Title: Only her
Author: Henra
Email: HenraM@tuxedomask.com
Rated: G
Here’s chapter two. Standard disclaimers apply.
Oh, yeah...you might find that I messed around with the last names
of the characters a bit...*giggles* See if you can find what’s so familiar
about them. ^^
And, yes, this chapter's sort of long...comparing it to the other one.
Whooooo! I finally finished moving my site! Everyone--go check it out
the new EVERYTHING at http://www6.ewebcity.com/moonieround !!!
Chapter two
Serena felt queasy in her outfit. She tried to imagine that all
the people who were staring at her right then were admiring her outfit, but
that didn’t last long. They weren’t SMILING-they were STARING. *Shouldn’t wear
this outfit today, definitely shouldn’t have.* Serena casually glanced around.
*Where is Raye? Or Mina? Or Amy? Or Lita? Oh, god...* she was so nervous she
started to sweat. Serena almost passed by her locker, but she snapped in time.
The only thing she was actually seeing was the blue locker, she didn’t dare
look at anyone around her.
“Will they stop looking at me already?” she muttered to herself
while working on the combination with her trembling fingers. “It’s not like
no one ever wore this kind of outfit before.” Serena sighed while she paused
for a moment, thinking deeply. Why did she wear this outfit in the first place,
anyway? She didn’t like wearing it since the moment she tried it on, so why was
she wearing the same showy outfit she wore two days ago?
Fine. So she wore it because she wanted to capture attention.
Attention from this one guy, actually...by the name of Darien. Unfortunately,
he wasn’t anywhere in sight right now. “Maybe I didn’t look hard enough,”
Serena mumbled hopefully as she stood up straight, and nonchalantly shot
a glance around the crowd.
Immediately, she turned her attention back toward the inside of her
locker, because she saw him. He was gaping at her, open-mouthed. Serena closed
her eyes for a moment, willing her heart to return to its normal rate.
There, she had done it. She had captured his attention. But was it
good attention, or bad attention?
She turned away again.
I quickly shut my jaw. I didn’t even realize how silly I must have
looked until she turned away from me. There it went, all the courage and
determination of speaking to her was gone in an instant. No girl had ever gotten
my interest this much. I looked at the clock on the wall above the lockers, and
decided to get moving. I wasn’t going to just stand there and look at a girl
who obviously wasn’t interested in me...ALL my dignity would be gone then.
Why did she turn away? She hadn’t turn away that time when I smiled
at her...she even smiled back. So why did she turn away this time? Well, whatever
the reason was, I sure wasn’t going to smile at her again. Next time I see her,
I was either going to go talk to her, or not do anything to her at all. NOTHING.
I turned and walked toward homeroom, looking around for one of my
close buddies to talk to. Why couldn’t I just use my normal way of talking and
approaching girls? I stopped near the fountain and took a drink.
“You done yet?”
I was so startled by the sound I almost bumped my mouth against the
wall. I whirled around, eyes wide. “God, Josh, what are you doing? You scared me.”
“I can see that,” Josh answered with a smirk. He started to walk, and
I followed, while wiping my mouth with the back of my right hand.
“Did you see her?” I asked abruptly, knowing that Josh definitely knew
whom I was talking about.
“Serena? You betcha. She was hot, huh? It’s so weird how a simple
outfit can make her become so popular in an instant.” Josh replied, giving me a
puzzled look. He concentrated on walking straight, which, I could see, took some
work, since he looked like he hadn’t slept all night.
“Yeah.” I didn’t know what else to answer.
We turned and walked into homeroom. I smiled at some guys and sat on
top of my desk. Josh sat down on his seat, which was just in front of my desk.
He turned around so we could talk. “What do you think of her?” he asked.
I shrugged, a smile stretching across my lips. “She’s hot, if
that’s what you are asking.”
Josh grinned at me. “Isn’t that obvious? I mean, seriously, how do
you think she’s like, despite her looks and all?”
I hesitated. “I have no idea,” I answered flatly. But I’d loved
to. I really, really would love to know how she was really like.
“You know, I forgot to do the math assignment yesterday, so I
guess I have to put off the chatting and do it in homeroom,” Josh told me,
while sighing. “I just so want to talk to Anna Maria.”
I grinned, shaking my head. Josh had been in love with Anna Maria
for as long as I could remember, and still, until now, hadn’t gotten the
chance to talk to her. I feel pretty sorry for the guy, he was just too shy,
you can’t blame him. But then again, I wasn’t that much of a risk taker, either.
Even though I felt sorry, I couldn’t help but add, “Like you would
ever have the courage.”
Josh shot me a killer look. “Look who’s talking, Mr. I’m-so-in-
love-with-a-blonde-girl-I-don’t-even-know-the-name-of.”
“Hey, I know her name now, okay? It’s Serena.”
“Yeah, after someone told you. You would never have the courage
to even ask for her name,” Josh said seriously. We stopped near the door.
I sighed. “I still haven’t got the time to find out which grade
she is in...probably junior.” I shot a look around the classroom as I walked
in. There were couples who were so involved in talking to each other, it was
like no one else existed. Their eyes never landed anywhere else except in
each other’s. I sighed. I wish I had someone like that.
“... ...sophomore,” Josh was saying.
I turned toward him, not quite catching what he was saying.
“What?”
“I said, from what I’ve heard, Serena is a sophomore,” Josh repeated
while putting down his backpack on the chair. He pulled out a piece of paper,
a pen, and then sat down.
“How do you know?” I asked, confused. Josh wasn’t doing a little
personal check-up thing on Serena, was he? Because if he was, it meant he
liked her. And frankly, I couldn’t afford to have a competition right now...
especially competing with one of my best friends.
Josh shrugged noncommittally. “I’ve heard of her from people’s
mouths.”
I wanted to ask more, but a girl started flirtatiously talking to
him. I sighed, a lopsided grin spreading across my face...I knew when to leave
him alone to chat with a hot girl. I sat down on my chair, and leaned on my
backpack, not bothering to take it off. Serena...Serena...Serena...that name
stayed on my mind. I wonder how many guys she actually attracted already by
wearing that outfit...
“My god, I can’t believe the expression on his face! Raye...WHY
did we even think of this outfit for me?” Serena asked, her face pained. She
was sure now, that he was disgusted with her. He must think that she was a slut,
a show-off. Serena groaned as she put her face down on her desk.
“Serena...why are you sad, for god’s sake? Can you BELIEVE how many
heads you’ve turned?” Raye put a hand on the back of her friend’s neck, shaking
her.
“They were STARING, Raye, STARING,” Serena lifted her head, causing
Raye to pull back her hand. She sighed. “Besides, I don’t want their attention...
I want,” she bit her lip, “Darien’s only.”
Raye couldn’t help but grin when she heard that. “Darien? And, let
me tell you, Serena, you DEFINITELY captured his attention!”
“But, Raye...I didn’t see any admiration on his face! Just shock!
Utter shock,” Serena answered, as she pushed aside a blonde lock that was
falling down to her eyes.
“Well...maybe he is shocked,” Raye replied, “Shocked that a outfit
like that can make you so gorgeous.” She grinned harder.
Serena giggled helplessly at how silly her friend was. “You are
impossible, you know that?”
Raye pretended to bow. “Thank you, madam.”
Serena let out another giggle as she playfully slapped Raye’s arm.
“Serena?”
The voice startled both her and Raye. Serena turned toward where
the voice was coming from, and couldn’t hold back a gasp. It was that guy that
she had mercilessly pointed her finger at, that guy who was picking on the
smaller boy. She didn’t think, even for a minute, that he would try to talk to
her...unless, of course, he had come to give her a piece of his mind, or maybe,
Serena gulped, a piece of his fist, too. “I...urr, hello.”
He smiled, surprising Serena. “Hi.”
Serena narrowed her eyes in suspicion, remembering how cruel he could
be. “What do you want? And how do you know my name?”
“The name’s Rod, and I did some research on you,” he answered, that
smile still pasted on his face.
Serena stiffened. Research? What? “Fine, Rod...what do you want?” she
coolly, looking up at him.
“I just wanted to tell you...what a great point you’ve made the other
day in the cafeteria,” Rod told her, grabbing a nearby chair and sitting down.
Serena could feel her body tense. She didn’t like the way this was
going. “Oh, really?” she said dryly, “I am so glad.”
“Look, Serena--I know what I did the other day, and to be honest, I was
very surprised that a girl like you would just, I dunno, ACCUSE me in public, in
front of everyone. I was very pissed off, let me tell you that--” he said, his
eyes becoming darker by the second.
“And if you think that you are just going to sit there and start to
pour all your anger down on me right now, you are dead wrong.” Serena started to
get up, while giving Raye a look.
Rod pulled her down again with just a tug at her arm. “Sit, Serena,
let me finish.”
Serena crossed her arms in front of her chest, while watching Raye
slowly walked to another empty seat. “Go.”
“Like I said, I was very surprised. But...I wasn’t feeling angry
with you, though I had no idea why. Probably because...well, because no one had
ever done that to me before, and I feel...intrigued.”
“Intrigued?” Serena repeated, not believing her ears.
“Yeah.” Rod snorted, rolling his eyes, “And, well, I’d really like
to get to know you better, so what do you say, wanna go to a party of my
friend’s with me?”
Serena didn’t answer. She had absolutely no idea what to say. She
expected him to yell, to shout, to curse, whatever, but she did NOT expect him
to ask her out. She stared, her mouth dry.
“So, what do you think?” he asked again as he inched closer.
Serena automatically fell back in her chair. She sighed. “I don’t
know, Rod--you have to admit that I don’t have a very good impression of you.”
Rod laughed. “Yeah, I know, and that’s why I want to change that.”
Serena looked at him, smiling back. “Let me think about it, okay?”
She held her breath.
“Of course.” He got up, and grinned, much to Serena’s relieve. “Just
give me an answer before the end of this week, okay? Since his party is on Saturday.”
Serena nodded, also getting up. Rod then shoved his hands into his
pockets and walked out of the classroom. “Oh, my god...” she mumbled, falling
back down on her chair.
Raye quickly came over and sat down on the chair where Rod sat
before. “What happened? What did he say to you? Why in the world are you so pale?”
“He...asked me out,” Serena replied lifelessly.
“He--what?”
“He asked me to a party of his friend’s at Saturday night.” Serena
looked at Raye, serious. “Do you think I should say yes?”
Raye looked thoughtful. She plopped her elbow on Serena’s desk, and
put her chin on her hand. “I don’t know, Sere...do you want to go?”
“Raye, a few days ago I practically humiliated the guy in front of
everyone, and I thought nothing of him but a stupid creep who can’t help but
makes fun of people. And now, he’s asked me out! What do you think I should say?!?”
Serena exclaimed.
“Serena...he is a creep...but he’s also...popular. You are new at
this school, so you probably should consider going to this party with him--just
think of it as a way to meet more people. You DO want to get to know more people,
right?” Raye looked at her watch. “Bell’s going to ring any minute...I’ve got to
claim my seat over there at the corner...” she gave Serena a serious look before
standing up, “Just think about it, okay?” Then she walked around the rows of desks
and chairs to her seat.
*God. Raye’s probably right. This IS a way for me to meet new people,
and becoming friends with them. Rod IS popular...but...man, that Darien’s popular,
too--why couldn’t he ask me out?* Serena shook her head, sighing at how impossible
she was being. *He doesn’t even know who you are, stupid, except this girl he
might have accidentally stared and smiled at one time, and a show-off everyone’s
so shocked about, so why are you even THINKING that he might ask you out? Better
stick to reality.* She stared at the front where the teacher was walking in, right
as the bell rang. *Maybe I should say yes...*
“You’re kidding, right? I mean, how can Rod, of all people--”
“I’m not kidding, Mina,” Serena interrupted, sighing, “You saw the
scene at the cafeteria the other day, right?”
“No, but I’ve heard about it,” Mina answered.
“Well, anyway...it’s impossible to think that he would ever ask me out,
I know, but he did. To this party of his friend or something,” Serena told her
friends, while they were walking home together. She glanced at Amy and Lita, and
she could tell they both were pretty shocked, too.
“So are you going to say yes or not?” Amy asked quietly, staring at
Serena with round eyes.
“I--don’t know. But I’m considering yes,” answered Serena truthfully.
Raye nodded. “Yeah, you SHOULD consider it. In fact, I think you should
tell him that. Come on, Serena, it is a great way for you to make more friends in
this school.”
“Now that I think about it...” Lita began, “I agree with Raye. You
should say yes, Serena. After all, what’s to lose?”
“He isn’t...I mean, Rod didn’t--do anything to you, did he? I mean--well,
I dunno, I thought he would be really angry with you for what you did, Serena,”
Amy suddenly said, an amused smile stretching her lips as she reflected back to
that day.
“You know what--he was nice. I mean, he didn’t yell or hit me anytime
when I saw him, or when he saw me. And today, when he asked me--he was far too nice.
At first, he was all telling me that he was pissed, but then he said that he
wanted to get to know me more--and then, he just blurted out about the party thing,
and asked me to go with him.” Serena stopped walking when they turned around the
corner. “This is where I live,” she told her friends.
The four girls all turned at the same time to look at the whitish pink
house that stood before them. “Wow...that’s so...grand,” Mina said breathlessly.
Serena stared at her friends. “What’s so interesting about my house?”
“House?” Lita pulled Serena’s hand, “that’s a mansion!”
“What does your Dad do for a living?” Amy asked, sounding very curious.
Serena’s mouth hanged open for a few seconds before any sound came out.
“I--” she looked back at her house, and bit her bottom lip, “you guys wanna come inside?”
“Would I!” Mina exclaimed, coming closer to Serena, smiling happily.
Serena smiled back, while looking at the others. “What about you?”
Raye looked down at the ground, thinking for a moment. “Yeah...I don’t
think I can pass up the chance of a tour of a real mansion.” She winked.
“I don’t think I can either,” Lita answered with a huge grin as she
adjusted the strap of her backpack on her shoulder.
Amy appeared to be debating something in her mind. “Well...I don’t have
a lot of homework today, so I guess I can go...but, there’s that extra credit sheet
that Mr. Reynino said that we could do--”
“Amy!” Serena, Raye, Lita, and Mina exclaimed at the same time.
Amy looked startled, but then smiled softly. “I can probably stay until
5 or something.”
Serena grinned and she began walking toward her house, her four friends
behind her. “My Mom is always home during this hour, and Sammy is probably home
already, too.” Then, looking at her friends’ confused faces, she added, “Sammy is
my little brother...my little ANNOYING brother.”
They stood in front of the front door, and Serena knocked on it.
Her mother, Ilene appeared and greeted them with a huge smile. “You must
be Serena’s friends...come on in.” She stepped aside as the five girls walked in.
Mina sucked in her breath as she took a first look around what was displayed
before her. Beautiful framed family pictures hanged on the wall, flowers in
exquisite vases decorating the rooms, clean and soft carpet underneath her feet,
and most of all...the faint smell of spring flowers.
“Are you guys hungry?” Serena asked, getting a glass of water at the
long, narrow table before the big kitchen. She looked at her friends expectantly.
“I’m not...Serena, can we go upstairs?” Raye asked, her voice small
and eager.
Serena laughed. She put her glass on the counter with a clink, and
led the way upstairs, while taking her backpack off her shoulder and dragging it
on the floor behind her. She opened the second door to the left when they reached
the second floor. Once inside, Serena threw her backpack on her bed. She extended
her arms above her, and tilted one hip, facing her friends. “Welcome to my room,
girlfriends.”
Raye smiled and fell back on Serena’s bed, causing pillows to fall
down to the floor. She sat up again, and rolled her eyeballs around, taking in
everything around her. “My god, you must be rich.”
“Don’t think that, Raye...I’m a normal girl.” Serena bent to take off
her shoes and socks, then threw them in the closet.
“Sure, sure...” Lita went to Serena’s dressing table, and couldn’t
hold back a gasp. “How many different kind of sprays do you have, girl?”
Serena flushed. “I like sprays...and I like all those kind of smells.”
“Mind if I sprayed some?” Mina asked, taking a greenish colored bottle.
Serena shook her head, smiling. “No, go ahead. Oh, and that bottle
you’re holding--that’s the spring mixed with rosy sort of smell whatever. Really
complicated, but nice.”
Mina held the bottle to her neck, and pushed down the sprayer. “Whoo!”
she exclaimed, smelling deeply into the air around her. “This smells so good! I’ve
got to buy one of these sooner or later.”
“Come on, you guys...let’s talk about something,” Raye suddenly said,
as she crossed her legs in front of her in pretzel style. She made eye contact
with each of the girls, and then smiled. “Remember, Lita, the last time we were
at your house, discussing about our crushes--and then the phone rang and it turned
out you had to go?”
Lita nodded along with Mina and Amy. Serena just looked at them,
curious and confused at the same time. She crossed her arms in front of her,
waiting for Raye to tell her everything.
“Well--let’s finish them right now! And since we’ve got a new girl to
dig into,” Raye winked at Serena, “we should probably start...right about now.”
She then moved over so Serena could sit next to her.
Lita sat down on the floor space in front of Serena’s bed, and looked
up at Serena and Raye. Amy was leaning against the window in a comfortable position,
her eyes sparkling with hidden excitement. Mina cleared out Serena’s dressing table,
pulled herself up so that she was sitting on it, and put her feet on the chair in
front.
“You guys better tell me ALL of your past, present crushes...” Serena
said...
“WHAT??? You were actually in love with that-that HAIRY
guy?” Raye exclaimed, completely in shock.
“His name was Henry, Raye...and why are you so shocked? He WAS really
cute, fun, and nice and such,” Mina replied, calm.
“But-but,” Lita began, surprised as well, “he was really...HAIRY! I
mean, all those HAIR, for god’s sake!”
“Be quiet!” Mina exclaimed, clearly annoyed. She sighed. “It was just
a normal crush, okay? It was, like, a year ago.”
Amy held back a giggle. “You think he’s still that hairy?”
With that, all of them burst into laughter, including Serena. She
didn’t know who Henry was, of course, but it was really fun hearing her friends
talking about him.
“All right, all right!” Mina said, after everyone had calmed down.
“Enough torture for me. Let’s move on to our next victim, shall we?” Her blue eyes
sparkled with excitement as she slowly, slowly let her eyes travel to Raye.
Serena felt her friend stiffen, and laughed. “Poor Raye...but, I’m not
offering any shoulder to cry on! Come on, girls.”
Mina nodded enthusiastically. She opened her mouth, but Lita interrupted
with a question of her own before Mina could say anything. “Tell us about the very
first crush that you had when you first came to this High School.”
“Guys...can we...can you ask something else?” Raye asked, her voice odd
as she forced a little laugh, “I’m not exactly comfortable talking about that.”
“Oh, come on, Raye!” Lita urged, grinning. “What’s so embarrassing
about it? It’s JUST a crush...”
Serena leaned forward and tapped a finger on Raye’s back, casuing Raye
to turn to look at her. She smiled. “Tell us, Raye...I don’t even know the guy,
whoever this guy is you had a crush on...”
Raye swallowed and turned around, her back facing Serena once again.
She tried to ignore the curious stares of the others, but found herself giving in.
*So what IS the harm, anyway? It’s not like it’s going to ruin me and Serena’s
friendship.* She licked her lips, and inhaled. “My first crush when I came here...was
on Darien. Darien Chibon.”
For a moment there was silence.
Then Mina gasped, and a huge grin spread across her face. “Get out of
here! No way--you were in love with Darien before? How come you never told us?”
“Mina...I wasn’t in love with him; I just liked him. Besides, he
didn’t even know I existed at that time,” Raye answered carefully. She couldn’t
help but toss a glance behind her to check out Serena’s reaction. Her friend’s
face, unfortunately, was expressionless. Totally blank, and Raye couldn’t tell
how she thought of her old-crush on Darien.
“What do you mean Darien didn’t know that you existed? It was true
right then, I guess, but not anymore, right? I mean, you two got to know each
other last summer when you worked together in that camp thingy,” Lita said,
pointing a finger at Raye, winking. She blew some hair out of her eyes and shook
her head.
“I--” Raye began, but was interrupted by a soft voice.
“You liked Darien?” Serena asked, her voice sounded small and
questioning, “why didn’t you tell me?” Her question was simple, but both her
and Raye knew the depth of it.
“Well, in case you haven’t noticed,” Mina said, still grinning hard,
“she didn’t tell any one of us.”
Serena stayed silent. Oh, man. This was bad. This was bad, bad, bad.
Raye had liked Darien? Did she still have feelings, even a tiny little bit,
for him? Suddenly, Serena wished that the whole crush-talking thing didn’t happen
at all. How was she later going to go for Darien when she knew that one of her
close friends liked him before?
“Okay, then...I answered that question, and so we move on!” Raye
then exclaimed, perhaps a little bit too loudly.
“So what, you think I should just go ahead and ask her out?” I asked,
moving aside so I wouldn’t bump into the big gray pole. Andrew walked beside me,
backpack over one shoulder, and walked effortlessly through the big crowd. One
thing I liked about being popular was that no matter how big a crowd you were
walking through, people always seemed to move aside to let you pass when they
see you coming over. I like that--and I’m not being full of myself--I just like that.
Andrew nodded. “You better ask her out before someone else does. But
then again, after her ‘display’ on Monday, don’t be surprised if a line of
guys already asked her.” He smirked a little, stopping to get a drink of water.
A whole line of guys, huh? It really didn’t surprise me--Serena WAS
breathtakingly beautiful. I sighed, and ran my left hand through my hair. Sure,
I wanted to ask her out...but it wasn’t that easy. I mean, how embarrassing it
would be if I walked up to her, asked her out, while the whole time, she was
searching in her mind for my name? I still had my popularity to consider, you
know.
Andrew gave me a strange look, and sighed. “Hey, look...why don’t you
just ask her to that party of Matt’s on Saturday night? That won’t hurt...just
say that you noticed her around and thought she’d like to have an escort to this
great party. A great chance for her to make friends, you know, being new and all.”
He elbowed me.
I thought about it for a minute. Yeah, that was possible. That was
cool. She needed someone to show her around, introduce her to people...and I could
be that someone. It could work. Now, if only I could gather up the courage...
“Hey, I got something to show you. It’s for Rita...and I know you don’t
think like a girl,” he grinned, “but just tell me your opinions, okay?”
I shrugged. Probably some other expensive necklace or bracelet he
got for her. I knew when I see it, I would just nod and murmur “Nice.” Andrew
was always careful on these kind of things...choosing the precise one out of all
the good ones. I didn’t ever need to disagree with him on anything he bought. I
went with him once to a nearby store, and never went with him to any place to buy
stuff since. His way for perfection just made me sick. No offense to him, though...
he was a great guy. I was just not that much of a caring-deeply person.
“So...since you brought up the party, you are going with Rita, I presume?”
I asked, even though knowing the exact answer.
Andrew nodded with a goofy grin. “I asked her yesterday on the phone,
and boy, was she psyched about it.”
“You are, too, I can tell.”
The grin widened on his face. “That obvious?”
“That obvious,” I answered matter-of-factly.
The smile still was on his face, but it lowered a few watts. We passed
by some familiar kids, and they waved to us. I nodded back, not really caring.
Since it was still about ten minutes until class began, we headed toward our usual
hangout place--the walled grass area to the left of the school’s front door.
I brushed past giggling girls, big, huge chunk of guys...and finally,
when I was about to reach our destination point, I saw her, or rather, I felt her.
Serena.
She was leaning back against the lockers by the front door, clutching
her books in front of her chest, looking up at the guy standing close to her.
Rod.
He had his left hand on the lockers behind Serena, and he was so close
to her, his chest was almost touching with her books. I felt something inside me,
and at that moment, I didn’t really care how much bigger he was than me. Just one
look at his position with Serena, I wanted to punch him out.
I was walking toward them when I suddenly stopped, and sighed sadly.
If Serena was looking uncomfortable or something, I had a great reason to tell
the teachers why I punched Rod...but here, she looked like she was actually...happy.
That she was enjoying his attention. Besides, I wasn’t known as a guy who easily
smacked my fist against any guy for no reason.
I sighed, silently scolding myself for almost doing something beyond
stupidity. Who was I kidding, anyway? So far, I didn’t think Serena even knew
who I was, except this totally goofy guy who always gawks at her open-mouthed. I
turned around, and found Andrew looking confusedly between something--or should I
say, someone--and me. I shook my head slightly, hoping to signal him that it was
nothing.
It WAS nothing. It was nothing from the beginning; it was going to
be nothing forever. I mean, seriously, how could I ever catch an attention from a
girl like that?
I wonder how Rod did it.
Probably by annoying her first.
Hmm...why did I care, anyway?
Serena could feel her heart thumping against her chest, and she
managed a small smile at the big guy looking down at her. “Rod...what’s up?”
Rod shrugged as a sly grin spread across his face. “Just wondered
if you have an answer for me.” His voice sounded smooth yet Serena could hear
just a little bit of nervousness.
“I-I have been thinking about it, yes, but I don’t know if I’m ready
to give you a yes or no answer yet, Rod...” Serena answered, choosing her words
carefully. It was true. Who knew if this Rod guy was friendly or dangerous? Or
he was just putting up all this apologetic act? Serena did not want to have
anything to do with him just yet after that faithful scene in the cafeteria.
She still wondered why he wasn’t angry, and for some reason, she just didn’t
believe the “you intrigue me” part.
“It’s been two days already, Serena,” Rod dropped his hand from the
lockers, and sighed impatiently. “You will only have one more day to think about
it.” He raised an eyebrow.
“I know, I know. It’s just that--” *I want another guy who doesn’t
even know who I am to ask me out, not you.* Serena completed in her mind, biting
her lip hard to keep those words from escaping her mouth.
“Look, Serena...I’m not trying to pressure you into anything. Don’t go
with me just because you think I’m going to beat you up if you don’t, okay? Go
with me because--well, because you want to,” Rod said seriously.
Serena didn’t know what to say. Want to? God, she disliked him just a
few days ago, and now he was asking if she WANTED to go out with him? For a
moment, she almost told him about her troubled feelings, but another look at his
sincere face, she couldn’t bring herself to say anything.
The second period bell rang, but Rod didn’t budge, and neither did
Serena. She looked at him, and noticed that his eyes were a light color of gray.
He had a strong jaw and high cheekbones, with a tall nose and dark eyebrows.
His hair was light brown, although some were highlighted dark blonde by the sun.
Serena could tell that he liked going outdoors. Rod wasn’t ugly--he could even
pass for handsome, but he wasn’t the type Serena usually went for. For one
thing, his whole build was too big.
Finally, Rod looked at the watch on his left hand, and sighed. “I
need to get to class, my teacher has a very unreal temper.”
Serena nodded, moving the books in her arms. “Me, too--I mean, I
have to get to class.” She hesitantly turned toward her right, but felt his
eyes staring at her. She knew she had to say something. She turned her head
slightly, “I’ll give you an answer tomorrow, okay?”
Rod just nodded, gave her a small smile, and went upstairs.
Serena watched as his figure faded, and breathed a sigh of relief.
She felt tense when she was with him...another reason why she hated his big build.
He could easily get her all bruised if he liked, even though she knew that a guy
wouldn’t easily hit some girl. Serena sighed, forced herself to relax, and started
to walk toward her class.
But not before she noticed Darien.
There he was, back facing her, leaning on his left side on the lockers
about 30 feet in front of her, talking to a blonde haired guy. Serena could
instantly feel her pulse speeding up, and for a moment, was frozen in her place.
She had intended to go to class, but now, she didn’t know whether she should
walk straight pass him or just turn and make a big circle around to room 142.
*Stupid. He doesn’t even know you, so what does it matter if you
walk pass him.* Serena thought to herself. *Well, of course, unless he watches
you while you walk, which if you notice, will give you a pair of weak legs and
malfunction lungs.* She wiped her hands on the sides of her pants, and decided to
go. “Just keep your gaze straight, and go already,” She murmured impatiently. God,
it was pathetic how she was acting around him. He was just a normal, drop-dead
gorgeous guy.
She remembered on that day when he had stared straight at her, and by
the lockers, where he smiled at her...instantly, she could feel her legs going weak.
Too bad none of those was happening again...he didn’t do them anymore--well,
unless, he couldn’t catch her--or, just didn’t bother to try to catch her. *What
am I thinking?* Serena shook her head, hoping to get rid of these thoughts.
But now, it was pretty clear that she should just go ahead and walk.
Serena took a deep breath, kept her gaze straight, and walked forward,
without glancing anywhere else once.
Oh my god. This sandwich was so delicious.
I took a huge bite, and I must say, it really did something to my
hungry stomach.
“YOU KNOW WHAT I JUST HEARD, Darien--”
The voice was right next to my ear, and the sudden pat on my shoulder
with it made me nearly threw my sandwich out of my hand. I let out a low gasp
and turned to see a grinning Josh standing next to me. I sighed in annoyance.
“Josh, don’t ever do that again.”
Josh shrugged, and told the red-haired girl sitting next to me to
move. The girl shot a look at me, and reluctantly stood up. Josh--he was never
polite. He sat down, and nodded to several other guys sitting around us. They
nodded back. Then Josh looked at me, “You know that blonde babe, Serena?”
“Shhhh--” I shushed him, glancing around, hoping that his voice wasn’t
loud enough for other people to hear. “What about her?” I asked, my voice lowered.
“Well...” Josh said quietly, “rumor has it that Rod Jeffkin asked her
to the party on Saturday night.”
I felt as if all the air got sucked out of me. Which was really
un-understandable, since I didn’t even know Serena that well. But it was like--like
I had a sort of connection to this girl...and I felt like before I could ask her
out, no one else could. But someone already had. And ROD, of all people! The
guy Serena had totally humiliated the other day. I couldn’t believe it.
“But don’t worry,” Josh then told me, seeing my expression, “I
don’t think Serena has a very nice impression of Rod, if you know what I mean.
She wouldn’t easily say yes.”
I nodded numbly. Snap out of it, Darien! I shouted at myself, but
couldn’t follow it. Come on--really, was I THAT attracted to Serena? I didn’t
even do as much as say ONE word to her yet, for god’s sake!
“My God...Rod--” Josh let out a huge breath of air, “it never
occurred to me that ROD, out of all guys, would be the first one to ask Serena
out. I mean,” he looked at me thoughtfully, “he hardly ever shows any interest
for a girl.”
“Except now,” I replied bitterly.
Suddenly, I was horrified. Josh said that the chance of Serena
saying yes wasn’t that big, but what if, what if she said yes? I was definitely
going to the party...oh my god, what was I going to do if I saw Serena with Rod
there?
I put my sandwich down, and pushed the lunch tray away. I stood up,
the chair scraping the floor noisily as it was pushed back, and Josh quickly
stood also. I tried a smile, “Hey--if she likes him, what can I do?” I gave Josh a
pat on the shoulder, then headed toward the door of the cafeteria.
Amazing.
Totally amazing...how I felt about a girl I only had seen a couple of
times.
I usually got up around seven every morning, but today--I was awoken
by my “late” alarm clock at 7:30. Sleepily, I threw on a pair of baggy jeans and
a white dress shirt, and didn’t even bother to comb my hair. Boy, was Andrew
gonna be surprised--he only thought Mondays were my worst mornings.
I barely had time to grab a muffin for breakfast before I had to leave
for school, and when I did arrive, I only took a few steps within the front door
before the bell rang.
Homeroom, first period I could live through--but second period was a
total disaster. For one thing, Rod was talking to his friends, loud enough for
everyone to hear, about Serena. He said that he was waiting for her to give an
answer, and that he was pretty confident she would say yes. I just slipped
quietly to my seat, without so much as saying hellos to my friends.
On the way to third period, I caught my reflection in a glass door.
Tousled hair, two top shirt buttons unbuttoned, wrinkled, too baggy jeans. I
shrugged. I rolled the two sleeves of the shirt up to my elbow...I hated seeing
myself in long-sleeves.
I looked at my watch--only two more minutes until third period would
start. It wouldn’t hurt if I get some water from fountain and smooth some hair of
mine, would it? I was starting to walk toward the nearest fountain, when a certain
feeling tugged at my back.
Instantly, I turned around, and knew I would see her.
Yep. Serena was there, fishing for something inside her locker. I
halted briefly to look at her. Blonde hair as usual piled in two meatballs on the
top of her head, locks of hair falling down from each one to below her waist--was
it me, or did it seem extra shiny today? She had on a v-neck, black short-sleeved
shirt, along with a pair of loose-fitting dark green drawstring pants, and
white sneakers. There was a small silver bracelet at her left wrist, not as showy
as the ones she wore on Monday. But still, she looked very beautiful.
I was about to turn and walk away when she turned her gaze, and
locked eyes with me. I couldn’t get my feet to move--all blood was rushing to my
face. For a moment, neither of us did anything, just stopped in position and
stared. I cleared my throat and made a decision.
I would talk to her.
Okay, gotta breathe first, though. I took a deep breath and walked
toward her casually. I came closer and closer until she had to lift her head to
meet my gaze. Wait. Was that too close? I stepped back two steps. “Hi.”
Serena seemed to sigh real loudly. She smiled, and I smiled back. “Hi.”
Okay...what was I suppose to say now? Should I ask her about Rod? Did
I WANT to ask her about Rod? I cleared my throat again. “So, uh--I heard that you
are prepared to go to Matt’s party with Rod.”
She looked down on the floor, and her face didn’t seem so bright
anymore. “I’m still thinking about it.”
I nodded. “Oh, uh,” I coughed, a bit embarrassed, “my name’s Darien,
by the way.”
“I know.”
My expression must have given away the surprise on my face, because
then Serena added, her face reddening, “I mean--I’ve seen you around.”
“Yeah, and you’re Serena, right?” Right, Darien, like you didn’t
know THAT already.
“Hmm-mm.” She looked surprised. I guess surprised that I knew her name.
Thinking about this, I wanted to laugh. There had to be at least sixty percent of
the guys in the school who knew her name now.
Again, I didn’t know what to say. There were millions of things I
could THINK of to say, but naturally, I couldn’t bring them out of my lips.
I stared at her, and she stared right back, not trying to say
anything either. It was not awkward staring, it was--an understanding. Like, we
could read each other’s minds through our gaze...somehow knowing that we did not
need to talk.
Then the bell rang, and it rang loudly above me--I reluctantly looked up,
and noticed that, indeed, we were standing right below a bell. I laughed, and
pointed up. Serena looked up and smiled, and grabbed her books from her locker.
She slammed it shut, and her gaze found mine again.
“So I guess I’ll see you around, huh?” I asked, adjusting the strap
of my backpack on my right shoulder.
“Yeah,” she replied quietly.
I stood there for a few more seconds, then forced my heels to turn.
I walked away, feeling totally happy.
I had talked to her.
“Yes or no, Sere? Yes or no?” Mina asked, eyes staring expectedly
at Serena.
Serena sighed dramatically, and pretended to observe her nails. “I
still don’t know yet...”
“Oh, jeez, why? I thought we told you all the good reasons to go!”
Raye exclaimed, exasperated. She threw away her lunch to the trashcan that was
right behind her, and focused her gaze on her friend.
“Look...I’m thinking about saying no. I mean, for real.” Serena leaned
in closer to her friends, meaning that she was being serious. “I don’t know about
all this Rod thing...I don’t feel like going with him.”
“Serena! Please! It’s not about FEELING like going with him, it’s about
having an escort at a party to MAKE more FRIENDS!” Raye practically screamed.
Serena quickly lowered herself in her seat, hoping that her friend’s
words did not travel to other tables. “Look,” she hissed, “I don’t want to talk
about this, okay? When I give an answer to Rod, you guys would know as well.”
“What??? No. No, no, no, no, no. You WILL tell us first, okay?” Mina
said, grabbing Serena by the shoulders, since she was sitting right next to her.
Serena sat up, and grabbed the carton of milk on her tray. She took a
sip, and put it down again, aware that her friends were watching her every move,
waiting for a reaction. She sighed. “No. That’s my absolute answer.”
“No?” four voices asked simultaneously.
“No,” Serena repeated. “And don’t--don’t try to talk me out of it. I
don’t want to go with Rod, even if I can borrow this opportunity to get to know
more people.”
“You’re sure,” Raye said, the words sounding like rather like a
hinting question than a statement. “I mean, you get to hang out with seniors...”
She looked at Serena with a small doubt in her eyes.
Serena stared back at her friend, “Yeah, I’m sure.”
“Okay, then!” Mina exclaimed, suddenly seeming happier somehow, “Now
we’ll just have to figure out a way to let Rod know that you’re not interested,
without him getting angry.”
“Is he that quick to lose his temper?” Serena asked carefully.
Four heads went up and down.
“Oh,” she replied, pushing aside her tray, and putting her head down
the table, “I guess you guys better think of something for me to say-- 'cause I do
not want upset anyone in the first few weeks of school.”
Serena lifted her head, put her arms down, and let her head down
on the arms again. She stared in the darkness of her elbows, and closed her eyes,
a dreamy sigh escaping her lips.
Yep, the decision was made. It was clear--she couldn’t say yes to
Rod, not when she didn’t have any sort of feeling for him, not when she still
couldn’t exactly look at him as a normal guy after the cafeteria incident, not
when...not when Darien had talked to her.
She sucked in some air, and stopped herself from sighing again.
He looked so gorgeous today. Serena never even thought that a plain
white dress shirt could make a guy so--hunky. The shirt was big, but she could
still make out the firm muscles it hid. And his eyes! That color of mysterious
dark blue was beyond mesmerizing. She smiled secretly to herself, hiding her
face behind some blonde hair so her friends wouldn’t see and ask what was she
smiling about.
She couldn’t explain it to them, anyway.
I slammed my locker door shut.
Okay, fine. So I probably made a big fool out of myself, but so what?
I walked in to the rushing crowd, sighing.
For the last hour or so, my mind was occupied with the small talk I
had with Serena. I kept replaying it over and over. At first, my brain was
filled my messages of happiness--happy that I worked up the courage and listened
to her sweet voice for the first time. Then, it was filled with messages of
exasperation--exasperated that I didn’t seize the time to get to know her more,
instead of sounding dumb with every word that came out of my mouth.
Normally I was not like that.
I was about to walk to the usual hangout place for my friends and I
when something caught my eye. On the floor nearby the janitor’s room was a
yellow flyer, all wrinkled, and it was lying face down. I didn’t have to read
what it said--I already knew. I saw it three times already today. It was the
flyer for Matt’s party.
At the sight of that, my exasperation immediately turned to blame.
Why didn’t I work out the courage sooner, and asked Serena to the party BEFORE
Rod? Well--I guess I didn’t think of it much when I saw her, but still--
I wonder if Serena had already given a firm answer yet.
*Stop.* I paused in my steps, telling my brain to shut off the
thoughts of that. *The chances of her saying no are VERY low, Chibon, admit that.*
I looked down on the floor, feeling a part of my body sinking.
Serena was going with Rod...
Someone bumped me from behind and I caught myself before I could
stumble forward. I turned around, curious to see whoever it was.
A flash of black hair appeared in front of my eyes before the face
of Raye Hinan popped up. “Oh my god! Darien! I’m so sorry!”
She looked very pretty in that nicely fitting black pants, and red
baby tee. It was always her hair that amazed me, though. Always in place, it
seemed--never messed up like mine. And it was long and thick, too--girls amazed me
on their ways of taking care of their hair. I nodded to her, giving her a
reassuring smile. “It’s all right, Raye.”
“It’s just that I thought--well, I thought you were about to move again
or something. I was right behind you, 'cause I didn’t want to let that stinky
smelly guy behind me to touch an inch of me,” she let this disgusted look on her
face to show, and I couldn’t help but laugh. “I followed you real closely or
something, I guess--because when you suddenly stopped I couldn’t get MY feet to
stop, and...you know the rest,” Raye explained, laughing.
“My fault. I should have let out a warning signal before I stopped...so
people in back of me can know that I’m stopping and can control their feet before
it was too late,” I told her lightheartedly.
Raye laughed again, and pushed some black bangs from her forehead.
She still seemed like the same girl who I worked with last summer at
the summer camp for kids. Collected, fun, never awkward.
Suddenly, I had an idea. Well--not an idea, but something close to it,
I guess. What if I asked Raye to the party? That way, when she said hi to Serena
or something, I could have an excuse to talk to her also. That way, I won’t have
to awkwardly walk up to her and make the fact I wanted to talk to her obvious. It
felt like I was using Raye...but not exactly, anyway. I WAS going to talk to Serena
one way or another; Raye was just going to make it all...easier.
I smiled at her, changing it from teasing--like to genuine. “So, uh--you
have anyone to go with to that party of Matt’s?” Then, in case she didn’t know,
since Matt was a senior after all, I added, “You know, that party where all the
flyers are bright yellow? Too bright yellow?”
Raye giggled softly, and then turned serious. She lowered her gaze
thoughtfully. “No, I don’t. I don’t really want to go, anyway...I wouldn’t know
anybody there.”
That was something I liked about being a senior. No matter where you
go, no matter how many people you didn’t know, a senior always could be easily
respected just because he or she was...a senior. And being a senior, you could
easily talk to people and make friends. “Well...how about if I take you there? I
mean, I think I know a lot of people who are going there, and I can introduce
you to them.”
A small glint appeared in Raye’s eyes. “Really?”
“Yeah. It’ll be fun...say yes,” I said, pleading her with my best
puppy-dog look. I stuck out my bottom lip, lowered myself so that I was starting
straight at her, not down, and blinked my eyes rapidly, sadly. I was flirting
with her by doing that, I knew, but I wanted her to go. Not just for Serena--I
liked Raye. She was a cool person to hang out with.
She seemed to pause, as if to really think something over. I was a
little troubled at how troubled she looked. I didn’t understand. Was deciding
whether or not to go with me to a simple party THAT hard?
“Yeah, I guess...” Raye finally said, after a few awkward seconds, “it
couldn’t hurt, right?”
I nodded, grinning at her. “Of course not. It’ll be really fun.” I
looked at my watch. “Oh, I told Andrew and Josh that I would meet them by the
front of the school...” I looked at her again, and smiled. “I’ll see you, okay,
Raye?” I gave her a friendly pat on the arm and hurried away.
From behind me, I could hear her saying a faint “See you!”
Serena opened the refrigerator door and peeked inside.
Good. There was still some juice left over in the bottle. She took it
out with her left hand and closed the fridge door with her right hand. She placed
the bottle on the kitchen counter, and got a glass from the cabinet.
Just then, the phone rang. Serena leaned forward and grabbed the
cordless phone lying on the counter. She pushed a button and said, “Hello?”
“Serena?”
Serena smiled, and placed the phone between her shoulder and her left
cheek while she poured the juice from the bottle to the glass. “Hi, Raye.”
“Hi.” Raye’s voice sounded hesitant and distant from the phone.
Serena twisted the cap back on the juice bottle, and, holding the phone
to her ear, put it back to the refrigerator. She sat down on a high chair, and
drank in a big gulp of orange juice. “What’s up? You sound a little weird. Is
anything wrong?”
“No, but...” Serena heard her sigh.
“What, Raye? You can tell me,” she told her seriously, and held the
glass in her hand, feeling the cool material.
“Well...” Raye then giggled, and a sigh escaped her lips. “The
most amazing thing just happened to me today!”
“Come on...are you going to stop giving me this nonsense and just spill
it?” Serena asked impatiently, the smile on her face growing bigger as she listened
to Raye’s little giggles. She took another drink.
“Okay, okay...you know, I was just walking down the hall after class,
and the crowd was, like...so busy. I was totally being shoved to walk. And then
behind me, there was this really bad-smelling guy, and my god, Sere, you should’ve
smelled him! I almost barfed. He desperately needs a shower.”
Serena laughed lightly, “You shouldn’t make fun of him like that,
Raye, he might just came back from P.E. or something. Anyway...don’t get off the
subject. That couldn’t be the amazing thing that happened.”
It was Raye’s turn to laugh. “Of course not! Okay, so I was trying
to get away from him, when I noticed Darien walking right in front of me. So I
inched as close as I could to him, since, you know, of the guy and all...and
then, Darien suddenly stopped. And I totally crashed into him.”
“You did?” Serena couldn’t help but gasp, suddenly remembering
how popular Darien really was. “What happened then?”
“Well, you know...I apologized and stuff, and he was really great
about it. Reassuring and such. And then--he asked me if I had anyone to go
with to Matt’s party, and I said no. And, oh god...he asked me if I wanted to go
with HIM! He said that he knew a lot of people there, and he could introduce me
to them! Can you believe it?” Raye sounded really excited.
Serena was dumbfounded. She opened her mouth, but no voice came out.
Darien? And Raye? She then became completely numb, and the glass slipped from her
hand. It hit the counter with a large clink, the juice poured out, and a large
piece of glass fell to the wax floor, breaking into smaller pieces. She gasped
and almost dropped the phone in her hand.
“Serena? Oh my gosh...what happened? Are you okay? What was that sound?”
Raye asked, the smile disappearing from her face as she clutched the phone.
“Um-my god...” Serena didn’t know what to do. She bent down, and began
to pick up some pieces. “Raye? Uh...geez, I accidentally, uh, knocked over a glass
of juice. Can I call you back later?”
“Yeah, sure...Serena. Of course...are you sure you’re okay?” Raye asked.
“I’m fine, Raye. Don’t worry about it. I’ve got to clean up this mess,
though,” Serena replied. She tried to laugh, but it ended up sounding like a
choke instead.
“Okay, then. Remember to call me, okay?”
“Yeah. Bye, Raye,” Serena said, and hanged up. She stood up, and
practically threw the phone back to the counter. She then looked down at the pieces
of glass on the floor, and bit her lip. “All right. First, need to get rid of
the glass.” She carefully picked up the broken piece on the counter and threw them
in the trashcan near the refrigerator.
Serena bent down, careful not to step on any glass, and began picking
up the remains. *Darien asked Raye to go to the party with him.* She threw the
pieces in the trashcan. *Why? Why? Did Raye tell him that she liked him or
something? No...but, still--why? Out of all people that Darien COULD’VE asked,
including me--he asked Raye. My--friend.*
“Ow!” Serena cried out, as a piece of sharp glass scraped her skin.
“Damn!”
She helplessly watched as the blood came out. She looked around for
something, and found a roll of paper towels sitting beneath the cabinet. “There
we go...” Serena murmured as she grabbed it and tore a towel out. She pressed the
soft material to the bleeding cut, and sighed painfully.
“Dammit...” Serena fought the tears that were threatening to roll down
her cheeks.
She leaned her back against the cabinets, and slid down until she was
sitting on the floor. She bended her knees, and put her chin on them. Why did
Darien ask Raye? It would be MUCH better if he asked a girl that Serena didn’t
know. How was she going to act when she sees Raye and Darien together at that party?
Wait. Was she even going to the party? Should she go? Serena sighed.
“Of course I should go...I DO want to meet new people...yet I already told my friends
that I would tell Rod no.” Then she straightened up, and narrowed her eyes. “So?
What if I did? I could always...change my mind.” She got up, and tore the towel
from her cut. She went upstairs and grabbed the largest sized Band-Aid from her
Mom’s drawer. She placed the center on her cut.
Then Serena picked up the phone and mindlessly dialed Mina’s phone number.
“Hi, Min...it’s me,” she said.
“Hey you,” Mina replied, her voice cheerful.
“Yeah, hey you, too. Listen--do you know Rod’s phone number? Or his
last name?”
“No, I don’t know his phone number, but his last name is Jeffskin.
Yeah...I think...Rod Jeffskin. Anyway--why do you wanna know?”
“I’m reconsidering the answer I had for him.”
“Whooo--that’s good. What made you change your mind?”
“Well...I...” Serena paused, thinking whether or not she should tell Mina.
She decided against it. “Raye’s going with Darien, you hear?” She walked over to
her mom’s bed.
“Oh my god, no way! She was just confessing to us her crush on him
just a few days ago, and now she’s about to go to a major senior party with
him? That’s wicked!”
“Yeah--real...wicked.” Serena sighed again, and put her face in her
mom’s pillows. “So, are you going?”
“Nope. Matt didn’t give me an invitation, and anyone that HAS an
invitation didn’t ask me to go with them yet. So...I’m not about to crash a
party or anything,” Mina said simply.
Serena began to nod, and then realized Mina couldn’t see her. “I
understand. I’ll call Rod now...I think. Bye, okay?”
“Yeah, bye.”
Serena hanged up the phone, and ran downstairs. She found the phone
book lying in a pile of other books under the coffee table. She pulled it out,
and blew to the cover so some of the dust could go away. “Let’s see...Jeffskin,
Jeffskin...”
She found the name and was surprised to see that there were only three
Jeffskin families in the city. One of them was on the far side of the city, and
Serena decided that Rod couldn’t live THAT far away. She looked at the two
possible choices, and decided to try each one. She grabbed the phone from the
kitchen counter and dialed the first number, thinking what she would say if it
was not Rod’s family.
“Hello?” the gentle voice on the other line surprised her. She thought
the person answering the phone would sound deep and rough...like Rod.
Serena swallowed. “Um, hi...is, uh, Rod there?”
“Rod? Hold on one moment, please.”
Serena could hear the person putting down the phone, and shouting
“Rod!” She was relieved. First phone call, and she already got it.
“Hello?” a new voice was heard.
Oh, it was Rod all right. She’d know that voice anywhere. She
licked her dry lips. “Hey, Rod...it’s Serena.”
The silence that followed was so long Serena thought he couldn’t
remember who she was, and was about to go explain who he was talking to when he
finally spoke. “Serena?”
“Yeah. Hi.”
“Hi!” Now he sounded excited. “What’s up? How did you get my phone
number?”
“Easy. Phone Book.”
“Oh, right...that was stupid of me. Anyway, what are you calling
about? Hold on--you are not about to reject me over the phone, are you?” Rod
suddenly sounded upset...so upset that Serena was almost glad that she hadn’t
decided to say no.
“No. I mean, I called because--because I wanted to tell you that
yeah, I would go with you to the party,” Serena said, breathing in deeply.
“For real?” Rod’s voice became lighter, and was warming up. “That’s
great. I’ll see you on tomorrow night, then...”
Serena tried on a fake smile, wondering if this was what she would
have to smile like at the party tomorrow. “Yeah, okay.”
“Great.”
“Oh, and I can dress casually, right?”
“Of course. Jeans, shirt, whatever...we’re just gonna have fun.”
“Okay.”
“Okay.”
“Oh, yeah, and--Rod?”
“Yeah?”
“Um...I’m sorry that I told you off like that in the cafeteria that
day,” Serena said hesitantly.
“Oh, don’t worry about it. I sort of forgot about it already. No
big deal.”
“Okay, then. Um, bye.”
“Bye, Serena.”
Serena pushed the off button.
There. She had done it.
She was going to the first party since she moved here. With Rod.
NOT Darien, she reminded herself, and sighed.
_____________________________________________________________
Okay, NOW we are finally getting somewhere...
Remember to email me with any comments, suggestions...whatever!
Moonieround - http://www6.ewebcity.com/moonieround
(
geocities.com/tokyo/shrine/4094/henra) (
geocities.com/tokyo/shrine/4094) (
geocities.com/tokyo/shrine) (
geocities.com/tokyo)