The Art Of You And I

Chapter three: The state of my wellbeing was one of his priorities in life.

"How was your first day of school?" Dave asked the minute I walked up the stairs to their living room, which was above the art studio.

I threw myself on the couch and sighed. "It was ok."

Dave walked away from the kitchen holding Chinese takeouts and sat beside me, in front of the tv. He chuckled. "Was it that bad?"

I shook my head as I took in a mouthful of noodles. "It wasn't. It was fine, I made a couple of friends. Although, people wouldn't stop talking about me."

He snorted as he ate as well. "I'm not surprised. You are the newest face of Amberville after all. You're famous."

I shrugged. "Other than that, my day was fantastic. I met some kids called Jessica and Ty and-"

He gasped. "Oh god, those stone kids and that girl's boyfriend? That's who you met?"

I furrowed my eyebrows. "Yes, but I don't see what the-"

"Their parents are a bunch of psychos!" He shouted.

"The only one who's out of their mind is you! Christ, calm down. What's the big deal?" I yelled back.

"You wouldn't understand anyway. Their parents had a huge reputation back in our day. Especially the girl's. They would mess with your mind, make you do things, even go as far as get yourself suspended. No one was safe." His eyes looked frantic.

I closed my eyes. "If you could just stop freaking out-"

"I am not freaking out!" He yelled, then paused. Realization dawned on him. "Oh. Sorry. Don't know where that came from. Anyway, we have a rocky history with their parents."

I raised my eyebrows. "How? You know what, don't tell me. I don't want to hear it right now. Question is, are you going to invite them to your party?"

He sighed. "I have to. Michael and I invited everyone."

My eyes widened. "You said you were going to have a small gathering!"

He shrugged. "We didn't want anyone to be left out. So we just told everybody."

I groaned. "Anyway. You said my buyer bought my painting for 600 dollars. Where's my salary for this month?" I smiled sweetly at him.

He rolled his eyes. "It's on the kitchen counter."

I squealed. "I'm so happy! I'll get the money on my way out." I munched on my food cheerily.

Dave looked amused. "This is the first time I've seen you happy in a long time. Did something happen?"

I shrugged. "I met a cute boy today." I giggled silently.

He groaned. "Who is he now? You should know that there are a lot of players in Amberville. Just please stay out of trouble."

I shook my head. "He's president of the art club. His name is Jack."

"Is he blonde?"

"Yep."

"Looks like a surfer dude who always wears shorts?"

"Yes, and this was the first time I saw him ever. But yes, he did wear shorts today."

"Jack Stanley? Hmm. He's quite the player, Sky. Not to mention, his parents are judgmental assholes who likes to keep their social circle full of people who have money and power. So it wouldn't surprise me if their son was snobby too. I don't want you anywhere near him."

I blinked. "The hell? How small is this town? It's like everybody knows everybody!"

He shook his head. "No not really. I only know the people who had quite the reputation in high school. And the town is bigger than it seems. It's only this part that I know. The heart of Amberville."