Until Next Time

Chapter 7

Over half of the school looks at me like I grew two heads overnight. They knew me as the girl who dating Gordon, which wasn't new gossip anyway. Though at first I had trouble adjusting to the attention, it soon dispersed and began to be a normal thing. Some girls were being stuck up about it and couldn't accept the fact, while others were supportive saying they wish the best for us.

But today, the atmosphere was different. My intuition radar was already signalling incoming the moment I step out of Chase's car with him.

"Do you feel anything strange?" I mumble.

He shakes his head, grinning, "Nope, but if it is anything, it'd be your bed head."

I shove him off the side, and I quicken my pace to a run. "Hey!" I can hear heavy footsteps behind, and I turn the corner to the sideline of the field. Bleachers.

I think I lost him. The sound falters and the only thing I hear is my heart racing; I really need to get back in shape. While calming myself with deep breaths, my eyes are suddenly covered. I let out a scream.

"Guess who?" A husky voice says.

"Gordon?" The hands remove from my face, and I face a cheeky looking guy with the slightest dimples. Dang it. It's so hard being mad at him when every time I see him, my heart falls all over again.

"Hey babe," He leans in to kiss me. At first, I am a bit hesitant, but soon his lips urges me to return his affection; so I did. "What are you doing here all alone?"

"Hiding."

"Do you want to skip school today?"

I sigh, as much as I want to hideaway with him all day, I really can't afford to miss out, "Sorry, maybe not today."

"Okay," His hand caresses my cheek, making me blush. I can barely remember the anger I felt moments ago, "If you change your mind, you know where to find me."

"I know."

We stand there in awkward silence, until he speaks up, "Sorry about yesterday again. I had some to take care of something," Yeah, hooking up with Tamara. But, I try to look at the positive side. Maybe everything happened not as it seems. I mentally give Gordon a second chance; letting one screw up get in between a relationship to ruin us is idiotic.

I play with the bottom of Chase's sweatshirt, "Don't worry about it, we can grab a drink another time."

"I promise I'll make it up to you."

I grin, "Anytime, Gordon."

He takes my hand into his, and we walk back to the school together. The bell rings. Gordon gives me final peck before heading his way, "See you later, Riley."

- - - - - -

At the end day, just as I stuff my books into my locker, a squealing Mia and a calm looking Yuki, comes my direction.

I am about to say 'hi' when Mia spins me around, my back facing her. Another ear splitting squeal. "Dang girl, you are scandalous!"

"What?"

She points to the word "GREEN" plastering across the back of the sweatshirt I'm wearing.

Yuki chirps in, "I can't believe you would do such a thing; hooking up with another guy when you have a boyfriend."

"What?" I'm beyond lost, "Guys, I'm not hooking up with anyone."

"Please," Mia insists, "People saw you and another guy coming into the school together this morning. Plus, someone said they witnessed you two coming out of his house."

"They said he was the new student and his name is Chase Green, which aka, is the guy's shirt you are wearing."

I literally face plant into the door of my locker, "He. Is. Not. Into. Me." I bang my head with every word. I sigh, my head kind of hurts right now. Bad decisions.

Because the timing could not get any better, Chase chooses now to appear next to me. "Hey ladies."

Mia gets all wide eyed and winks at Yuki, "Hey Chase, we were just about to leave. Sorry to bother you and Riley. We have somewhere to go, isn't that right, Yuki?"

She blinks out for a second, "Uh, right. Absolutely right. Have fun, not too much though..." She adds, leaving Chase in a state of trying to hold back his laughter.

I grab both their arms and pull them back, "You're not leaving until you get the story straight." The four of us head out to the front, against the school wall and shady trees.

"Chase is my friend. Childhood friend, to be exact," I start.

Mia and Yuki looks at me weirdly.

Chase continues on, "It has been a long time since we met." He goes on about our basic history together starting when we were seven, how he left, but left out the part about our promise. I am really grateful he did so, because it was a significance key in our friendship and I want it to only be between us.

"... And so here we are now," he ends.

I look at my friends, unsure of what their reactions will be. They seem casual about it now, which is highly unusual. Mia sheepishly grins, "well, I'm sorry about how we overreacted before."

Yuki nods her head in agreement, before clearing her throat, "Yeah, and since we never properly introduced ourselves, my name's Yuki."

"Mia."

"I'm Chase."

"And I'm dying to get some food." They look at me with amused expressions, and I shrug.

Mia teases, "Don't mind her, Chase, she's always hungry."

"Hey!"

"My mom thought my house was broken into when she found half the food missing the next morning," she informs Chase on our inside story.

They giggle.

"It was only that one time... ," I mumble, "I was so busy I didn't have time for lunch or dinner that day."

Yuki stands up, and we follow her. "It's getting late. Mia, can you give me a ride home?"

"Sure."

We said our byes; Mia and Yuki heading the opposite end of the parking lot, and Chase and I on this side.

"Sorry about them," I buckle my seatbelt of Chase's car, "they can sometimes be... weird."

"Weird is good," he replies, looking at the rear mirror as the car pulls out. "You and I are weird."

"Some people don't think it is. It can come off as scary and creeping people out."

He chuckles, "Depends on how you view it, I suppose."

"How do you see it then?"

"Sometimes, all it means is that you are different, in a good way, or you just simply stand out among the crowd. If everyone was the same, or 'not weird', where would the diversity of each human being lie?"

His response stuns me, letting me think about what he had said.

He adds, "Put simply: 'Being different isn't a bad thing. It means you're brave enough to be yourself'."

- - - - - -

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