He made each day exciting. I laughed more with him than I had in forever. He’d somehow snuck behind those walls I kept up to protect myself without me even noticing. By the time I realized what had happened, it was too late. He was already firmly ingrained in my life.
The more I’d gotten to know him, the more I’d come to realize he wasn’t anything like what I’d initially thought. He was smart and thoughtful, caring and funny. He tended to be a hothead, however I was starting to think that his anger came from something deeper. He hadn’t opened up much to me about his family, but I got the sense that his relationship with his parents wasn’t good. No, that wasn’t right. I got the feeling that it was bad, volatile, and the root cause of the rage that was always simmering beneath the surface.
There was only one problem I’d encountered in the past two months that was really starting to weigh on me.
My friendship with Jensen was starting to change. That pull I’d felt for him in the beginning was something that had become impossible to ignore. I had feelings for him. Big feelings. The kind that turned me into an anxious, girly mess. And he hadn’t made a single move. It was as if a switch had been flipped, turning the attraction off for him. He’d gone from hitting on me constantly to treating me like nothing more than a friend, and I hated it.
I comforted myself with the knowledge that I hadn’t seen him hitting on other girls, and with how much time we were spending together, I didn’t think he was hooking up with anyone, but it wasn’t enough.
“Yo. Earth to Shane.” I blinked, startled out of my unhappy thoughts by Jensen’s big hand waving in front of my face.
The sounds of the crowded cafeteria came back to me as I looked over at him in confusion. “Huh?”
He gave me that smirk I was beginning to love. “Did you hear a word I just said?”
“No, sorry. I spaced out there for a second. What were you saying?”
His grin got wider as he rested his elbows on the table and leaned in. “What were you thinking about?” he asked in a low, teasing tone. “Whatever it was must’ve been good ’cause your cheeks got all pink.”
At his mention of my blush, my skin burned even hotter, and I had to look away. “It was nothing,” I mumbled in embarrassment. “I was just thinking about the paper that’s due in Ms. Kleiner’s class tomorrow.”
“Liar.”
I shot him a killing look. “I’m not lying!”
He lifted his hands in a placating gesture. “If you say so,” he laughed, but I could tell by his expression he wasn’t buying it. Fortunately, he let it drop. “You got a shift after school today?”
I picked up the slice of pizza I’d gotten from the lunch line and took a big bite, talking through a full mouth as I said, “Nope. Today’s my day off.”
“Good. I just got this new movie I think you’ll like. I’ll come over to your place so we can watch it, and after, I’ll help you with your “paper”.”
I hadn’t been to his house since that one and only time I’d gone with my aunt to clean it. Usually, when we hung he came into the ice cream shop while I was working, or we’d hit up the diner in town, or he’d come over to my place.
My uncle hadn’t been all that cool with it in the beginning. He was really protective of me and didn’t like that I was hanging out with a guy, especially one with Jensen’s reputation, but when Jensen started asking him about motorcycles, Uncle Scooter had warmed up. Now, any time he came over, he and my uncle would spend at least an hour in the garage, just the two of them, talking about bikes.
Aunt Caro, on the other hand, was a totally different story. It was like she sensed something in Jensen, a sadness that was only there if you looked really hard. After his first visit, she’d started to mother him like crazy—in her own way, of course, which meant cleansing his aura by waving sage in his face when his ‘energy was off’, as well as feeding him and fussing over him constantly. I thought for sure it would send him running for the hills, but to my surprise, Jensen loved it.
“It’s not one of those stupid romantic comedies, is it?” I asked, scrunching my nose up in distaste, making him laugh.
“Please. Like I don’t know you better than that. It’s got enough violence and blood to satisfy your psychotic little heart.”
I gave him a big, closed-mouth smile, my cheeks puffing out like a chipmunk’s from the enormous bite I’d just taken. “Good. You know I prefer action over anything else.”
A shadow suddenly fell over the table, and when I looked up, my smile fell. Ronny Culpepper was standing there with a couple of his asshole buddies at his back and Rina under his arm. “Aw, aren’t you guys just the cutest,” Ronny mocked, his and Rina’s eyes both full of malice as they sneered down at us. I shouldn’t have been surprised that she’d go for a guy like him after Jensen shot her down the way he did. Ronny was a dick and Rina was the female version of that. I wished it hadn’t taken me so long to see it.
“Fuck off, Ronny,” Jensen growled, his face getting red.
“Or what?” Ronny goaded.
Jensen’s fists clenched on the table and my belly began to twist with anxiety. He’d already gotten into two fight at school. The second was with a jackass from Ronny’s crew who felt the need to get revenge for his buddy. It hadn’t worked out well for him since he’d gotten his ass handed to him as well. If Jensen got into another, I wasn’t sure there were enough strings for his dad to pull to get him out of trouble. It would be his third strike, and Ronny knew that.
“Why don’t you stand up and make me,” Ronny continued, and I got the sick feeling he was intentionally trying to push Jensen into taking a swing, knowing if he threw the first punch, he’d be expelled no matter what.
“Just ignore him,” I whispered, placing my hand on Jensen’s fist to try and calm him down.
“Just ignore him,” Rina mimicked derisively. “Saint Shane. Little Miss Perfect. Always so damn boring.”
I cut my eyes to her. “Don’t you ever get tired of being a raging bitch all the time?”
Her overly glossed lips twisted up in a malicious smirk. “At least I know how to have fun.”
“Sure are puttin’ in a lot of work for some pussy, Rose,” Ronny cut it with a slimy grin. “She let you tap that yet? Probably not, huh? Heard this one’s totally a prude, keeps her legs crossed tight, man.” He jerked his chin in my direction. “Gotta work hard if you wanna get in her pants. Not sure she’s worth the effort.”
My cheeks heated again, but this time it was in embarrassment. Rina started to giggle, and I knew exactly who it was that told him I was a prude.
Jensen was on his feet in an instant, ripping his hand away from mine as he pushed up against Ronny, bumping him with his chest. “What the fuck did you just say about her?”
“You heard me.”
I shot up, rushing to Jensen’s side and grabbing hold of his arm. “Jensen, stop. He’s not worth it.”
Ronny kept on going, pushing harder and harder for a fight. “Bet she’s a shitty lay too. Waste of time if you ask me.”
Jensen had Ronny by the throat before I could react, shoving him back so hard the jerk slammed into the table behind him.