Dylan

The Den

I should have went home. 

Dylan can't stop grinning and snickering to himself as he drives me back after school. 

"Shut up already," I stick my tongue out at him. I'm drenched. Utterly soaked. I accidentally tripped in gym class and ended up in the fountain. Hey, we were on the field. Doing who-knows-what exercise. I'm deathly allergic to exercise. 

That only makes Dylan chortle even more. "Hey, I gave you an out, you're the one who wanted to 'wreak more havoc'." 

"Shut up," I growl at him again. I'm tempted to flip him the finger but then he might kick me out of the car. I already rejected his offer to wear his stupid varsity jacket, so now I'm freezing. I can't afford to walk home. 

I'd been walking backwards, facing Dylan and his look of alarm was too slow to warn me. I fell into the huge fountain in the middle of the school grounds. How I didn't hear the water, I don't know. I'm pretty sure the pictures and videos of it are probably all over Facebook by now. I'm going to stay far away from social media for a while.

Dylan chuckles again but stops when I level a glare at him. He shakes a finger at me. "No. You don't get to be mad, Mer. Why would you walk backwards like that, anyway?" He shrugs off his jacket and dumps it in my lap. When I open my mouth to protest, he scowls and goes: "just put the damn thing on."

Reluctantly--just for show--I put it on with deliberate slowness, but Dylan rolls his eyes and I know he's not fooled. Ugh. When your best friend knows you too well, life is tough.

He parks in my garage and I get out. Grinding my teeth, I go: "Thanks for the jacket and the ride."

Just then, my mom passes by with a tray of cookies and she snorts. "Try that again, Merissa. With more gratitude and sincerity. From the heart."

Dylan smirks at me and waits. I scowl and grind my teeth harder, feeling the ache in my jaw.

"Thanks for the jacket and the ride."

"One more time."

"Thanks for the jacket and the ride."

"I'm not hearing it."

I release my painfully clenched jaw with a sigh. I take in a huge breath and say it from the bottom of my heart. "THANKS FOR THE JACKET AND THE RIDE."

Dylan's shoulders are shaking and he's chewing the heaven out of his bottom lip. I know he's trying to hold in his laughter, and my scowl returns. "You--"

"I think that was a wonderful note to end it on," Mom beams as she shoves the tray into my hands. Yeah, I got the message. Stop right there. Then Mom leaves the garage. "The TV in the den is ready." Her voice fades as she gets further away.

Dylan lets out a small burst of laughter and recovers quickly. "Oh man, your mom is awesome."

I frown at him. "You say that every time you meet her." My eyes go wide. "Wait, are you reverse pedophile? You have a crush on my mom?"

Dylan sighs. "And we're back to normal." He takes the tray from me casually as we walk through the side door. "Go and wash up, Mer. You'll get sick if you stay in those clothes."

I grin at him, my earlier peeve forgotten. "Yes, mom."

Dylan shakes his head and smiles gently, heading towards the den. Gosh. It's like getting whiplash trying to get used to In-School Dylan who suddenly flips to Out-Of-School Dylan. 

As I'm taking my shower, I ponder on the differences. I decided that In-School Dylan is annoying. He acts like those douche-baggery guys from teen dramas who reign over the school even without trying. And he tells me what to do a whole lot more. I towel myself dry as I ponder Out-Of-School Dylan. He's more subdued and obedient, caring and quiet. And he's like a brother to me. I nod to myself twice for good measure. Yup. I prefer Out-Of-School Dylan.