by Leen Elle
"Belinda, I'm here."
"We're on our way out, Mister."
There was a slight commotion when Raylin stalked out of the school angrily, the rest of the people following quickly, their faces all looking worried and frantic. I grinned and started strumming the beginning chords of one of the best songs by Melee. Several students stopped on hearing the familiar tune. The students descending the steps turned and climbed back up to gape at the goth standing in front of a school playing an acoustic guitar. The people were still streaming out of the building, but each of them stopped when they saw the sight. I saw Raylin slowing down, and finally coming to a halt as her jaw fell open. I could see her no more as more and more people appeared.
"I've looked for love in stranger places,
But never found someone like you.
Someone whose smile makes me feel I've been holding back,
And now there's nothing I can do."
I felt my heart rate increase when I realized just how many people were staring at me in shock, but it wasn't the time to stop.
"`Cause this is real and this is good,
It warms the inside just like it should.
But most of all, most of all,
It's built to last."
I was surprised by how loud my guitar could be when it knew it had to. I was singing my heart out before an audience. I had never done that in my entire life.
"All our friends saw from the start,
So why didn't we believe it too?
Whoa yeah, now look where we are.
You're in my heart now,
And there's no escaping it for you."
There were audible sighs from the crowd as I saw a few girls metaphorically melt into puddles. I heard a familiar female voice yelling "YEAH, I'm glad you realized!" only to be shushed by the people around me.
"`Cause this is real and this is good,
It warms the inside just like it should.
But most of all, most of all,
It's built to last."
I was suddenly aware of how quiet the crowd was, just so that the sounds of my guitar could be heard. I smiled gratefully, the fact that I had been smiling a lot recently dawning on me.
"Walking on the hills that night with those fireworks and candlelight
You and I were made to get love right."
I knew we both did not believe it love, but we liked each other, and that much was true. All I wanted was for her to face up to her feelings, and take my confession with ease.
"'Cause this is real, and this is good.
It warms the inside just like it should,
But most of all, it's built to last.
'Cause you are the sun in my universe,
Considered the best when we've felt the worst
And most of all, it's built to last."
I could see the people around me clapping furiously, their faces bright with joy. I scanned the crowd for her face, but I still couldn't see her.
"Raylin! I know you're somewhere in here. I just… don't know where." I swallowed nervously before shouting over the noise of the applause. The crowd slowly returned to silence as they went on watching the show. "I want to tell you that, we may not love each other but I do like you. A lot. And I want you, Raylin Lachey, to be my girlfriend. Will you?" Whispering broke out amongst the crowd but there was still no sign of her. I took a deep breath and shut my eyes, trying to control the overwhelming feeling of sadness in me. What did I expect from her?
"Yes!" My eyes flew open, in time to see a slim figure lurching towards me. They widened further in shock as she practically leapt on me, her arms circling around my neck and her legs scissored around my waist. "Yes, yes, yes!" I was stunned momentarily before I wrapped my arms tightly around her waist, burying my face into her neck once more and inhaling the scent of her shampoo. There was a churning feeling inside my stomach and the little voice in my head screamed, Could this be love?
No, not love. Never love. But as I hugged her closer and stroked her hair, amidst the wild cheering of the surrounding crowd, I was unsure. It could very well be love. And I could very well be in love. With her. With the girl in my arms. Who was finally releasing her death grip on me and standing before me, her eyes shining with unshed tears, her face damp with the fallen ones, and her lips begging for attention. I swooped down and captured her lips in mine. One of my hands was placed gently on her waist, the other wrapped around my guitar. Someone grabbed the guitar from my hand and left me a free hand to curl around the back of her neck. She finally drew back from the kiss and let loose a light laugh. I looked at her in bewilderment.
"Are my kissing skills really that bad?" I asked, cocking my head to the side to look at her.
"Oh, you silly guy!" She laughed once more and cuddled up to me, burying her face in my chest.
I watched the crowd around us disperse, chattering gaily, with many students turning back to sneak peeks at us. As they walked past, Sierra grinned at me and winked, mouthing 'good luck'. Jerome held my guitar up and indicated that he would bring it back for me. I gave them a thumbs up and brought my hand up to hold her chin lightly, tilting her head up so that she faced me.
RAYLIN
"Are you ready? Because I've another surprise for you." He told me, his blue eyes looking intently into mine. I broke into another smile and nodded eagerly. I let him lead me down the steps. When I had caught sight of him standing there playing his guitar, I felt my breath hitch, and my footsteps coming to a halt. Leila and the rest had piped down too, watching him. I wanted to run up and ask him what he was doing, but more people emerged from the building and stood closer and closer to him, blocking my view, but I could still hear his voice. His beautiful, emotional, sexy voice. Shit. Did I just use those words to describe his voice?
When he finished singing, I was already crying. When he began talking, I wanted to laugh at his adorable confession that he had no idea where I was. When he asked me to be his girlfriend, I was still crying too hard to respond. The people surrounding me were parting and pushing me forward but I stayed rooted to the spot. I wanted to kill him there and then. He made me cry in front of so many people. Me¸ Raylin the Ice Queen. My image was ruined. Then, I decided that it did not matter as much when I caught sight of his downcast expression. I took a running leap towards him and… it carried on from there.
"We're going to the bookhouse. I was your secret admirer, by the way," he joked, holding my hand in his.
"I think I already figured that out when you started singing," I smacked his head lightly. "C'mon, we'll drive there."
"I'm driving!" He said gleefully as we approached my car. I glared at him. "I'll be careful! No fingerprints on the dashboard or the windows, I know."
I rolled my eyes and got into the car as he drove to the bookhouse. I suddenly recalled Maria's phone call and placed a hand on his arm, "Hold up, boyfriend. Maria called me earlier and she told me the bookhouse was closed."
He gave me a cheeky grin and the truth shone right in my face.
"Oh. You asked her to close the bookhouse for the day." He grinned again in acknowledgement. He parked the car and we got out. The interior of the bookhouse was completely dark through the glass door. I gave Viper a confused look. As we neared, I realized that it was a curtain hung behind the door. As he pushed me lightly in front, he leaned down to whisper in my ear, "Maria said it should give us some privacy. Although I'm not sure what she's talking about…"
I jabbed him in his chest with my elbow, "Are you naturally this cheeky or are you just happy that I've agreed to be your girlfriend?"
He pushed the door open and I gasped.
VIPER
"Did you do all this?!" She exclaimed, turning to me with wide eyes. "My goodness, how long did it take you?"
"The time I took doesn't matter because what matters most is whether you're happy with it or not," I pecked her cheek. It felt great to finally be able to kiss her anytime I wanted and not stealing kisses in a playground at night. The ligh
ts were dimmed and I was wondering why I hadn't thought about lighting a few candles.
"If all our dates are going to be like that, I think I will never ever regret my decision," she smiled dreamily, leaning back against me.
"I'm going to make sure you enjoy every single one of our dates so much that you will never get to regret your decision." I told her solemnly, spinning her around so that I could stare at her intently and make sure that she knew I meant what I said.
"You're getting mushier and mushier as each second passes," she joked, pressing the back of her hand to my forehead. "You're not getting a fever again, are you?"
"Only if you're there to take care of me this time," I tried for another cheesy line again and received a loud laugh and an insolent push this time. I fell back into an armchair, laughing along with her. She plopped into my lap and smiled down at me. "Am I going to get a kiss?"
"Just for that, you won't." She got up and walked towards the counter. "I'll go make us some hot chocolate."
I got up and pulled her back against me, "That can wait. I can't!"
She wriggled out of my grasp and mock glared at me with her fists on her hips, "I want my hot chocolate and I want it now. So you get back on that chair and don't move."
I returned to my seat obediently and watched her as she moved around making the hot chocolate. She returned to the table balancing two cups of hot chocolate on a tray. We sat like that in silence, sipping our hot chocolate and periodically glancing at each other until she set her mug down with a huff and decided that my lap would make a better seat. I laughed, circling an arm around her waist and was about to make another stupid comment when she leaned over and pecked my lips.
"Shhh, just shut up and drink the hot chocolate."
The best first date I ever had.
Chapter 17
So Many Questions, So Little Answers
"Remember, beneath every cynic lies a romantic, and probably an injured one." – Glenn Beck
RAYLIN
I was still giddy over the fact that Viper and I were finally an official couple. The first thing I had wanted to do when he claimed me as his girlfriend before the entire student population was to knee him in the groin once more, but it occurred to me that the poor guy had pretty much thrown away every last shred of his dignity when he sang and played his guitar for me. In front of the same student population. During the weekend, he had brought me to the beach, of all places, and made sure I had fun. I smiled at all his weird ideas of fun.
I smoothed down the covers on my bed, collecting my things and leaving my room. When I entered the living room, I stopped short at the sight of a strange man sitting on our couch, holding an opened can of beer in one hand and the television remote in the other. He turned when he felt eyes on him, and gave me a leering grin.
"You must be Emily's elder daughter. What a hot chick," he gurgled, his eyes roaming over my entire body. I scowled and hurried into the kitchen, pulling my jacket on over my halter top. My mother had once more brought her latest man home, and he was another dirt bag from the looks of it. What was with my mother and her ability to attract losers like him? I reached for the cabinet on the wall to retrieve the cereal for Rayne.
"Nice legs, baby. How about seeing them wrapped around me instead?" The same greasy voice floated into the kitchen. I whipped around, yanking my skirt downwards as my mother's lecherous boyfriend leered at me from the doorway.
"Charlie, please." I heard a tired voice say from behind him. "She's my daughter so keep your dirty thoughts to yourself." He stepped aside to let my mother pass. She gave me a weary smile and picked up the coffee jug. I looked down at her, and to my horror, saw a faint yellow bruise circling her wrist.
"Your wrist!" I gasped, stopping her from walking away and looking at her properly. There were contusions littering her arms and I would have seen more covering her legs if she had not been wearing track pants. I narrowed my eyes at the bastard standing before us with his can of beer. "What have you been doing to my mother, you asshole?"
"Now, what could I have been doing?" He leaned casually against the wall, giving my mother a withering glance. "Besides screwing her… I don't remember doing anything else. Didn't you hear her screams last night?"
"Fornication certainly does not explain the bruises on her." I said coldly, wrapping an arm around my mother. If he had been trying to disgust me with his crudeness, he was failing miserably.
"It's called bondage, darling," he sneered, tossing the beer can on the floor. "Would you like to join us tonight?"
"Charlie!" My mother snapped, fiercer and louder this time. He looked taken aback at her sudden ferocity and shrugged, keeping his mouth shut. She took my arm and tilted her chin towards her door. "Raylin, leave for school. You'll be late." Rayne was standing at the bottom of the staircase, looking utterly bewildered. I pushed past him to go to her, only to feel a hand slap my butt tauntingly. I turned around and gave him a solid punch in the nose.
"Raylin!" My mother exclaimed in shock. Charlie was holding his nose in pain, a stream of dark red blood flowing from his nostrils. I rolled my eyes at him and took hold of Rayne, steering her towards the front door.
"We'll grab breakfast on the way. Questions later, alright?" I muttered to Rayne, who nodded silently and followed me to the car. As we strapped ourselves in, I briefly told her what had happened in our house, finishing off with a stern, "Call me when you're going home alright? Especially if that guy is in our house. I don't want you to be alone. Hell knows what that pervert will do."
She grimaced and agreed without hesitation. We stopped to buy a couple of donuts before resuming our drive to school. I was biting into my donut while opening my locker when Calista came dancing up to me. She did a pirouette and whirled to a stop before she crashed into my locker door. I gave an amused look as she giggled giddily.
"Spill, girl. What exactly riled you into such a giggly mess?"
"New boyfriend! The cutest one you can ever find! Darren from the football team!" She shot out rapidly, her face alight with happiness. Belinda and Leila came up to us, giving Calista bemused looks. Clearly, they had already heard of her happy news. As I exchanged light banter with them, there was a slight pressure on my donut. I looked at my donut to find half of it gone. I whipped my head back in surprise. Viper was standing there looking smug with puffy cheeks. I looked down at my donut and back at him.
"You!" I smacked him hard on his arm. He swallowed and laughed, "Sorry, couldn't resist." Behind me, the girls were grumbling that I had ditched them for a new boyfriend. Before I could say anything to them, they were already walking away at lightning speed. I looked back at Viper and smiled. He suggested skipping lessons for the day and pointed to the janitor's closet in the hallway cheekily. I nudged him in the direction of the classrooms and began walking.
"We're going to be late if you don't hurry," I told him solemnly, ignoring his crestfallen expression. I entered my classroom and waved at him. "I'll see you later."
The teacher was still not present as I slid into my seat. I withdrew the research papers from my file and began looking through them for mistakes that required editing. As I concentrated, there was a scraping sound next to me as the chair was pulled back. I glanced up and met the smiling face of Teresa. Teresa was the head of the student council, pretty and very well-liked. Contrary to popular belief, she was anything but nerdy, just naturally smart. I smiled back and her and tilted my head enquiringly.
"Congratulations on your new relationship. Now, with that aside, you know the student council has been planning prom night for almost a month now, don't you?" I nodded in response and waited for her to continue. "Well, it's less than two weeks away and with my new student councilors joining, we're having a bit of a problem. They're very disorganized and everything isn't going as smoothly as I hoped. Do you think you and the other three girls could help us out?"
"I'll check with them and get back with you soon. I'm sure they'll be willing to help too," I gave her a reassur
ing pat on the shoulder. She broke into a grateful smile and returned to her own seat. I turned back to my papers but before I could read another line, someone else came up to me. I knew nothing about this girl except for her name – Sarah.
"H… Hi!" She stuttered and fidgeted nervously under my stare. "I just wanted to tell you that er, well my friends and I think that you and Viper are really cute together and ah… we want to wish you all the best."
"Right… Thanks." I nodded in acknowledgement and returned to my papers.
"I second that!" A cheerful voice added, a hand slapping me on my back. I glared at the person who had done that and another girl whom I had never talked to in my life smiled at me. Around me were murmurs of agreement as members of the class nodded vigorously. What was with the people in school today? They were treating my relationship with Viper like some awesome news that sent them all into spirals of ecstasy. I felt like a sacred exhibit with people fainting in my wake as I walked past. I rolled my eyes and tried to resume my editing once more. I failed miserably when the teacher walked in with a hefty greeting. After the lesson was finally over, I entered the washroom. While I was in the cubicle, I heard my name mentioned outside. It was not the first time and I was not bothered by it, until I actually heard what context it was being mentioned in.
"… and Raylin are so very cute together, don't you think?" The first voice said.
"Oh, totally. I was betting with Lisa on when they were going to get together after the party at Danya's and would you believe it? She won!" Her friend replied, a tone of exasperation in her voice as she went on about losing ten bucks. I was about to throw the cubicle door open and watch them scamper away in fright but decided against it when yet another person spoke again.
"Raylin is so lucky to always get all the cute guys. But I just know this relationship would be so different from her previous ones," there was an almighty sigh as though she was trying to blow the whole washroom away. "They are just so sweet and..."