Don't Make Me Love You

Chapter 3

"Hello? Earth to Max!"

I snapped out of my thoughts and looked up from my Coke. "What?"

He stared at me in disbelief. "You didn't hear a word I said, did you?"

I took a sip of my drink and kept my eyes down. "Sorry..." I mumbled. "I was thinking about something..."

He frowned. "Is something up?"

"No. Why do you ask?"

He rolled his eyes. "'Cause whenever Jake is here you want all my attention but, now that he's gone it's like you're in a totally different world."

"Sorry." I repeated.

He sighed and smiled. "You know you can always tell me if something's bothering you. You are my best friend, after all."

I felt like the word 'friend' was a punch to the face. I studied my cup intently as I muttered. "Exactly..."

"What?" Bobby asked, obviously not hearing what I said.

I set my cup down and stood up. "Nothing. Want to go for a race?"

Bobby smiled and stood up. "Sure."

We hurried over to one of the racing games and each climbed onto a fake bike. After twenty minutes of racing I had six victories and Bobby had one. I was a good motorcyclist.

"It's because I had a bad bike. It was the game's fault." Bobby insisted as we picked up out things to get ready to leave.

"No, it's because I'm good at math and you're not." I teased.

"How does that even make sense?" He asked skeptically.

"Well, I know exactly how far to lean to perfectly turn and angle and by dividing the distance by how much gas I have I can easily-"

"Okay, okay! I get your point. I'm not in math class and I don't want to be." Bobby said, shutting me up so he wouldn't would to listen to me rattle on about formulas and stuff. "You won fair and square."

I smiled in triumph. "Which means?"

He chuckled and picked up the check for our lunch. "I get to pay today." He set down a twenty dollar bill and we headed for the door. "I should know better by now not to race with you..." He grumbled as he shoved my shoulder good naturedly. We walked out the door and started heading back towards Bobby's place.

*******

"So, we're walking down the pier and all of a sudden this guy who is fishing gets a bite. Jake and I run over to see if he catches and anything and he yanks out this tiny little fish. It's no bigger than a playing card." Bobby said.

I chuckled. "Poor guy. He should've gone to a better beach."

"That's not the best part." Bobby said. "He went to cast his line again and it caught on Jake's shirt. Before we could unhook it the guy tugged on the line so hard he ended up pulling Jake into the water!"

I burst into laughter. "Are you serious?! I wish I could've been there to see that!" I said. "You have to bring me on all your dates now."

Bobby laughed and leaned on my shoulder. "Honestly, I would. The things Jake gets himself into."

We laughed as we passed the park. I glanced at the swing set and hesitated. I used to love the park. But, it just brought up painful memories now. I turned away in disgust.

"Want to go to the arcade again tomorrow?"

I looked at Bobby and shrugged. "Fine by me. Is your boyfriend gonna be there?"

"Nah. He called me while I was in the bathroom. He said he was going to be busy all day and we had to cancel our plans."

I smiled. "Then you and I have an arcade date."

"You sound so happy to say it like that." Bobby snickered.

"Well, it's the only time I'll ever be able to say it. I have to take advantage now." I said.

He laughed and slung an arm over my shoulder. "You know, any one else in your situation would be way too shy to say that."

"So?"

He shrugged. "Well, I think it's a good thing to speak your mind. You're not afraid to tell people what you think or how you feel."

I frowned. What was that supposed to mean? So, what if I speak my mind? It's not like it's a special ability or something. "I don't really see where you're going with this but, okay."

"I just meant that if you ever get a girlfriend you'll be the best she ever had. You're a good person." He said.

My mood dissipated immediately and I focused my eyes on the ground. "Oh..."

"Aw, don't be like that." Bobby said. "You need a relationship. It would be good for you."

"Easy for you to say." I muttered. "I'm not interested in having my heart broken. Again."

He flinched when I said the last word and searched for an excuse. "Maybe you won't have it broken. You might find someone you really love."

"Like you?"

He frowned and I sighed. "I appreciate the advice but, no thanks. I don't want a relationship."

"What if someone asks you out?" He questioned. "Will you tell them no?"

"Of course I will. I'm not going to go out with someone just have a date. That's what desperate teenagers do." I said.

He laughed. "Yeah, I guess you're right. But, I still think you need a relationship. Won't you at least think about it?"

I sighed. "Sure. Whatever."

He smiled. "Good. Now, let's get back so we can-" He stopped and I followed his gaze. My eyes narrowed instantly and I looked away. Brandon was standing on the other side of the street talking to someone.

"Hey, isn't that the new kid?" Bobby asked.

"What of it?" I asked sharply.

He seemed to contemplate something before he grabbed my hand and tugged me with him. "Maybe he can hang out with us tomorrow?"

My eyes widened. "What?" I yanked my hand away. "Absolutely not. I'm not going to hang out with him."

Bobby rolled his eyes. "Quit being so anti-social. It's not like he's Jake."

As he went over to talk to Brandon I scowled. "No. He's worse than Jake..."

I firmly held my ground on the other side of the street while I watched with dark eyes as Bobby and Brandon talked. The new kid glanced at me a few times, nodding in agreement. Then he smiled and I saw him exchange contacts with Bobby. I gritted my teeth as Bobby walked back over and stood next to me, waving to Brandon as he walked away. "He said he could come. We're going to meet at the arcade at 5:00pm."

"Have fun." I said and stormed off.

Bobby hurt to catch up to me. "What're you so mad about? I was just being friendly."

"He's a jerk, Bobby."

"How? He seemed perfectly nice when I met him."

I stopped and turned to him. "I'm not getting into details but, he was an ass when we talked and I would prefer not to talk to him again. End of story."

"Then don't talk to him. Just come and hang out with me. You can ignore him if you want."

"Sorry, Bobby. I'm just going to stay home and study. Have fun and don't tell me what happens 'cause I don't want to know." I said.

I didn't wait for him to reply before I started for home. I'd hang out at the hotel another time. I just wanted to go home now.

*******

Hey everyone! Sorry, this was supposed to be up yesterday but, I forgot to post it. So, I have major plans for this book and I can't wait to get to the good parts. Hope you enjoyed this chapter! AS ALWAYS, VOTE, COMMENT, FOLLOW, AND STAY AWESOME!

-Nekoco