Love Only

Chapter Three

Vanessa's POV

"I'm just saying, if you want to date him, just go for it. I'm sure Ethan wouldn't be that mad once I talked to him," Roni says to me.

"Are you sure? You saw how Ethan reacted yesterday when Grayson came over," I say. "Plus, I don't want to date him."

"Please Nessa, don't lie. It's just you and me here. You've been crushing on him since the tenth grade."

"I know Roni, but I'm not lying. He's changed a lot since then. He used to be a decent guy, now he hits on anything that moves. I'm not saying I don't like him, but there's no way in this universe I'd ever go out with him."

"But Nessa..."

"No buts. He's just gonna flirt with me until he finds something more entertaining, and that'll be the end of it. C'mon, it's almost time to go."

"Fine. I still think it's something more than that. Plus you guys would look hot together." Roni laughs.

"Yeah, right." I laugh too.

•••

Grayson's POV

"I've got Becca and Paris for the two hours, and then I'll have Britney to take to the hotel afterwards," Jake says. The guys nod their heads in respect and and offer fist bumps and high fives. Sometimes I worry about Jake gaining too much leadership in our group, but he always manages to screw up when he gets close. "Nate," Jake begins, "How many are you taking?"

"Just one. Lola Beaumont," Nate responds.

"The hot nerd? Bro, you could do so much better than her. Maybe take one of Jake's rejects," John roasts.

"Yeah, well, whatever. She's hot enough and she's been head over heels for me since like, last year." Nate responds, trying to hide his actual feelings. Truth is, he's the one who's head over heels for her. Only I know that, though. Me and Nate have been close friends since second grade . He knows stuff about me that no one else does, and I know everything about him too.

"So what about you Grayson, hopefully something less boring is in store for you?" Jake questions.

"I hadn't even thought about, I'll have plenty of girls flocking my way." I try to hide my frown while all the boys laugh.

"What about the girl Vanessa? The one who gave you a hard time yesterday?" John pipes in.

"Please," Ben says. "Vanessa wouldn't even look at you, let alone go to homecoming with you."

I frown, but cover it up. "Nah man, I told ya yesterday. She's just playing hard to get. She'll be my date, I guarantee it."

"Yeah, right." John says. "Look, there she is now. Go get em, tiger." I stand up and the boys start cheering, I fist bump Nate and I see a warning look in his eyes.

I start towards Vanessa and Veronica, no Ethan in sight. "Hey there ladies," I offer my most sincere smile but Vanessa isn't having it. Veronica, however, greets me cheerfully.

"Hi Grayson! How are you?"

"I'm doing great, and you?" I only half listen to the response as I put my hand on Vanessa's waist. My heart beats faster. Why?

"How's your father?" I tune back into the conversation. No one ever asks about my family.

"He's doing as well as you'd expect. He's fighting." I almost drop the act and let go of Vanessa, but I hear my friends across the parking lot. "How's your advanced math class? I have a buddy taking it and it sounds pretty bad." She starts to talk, saying it isn't so bad, but I focus on the way Vanessa's body curves. I move my hand down to her hip.

Vanessa has been quiet this entire time, but when my hand moves another inch she clears her throat really loudly. I stare at her face and her eyes shoot me a "wtf" kind of look.

"Are you ok?" Veronica asks Vanessa.

"Yeah, yeah, just had something caught in my throat." Veronica continues on with her story. I slowly bring my hand down all the way and grab her firmly.

Bad idea.

She throws my hand off of her and shoves me back to a point where I almost fall. She brings her hand up and slaps me hard across my face. My cheek stings. "WHAT THE FUCK, GRAYSON?" The entire parking lot falls silent. The guys back at the oak tree start to "ooooh."

"Excuse me? What's your problem?"

"You are!" I see Ethan coming up out of the corner of my eye. More people gather to see what's happening. "Don't ever lay a hand on me again." She grabs Veronica's hand and pushes through the crowd to storm off. I stand at the center of the commotion and people ask me what happened. I shrug my shoulders and put on a sheepish look.

"I don't know what her problem is." Apparently the bell already rung and teachers start to come out to figure out what's going on. Everyone disperses. Nate comes up to me with an angry look in his eye. "Let's go," he says with no emotion. I really screwed up this time.