540A/N: Thanks to groovacious for reviewing chapter two! I'm not going to be a review whore, but I'd love any feedback anyone can give me so far. I know these first chapters are slow going, but stick with me, and you won't regret it. Enjoy!
"God, I hate stupid drunk people." This was Brent's first remark as he and Aubrianne entered Josh's house. Most of the senior class was already there, and half of them were already drunk.
"I'm really glad you came. I wouldn't know what to do if you weren't here," Aubrianne commented as two guys began to fight only a few feet away from them. Brent took her hand and pulled her away; the last thing they needed was to get involved in a fight after less than a minute of being there.
"So where to?" Brent questioned. Aubrianne looked around. Most of her friends seemed to be drunk already.
"I'm ready to leave," she admitted. He laughed; of course she'd drag him to this party to only leave two minutes later.
"Oh no, you didn't make me come here for nothing. We're staying for at least twenty minutes."
"Twenty?"
"Okay, fifteen."
"Fifteen sounds good."
"Brent Fucking-Worthington! You made it! What's up man?" Josh, the owner of the house, slurred. Before Brent could answer, Josh looked over at Aubrianne. "And Aubs! You're here too! Fuck now the party can really get started now that Brent and Aubs are here. You thirsty? You're not even drunk yet? Someone get these two something to drink!" Josh took a beer out of the hand of one of his friends and handed it to Aubrianne. She looked at Brent hesitantly; he immediately knew that she didn't want to be rude and say no, but she didn't want to take it either. Instead, Brent took the drink and set it on a nearby table before Josh could even notice.
"Brent! Didn't think I'd ever see you again!" Grayson, one of Josh's friends, exclaimed. He seemed a little less drunk than Josh himself, who was now chugging a beer with a group of guys.
"Likewise," Brent replied. Normally, he had never talked to people like Grayson or Josh at school. They were both two of the biggest jocks at their school. While he didn't mind Josh, he felt less than kind feelings for Grayson, who had broken Aubrianne's heart sophomore year by cheating on her countless times. Grayson had known that she was too trusting to ever believe that he would cheat on her, and he took advantage of that.
"So what are your big plans for the summer? Going to hang out with Aubs here?" Grayson questioned, patting Aubrianne on the shoulder. She backed away.
"Yeah, actually. She's my best friend after all," Brent replied somewhat defensively. He didn't mean to "stake his claim" in his friend, but he wanted to get her as far away from this guy as possible.
"Sounds cool. You'll have to call me up sometime so we can all hang out."
"For sure." Aubrianne's eyes widened at Brent's agreement in this statement. For sure? Why would he want to hang out with this guy? But before she could feel too nervous, Brent squeezed her hand- an assurance that they would not, in fact, be hanging out with Grayson this summer.
"So Aubs," Grayson began, refocusing his attention to her. "Going to college?"
"Just the junior college," she replied.
"Really? Me too. Maybe we'll have some classes together."
"Yeah, maybe." She prayed to God that she wouldn't have any classes with him.
"Well if we do, we'll have to plan some study dates or something," he suggested. Although Aubrianne didn't realize what he was doing, Brent did. He was intentionally trying to make her feel uncomfortable because he knew that she was too nice to say no.
"I can help her study," Brent said, in effect saying no for her.
"Well she might need help on something you don't know."
"Then I'll learn it."
"That's a lot of work."
"It's worth it." Aubrianne watched the two guys face off, finally understanding what was happening.
"Well maybe Aubs has a different opinion than you. What do you think, Aubs?" Grayson asked, staring down at her. Brent wanted to speak up but knew it was better to let Aubrianne speak for herself.
"I think…" she began, tightening her grip on Brent's hand.
"Yes? Go on," Grayson challenged. Aubrianne finally looked up to meet his eyes. There was something mean about them, something she didn't like.
"I think that you…I think…I don't want to study with you. Ever. I'm smart enough to figure things out by myself. And if I do have a class with you, I don't want to sit anywhere near you because you'd probably cheat off of me. It's not like you haven't done it before," Aubrianne finished, letting all of her thoughts out. Both Grayson's and Brent's eyes widened, amazed that she had just said that. It was completely out of character for her. Grayson felt embarrassed, and Brent couldn't help but feel proud as he let out a smile.
"Whatever," Grayson mumbled, trying to regain his composure. "If you're going to keep hanging around with this guy Aubs, then you really aren't as smart as you seem to think." He began to walk away before anyone could figure out that he had just been made a fool of by Aubrianne, the girl who didn't seem to have a single original thought in her head.
"And one more thing!" Aubrianne called out. Grayson turned around. "Don't call me 'Aubs.' You haven't earned that right." He shook his head and walked away. Once he was out of sight, Aubrianne suddenly realized what she had just said. She quickly covered her mouth with her hand, not believing those words had left her mouth.
"Wow," Brent said, feeling unbelievably proud but at a loss for words.
"Oh my God. I can't believe I was so mean. Should I apologize?" she asked, looking up to Brent. He smiled and shook his head.
"You better never apologize to that guy. He's not worth it. Come on, let's get out of here." Brent led her out of the house, past the crowd of drunk people. All the while, Aubrianne repeated a slew of "Oh my Gods." She had never felt like this before. Truthfully, it felt sort of good. They walked back outside, into the fresh air and away from all the people.
"Brent, are you sure I should have said that?" Aubrianne asked. Maybe she should go apologize.
"Positive. Besides, it's not like you're ever going to have to see that guy again."
"But what if I have a class with him?"
"You won't."
"How do you know?"
"Just trust me. You won't," Brent promised. Somehow, Brent's confidence in the situation made Aubrianne feel a lot better, despite the fact that she had no idea how he was going to make sure she wouldn't have a class with him.
"This is it," Brent announced as he and Aubrianne stopped to look up at Grant Junior High.
"What is it?" Aubrianne questioned.
"The first day of eighth grade. We're the leaders of the school."
"But I thought the principal was the leader of the school."
"He is, but we're the oldest students."
"No, I'm pretty sure Jane Crawford is older than me."
"No, I mean we're in the oldest class in the school. The eighth graders are older than all of the other students."
"Right." They both stepped forward, ready to take on the challenges of senior year. As they walked through the hall, Aubrianne noticed Brent beginning to walk another way.
"Brent? Where are you going?" she asked.
"To Mrs. Lazzini's room. B59."
"But that's not my first class."
"Well we're probably not going to have all the same classes." Aubrianne stared at her best friend, not understanding what he was telling her. They always had all the same classes.
"But I…you want me to go alone?"
"Well I can walk you there if you want. Annie, I don't see why you're so worried. You're friends with everyone."
"But what if I don't understand something? Who's going to explain it to me?"
"The teacher?"
"The teacher can't explain things to me! Only you can!"
"Annie, you're going to be fine. I promise."
"I'm never going to pass eighth grade! Brent, my life is over!"
"That's not true. You don't need me. You're going to be fine by yourself."
"But I do need you! I can't do things by myself! I can't learn things without you. And I can't stick up for myself without you!"
"You don't need me for that. Everyone likes you; no one will make fun of you. And if they do, you tell me after class, and I'll kill them. I promise."
"What if they call me stupid?"
"Then they're the stupid ones, not you." At that moment, the warning bell rang. They had five minutes to get to class.
"I guess I have to go now," Aubrianne sighed, her heart dropping. Maybe eighth grade wasn't as exciting as she thought it would be. Brent placed his hand under her chin and lifted her head up. She stared up at him, her blue eyes full of worry. He tried his best to show her that he believed in her. After a few moments of looking at each other, they finally parted ways. As Aubrianne walked into her classroom, she suddenly felt a new strength that she hadn't felt before. As long as she remembered the look in Brent's emerald green eyes as he told her that she'd be okay, she knew she'd make it.
After all, his eyes reminded her of the stars.
"Julie!" Aubrianne exclaimed, running into her cousin's arms. It was the morning after graduation. As she had woken up that morning, she had been surprised to see her cousin's car parked across the street. They had grown up living across the street from each other all their lives, but Julie was two years older and going to college three states away. These days, they didn't see much of one another.
"Little Aubs! I missed you!"
"I missed you too! Are you home for the summer?"
"For the next two weeks. Then I have to head back home for my job. I wish I could have gotten here yesterday, so I could have seen you graduate!"
"Oh that's okay. I'm just glad that you're here now!" The cousins giggled as they sat on Julie's front porch, discussing everything that had happened since they had last seen each other. Soon, both Julie's family and Aubrianne's family were outside chatting.
"So Greg, one down, one to go, huh?" Uncle Vince, Julie's father, asked Aubrianne's dad. He was referring to the fact that one child had graduated, and now there was one left.
"Yeah, but we still have another five years for this one," Greg replied, messing up the hair of Janelle, Aubrianne's younger sister.
"I remember when Julie graduated. It was the most bittersweet feeling of my life!" Aunt Laney exclaimed.
"Yeah, but Aubrianne here will be sticking around and going to the junior college, so we won't have to say goodbye to our oldest yet!" Nancy, her mother, pointed out.
"We're so proud of you for getting your high school diploma, Aubrianne. I have to admit, when you were younger, we never thought that-" Uncle Vince began.
"Vincent," Nancy warned.
"It's okay, mom. I'm used to hearing about how dumb I was when I was younger," Aubrianne told her. And it was the truth. She no longer felt offended when people told her that she wasn't the brightest girl as a child; she just didn't like when people still told her that she wasn't smart. She knew that she had come a long way since kindergarten.
"Well, I'd like to continue this, but I have to get to work," Greg announced, looking at his watch. "But how about we have a barbeque tonight? We'll invite Aunt Shirley and the kids, and you girls can invite some friends."
"Oh boy, it's like a family reunion," Julie said sarcastically.
"I can't wait!" Aubrianne exclaimed non-sarcastically. She meant it; she loved getting the family together. "I'm going to call Brent!" Her family loved Brent, and he'd be a welcome addition to the barbeque. They all laughed as Aubrianne raced off to call her best friend.
"So when's the wedding for those two kids?" Aunt Laney joked.
"They have to get past this best friend stage first!" Nancy exclaimed. "But trust me, I won't let my daughter marry any other guy. She just needs to stop being to naïve and see that the boy is crazy for her!"
"Annie, go away, I'm trying to sleep," Brent mumbled, turning his back to Aubrianne. She had tried to call Brent to tell him about the barbeque, but when he hadn't answered his phone, she knew he'd still be sleeping. The only other option in her mind was to go tell him in person.
"Brentie, it's ten thirty in the morning! Half the day is practically over!"
"I'm not getting up for two more hours."
"Well I came here to tell you that we're having a barbeque tonight," Aubrianne explained, sitting down on his bed. "And you have to come."
"And you had to tell me that right this moment?"
"I didn't have anything more important to do."
"Annie, what time did you wake up this morning?"
"Oh I slept in until six thirty. Why?"
"You just graduated high school. Go back to sleep. You've earned it."
"But I'm not tired!"
"Well I am, and the only way I'm going to get some sleep is if you stop talking. So come sleep." Before Aubrianne could respond, Brent pulled her to the bed so she was laying down.
"Brent, I'm not tired!"
"Shhh." He covered her mouth with his hand and shut his eyes to go back to sleep. "Now this is more like it."
"Sjklet miae grnow!"
"What was that? You're going to have to speak up Annie, I can't hear you."
"I hratae you!"
"I'm still not understanding you. Oh hey, how'd my hand get on your mouth? Did you put that there?" Brent asked playfully, finally letting go of her mouth.
"You jerk," she said, hitting him with a pillow. This only made him laugh.
"Well I don't know about you princess, but I'm going back to sleep. Now you have two options. You can either lay here and go to sleep, or you can…wait, make that one option. Time to sleep."
"I'm not tired though!" Aubrianne protested.
"Too bad. You're not going anywhere," Brent informed her, taking her by the waist and pulling her towards him. "You get to be my own personal teddy bear for the day. Hmm, this is rather comfortable, maybe we'll stay here all day and just sleep! Now that sounds like a good day to me."
"I'm not staying here all day."
"Well I don't think you have much of a choice there because I'm going to sleep, and you're stuck with me. So I guess you'll just have to wait until I wake up."
"I hate you."
"You love me."
"I hate you."
"You love me."
"I hate you."
"Shh teddy bear, go to sleep."