What It's Like To Be Liked

17. Escaping From Deadly Fieldtrips 101

Chapter Seventeen- Escaping From Deadly Fieldtrips 101

  My phone rang for the hundredth time, the blaring tune of Call Me Maybe stinging my ears. Ugh, why didn't I change my ring tone already? I sighed and picked it up. "God, Jake, I'm leaving! Will you relax?"

I tried balancing my phone between my left ear and shoulder as I jumped down the stairs. Grabbing an apple from the fruit bowl, I waved goodbye to Mom and hurried out the door.

The sun was shining in all its glory - piercing my eyes with its brightness. Stratonville was a super - I mean ultra - weird town. Two weeks before fall would be the last and hottest days - at least that's what Mom said. The only perk of these fiery days would be the lack of rainfall. Hence, the field trip was planned today.

"What took you so long?" Jake said, running a hand through his silky brown locks, "I called you eight times!"

"I know, I'm sorry,"  I grabbed his wrist and pulled him along with me. "But you've gotta move it if you want to be on time, Mr. Punctual,"

Why I did what I did, I didn't know. What I did know however, was that the gesture caused unicorns to do the samba in my chest.

Jake shook his head, "No shit, Sherlock." And with the speed of the Bullet train, removed my sweaty palms from his wrist soon after which he grabbed my hand. Note: he grabbed my hand, not wrist. Hand.

“Calm down, Drama Queen, what’s the hurry?” I said as Jake pulled me along the stone sidewalk. We had been walking for nine minutes now and Jake still hadn't let go of me.

He turned around with a look of disbelief, “Well, Princess, if you haden’t noticed, we’ve got less than five minutes to reach the bus,”

Five minutes?

But the living room clock had said..

Holy guacamole! The freaking clock was freaking slow. How could I have forgotten that?

I felt my jeans, expecting to feel a bulge in my front pocket. Instead, I felt a candy wrapper from last week’s lunch break.. I searched further and found a five dollar note. Besides that, my pockets were empty.

Hold up a second, where was my phone?

“This isn’t time for groping. Stop feeling yourself in public, Princess. What am I here for?” Jake said with a smirk.

Um, gross.

I pulled my hand out of his grip, wrinkling up my nose, “So you’re saying that you’re a kind of, er," I coughed, "pedophile?”

That statement left him speechless. Kaylee – 1. Jake – 0. Booyah!

“Oh, and we need to go back,” I said, “I left my phone at home.”

“Great job, Princess,” said the pervert in front of me, “but we’re almost there. No going back now,”

“Jay-ake!” I screamed, “I am not going on this field trip without my phone,”

“Except that you are going,” saying that, Jake grabbed my wrist once more with his Iron Man strength and pulled me.

“Leave my hand, Jake!” I protested, “If you value your perfectly gelled hair, leave my hand.”

“Appreciate your love for my hair, but I can restyle it later. What I can’t do is be late for the field trip,” said Jake. Simple and calm. Two things he wasn’t for the past five minutes.