He was the silent, brooding type. The kind of guy my mother told me to steer well away from. I guess it was a good thing I was never a mummy's girl.

L e a r n t o L i v e a L i t t le

"Jamie Louise Stewart, I had to come out of a very important meeting for this! This is so unlike you!" my mother shouts at me the second she found me sitting outside the Head's office.

She continues to lecture me but I don't look at her. I look at the boy on the chair opposite me, getting a lecture – that was similar to mine – from his own mother.

We both share a look and smile.

Five days earlier

"Have you seen him yet?" my best friend Hans asked me.

"Seen who?" I asked knowing fully well what he was talking about. It was what the entire school was talking about, his looks – which weren't described in any other way than downright gorgeous (their words of course) - his personality and…his first day.

"Seen who she asks," Hans said snorting to our other friend Lola. "She knows who."

Lola studied me for a moment. I made sure my face was void of any emotion.

"Oh yeah, she knows," Lola said nodding. I glared at them.

"I don't see why it's a big deal," I said getting off the bonnet of Hans' car. "He's just a guy."

"Just a guy? Just a guy?" Hans echoed. "How many new guys do you see walk through the doors of our school, walk up to our school's demi-God and just punch him in the face?"

I made a face.

"Okay…none but I don't see why that's a big deal."

"Jamie. I know your brain doesn't function like the brains of us normal people, but what guy could possibly have reason to punch Jay Brian in the face?" Hans asked me.

"Oh please," I snorted. "Anybody with half a brain could make a list as long as the English channel with reasons to punch Jay Brian in the face. Let me help you with some. He's self centred, he thinks the school worships at his feet, he thinks reading is stupid – probably because he has an IQ of a snail – he thinks-". I would've carried on but Lola and Hans dragged me towards the entrance of the school – the bell had rung halfway through my speech.

"We get it Jamie, you're a typical, rebellious, female. It's you against the world, isn't it?" Hans asked me.

"Hans, you're more female than I am," Lola said walking off to her first class.

"I resent that!" he shouted out to her. "I'm only half."

"Hans. You buy my resources for my time of the month. Not even Lola would do that for me," I said to him. I slapped him on the shoulder. "But yeah, you're right only half."

I too left him with his thoughts as I dragged my feet to my first class.

I sat down at the back of the class. I studied the class as I waited for the lesson to begin. At the front we have what I like to call the high IQers. They were the ones who, in ten years time, we'll see on TV for finding the cure to cancer. Next, in the middle, we have those who liked to learn but slacked off at times, the well known, but not 'popular to boot'. Behind them were the popular kids, the ones who thought that losers sat at the back and nerds at the front. They were the kinds of people that would say nice things to your face and stab you in the back with a pencil if they could.

If you're thinking 'so she must be a loser for sitting at the back', think again. I sit at the back to watch the jungle people liked to call high school.

I want to be a psychiatrist. The first thing I needed to know was how to read people and what better way to do that other than in school?

I bent down to the floor to get my books out of my bag. The class went unusually silent. I looked up.

There he was. The talk of the school. Ricky West. The new guy.

I smirked.

Now this was going to be interesting.

Jay Brian was one of those 'popular kids' that was in my class. Oh yeah, definitely interesting.

The girls in the class started swooning, I even saw a girl at the front of the class sigh, whereas the guys looked half threatened and half angry.

I studied Ricky West. He looked like the silent, brooding type. Tall (check), dark -black hair, dark eyes – (check) and handsome (a reluctant check). He was the kind of guy my mother warned me to stay well away from. They were 'bad news' she told me once.

I saw Jay stiffen as Ricky smirked at him. There was no teacher for him to apologise for his lateness, so he just swept the class with his eyes. Melanie White lifted her perfectly manicure hand and beckoned him over.

Ah, now there's a guy that doesn't run when she snaps her fingers, I thought sarcastically as he sauntered over to her.

"Why don't you sit with us Ricky?" she asked. The class was silent, they were all watching him.

"Mel. He's not sitting here with us," Jay gritted out. "Why don't you sit over at the back of the class where you belong," he stated rather than asked.

"Now, now Brian, you don't want to have another black eye do you?" Ricky asked. His voice was so deep and mesmerising. Even I was drawn to him.

In a completely research-for-my-future-profession kind of way.

"You might even shed a tear like you did yesterday," Ricky added. I snorted. There were a couple of grins, but no one laughed outright. I saw Jay look over at me and glare. I gave him a grin. I pressed my palm to my lips, like one would do when they wanted to blow someone a kiss, but instead I gave him the finger.

Jay and I went way back. There was a time when he was an arsehole and I kicked him in the groin.

Oh wait, that was last week.

He 'dated' one of my friends and dumped her a day later. He said that they were too different. I knew that had nothing to do with the fact that she was fully committed to God and wore a purity ring.

Jay didn't say anything, but I saw his hand go protectively under the table. I resisted a laugh.

"Forget him Ricky, just sit with us," Mel repeated. I looked at their row and there were no seats for him.

"Thanks…but no thanks," Ricky drew out. Mel looked like she had been slapped in the face. Instead, Ricky walked over and took the table in front of me. Mel glared at the girls next to him.

Our teacher stormed in and informed us that we were going to have a test. Somebody was pms-ing.

"It's only the second day of school! We haven't even learnt anything yet!" someone groaned.

"Well that may be but this is a test to see how much you've learnt in the past. Don't expect me to be nice to you if you fail."

I rolled my eyes.

Dramatic much?

Forty minutes later and our time was up.

"Pass your tests forward, make sure your name is on it."

I doubled checked whether my name was on the front of the paper. I leaned forward and held it out to Ricky to take it. I even cleared my throat to get his attention. What did I get? Nothing.

Bad-arse and deaf. Just great.

I tapped him on the shoulder. He turned slowly. "Here." I thrust my paper at him.

He took the paper and not-so-subtly read my name. "Jamie Stewart," he said. I gave him a 'yeah, and?' look. Those were my specialities along with, 'hitch up that skirt anymore and you'll earn yourself a detention. Oh, and an STD'.

Ricky didn't say anything but handed the test over to the boy in front of him.

The bell rung and the scraps of chairs on the floor was the sound of heaven to me.

"I'm Ricky West," he said to me also standing up. I picked up my bag and followed suit.

"That's nice. You already know my name, so I guess now we're best friends," I said sarcastically. "See you at lunch bud!"

I shook my head and walked out of class.

I didn't see what was so amazing about Ricky West. He just seemed like the guy who chose the dark and mysterious look to get girls to want him more. The tall, dark and handsome look works as follows. The less one reveals about himself, the more the girl chases after the guy. The less they know, the more they want to know and hence babies are born.

Oh the joys of the circle of life.

Lunch. It's a simple process. You stand in line, get your food, pay for your food and then you eat.

But if you have an IQ of a snail like some people in school – i.e. Jay Brian – it's a much more complex process - you stand in line, chat with your buds, walk out of line, forget that you need lunch, remember that you need lunch, go back to the line, stay in the line, get your food, forget your wallet, hold up the queue so you can get your wallet, go back to the line and realise you only have daddy's premium platinum card so you can't pay for your food.

The process starts over once you borrow some money off a pal.

It's a hard life for some.

That's why Hans, Lola and I – along with the more intelligent people in school – bring lunch from home or buy it before school.

"I'll trade you my chocolate bar, for one of your sandwiches," I said to Hans, eyeing his mother's homemade food.

"How about I trade you your sandwich for my packet of crisps, it's your favourite flavour Hans," Lola said waving the packet in his face.

"I asked first."

"So? I asked second."

I glared at Lola. She was my best friend, but I didn't have to like her all the time.

"How about I give each of you a sandwich and I take your crisps and your chocolate bar?" Hans suggested.

"Deal," Lola and I said in unison. While we swapped our food another person sat down next to Hans. We stopped what we were doing and looked at the person.

"Hello ladies, gent."

"Hi Ricky," Lola said her eyes glazing over.

"You have a boyfriend who loves you," I reminded her.

"He's sick today and that doesn't mean I can't appreciate God's creations now can I?" Lola said. I gave her a look. He was sitting right there. Lola was never good with discretion.

I turned my attention back to Ricky. "What are you doing?" I asked.

"Sitting down…and I thought you were clever," he said biting into his apple. Kudos for the healthy food. I glared at him for the insult.

"Why?"

"Well I remember you clearly saying 'see you at lunch bud'," Ricky said easily. "You two don't mind do you?"

"No!"

"Not at all!"

Points to Lola and Hans for not getting my looks of death. I blame their hormones.

"Well. I did say that, didn't I?" I asked him nodding. "Well, now you can go. I said 'see' you at lunch. You're seeing me and I'm seeing you. Now leave."

"Oh, I didn't know we were dating," Ricky said. I faltered.

"You know what I mean," I hissed.

"Forgive her, she sometimes forgets her manners," Lola said smiling at Ricky before giving me a glare.

So much for sisterly-like love.

"I'm Lola LaTours and this is Hans Walker."

"Ricky West," he said taking each of their hands. Hans held on for a little longer than was necessary. What surprised me was that Ricky didn't pull his hand away.

"Down doggy," I muttered to Hans.

"He has soft hands," Hans said defensively.

"I notice your friends talk about people like they're not even there," Ricky said to me. There was a light tone to his voice which told me that he was just joking around.

I was in no mood for jokes with Mr Bigshot.

"Yes, they have many more endearing qualities," I said munching on my- excuse me, Hans' sandwich.

"Ricky!" a high pitch voice squealed. I winced.

"Oh God don't come over here," I muttered.

"Hello Mel," Ricky said smirking at me. Mel noticed that Ricky wasn't looking at her and so, to get his attention she put her hand on his shoulder. Ricky didn't shudder like most guys would and his eyes were kept firmly on me.

I noticed Mel go red in the face. If life were a cartoon, they'd be smoke coming out of her ears.

"What brings you to this neck of the woods?" I asked Mel smiling. Lola glared at Mel.

There was a time when Mel and Lola were best friends. Lola was the nicer of the two. However, there was a moment in her life when Lola snapped out of her nice side. That moment was when she caught her (then) boyfriend and Mel arms wrapped around each other, making out in front of everyone at a party.

To say they never spoke to each other was a lie. Words were exchanged, punches were thrown and girls were suspended. It was a murky time.

"Well it's definitely not you," Mel said to me.

"I don't swing that way Mel. I guess it's an unrequited love for you. Again. How many is that now? Five? Six? Or was it like that with all your fake relationships?"

I smirked when Mel glared.

"Oh, silly," Mel said laughing. "I didn't hear Zach complaining, did you hear him Lola?"

Oh that bitch just had to go bring up Zach (Lola's then boyfriend).

Lola stood up faster than lightening. I put my hand on Lola's arm. Lola understood and picked her bag and left. Hans picked up his things and left also.

"Oops. Did I hurt her feelings?"

"I'll hurt you if you go near her again," I hissed picking my bag up to leave. "Oh and you should know Zach came crawling back to Lola begging for her forgiveness. Something about being his drink being spiked. So I guess that makes it six."

I left a speechless Mel with Ricky, who had been silent through all of that.

His old school probably had much less drama.

"Hello dear," my mother said from her study. "How was school?"

"Hello mother." I paused to think about the events that happened in school.

"Oh school was fine. Did a test, met a guy who is tall, dark and handsome – just the kind of guy you told me to stay away from. He punched Jay Brian, the guy you so eagerly point out as a guy I should date but never will. At lunch he sat with us and when Mel and I had a small spat, instead of following her to her lunch table, he followed me out. But don't worry I told him to piss off."

"Hunny?" my mother said snapping me out of what I should have been saying.

"Oh yeah, school was fine."

"That's nice. I might have to go into the office later. Your father's going to be home late. There's another board meeting he has to be at. He might need me to be there too."

"Whatever," I muttered. "Sure!" I said louder for her to hear.

My parents were the epitome of workaholics. They both work at the same Law firm – which is how they met – and work constantly.

"Will you be able to get dinner okay?" she asked.

"I'll order in or something," I said going up to my room.

Two hours later and I was dragged away from my school work to say goodbye to my mum who was needed at the firm.

"I'll be home with your dad at ten or eleven. Don't wait up, it's a school night. Don't open the door to strangers, don't-"

"Take drugs, don't go out or throw a party," I cut in. "I've heard it all before."

"Well, doesn't hurt to say it again, now does it? If you need anything, the-"

"You won't have to worry, I won't call you unless I'm dying and if I'm dead, I'm sure someone else will call you using the emergency numbers located…on the fridge," I cut in again pointing in the direction of the kitchen.

My mum rolled her eyes.

"You certainly don't inherit that sarcastic tongue from me. It's your father's side. They've always had mouths full of…" she trailed off noticing me with raised eyebrows. "Well, I'll see you tomorrow." She kissed my on my forehead and left.

"Bye."

I closed the door and turned around to face the empty halls in the house.

See if I was a moronic, irresponsible teenager I would be on the phone throwing a party. Thankfully, I lead a sad life. No parties for me.

"And the homework beckons," I said to myself.

I'm a good girl. Honestly, I may have a sarcastic mouth – who doesn't these days? – and I may mouth off to people, but I know where the line is and I stop there.

Having said that, I thought to myself, why am I being shouted at by my teacher?

I'll rewind to five minutes earlier.

Having said goodbye to Lola and Hans who had history together, I walked off to my own history class. The history department had the worst teachers. They were old, they smelled, they were mean and just plain annoying.

Mrs Roberts, my history teacher, gave us an (unwelcoming) welcome and briefed us on what we were going to be learning for the course of the year.

In the middle of her talk she was halted at her breakdown of the Vietnam topic, when the classroom door slammed open.

"Damn that door needs to be fixed," Ricky said to himself, quite loudly too. Mrs Roberts did not look pleased.

"Excuse me young man," Mrs Roberts started.

"Oh you're excused," Ricky said before moving to the back of the class. The class snickered.

I raised my eyebrows. Even I knew not to piss Mrs Roberts off.

"Young man, get up here at once."

"Um…" Ricky pondered. "No." My eyebrows went higher.

Ricky stopped in front of the guy that was seated next to me. "Can I?" he asked gesturing the table. The boy nodded and slid into the empty seat next to it. "Hello again Jamie Stewart."

"You cannot walk in here and speak like that to me!" Mrs Roberts shouted.

"That's the thing. I already did."

The class was silent.

"One word," Mrs Roberts said through gritted teeth. "Out."

"That was three," Ricky said, standing up. "I'll be on my way then. To think, I could've had such an enjoyable Geography lesson."

"It's history actually," I said rolling my eyes.

"Miss Stewart, I will not have you also disrupting my class," Mrs Roberts snapped at me.

"What did I do?" I asked with a look of genuine surprise.

"You did what he wanted you to do. You fuelled his fire," Mrs Roberts said.

Stupid old hag.

I looked at her in mock outrage wanting to tick her off a little more.

"I did no such thing! I am a girl of God. I have a 'no sex before marriage' plan."

"That's…that's not what I meant!" Mrs Roberts spluttered out. "Out!"

Now I was outraged. Before I could argue, Ricky grabbed my arm and pulled me with him out of the class.

"Let go of my arm!" I snapped at him. He complied. "Wow, you actually listened for once."

"There's a first time for everything isn't there?" I ignored this.

"What are we supposed to do now?"

"You've never been kicked out of lesson before?" he asked me. I glared at him.

"Contrary to popular belief, no actually, I haven't."

He gave me a once over. You would think he was checking me out, but he was looking at what I was wearing - knee-length jeans, fishnet tights, Converses and a MCR top. It didn't exactly scream 'innocent' but it didn't scream 'bad-girl' either.

"You're right. You really don't look like a girl who has never been kicked out of lesson before," Ricky said crossing his arms.

"Okay, no there's no need for the sarcasm."

"But isn't it like a second language for you?"

"No, but German is," I said.

"Voulez vous couche avec moi?" Ricky asked blinking not-so innocently. I made a face.

"I may not have done French, but I have watched Moulin Rogue." I walked off in a random direction. Anywhere Ricky wasn't was fine with me. Trouble walked hand in hand with him and that trouble seemed to want to hold my hand too.

"Hey!" Ricky called out running after me. "Where are you going?" I stopped and faced him.

"Where are you going?" I asked him instead.

"I'm going-" he started. He leaned in. I could feel his breath – minty fresh if you care – on my face, on my mouth to be exact. Ricky's eyes flickered down. "-wherever you go."

"Well," I said trying to sound seductive. Ricky's eyes showed that he looked surprised, but the look passed. "I'm going to the girl's room, wanna come? We can swap some girly gossip and you can give me money to buy some 'things'. They supply a sort of vending machine in there," I said with a chirpy voice.

I thought Ricky would shudder and leave me alone. Instead he stood straight up and folded his arms. There was that godforsaken smirk of his on his face.

"I have four sisters. I have to go on 'emergency' trips for them all the time. Sometimes they do it to piss me off. You don't scare me."

I was lost. That battle was lost. "Urgh!" I cried storming away.

"I'm guessing you're not going to the girl's room," Ricky said. I yelped and turned around. His body was flush against mine.

I hadn't expected him to be right behind me!

"Personal space!" I said shoving him back.

"I was quite enjoying that," Ricky said thoughtfully. I punched him on the arm. It hurt me more than it hurt him – he barely moved.

"You're disgusting. Why don't you run along with Mel and her cronies instead? I'm sure they'll like you flushed up against them."

Now Ricky looked visibly disgusted at the comment.

"Those girls…no wait, those creatures, shouldn't be allowed within a ten foot pole of the male species," Ricky said.

"Well that's a first," I said surprised.

"Like I said before, there's a first time for everything." I shrugged. "Come on."

"Huh?" Yes, it was a very intelligent response from me.

"Let's skip. We only have another lesson left anyway," Ricky said.

"Ricky, I've never been kicked out of class before, what makes you think I'm going to skip school with you?"

"I think that's the first time you've said my name," he said completely missing the point I was making. I looked angrily at him.

"Well, I've heard somewhere that there's a first time for everything." Ricky, surprisingly, grinned.

"Oh come on, live a little! Come with me Jamie Stewart!"

The word 'okay' was on the tip of my tongue. I would've said it if it weren't for that damn bell. My backbone was lost.

"I guess not then," Ricky said. He let go of my arm, I didn't even realise he was holding it, and walked away.

Why did it feel like I missed a great opportunity?

Someone shoved into me and it made me a lot angrier than I would've been. I stormed off, shoving people out of the way, to get to my next class.

The end of the day came faster than usual. True to his word, Ricky was not in the last class that we shared together.

"He asked you to skip class with him?" Hans finally managed to ask after I told him what had happened. "That is not something you tell a person who is driving."

"My bad," I snapped.

"Look," Hans said unfazed by my sudden angry demeanour. "He asked you to skip class with him, he told you he didn't like Mel and her zombie girlfriends-" I snorted at this. "-and he touched you! He's taken a liking to you." I ignored the last comment he made.

"Why do you make it seem as though I was sexually abused?"

"There was nothing abusing about that. Sexual, maybe, but not abusing."

"If this weren't a moving car and you weren't the driver, I would hit you so badly your mother won't be able to recognise you."

"Oh, Jamie, that's kinky," he said playfully. The way Hans bit his lip 'seductively' made me burst out laughing.

"Reverse psychology to make me happy again, very clever Hans."

"How did you know that?" he asked incredulously.

"Hans you silly boy, I'm going to be a psychiatrist."

It was two days after the incident - in which Ricky asked me to skip class with him – was when he spoke to me again. I wasn't sure if he was angry at me or embarrassed at himself for asking me.

"Hello Jamie Stewart," Ricky said as he flopped down on the seat next to me. Mel, Robin and a few other girls glared at me. I rolled my eyes.

Was it my fault that Ricky wanted to speak to a girl who actually cared about her studies more than her looks and didn't think the sun revolved around the earth?

"Will you stop calling me Jamie Stewart? It's Jamie okay?" I snapped at Ricky without meaning to.

The fact that he called Lola by her first name and Hans by his first name but called me using both my first and last name irked me.

"Finally."

"What?" I asked.

"I introduced myself to you the first time we met and you didn't introduce yourself. So I read your name off your test paper, does that mean you suddenly loose your manners?" he asked me looking me dead in the eye.

I was left speechless for a moment.

He kept calling me 'Jamie Stewart' because I hadn't introduced myself? That was crazy! Why would he care that I didn't introduce myself?

"Well sor-ry," I said dragging out the word. I frowned. "I didn't realise that the world revolved around you."

"It revolves around the sun and it's just common courtesy Jamie."

"I don't see why it's a big deal. You know my name."

Ricky just gave a half-hearted shrug. I continued to stare at him even when he turned to face the class, even when the teacher had arrived and even when he ignored me for the rest of the lesson.

Ricky West had an aura. You can't help but be drawn.

And drawn I was.

After the whole skipping class incident, Ricky didn't sit with us at lunch. I wasn't expecting him to sit with Lola, Hans and I that day either. Especially after the conversation we had.

But I was in for a shocker when I saw Lola and Hans sitting next to each other talking, while a person - that much resembled the back of Ricky - was sitting in front of them. I also noticed that Mel's table had suddenly moved next to our own. I could see from my position at the door, that her beady eyes were permanently fixated on Ricky.

That girl needed to get a hobby, one other than stealing boyfriends away from her friends.

I shouldered my bag and walked over to our table.

It would've been awkward if I sat next to Lola or Hans and make it three on one side and only one on the other, so I awkwardly sat down next to Ricky.

"You swapped without me?" was the first thing I said.

"That would be the first thing you would say. Not a hi or hello," Hans said cheerfully.

"You swapped without me," I said again. I turned to Ricky. "They swapped without me!"

"I…have no idea what you're on about," Ricky said. It was like our conversation before didn't happen.

"We each take out our lunches, see what we want and if there's anything we don't want, we swap," Lola informed Ricky.

"But we can't do that today because you've already swapped!"

"Well, you are ten minutes late and there is that five minute rule," Hans said sadly.

"What five minute rule?" I asked.

"The five minute rule we made in the ten minutes you weren't here," Lola supplied happily.

"You can't just make a rule like that. I started this whole swapping thing. You'll be swapped out without me!"

"Well, that may be, but times have changed and we gotta' role with the times baby," Hans said.

"Huh. Well. I see where I stand. I am so out of it."

"What?" Lola mumbled through her munching what should have been my chocolate.

"Yeah. I'm out. You two can swap whatever you want without me."

"Why?" Hans asked. "It's a tradition."

"Yeah well tradition's over. Ricky and I are now swapping."

"We are?" he asked.

"You are?" Hans and Lola asked in unison.

"We are. You have a problem with that?" I asked. You would think I directed that question at Hans and Lola, but it was aimed at Ricky.

Poor boy looked so confused, but he shook his head nevertheless.

"Good."

And that, my folks, is how ten minutes later I was munching on Ricky's apple – he is one healthy guy – and he was eating my Oreos. He was insistent that I ate something healthy.

I didn't understand why he was so concerned.

"A packet of crisps, a pack of Oreos and I burger isn't unhealthy."

"Do you want me to tell you how much fat is in that?" he asked me.

"No and I'll have you know, I have lettuce in my burger. That counts for something right?"

"No."

"Well at least I have a meat on me. Not like some people who eat rabbit food to get by."

"That's true," Hans said poking at his salad. He looked at Ricky and Lola. "She's right." He turned to me and pointed his plastic fork in my direction. "You're right."

"I meant you, you rabbit!"

"Oh that's nice," Hans said sarcastically. Lola and I shared a look and shook our heads.

"You guys are really weird," Ricky said with an amused look on his face.

"We are, aren't we?" Ricky turned to look at me. I grinned at him. For the first time since we'd met I actually realised that Ricky West wasn't half bad.

Oh look, hell's frozen up. What is the world coming to?

The next day at school was a slightly freaky one, for me. The night before was scary. All I could think about what Ricky and his goddamn smirk! Absentmindedly I found myself drawing his eyes. They were so chocolaty and brown!

"Hello Jamie Stewart," a voice said to me as I sat on the bonnet of Hans' car. Lola and Hans had gone in search of Lola's boyfriend who had finally recovered from his flu.

I jumped at the sound of Ricky's voice.

"I thought we were pass this," I said closing my book. Ricky sat down on the bonnet next to me.

"Me too, but I've grown use to it."

"Me too," I admitted. I remembered something suddenly and I just blurted it out. I'm a blurter. "Why did you punch Jay Brian?"

Ricky's eyebrow quirked in amusement. For a moment I thought he wasn't going to answer.

"Do you remember me telling you about my sisters?" he asked. I nodded. "Well, my sister goes to this school actually. She's a year younger than us. She hates getting on my bike, so she took the bus. I was waiting for school to start and my sister waved at me. Jay Brian was near and I heard him say how he'd 'sure tap that'."

My mouth formed an 'oh'.

"Do I need to go on?" he asked. I shook my head and grinned.

"It was a first you know. Someone actually punching him in the face. And you were new!"

"I guess I just know how to make my mark," he said. "Literally."

I laughed. We sat in a comfortable silence.

"So, do you want to skip?" Ricky asked again. I laughed. "I'm being serious."

I bit my lip thoughtfully.

"What…what about Hans and Lola?" I asked finally.

"Leave them a note," Ricky said jumping down. "Live a little Jamie Stewart. You're this loud mouth, annoying, sarcastic, moody twenty-four seven girl-"

"Yeah and you're the epitome of cool aren't ya'?" I cut in glaring at him.

Ricky laughed. "What I mean is you're this girl who doesn't care about what anyone thinks. You actually have guts. That's why people like you. You may not realise it but I notice the way people watch you stand up for yourself."

"Stalkers."

"My point is, just…let go. Go wild. Let you hair down."

I looked at him and then at the school. My eye caught that of Mel's. God, she was a stalker. I smirked.

"Let's go."

I ripped out a piece of paper from my book and left it on Hans' car. It told them that I was skipping with Ricky and that I'd be back by the end of the day.

I got onto Ricky's motorbike and we sped off just as the bell rang. The look of fury on Mel's face was lightening to me.

Six Hours passed quciker than I had expected. A text from Lola and Hans meant that I was in for an earful - they were going to want to know every single little detail of what happened. I sighed wistfully as I thought about Ricky's hands on my neck. The necklace he bought for me - cheap and a little broken, a bit like us - was hanging around my neck.

"Uh-oh," Ricky mumbled through his helmet. I took mine off to see what he was on about. I shook my hair out – oh yeah, very movie like – and blanched as I saw the head teacher standing next to Mel, Lola and Hans near Hans' car.

Lola and Hans were glaring at Mel but looked apologetically at Ricky and me.

"We're in trouble," I sang.

"Not scared?" he asked.

"Nope," I said grinning. "I'm learning to live a little."

"Good."

Head held high, we stood firmly together and walked towards Mrs Pauls and Mel. She looked so smug. Oh I justwanted to punch that look off her face.

"See?" Mel said smugly. "I told you they skipped school."

"Thank you Mel, I can take it from here," Mr Pauls said to Mel. Mel smirked at us and reluctantly bounced off to hell. Well, her car.

Her everlasting love for Ricky seemed to have died down. Poor her.

"You two are in big trouble. I've already called your parents. They're on their way."

"Ouch. My mum's going to throw a fit," Ricky said shaking his head mockingly. "I'm such a bad boy."

"Follow me."

Lola wagged her eyebrows at me and pointed discreetly – for once – at Ricky. I grinned at the two of them and followed Ricky and Mr Pauls.

"See you two lovebirds!" Lola called out to us.

So much for discretion.

Present Time

"Jamie Louise Stewart, I had to come out of a very important meeting for this! This is so unlike you!" my mother shouts at me the second she found me sitting outside the Head's office.

She continues to lecture me but I don't look at her. I look at the boy on the chair opposite me, getting a lecture – that was similar to mine – from his own mother.

We both share a look and smile.

"Who on earth could you be smiling at?" my mum asks me. I look up at her again and bite my lip to stop smiling.

"No one," I say. My mum still follows my gaze and notices the dark, handsome boy sitting in front of me. My mum glares at me. She can't say anything because of Ricky's mum, but I know she wants to say something.

"Ah. Mrs Stewart, Mrs West thank you for coming in. If you two could follow me in, I'll be speaking to the two of you after this," Mr Pauls says directing the last comment at Ricky and me.

I nod trying to put on my best innocent look. My mother glares at me again. She didn't buy it when I was a baby so she definitely didn't buy it now.

Mr Pauls' assistant shakes her head at the two of us. Ricky blows her a kiss which causes her to blush. I laugh.

I look at Ricky, who is also looking at me.

He nods toward the door.

My eyes widen.

He wouldn't…wait, this is Ricky. Of course he would!

'One', he mouths. I shake my head warningly.

'Two…'

"Three!" he shouts. I stand up when he does. He grabs my hand and we run to the door.

The two of us are laughing as we race out of the office. The assistant is calling us back but we don't care. We continue to the entrance of the school.

Ricky is dragging me as I trail behind. Our hands still connected

"We're going to get into so much trouble for this!" I cry happily.

I really need to cut down on the junk food, I thought as I felt a stitch coming on.

Ricky pushes the doors open. He spins me around. I'm grinning madly.

Our hands are still connected as I walk backwards.

They're still connected as Ricky boldly walks up to me and presses his lips firmly to mine.

They're still connected as I stare at him in wonder.

My hands impulsively reach up to connect around his neck to bring him down for another.

A little voice in my head tells me that I've finally lived a little.

It was now time to live a lot.

Seven Alphas – In progress of being beta-ed. =)

Thanks for reading! Hope you liked this. Corny and cliché. I know. =)

Disclamimer - I don't own anything recognisable - i.e. books, labels, movies, etc. =D

Hopelessly Cliché

xoxo