Chapter Six – Reid Paxton

“That reminds me,” Erinn said. “I still need to punch you in the face for that.”

She stared defiantly at me. It was sort of funny since Erinn was 5’4” and I was about 6’1”. Her face changed as she realized she couldn’t even touch my chin. Erinn ran and stood up on the bench.

“Okay, come over here.”

I rolled my eyes and Dee spoke up, “It wasn’t his fault…”

I nodded. It wasn’t my fault. I was just trying to help Laura look for her contacts. I didn’t expect her to kiss me either. I had no idea what was going on until Dee said in a flat voice, “Excuse me.”

I stared at her, in shock, then, watching nothing because she had ran off.

“Well, she, like, totally deserved that,” Laura said smugly.

I scoffed and said, “Why do you talk like that?”

She stared back at me and smiled slowly. For some reason, around Dee and Erinn, Laura spoke as if she was a complete dumbass. “Rule number one in warfare: let your enemies underestimate you.” She took a step closer to me and trailed a finger from my neck to my stomach, grinning as I winced. “Besides, that little bitch needs to know her place.”

I shoved Laura — hard. I didn’t treat girls this way at all — I was the perfect gentleman. But seeing Laura do that to Dee — to me — it was really the last straw. Laura fell onto the bed and her eyes flashed with excitement before seeing my angry face. “Stop showing up at my classes, stop trying to hold my hand, stop telling everyone you’re my girlfriend. And most of all, just stop! Leave me alone! I don’t like you, Laura.”

I left Laura and went to chase after Dee. I saw Phillip and he was mumbling about a pretty girl who bolted out of the mansion like she saw a ghost or something. I ran out of the mansion and saw Dee tugging furiously at the locked yellow Corvette.

“Dee!” I called out.

She turned back and, my God, she was even more gorgeous when she was angry. When Dee saw that it was me, she drew in a shuddering breath and muttered, “What, Reid?”

I gently touched her arm and she flinched.

“I owe you an explanation,” I said.

“You don’t owe me anything,” Dee shook her head and glared at the car.

“Laura’s nothing to me,” I tried to say.

“Yeah?” She snapped at me. Then she let out a sharp noise that was a cross between a scoff and a laugh. “Seemed like something. And you know what the worse thing is? It was that I cared. Which is incredibly stupid since we first met, what? A week ago?”

“Nine days,” I whispered.

“What?” She asked in surprise.

I cleared my throat. “We met nine days ago, not a seven.”

Dee shook her head sadly. “Why does it even matter?”

“Because you matter.” I lifted her chin and softly brushed my lips against hers.

“Aw, someone cue the fireworks,” Erinn appeared with Kyle, his arm wrapped around her waist. Each had a cup of alcohol? Water? in one hand.

Dee blushed and stuck her tongue out at Erinn. She turned to me and said quietly, “That doesn’t make up for what happened with you and Laura.”

I kissed her again and pulled away. “How about now?”

People were piling out of the mansion, wondering where their host disappeared off to and probably wondering who the two cute girls were. Taking a chance that Dee was a romantic like me, I got on one knee in front of all my classmates, friends, and peers and everything went quiet except for the few confused whispers.

“Dee,” I took her hand and stared into her blue-gray eyes and said, “Will you be my girlfriend?”

And like some sort of rehearsed movie, Dee wrapper her arms around my neck and I stoof up, still holding onto her. My friends started clapping and cheering.

I heard someone shout out, “Finally he has a girlfriend!”

I laughed but everything went silent again when Laura ran out of the house and ran up to Dee and screamed, “You slut!”

Dee stiffened but it was Erinn who —

“Wait!” Erinn stopped me. “I want to say it.”

“Okay,” I shrugged.