Time And I

Eight

"The world is such a sick place," Buddy growled. With his eyes shut, he leaned against the lockers, his foot propped up under him and his arms crossed. Without him there to see them, his admirers tended to walk slower in front of him, staring at him with puppy dog eyes and goofy grins.

Maybe it was because of the whole Rena situation, but it sickened me to watch them stare at him. Anyone whose eyes were closed left themself vulnerable to their environment. Anyone could attack him, pounce on him out of love or malice. Rena was only thirteen. She was vulnerable last night. Jeanie was my saving grace. If it weren't for her text, I wouldn't have been there, and I didn't want to think of what could have happened to Rena if I wasn't there. Who knew what the man would do to her? Who knew who would try to take advantage of her situation?

Seeing the girls watch Buddy was sad. They may have thought they weren't doing anything wrong, but I knew Buddy was sick of the attention. We both kidded around and said that there was a list of rules everyone had to follow, whether or not they were an admirer. No one could talk to him without someone else present. No one could go over to his house. But the biggest rule that had to be true was that no one could ask him out. He was "everyone's" boyfriend, whether or not he liked it.

It made sense why everyone despised me. I was his best friend, around him all the time while they couldn't. But if anyone showed me hate, he wouldn't be afraid to give them the cold shoulder. I dreaded the day something could happen that would cause us to stop being friends, but I had faith in us. We've been through so much we couldn't think of anything that would make us hate each other.

"Why do I feel negative energy spewing off you?" he smirked, his eyes still closed.

"Oh, sure, just because I look goth, I have a black aura around me. Real mature," I snickered.

As I closed my locker, Buddy reached out to grab my hand and hold it tight. "I know what happened to Rena pissed you off, but you can breathe now. You helped her through it. She's in safe hands with her brother. You can relax."

I smirked. "That's the first time you've mentioned Devon and safe in the same sentence."

"You say he's a good person, and with all the things you've said in regard to him so far, I bet he is a good person."

"But you're still skeptical."

"Can you blame me?"

I really couldn't. Despite the fact that everything Devon had done in front of me was kind, I wasn't sure what he was like when I wasn't around. For all I knew, he could have been using a persona around me to lure me into a false sense of comfort so he could hurt me. Despite the negative thoughts, I couldn't believe they were actually true. I had faith in Devon. I believed he was sincere.

The only reason for any doubt was there was because of the whole Jett situation. He had remorse for doing what he did, but he never apologized. I doubted he would. Not to mention how Jett never said anything, except that Devon was savage. Devon may fight for defense and protection, but his values could have differed from mine. His reasons for punching Jett could have been completely valid, but they also could have been inexcusable.

"I get it," I assured. "But we have to learn to give him the benefit of the doubt."

He chuckled. "I'm trying. It almost sounds as though he's coming back. Did he tell you he was?"

"No, but he invited me over for dinner tonight."

"You're kidding," he gawked. "He asked you out on a date?"

"No, no," I quickly stated. "His cousins are coming over tonight to barbeque, and he asked me to come over to thank me for helping Rena."

"Are you excited?" he slowly asked.