Heartstrings

Chapter Thirteen

After applying a coat of lipstick to my lips, Clara pulled away wearing a large smile. She pulled me in front of the mirror and I stared at my reflection with surprised eyes. My lips were a dark shade of red, my brown orbs popped from the eyeliner and my long lashes looked more defined with the coating of mascara Clara had applied.

"Why am I going to school in makeup?"

She glared at me. "To show those snotty kids that you're even prettier wearing makeup."

I scoffed. "Let's go before we're late."

The drive to school was a short one. Probably because there was barely any traffic.

Andrea met us outside and I was shocked to see her getting a piggyback ride from Don, who sported an annoyed look on his face. Andrea was probably getting on his nerves.

She squealed when she saw us, slapping Don's shoulder. He put her down and she skipped over to us. She gasped as she reached us, staring at me. "Rae, you look different. Levi, come look at your girlfriend."

"I'm not his girlfriend, Andy." I let out a small laugh as I shifted my bag higher on my shoulder.

Levi, who was leaning against his car the entire time, spoke up and pushed off his car. "Let's get inside before we're late." He met my gaze and gave me a heated look.

Looking away, I gave Clara a small nod. "Are you coming with us, Andy?"

"We should all walk in together." She suggested

I fell behind and watched my friends interact with each other. They got along like two peas in a pod. A hand touched my back and I looked up.

"You always sneak up on me."

Levi looked down at me. "Do I? I didn't notice. Does it bother you? Having my amazing presence around all the time."

"You're so annoying."

He smirked. "Annoyingly handsome."

I hadn't realized we stopped walking until I heard Clara call out to us. Blushing, I hurried to catch up to my friends.

"They're going to wait for us, sweetheart." Levi chuckled

I turned to him. "In case you haven't noticed, you've got a lot of followers. I don't want to be considered one of them."

"Never." He said "I'd never let that happen, Rae."

He slung an arm around my shoulders as we entered the building and I heard the surprised gasps of the surrounding students.

"See," he said "Not so bad."

I shrugged his arm off and brushed my shoulder off. "Not so bad? Whatever you say Levi. I'm going to class."

"No kiss?"

I looked at him and scoffed. "You don't deserve one."

He gave a lopsided grin and bent down next to my ear. "I want my kiss later, sweetheart."

I looked at him then walked away from him and his group. Clara joined me as I walked towards my locker. She teased me about Levi the entire journey from the lockers to our classroom.

❦

Levi found me in our normal spot during my free period. Smiling, he sat down. I stared at him with cautious eyes. What's he up to now?

"Where are we going for our next date?" He said

I put my pencil down. "Next date?"

He nodded, eyes filled with determination. "Yes, Rae. I plan on taking you on many dates. Is that a problem?"

I shook my head slowly and returned to my sketch. "Any ideas?"

"The planetarium just opened a new exhibit or we can go to the museum." He said

"I haven't been to either of those places since elementary school." I said in thought

He pushed a lock of hair from my face, securing it behind my ear. "We'll go to the planetarium first and then the museum. Sound like a plan?"

I nodded. "Sounds amazing. Looks like I have to cross out heels from my outfit ideas."

"Good." He leaned over and pecked my lips. "You always taste like candy."

I blushed and licked my lips. "I didn't notice."

He smiled. "I like it." He bent down and captured my lips with his again.

Breathless, I pulled away and blushed. "You're always so unsuspecting. Always kissing me so randomly."

He laughed. "There's nothing wrong with a little surprise here and there."

"You're too full of surprises." I said looking at my sketchbook

Levi leaned closer to me, peeking at my latest creation. He pointed at the guy in the picture. "Why's he not colored?"

"It's not finished, Levi. I didn't even add his facial details." I said

We spent the rest of the period doing random things. We played tic-tac-toe on a piece of extra white paper I found in my sketchbook before playing hangman. I liked spending time with Levi. There was usually never a dull moment being around him.

When the bell rang, Levi helped me clean the mess we made before walking to lunch with me. The watchful glare of the others made me uncomfortable. Levi noticed and discreetly pulled me closer to him.

"What are they watching us for?" I uttered

"We should give them something to talk about," Levi said mischievously

I looked at him as he bent down so it looked like we were about to kiss then fixed my collar. He wrapped an arm around my waist and lead me further into the cafeteria. We entered the Circle and he loosened his hold on my waist. "You're a troublemaker."

"I'm your troublemaker." He winked

Laughingly, I shook my head. I walked towards the different array of food and picked out a chicken sandwich and an apple. Levi paid for the both of us then kissed my cheek as we exited and went our separate ways.

Joining my friends, I tried to ignore their questions. It was impossible. Giving in, I answered their questions with false enthusiasm. I found myself anticipating the fact that Levi had found me as attractive as I found him, which was bad. One small mistake and it'd be my heart on the line. I couldn't afford it.