Before You

Chapter 27

I pull into a parking spot on campus and turn my car off. I'm so tired. I overslept this morning and didn't have enough time to stop for coffee. I can already tell this is going to be a long day. I check my phone for the time. I better get going or else I'll be late for class. I pick up my book bag and purse and start making my way towards the building.

I still haven't replied to Gage. I haven't spoken to him since we broke up. I don't understand why he's all of a sudden texting me again. Him contacting me has definitely altered my mood. I was excited to get to class this morning and see Jett, but now Gage is floating around in my mind. I enter Mr. Harrison's classroom and remind myself to not let Gage get to me. It was just a text. As I look over to the table I share with Jett, someone else once again affects my mood. Jett is sitting at the table and Lydia is sitting in my seat talking to him. I watch as Jett nods his head quickly and directs his attention to anything other than her. He looks like he's trying his best to politely get through the conversation. I walk over to the table and put my book bag down.

"Good morning Lydia" I say to her.

"Oh, hello Evy" she replies. "Jett and I were just talking about some concerts that are happening in Atlanta soon. Can you believe Britney Spears has a concert here in a few weeks?"

"Britney Spears? I'm sure Jett is really excited about that one" I say.

I look over to Jett. He's looking up at me from the table and has a smirk on his face. I can tell he liked my comment. I give him a small smile back. As Lydia stands from the table, she pushes a piece of notebook paper in front of Jett.

"Well, I better get back to my seat. Class is about to start," she says smiling to Jett.

I look down at the paper before taking my seat. It has Lydia's name on it along with her phone number. I unzip my book bag and get my notebook out, pretending to not have seen the piece of paper. Jett takes one glance at the paper and crumbles it up into a ball. He leans his chair back and throws the paper behind me and into a nearby trashcan. I can't help but smile. I have to admit; I do feel relieved that he threw her number away. Mr. Harrison starts a new lecture and class goes by faster than usual. 

"Okay everyone. That's enough for today. Have a great weekend!" Mr. Harrison says.

I pick up my book bag and start loading my things back into it. I hear a high-pitched voice and look up to see that Lydia has returned to our table. It's so obvious that this girl has a huge crush on Jett.

"Did you see it?" Lydia asks Jett.

"No I wasn't paying attention" Jett replies.

"What is it?" I ask.

"The red headed girl that sits in the front just got a tattoo. It looks horrible." She says.

"Why does it look horrible?" I ask.

"Because it's a tattoo. Those things are so trashy." Lydia responds.

"Seriously? You think all tattoos are trashy?" I ask Lydia.

"You don't have plans to go out and get a sleeve or anything do you?" Jett asks me with a laugh.

"No. I don't have plans to do that, but if I want to get a tattoo I will. I happen to like them, at least the ones that have meaning behind them." I say.

I look up at Lydia. She must have taken small steps while I was talking. She's standing next to Jett and is so close she's almost touching him. She quickly looks at the floor with wide eyes as if she's repulsed by my answer. This girl is really starting to get on my nerves.

I turn to face Jett again. "Can you meet me out by my car? I need to talk to Lydia."

Jett looks back and forth between Lydia and I. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah. It'll only take a minute" I reply.

Jett says nothing, but picks up his book bag and walks towards the door. He gives Lydia and I a quick glance before exiting. I wait until he is completely out of sight before speaking. Lydia is staring at me with a huge smile on her face. She's so fake. I know she would rather I not be in the picture at all.

"Lydia, Jett and I are together," I say to her.

She looks at me confused. "Together? You said that you two were just friends".

"I know. At that time we were just friends. Since then, we've made it official." I reply.

Lydia props one hand up on her waist and her upper lip draws up in disgust. "Let's be honest, you two don't look good together. He deserves someone better than you. You're not enough".

I grab the straps on my purse as hard as I can while watching Lydia leave the room. It takes everything in me to not lash out at her. Who does she think she is? I've been told practically my whole life that I wasn't enough. I wasn't enough for my dad to stay around. I wasn't enough for my mother since she gave more attention to her boyfriends. I wasn't enough for Gage. Now Lydia thinks I'm not enough for Jett. I leave the classroom and walk to my car while still gripping my purse. Jett is leaning against it as I approach him.

"Is everything okay? What was that about?" he asks.

"Everything is fine. I just wanted to give her an update on you and I. I didn't want her to be embarrassed with you standing there listening". I say.

Jett nods his head. "Well, that's nice of you to think about her in that way."

"Well, it didn't make much of a difference". I say. "So, you're against tattoos then?" I ask.

"I'm not against them, but I'm not a big fan either. I've never been attracted to other girls that have them," Jett says shrugging his shoulders.

I nod my head. Suddenly, I'm distracted as my cell phone starts ringing. I look at the screen but don't recognize the number. I decide to answer it anyway.

"Hello?" I ask.

"Hey Evy! It's Peyton. I was calling to see if you've decided what you want to get into this weekend." She says.

"Oh hey! Can you hold on a second?" I ask bringing the phone down away from my ear.

I look at Jett whose still leaning against my car. "It's Peyton. A girl I work with. I'm going to talk to her on the way to my next class. Can I call you later?"

"You better" he says and walks over to kiss me.

I could get used to this. I love the way Jett kisses me. It's soft and slow and unlike anything I've ever had before. I hold my phone to my chest as I watch him walk away. I hear a faint noise and remember that Peyton is still waiting for me on the phone.

"I'm sorry!" I exclaim. "I was telling Jett goodbye".

"No problem. Did I catch you at a bad time?" Peyton asks.

"No, this is a good time and I know exactly what we should do this weekend" I say smiling.