Evan
The dismissal bell rang. Finally, I thought. I've been anticipating all day for this moment to talk to her again. There seemed to be this unknown sensation bubbling inside me every time I talked to her. Wait, so you think I'm in love? Hell no. I don't think so. At least that's what I think.
We all quickly slipped out of the classroom. CJ was already outside chatting alongside her friends. I noticed Trevor was also with her. Seriously? That little shit. I waited patiently until a throng of girls slowly passed by.
“Hey, I'll see you guys later.” I whispered to Lance.
Seth raised an eyebrow. “Where you going, dude? Practice starts in fifteen minutes.”
“Don't worry, I'll be there.”
“Well, hurry up and get your ass over there, you know how Coach Jenner is.” Lance shouted over his shoulder and they all disappeared around the corner.
“No shit.” I mumbled under my breath. Like I actually care?
Coach Jenner is, okay, how do I say this? Well, let's just say he's a great coach. Great, meaning he's one hell of a coach. He's everyone's favorite nightmare and your least favorite person. One time Seth Corleone was late for practice because he was far too busy making out with his girlfriend, Becca, to notice the time. Somehow Coach found out and everybody had to suffer the consequences. The old sucker made us run fifty laps around the track. But, the man had been a Coach for twenty years. You gotta hand it to him, he was the best of the best. No doubt, he was BV high's pride.
I jogged over where CJ was at. Sofie and Trish just looked at me all wide eyed, clutching their textbooks to their chest. They looked so cute with those deer in the headlights look. Like they've never seen me approach them before?
Wait, I think I never did? No wonder.
Trevor, on the other hand, stood quietly behind CJ, his eyes well-guarded on me. Now I was contemplating if I should ask her in front of Trevor, or maybe in private?
Hell, I'll ask her in front of him. That way, I'll find out what's the real deal between them.
CJ rolled her eyes irritatingly. “What do you want, von Detten?”
“Woah, Ms. Sourpuss.” I joked. Embarrassing heat quickly washed up my neck. She really does hate me.
The girls giggled in response. Probably fascinated by my charm.
“Just here to remind you about our date,” I said. Trevor suddenly coughed, but I shot him a glare in return. My eyes shifted back to CJ, carefully gauging her reaction. “I'll pick you up at seven?”
“I'll catch you guys later.” Trevor excused himself, interrupting me again for the second time.
I slipped my hands inside my pockets. “So, pick you up at seven?”
She shook her head. “No, we'll just meet up at the restaurant.”
“And why is that?” I asked curiously. “I have a car. I can pick you up—”
“Do you want a date or not?” She hissed.
I placed both my hands up in surrender. “Okay, okay, it's your call! I'll see you then? Hopefully?”
“Yeah, whatever.” She said dully before leaving me by myself in the hallway.
*
“von Detten! Where the hell were you?” Coach Jenner growled. “You're ten minutes late!”
“Sorry, Coach. Had to fix some important matters.”
“Important matters, my ass. Now get moving, all of you!” He blew his whistle and we all started to practice. Luckily, Coach was in a great mood, so no punishments were made today. Our big game's coming soon and we all need the practice we can get if we want to win against Viento Vista High SChool.
*
“Hey, Evan!” Trevor called as he threw the ball at me. Luckily, I caught it just in time. I was over at the refreshment table filling my cup up with water.
“What's up?” I cocked my eyebrow. I was clearly out of breath so I immediately chugged down my drink to relieve my burning throat.
“I know what you're doing,” he suddenly blurted out. “And you're making a big fucking mistake.”
I squinted and wiped the sweat off my brow, trying to make sense of what he's trying to convey. I just shook my head, placing the styrofoam cup beside the cooler. The punk's seriously jealous of me, and I'm glad he is.
“I'm warning you, Evan. You should back off before someone gets hurt.” He whispered.
“Oh, fuck off, McAllister,” I said with a laugh. “Are you threatening me?”
“Yo, Evan! Trevor! Let's get back to the game!” Seth called, interrupting the tension building up around us. He took a step back, lips curling up. He glared at me for a moment before he ran back to the field, placing his helmet back on.
*
“Dude, don't tell me you're gonna show up?” Lance asked me again after a gazillion times today. We both got into his black Shelby.
“Now how the hell is she going to fall for me after I ditch her tonight?” I glanced at him. “It's stupid.”
Lance inserted his key in the ignition, sliding me a look. “Corleone's party is tonight. There are plenty of girls there, so I suggest you ditch the tomboy and just come party with us,” he winked at me. “Chicks and booze, man. Chicks and booze.” He revved up the engine.
“Whatever, dude,” I laughed. “You're fucking insane. You just want me to lose this bet.”
*
Clarey
For twenty minutes, I stared at myself in the mirror. This girl in front of me, well, she's certainly not me. Straightened dark brown hair. False lashes. Makeup? I curled my lips in disgust. I hated the way I look so I reached for the makeup remover.
“What are you doing?” Sofie screeched from the doorway.
“I'm taking it off. I can't stand this.” I grabbed a box of tissues but Sofie and Trish managed to get the box away from me. They tried to get the makeup remover out of my hand as well. We were making so much noise, so my butthead of a brother had to come and see what the fuss was all about.
“What's going on here? Woah, CJ in makeup?” He shot me a funny look, wrinkling his nose. The stupid idiot never saw me in make-up before.
“Don't you ever knock?” I snapped. “Get out of here before I kick your ass!”
He started singing. “Evan and Clarey, sitting in a tree... K-I-S-S-I—” I immediately threw a hair brush at him. “OW! That hurt!”
“Leave my room. Now.”
He massaged his arm, his lips mimicking my every word.
“Why on earth do you make my life such a living hell?” I angrily spat at Corey. He was only fourteen, but I seriously wanted to grind him to the pulp. He's a mini-Evan, to be honest.
And like Evan, I want to stomp Corey out of existence. That way I don't have to see him anymore. Mom should have ended the baby making factory after Caleb, but no, she had to have another one.
“Is this because I told mom that you were always fantasizing about Kyler's sister Zoey? Like how she has large boobs and a huge ass?”
“Shut up!” His face was bright crimson red. “That’s not true.” He quickly ran out, slamming the door behind him. I laughed. Well, now I know what triggers him.
“Thank you.” I rolled my eyes and swiveled back to the mirror.
I stared at myself in the mirror once again. My skin felt a little irritated, and I almost had the urge to scratch my face. I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and exhaled slowly. I didn't want to wear makeup for three reasons.
One. I hated it.
Two. It was definitely a test for Evan.
And three, well, did I mention I hated it?
That way, I would easily find out if he could ever fall in love with a girl without makeup on.
“I don't want to wear makeup.” I said, emphasizing each word.
“Say what again?” Sofie blinked.
Trish quickly grabbed the makeup remover from Sofie's hand and tossed it on my lap.
“Okay, take it off. But don't tell us we didn't warn you.” She mumbled, tossing her golden choppy bangs away from her eyes.
“I don't get it,” Sofie threw her hands up in the air. “Why do you guys have to go out on a date when clearly, you guys hate each other so much? You'll probably end up ripping each other apart at the end of the night anyway.”
I shrugged, staring deeply into the mirror. Mine was pure retaliation. Nothing more.
Operation: Kick Evan's ass.
*
I wore my hair loose. Took all the makeup off. I chose to wear a dark blue cardigan over a white tank top with my light blue skinny jeans. Just for the night, instead of wearing my favorite dark gray converse sneakers, I slipped into my black ballet flats for the first time. Trish brought them over since I've never owned a single pair myself. Mom was always heartbroken whenever I refused to wear anything girly. She said I was just like my good ol' aunt Helga, who also grew up as a tomboy. She spent most of her time holed up in Aspen, working full time at a ski Lodge. Not sure if she still works there, but from what I know, she is still single. I couldn’t believe she remained single her whole life. Why? Mom said it was because of rejection. She was afraid of getting hurt. So, now I'm asking myself the same thing. Do I want to be like aunt Helga?
I walked up the steps of the restaurant. I gasped, fresh heat washing over my face when I saw how gorgeous the place was. Chewing on my bottom lip, I stared at the massive restaurant in amazement. My heart raced. I could feel my heart beating so hard it felt like it was about to jump out of my chest. I swallowed nervously before walking toward the double glass doors.
Shit. Do I stay or ditch?
Ditch. Ditch. Ditch. The voice chanted inside my head.
“Hello, good evening, Miss.” The man who just greeted me, was probably the maître d' .
“Uhm... Party for two?” I gulped, staring nervously at the man. I quickly averted my eyes to the old couple standing next to me.
“Last name?” He tossed me a stern look as he scanned me from top to bottom. He was, no doubt, the usual snooty host you always see in movies. He's probably thinking that this is some sort of a sick joke. A teenager, having dinner at the most expensive restaurant in San Diego? Hell no. I couldn’t believe it either. I heard it costs around a hundred bucks a plate. I had to ask my mom about it, no wonder she was so damn impressed when she found out that Evan was taking me here.
I winced. “It should be under von Detten.”
After giving me the look, he finally led me to the table for two. I mean, he knew I wasn't lying when I mentioned Evan's last name. Must be good to have all that power. You just say your name and you automatically have everything you need, right under your nose. The place was just utterly amazing. I've never been in a posh place like this. I guess you can have everything you want as long as you have money at your fingertips.
*
Fifteen minutes went by and he's still not here. He's probably running late, that's all. He told me seven, right? Yeah, he sure did. So quit your yapping and just wait, Clarey.
The room was dimmed with just the perfect lighting. Tables all had their candle light centerpieces woven with gorgeous assorted fresh flowers. Everything was just exquisite. Truly remarkable. I couldn’t help but drool.
I checked my phone for messages. A sinking sensation filled me. It's been at least forty-five minutes. Still no sign of Evan. If he was serious about this date, he would have at least called by now and gave me some sort of alibi. Or at least a text message would suffice.
But no, he's obviously not here yet.
So, was Trish and Sofie right all along? Like, what if he saw me and left? After tonight, I could just see my best friends telling me “We told you so!”
Okay, I'll give him fifteen more minutes. If he's not here yet, then the little fucker must have ditched me for a joke.
You son of a bitch! Never ever talk to me again or I will raise hell and I'll have your head cut off to be fed to the sharks! Have a nice life, sucker!
I was about to press send when I read the whole thing again. Was it a little too harsh?
Laughter bubbled like acid in my chest. The memories of Evan and Lance bullying me to the core haunted my mind once again.
So, I’m going to ask you again. Was I too harsh?
Of course not. The prick deserved it.
“Oh, Evan von Detten, I'm seriously going to kill you.” I muttered under my breath as I stood up and left the place.
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