October 31st, 2008

“No, no, no,” Austin began, shaking his head as he placed his hands on my shoulders. “You are not going out in that costume no matter how much it cost. You are going back upstairs and changing into that cute bunny costume that you wore last year.”

I gave my brother a flat look. “Austin, I wore that costume in fourth grade.”

My brother didn’t look fazed at all. “So? You could still fit in it.”

“I have a party to go to,” I informed him now, rolling my eyes and heading toward the door. “Dad’s already in the car. He doesn’t have a problem with the costume.”

Austin looked like he could have flipped the coffee table over. “He knows nothing; he’s old!”

I didn’t even turned toward my brother as I slammed the front door with me outside. I didn’t even think the costume I was wearing was that bad; I was sure Aimee was going to wear something even worse than mine. I was going as a witch, and she said that she was going to go as a devil.

We were going to go to Bruce Wilkins party for a little while before going out trick-or-treating. Since Lexi had a huge crush on him, we decided we would go even though it was something we normally wouldn’t have even done. I was honestly only leaving my house for the candy we were going to get afterwards.

The pointy hat on my head was already annoying me. I wanted to take it off, but there was no way anyone would ever get what I was without it.

I expected to see my dad in the car, ready to drive me to the party. But what I saw was my father looking under the hood, as if he had absolutely no idea what was going on.

This wasn’t going to end well, I was sure.

“You know that auto shop a few blocks away, Jordan?” my father asked once I walked up to him, not even looking away from his car.

“Yeah,” I nodded slowly, waiting to see where this went.

“I want you to go there and buy some oil,” my father now said, reaching in his pocket and pulling out a few bills. I didn’t even check how much he had given me, I just took it. “That’s why the car isn’t running.”

I stared at my father for a second, as if he had spoken another language. He actually wanted me to walk, in the dark, all the way to an auto shop? Sure, it was a few blocks away, and I had to pass my grandma’s house on the way there, but… it was still dark!

But I did as I was told anyway, knowing that this was the only way I could get to the party. As much as I didn’t want to, I went anyway just so I could leave.

The shop wasn’t the biggest place I had ever seen, but I knew that they were going to have what I needed, and that was all that mattered. The sooner I got in and out of there, the better.

“Hello?” I called out, looking throughout the shop for any sign of life. “Is anyone here?”

“Back here,” I heard a voice call out from the back, and I couldn’t help but think that it was actually very familiar. I stepped forward anyway, making my way into the back where the only person seemed to be.

When I saw who was working on a motorcycle only a few feet away from me once I had entered, my heart almost stopped. I thought I was going to faint, or at least run out of the shop and just forget about going to the party.

“Fate is bringing us together, Emery,” Jesse smirked, not even looking up from his bike as he continued to fix it. “What brings you here today?”

“My dad’s car needs oil,” I informed him, crossing my arms over my chest as I waited for him to either laugh at me or help me. “This place is close to my house, so he made me walk here. What are you doing here?”

“This is my uncle’s shop,” Jesse informed me, his eyes and hands never leaving the motorcycle he was working on. “I work here sometimes for extra cash.”

“You’re here and not out trick-or-treating?” I teased, moving closer to see what exactly he was doing. “You so don’t have any Halloween spirit.”

I placed my hands on my hips, bending over to see more clearly. Jesse finally looked over at me, about to say something, but he cut himself off as his eyes went wide.

“What?” I asked, my eyebrows furrowing at him as my hands stayed on my hips. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

Jesse looked me up and down, but then quickly looked away from me and back at the bike. I stood there, really ticked off, waiting for him to answer me.

“I’m fifteen, Emery,” Jesse now continued our conversation from before, looking like he was purposely not trying to look at me. “I’m not a little kid. Only little kids go out trick-or-treating.”

I scowled at him, crossing my arms over my chest. “I’m going to a party, too.”

His demeanor changed. “What?”

“I’m going to a party,” I shrugged, knowing that it was no big deal at all. “My friends and I are going to go to a party for a little while, and then we’re going to go out trick-or-treating. That’s the only part I’m really looking forward to.”

Jesse let out a breath. “You’re just like a little kid.”

“Just tell me where the oil is, will you?” I snapped, really not in the mood for him. My friends were probably already at the party, waiting for me. I’m surprised they hadn’t called me yet. “I really have to get going soon.”

Jesse rolled his eyes, as he turned on the motorcycle to test it. “It’s under that table over there.”

I turned away from him, making my way over to the table where I could see cans of oil underneath it. I bent over, pausing for a moment because I didn’t know how many I was supposed to take. I knew absolutely nothing about cars.

“Shit,” Jesse suddenly cussed, and I heard the motorcycle shut off as I spun around to see what the problem was as he continued to cuss under his breath.

“What’s wrong?” I asked, taking a step toward him as he continued to clutch his wrist. My eyes widened when I saw blood. “Oh, my gosh! You hurt yourself!”

“It’s not like I did it on purpose,” he snapped, grabbing a rag from beside him and placing it on his cut. I quickly jumped over to him, ripping it away from him. He cussed again and looked up at me like I was insane. “Are you trying to make it hurt even more or what? Give it back; I need to stop the blood!”

“Not like this,” I shook my head, throwing the rag with his blood on it on the floor and turning away to look for something better. “That rag’s all dirty. It might stop the blood, but it could get infected or something! It wouldn’t be so much fun making fun of you if you didn’t have a right hand!”

Finding a fresh towel in the bathroom farther back in the room, I grabbed it and quickly made my way back to him. His hand was bleeding badly, and he had a huge gash. I quickly pressed the towel against the wound, Jesse hissing while I did so.

“You’re so stupid,” I sighed, my hand on his as I continued to apply pressure. “Do you even know what you’re doing while you’re fixing these things?”

“Of course I do,” he snapped, trying to pull his hand away, but I wouldn’t let him. “I just… got distracted.”

“By?” I questioned, my eyebrows furrowing at him.

He looked away from me. “Nothing important.”

I rolled my eyes at him, still applying pressure. He was bleeding so badly, and I now had blood on my hands. For some reason, I didn’t feel grossed out. I even felt kind of good for helping him when he was in this kind of situation.

“A towel isn’t going to stop your bleeding,” I told him, removing one of my hands from the towel as I reached for my phone, which was in my pocket. “I need to call an ambulance or something and get you to a hospital. I’m completely useless--”

“You’re not useless,” Jesse blurted before I could even finished.

I swallowed. “I’m calling an ambulance.”

And I did, not even caring if I missed the party or trick-or-treating. I could have always just asked my mom to by me candy when she went to the store, so it wasn’t even a big deal. I really thought that Jesse could have lost his hand if he didn’t get treated, and I knew he wouldn’t have gone to the hospital if I wasn’t there.

So I actually did something good for Jesse Jacobsen, and it kind of felt weird. I guess it was because I was a good person, but that was the only reason I could think of. He was my enemy; shouldn’t I have left him to just bleed? That just didn’t seem right to me.

Jesse Jacobsen was an idiot. That was all I really had to say about this whole situation.

J~J~J~J~J~J~J~J~J~J~J~J~J~J~J~J~J~J~J~J~J~J~J~J~J~J~J~J~J~J~J~J~J~J~J~J~J~J~J~J~J~J

Jesse’s P.O.V.

I didn’t like working in my uncle’s shop, but it was a way to make money, and money was definitely something that my family needed. All of my friends had tons of money, and so did Jordan, so I always felt kind of left out and unworthy whenever the subject of money came up.

I was working on a motorcycle when I heard it, the voice that had been driving me crazy for the past year. Well… it would have been a year the next week.

It was the voice of the girl that I loved.

“Hello?” she called out, and I almost knocked the motorcycle over in shock. The last person I ever expected to see here was her! “Is anyone here?”

“Back here,” I called right back, not even sure of my own voice. I had to clear my throat a few times, but I was pretty sure that it was normal… At least, I hoped it was. I heard her footsteps coming closer, and I quickly turned my attention back toward the bike.

“Fate is bringing us together, Emery,” I smirked when I saw her out of the corner of my eye, not daring to even look in her direction. I just had to work on the bike… It shouldn’t have been that hard. “What brings you here today?”

“My dad’s car needs oil,” she informed me, and I could barely see her out of the corner of my eye. She waited for me to say something, but I didn’t say a word. “This place is close to my house, so he made me walk here. What are you doing here?”

“This is my uncle’s shop,” I shrugged, my eyes and hands never leaving the motorcycle as I continued to work on it. “I work here sometimes for extra cash.”

It wasn’t a lie. I actually wasn’t lying to her this time, and it surprised me a little. I always had to lie to her about why I was always around her, and how I really felt about her. I had to lie about what I did in my free time, and who my friends were. Because she could never know about Hunter and the gang.

“You’re here and not out trick-or-treating?” she asked in a very teasing tone, moving closer to me now. I still didn’t look up at her. “You so don’t have any Halloween spirit.”

I couldn’t take it anymore. I finally looked up at her, about to say something about how I was too old to go trick-or-treating, but what she was wearing soon cut me off. My eyes going wide, all I could focus on was how short her dress was and how low cut it was.

This… was not cool. And it wasn’t fair. She just waltzes in here dressed like that and expects me to do nothing about it? Why did her parents even let her leave the house dressed like that, anyway? She was only fifteen! But in all reality… I was pretty sure more than half the girls at the party she was going to were going to be dressed just like her.

I would have thought she had gone out dressed as a prostitute if it wasn’t for the hat on her head. Her hands were on her hips, and she looked so angry, just like she always did. It was absolutely ridiculous how sexy she looked dressed up like this, and there was absolutely nothing I could do about it. I was supposed to hate her.

“What?” she asked, her eyebrows furrowing at me as her hands stayed on her hips. If only my hands could be on her hips… “Why are you looking at me like that?”

I couldn’t help but look her up and down, hoping that she didn’t notice. I looked away from her quickly and focused back at the bike. I just had to completely ignore the fucking goddess standing a few feet away from me, visibly very pissed off.

“I’m fifteen, Emery,” I now continued our conversation from before, forcing my eyes to stay on the bike as I bit the inside of my lip uncomfortably. If she came any closer, I wasn’t going to be able to control myself. A year of pissing her off would go down the toilet if she came any closer. “I’m not a little kid. Only little kids go out trick-or-treating.”

Obviously, I was still pissing her off. “I’m going to a party, too.”

I suddenly grew angry at the thought of any other guys seeing her dressed like this. That was not about to happen.

“What?” I could help but snap.

“I’m going to a party,” she shrugged, as if it was no big deal at all. But it was a big deal; it was a huge one. No other guy was going to see Jordan like this but me. I wouldn’t allow it. “My friends and I are going to go to a party for a little while, and then we’re going to go out trick-or-treating. That’s the only part I’m really looking forward to.”

I let out a very angry breath, feeling like I wanted to punch something. “You’re just like a little kid.”

“Just tell me where the oil is, will you?” she finally snapped, and I still didn’t look at her. This girl… drove me insane. And I didn’t know if it was good or bad. “I really have to get going soon.”

I rolled my eyes as I turned the motorcycle on to see if it was working properly now. “It’s under that table over there.”

She turned away from me, just like she always did, as she made her way over to the table with the cans of oil underneath it. I looked over at her just as she bent over, pausing for a reason that I didn’t know. But that didn’t matter, because all I could focus on was the fact that Jordan wasn’t wearing shorts underneath her dress.

I wanted to rip that dress off. Right then and there.

She had to have been doing this on purpose. She had to have known how I really felt about her, and she was doing this on purpose to mess with me. That was the only thing that could explain why this was happening right then! I was not lucky enough to just be able to see this…

This girl was going to kill me, either intentionally or unintentionally. It was ridiculous what she did to me and how she made me feel.

Before I even knew it, I felt a sharp pain in my hand. I snapped by head to look at it, my eyes widening when I saw blood.

“Shit,” I swore, and I shut the motorcycle off with my free hand. “Fuck, fuck, fuck. God damn it. Shit!”

“What’s wrong?” Jordan asked, taking a step toward me as I clutched onto my wrist. Her eyes widened like saucers when she saw my hand. “Oh, my gosh! You hurt yourself!”

“It’s not like I did it on purpose,” he snapped, trying to keep the asshole act up as I grabbed a rag from beside me and placing it on my cut. It might have been dirty, but that didn’t matter to me right then. Jordan suddenly pounced, ripping it away from my cut.

“Fuck,” I cussed again, looking at her as if she was insane. What the hell was she trying to do? “Are you trying to make it hurt even more or what? Give it back; I need to stop the blood!”

“Not like this.” She shook her head, throwing the rag with my blood on it away from her before turning away to look for something else. “That rag’s all dirty. It might stop the blood, but it could get infected or something! It wouldn’t be so much fun making fun of you if you didn’t have a right hand!”

At the thought of losing my hand, I cringed. That would definitely not be fun…

She made her way into the bathroom in the back of the room, quickly coming back over to me. My hand was actually bleeding really badly, and the gash was bigger than I thought it was. The only time I had seen this much blood was when someone got shot…

Jordan quickly pressed the towel against the large gash, and I couldn’t help but hiss as she did.

“You’re so stupid,” she sighed, her hand on mine as she continued to apply pressure. “Do you even know what you’re doing while you’re fixing these things?”

“Of course I do,” I snapped, not even meaning to do so again as I tried to pull my hand away, but she wouldn’t let go of me. Honestly, that made me feel kind of good… “I just… got distracted.”

“By?” she questioned, her eyebrows furrowing at him.

Yeah, like I was going to tell her. She’d probably slap me and then leave me to bleed. I wasn’t about to push her away any more than I already had.

I looked away from her. “Nothing important,” I murmured, as if it was the truth.

She only rolled her eyes at me, not questioning it as she applied more pressure. I was glad that she didn’t ask me anymore questions, because I’d most likely not have the answer to any of them. I’d just have to lie and make a bunch of ridiculous excuses.

She had my blood on her hands, and I felt bad. But I couldn’t help but wonder why she wasn’t acting completely disgusted by having my blood on her hands.

“A towel isn’t going to stop your bleeding,” she told me, removing one of her hands from mine and the towel as she reached for my phone, which was in the pocket of her costume. “I need to call an ambulance or something and get you to a hospital. I’m completely useless--”

“You’re not useless,” I ended up blurting before she could even finish.

I was a complete idiot. How could she not notice how I really felt about her? She was apparently the smartest in her grade… How could she be so stupid?

She audibly swallowed. “I’m calling an ambulance.”

But honestly, I wished that she wouldn’t, because then she would have had to let go of my hand. She was finally holding my hand, and even though it was bleeding, I loved it. I never wanted her to let go.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

One of the lines that Jordan says in this chapter is a line from chapter thirteen of There's a Thin Line Between Love and Hate... ;)

I've complained about my school ignoring the drama department, but it's just gotten ridiculous. We had our first show yesterday, and it was a disastor. The cast and I have seen and heard this show hundreds of times, and yet we were laughing our asses off in the back while the audience was completely silent during the entire thing. They would just turn and talk to each other and go on their phones. -___- I'm just glad that scene I was in was supposed to be dramatic and not funny.

And someone was actually video taping it, and they put it on the school news. Everyone in the drama class was literally mortified because the preview made us all look like crazy people. My friend and I, who's also in drama with me, just sat like idiots while the news played and everyone around us just laughed... Of course they had to use every scene I was in for the preview. -___-

Okay. So sorry for ranting! It's just... I want to be an actress, and the school I go to, like... doesn't care.

Please COMMENT, VOTE, and FAN! :)