(Hello everyone, small rant incoming. Just wanted to ask you all to be polite when making comments, all constructive criticism is appreciated, just don't be a little shit about it or I will have to start blocking people. What does this mean? It means that you won't be able to make comments on any of my works anymore or answer my comments anywhere on the app, don't worry, you will still be able to read just fine, it's just that your license to be an asshole will be revoked in my novels. That's all, thanks for your comprehension, enjoy the chapter ❤️)
I was sitting in my car in the school parking lot, engine humming low, watching the last clusters of students trickle out of the building. Most were headed toward the buses or their friends' cars. I was waiting for one very specific limping disaster.
It didn't take long.
Tyler came hobbling out the front doors, crutches clacking against the pavement, muttering something that probably wasn't fit for children to hear. The cast on his arm was finally gone, but the one on his leg still looked bulky enough to double as medieval armor.
He spotted my car and let out a sigh of relief before making the awkward journey over. He yanked the passenger door open and basically collapsed inside.
"Dude," he groaned, shoving his crutches into the back seat, "remind me not to drive so fast next time it snows."
I pulled out of the parking space. "Pretty sure that was your plan already."
He stretched his leg out awkwardly. "Two more weeks," he muttered. "Two more weeks and I get to walk like a normal human again."
We fell into easy small talk; homework, teachers, how Mrs. Parker had finally snapped and thrown a chalk eraser at someone, and how Jessica nearly started a fire in Bio today, just normal stuff.
Then Tyler cleared his throat. "So… hey, did you hear about the dance?"
I gave him a side-eye. "I attend the same school as you, man. Kinda hard to avoid hearing about it."
"Yeah, well…" He shifted. "I, uh, asked Bella. Thought I had a shot, you know? Sympathy points. Tragic injured hero. Chicks love that."
I didn't say anything, just waited for the other shoe, or crutch? to drop.
"She told me she already accepted someone else's invitation." His face twisted. "Damn Cullen got ahead of me. What makes all the girls so crazy about him anyway? Is it the hair? It's the hair, right?"
My expression must've gone weird, because I felt my face heat up.
"Uh… yeah, about that."
Tyler blinked at me. "What?"
"She's not going with Edward."
His eyes narrowed. "Then who?"
"She's going with me."
There was a moment of silence.
Then:
"WHAT?!"
He whipped toward me so fast he nearly smacked me with a crutch, "You?" he sputtered and slapped a hand over his heart like I'd personally stabbed him there. "But how, wait, you have Leah! That's not fair! The deception! The betrayal man! I trusted you, bro!"
I snorted. "Relax. The dance is for students only, so Leah can't go. And Bella and I are just going as friends. The invitations were getting insane. I think I rejected like twenty girls today."
Tyler stared at me like I had just claimed I was the Queen of England. "Twenty," he repeated flatly.
"I would've asked Beth," I added casually, "but, you know, she's not a student either."
Tyler rolled his eyes so hard he nearly fell over. "Yeah, sure. As if I'm gonna believe that. And stay away from my mom. Actually…" he jabbed a crutch at me for emphasis, "from now on you pick me up and drop me off a block away from my house."
"What?" I gasped. "But Beth will miss our daily flirting. You can't do that to your mother, son. She'll be devastated."
"You're the reason I'm devastated," he muttered. "A block away. Minimum."
"Harsh," I said, but I was laughing as I turned onto the next street.
…
By the time I dropped Tyler off, one full block away from his house, as demanded, my face still hurt from trying not to laugh. The moment he shut the door, I let the laughter out, then drove the rest of the way home humming like an idiot.
But as soon as I parked in my driveway, all that easy confidence evaporated.
Once I was inside the house, I pulled out my phone, started a new message, and stared at the screen, overthinking every possible phrasing.
Finally, I typed:
[Mike]: Hey, you free for a call?
Then began the slow descent into hell, aka waiting for a reply from your maybe-girlfriend after asking a loaded question.
I paced around my room, checked the text thread.
I checked the time.
Three minutes.
Four.
Five.
I had already started imagining she'd changed her mind about me, or worse, that she was laughing with her mom about how stupid I was when my phone rang.
I nearly threw it in panic before fumbling to answer. "H-hello?"
Leah's voice came through, warm and slightly rushed. "Sorry, had to ask for a short break. What's up?"
My brain short-circuited. "Okay… soIhavetotellyousomethingbutit'snotbadIpromisewellIhopeso."
"Mike," Leah said, amused already, "breathe."
I inhaled like I hadn't taken air in years. "Right. Sorry. So. The dance. At school. There's one coming up."
"Mm-hmm?"
"And girls keep asking me, like a lot of girls, it's getting weird, really, and I'm sick of coming up with excuses not to hurt their feelings. So I thought… well, I'm going with a friend so people leave us alone and stop asking and it's strictly as friends and nothing weird and I wanted to tell you because I didn't want you to think…"
I kept rambling until I realized Leah hadn't said a word.
"Leah…? Please say something before I die."
There was a soft snort, barely held back laughter.
"Why," she asked, voice teasing and sweet in a way that made my chest unclench, "do you sound like you're confessing to murder?"
"Oh thank God," I exhaled. My knees actually felt weak. "I thought you were mad."
"Mad? Mike, I trust you."
I could hear the smile in her voice.
Then she added, "But I do want to meet this friend of yours. You know. To make sure she's not some desperate slut trying to seduce my innocent boy."
I choked. "I-innocent? Me?"
"Painfully," she said. "It's part of your charm."
If I had been standing, I would've melted straight through the floorboards.
"Right, well, about meeting her…" I rubbed the back of my neck. "Some of my friends are going to First Beach this weekend. I was thinking that maybe you could come? You'd get to meet Bella, and also everyone else. Only if you want, that is. No pressure! Actually lots of pressure. No, not pressure, I mean…"
Leah let out a low laugh. "Mike."
"Yeah?"
"I'd like that."
My grin nearly split my face in half. "Seriously?"
"Seriously. Just text me the time."
"I will. I definitely will. Immediately. Like, right now."
"Goofball," she murmured, fondness threaded through the word. "I have to get back to work. I'll call you later, okay?"
"Okay," I said, feeling like my heart had learned how to float.
She hung up.
And I just sat there, staring at my phone like the world suddenly made perfect sense.
…
Thursday, March 3, 2005
By the time lunch rolled around, I was running mostly on autopilot. I plopped myself down at our usual table with the guys. Tyler, Eric, Ben, Angela, Jessica, Lauren, the usual crowd. One person noticeably not at our table was Bella. She was across the cafeteria with Edward Cullen, of all people, sitting together like some broody gothic portrait.
I tried not to stare, but my ears? Yeah, those had a mind of their own. Perks of being a not-yet-wolf: enhanced senses even when I wasn't furry. I could hear their conversation clear as day without even trying.
Bella was telling Edward she was going to the dance with me.
A second later Edward's head snapped up, his golden eyes locking onto mine like I'd just kicked his Volvo. My entire soul froze.
Do not think anything dangerous. Do not think anything incriminating. Do not think anything you don't want a mind-reader to hear.
Panic mode engaged.
So I did what any rational guy would do.
I picked a random tune and blasted it mentally at full volume: "They're cool, they're fresh, They'll clean your breath, Minty mints are your breath's friend!"
Edward's eyes narrowed… then softened a fraction… then he finally looked away.
Victory.
I did not stop the mental jingle. Oh no. I kept that commercial looping like my life depended on it. Better safe than sorry. For all I knew, if I stopped, Edward would zero in on my skull like it was a radio dial.
Lunch dragged by after that, and the next class on the schedule was Biology, a class Edward skipped today. Because of blood testing. Of course. Even the vampire didn't want to risk that one.
I didn't blame him. Blood and I weren't exactly buddies either.
When it was my turn to prick my finger I already felt queasy, but then Bella went pale, paler than normal, and swayed like she was about to face-plant right there.
"Hey, whoa, Bella," I said, scooting closer and catching her before she could slide off the stool. She was light, trembling a bit. "I'll take her to the nurse," I told the teacher, and honestly, I was grateful for the excuse to escape. "Blood makes her dizzy."
"And me," I whispered under my breath.
We stepped into the hallway and I kept a steady grip on her, guiding her carefully. She looked miserable, like the air had turned to fog around her.
We got halfway down the hall before we ran into Edward. He was leaning against the wall like he'd been waiting there specifically for her, and not, you know, hiding from the bloodwork.
"Bella," he said immediately, eyes flickering to me holding her. Definitely trying, and failing, not to sound jealous.
I could almost hear the internal Cullen monologue:
Why is Bella touching someone else? Why is that someone else Mike Newton? Why does Mike Newton smell weird? Why is Mike Newton… humming?
Good. Let him hear it.
In my mind, the tune had already shifted to something infinitely worse: "Baby shark, doo-doo doo-doo doo-doo…"
Edward winced. Actual wince. I'd take that as another personal achievement.
"I can take her home," he said, stepping forward, still searching my face like he was trying to decode a puzzle but couldn't through the shark-infested noise in my brain.
I looked at Bella instead. "Your call. You wanna head out with him?"
She nodded weakly. "Yeah… I think I should." Her voice was faint, but she still managed a tiny smile. "Thanks for the help, Mike."
"Anytime," I said, stepping back and handing her off to Edward. "Take care of her, man. Make sure she doesn't trip and break her neck or something."
Bella rolled her eyes at that, but in a fond way. "Bye, Mike."
"Bye. Feel better."
Edward guided her away, still sneaking glances over his shoulder at me like he was checking whether I was still mentally transmitting children's songs.
Which I was, for safety reasons.
…
(Please support with power stones, comments or reviews, I need them to feed my imaginary kids 👉🏼👈🏼)