Collide ✖️ Rucas

Chapter Five

On Friday, there was no practice for the baseball team or the dancing squad, but that didn't mean that Riley and Lucas didn't see each other. First period was separate, but third period was English. As Riley walked into class, she heard Lucas talking loudly to some people. As she walked past, she muttered, "Loud mouth." Lucas spun around and glared at her.

"Excuse me?" he asked.

"Not everyone wants to know what you're doing, so why don't you keep your voice down?" she snapped at him. Lucas crossed his arms and leaned against his desk.

"Maybe not everyone, but a large majority," he replied with a self-satisfying smirk. "I know Ava does," he looped his arm around the waist of Ava Morgan, a member on the dancing squad. She looked pained, torn between her loyally at her friend, and being acknowledged by Lucas. In the end she didn't have to say anything, as Riley just rolled her eyes and crossed her arms.

"Whatever, idiot," Riley snapped. The teacher came in and they all took their seats, Riley two rows over from Lucas, firmly looking forward and refusing to look in his direction.

Halfway through the period, Lucas felt his eyes drifting over toward Riley for some reason. She was paying attention, a slight wrinkle over the top of her nose due to her concentration. His eyes drifted over her profile, taking in her soft skin and the way her mouth was slightly puckered. She had full lips and she was wearing lipstick. There was something entrancing about her and for a moment, he forget that he found her completely annoying. Then the teacher turned her attention toward Lucas.

"Mr. Friar, are you paying attention?" she asked sternly. Lucas raised his eyebrows and tilted his head to one side.

"Yeah, whatever," he muttered, leaning back in his seat. The teacher crossed her arms.

"Okay, then, do any of the character's display courage, and give me some examples?" she asked. Lucas thought for a moment, then carelessly shrugged his shoulders. The teacher rolled her eyes. "Can anyone tell me the answer the answer?" Unsurprisingly, Riley put up her hand and the teacher nodded in her direction.

"Valentine displays courage against Peter when she says she'll leave a letter saying that he killed her and Andrew. I believe as a modern day feminist that it was rare to find books with strong female characters in them, so it makes me happy," she replied in a smug voice.

"Very good, Ms. Matthews," the teacher said with a smile. Riley sent a smirk across at Lucas, who rolled his eyes and immediately forgot all the thoughts about thinking she was cute.

"Are you coming to the party tomorrow night?" Maya asked, leaning against her locker beside Riley's. "Because, well, Zay asked me to it, so...I can't come with you," she cringed slightly, awaiting Riley's reaction. When none came, she looked at Riley who was grinning. "You're smiling?" she asked, sounding slightly confused.

"We always go to parties together!" Riley said. "And you've liked Zay for ages, I'm happy you guys are going together! I'll go with Smackle," she shrugged. Maya frowned slightly. "What? What's wrong?"

"Well...Smackle is going with Farkle..." Maya gave a weak smile. Riley thought for a moment, then shrugged.

"Well, I'm happy for you guys. Maybe I'll go with a group of girls from the dancing squad," Riley smiled. Maya smiled back, relieved. "Anyway, I just got a paycheck, so...want to go shopping?" Riley nudged her friend and they both laughed.

"Of course!" she squealed. "What a stupid question!"

"Anyway, I got gym, I got to go," Riley said, and she and Maya gave each other quick hugs before going their different ways. As Riley passed Davis, he smiled at her and broke away from his friends. Riley smiled back at him, tossing her hair away from her friends. "Hey," she said with a cheery grin. He grinned back.

"Hey...Listen, are you going to the party tomorrow?" he began. She grinned and nodded. "Are you going with anyone?" she shook her head. "You want to, you know, come with me?"

"Just as a friend, okay? Nothing serious," she told him. The baseball player grinned and nodded. "Okay, uh...pick me up at five. Here's my address..." she quickly scribbled it down on a slip of paper and handed it to him. Davis looked at it, then grinned up at her and turned around for his next class.

"See ya!" he yelled over his shoulder. Riley shook her head, smiling ruefully and walking towards the gym.

In PE, she somehow ended up next to Lucas. He rolled his eyes when he saw her and made a point of ignoring her. Riley ignored him back, talking to Yogi instead. When the teacher came in and started explaining what would be happening, Riley realized they would be getting in two's. Her and Yogi exchanged looks and smiled, but the teacher obviously had different ideas. Ms. Horne began from the front of the crowd numbering them off.

"One, two, you two together. One, two, you two together," she said. Several people were lucky and ended up with friends, but most were not. Riley moved several steps away from Lucas, but the teacher saw. "One, two, you two together," Ms. Horne said, pointing at Lucas and Riley. They both complained and glared at each other, but walked off accordingly. When everyone was paired up, the teacher clapped her hands to get their attention. "Now here's the game: One partner must piggyback their other partner across the room. First pair to get to the other side and back, wins. Rules: The partner being piggybacked is not allowed to touch the ground, or they have to go back to the start. Also, no bumping into anyone else. Okay, you have several minutes to get ready. Go!" Riley turned and glared at Lucas.

"You are not hopping on my back," she stated. Lucas rolled his eyes.

"I'd probably break your back," he shot back. She glared at him and crossed her arms. "Whatever, let's get this over this." He bent down slowly and she studied him quickly before jumping onto his back. Lucas made a slight 'oomph' sound and pretended that he couldn't take her weight. She whacked him on the arm as she held onto his shoulders.

"Don't be a jerk," she hissed at him.

"Shut up, or I'll drop you," he hissed back as he adjusted his grip on her legs. She wrapped her legs tighter around his waist and held on with her arms. Even though he had pretended not to be able to take her weight, he actually found her surprisingly light. He glanced down at his hands as they held onto her smooth, tan legs and bit his lower lip. Riley saw him looking down and squeezed with her legs.

"Pay attention!" she told him. The teacher yelled out for them to start and they all began. Lucas easily got the lead and halfway across the gym, they were winning. Riley held on tight to his shoulders and neck, her head pressed against his well-defined back. She could feel his muscles rippling beneath his shirt and a shiver ran through her spine. Her stomach churned when he readjusted his grip on the way back, and his strong hands slid further up her thighs. They reached the other end first, and she quickly slid off, looked away, hiding her flushed face.