Fair Warning

Chapter 8

"You totally disappeared at the party," Mel said on Monday morning at school, the first day back from holidays.  I hadn't seen or talked to her or Avery since the party because after I left the party, I woke up with a hangover and spent nearly the entire next day and night sleeping.

"I was around," I answered as we walked into the cafeteria and toward our regular table when Mel grabbed my hand and dragged me to the popular table.  "Oh I forgot."

"Well you get a pass since it's our first day back but we're sitting here from now on," Mel said and kissed Hunter when she sat next to him.  I rolled my eyes and sat down next to her. 

"Why are you here?" I rolled my eyes when I heard his voice.

"Eating," I answered and he sat down next to me.

"Go find your own table," Ryan said but I continued eating without looking at him.

"I had one but I was forced to come here, feel free to fight Mel and get me out of sitting here," I said as I picked at my food.

"Hey, don't get me involved in this," Mel said and leaned closer to Hunter and away from me.

"Why do you have to be such a bitch?" Ryan asked and I shot my eyes up to look at him.  He had an unreadable expression on his face.

"Why do you have to be such a jackass?" I asked him.

"Are you two ever going to get along?" a guy, I think Hunter, said from my right side but I didn't take my eyes off of Ryan.

"No!" Ryan and I said in unison and everyone at the table chuckled.  I stood up from the table, taking my tray with me and accidentally hitting Ryan's head with my tray as I walked by.

"Where are you going?" Mel asked as I was walking away from the table but close enough that I was still within earshot.

"I saw Ryan's face and lost my appetite," I answered, throwing my tray in the garbage and leaving the cafeteria.

"Shouldn't you be in class?" I heard as I walked down the hall and I stopped to turn around to see Mike leaning against a row of lockers a few feet behind me.

"I was supposed to be having lunch but some jackass made me lose my appetite," I answered.  He walked toward me and stood a few inches from me, I took a step back because he was far too close to me and he chuckled when he saw me move away from him.

"I was hoping to see you today," he said and closed the gap I had created when I backed away from him.  This time he took my hands in his so I couldn't back away from him.

"Shouldn't you be in class?" I asked, unable to think of anything else to say when he was this close to me.  I didn't like how close he was getting to me and not respecting my boundaries but even still, I was having a hard time thinking.  I didn't have much experience with boys and Mike was a year older and much more experienced than I am. 

He chuckled and nodded.  "I'm heading back to class now.  I'll text you after school, okay?" I nodded and he let go of my hands and walked down the hall.  Wait, did he even have my phone number?  Curse these boys and their power over me.

I watched him disappear down the hallway and jumped when I heard someone behind me.

"He's a bastard, stay away from him," Ryan warned, his arms folded in front of him as he leaned on the wall.

"Thanks for the advice," I said and walked down the hall toward my locker just as the bell rang.  I rushed to my class and frowned when I walked into the classroom to see Ryan sitting at the desk behind mine.  Shit, I forgot he was in this class.

"I mean it, he's bad news," Ryan whispered halfway through the class and I waved my hand in his direction, trying to get him to stop talking.  Of course this was Ryan so he continued pestering me the entire class about how Mike was bad news and that I should stay away from him. 

I dashed from the class when the bell rang, releasing me from my personal hell of being near Ryan.  I literally ran through the halls and straight into Mike, who smiled when he saw it was me that slammed into him. 

"What's your hurry?" he asked as he steadied me, his hands lingering on my hips longer than they needed to.  I was about to tell Mike I wasn't interested, when I looked up and saw Ryan glaring at us as he walked by.  Maybe I can't get Ryan into trouble with dares but I can piss him off by going out with Mike, I thought and smiled up at Mike.

"Oh shit I'm going to be late," I said and rushed down the hall to my locker.  I opened it and a note fell out of it and I rolled my eyes, picking it up off the ground.  I knew what it was before I even opened it and opening it to find Ryan's familiar chicken scratch, I should've been surprised by this dare but I wasn't.  I crumpled it and threw it in the trash, walking passed Ryan and walking into the cafeteria. 

Unfortunately Mike had the same lunch hour as my sister, who was sitting at the popular table when I walked into the cafeteria, trying to find where Mike was sitting.  Kat didn't notice me right away but I felt her glare at me when she realized I walked into her zone.  I bought a drink and walked up to Mike, trying to make it look like an accident as I spilled my drink into his lap.

I leaned to whisper in his ear, "now we're even," and walked out of the cafeteria with everyone staring after me.  I walked passed a grinning Ryan once I reached the hallway, clearly he'd seen the entire interaction.  I didn't stop, I rolled my eyes at him and continued down the hallway toward my locker, officially late for my next class now.

I was called to the principal's office as soon as I walked into my next class.  The principal, Mr. Becks, gave me a week's detention for being tardy and for spilling a drink on another student.