Chapter Seventeen

      I looked straight at him, not blinking, a blank expression spread throughout my face. I could do this all day. He had no idea what he was in for. He stared back at me, also not blinking. After about a minute he forfeited, and let his eyelids droop. I win!

      “Ms. Tylers is there a problem?” he asked, uninterested.

      “Yes, actually, there is,” I said.

      “And what would that be?”

      “I don’t want to be here right now.”

      “Well you should’ve thought of that before you decided to skip class with Mr. Ryan over here,” he said, sitting down at his desk. It was all Chase’s fault. I shouldn’t even be in here. Thanks a lot Chase! When we get out of here, I’m so killing you!

      “Well you see Mr. Wilson, it wasn’t our fault,” I explained. Chase snorted at my remark.

      “Oh it wasn’t?” the young teacher asked, intrigued as he arched an eyebrow.

      “No.”

      “Then whose fault was it?”

      “No one’s.”

      “No one’s? Really Ms. Tylers?”

      “Really.”

      “Then how exactly did ‘no one’ cause you to skip an entire class period?”

      “Uh... we got lost. Well at least, I did.”

      “You got lost? Do you really expect me to believe that?”

      “Yes I do. I’m a new student, so it’s entirely legitimate for me to get lost in the building,” I said, trying not to laugh.

      “Oh, and Mr. Ryan just happened to bump into you, and also get lost?”

      “No; Chase thought my class was at one end of the building, but it was actually at the other end, so yeah.”

      “Interesting story Ms. Tylers. Refine it a bit, and next time add more detail to make it more believable.”

      “Will do,” I saluted him.

      “Don’t burn the school down in my absence, I’ll be back in an hour. Even though I expect you to, I’ll ask anyways, please don’t talk. Goodbye,” he said, leaving the room, and closing the door with a thud. Real responsible teacher...

      “Loser,” I muttered under my breath. Chase laughed.

      “If it means anything to you, I liked your story,” Chase said, smiling.

      “Great, oh and by the way, I was referring to you, being the loser.”

      “Oh Jules, that hurts!”

      “I’m sure it does…”

      “Julia Tylers, in detention. My, my, my! However did this happen?” Trent asked, walking over to my desk. He was a regular, which wasn’t surprising.

      “Well Trenty, I missed you, so I skipped class with this moron to see you!” I said.

      “That’s so sweet of you Julesy! I’m touched, really.”

      “Good.”

      “What were you guys even doing instead of class anyways? I mean I skip all the time, but that’s because I’m me. What were you two doing?” he asked.

      “Oh ya know, stuff,” I replied cryptically.

      “What type of stuff?”

      “Non educational stuff...” Chase said, smirking at me.

      “Go on,” Trent urged.

      “Should we tell him?” I asked Chase, enjoying the torture we were putting Trent through.

      “I don’t know…” Chase said, catching on.

      “Jules, if you don’t tell me, I will force you into telling me.”

      “And how exactly are you planning on doing that?”

      “If my memory serves correct, I believe you’re pretty ticklish.” Oh no he didn’t! Fine, I’ll admit it, I tend to be very ticklish person. It’s a weekness of mine that not many know.

      “Well I guess your memory serves incorrect, because I’m not ticklish,” I lied.

      “Really? Need I test my theory?”

      “Please don’t TJ! Or I may just have to share with everyone in this room about the time when we were at the movies and-” he cut me off by cupping his hand over my mouth before I could continue reliving the tale. Ah Trent, ashamed of your past much? Why not embrace it; like me! Learn from your mistakes, to better your future understanding of the world.

      “Hey, can you guys, I don’t know, shut up?” some girl dressed in black said harshly. Oh… I know this chick! Come on Jules, think! Ummm… She’s in my math class, nice, chill… OH! Damn it! Pretty name, different, oh… DARIA! Yes! Score!

      “Hey, you’re Daria, right?” I asked.

      “Yeah. Can you guys please be quiet now?” she begged, her face softening up a bit.

      “Nah. I like yelling,” Trent said. “Oh and Jules, don’t worry; no need to introduce us to your friend.”

      “Trenty, shut up. Chase, this is Daria,” I said, flicking Trent.

      “Hey?” Chase offered as a greeting.

      “Hi,” she said dismissively, looking down.

      “So Daria, how’d you end up locked in here?” I asked curiously.

      “Uh…” she hesitated, “did you know that teachers don’t like it when you call them a bitches?”

      “Wait really? Who knew?” Trent said, moving over to my desk.

      “Yeah, I guess. Now how did you two end up in here, is really the question,” she said, intrigued by whatever our extravagant answer would be. Hate to burst your bubble Daria, but it unfortunately isn’t that exciting... or interesting.

      “We cut class…” Chase said simply, not leading on anymore than needed.

      “And?” Trent promted. This was all too much fun!

Chase’s POV

I studied Trent’s fascinated gaze, as he looked forward to the next few words that would tumble out of our mouths. He had fallen. No- he had crashed for her. He wanted to know so badly what she was doing without him, and if I had gotten in the way of his chances with her. To be honest, if I was in his position I would’ve been the exact same way; probably worse actually.

      “Do you think they’re ready?” I asked with a sigh, looking over at Jules. We held all the cards, and we had no intention of showing them yet.

      “I don’t know Chaseyboo, I’m not sure if they can handle it,” she said, pushing Trent away from her. She just called me Chaseyboo. That’s it. I’m in. I’ve only ever heard Jules call Trent by a degrading nickname of that caliber. The fact that she felt comfortable enough to bestow me with that name, just provides evidence for the case I’ve been building: Jules likes me.

      I had thought my chances were far over when Trent and she reconnected, but after that kiss… I’m almost positive that she and Trent haven’t done anything with each other yet, so I’m taking that as a sure sign that she totally wants me.

      That kiss… It was so incredible. It felt like I was sent straight to heaven in that moment. Normally, I don’t go crazy after I kiss a girl; it’s just normal. But with Jules, it was magical. I need to taste those lips again. In that random moment when she kissed me, it just felt so right! Her lips meshed perfectly together with mine. It was such a sweet, and delicate taste. Unlike any girl I’ve ever kissed before. I need to kiss her again.

      “TELL US!” Trent begged.

      “Fine. Whatever. I’ll give into peer pressure,” Jules said. “We ditched class to go to the library and sleep.” Trent had clung to her every word, and after she revealed our incident, he was clearly annoyed.

      “That’s it? That’s what you wouldn’t tell me?” he asked.

      “Yeah,” she said, smiling.

      “You wouldn’t tell me that you skipped class, just to sleep? I do that everyday! I thought it was something…” he searched for the appropriate word.

      “Dirty?” I filled in, smirking at the thought.

      “Yeah, something like that,” he admitted.

      “The dirtiest it got was when we sat on the old, dust covered floor,” Jules said, laughing it off.

      “Well that’s good to know, because Jules, you still haven’t fulfilled a little promise you made,” he said.

      “Promise? What promise?” she asked.

      “The one where I’m supposed to be the first guy you go on a date with after breaking up with that douche,” he said. I clenched my fists. They made a promise that when Jules broke up with that kid, her first date would be with Trent? That’s just straight up unfair.

      “About that…” she trailed off, sitting down in his lap.

      “What?” he pressed, rapping his arms around her. 

      “When and where are we going?” she asked. I took in a deep breath to calm myself.

      “It’s a surprise, and how about Saturday? I’ll pick you up?”

      “Sure. What am I wearing?”

      “Normal clothes, nothing fancy.”

      “Wasn’t planning on dressing up for you anyways.”

      “Gee, thanks Jules.” I couldn’t listen to this conversation anymore. I scanned the room for anymore familiar faces, but then I remembered that I was in detention, and that my friends don’t make a habit of spending time in here. Why did I even allow her to talk me into skipping class? It was a dumb idea! I knew we would get caught! That old librarian isn’t as clueless as we thought.

      “Hey, can I use my phone here?” I asked Trent, pulling it out.

      “No, they purposely block out all communications to and from satellites in here,” he said. I took a second to process what he had said, and then nodded, placing my phone back into my back pocket.

      “He’s kidding,” Jules laughed.

      “Wait, so can I use my phone in here or not?” I asked, confused.

      “You can. I was just messin’ with you bro!” Trent said, hitting my back. Asshole. I retreated my phone a second time from my pocket, and quickly called Talia.

      “Hey lil bro,” she answered, after picking up.

      “Hi,” I said.

      “What do you need?”

      “What makes you think that I need anything?”

      “Cut the crap kid, what do you need? Did you get into any trouble? Dealing with the mafia? Drug dealers? Are you high? Drunk? Can you think straight?” I laughed her response. Talia, always thinking the worst in a situation.

      “Talia, think about those questions again. Would I even know where to find the mafia or a drug dealer? Also, I’m fully aware of the fact that drugs are terrible, and I’d die if I even considered taking them; not from the drugs themselves, but from what mom and dad would do to me. So no, I’m not high, nor have I ever been. I barely drink, and I don’t think I’d be calling you if I couldn’t think straight. So which of those choices seems the most logical to you?” I said, laughing.

      “So where are you?”

      “Detention.”

      “Mhmm… Am I breaking you out?”

      “Yes please.”

      “Who’s your accomplice in this one?”

      “Jules.”

      “Am I rescuing her too?”

      “Yeah.”

      “Okay. I’ll tell her brother that you two are coming over, and that he should just stop by.”

      “Nice plan.”

      “Yeah whatever. See ya in half an hour,” she said, ending the call.

      “Talia’s picking us up from here,” I told Jules.

      “She is?” she asked.

      “Yeah, and then we’re going over to my house, because your brother’s going to be there too or something.”

      “Okay. Cool?” she said, as if conflicted with the idea.

      “Yup,” I said, seating myself at a desk, and preparing for the endless interval that awaited. I got out my binder, and started scribbling down, what I assumed to be, the wrong answers. Yeah, school’s not really my thing; I’m more into football.

      Football. Great sport. The best sport actually. My older brothers taught me how to play when I was three. Talia even played with us. Now that I think of it, she actually has a really good spiral. I love playing. From the loudness of the crowd, to the stillness of the field right before someone punts the ball. Somehow, I ended up landing the position of QB on the JV team this year. I don’t know how I did it, but it’s just awesome. Football helps me get through a lot; it gives me something to concentrate on.

      “Yo!” someone said, snapping their hand in my face.

      “Hmmm?” I said, looking up from the essay I had to have written for tomorrow. Waiting till the last minute- maybe not the smartest idea in the world. I only had the first sentence done: When Shakespeare was writing that play thing about that dude and that chick, I think his inspiration was the pot he was smoking, or alcohol that caused him to become a little bit too intoxicated. No, this is not my final draft. It’s my screw up copy. Talia usually looks it over before I turn it in, yells at me, and then tells me what I did wrong in it; it’s like a system. The assignment was to write some paper on what we think Shakespeare’s inspiration for writing Romeo and Juliet was. I didn’t like reading it.

      “You’re free to go. I asked the teacher. Let’s go. Jules come on, say bye to Trent,” Talia said, flicking me.

      “Bye Trenty!” Jules said, giving him a hug.

      “Bye Julesy,” he said, smiling.

      “Okay, two of you, let’s go!” Talia said, marching out of the classroom. What a great older sister- never waiting for me.

Jules’ POV

      “Why am I in the back?” Chase complained, as Talia started up the car.

      “Because you’re annoying,” she answered.

      “You’re the annoying one.”

      “Chase! Don’t argue with me, Jules’ in the car! It’s rude!” she laughed.

      “She has a brother; I’m sure they fight.”

      “Actually, we don’t. It’s one of those rare occurrences in nature that happens once every hundred years; look it up,” I said, tapping my finger against my knee.

      “Yeah, you two don’t really fight; it’s amazing,” Talia said.

      “Thanks?” I said, not sure if it was intended as a compliment or not.

      “Sure,” she said, putting on the radio. I Like It Like That, by Hot Chelle Rae blasted. I started nodding my head, as Talia belted out the lyrics.

      “Talia can you shut up?” Chase asked.

      “Sure,” she said, turning the volume up, so it drowned out everything. Even with the music on, Talia was still a good driver… at least compared to Adam.

      After about fifteen minutes of listening to the blaring music, we finally arrived at their house. It wasn’t what I was expecting. I thought, based on who Talia was, that they had a cute, homey, chill house; I don’t know, something like that. But man was I wrong! We pulled up to this modern monstrosity. It looked to be about three floors, and huge. That’s really the word that sums up the entire house: huge. We got out of the car, and Talia led us into the house. We quickly figured out that no one was home.

      “Adam will be here in five,” Talia said, looking down at her phone. “What do you two want to do?”

      “Well…” Chase started, smirking at me. Oh no.

      “The next words better be ‘giving Jules a tour of the house’, otherwise you might just find yourself in a body bag later tonight,” Talia threatened.

      “Well that’s good, considering that’s exactly what I was going to suggest,” Chase said.

      “Fine. Go. Get out of my sight. Leave. Bye. See ya never!” she said, pushing Chase away.

      “Bye Talia!” I waved, as Chase gripped my arm, and walked away from his beloved sister.

      “No. We’re getting away from that thing. Don’t even talk to her,” Chase said, rounding a corner.

      “Hey Chase…” I began.

      “Yeah?”

      “Where we going?” I asked, as we walked down a long hallway.

      “My room..?” he replied.

      “I don’t want to go in there.”

      “Yeah you do; you just don’t know it yet.”

      “No, I’m pretty sure I don’t want to go into it.”

      “You’re wrong again, Jules.”

      “Not, I’m really not, I just don’t want to go into your room,” I explained, looking at the walls lined with family portraits as we went. There were a lot of pictures. Some of Chase, some of Talia, and then there were even more picture of these other two boys.

      “You don’t have an option,” he said, as his hand made its way down my arm to my hand, interlacing his fingers with mine. Huh. Holding Chase Ryan’s hand. Never considered that before. Interesting concept- not sure if I like it.

      “Oh don’t I?” I challenged, letting go of his perfectly tanned hand, and walking ahead of him.

      “Hey Jules,” he called behind me.

      “Yeah?”

      “Where do you think you’re going?”

      “Oh,” I stopped, realizing I had no idea where I was, “I don’t know.”

      “How about you open the door to the left of you,” he proposed. I held up both of my hands, making an L shape with my pointers and thumbs, and opened the door closest to the correct looking L. Yes, I tend to get confused between my left and right. Get over it.

      “Go on in,” he coaxed, coming around behind me. I stepped into the room, and recognized the fact that he had just tricked me to going into his room. Great.

      “This your room?” I sighed, already knowing the answer.

      “Yeah,” he said, closing the door after him. I looked the room over, and discovered that it was the exact opposite of mine. Now, I don’t mean it was the exact opposite, because I’m a girl, and he’s a boy; no, I mean his room was neat, and orderly, while mine was… to put it in simple, terms “unkempt”. Chase Ryan is a neat freak! I try not to say this, but: Oh My God! I would never have guessed it! Chase Ryan, organized? Wow. Well actually, his mom might be the one to whom the credit is owed, but whatever.

      I skimmed the room once again, when my eyes landed on something orange. I went into my competitive mode, and walked straight over to it without thinking.

      “What’cha doing?” Chase asked, as I picked up the round piece of foam.

      “What does it look like?” I asked, turning around, and throwing the ball into the small basket that hung against the door.

      “Hey! Nice shot!” he said, as I missed the hoop by a good two feet. “Maybe next time you might want to try this.” He picked up the ball, and made a perfect shot. I heard a light swish noise as the ball hit the sides of the net.

      “Showoff,” I muttered.

      “What was that?”

      “Nothing.”

      “Do you play basketball?”

      “Absolutely not.”

      “Then let’s play one on one.”

      “I just said I can’t play.”

      “So?”

      “So, I don’t want to play!”

      “Yeah you do. Let’s go, you start!” He tossed the ball to me, and I attempted to shoot it, only to be stopped by his long arm blocking the ball’s path to the net.

      “Hey!” I said.

      “Hey,” he said, winking.

      “What was that?”

      “One on one. It’s how you play…”

      “Whatever.”

      “By the way, it’s my turn.” We switched places for some reason, and he was put in the situation as I, trying to shoot the ball. I did just as he, and obstructed its route.

      “Lemme try again,” he said, holding up his hand.

      “No,” I said, tightening my grip on the piece of foam in my hand.

      “Yes.”

      “No.”

      “Jules, please, give it back.”

      “No.”

      “Fine then,” he said. Before I could think he lunged at me, and managed to tackle me to the ground, trying to obtain the ball. Not a chance buddy. He grabbed for it, but to no avail. I maneuvered my arm away, still retaining the same taut hold. Chase reached for the ball again, pinning me to the floor.

      “Hey Jules,” he smirked, taking a break to catch his breath.

      “Hmmm?” I said, panting.

      He then repeated the words I had asked thee short weeks prior, “Can I kiss you?”