversations. I leant across to Lucas, examing the perfect replica diagram of the one Mr. Brayburn had drawn on the board that he had drawn on the page in front of him.

"I'm making my move tonight," I hissed at him.

Lucas' eyebrows shot up in an arch as he stared at me, caught between disbelief and surprise.

"How?" he asked simply.

"I've come to the realisation, that all that is required, is the right atmosphere," I said, glancing across at Taylor as she received a note from Cassie sitting beside her. She opened the note carefully, her eyes scanning the contents, before lowering her head and scribbling rapidly along the page. Her pen stopped, and she looked up, staring directly at me. For a split second, my breathe caught in my chest, as she stared blankly at me. She didn't smile, or wink, just stared at me. It was almost as though I wasn't there at all, but she was looking right through me to the wall on the opposite side of the classroom.

I could hear my own heart pounding in my chest. The noise seemed deafening, and I was surprised that no one had turned around at the loud thumping. The deep ring echoed in my ears as I watched her. I gripped the edge of the plastic chair I was sitting in, forcing myself to remain rooted to the spot and not to climb over the desks to reach her, touch her, and make her acknowledge that I exist.

A second later her gaze ended as she folded up the page once more, and handed it subtly back to Turner who proceeded to read what her friend had written. What I wouldn't give to be able to read that letter. Was she writing about me? I blinked quickly, forcing myself to look away from Taylor and back to Lucas, whose expression had changed from shock to a smirk. I could still hear my heart, though the noise seemed to be muffled slightly as I was no longer staring directly at her.

"How is anyone supposed to get any action in this kind of environment?" I said, my voice slightly hoarse as my eyes roamed the room.

"And what kind of environment are you going to create?" Lucas asked in a hushed whisper.

I smirked back at him,

"As if I'm going to tell you that."

Lucas shook his head reluctantly and went back to his diagram, clearly ending the conversation. My mind however, was not finished.

What was that? That urge was something I had never encountered before, except that time I got completely smashed at Stewart's Point and found myself face down in the bushes outside my house for many hours afterwards throwing up my entire weight in alcohol. That was an urge I could have lived without. But this was slightly different, although the feeling in the pit of my stomach was the same. The loud pounding in my ears and the rough current stirring inside me as I watched her was something I had never experienced like before. For the first time, I felt out of control. Like just staring at her from across the room, made me lose all function in my head, and it was only my heart talking. Except, my heart was talking in riddles and I had no idea how to solve the problem.

Clearly, I was investing way too much in this dare. I needed to pull back, get back to basics, back to the drawing board; before I let my insides dictate what I did on the outside. One thing I know for certain is that no girl can resist forever. Even if Turner requires a bit of convincing, I am more than up to the challenge. Tonight, things get turned up a notch.

There was a sudden screech in my ears as the siren sounded loudly. There was a rapid scramble as everyone dragged their chairs along the linoleum clad floor to reach the door first. Mr. Brayburn was only just turning around to dismiss the class when more than half had already left. He sighed reluctantly and heaved his briefcase off the table at the front, and pushed his own way out the door. Lunch was calling.

Behind Mr. Brayburn I saw a little tuft of brown hair bob out of site. I abandoned Lucas, who was still reorganising his things, to sprint out of my seat and out the door. I looked left and right down the hall, before taking an abrupt hard right towards the flashing exit sign above the school's main door.

I grabbed Taylor by the elbow, and she spun around rapidly. Her mouth was already open to abuse whoever was touching her unnecessarily, but her lips turned into a broad smile when she saw my face staring down at her.

"Before you say anything, I know I should have called or come around to your house, but last time I did that I ended up in hospital, so I hope that you can forgive me for keeping my distance," I blurted out at once.

"You're forgiven," she replied simply.

I sighed loudly and wiped my brow,

"Phew! You had me worried there for a moment."

Taylor chuckled and looked down at my hand, still grasping her elbow. I quickly retracted it and shoved both my hands in my pockets, in an attempt not to reach out and grab her unnecessarily.

"Belle, let's go!"

I looked over to see Cassie beckoning her friend by the door frame, a swarm of students pushing against her as she stood her ground against the flow of traffic.

"Hang on!" Belle called out to Cassie, before she turned back to me.

"Was there something you wanted?" she asked.

"Um ... I." My mind was blank once more. All I could see was her brown eyes gleaming back at me, and all I could hear was the thumping radiating from my chest. The bustle of student’s evacuating the building became a blur, and the slamming of doors and rapid conversation seemed to melt away.

"Hello? Are you there? Earth to Curtis!" Taylor snapped her fingers in front of my face and I blinked twice, attempting to refocus on the job at hand.

"Sorry," I spluttered, "I was just wondering if you were up for a bit of a party tonight? Some guy I know is having a bit of an informal gathering at the beach tonight, and I was hoping you would come."

Taylor glanced through the crowd to Turner, who was waving rapidly back.

"You can bring your little sidekick if you want," I added. She could bring the entire school marching band and I wouldn't care. As long as she came.

"Okay," Taylor replied, turning back to me.

"Great," I exclaimed happily. Things were starting to go to plan after all. "Maybe we can start things early, by having lunch?" I asked cautiously.

"I was meant to be going to the Diner with Cassie," she said, gesturing towards her friend once more. Cassie clearly looked irritated by our lengthy meeting. She now had her arms folded across her chest and was leaning heavily on the door frame. The student traffic had lessened considerably, as most of the student body were already downing a sandwich on the grass or soaking up rays in the parking lot outside. Cassie looked bored.

"Right," I said, looking down, also hoping that my disappointment became evident.

I heard Taylor sigh, but I didn't look up until I heard her say,

"Fine."

My head snapped up as she came back into my line of site. Taylor turned and was now speaking to Cassie,

"You go on ahead, I'll catch up with you later."

Cassie jerked her shoulder in an attempt to shrug off being ditched by her friend, before turning quickly and disappearing out the grey doors.

"She didn't look too happy," I stated.

"Well, this was your idea," Taylor retorted.

"You're right, it was," I said, "So I take full responsibility for any damage that I may have caused to your relationship with Cassie, but I am not going to have a sleepover with her to make up for it."

"Deal," Taylor said, rolling her eyes.

My hands seemed to remove themselves from my pockets and swing themselves over Taylor's shoulders as we finally left the hall, which was now deserted.

* * * * *

A/N: Thank you for all the comments/reviews. It's not so much about who Drew called but what is happening next. Enjoy.

[Jen]

Chapter 19 – 3 Simple Rules

I slipped into my usual booth in the Diner, forgetting that Drew Curtis was accompanying me. To my surprise he ignored the empty bench opposite me and sat next to me instead. I felt his leg brush against mine as he adjusted his seating position. I smiled awkwardly at him as he reached for a menu. I watched as Drew’s eyes darted up from the menu towards the kitchen and then back to me. He leant over slightly, bringing the menu up to his face in an attempt to cover his mouth.

“Do you reckon Irene will be pleased to see us again?” he asked quietly, his deep voice reverberating in my ear.

“I don’t know,” I said slyly, “We’d better keep a low profile. I still don’t think she’s forgiven me for the orange juice stunt.”

“What makes you say that?” Drew asked.

“Well, despite the fact that I have apologised numerous times, I still end up being the one that is woken up at 6 am every morning by a saucepan being hit with a metal spoon.”

“That doesn’t sound so bad,” Drew replied, “If it was my mother, I would be left cleaning up vomit from the plush carpet.”

I stopped, looking up at Drew’s face. This was the first time he had openly spoken about his home life, and it didn’t seem like it was the picnic he made it out to be.

“I thought your mum would be, you know, cool?” I said dumbly.

Drew shrugged,

“She basically lets me do whatever I want,” he said seriously, “But sometimes I just wish -”

Drew dropped the menu onto the table; his whole body shape had changed. He was no longer the confident boy I thought I knew who would strut around school like he owned the place. He had problems just like everybody else. The only thing that set Drew Curtis apart was that he was very good at hiding them.

“You wish what?” I asked in a whisper.

“Never mind,” Drew said shaking his head. His eyes were dark, like there was a rain cloud just hovering above his head.

I forced myself to look away from his gloomy face. My instinct was telling me that something was wrong, but unless Drew asked for my help I decided not to get involved. After all, I barely knew him.

I looked around the Diner hoping for something that I could say; anything to make this awkwardness disappear. Why couldn’t we go back to how things were? When we were making jokes and throwing bubbles. When did it all become so – serious?

What did I want to know? I wanted him to let me in. To understand what was going on. I wanted to know where this was going. Was it always going to be like this? He may seem like a complete jerk around girls on the surface, but underneath it appeared that he had a lot more going on than he told anyone. Maybe that was the reason he had had to many girlfriends for such a short period of time? He didn’t want them to get close. Well, this was my chance to show him that he could let me in, and I wouldn’t run a mile. This was, after all, about showing Drew that he couldn’t fool around with me and then dump me. That, I presume was where it was all going. There would be a point when Drew felt I was getting too close, and ‘bam!’ I would be dropped so fast I wouldn’t have time to scream.

So why was I here again?

It felt as though my head was spinning and I was unable to keep up. I pressed the palms of my hands into my eyes, forcing them to close. Little white lights danced on the inside of eyelids and the dizziness began to subside.

I blinked my eyes open to see Drew’s profile looking sullen and staring blankly at the menu again.

Suddenly, I wanted to know the answer to one simple question.

“Is this a date?” I asked suddenly.

Drew’s head shot up, the blank expression quickly removed from his face. It seemed that there was still a spark underneath. He was clearly surprised by my sudden question. Admittedly, it was rather random.

“What?” he spluttered, blinking many times and attempting to focus on my face.

I felt the blood surge from my heart up to my cheeks as he stared down at me.

“Well, I was just wondering if this is in fact a date, a real date, not just lunch between a two people of the opposite sex that might in fact seem like a date, even though it might not,” I clarified.

A familiar smirk crept over Drew’s face. The muscles around his mouth relaxing as the grey cloud began to clear.

He let out a strangled laugh,

“You are a strange girl.”

I furrowed my brow, attempting to decode what that actually meant.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” I asked.

Drew just shrugged, before contemplating my original question.

“What would you constitute as a date?” he asked.

I pondered momentarily before answering,

“There are three simple rules,” I said.

“You have rules?” Drew asked sceptically.

I ignored his comment and began my list which I had composed in my head.

“Number one: It has to involve a set time. For example, lunch, dinner, or 8 o’clock.”

“Check,” Drew replied.

“Number two: The person who initiates the set time, is also in charge of allocating the activity which takes place during that time. For example, eating or the movies.”

“Check.”

“Number three: Both persons are aware and that the date is an official date. A date can’t be a date without the consent of both persons present.”

“Check.”

“So wait, are you saying this is a date?” I asked suddenly, realising that Drew had clearly check marked his approval to each of my rules.

“I guess if I say that this is a date and you agree, then it is in fact a real date,” he said, his voice light and conversational.

“So?”

“That depends,” Drew said.

“On what?” I asked, worried about what his demand may be.

“Whether my confirming that this is a date will result in me experiencing any unnecessary pain,” he said, smirking.

I surrendered my hands in the air, like I was calling a truce and Drew smiled before nodding,

“Then it’s a date.”

-

I saw Cassie sitting alone in a classroom when I returned from my lunch with Curtis. Her head was down, buried in the thick book she was reading, oblivious to my presence at the door. I knocked twice causing Cass to look up.

“Hi,” she said, although she didn’t smile.

“Hey,” I replied, a little more cheerfully.

There was an awkward silence. Cassie closed her book and placed it gently on the desk before staring back up at me. Her eyes darted around the door frame before coming to rest on my face. I was struggling to read her expression, although it seemed that she was waiting for something.

“So,” I began slowly, “I was wondering if you wanted to come to a party tonight?”

Cassie seemed slightly surprised by my offer.

“What party?” she asked suspiciously.

“Oh it’s nothing really,” I said, coming into the room and perching on top of the bare teacher’s desk at the front. Cassie remained in her allotted desk while I continued to explain, attempting to keep my voice as causal as possible, “Just a casual gathering on the beach. You know, a few drinks, talking to people, the usual.”

“Who’s party is it?”

“I don’t know. A friend of Curtis, I think,” I said. Cassie sat up slightly more in her seat at the mention of Drew’s name.

“I don’t know Belle,” Cassie said wearily, “I’m not really in a partying mood, especially if we don’t actually know who is throwing it.”

“Come on, it’ll be fun. Drew said it was cool to invite you.”

“So, if Drew hadn’t mentioned me, you wouldn’t have invited me at all?” Cassie asked, her voice straining to remain level. I felt the tension in the room hit a peak.

“That’s not what I meant,” I amended quickly, “I just meant that, no one really cares if you don’t know who’s throwing it. It’s a free for all, really.” I forced a little smile, trying to lighten the mood.

There was a sudden ringing as the bell sounded and the noise level outside the room exponentially increased. Students began to flow into the classroom in which Cassie and I were situated. Cassie picked up her book and attempted to leave against the flow of traffic. I hopped of the desk and followed her, but once out of the classroom she took a sharp left, leaving me in her tracks.

“Come ‘round to my place at 8 o’clock tonight. We’ll go together!” I called over the crowd.

Cassie turned back, nodding slightly before disappearing into the crowd.

* * * * *

A/N: Thanks for the comments Red Ranger 1, Laura, Marc anad Bec.