Chapter Three

“I’m sorry.” I stood up quickly, dusting off dirt from my jeans. I felt pretty flustered. I honestly haven’t seen this guy before and I crashed into him. Shit. Nice first impression, Bilson. Score…

The Goth stood up and offered me a smirk. “We’ll both watch where we’re going next time, huh?” he said, crossing his arms. I noticed the tattoo of a cross by his wrist. It’s pretty cool… Maybe I should get a tattoo.

“Yeah, I guess.” Nice way to answer, Bilson. Dork score: Bilson, 2. Hot Goth, -1.

“Well, I’m new here. Name’s Will Becker, but my friends used to call me Spike.” When he said friends, it seemed so bitter. Hmm… What’s up with this kid?

“Hey, I’m Rissa Bilson,” I replied, outstretching a hand for him to shake. Ha, score! First thing I said to him that didn’t sound dorky for a second. Spike glanced down at my hand before hesitating and shaking it slowly.

I honestly swear that I saw him blush a bit. I smiled slightly and he smirked back. “So, I’m gonna see you around?” he asked, raising his eyebrows at me. I grinned and shrugged.

“See you around.” I saw him smirk once more before striding away. He had this sort of aura about him, y’know those auras that practically scream, “I won’t take shit from any of you so don’t bother.”

It’s pretty cool.

“Hey Riss!” a voice called out. I turned around and saw Allie and Taylor rush towards me. I turned back around and saw Spike’s silhouette in the distance and the image of his smirk made me feel a bit confident.

“Hey,” Taylor said, placing a hand on my shoulder. “Who was that guy talking to you awhile ago?”

I merely smiled before walking ahead to my locker, feeling his hand slip away. “He’s a… friend.” I grinned and headed over to my locker.

Days couldn’t get any better.

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“Spike, meet Allie. Allie, meet Will ‘Spike’ Becker.” I put the quotation marks when I said Spike for effect. Spike rolled his eyes while Allie grinned in amusement. We just finished school that day. Can I say Spike and I totally agreed that “instant friends” was the title thrust upon us?

“Hey, Spike.” Allie smiled.

“Heya, chickadee.” Spike smirked.

“So anyway, have any of you seen Taylor? I really want him to meet this guy,” I said, tilting my head around and searching the front yard of the school. Spike snorted.

“Hmm, checking out other little lassies down by the basketball court?”

“Shut up, Spike!” I turned to glare at him but he only picked me up in his arms. “Let me go, you asshole!”

“Okay, princess, chill.” Spike smirked once more and placed me down. Did I mention Spike’s, like, 6 feet and I’m practically 5’2?

“Why do you always smirk?!” I asked huffily, blowing out a puff of air and seeing it materialize in the cold air. Allie tilted her head to Spike, who was shrugging.

“Goths don’t smile, babe. They smirk. It brings out the aura, y’know?” He smirked for the third time that moment. I rolled my eyes and trotted down the steps.

“Whatever, William.” I grinned teasingly before running off, hearing him swear after me. “William! William!”

“It’s not my fault my younger sister was obsessed with Buffy and decided to call me Spike just because I was a Goth!” he yelled after me. “Get back here, Billy Bilson!”

I laughed and turned around, only stopping in my tracks. My eyes saw two people displaying their love for each other by the only high school way of doing so. I felt Spike stop behind me and I couldn’t help but feel tears fall down my face.

“Hey Rissa, wait…” Allie trailed off. I could practically feel the tension in the whole yard. It’s like time had stopped and all I could hear was the loud pounding of my heart in my ears, just like in the movies. I guess this thing is just gonna get more cliché, huh? Guess who it was.

Taylor and Kimberly.

“Riss…” Spike said softly, but I couldn’t answer. I whipped to my side, grabbed my bag and ran as fast as my legs could take me. I wanted to go home and this time, I wasn’t going to go cry to Taylor for anything anymore.

“Rissa!” I heard a voice yell. I didn’t stop. I don’t care. I sped up more, my tears staining my face. I knew it was Taylor… But… I didn’t have the heart to look back. I didn’t even have the heart to watch them to begin with.

What am I talking about?! Taylor’s practically my best friend. We’ve known each other since our moms watched the Kiss concert together and that was a long way back. Why can’t I face him this time just like any ordinary day?

“Rissa, please stop. Can’t we talk about this?”

His voice just made it hurt more.

“No…”

“Why not?! Why do you care so much?”

“… I don’t care.”

“Yes, you do! Why’d you react like this? You aren’t jealous, are you?!”

I whipped around, feeling my heart crack against my chest. “Shut up. I don’t care. It’s not like I’m madly in love with you or anything!”

For once, that sounded like a total and complete utter lie.

---

The next few days went by in a blur. Taylor and I weren’t talking, Spike and I had gotten closer and Allie had tried to patch things up. She told me that Taylor said that I was a “selfish little bitch who only wants her own happiness before others’ happiness” in all his glory and redundancy.

God, what a jerk.

School finally ended and I was fantastically miserable. Christmas break, yeah. The Lodge, yeah. But without Taylor the Jerk there, it just seems pretty useless. Yeah, I hate his guts and redundancy, but it’s a tradition I’m used to already.

And to think he won’t go because he’s busy sucking Kimberly Gates’ lips out.

“Hey, I’m heading to the Lodge on Sunday,” Spike began, settling beside me down by the ice lake in the park. “My parents thought it’d be fun hanging out there for once as a family.”

“Great,” I muttered, leaning against the tree that billowed over the lake like some kinda shadow. Spike sighed and wrapped an arm around me, something that… well; I wouldn’t expect a Goth doing. Well, you wouldn’t think so either, seeing his black eyeliner and lip ring!

“Hey babe, listen to me. Taylor’s just being a boy, okay? Don’t expect his every action to be what you want because he isn’t you.” Spike smoothed my hair down. “Don’t let this whole thing affect your break, y’know?”

“But Spike—”

“Marissa, I’m not kidding. If you want, I’ll bring him to the Lodge.” He sighed once more and let me lean against his shoulder. “Just don’t let this ruin your break.”

I smiled slightly before feeling his arms around me once more.

I guess being at the Lodge might not be so bad after all…

I hope.

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A/N: Sorry for the short chapter last time! I hope this was… erm… long enough. Thanks again to LlamaLlamaDuckie and Carbon Slash! You both utterly rock my socks and I love you both! Mwah!

Preview of the next chapter:

“You’ve got to be kidding me.” Taylor stared at me straight in the eye, a dark look cast upon his face. I stared back coolly, my arms folded neatly across my chest.

“One lap around the hell slope, unless you’re chicken, buckaroo.”

“Oh, it’s on, bitch.”

“Bastard.”