It Was Him

Ch. 9: Cloud Nine

Him and Rachael have a thing now.

He's got a girl now.

Zack's words repeated themselves in my brain throughout the day, and I couldn't turn them off. I don't know why I was so bothered by them; I barely even knew Seth. I should be glad that he's got a girlfriend now, even if it is Rachael Leeman. At least, now Zack can stop bugging me about not going for him.

All these thoughts plagued me as I stood in the lunch line, waiting for what seemed like an eternity for it to move.

"Hey, um, Stella," a voice that I didn't expect to hear ever again sounded from behind me. A quite deep voice.

"Oh, uh, hey Seth," I mumbled, turning around only slightly in an attempt to appear disinterested at his sudden appearance. In reality, though, my heart was pounding in my chest.

"I wanted to ask you something," he whispered, bending down slightly to be level with my height so that he could whisper in my ear. It was becoming increasingly more difficult to feign disinterest, as my heart's rhythm was all over the place and my hands got all sweaty.

Ew, Stella. Get it together.

"Yeah, sure. What is it?" I asked, turning more towards him to better look him in the eye.

"I was wondering if, oh I don't know...if you'd wanna maybe go out sometime? I figured it would let us get to know each other better, since you're my best friend's sister and everything."

My eyes widened as I felt my heart stop. "Like...like a date?" I murmured, barely able to speak.

Seth flashed a pearly-white smile in response, his dimple on full display. My heart melted, and I wanted to say yes before I remembered one important thing.

I shook my head. "Wait, how would Rachael feel about that?" I asked, my heart returning to its regular rhythm.

The question seemed to catch Seth off-guard. "Rachael? What's she got to do with this?"

"Well, aren't you two, like, a thing now?" I questioned.

Seth smirked. "Wow. That's, uh, that's rich. Let me guess. Zack told you that?"

I nodded slowly. "Well, uh, well yeah."

Seth was laughing now. "Yeah, no. Rachael and I were never a thing and we never will be. She really wants to be, though."

My brows furrowed in confusion. "Why would Zack tell me that, then?"

Seth shot me a look that said, You really don't know? It only took a few more seconds to sink in.

Of course Zack would tell me that Seth was taken. He knew that I'd lay off if I thought Seth was in a relationship.

I smiled, blushing. "Well, that's good to know, then," I murmured, shifting my feet. Seth grinned in response.

"So, you wanna hang out after school?" He asked, one side of his mouth curling in a smile.

"Sure," I said nonchalantly, while my heart pounded furiously in my chest.

"Cool," Seth beamed, waving at me as he turned to leave. "Oh, wait, I almost forgot."

He spun on his heel to face me again, pulling out his phone. "We're gonna have to talk somehow," he laughed. "What's your number?"

My hands were practically shaking as I told him, pulling out my phone so he could tell me his.

Once we exchanged numbers, Seth beamed at me. "I'll text you later with details," he added, that same adorable smile on his face.

"Alright, cool," I stated as nonchalantly as I could manage, but my voice wavered, betraying me. Luckily, though, Seth didn't seem to notice. If he did, he didn't make it obvious.

The rest of the school day was a blur, but it seemed to drag on forever at the same time. When it was finally over, I waited for Zack by his Ferrari as he chatted with friends nearby.

"So," Kacey said casually as she appeared next to me, "I saw you and Seth talking earlier. Spill everything," she demanded.

I blushed profusely, fiddling my fingers. "Well, he, um," I bit my lip, smiling to myself as I replayed our conversation in my head. "He sort of asked me out."

Kacey's jaw dropped. "What? Stella, that's amazing! Oh my gosh, he asked you out!" She squealed. I gestured for her to quiet down as Zack sauntered closer to us.

"You guys ready to go?" He questioned as he unlocked the doors and got in the driver's seat, not revealing whether he had overheard our conversation. I hoped he didn't; if he did, I'd be getting an earful as soon as we dropped Kacey off.

Kacey and I hopped into the back seats, resisting the urge to squeal in excitement.

"What's the deal with you two?" Zack chuckled. "I mean, I'm happy to be out of school today too but geez."

"Oh, it's nothing," Kacey assured him as she winked at me. I had been grinning so widely that I noticed my cheeks were starting to hurt.

I just couldn't believe it. Seth Rayford is taking me out on a date. Tonight. It had been so long since I felt this fluttery feeling over a guy that I almost didn't know how to handle it.

It was all too quickly that we reached Kacey's house. "Hey, I'll text you tonight," she announced, winking at me once more.

"Oh? Are you two having a sleepover?" Zack teased.

An idea popped in my head just then. "Oh, uh, no, but we will be hanging out later," I lied, smirking at Kacey.

She smiled one last time as she shut her door, and as we pulled out of her driveway I found myself floating on cloud nine once again.

I'm going on a date tonight. With Seth freaking Rayford!

~

Sorry that this chapter is a bit shorter, but I didn't want to keep you guys waiting any longer! :) Till next chapter,

•R.J. ♡