In Or Out

Chapter 6

Chapter 6.

The kiss ended as soon as it started. I was just about to wolf whistle and cheer when Naomi pushed Charlie away from her.

She frantically looked around, panic in her eyes. She seemed to settle on one spot. I followed her gaze, only to see Carter staring right back. Even from this far away, I could see the pain in his eyes. He looked down, and turned towards the school building. She looked helplessly back at us, and started towards the boy on the other side of the courtyard. It seemed as if every step she took towards him, he took two away from her. As if he knew that she was out of sight, his façade crumbled down. He leaned back on the bench and groaned.

"Bren, how bad did I mess up this time?" I looked at him. He had never called me Bren before. No one had, but Jake. It was kinda nice coming from him.

"Pretty bad." I wasn't in the mood to sugarcoat things. He let out a grunt and buried his head in my shoulder. Honestly, I was surprised that he wasn't heartbroken. He seemed like a softie, but then again I've only known him for about two weeks. Crazy what can happen in such a short period of time.

---

"So... uh... how did you not know that she had a boyfriend?" Charlie and I sat in the old Ruby's diner, almost in silence.

He spoke for the first time since arriving. "I don't know. She never mentioned him." He looked frustrated, I guess I would be too. Naomi hadn't sat with us at lunch that day, but I managed to catch her in the halls. She explained that Carter was her boyfriend, and that she only liked Charlie as a friend. After school, I dragged Charlie along until we reached Ruby's Diner, one of my favorite places to go in the city. I figured, hey, doesn't ice cream help a broken heart? That's why, when it was time to order, I got us both the biggest sundaes on the menu, which leads us to now.

"You know, it might have been a bad decision to walk here and get those sundaes. I don't think I can walk back home." We both laughed.

"Yeah, you were too busy dragging me along that you didn't hear me. I had a car back at the school, you know." My face heated up. He had just looked so sad, my only focus was to make him happy, even just for a little while.

My phone vibrated in my pocket. I tried to ignore it, but whoever it was was very persistent. I groaned, and pulled the phone out of my front pocket.

Hailey: HEY
Hailey: YOU
Hailey: WHERE
Hailey: HAVE
Hailey: YOU
Hailey: BEEN
Hailey: YEAH I'M TALKING TO YOU BUDDY

I almost snorted. Classic Hailey. Come to think of it, I really hadn't talked to her in a few days. No wonder she was going into crazy-best-friend-mode. A new message vibrated on my phone.

Charlie: Hello?

I looked up, embarrassed.
"Sorry. My friend is kinda freaking out cause I haven't talked to her in a few days." I admitted. I don't know exactly what emotion was on his face. First it seemed like guilt and then... smugness? This boy was confusing.

"Too bad. You're my friend now, and I'm not letting you go." He stated. What he said made me smile. A lot. I'd liked Jake for so long that it was hard to imagine liking anyone else, but here I was, my heart beating faster whenever I see this adorable geek. But, he liked someone else. Even if I haven't liked him for more than two weeks or so, that hurt.

With that, we got up from the booth and walked back to the school, laughing the whole way. We separated when we got to the parking lot.
"What are you doing? You honestly expect me not to give you a ride home? I see how it is Bren." I looked at him dryly. "Just kidding. Get in."

I shrugged. I would rather not have to walk home, it was getting dark out. Stupid winter. I gave him the directions, and when we got there, to my surprise, he got out as well.

"Thank you for today. Honestly." He wrapped me up in a big bear hug and I could just feel the butterflies in my stomach go crazy. That's when we heard the shouting. We both turned towards the sound, only to see Jake and and Carter on my doorstep. My face paled.

I turned towards Charlie again. "Look, you go home I'll deal with this okay?" He tried to argue, but I think seeing Carter hurt him too much to stick around. Thank my lucky stars he drove off. This wasn't going to be pretty.
They were both staring at me when I walked to the door. I sighed.

"Okay guys. What's up this time?" They both started to talk over the other. Their rivalry was getting old.

"Stop! Okay," I said calmly. "Carter, can you come over here please?"

"You've got to be kidding me." Jake muttered. I gave him a dirty look.

"Be nice!" I mouthed. I walked Carter a few feet from Jake, where we would be just out of hearing range.

"You've already torn apart one of my best friends. Do it again and I'll tear you apart." I stepped closer to him, and he looked down.

"Look, I... I was just wondering what happened today. Naomi couldn't get it out. She was a mess, if you hadn't noticed. I like her and I want to stay with her, but I need to know what happened today."

I shook my head. "Carter, your girlfriend should be the one to tell you this, not me."

He sighed, "Brenlee, I'm good at reading people. It's obvious that that kiss hurt you as much as it hurt me."

"What are you talking about?" Jake shouted, just as Hailey's car pulled up the street. Uh oh. Here comes trouble.