Belle and I walk out of the side exit of the school and we briskly walk over to the parking lot, where Belle's mother and my mother come to pick us up. Though Belle can legally drive, she insists for her mom to pick her up from school since she wants to feel young when she still can. Meanwhile, I'm half a year younger than most of my peers, so I am fifteen when most of them are sixteen or seventeen. I do have my learner's permit, and my father taught me to drive, because he doesn't have a single ticket even on his driving record.
There are several benches lining the curb surrounding the enormous parking lot, and there are trees behind them that give shade. Several students walk out behind us and get into their cars or wait to be picked up, and we ignore the hustle and bustle of those around us. The buses start to line up at the curb, and a lot of the students leave in them. Belle sits on a bench, silent, and I remember her face going white at something Sophie told her when they were playing.
"Belle?" She looks up, and answers with a small hum. "What did Sophie tell you when you guys had the one-on-one match?" Belle's face goes a little pale, and she nervously fiddles with her fingers. I see the anxiety, sadness, and anger slide into her eyes.
"Well," she begins, fiddling with her backpack straps, "I was getting ready to face off with Sophie, as you probably saw, and Sophie, the devil she is, told me that my older brother, he, um . . ." Belle trails off, a little hesitant to talk.
I become a little worried; Belle has three brothers, Caspian, her older brother who is a year older than her and attracts a lot of female attention, especially since he looks a lot like Belle but taller and older, and the identical twins, Michael and Jason, who are about three years younger than her, share the same features, and they are known for their mischief and trouble. It couldn't be good, since Caspian found his first girlfriend about a month ago. Their parents are super strict, only a little less so than mine, and they would go into a frenzy if they found out.
"Come on, just spit it out," I say, "You already told me about Caspian's first girlfriend," She looks like she is debating something in her head before she relaxes and tells me what Sophie told her.
"Apparently, Sophie knows that Caspian has a girlfriend, and she knows how our parents are really strict. But what she told me was the worst news I could've gotten. Caspian and the girl broke up a day ago, right after he lost his innocence to her." It takes a lot of my self-control to keep my jaw from falling open and my face showing any signs of shock. Seriously? If their parents found out about this, they would either keep him grounded and be super overprotective of Belle, Michael, and Jason, or disown him and still be super overprotective of Belle, Michael, and Jason.
"This isn't good," I tell her, running a hand through the top of my hair, "We need to make sure that your parents don't find out about this." At least Caspian isn't a female, otherwise their parents would find out quick with all the monthly doctor check-ups they have. I see Belle's mom's silver minivan pull into the school, and I know we have seconds to talk before she must go.
"Vivi, don't call or text – they'll hear, we'll talk tomorrow, especially about what happened with Noah on the field, when we go to the beach, alright?" I give her a nod, and she stands up right as her mom stops the minivan at the curb where we are standing. Belle's mom is about 5'2", and she has strawberry blonde hair and green eyes, and she has a small frame like Belle but is curvier and rounder, making her look like a model slightly past her prime. She has the same skin tone as Belle and has a small number of wrinkles. We talk a little before they drive off, leaving me alone in the school parking lot.
I'm standing around, waiting for my mother to pick me up from school (she usually picks me up around twenty minutes after Belle's mom) when I feel a prickling sensation on the back of my neck. I have good instincts and senses, from all my practice, and I have a feeling that someone is staring at me. I don't make any expression, and instead I look around the parking lot. There are still a couple of kids left, most of them in the populars' section of the lot. I catch not one, but two people staring at me now. I first spot Alex, who is to my right and is with his silver Honda, leaning against the car door. I look out of the corner of my eye, beneath my long eyelashes, and spot him staring intently at me. He looks down at his phone, which he holds loosely in his hand, and goes back to looking keenly at me.
I quickly scan his profile. The hand he isn't using to hold his phone he uses to run through his hair every minute or so. He's probably upset or nervous about something. His eyes are dark and hooded, so I can't see the emotion he holds. His shoulders are taught and, though he holds the phone loosely, he is clenching and unclenching his fingers. He is definitely trying not to be read from his body language, but I can tell he hasn't been at it for as nearly as long as I have, so I can still read that he is a little fearful, nervous, and upset. He wears a tight-fitting black t-shirt and his lean muscles are tensed, a common characteristic of "male dominance". This confuses me. He's worried and scared. He also keeps thumbing at a small irregular stitch in his dark blue ripped jeans. That is probably his calming trigger. His legs are tensed, and his feet are shuffling and pointing in ways that make me think he is trying to decide whether to walk to me or to get into his car.
I pinpoint the second stare, which feels as if it's coming closer. I look in front of me and notice Noah coming toward me. I assess his features quickly; his dark blond hair is tousled as if he's run his hands through it repeatedly, his brows are furrowed as if he is a little nervous, his eyes hold a glimmer of hope and his pupils are dilating with, again, lust, making his blue eyes darken. His lips are slightly moving up at the corners, like he's holding back a smile. His hands are loosely fisted in the pockets of his fitted light blue ripped jeans and his shoulders are laid back from what I can see from his tight dark gray t-shirt. He has an almost cocky and confident attitude, with a splash of hope and a pinch of worry (sounds like a recipe...for disaster).
I look back to his eyes and see that he is dragging his gaze down my body in a way that makes me feel filthy. I quickly catch his eye so that he makes eye contact instead of disgracing me. He holds eye contact and steps in front of me, his laid-back body language becoming cockier. From my periphery I can see that Alex is pretending to be very interested in his phone, but he is sneaking glances at me and Noah. He will be listening in on our conversation. His body language now screams dedication and confidence, and I can see that his posture is no longer indecisive, but he is staying still and probably plans to talk with me after Noah. I can also see the rest of the popular leaving, something about some party.
"So, shouldn't I receive a 'thank you'?" I focus back to Noah, who is now standing next to me, so that there is about a foot of space between our arms.
"No, why?" I monotonously reply, egging him on. His posture becomes a little stiff, and he turns toward me at an angle.
"I convinced Sophie to delete your photos," He looks at me with an intense stare, like he's trying to figure out all my secrets from my eyes. I add another ounce of control to myself so that my eyes are steely, cold, and closed off. My back is straighter than before, if that's even possible, and all my body language screams coldness. I see Alex tense a little from the corner of my eye, and I see a sort of frustration form in Noah's eyes.
"Well then, thank you," I say, without an ounce of warmth, "But, if you don't mind me asking, since when do you care?" I let a sharpness color my tone at that, though I am a little surprised that Noah stuck up for me. I scoff at myself; he's probably got something planned.
"I-I don't,"
"Don't what?" I tease, a small amount of laughter tinting my words.
"I, well, I came here to tell you something," Noah not-so-subtly changes the subject. Out of my periphery I can see Alex shaking with barely controlled laughter, and the sight almost brings a smile to my face. Almost. I imagine myself hooked up to an IV, one that is filled with control, and I am increasing the amount of it I am putting in myself. I quickly regain control and my body thankfully betrays no emotion.
"Okay? Spit it out, then," I say, faking a little impatience.
"You have to go out with me on a date," What the hell? Has he learned nothing? I show literally no emotion around him, I have threatened and hurt him multiple times when he deserved it, and I was pretty sure, up until this point, that he hated me just like I really dislike him. I tamp down a new fire of anger that is lit within me, not just at his words but at how demandingly he said them. I am not his servant that I need to obey his every wish. I keep my mask in place before it slips and shows my shock. I was expecting something completely different. Heck, a punch would be more welcome from him than this bullshit. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Alex's mouth hanging open, his body tense, and his hands clenched into fists. Noah seems nervous but looks into my eyes and I still see the lust and longing in his eyes. I almost shudder from disgust. I look around and see most of the other students have left, besides me, Noah, Alex, and Julie, who is just getting into her car.
An idea comes to me. I cross my arms across my chest and give a cold smirk to Noah.
"What did I tell you on the field?" I can see a glimpse of fear in his eyes, and his pupils slightly widen, and I can tell he's remembering the moment.
"I won't touch you; I promise, I just want a date with you," I raise an eyebrow. Either this boy has no idea what he's getting into, or he's got serious guts.
"Fine," I say, and he smiles, joy in his eyes, while Alex's mouth drops open again, "But you have to ask my father first," Fear floods Noah, showing itself in his eyes and posture. Alex looks like he's going to have a seizure from the way he's laughing and trying to hide it. I tap a finger on Noah's cheek, before telling him.
"If you want a date with me, you have to ask my father on my birthday," Noah gives me a helpless look and tries to argue.
"B-but – "I hold up a hand, quieting him.
"My birthday is August eighteenth, make it if you dare." With that, I turn around and grab my backpack from the bench, effectively shutting him up.
Noah sighs and trudges to his shiny green sports car. He pulls out a black leather jacket, puts it on, and rides out of the school. I can understand his fear; my father is the richest person in this small town, and he is a sight to see. He is exotically handsome, from our Indian roots, and he has a heavily muscled body from all his time in the gym and doing hard labor in India. He is 6'2", has dark brown hair that falls over his head in waves, honey-brown eyes, surprisingly thick and long eyelashes, one dimple, a cleft chin, and a very beautiful shade of olive skin. My father is also heavily muscled, like me, and we both made sure to make our muscles leaner, so they aren't too bulky. Many women have fawned over my father, but he is very much loyal to my mother, even though they had an arranged marriage in India, since they fell in love after getting married.
My mother is the envy of many other women in our small town. She is 5'3", has jet black, shiny, straight hair, beautiful almond eyes with long lashes, high cheekbones that she passed on to me, and a nice even shade of olive skin that is like my father's. When I was born, they were surprised at my mixed hair, comprised of shades of auburn, red, gold, bronze, and brown, and were a little stunned by my skin tone. I have rosy cheeks and fair skin, but it isn't a shade of fair skin as a Caucasian's skin or a pale skin.
My skin is fair but also olive, a skin tone that hasn't been seen in generation of my family, not since my great-great-grandmother was born, and she had full auburn hair and honey-brown eyes, like me. If I had to choose one thing that I am proud of in my physical features, I would say my complexion. I've had my share of acne, sure, but it ended fast and my skin is always soft and smooth. I have naturally rosy cheeks, sure, but the rest of my skin is a fair shade of olive, a healthy color, and considering I got it from my great-great-grandmother, who I adore, I appreciate it even more.
When Noah is gone, I turn to Alex and walk to his car.
"So, what do you want? Are you satisfied with eavesdropping on me?" A small spark of surprise flickers in his eyes before he lets out a laugh. I hold eye contact with him; I will not let him look down at me since I'm only two inches shorter than him.
"You read well," I give him a nod, usually I would not talk to him, but I am curious at his experience, however less than mine, but much as if he's been at it for at least a year. "Well, I've noticed that you are practically Belle's best friend and..." I motion for him to go on, my mother would be getting here soon and if she saw me talking to a boy, I would be facing a lot of shit from my family.
"I have a crush on Belle," The words come out in a breath, and it takes me a second to process. Oh. I need to go through the procedure. I give him a no-nonsense look, and he nods. From his body language and eyes, he is genuine.
"Okay, listen to me carefully. Belle's family is a strict one, only a little less so than mine. First off, you need to approach her yourself and quietly ask her out if you value your life. If she agrees, we'll talk more. I'm only telling you this because I don't think you're like the others, but don't think for a moment that I will hesitate to hurt you if you hurt her." Alex nods, a small amount of fear in his eyes, and he waves me farewell before getting in his car and driving out of the school. The parking lot is completely empty now, and I see my mother entering the school in her silver eight-seater.
Though Alex looks genuine from what I can read, he's known for his reputation of using girls for one night and ditching them the next day. I don't think we can trust him. I will warn Belle off him, obviously, since it was bad enough when I had to help her cover up for her brother. Belle absolutely cannot land herself in the same position Caspian is in since their parents would find out quickly. Besides, Caspian isn't close to me, so I didn't feel the obligation to stop him from making an inevitably bad decision. Now that Belle is in the spotlight, I have to do everything I can to try and convince her to not fall for Alex's tricks, if she doesn't already decide to reject him.
My mother pulls up to where I am standing on the curb, and I walk around to the other side of the car and sit in the passenger seat after putting my stuff in the backseat. Her eyes, covered by designer sunglasses, face the road as she asks me about my day and other things, while I do the same. During this, I think about the new problems that have sprung up just in this past day. My mother turns up the radio and we drive back home without anymore words between us.