Jenna (IN EDITING)

Chapter Twenty-Seven

"Are they on their way?" Valerie complained. We had forced her into one of my mother's old skin tight yellow dresses, and she wasn't exactly pleased.

"I don't know they better be here soon because the dinner reservation is in a hour, and Classy's will kick us out if we're late!" Kathleen snapped.

I sighed. The guys were a half an hour late and wouldn't even pick up their phones. I feared the worst. I really needed to get my mind off the possibility that Alex may be in trouble or worse, hurt. I was sitting in my beanie chair, the spot I earlier stole from Valerie, and crossed my legs. Hurry up, I thought, I'm dying of starvation here. Maybe I shouldn't do that, I know what it is like to see someone actually go so close to dying of starvation, it wasn't pretty. She just wanted to look good for the guys, get rid of her baby bump leftovers. Stupid Tanya. So I guess I can say I'm just hungry, really, really hungry.

Jean entered my bedroom with a look of relief over her face. "They're on their way. Marley ripped his pants and they had to go back to his house and get some new ones," She told the three of us.

"Finally!" Kathleen rejoiced. "I thought they were dead something." She took one look at me and her expression fell to a frown. "I'm really sorry, that's not what I meant."

"It was a month ago Kathleen," I mumbled. "I got to grow up from it sometime."

"Christine will be here in spirit. She never missed a good get together," Jean laid her hand on my shoulder and shook it. "I miss her too."

"We all do," Valerie spoke up.

"Okay, I take back the time where I thought Jean didn't have a voicebox!" I joked, and Jean smiled.

"I'm like a puma, or what ever animals hides and waits for their pray then pounces. But except I do it with my voice," She grinned.

"Jean like a puma," Giggled Valerie.

We heard a knock on the door and ran down stairs in our dresses, I didn't care about the autumn air making me freeze. It was worth it to see Alex. The four boys stood alongside their worn out cars, and we of course felt like we were at a ball. Thank god that it was a Friday, or else I would be daydreaming about this all day during school. Alex looked handsome as anything in his dress pants and light blue dress shirt that flowed a little over his pants line. He didn't see me yet, but he looked up suddenly as soon as Marley, Valerie's cute date with shaggy jet black hair and dreamy hazel eyes, nudged his shoulder.

"Woah," Was all Alex said. "You, Jenna, you look beautiful."

"Uh, thanks?" I bit my lip. I hated being called beautiful, but I'll have to deal since it's Alex and he'd tell me off for saying I wasn't pretty. But in this outfit I felt a teeny tiny bit pretty.

"No problem," Alex looped his arm around mine. "Happy birthday princess Jenna!"

"I am not a princess!" I told him.

"Tonight, you look like one," Marley said as he grabbed a hold of Valerie's waist. "You all do."

"Okay guys, Marley and glasses--" Alex began.

"Valerie!" She barked.

"Okay. Marley and 'Valerie' are in the back seat with me and the birthday girl," Alex explained the plan. "Kathleen and Louis will be taking Jean and Jacob. Let's go before our dinner table is stolen from us!"

***

"Holy crap," Kathleen tumbled over onto my porch's railing as I spoke. "Good thing Nana is on the night shift!"

"You're just, just jealous you never had some!" She pointed a finger at me, but it did not remain straight. "So, so shut up!"

I rolled my eyes and unlocked the door. Dinner was amazing, so pleasing to my stomach. Alex demanded I order the lobster and he would pay, but I attempted to deny him. Didn't work out. Of course one of the guys, Louis sadly, brought a few beer in his car and him and Kathleen keep making trips back and forth, sneaking beers into some of our pop cans. Explains why Kathleen was trying to pet an invisible cat on my apartment window sill. But of course me, Jean, and Alex remained sober so we could actually drive back home without being stopped by the police for reckless driving.

"Let me love you," Kathleen yelled into the darkness. Obviously the 'cat' had run away.

"What amazing qualities your friends have," Alex whispered into my ear.

"Eh, what can I say?" I smiled and let everyone into the house. It was ten at night now, and I say everyone was about to pass out of my couches now.

"I didn't know you had a moose as a pet," Kathleen jumped onto the couch. "Come on moose, RUN!"

"That's a couch--" Kathleen cut me off by passing out in a position in which her butt stuck out and her face was smashed into the couch cushion. "Well that's attractive."

"Poor child, this is why you do not drink," Jean entered with Jacob's keys on her middle finger swinging around. "Where's Marley and Valerie?"

"We dropped them off," Alex told her, grabbing onto my waist. "And I'm guessing you did the same for Jacob and Louis?"

"They were out of it, I only brought her back here because she cannot go home to her parents because they will flip for sure. You should of seen them when they heard she was suspended from school. Not a pretty sight," Jean pushed on Kathleen's butt to make her fall into a regular sleeping position on her stomach.

"I love this dress and all," I padded the puffy bottom as I spoke. "But if I don't get out of it soon I will piss myself." I walked up the hall to my bedroom. I walked in about to close the door when I heard the door close by itself. I turned to face Alex.

He lunged forward and kissed me harder than he ever has before. I was confused about what was going on until he started tugging on the back of my dress. "Alex, no!" I pushed myself away.

"Oh, you're not ready?" He said nervously.

"It's not that, it's uh, how do I put this?" I sighed once again. "Did I ever tell you how I got myself expelled at my old school?"