Dance Again (Dancing Styles Sequel)

Chapter 24

(A/N) Hello my lovelies.
I want to apologise for the ridiculously long amount of time that it has taken me to update. There really isn't an excuse, and I apologise. I'll give you my reasons though, which I hope you find to be acceptable reasons.
1) It is my last quarter of my junior year. I have had absolutely awful grades the last 2 years. I was totally convinced I didn't want to go to college, and my grades reflected it. I have a 2.6 gpa overall. I am working my BUTT off trying to get as high grades as I can to get at least a 3.0 for a college. To put it into perspective, my gpa was a 1.7 at the beginning of this year. It doesn't seem like quite an increase, but it has taken so much work to get my gpa to where it is now. Basically, I need all A's this quarter, so 80% of my time is dedicated to my schoolwork.
2) This goes along with the college thing; My SAT's are in 23 days. I have a lot of studying to do. I cannot afford to do poorly on these. I need to get a good score. So, some attention goes to that (but I guess I count that as school too)
3) Work. I have been working as many hours as possible and that my boss is willing to give me. I need to save for college. And I want a car. I mean, I'm almost 17 for goodness' sake. I'd like to NOT be driving a forest green mini van around (no offense mom and dad, it's a little ugly though) So, I'm really struggling to juggle work and school at the moment. I'm like, going to die if summer doesn't hurry up.
4) Dancing Styles. I have been putting so much time and effort into finishing that, but along with school, it's just so much to handle. I picked the worst time to try to edit/publish a story. Never again.
So that's why I've been gone so much lately, and I apologise. I want to thank you guys though, for sticking with me through this, and supporting me. It really means a lot.

If you didn't get the memo then I'll let you know, Dancing Styles will be being publised soon! There will be a hardback version, a paperback, and an ebook. The ebook is going to be $3.99. The paperback will be about $11.99, and the harback will be about $18.99. For the hardcover books, most of the cost is to cover the cost of printing and whatnot, I won't be seeing all $12 or $19 from that. But also, the cost reflects the amount of time I have put into this book. It has been rewritten, with consideration for complaints of the story taken in, I think you guys will like what I've done with it. I really hope that you do. So now, here is chapter 24. Thank you for your patience! Please vote and comment, I'm not going to promise an update soon, but I will update as soon as I can.

*************

I spent the rest of my weekend moping around, trying to do homework, but not quite succeeding at that. Avoiding my phone, because I knew Tristan and James were both trying to get a hold of me.
 
I was torn. James was... James. He was argumentative, stubborn, jealous, possessive, a pain in the ass, but he was MINE.
And then there was Tristan. Funny, sweet, someone I could totally picture a really good friendship with. Yes, he was un-godly gorgeous, but I honestly couldn't picture myself in a real relationship with him..
 
Why the hell was I even entertaining the thought of having to choose between them though?! I was dating James. We had a fight, but that was it. We needed to talk through it, and get this sorted.
I wasn't about to lose him over another bloody guy that I wasn't interested in.
Though the situation with Emma would need to be resolved. This may be my best chance yet to tell her. It was still soon enough in the game to tell her, that she shouldn't blow up TOO badly. Although since she thought James had asked her on a date, and he kind of rejected her in a total dick-head way, she might still be pretty pissed.
 
I groaned and flopped back onto my bed, flinging my arm over my face.
Why oh why must this be such a mess? In all honesty, this was why teenagers should not be in relationships. They're dramatic and immature and caused problems.
But that's what made the relationship so appealing. The drama, and the excitement. The adventure...
 
I sat up, making a final decision. I couldn't mope about in my room for the rest of the afternoon. I'd go insane. I needed to get my head back on the ground, where it belonged.
And nothing was more grounding to me than a pedicure.
 
With my mind made up, I got dressed in record time; pulling on an oversized green sweater and a pair of leggings, stepping into a pair of purple rain boots with little owls dotted across them. I threw my hair up in a ponytail, and my makeup had already been done that morning. I swiped my phone and car keys off my desk, deciding that I would answer my texts and whatnot while my nails were being done; it was the best time to do it.
 
"Mum, I was gonna run up to the nail salon. I'd be back in about 40 minutes. Is that alright?" I asked, poking my head into the living room where she was seated.
She nodded, not looking up from the paper she was reading.
"We'll be having supper a little after you get back, we're dining early tonight." she informed me.
"Great. I'll text you when I'm on my way back." I told her before darting out to my car, escaping before she could change her mind for some reason about me going out.
I jumped into my car, plugging my phone in so I could play my music while I drove.
Settle Down by Kimbra thumped through my speakers as I backed out of the driveway, my head bobbing along to the music, I was singing along lightly. 
 
The salon as hardly a five minutes drive away from my house, So I was barely into the next song when I pulled into the parking lot, stepping out and locking my car behind me. 
Most girls hate the smell of nail polish, but I have to admit, after countless afternoons in this salon, the scent had grown on me; I found it to be a comfort at this point. Which may be odd, but this was my place to relax, and think, and clear my mind. 

“Nataliiiiia.” I groaned when I walked in, slumping over the counter.
The little blonde receptionist smiled at me as I was a few inches away from her.
“Well hello to you too. Let me guess, you're just dying for a pedicure right about now.”

I just grinned at her. She knew me too well.
“Go on, go grab a color. Let's get you set up.”

I already had one, I pulled out a light baby blue color polish, dangling it between my fingers.

I was very fond of Natalia. She was 23, and had moved here from America a year or so ago. She was working at the salon to try to work off college debts, and she was good at what she did. She always did an immaculate job on my nails.

“So, tell me what brings you in today.” she encouraged me as I was settled into the plush chairs, my feet immersed in the warm water.
“Well.” I began, readjusting to a more comfortable position. “There's this guy.” I began.
“There always is.” Natalia grinned at me, before allowing me to explain the situation and all of its complexities.

Come to think of it at this point, it really wasn't all too complex a situation. I was in a relationship and the guy was jealous. I had to either stop talking to Tristan or find a way to make James comfortable within our relationship.

Natalia's hands worked expertly over my feet, first massaging them, then putting lotion on them before beginning to apply the light blue color to my nails.
“I think, that if this friendship with the new guy is worth it, you need to make your boyfriend realize that. But the two of you haven't been together that long; so if he is going to be possessive like that, it may be in your best interest to take a step back, and time away. Clinginess and jealously are never good things in relationships.”

I nodded. I knew this.
“I just like, I don't know Nat. I started going out with James to piss my parents off but now I actually like him, but I don't want to pass up on friends.”
I then delved into the excitement of the history of James' and Tristan's friendship, which when I finished the details, earned me a low whistled from Natalia.
“Girl, I honestly don't know how you attract this kind of trouble, but really, it's not good for you. That's not going to be very easy to smooth over. I don't even know that it will be POSSIBLE to smooth it over. I can only say good luck, and I hope that your sweetheart is at least slightly understanding of where you're coming from.”

While she finished up my nails, we chatted about little things, I asked her about how her school was going, and how she missed home, how she was liking London. She interrogated me on the new school, how home life was, and then she wanted all the GOOD details about James' and my relationship.

After my nails were finally dry, I slipped my shoes back on my pulled my credit card out as Natalia rang me up.
“That'll be £8.” she informed me.
I just slid her the card and she did the whole cashier thing, sliding it through the reader, asking me if I wanted a receipt. That whole process thing.

“Thank you for listening to me prattle on about that all day.” I thanked her, giving her a warm smile.
“Love, it's not a problem at all.” she told me, mimicking my accent.
My eyes rolled up to the ceilings.
“Americans.” I grumbled with a smile before heading back out to my car.

Instead of driving out right away, I pulled out my phone, to send James a quick text.
I need to tell Emma. About us dating. I'm coming back to the school tonight, I'll come by your room? I'll tell you how it goes. xxxx

Next, was Emma.
Emma, this isn't how I planned on telling you this, I wanted it to be face to face, but I just need to get this off my chest now.
I'm dating James. I wanted to tell you in the beginning when it first happened, but I just, you really liked him.
Ems, I just, I'm sorry I didn't tell you. I was scared. I didn't want you to be mad at me. Please don't be; I hate when you're mad. I'm sorry about the other night too. I know how excited you were to go out with him, and I should have told you then what was going on. I really am sorry..

Okay, So I was going to lose best friend points with this one, it probably wasn't my best idea to tell her I was dating the guy that she thought she was in love with, but I was in a bit of a spontaneous state of mind, and just felt the need to tell her.

And finally, I texted Tristan.
Hey. So, I'm sorry I haven't been talking to you this weekend. I'll see you tomorrow in history (: xx

And then, I drove back home.


******

Dinner was pretty quiet, not a tense awkward silence that I was used to, but it was more or less just calm, tired. Anticipating my departure, again. James had texted me a few time since I returned home and was coming to pick me up from home to return me from school.
Emma had called me twice during dinner so far, and I was getting more and more anxious.
“So that Tristan boy is nice.'' Mum commented, shooting me a sort of hesitant smile.
I nodded, thinking.
“He's really nice. But he's just a friend, we're not dating. That article was wrong.” I said, hoping to clear the air.
I really didn't want mum getting wedding bells in her head or something, or getting excited over the wrong guy.
She looked a little disappointed but nodded.

Dad raised his fork, pointing it towards me, like he did when he had something important to say.
“You never told us that you were working on a project with James. How is that going anyway? He seems like a nice lad.”
I was barely able to stop the flush that I felt rising in my cheeks thankfully, so I swallowed the bite of salad I had in my mouth.
“He's quite nice. I didn't really have the chance to tell you guys though. I figured I would get around to it. It's sort of the 'senior final project', and we had to pick a song and choreograph it for the final Spring Show. It's a cool idea, and we just picked our song out the other day, so it's really in the beginning stages still.” I told them.
The conversation sort of died after that, the only noticeable sounds were the sounds of silverware clinking against our plates, or our glasses hitting the table.

“So how are you getting back to school?” Mum asked. “Is Emma coming to get you?”
I shook my head.
“Uhm, James was going to get me, since it's on his way. If that's alright.” I added at the end.
Mum and dad exchanged a look, before Dad spoke.
“Just call us when you get to the school, alright? Do you need to go pack or anything?”
I nodded, and they excused me, so I made my way up to my room, locking the door behind me.

2 missed calls from Emma and 6 texts. One was from Tristan, saying he was sorry if he complicated things for Tristan and I, and if he did that he would try to fix it. Another was from James, telling me that he would be here at 8:00, so I had 15 minutes. And 4 were from Emma.
…... are you serious?!
Bella. Answer your phone.
BELLA.
Okay, so I guess you're ignoring me now. Or you're too busy having sex with James to CARE about my feelings. I honestly cannot believe you. This is the most selfish thing that you have done yet. Damnit Bells you KNEW how I felt about him! You could have at least TOLD me before you went to the bloody school! I thought we were friends. But, obviously not if our relationship means this little to you. Call me when you decide to care.

I stared at my phone, shocked. It wasn't that I didn't care about our friendship. I DID care. That's why I hadn't wanted to tell her. I didn't want to hurt her...
I didn't even bother responding. She was mad, and until she chilled out, nothing was going to go right with us. If anything it would make things worse if I called her right now.
I threw all my stuff together in a bag, which wasn't that much, mostly my makeup and stuff. But I grabbed a couple of new shirts, and some leggings.

Are you almost here? I texted James, flopping down on my bed.
The sooner he got here the better. I really needed to just talk to him.
She was right. I should have told her. It wasn't fair for me to have kept this from her for so long. I felt like a bad friend.
My phone buzzed, James.
I'm not even 5 minutes away. You okay?
Emma's mad. I replied.
Though, that was probably an understatement.

I gripped my bags in my hand, making my way back downstairs. Mum was doing the dishes which was sort of odd because she never really did any cleaning.
“James is almost here, so I was going to sit on the curb and wait for him. Alright?” I told dad.
He set his paper down on the table and held his arms out expectantly, like he used to when I was little.
“I expect a hug before you leave again.” he told me.
I stepped into his arms, folding against him an a comfortable hug.
I missed my dad a lot while I was away at school. I mean, it had only been my first week, but I missed being at home and having dinner with them every night and hearing his little jokes every now and then.
“You'll call as soon as you're settled into your room?” Dad asked, holding me out at arm's length so I could meet his gaze.
I nodded. “Promise.”

My goodbye to my mum was much quicker, and soon enough I was seated on my front stoop, awaiting the arrival of my boyfriend.
Luckily for me, James was a very punctual person, and not even three minutes later he was pulling into my driveway. He honked the horn twice, and I could just barely make out a small smile on his face.
Grabbing my stuff, I jogged over to the car, sliding in the passenger side and dumping my stuff behind me to the back seat.
“Hey.” James said quietly, a nervous tone in his voice.
“Hey there.” I said back, my tone just as quiet and hesitant as his.

I knew why HE was nervous. But I told him I wasn't breaking up with him and that hadn't changed. If I was going to break up with him, I would have done it by now.
“How'd it go?” he asked, pulling out of the driveway.
I caught a glimpse of my mum peeking out at us through the window, so I was glad he hadn't leaned over and kissed me when I got into the car.
“She uh, well. She said I was a bad friend. And I was selfish, and when I didn't text her back right away she assumed I was too busy sleeping with you to text her back. And she probably hates me and will never talk to me again. How was your weekend?” I asked, like it was a perfectly normal conversation.

James gave me a sympathetic look, reaching over to pat my hand.
“If she's willing to throw away your friendship over this, is it really worth it then?” he asked me after a few moments of thought.

He was right, I believe. I mean, we were friends for so long, and she was throwing it away over a guy. I mean, I messed up, and I recognized that. But she was the one basically ending the friendship.
We rode in silence the rest of the trip, James' fingers laced through mine.

When we were back at the school, James carried one of my bags up, which was nice. Our hands were still locked together, swaying back and forth gently between us.
“I missed you this weekend.” he told me, smiling down at me.
A smile touched my face.
“I missed you too. Look, I'm sorry about the Tristan thing. It came as a surprise to me, and if you don't want us hanging out like that, we won't. I just figured that since it was in a public place, you would be more comfortable with it.'' I admitted.

James didn't say anything for a few minutes, we walked silently through the halls. My stomach clenched though when we came around the corner and saw Tristan standing there with Christine. She was leaning against the door frame of what I presume was her room, in a pair of tight spandex shorts and a sports bra. Her hair was damp, and hanging in waves down her back. Tristan was standing next to her, his arm resting above where her head was, leaning into her.
James' grip tightened on my hand, it actually sort of hurt.
“Let's just go.” I said quietly, tugging him along.
Christine smiled coyly at us, a mischievous glint in her eyes.
“Hello James, love. And Isobele. How are you two this evening?” she asked, fluttering her eyelashes at James.

I bit my lip, saying nothing.
James ignored her, pulling me closer to him as we walked past.
“Bells, I need to talk to you later. Can I come by your room?” Tristan called to my back.

James' hand grew even tighter on my hand (if that was even possible) and he tugged me along even quicker behind him.
“Don't stop, we'll just go to my room.” he said in a low voice.

I tripped along behind him, eager to get away as well. I thought Tristan wasn't friends with Christine. It was kind of a dick move to be standing there like that with your old best friend's ex, but I mean, I guess that was acceptable now.

I sent dad a quick text as James pulling me along, something about being too tired to call, and I was about to jump in the shower. My room was closer than James' but he just kept leading me through the halls until we were at his room.
He looked at me, as if making sure I actually still wanted to come in, which I nodded, reaching forward myself and opened the door.
His room was a mess, as expected. I mean, James wasn't the most organized of people.
I dropped my bags on the ground and jumped right onto his bed, hugging a pillow to my chest. James clamored up in a much more practical way, spreading out next to me. I was facing away from him, but he reached up and rubbed my arm in a comforting manner.

We didn't say anything. There wasn't really a need for words between us at the moment, and I was okay with that. Instead of a tension I had expected between us, there was a quiet understanding. We both made mistakes the past few days, but none of them were unforgivable. And now I understood why James had been so adamant about me staying away from Tristan. I wasn't guaranteeing I was going to stay away from him forever, but I would be more careful, and work out a way to try to keep both of them without upsetting James. Because he was my main concern right now. I was finally in a relationship that I was happy in, and I couldn't let some new guy mess it up.

“I'm sorry about Emma.” James said quietly after a few minutes of silence.
I rolled over so that I was facing him, and his hand dropped from where my arm was to settling around my waist.
“Me too.” I said softly.
He reached his free hand over and tipped my chin up so I was looking at him, his eyes gazing into mine seriously.
“I mean it. If I could fix it I would. But I don't regret upsetting her to be with you. I don't.”

I smile just barely reached my lips, and I propped myself up on my elbows, running my fingers through his hair.
“I don't either.” I murmured before drawing his face up to mine, kissing him slowly on the mouth.