Hate Me

by Leen Elle

  "Shit!" My eyes flew open as I broke the contact between our lips. He blinked those amazingly blue eyes before yanking his arms away from my waist. What was I thinking? I leant back against the pole in shock, away from his scrutinizing eyes. The guitar was lying across his lap, probably forgotten in that short moment. There was a long, awkward moment of silence while I fixed my eyes on the guitar and he steadied his gaze on my face.

  Did you feel something then, Raylin? How could I not? Admit it, babe, you like him! No I don't! It was just an accidental kiss! Sure, an accidental kiss that led him to hold you close and not get kicked in the balls by you? Enough! Admit it! No! Yes! No! Yes! No! Yes! N… admit what?

  "Raylin?" An uncertain voice broke my insistent train of thoughts. I glanced back up to meet Viper's eyes again. Damn! Yeah, damn! He was fiddling with his shirt hem, his mouth opening and shutting like a fish out of water. Just what was I thinking, getting myself into this mess? I was the Ice Queen, for hell's sake. "About what just happened…"

  "Look, Viper. About what just happened, we'll pretend nothing happened alright?" I snapped, drawing my eyes away from his face. "I felt absolutely nothing and I'm sure you didn't feel anything too."

  "If you… say so?" A befuddled expression crossed his face. "I'm sorry. It was just an accident."

  "Yeah, it was," I reconfirmed, nodding adamantly. Shutting my eyes, I resumed my original position, plastering my back to the pillar again. The grip I had on what little calmness that remained was slowly diminishing and my wounded pride was diminishing as rapidly as an elephant being kicked off the Eiffel Tower. If word of this got out, I would never live it down. Never. On the other hand, though, I could probably trust Viper with this. He seemed pretty mortified by the recent situation too.

  "I could stay awake, just to hear you breathing…"

  Frowning, I turned to see Viper glancing down at his guitar, playing the beginning of a song that was clearly…

  "A love song?" I blurted out before I could stop myself. "What's wrong with you?"

  "Is it my fault that half the songs available are love songs?" He replied in a placating manner, taking his hands off the guitar and grabbing my can instead. "So… when are you planning on leaving?"

  "I could ask you the same question, Goth boy," I shot back at him coldly, eyeing my Diet Coke. Good, my defenses were returning, and I suppose I was recovering from that fatal accident. "You were the one who wanted to come to the playground."

  "Melvin's out with Rayne."

  "Really?"

  "He took her out for dinner."

  "Silly girl. She shouldn't have agreed to go out with him."

  "Hey, that's my brother you're talking about!"

  "Look at my face, do I look like I give a shit?" I wiped my face clear of emotions and tilted my head to look at him, snatching my can back. He grinned.

  "Hell yes, you do," Viper burst out laughing. "Sorry. Guess I was just too bored."

  "Let's do something," I suggested casually. All of a sudden, I found myself pressed up against the pillar, with a familiar figure in black towering over me. A smirk was painted across his face as he leaned in closer.

  "May I ask what you would like to do, Your Majesty…?" Narrowing my eyes, my hands flew up to shove him off… in vain. Those pathetic hands were blocked easily. "Trying to get rid of me?"

  "Viper. That's enough," I rolled my eyes. "I was thinking of something along the lines of Truth and Dare."

  He pouted, yes, pouted and returned to his spot. "Damn, Raylin. You're no fun."

  "You're on a sugar high. Don't you think you're a tad less aloof tonight?" His response completely missed my question.

  "Don't you think we've proceeded too fast from utter awkwardness to complete ignorance of what happened?" He mused, his piercings glinting eerily in the light of the streetlamps. I resisted the urge to nod along and lifted an eyebrow at him. "Alright, I get the point. 'Drop the topic already, Viper!'"

  "Are we playing Truth or…"

  "Yeah, we're playing Truth. You can start, I'll think of some challenging questions for you."

  "How many girlfriends have you had?"

  "I can't remember, more than fifteen? And how about you?"

  "Girlfriends? Four."

  "Hey! You know what I mean!"

  "Didn't I already answer your question?"

  "Raylin…"

  "Alright, alright. I'm not too sure either. One every week, go figure," I grinned at him. He shrugged and leaned over to grab my can again. "Hey!" He held it in his hands for a couple more seconds, looking from it to my face and back again. I half-expected him to return the can and give me an apologetic look. Well, he did give me the apologetic look, but he finished off the rest of my drink.

  I growled.

  He blinked.

  I growled again.

  He blinked again.

  I was about to growl again, but the immense urge to sneeze came over me. I was pretty sure that my one sneeze blew the whole playground away. He looked down at me, the slightest trace of worry lining his face, "Are you cold?"

  "What makes you think so?" I snapped unhappily, still annoyed over my diet coke. I suppressed the urge to sneeze again, causing tears to spring into my eyes.

  "Well, maybe because you're wearing a sleeveless dress that's a little too revealing," he drawled, looking away. There was a pregnant pause as we both stayed silent, gazing blankly into the darkness. "So, are you cold or not?"

  "A little," I admitted grudgingly. "It's not like you can do anything about it… Hey! What the hell are you trying to do?" I gaped at the scene before my eyes. The crazy guitarist cum artist was unbuttoning his long-sleeved shirt. I turned away, a slow blush creeping up my cheeks. Damn my cheeks. Even my own blood was betraying me. Stupid heart, stop pumping so wildly! Stop! On second thought, maybe not.

  A black bundle was thrust in front of my face. I whipped my head around to face him, regretting it almost instantly. I found my eyes trailing down his serious face, down to his chest, and finally his ripple of muscles on his abdomen. They would have traveled lower, if he hadn't snorted in a very ungentlemanly way, "Take it and put it on."

  Still keeping a straight face, I took it from him and slid my bare arms into the sleeves. He was right, I was feeling insanely cold. If I hadn't known better, I would have sworn that the skies were growing darker, but the truth was that it was night. We lapsed back into silence, the initially friendly atmosphere gone, only to be replaced by an awkward one. He was fiddling with the knobs on his guitar, tuning his strings listlessly.

  "Hey," I mumbled. He looked up in surprise. "Thanks."

  "Yeah? It's no big deal," he replied with a crooked smile. "Say, d'you want to go over to the swings?"

  I squinted through the darkness to look at the two empty swings not too far away. I shrugged nonchalantly. Why not? I got to my feet, bending down to pick up my heels. If you thought I was going to walk around in those killer heels in a freaking playground, you thought wrong. I cringed at the numbing sensation in my legs, the familiar pricking of tiny pins and needles. It appeared as though Viper was suffering from the same situation too, he was grimacing at his legs.

  Just as we were reaching the swings, there was a low rumble. We exchanged glances and looked up at the sky. Viper stated logically, "Isn't light supposed to travel faster than sound? There wasn't any lightning so I guess it isn't going to rain anytime soon." I shrugged in agreement and we settled into the swings.

  "Shall we… continue the game?" I asked hesitantly. He nodded. There was a sudden flash of lightning and the sky lit up. Our eyes widened and we practically ran to the nearest shelter. I suppose it didn't strike us then that we could have gone straight to the car and drive off home. Instead, we ran into a pavilion nearby.

  It was certainly a weird pavilion. It greatly resembled a hut, only with huge windows and a bench running along the rounded walls. The raindrops were getting larger and were beginning to come in through the big windows. What was the point of ha
ving a shelter if you could still be hit by the rain? I mused in silence. Viper dragged me to a corner between the entrance and a window, so that even if the rain did enter, it would completely miss us. Or rather, miss me, since Viper was standing up. I shifted a little to the side, making space for him to sit down but he refused.

  "Hold my guitar for me?" he handed me his precious guitar, which I took willingly. "Are you still cold?"

  I shook my head, but then I sneezed for the umpteenth time. He shook his head in exasperation. I distinctly heard a mumbled 'stubborn girl' under his breath. I shot him a deadly glare, which he completely missed when he looked out at the pouring rain. Thunder was rumbling at regular intervals, with bolts of lightning flashing happily through the skies.

  The rain began pelting through the big windows, wetting a large portion of the pavilion floor. There was a sudden drop of water on my dress and I looked up at the brooding Viper. His hair was actually dripping water. Suddenly, I found myself pinned to the wall, with his body extremely close to mine, and his face hovering dangerously close. My eyes narrowed in anger. Just what was he playing at?

  "Viper, get off," I snapped, squirming against his (too hard) chest. "Or I will kick you where you and I both know it hurts most." When he refused to answer or budge, I squirmed even more, trying to escape from under his arms. He shifted them so that they formed a barricade. By this time, I was so annoyed I could have slapped him.

  "Will you stop moving?" He snapped back, his voice shaking with suppressed annoyance. I growled at him. He actually had the audacity to snap at me, when he was the one annoying me to no ends?

  "Yes, I will stop moving, if you will just get off me!" I exclaimed in growing anger, using one hand to shove at his bare chest. Need I mention that I wasted my strength trying to push him away? I swear, that boy was made of steel. "Hello?"

  "Yes, hello to you too," he deadpanned, still not moving. I gritted my teeth and kneed him there. Yes, right there. He doubled over in agony. "Damn you, girl! I was just trying to shield you from the rain!"

  He shifted and all of a sudden, there were countless raindrops flying towards me. I bit my lip guiltily, "Oh. You could have said something."

  "Well I thought you knew!" He retorted, his face still contorted in pain. He shifted back again and suddenly, there were no more attacking raindrops.

  "Oh."

  I feel like a retard.

  VIPER

  And then she kneed me there. The place where all guys (and girls) know it hurts the most. Who said kindness begets kindness? Here I was, trying to prove that chivalry is most definitely not dead, and there she goes, kneeing me in the groin. I simply do not see the logic in that. Naturally, she apologized but there is this really big contusion wound forming on my ego.

  I stared at the wall blankly, feeling the raindrops roll off my back like water rolling off a duck's back. That's right, I'm a duck. Say it after me, "Quack." Oh damn, did I just say that out loud? I peered down cautiously. Raylin was vibrating in silence. Throwing my head back, I held back an embarrassed sigh.

  "Hey," she piped up meekly, actually looking mortified. I raised an eyebrow skeptically. What? The Ice Queen being all meek and mild? Someone call the Guinness Book of World Records. She put a hand on my stomach to get my attention back. "Shall we continue the game?"

  "If you want to. It's your turn anyway," I replied simply. She had better remove that bloody hand away from my abdomen, it's driving me nuts. Lately, simply talking to her was already getting on my nerves. It's not as though she was annoying me, she is in fact one of the coolest girls I have ever met. I hate the amount of testerone my body was generating – not that I wanted estrogen in replacement. "Get your hand off me. I mean, can you… not touch me like that?"

  "Huh? Oh. Right," the hand disappeared. "My question is, why are you being so nice to me?"

  I stared at her unreadable face silently. Turning my back to her, I faced the rain, letting the droplets hit my face.

  "Because I want to." Oh fuck, did I just say that? I racked my brains hurriedly, desperately trying to find something else to replace that idiotic statement. "Uh… I…"

  "Sorry?" I turned back to look at her face. Her brows were furrowed slightly and there was a look of utmost confusion. Thank hell, what I said never made it to her ears. My lips moved but I doubt there were any sound waves traveling out of them. Her head angled towards the side. "Is anything wrong?"

  Damn you, Ice Queen. Is it really that hard to remain emotionless and composed, rather than confused and caring? Before I could say anything to her, a mighty sneeze escaped from my mouth. A cool hand made its way to my forehead. She got up and tip-toed to glance over my shoulder, removing her hand.

  "Look, the rain has stopped. I'll drive you back home, okay?" I almost winced at the gentleness in her voice. I took my guitar from her hand and let her grab my wrist and pull me to the car.

  I am unwilling to divulge how firmly she brought me to my room and tucked me into bed after forcing me to change out of my clothes, and the gentle way she brushed her hand against my forehead. Certain parts of my body stirred, definitely, but I was too busy sneezing and coughing to care. I was almost glad to absent myself from school the next morning with regards to my feverish condition.

  And so, when morning came, my fever was half-gone. That was the only positive thing I woke up too though, my throat felt as though I had swallowed a bucket of nails. I sneezed seven times consecutively, feeling amazed at my own ability. Sighing, I sank deeper down into my covers and under my blanket.

  Someone knocked at my door. Interesting, Mason never knocked before he intruded into my privacy but since there were only the two of us living in the house, I am inclined to think that a sudden bout of insanity swept over him and he was being decidedly polite. Throwing my covers aside, I shivered slightly at the draught dancing across my bare chest. The person outside knocked again. I sneezed for the eighth time that morning as I clambered out of bed.

  "I'm coming," I snapped irritably, stepping over the pile of discarded drawings to reach the door. I yanked the door open. "Wha- Oh, hello… Raylin." Standing at my doorway was a girl in a white tank top and black jeans. The two pieces of clothing clung to her curves very nicely… Damn my hormones. I wisely kept my mouth shut as I took in her wry smile and raised eyebrow. Stepping aside, I allowed her into my room.

  "So, what brings you here?" I asked, turning away so that I could prevent my eyes from roaming about her body. "I was only away from school for two days. And yes, the relentless text messages you sent me to remind me to eat my medicine were helpful. They kept waking me from my naps. Did you miss me much?"

  "You wish!" She laughed, poking me in the back to get my attention. "For someone who doesn't go to the gym much, you sure have muscles. But as much as I appreciate the view, could you maybe put on a shirt please? Nice boxers by the way." I looked down at my boxers, feeling a wave of embarrassment pass over me. Black boxers with purple polka dots probably did not boost a guy's self-esteem in front of a girl.

  "Mason's idea of a good birthday present for his loving older brother," I drawled as a way of explanation, obliging her request by pulling on a black shirt. "Are you going to go on sitting on my bed staring at me while I put on my jeans?" She cracked a cheeky smile then looked away while I slipped into my jeans. I sat down on the edge of my bed next to her as she withdrew a folder from her bag, handing me a set of papers held together by a paper clip. Grimacing, I scanned the first sheet of paper. Mathematics Assignment 4 – Calculus. To think I was so glad to skip school to avoid the homework load. I sneezed again miserably.

  "I know what you're thinking, Viper," she stated coolly. What, Her Majesty can now read my mind? "No, I can't read your mind, but that look on your face tells me you don't like seeing these assignments. Unfortunately for you, they are graded. Besides, I needed to personally apologize for uh…"

  "The great Raylin Lachey stuttering? Well that's a first…" I interrupted teasingly, only to receive a kil
ler glare in return. "…Sorry."

  "As I was saying before you rudely interrupted me, I'm sorry I caused you to fall sick," she deadpanned, although sincerity flashed in her icy eyes and a hint of warmth crept into her voice. Then, her tone changed. "Although nobody demanded you to shield me from the rain." I quirked an eyebrow at her, mildly amused by the fact that she was probably the first and last person I would ever meet to make being nice seem like a crime. I shrugged in acceptance, wondering for a brief moment when we became so comfortable around each other.

  "My throat is killing me, so if you'll excuse me, I'm going to get myself a glass of water," I broke the silence, surprising myself at the hoarseness of my own voice. "Feel free to clean up my room for me." As I walked out the bedroom door, a book came flying towards my head – and landed on it. Thank hell it was a paperback. That girl has an unnervingly accurate aim.

  When I returned to the room with two glasses in hand, I got the shock of my life. Some saint had descended into my bedroom and cleaned it up to the extent that I could barely recognize it. Raylin herself was sitting calmly on my neatly-made bed, finishing up an assignment. I stared with ill-concealed amazement, nearly dropping the glasses. Without speaking a word, Raylin slid off the bed and dumped the filled wastepaper basket into my arms, taking the glasses from me.

  I looked down at the wastepaper basket in confusion, "What do I do with this?" The incredulous look on her face was priceless.

  "Viper, do you know what a wastepaper basket is for?"

  "Yes… It's to throw unwanted items in, right?"

  "Right. So when you have so many unwanted items, as you so eloquently put it, what do you do with them?"

  "Throw them away?"

  "Good! Now, what you do now is to clear the wastepaper basket. Comprehende?"