Don't Make Me Love You

Chapter 14

"This is all you got?" I asked, annoyed as I looked through the photos that Jake had taken. "I can't use any of these." I said.

"Why not?" He asked, obviously upset at my lack of enthusiasm.

"Because they're all in front of my house. Bobby will know Brandon's cheating with me and then my friendship with him will be ruined." I snapped, tossing the photos back on Jakes bed.

"So what if it's ruined...?" Jake grumbled.

I started grabbing my stuff. "I'm not doing any of this for you, Jake." I said. "I'm doing this for Bobby."

He sighed before that annoying smartass smirk crossed his face. "I guess if none of these work, you'll just have to go on another date with Brandon."

The thought was enough to make me feel sick. "Great." I mumbled. "This is just perfect."

He snickered and tossed my jacket at me. "Where will you guys go next? The mall? A fancy dinner? What about a nice cruise?" He teased.

Resisting the urge to punch him in his stupid face, I pulled on my jacket. "I don't really care. He can pick." I said. "But you better get the pictures this time."

"Yeah, yeah." He said. "I will."

I was just opening the door when Jake grabbed my arm. I glanced back at him. "What?"

He scratched the back of his head, looking reluctant. "After..." He sighed. "After all this is over, when I'm back with Bobby and you don't have fake date Brandon anymore, can we just be friends?"

"Friends?" I asked, skeptical.

"Well, not share birthday parties and walk home from school hand-in-hand." He said, exasperated. "Just... Let's not hate each other."

"You thought I hated you?" I asked.

Jake frowned, looking confused. "Did you not?"

"Oh, no, I did." I said. "I just didn't know you were smart enough to catch onto that."

He chuckled. "I see." He said and held out his hand. "Enemies then."

"Absolutely." I shook his hand. "Enemies to the end."

*******

"So, I think yesterday went really well." Brandon said. He had called me shortly after I had gotten home from Jake's and asked if I wanted to hang. We were now walking through the park, the sun setting behind us. To my utter disgust, he was holding my hand. If I could've, I would've preferred to just walk normally.

"You make it sound like a test date." I snorted.

He shrugged. "Well, it kinda was, don't you think?" When I gave him a funny look he elaborated, "You were only going out with me to relieve stress, right?"

"Well, when you put it that way..." I grumbled. I guess it was kind of like a test date. Not that it made me feel any better. Brandon or not, it made me sound like a poseur. I glowered at that idea. This was all Brandon's fault. If he'd never have come close to me-

"Hey, I was wondering," I snapped out of my inward cursing when Brandon starting talking again. "You've lived in the city a your life?"

"Yeah? Why?" I asked.

"I was just thinking maybe you could show me around sometime." He said. "It'd be cool to see the best secret places the locals know about."

I thought about that for a moment. There were some pretty cool places you could go if you knew how to get there. Not that I really wanted to show them to Brandon... I mentally kicked myself. Play nice, Max. "Sure." I said, knowing I probably wouldn't get the chance anyways. Then, because it was hot outside and I was sick of walking around, I asked, "So why did you want to hang out?"

"Well, that's kinda what you do when you're dating someone." Brandon chuckled.

I glared at him and he forced himself to sober. "Sorry, sorry. I forgot, you don't like sarcasm unless it's coming from you."

I shoved him and he laughed, not even fazed by my assault. I would've hit him again, but he suddenly tugged me along the path. I frowned. "Where are we going?"

"My house." He said. "I planned to ask you over the phone, but got sidetracked." He said.

"By what?" I asked, wondering how 'let's hang at my house' turned into 'let's hang at the park'.

His ears turned an embarrassing shade of pink as he shifted his eyes away. "No special reason..."

"By what?" I asked again.

He rolled his eyes, still refusing to answer my question. "It doesn't matter. Let's just hurry. My parents want me home for dinner."

It was annoying how he'd land a hint like that and then proceeded to not explain it, but whatever. It wasn't like it was gonna matter in the long run. It didn't take long to reach Brandon's house. When we did, Brandon opened the door. "Guests first." He said, holding it open for me.

I thanked him and stepped into the house. My eyes widened as I looked around. The place was really nice inside, and not gonna lie, I kind of liked the southern theme they had going. Probably from their previous house; living in the country and all that.

Brandon was just closing the door when a tall man stepped out of the kitchen. "Good, you're home." He said. I was a little shocked by the shortness in his tone of voice, and a lot more shocked by his expression when he saw me. "Who's this?" He asked.

Brandon stepped up in front of me, a slight defensiveness to his posture. "A friend." He said.

His dad, I asumed, looked me over with a harsh gaze before turning back to the kitchen. "Don't forget to wash your hands before dinner." He said.

Brandon looked upset as he watched his dad disappear into the next room, but tried not to let on. Instead he turned to me. "I'll introduce you later. They'd prefer it over dinner anyways."

Prefer it over dinner? Weird. I tried not to think about why that was as he lead me upstairs to his room. Unlike the rest of the house that I'd seen, Brandon's room definitely belong to a teenage boy. In a quick survey of the room, I saw posters, an old fashioned record player, and a few well polished figurines. It was very much like my own room. Certainly cleaner than Jake's.

I nodded as I looked around. "Nice room."

He grinned. "You're the first to approve."

"Not even Bobby liked it?" I asked.

He paused, scratching the back of his head. "Yeah, well... he hasn't seen it. I never brought him here." He said.

I raised my eyebrows. "Oh? Does that make me special or something?"

A mischievous grin crossed his face. Then I nearly fell over in surprise when he wrapped an arm around my waist and pulled me close, whispering in my ear, "Of course you're special." His hands rested on my lower back. "If I had my way, I'd show you just how special you are to me."

My face flushed and I scrambled back, bumping into a desk in my wake. I stared at Brandon, a blushing stuttering mess. "What...?! What was that for?" I asked.

Brandon chuckled. "I'm just joking. I wouldn't do anything to you without your consent." He said. "Unless of course, I have your consent."

"Absolutely not!" I said.

Brandon snickered as I turned even redder. I was about to get angry when there was a knock on the door. "If you two are ready, dinner's on the table." Brandon's dad said.

It was like a flash, one second Brandon was laughing and the next his eyes were on the door, a serious expression on his face. "We'll be down in a second." He called back.

When we heard footsteps retreating, Brandon sighed. I frowned, feeling like something was wrong. "Is everything okay?"

He looked up at me and then he was smiling again, like nothing had happened. "Yep." He said. Then he pulled me out the door. "Let's get downstairs. My mom's cooking is the best."

*******

Hey everyone! I'm SO glad to be working on this book again. It's gonna be super fun! Hope you enjoyed this chapter! AS ALWAYS, VOTE, COMMENT, FOLLOW, AND STAY AWESOME!

-Nekoco