by Amanda Abram
Chapter Eleven
I approached Jase’s lunch table the next afternoon with a decent amount of hesitation. Jase had made the suggestion earlier that morning that I eat lunch with him and his friends. I had reluctantly agreed, despite the fact I really didn't feel like spending a half an hour listening to a bunch of boneheads talk about sports, cars and hot chicks. But after he'd made the valid argument that it would make our relationship appear more legit, I figured I had no choice.
Jase glanced up as I neared, and he immediately stood from the table and waited for me to arrive.
“Hey.” He reached out and lightly grabbed my wrist. Everyone at the table fell silent when he spoke, and they all stared up at me with blank expressions. Everyone except for Eric, who was grinning from ear to ear.
“Everyone,” he said, glancing around the table, “you remember Lexi?”
Nobody responded. They just continued to stare.
“Right. Well, she’s going to be a permanent fixture at our lunch table from now on.” He turned to me and motioned toward the empty chair between his and Eric’s.
“Why?” Cory asked, blinking furiously. He sounded somewhat perturbed at the news.
“Because she’s my girlfriend. And if you have a problem with her sitting here, then you can leave.”
All of his friends stared at him in confusion. “She’s your girlfriend?” Cory said. “Since when?”
“Since yesterday,” I offered, but nobody acknowledged me.
“And since when do you let your girlfriends sit with us?” asked Zach.
Jase was looking increasingly agitated the more questions his friends asked. So he chose to ignore them and instead turned to me as soon as I sat down.
“How has your day been?”
“Um…” Everybody’s attention was suddenly on me, and I knew it wasn’t because they were genuinely interested in hearing about my day. They just wanted to figure out why I was Jase's girlfriend and they were probably hoping the clues could be found somewhere in my response. “It’s been fine.”
Jase gave me a small nod. What could he say to that? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. I’d given him a boring answer to a boring question, and now there was nothing more to discuss.
But then, he leaned back in his chair and casually draped an arm around my shoulders. “Well,” he said in a smooth voice, “maybe after school we can change that ‘fine’ to ‘exceptional’. What do you say?” He winked at me.
His friends all snickered at that. There was no doubt in my mind he had told them plenty of stories in the past about making girls’ days 'exceptional', and I was sure each and every one of those stories would have made me blush.
“Actually, I’m busy after school today. I’m going over to Jeffrey’s house.”
I could feel Jase tense up when I spoke Jeffrey’s name. Removing his arm from me, he sat up and turned to face me.
“Why the hell are you going over to his house?” he demanded.
Cory snorted and turned to Zach. “Uh oh. Trouble in paradise already.”
“Shut up, Cory,” Jase snapped at him. Turning back to me, he said, “Well?”
I cowered at the tone of his voice. He was so good at the whole acting thing, he almost had me believing he was jealous. I guess he didn’t realize it wasn’t necessary to be this convincing around his moronic friends. None of them seemed all that bright.
“We’re working on that project together.”
“Is anyone else going to be there?”
“How would I know?” I shrugged. “And what difference would that make, anyway?”
Jase scowled and shook his head. “Forget it. Never mind.”
He looked pissed, and I had no idea why, other than the fact we'd just been talking about Jeffrey. I had a feeling he was just pretending to be a jealous boyfriend, to put on a good show for his friends, but I didn’t like it. It was way too real for my comfort level.
“If it bothers you so much, then why don’t you come with me to his house?”
Oops. I hadn't meant to say that out loud.
His face lit up at the thought. “Why, I think that’s a splendid idea.”
By this time, his friends had moved onto their own conversation and were no longer paying attention to us. So, leaning forward, I said in a hushed voice, “You know I was joking, right?”
“It doesn’t matter. If you think I’m letting my girlfriend visit her ex-boyfriend’s house unaccompanied, you are sadly mistaken.”
“You are unbelievable.”
“Thanks. That’s real sweet of you.”
“That wasn’t a compliment,” I hissed. “And I swear to God, if you show up on Jeffrey’s doorstep this afternoon, I will—”
“You will what?” Jase pressed. “Thank me? Because that's exactly what you’ll be doing if I show up at his house later. He will hate having me there, and he will hate to see, first-hand, just how close you and I are getting. It’s the perfect opportunity to rub this in his face.”
I sighed. He was right yet again. “Fine. Do whatever you want. It’s not like I can stop you.”
“You’re right, you can’t. So you shouldn’t even bother trying.”
I rolled my eyes at him as I contemplated going to get something to eat. It was, after all, lunchtime and I was hungry. However, just as I was about to get up from the table, Jase suddenly reached over and grabbed my hand. I blinked in surprise as my gaze shot up to meet his. But he wasn’t looking in my direction. Rather, he was looking in the direction of the table next to us, the one occupied by the cheerleaders. The one occupied by Kylie.
She seemed oblivious to the fact someone was watching her, much like Jase was oblivious to the fact I was watching him. It was quite fascinating, really. I admired the look on his face as he gazed at her. Lovesick was really only word I could use to describe it. Absentmindedly, I gave his hand a light squeeze. He turned to look at me, a small smile playing at his lips, before letting go of my hand and joining in the boys’ conversation about football.
Out of curiosity, I let my gaze travel over to Kylie’s table myself, just in time to see her eyeing our table with interest. Or, more accurately, eyeing Jase. And then, when she noticed me looking at her, she quickly averted her full attention back to her friends, laughing at something one of them had said. Hmm. If I hadn’t known any better, I would have sworn she had looked somewhat jealous.
I guess our little plan was going to work for Jase. He was most likely going to get the girl.
Sitting back in my chair, I once again considered getting something to eat, but I realized then that I really wasn't so hungry after all.
***
“Lex,” Jase said as we made our way up Jeffrey’s driveway, “you’re being rude.”
“And so are you.” I had hoped perhaps Jase would forget he wanted to accompany me to Jeffrey’s house that afternoon, but no such luck. At around three o’clock, he knocked on Trish’s bedroom door and practically dragged me out of the room kicking and screaming—not because I didn’t want to go, but because I didn’t want to go with him.
“Why are you here?” I asked, crossing my arms over my chest. “Why aren’t you hanging around the mall with your friends, gawking at Kylie from across the food court or something?”
“Because I’m not a stalker. And I’m here because I don’t trust Weston. He might try something.”
“I doubt he would try anything he hadn’t already tried during our three-year relationship.”
Jase considered that for a moment. “Okay, then maybe it’s you I don’t trust; you and your hormones, considering the fact you’re still in love with the guy.”
My jaw dropped at his accusation as I gaped up at him. I honestly had no words to retort with, so with a huff I stalked up to Jeffrey’s door instead and knocked.
“You’re not denying it,” he called after me, but I ignored him.
Jase had joined me at my side by the time Jeffrey answered the door. At first, Jeffrey just saw me and smiled. And then
his gaze traveled to the dolt behind me and the smile faded.
“What's he doing here?” Jeffrey’s question was directed toward me, even though he was glaring over at Jase.
“Lex told me all about this Health project you’re doing,” Jase replied, “and she asked me if I would be a part of it. And, of course, I took one look at her adorable, pleading face and I just couldn’t refuse.”
Jeffrey’s questioning gaze flickered over to me then, as if to get confirmation from me that Jase’s story was true. So I nodded.
“Fine,” Jeffrey said in an abrupt voice. “Whatever.” He stepped aside to let us in.
I shot Jase a warning look as we entered, but he made it a point not to look at me.
“This certainly brings back memories,” he said to Jeffrey as we both followed him to the living room. Jeffrey turned around to glare at him, but he didn’t say anything.
I sighed. This was going to be a long afternoon.
“So I’ve got my parents’ video camera,” Jeffrey mumbled, picking up a folder from the coffee table. “I figured I could be the cameraman, and you could be the interviewer. Here. I composed a list of questions for you to ask people.” He shoved the folder into my hands.
“Wow.” I opened it up and glanced at its contents, and as I did so I began to feel somewhat guilty. He'd actually been putting thought into this project, while I’d been busy putting thought into getting revenge on him. “This is great, Jeffrey.”
I didn’t realize I was beaming until I noticed Jase rolling his eyes at me. So immediately, I cleared my throat and wiped the smile off of my face. “Okay, so I guess Jase here will be our first interview, then?”
“I guess so,” Jeffrey replied with a scowl. “I did actually have someone else in mind for us to talk to today, but I guess he will have to do.” He practically spat the word “he”, as if he was referring to something vile and revolting.
“I’m honored,” Jase said with a grin. “So where would you like me?”
Jeffrey snorted. “You do not want to be asking me that question, dude.”
“Jeffrey,” I said. “Don’t be a jerk.” I immediately shut my mouth after the words were out, because I was somewhat surprised I had jumped to Jase’s defense. And judging from the expression on Jase’s face, he was too.
“Whatever,” Jeffrey muttered. He picked up the tripod that was lying against the wall near the fireplace and started setting up the camera.
“I think this is going well,” Jase whispered into my ear. I had to resist the urge to push him away because, after all, we were supposed to be putting on a good show for Jeffrey.
Instead, I quickly moved away from him and headed over to Jeffrey. “Do you need any help?”
“Nope,” he said, not even glancing up at me. “But you can grab a chair and pull it over here. I’ll have you remain off camera while you conduct the interview.”
I breathed a sigh of relief. I hated having my picture taken, and I hated having myself filmed even more. “Sounds good to me.”
Jeffrey just nodded and pointed over to Jase. “You. On the couch.”
Jase gave him a condescending “yes, sir!” salute before taking a seat on the couch. I mouthed “be nice!” over to him, to which he responded with a subtle thumbs-up.
“Okay,” Jeffrey said, looking directly at Jase. “Just answer the questions honestly.”
Jase blinked up at him. “Why wouldn’t I?”
“Because you’re an asshole, that’s why.”
I opened my mouth to scold Jeffrey, but Jase held up a hand to stop me.
“Hey man, chill alright? I may be an asshole, but I’m here to help Lex, not to sabotage your project. So let’s just get on with it, shall we?”
I threw him a grateful look as I sat down in the chair. I heard Jeffrey mumble something behind me, but I couldn’t decipher any of the words. It was probably just as well.
I pulled the list of questions out of the folder and took a quick glance at it. I was impressed with how much thought Jeffrey had put into it.
“Okay,” Jeffrey spoke up behind me. “I’m turning on the camera now, so you can go ahead and start.”
I cleared my throat, sat up straight in my chair and glanced over at Jase. “Okay. Please state your first name and your age.”
“My name is Jase, and I’m eighteen years old.”
I glanced back down at the questions. “Are you a smoker, or a non-smoker?”
“Non-smoker.”
There was a little note that Jeffrey had sprawled next to that question that read if the answer was “no” then go directly to the first question on page two. So that’s exactly what I did.
“Have you ever smoked?”
Jase shook his head. “Nope. Never have.”
I skipped ahead a couple of questions. “So why have you chosen not to smoke? Especially now you’re at the age you can legally do it?” I ad-libbed the last part.
He shrugged and leaned back into the couch. “I dunno. Because it’s nasty. I’ve dated a couple of smokers in the past, and the smoking was a real turn-off. There is nothing sexy about reeking of cigarette smoke. And kissing those girls? Gross. That’s really all I have to say about that.”
It was amazing, given Jase’s track record with the ladies, that he had only dated a 'couple' of smokers, and not all of them. I couldn’t have agreed more with him, though. Smoking was a major turn-off, and I would never date one myself, for all the reasons Jase had just listed.
I quickly scanned down the list looking for the next question to ask him. I chose the one on the bottom of page two. “Do you have any close family members who smoke?”
“Currently? No. But my grandmother smoked for over forty years. She passed away from lung cancer about five years ago.”
I couldn’t help but feel like a bit of an idiot. His grandmother, how could I have forgotten about her? I instantly regretted having chosen that particular question.
However, I found myself saying, “I remember that.”
A small smile began to tug at his lips. “You should. Remember, you baked those horrible chocolate chip cookies for me and Trish as a way to show your condolences?”
“What?” I could feel myself blushing. “They weren’t that bad, were they?”
Jase chuckled. “Hey, don’t beat yourself up. Not many people become master chefs at the age of twelve. Besides, it was the thought that counted, anyway.”
He flashed me a charming grin, and I reciprocated with one of my own. Jeffrey, on the other hand, sighed and yelled, “Cut!”
I turned around in my chair to face him. “What?”
“Lexi,” he said, his voice dripping with annoyance, “you’re not supposed to involve yourself personally with the interviews.”
“You never said that.”
“It should have been implied! No self-respecting journalist makes their interviews personal.”
Jase rushed to my defense. “Dude, she’s not a journalist. She’s a Health class student working on a stupid project. Do you really think your teacher’s going to give a rat’s ass if she gets personal with her interviews?”
“Why are you here, Holloway?” Jeffrey asked, glaring daggers over at Jase. “You’re really not being much help at all. Maybe you should leave.”
“I’m not leaving until Lex leaves.”
“Okay.” Jeffrey grabbed the camera off the tripod and stared down at me. “You can leave too.”
I shot up out of my chair. “But we’re working on our project!”
“Not anymore we aren’t. Besides, I have plans with Amber-Lynne Rose.”
I felt a pang in my heart when he mentioned her name. It was the same reaction I had every time he spoke her name. “How could you have plans with her, if you’d already had plans with me to work on our project?”
He ignored my question. “We’ll work on it more tomorrow. Without him.” He pointed over to Jase, even though it was not necessary for him to do so. Who else would he have been referring to?
>
“Jeffrey, man,” Jase said, rising up from the couch. “What’s your problem?”
“I don’t have a problem,” Jeffrey replied in a voice that suggested otherwise. “Now get out of my house.”
The pang in my heart was getting worse by the second. Jeffrey was mad at me. Mad for bringing Jase with me. But wasn’t that what I wanted? Hadn’t that been the whole point? So why was I suddenly feeling so miserable?
“Come on.” Jase reached over and placed a hand on my shoulder, squeezing it lightly. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Jeffrey tense up, and I could hear his sudden sharp intake of breath. “Let’s go.”
I nodded as I removed his hand from my shoulder. But instead of just letting go of it, I intertwined my fingers with his, earning a surprised look from Jase, and an enraged one from Jeffrey.
“See you tomorrow,” I said, and I was shocked at how calm my voice sounded. Actually, calm wasn’t really the appropriate term. It was more like catty. Because deep down, I was thrilled to see Jase and I were getting under his skin.
I led Jase out of the house, still holding onto his hand. I didn’t let go of it until we had crossed the street and stepped foot onto the Holloway property.
He grinned at me. “Did you see how he reacted to us?”
“Yeah,” I replied with a nod.
“And all we really did was smile at each other. And then, when you took my hand, I swear I could see smoke coming out of his ears.” He paused for a moment to laugh. “I think I’m really going to like this. I think we both are.”
I glanced from him, over to Jeffrey’s house, and then back to him. And before I really gave it much thought, I blurted out, “So when am I going to find out what happened between the two of you?”
His laughter had already begun to subside by then, but as soon as I finished speaking my question, there was no trace of amusement left on his face. He sighed and stared down at the ground. “It’s really not important, okay? In fact, the whole thing is just kinda stupid.”