Tyler's Gem: A Teen Romance

by Rua Hasan

  “Oh they would.” He breathed out, and with that I tugged on Tyler’s arm and ran towards the crowd to see if my assumptions were right. I pushed the students away along with Tyler right behind me.

  “Excuse me.” I said countless times before reaching the front of the crowd. When I did, my eyes widened at the sight. I felt Tyler’s presence behind me as I heard him suck in his breath. I couldn’t believe my eyes. It was actually happening and once this was over I was going to give both of them a piece of my mind.

  Both Matt and Troy were standing in front of the school entrance attracting everyone’s attention. Troy had a dress on, exposing his muscular hairy legs while Matt was wearing clothes which seemed to be from the eighties. But that’s not all, there also seemed to be a guy spraying water from a hose up from the roof.

  “Why didn’t you write me?” Troy cried out dramatically as he placed his hand on his forehead. The crowd erupted into laughter. I felt my hand cover my face in embarrassment.

  Gosh . . . They were actually doing this.

  “Why? It wasn’t over for me!” Troy yelled as the water from the hose drenched Troy and Matt. I looked up to see the guy up in the roof laughing as he sprayed both boys with water. They definitely didn’t seem to mind.

  “I waited for you for seven years!” Troy shouted at Matt. “Now it’s too late!”

  I felt Tyler stand next to me as he took in the sight.

  “I can’t believe they’re doing this,” he spoke, shaking his head. I flickered my eyes to him before immediately looking back at the scene.

  “I wrote three hundred and sixty five letters,” Matt spoke finally, causing everyone around us to cheer on. I couldn’t help but roll my eyes. This was ridiculous.

  “I wrote you everyday for a year!” Matt shouted at Troy.

  I winced as I watched both Matt and Troy reenact the famous scene from The Notebook. I knew they said they were going to prove us wrong, and I thought they were bluffing, but I had no idea they were actually going to do this in front of the whole school!

  “You wrote me?” Troy cried.

  “Please don’t kiss,” Tyler whispered, closing his eyes.

  “Yes! It wasn’t over!” Matt shouted back under the spray of the water which was supposed to be rain.

  “Don’t kiss.” Tyler shook his head disturbingly.

  “It still isn’t over.”

  I placed my hands over my eyes, too afraid to look but when I removed them, I saw Matt lifting Troy and twirling him around into the air. Thankfully, they weren’t kissing or else they would have left me blind. Not that I have anything against gay people but never in my life would I think that I’d see my two best friends kiss. Matt continued to twirl Troy’s large body as if they were kissing just like in the movie, causing everyone around us to erupt in laughter.

  “Don’t let go Jack!” Troy cried. Matt stopped and fell Troy to the ground before slapping the back of his head.

  “You idiot! How many times do I have to tell you? That’s Titanic!” He hissed.

  “Oh . . . sorry.”

  So you might be very confused to what was going on. Well let me explain. It all started three nights ago when we were having our movie night . . .

  ***

  Friday Night

  After watching a Marvel movie, Jasmine insisted on watching something romantic next such as Titanic. I didn’t mind at all but all the boys were gagging and arguing, saying that it was a soppy movie only made for wimps.

  I rolled my eyes, sending Tyler a glare which said ‘shut up and let us ladies do the picking’ which actually worked because during the whole movie Tyler wasn’t complaining unlike Troy and Matt. Maybe because he was so engrossed in my neck. In fact, during the whole movie, he didn’t seem to look up at the screen, not once, and would either keep himself busy by kissing my neck which was very distracting, or scroll on his phone.

  Matt and Troy, on the other hand, wouldn’t let us watch the movie in peace and would continue to bicker.

  “Cringe,” Troy muttered, earning a slap on the chest by Jasmine who was so persistent in getting her boyfriend to watch the movie, that she wouldn’t let him use his phone for one second.

  “Such horrible acting.” Matt shook his head in disappointment. He also couldn’t use his phone because the twins held it hostage in their bag. I guess they enjoyed watching him suffer.

  After Titanic was over, I saw Troy and Matt visibly relax. Well that is until Naomi spoke.

  “Who wants to watch The Notebook?” she asked.

  Everyone nodded, including Tyler but Troy and Matt were the only ones who looked completely horrified. Wow, now I’m actually very grateful for my boyfriend. I guess Tyler didn’t care what he watched as long as I was sitting on his lap.

  “Please no!” Matt begged.

  “We already went through with your stupid movi―ouch!” Troy hissed in pain as he rubbed his shoulder which Jasmine just pinched.

  “Do not insult my favorite movie or else I will chop you into pieces!” Jasmine threatened, sending him a glare. Troy rolled his eyes but kept his mouth shut, knowing that was what’s best because no one wanted to see Jasmine’s bad side.

  “At least return our phones,” Matt whined, staring at Sydney. She smirked at him and shook her head.

  “No can do buddy.” She crossed her arms. “Watch the movie quietly. Maybe if you actually gave it a chance then you’ll like it.” She pointed out to which we all nodded and stared at the boys.

  “I’ve watched this movie million of times with Jasmine! And I still don’t like it.” Troy huffed.

  “Oh stop being a baby.” Naomi shook her head while grinning.

  “I’m not being a baby.” Troy shot back.

  “Are too.”

  “Am not!” He glared at her.

  “Then prove it! Watch this movie and keep quiet if you’re a man.” She sent him a pointed look.

  Troy crossed his arms and flickered his eyes to Matt before nodding.

  “Fine I’ll watch it! But it doesn’t mean I’ll like it,” he groaned.

  Naomi smiled in satisfaction and got off the couch to pick up the remote in her hand. It wasn’t long before we had the movie playing. As the movie came to an end, I noticed that Matt and Troy weren’t commenting on the movie, instead only gagging when a love scene would come up. I flickered my eyes over to Matt to see him shake his head slightly as he stared at the screen, while Troy would look at the TV in misery as if his eyes were bleeding.

  I almost pitied them.

  Finally, when the credits began to roll, Troy and Matt jumped out of their seats in joy.

  “Ugh that was awful!” Troy cried.

  “Yeah I know right! Their acting was so horrible.” Matt shook his head and gagged.

  “Are you being serious right now?” I asked Matt. “There was nothing wrong with their acting.”

  They both sent me pointed looks.

  “Really? Twilight was better than that,” Matt shouted pointing to the TV.

  “Stop complaining!” Eva shouted at them. “You two were the only ones who didn’t like the movie.”

  They shook their head furiously.

  “Tyler didn’t like it too either. Right buddy?” Matt asked looking at him as if he was expected him to nod his head but he only shrugged his shoulders. I sent him a satisfied smile and pecked his lips.

  “See. He didn’t have a problem with it.” I smirked resting my back onto his chest. Tyler wrapped his arms around my waist, bringing me closer.

  “Well that’s because he was too busy creating hickeys on your neck.” Troy pointed out, making me gasp. My hands flew to my neck almost immediately, covering as much skin as possible. I turned to look at him, lifting an eyebrow and sent him a pointed look as if waiting for some answers. He just sent me a small smirk and pecked my lips.

  “I might have gotten a bit distracted.” He shrugged his shoulders.

  “What’s so distracting about my neck?” I asked in disbelief.

>   “Everything,” he murmured, removing my hand away from my neck as he stared at it like it was some kind of masterpiece. I couldn’t help but groan in embarrassment as everyone stared at us.

  “I can’t believe you.” I shook my head.

  “Hey! At least I wasn’t complaining during the movie like some people.” Tyler looked up at Matt and Troy.

  “Way to throw us under the bus, man,” Matt muttered rolling his eyes.

  “You can’t blame us! The movie was so―ugh.” Troy shivered.

  “Like you could do any better,” Sydney said while rolling her eyes.

  “Of course we can!” Matt said lifting his head up high as if trying to prove a point.

  “I bet if you two were put on stage, the only thing you’d be good at is acting like a bunch of chickens,” Naomi said while laughing. I couldn’t help but grin at her statement. Just when I was about to say something, I turned to glare at Tyler who started pecking my neck once again.

  “No more,” I whispered.

  He looked up at me and pouted his lips in disappointment.

  “Fine,” he muttered pulling away.

  I turned around to see Troy whispering something into Matt’s ear. Matt’s mouth fell open before a huge grin took over.

  “Fine! We’ll prove you all wrong!” Matt shouted pointing at all of us.

  Jasmine laughed at his statement.

  “I’d like to see you try.”

  Troy walked over to Matt, nodding his head before dropping his arm onto his shoulder.

  “Well then. I guess we have some rehearsing to do.”

  ***

  And that pretty much explains it. I genuinely thought that they were just going to show up in our places and act it out but it never crossed my mind that they’d actually do something like this in front of the whole school

  I got to say, for them to make complete idiots out of themselves in front of everyone, they must be really stupid or really brave. Or both.

  Shaking my head slightly, I walked over to them when the guy from the roof turned off the hose.

  They turned to look at me and Tyler along with the twins who just arrived and looked as if their eyes will bleed at any minute now because of the scene in front of them. Let me tell you, Troy in a dress is not something you’d want to see. Matt had a satisfied smirk on his face while Troy grinned.

  “You two,” I said pointing at them. “Are bunch of idiots.” I shook my head in disbelief.

  “Well that’s not what the crowd thinks.” Matt laughed. Both him and Troy were practically soaking wet at this point.

  Just when I was about to say something, I was shoved aside immediately by a frantic looking Jasmine. Luckily, Tyler was right beside me to help me regain my balance. I turned to glare at Jasmine but stopped when I saw the look of horror on her face when she spotted Troy. It looked like she wasn’t here when the ‘play’ was happening because she was starting at her boyfriend, who was wearing a dress, in confusion. After a moment, her face went extremely pale as if she was going to faint any minute now.

  I watched as she slowly walked up to Troy like he was some delicate creature she was afraid to scare away. She then placed her hand on Troy’s shoulder and looked him up and down.

  “Baby . . . if you’re having second thoughts about your sexuality then you could always talk to me,” she said slowly, looking at him as if he was a child.

  Troy’s face immediately went blank for a moment before he stared at his girlfriend in confusion.

  “Jasmine, I am a hundred percent straight,” he muttered.

  She lifted an eyebrow and looked him up and down, especially at the dress he was wearing.

  “Um okay. As you wish but you don’t have to be afraid to tell me if―”

  “I’m not gay!” He exclaimed with a huff, crossing his arms. I couldn’t help but laugh at the situation.

  “The only thing you two are, are a bunch of idiots,” Sydney said as she looked at them strangely.

  “Hey but we proved our point!” Matt smirked.

  “The only thing you two proved is Sydney’s statement.” I grinned.

  “Oh come on! Our acting was awesome,” Troy said causing everyone to roll their eyes.

  “Is that why everyone is laughing at you two?” Eva asked.

  Matt and Troy glared at her.

  “They’re laughing with us, not at us,” Matt mumbled.

  “Then why is the principal walking towards us at this very moment?” Tyler asked, lifting an eyebrow.

  I nodded my head with a laugh.

  “Yeah, I bet he’s on his way here to ‘laugh’ with you guys.” I chuckled.

  Matt’s face went pale while Troy cursed.

  “Sh*t.”

  Chapter 50

  Once the bell rang, Tyler took ahold of my hand and walked us out the door of our last class of the day. He seemed a bit on the edge which I didn’t know why. I tried to grab his attention but his eyes were focused in front of him, or anywhere else but me.

  I squeezed his hand and sent him a small smile, grabbing his attention. He whipped his head towards me and tilted it to the side as we walked down the hall which was very crowded by all the students who wanted to get home.

  “What’s wrong?” I asked.

  Tyler lifted an eyebrow and shook his head slightly.

  “Nothing,” he muttered.

  I sent him a pointed look.

  “Don’t lie to me,” I spoke firmly. Tyler glanced at me from the corner of his eye and let out a long sigh. We stopped right outside of the school before walking towards the benches.

  He sat down with me right next to him.

  “Is this about Paul?” I asked, concerned.

  He nodded.

  “Gem, I don’t know why but I-I . . . ” He trailed off, looking into the distance.

  “You’re what? You know you can tell me anything.” I wrapped my arms around him and hugged him comfortingly. He let out a breath before running his hands down my hair.

  “I’m scared,” he whispered.

  “Of what?” I asked.

  “Of giving him a chance. What if something goes wrong?” His voice was so soft that I could barely hear it. I looked up at him and took his face in between my hands.

  “What do you want to do?” I asked.

  He paused for a moment as if he was thinking of an answer.

  “I want to give him a chance before it’s too late. I lost the person, I thought was my dad a long time ago. What if I lose him?” he asked as he rested his chin on my head. I ran my hands up and down his chest, trying to soothe him.

  “Then I say take the risk. It might be hard because of what he has done but work it out slowly. I’m not saying you should start treating Paul like the father he deserves but at least acknowledge the fact.”

  Tyler pulled away slightly and nodded.

  “You’re right. Things won’t get better immediately. It takes time,” he muttered.

  “How’s Emma with all of this happening?” I asked.

  “Her and Paul are getting along, I guess.” He shrugged. “I still don’t get why she’d let him come back after getting someone else pregnant.” He shook his head slightly at the thought of having a half sibling, not knowing anything about them.

  “Tyler. He’s sick! You don’t know, he could disappear any minute now.” I pointed out.

  He let out a huff.

  “Yeah I know. It’s all still a shock to me.”

  I nodded and rested my head on his chest. His arms pulled me closer, seeking for comfort. I let out a relaxed sigh and pulled away slightly to kiss his cheek, letting it linger for a while.

  “If you’re all stressed out then we don’t have to go away this winter break,” I suggested, causing him to shake his head furiously.

  “No!” he said immediately. “You deserve this. We both deserve this. A couple of days away from reality. It’s going to help me relax a bit, away from all the tension,” he explained.

  I smiled in return.
Just thinking about going away with Tyler, just him and me, sounded amazing. Away from everyone and all the drama.

  “I can’t wait.” I grinned. I felt Tyler’s chest vibrate as he kissed the top of my head.

  “Me too―” He paused suddenly, as if something was on his mind. He looked into the distance and the look of realization soon spread across his face. I snapped my eyes away from the crowd of students walking out of the doors, to their cars, then back at Tyler.

  “Sh*t,” he cursed.

  “What is it?” I asked, pulling away. Tyler snapped his eyes to me and ran his hands over his face as he groaned.

  “Damnit I forgot!” He grumbled.

  “Forgot what?” I asked.

  “My mom . . . ”

  “What about her?” The look of confusion on my face was pretty obvious.

  “She wants you over for dinner today,” he said, looking at me nervously as my eyes widened.

  “And when were you supposed to tell me this?”

  Tyler shrugged his shoulders as I saw his cheek go pink for a second before it disappeared.

  “Probably two days ago . . . ” He trailed off, looking down at his feet. I felt my mouth fell open as I stared at him in disbelief.

  “And why on earth did you choose to tell me now?” I hissed glaring at him.

  Once again, he shrugged his shoulders.

  “As I said before. I forgot.”

  I couldn’t help but roll my eyes at him.

  “And what time am I supposed to be there?”

  “Around five,” he said then looked back up at me. “But you don’t have to go if you don’t want to.”

  I looked at him as if he grew two heads and took his face into my hands for the second time today.

  “Baby why would I not want to? I really like your mom,” I said with a smile. “She’s really . . . uh what’s the word?”

  “Intense? Too much? Wants to become a grandmother to soon?” Tyler asked.

  I shook my head with a laugh.

  “I was going to say sweet but that works too.”

  Tyler grinned and was about to say something when he stopped and looked over my shoulder. I watched as he furrowed his eyebrows before his mouth fell open. Slowly, his lips twitched upwards into a sly smirk. I stared at him in confusion but soon got my answer when I turned around.