Spy School Middle School AU

4 - Life Goes On

Erica POV

To be honest, hanging out at Ben's old middle school isn't so bad after all. I get to be with him for all of the periods! Don't tell him that. Anyways, back to the story. After Science, as I was walking out of the doorway with Ben, Chloe Appel and Kate Grant came up beside me.

"Hey, Erica! Can we talk to you just for a split second?" Chloe asked, batting her eyelashes at Ben.

I looked at Ben, trying to decide whether or not this was safe. He gave me the slightest nod, and a smile, indicating not to get too worked up. I rolled my eyes, and agreed. The two girls cheered with joy as Ben moved along to PE.

"So, what's up?" I asked.

"Ben is mine, and I don't want you touching him." Kate's cheerful mood all of a sudden plummeted as she spoke these words.

"Um..." I was never speechless, but when it came down to Ben, being speechless was second nature.

"I don't know why he all of a sudden abandoned us for some reason. I remember him wiping out all of Dirk's punks, but that was all. So if I see you lay a single finger on Ben, or a single kiss on him, you're dead." Chloe growled.

I rolled my eyes. When it came down to hand to hand combat, those two girls didn't even hold a candle to me. "Okay, fine." I sighed. Then, I skipped back to where Ben was, and kissed him on the cheek.

"How was that?" Ben asked, probably expecting something about him.

"Not bad. They are a pretty savvy bunch, so they just wanted me to give them tips on their fashion." I lied, but kept a straight face.

"Huh. Sounds like something they would do."

Ben POV

Alright, when Chloe and Kate pulled Erica aside, I was skeptical. But when she told me what they had asked, I wasn't surprised. Apparently, Elizabeth Pasternak had her eyes on me (that sounds weird), and Kate and Chloe were her "spies". I was glad to have Erica on my side. After all, I have been trying to get her attention for the past year and a half. I scanned the familiar hallways, leading to the black top, where Erica and I had PE.

"Ben? Is that you?" a familiar voice asked.

"Um... Yeah." I replied.

Elizabeth. She was tailing me, apparently, glaring at Erica, green with envy.

"Hey." Elizabeth caught up to me, and scowled for a brief moment at Erica.

"I need to talk to you for a few seconds." Elizabeth said.

Erica rolled her eyes and said, "Go ahead, meet you at PE, then."

"Alright." I pecked her on the cheek, and said bye.

"Anyways, you were saying?" I turned around, diverting my attention to Elizabeth.

She didn't say anything, but she did pull me into a kiss. As if instinctively, I kissed back. I felt nothing. No love. No friendship. I was never going to leave Erica. Elizabeth didn't let me pull away, so I was stuck in my position for another two minutes. When she did, I sighed, "W-Why?"

"You need me. Erica's out of your league." Elizabeth smiled coyly, causing me to flush.

"No. I'll never be with you. You left Mike, and you expect me to be that stupid?" I sneered.

Before Elizabeth could reply, I went on. "I worked non-stop to get Erica's attention, and all I had to do to get yours's was kick a bully's butt."

"But -" Elizabeth started.

"If all else fails, which it won't, I'll fall for you. But until then, see ya." I jogged off in the direction I was already heading, with Elizabeth quietly sobbing in the dust.

Elizabeth POV

Oh, and I thought Ben would fall for me. I walked slowly back towards Chloe and Kate, who had seen everything happen from the beginning. They were glowering jealousy at me, like they were the ones who wanted to get rejected. As we slumped through the halls, I heard whispers about Ben. How hot he was, how nice he was, and how much people loved him. All of a sudden, I stopped slumping, and grinned. Erica had some competition. Finally.