The two guys who stood behind their dates engaged in their conversation, completely ignoring the shallow argument Riley and I started. I must admit, Anthony and Nathan looked like Prince Charmings in their tuxedos. That was why I couldn't keep my lips to myself from Nathan's a little while ago.
"Last time I checked this was also my dorm room."
"And last time I watched the news making-out was still legal."
Riley couldn't help it, and ended up laughing at my bluntness. She raised her hands up in surrender, and I curved my lips up into a triumphant grin. The four of us left the dorm, and then exited the building as we made our way over to the gym. A number of Ridgeway students were going the same way we were. They were dressed in a multitude of colors. Some wore pastel colors while others stayed plain in black and white. A few people I saw decided to go dark with brown and dark shades of blue, green, orange, and red. The guys, I must say, looked hot, all of them, but boring. Most, if not all, of the tuxes were in black. There were only a few daring ones who went for white, such as Blake. When we saw him, entering the gym with a cheerleader (Mandy had already left.), we called out to him. He waited for us until we caught up.
"It would've have been better if the dance was at a hotel," he said as a greeting.
We, in return, agreed with him. The board of the school had had a meeting a few months ago and decided upon the venue of the Winter Formal. We didn't know why they decided to change it, and go boring by having it at school, but no one had any violent reactions. It was better to have it at school, than to have no dance at all.
"Yeah, but come to think of it, no one has to go home and drunk-drive," I said, holding on to Nathan's hand.
"Here, here," said Cindy, who appeared from behind us, with her date, Dylan.
I looked at my ex and gave him a questioning look. He knew what I meant. We were going to talk later. And Later came much faster than I expected. The clock struck ten, and I was outside the gymnasium, sitting on a bench with Dylan. Good thing I was able to pull him away from Cindy who didn't seem bothered at all when I asked her if I could borrow her date for a few minutes. Nathan let go of me, and when he did, I was suddenly dying to dance with him again.
"So, you called me?" Dylan asked, breaking the silence that enveloped us.
Our surroundings were dark, and very little light was given off by the street lamps. It was pretty quiet, but we weren't alone. A few people, mostly couples, had left the gym and were now engaging in other, should I say, slightly impure acts. By the tree a few feet away from us, stood a couple making-out like there was no tomorrow. Before more of my thoughts could get sidetracked, I answered Dylan's question.
"Yeah," I said, my voice trailing off. "I wanted to ask about you and Cindy. Are you…?"
I saw his cheeks color, before he raised an eyebrow up at me. He shook his head in defiance, and I asked the question once again. In return, he simply smiled, and I took that as a 'yes.'
"Since when?" I asked, grinning madly before I punched him lightly on the shoulder.
He looked at me, eyes twinkling, before he moved them away to avoid contact. I cupped his face with one hand and made him face me. He was grinning like a little child.
"We're not together," he said, frowning when he answered.
"Again?"
"I want to be with her, but…" he looked hesitant.
His face was scrunched up and his eyebrows were furrowed, and I looked at him in a questioning manner. I put a hand on his shoulder, and in response, he rounded my neck with his arm. I felt a good one-eighth of his weight push down on me, but I decided to ignore it. There were more serious matters to talk about, one, being, a relationship with Cindy.
"I told her I like her, and she said the feeling was mutual, but right after that she said she didn't want anything to happen. With my kind of career, she said it was never going to work since I'd be away from her all the time, and she said her mother wouldn't approve of me because of my job. Fuck acting."
I let out a deep breath and leaned my head on his shoulder before I said, "Do you really want to be with her?"
I felt Dylan nod against the mop of black strands I call my hair, and I looked up to him. His eyes bored down onto me. He looked sad, depressed, confused that in that instant I felt like hugging him, and so I did in a friendly way. I encircled his neck with my arms, and his hand lay on one of them.
"You're just not going to let her go, are you?" I asked, the air around us seems silenced, placated.
"I told her I was willing to do anything, but she herself told me to stop before I wasted my life on her."
"Cindy? As in my friend Cindy a.k.a. the Queen Bitch told you that?" I asked not at all in a humorous tone, and Dylan ended up smirking before he pinched me on the waist which made me slap him in return.
"She's really nice once you get to know her," he answered, backing her up.
He looked serious, and in that moment, I didn't know if I should believe it all at once. Cindy was a nice person, but at some times, if not most, she could also be the person I hated the most. She was there when I needed a tutor, or a person to talk to, but she'd also be present when it came to stealing boyfriends and breaking hearts. What kind of Cindy did Dylan see?
"It's just the testosterone talking," and with that, we broke into laughter. The serious aura suddenly vanished and I found myself hugging my stomach as it pressed harder with every laugh that came out of me. Dylan, on the other hand, held onto my shoulders, his fingernails pressing hard onto my skin before we composed ourselves.
"I think Cindy's waiting for you," I said, beginning to stand up.
"And so is Nathan," He said, as he held out for me the door of the gymnasium.
* * *
Chapter 21: Meet The Parents
* * *
I couldn't believe what Nathan, Anthony, Riley and I had just done. I mean I wouldn't mind if it was only I who had to carry my luggage inside a bus on my way to the airport, but the four of us? That's something new for the rich, spoiled brats of Ridgeway High, and I just cannot believe I had called myself that.
"Finally, we're here," I said to myself with a deep breath when I got out of the public transportation.
I had two big bags with me. One was for my clothes, while the other one was for my gadgets, the big ones and other things I was going to give to my parents. My handbag which was slung over my shoulder and I had my phone, camera, wallet with my credit cards and cash, lip balm, waterproof eyeliner, foundation, and my IPod. Nathan, who was being a complete gentleman at the moment, carried my biggest piece of luggage while I was left to walk around comfortably without any weight pressed onto me.
"Hurry up, guys," Riley said once she got her things out of the bus. "I'm hungry."
"We're not late, Ri," I answered. "We're actually really early."
The automatic sliding doors opened in front of us, and the moment we stepped in, a cold wind coming from the air-conditioning unit brushed against our flesh. I shivered against the cold before I headed over to the check-in booth. The line was pretty short, and so, after getting our tickets confirmed, we immediately headed over to the X-ray machines. It took our bags only a couple minutes to be x-rayed, and we found ourselves eating at McDonald's. My mistake. They found themselves eating at McDonald's.
"You're not going to get anything?" Nathan asked wide eyed when I told him I wasn't feeling hungry.
I shook my head, and with my silence, he wrapped an arm around my waist as his free one leaned on the counter. He was ready to order, and after he did, we made our way to Riley and Anthony, who already started eating their meals. They looked barbaric with their heads bent down and their beady eyes ready to pounce on their food. I sat across the two with Nathan at my side, and trying to control myself from not falling into temptation, I got my IPod out of my white tote, and listened to some music. A few minutes passed, and the four of us stood up to leave. We talked for another hour or so, before Nathan and I separated from Ri and Anthony. Our gates were far awa
y from each other since we were going to New York while they, another part of California.
"I'm going to miss you guys," I said, frowning when Ri came closer to hug me.
I returned the embrace before we pulled away from each other before we smiled. I turned to Anthony who had just finished exchanging a handshake with Nathan, and he opened his arms for them to take me in. I rested my hand on his back for a split second, embracing him, before I kissed him the cheek and said, "Goodbye."
"We'll all see each other in a week," Riley said, referring to spending the New Year with the Adam's. "Mom and Dad can't wait to see Nate's new girlfriend!"
"And that's supposed to make me happy and not worry?" I asked in a tone of slight amusement. "I think it's the other way around."
"Speaking of which, are you ready to meet the parents?" I, striking up a conversation, asked my boyfriend.
I looked at him with a small innocent smile, and what he returned was a worried facial expression. Since we had checked-in the bigger part of our luggage a while ago, I only had my small white bag while Nathan, lazy most of the time, put his things inside my bag.
"I don't think so," he answered while a look of anxiousness and agony showing on his face.
To make him feel better and to brighten him up, I stood on my tip-toes and reached up to be able to give him a smell peck. He kissed me back, longer, deeper, sweeter, and with tongue. We ended up kissing for more than half a minute before we pulled away since we saw from the corners of our eyes people looking at us, some in disgust, while others in confusion, and the rest in enthusiasm.
"Okay, okay, we're leaving you guys now," Riley said feigning a look of disgust, and before we could even have another round of hugs and kisses, she took Anthony's hand and took him away from us. It was now only Nathan and I.
"Awww…they're really nice," I said referring to my parents. "Trust me."
"Right…and I'm supposed to believe you?" he asked, as a small teasing smile started to make its way to his lips.
I nodded my head, and in return, he rested one of his arms over my shoulders while the two of us made our way to the gate. We sat down and after half an hour, we boarded the plane, hand-in-hand like the sick lovely couple we were.
* * *
"What? So you don't want to talk to me anymore?" Nathan asked in mock-sorrow when I had decided that he needed to shut up.
We already spent two hours in the plane, and we had a couple more to go. Business class was very chill and calm, and rarely was there any kind of noise made, except that which erupted from Nathan. I didn't know why, but he was more fidgety than I've ever seen him before and the inside of a plane was not exactly the place to be when it came to being restless. He moved from side to side, and good thing we were at the left side of the plane, and no one else was beside us.
"Nathan, shut up," I said in a motherly tone. "You're distracting other people."
To probably annoy me more, he looked into my eyes, puppy-dog eyes included, and soon after, he pouted at me before he leaned his head on my shoulder. His thick brown hair tickled the side of my face, and I couldn't help but smile.
"I love when you act like a kid," I said, smirking from ear-to-ear. "But please, stop. I'm tired Nate."
He took his head back from my shoulder, and gave me a sad look as if a big red 'Sorry' was stamped on his forehead. He looked cute, but I was not going to fall for his petty acts and I was not going to let him get away with it.
"Save your energy for someone who will actually fall for that," I said, a small silent laugh escaping my lips.
I looked at him before I put a hand on his knee, and he covered it with his own. Our fingers intertwined and for a moment, we were locked into each other's gazes. That was until he broke the moment by leaning his head down to be able to kiss me full on the lips. I returned the kiss and laughed against his lips, before I pulled away.
"People might be watching," I said when he mouthed out a 'Why.'
"And tell me why I care?" he asked in a tone of mock-ignorance. "Because I honestly don't."
I slapped his chest, and with that kind of contact, he broke down into a small eight-year old like grin. His lips curved up thinly while his eyes twinkled in enjoyment, and I couldn't help but close the gap between our lips once again. After a second, I let go of him again. The cabin crew had let out a fake cough, and we turned to her, and waited until she served us our food.
"Did you see the look she gave us?" I asked, my eyes glinting. "It's not like there are kids in this part of the plane."
Nathan laughed, and then said, "She's just jealous. She probably hasn't gotten any since…I don't know. Why do I care about her life?"
I gave him a long resounding 'Oooooh' before I slapped him again and answered, "You care about me but not her?"
He gave me a peck on my temple, and I felt a tingling sensation about to burst from inside me. We prayed before we ate, and in between biting and chewing, in came the kissing and hugging, but now was different as compared to a few minutes ago. We decided on being discrete and making-out was prohibited. See how pure Nathan and I were being against the judgment of our hormones?
"This pasta is good," he said to me, eyes on his food. "I want more."
"Same here," I replied. "But I can't wait to eat the cake."
"You do know how many calories a slice of cake has?"
I slapped him in his chest area, and he put a hand over the part I had hit. He faked a look hurt before he rested his hand on my hair to give me a noogie.
"I told you not to tease me about food!" I said, pretending to feel offended.
We were talking in quiet voices so as not to interrupt the other passengers. Although some people were already giving us warning looks, we still didn't want to stop. It's not like they could hold us back from being normal seventeen-year olds. Nathan and I continued eating, but of course being sickeningly sweet and bored to death, we decided to feed each other, like a married couple. It was I who fed him first. I forked my pasta, twirled it, and held the eating utensil in front of Nathan's mouth.
"This is really good, I swear," he said as he widened his smiled in an immature way. "And you feeding me makes it even better."
I let out a hearty laugh until he told me that it was his turn to feed me. I did what he did, and after I had swallowed everything in my mouth, I grinned at him and pinched his cheeks. He, in response, wasn't satisfied with my hands against his face and with my eyes looking into his. Just like any other guy, he wanted more contact. He wanted to kiss me, and so I let him. But the make-out session, if you could call it that, lasted for only a minute or so. People were starting to really look at us, as they tried to burn us down with their intense gazes.
* * *
"So you're Nathan Adams. I have heard a lot about you," My mom said with her usual all-knowing smile.
Once we got off the plane, I had called my parents to tell them the news that we had landed already, and after doing so, we made arrangements to be picked up. Nathan was fidgety during the wait, and when he finally met my mom and dad, he held a calm façade which, I must say, impressed my parents.
"It's a pleasure to meet you ma'am," he greeted back, as he lowered his head down to be able to kiss my mom on the cheek. After that, he turned his direction to my father, and they both exchanged firm handshakes.
"And you too, sir."
I looked at him discreetly and grinned at him, and in return he stuck out his tongue at me when my parents weren't looking. They turned their attention back to us, and told us to get inside the car. We obliged and took the backseat, as they, took the ones in the front.
"So, I heard Alex is spending the New Year's with your family," my father said, starting the conversation.
"Yes, she is," he said in an all-too polite voice. "My parents are dying to meet her ever since I told them she was going to visit."
My dad smiled and looked at me from the rearview mirror and winked at me. I grinned back, and my mom, who was oblivious to all this, remained si
lent and intimidating. She held a rigid stance which I wanted to break badly before she spoke up.
"I've reserved a table for us for later in the evening," she started. "We're going to have a five-course dinner. I hope you two don't mind."
I looked at Nathan and unsurprisingly, he was staring back too. He put on a fake smile which immediately told me how awkward my mom was acting, and in comfort, I put a hand on his shoulder and told him, "It's okay."
"We don't," I said to my mother. "We just want to rest today with all the moving we've been doing."
"And you have a full day tomorrow," my dad reminded.
Speaking of a busy schedule, I do have one, and I couldn't wait anymore. After how many months of not modeling, I was going to have a runway show and a pictorial for Guess tomorrow. I didn't know all the specific details about what I was going to wear and what the theme of the shoot was, but I didn't really care at the moment. It was all about finally getting back to what I enjoyed doing the most. Modeling.
The Heaven I Found In Hell Page 29