The Clichés

Chapter Fourteen

Things get worse before they get better. Vanessa remembers always hearing her Dad say that in tough situations. She never understood what he meant until now.

They were all hanging out at Chase's. His room was down in his parents' finished basement, complete with a living area and fireplace. Fuzzy tan carpet lined the basement floor, and dark wood paneling covered the walls. The soft yellow lighting casted a candlelight like glow onto the handsome faces of the boys. 

Chase's room was adjacent to the living room area. It was a very tidy looking bedroom with the same fuzzy tan carpet. The walls in his room were regular, not wood paneling. Vanessa knows because Dylan had shown her videos of the guys painting his bedroom walls maroon and gray. His room had no windows, only framed pictures of Chase's friends and a corkboard with a ton of ribbons and certificates he won in school and a letter he got from his Aunt Rebecca, who lives in Paris, France. The very best thing about Chase's room, though, was that he had a California waterbed. It was so comfortable, especially with Chase's mountain of blankets and pillows he made his bed with. 

Chase's bedroom door was open, as he was currently in there doing some work on his desktop computer. Vanessa and Dylan were cuddling on the couch, Mason was sprawled on the carpet in front of the fireplace pretending not to notice, and Lucas was nowhere to be found. Pictures of Donkey Kong, Luigi, and Birdo flashed on the screen as Mario Party 10 played on Chase's 75" flat screen. 

"I know damn well you're not about to steal my star," Vanessa says to Mason. He tilted his head back to look at her and flashed her a cheeky grin. Pressing the button, he paid the money to steal her star. She stared at him, eyebrows raised. "Alright, it's on now." 

"Oh, come on, Van, it's nothing personal," Mason jokes. She shook her head. 

"Sell that shit to someone who's buying," she retorted. Dylan laughed as he used his golden pipe to get to the star. He used the rest of his coins to buy the star and is now in the lead. 

"Absolutely ridiculous. This is rigged!" Mason complained. Vanessa laughed at Mason, who was now flailing his body in disappointment. 

"Is that Mason who's complaining?" Chase called from the bedroom. 

"Yeah," Dylan chuckled. Chase laughed a bit before concentrating on his computer again. Vanessa smiled, looking up at Dylan, who still had the remains of a laugh showing on his face. The lighting in Chase's basement was soft, but she could still spot his adorable dimples. She couldn't resist and poked his dimple with her acrylic nail. He looked at her then, a playful grin spreading across his face. He furrowed his eyebrows, pretending to be mad, as he leaned in close to her. His minty breath and woodsy cologne welcomingly invaded her senses. His hazel eyes sparkled like an explosion of yellowish green stars in the afternoon. 

"And just what do you think you're doing, hm?" He spoke softly, his voice rumbling through her chest. 

"I'm doing whatever I want," she replied with a smirk. He raised his eyebrows and tilted his head, causing a few strands of his medium brown hair to fall in his eyes. She thought he was about to make some witty retort to tease her, but what he did instead sent intense feelings rushing all throughout her body. 

"Good. Feel free to poke and prod me all you like," he said softly, moving his lips down and kissing her forehead. She closed her eyes, embracing the feeling of his soft lips. He pulled away too soon, focusing his attention back on the game. Vanessa sat there stunned, her forehead tingling with the linger of his kiss. Just then, she heard the door to the basement open and footsteps coming down the stairs. Vanessa and the guys all looked at each other, confused, and then looked to the stairs.