Of Misdemeanors and ***

The weekend came fast. Way too quickly for me to come up with anything fun to do over the two day time period.

Friday night came around and I couldn't sleep. I stared up at the ceiling in complete silence. Hayden had already fallen asleep hours ago; I had no source of entertainment without somehow waking him up. I was at an impasse with myself. An audible sigh escaped me. Secretly, I hoped it would wake Hayden up. I paused for a response. Silence met my eager ears.

I frowned to myself. "Hayden," I whispered across the room to him. His breathing hitched slightly, became less even. When he didn't respond yet again, I said more loudly, "Hayden. Wake up."

He turned under the covers, presenting me with his back. Clearly he didn't want to hear me anymore. I glanced at the clock between our beds. Two in the morning. No wonder he was so insistent about remaining asleep.

I sat up then. My feet dangled over the edge of the bed because I wasn't quite tall enough to touch the floor. I stood and paced near the foot of my bed. Several minutes passed with just me pacing before I crawled back under the covers. I closed my eyes and waited for sleep to come. Still, my mind hummed restlessly bouncing between random thoughts. I opened my eyes again and flipped over onto my side to stare at Hayden's shadowed form.

"You're an ass hole," I told him conversationally. "We both know you aren't asleep. You're probably just trying to fall asleep again, but I keep interrupting you or something." I paused to see if I was right. But Hayden remained silent. "You know something funny?" I rolled onto my back again, my eyes drilling into the ceiling. "I usually get really cranky if I don't get enough sleep. But I can't sleep for some reason. So it's my own fault that I'm going to be pissed off tomorrow. And I'm still going to take it out on you." I knew I was rambling, so I fell silent again. Even if Hayden had been awake, I would have just looked like an idiot babbling about my sleeping patterns.

"So. Damion hasn't had that great of a home life, huh?" I spoke to the ceiling, folding my arms behind my head. "I don't want to ask him about it though. I don't think he'd tell me if I asked anyway. I kinda think he hates me now," I confessed. "I wonder if his parents are dead?" I mused aloud, letting my train of thought run wild. "Does he have any siblings? Does he hate them?" I laughed quietly at myself. "You would probably know. But you're too busy dreaming about seeing Ms. Lilany naked, or something."

Hayden snorted suddenly and I turned my head and smiled thinly. He still wasn't facing me. "What the hell are you talking to yourself about?" he muttered groggily, shifting under his blankets slightly. I couldn't decide if he had just woken up or if he was only pretending to wake up. He rolled over, blinking away fatigue and examined the alarm clock. "What the fuck? It's two in the morning. Go to sleep you dumbass."

"I'm not tired," I informed him matter-of-factly. "Let's go do something," I suggested quickly, though I didn't move.

"Jesus Christ," Hayden groaned. "What do you want to do?" He was humoring me at least.

"Let's go skydiving."

Hayden glowered at me from his bed. "How about you just go to sleep and skydive in your dreams? Then normal people like me can get back to sleeping in until eleven." That was a shitty compromise.

"Nah. Dream skydiving sucks. I never have a parachute when I need it," I replied absently. "Come on," I whined, sitting up suddenly. "Let's go for a walk or something."

"Can't you walk by yourself? Why the hell do I have to go?" Hayden grumbled.

"Do you want me to get raped? Or eaten by a bear or something?" I asked incredulously. "It's in my best interests if a manly person such as yourself came with me," I reasoned.

"Stop kissing ass. I'm still not getting up." Hayden sounded more awake that time. Excellent.

"Come on. Please?" I cooed pathetically.

Hayden draped his arm over his eyes, looking unaffected by my antics.

"God. I say 'please' and everything - a word I don't use very often mind you - and you still have the balls to ignore me!" I exclaimed, throwing my hands in the air in mock irritation.

"You're damn right I'm ignoring you. You're annoying as shit," was his response.

"Well. If you don't walk with me I'll just sit here all night and sing random songs horribly because I couldn't get to sleep," I said with a shrug.

"Bluff," Hayden sighed, still not looking at me.

"Ice, ice, melt your heart Baby girl let down your guard! Rush, rush, for that touch just one taste can't get enough!" I sang loudly and completely off key.

"I hate you," Hayden snapped, pulling his arm away from his eyes to glare at me.

"That wasn't a 'yes I'll walk with you'," I pointed out. "You don't have to be beautiful, to turn me on. I just need your body baby, from dusk 'til dawn. You don't need experiennnc-"

"Shut up! God damn, I'm up," Hayden exclaimed, throwing the blankets off of him dramatically.

"Ain't no particular sign I'm more compatible with -"

"I said I'd go! Stop with the horrible Prince impression. God damn."

"Excellent! Just the words I wanted to hear," I said happily. I hopped out of bed and hurried over to my shoes. "What made you change your mind?" I asked in mock surprise.

Hayden yanked a shirt on and shot me a glare. "I don't know. I just had a feeling that a certain irrationally psychotic girl wouldn't shut up otherwise."

"Weird," I deadpanned. "Come on, let's go...on the roof!" I exclaimed, jabbing my index finger toward the ceiling.

"What?" Hayden inquired dubiously. "The roof? Are you high?" he snapped petulantly.

"High on life maybe," I retorted, snickering at my own terrible joke.

"I thought you wanted to go on a walk?" Hayden asked, disregarding my previous comment.

"Yeah a walk...up to the roof," I answered cheekily.

Hayden sighed loudly and stuffed his arms through his coat sleeves. "You're so weird. Who the hell wakes up at two in the morning to go stand on a roof? Is this the part where I wake up and realize it was just a dream, but in reality you're just standing over me watching me sleep?" Although he complained, he met me at the door and pulled it open for me. "That's horror movie shit. If you're possessed by the devil you better tell me now."

I half expected him to slam the door behind me and lock me out. Luckily, he followed me out into the hall and I replied, "Don't worry me and Satan have a deal worked out. He only possesses me on Wednesdays. Don't freak out though, I only watch you sleep from 1:33AM to 2:24AM," I replied, trying to sound as nonchalant as possible.

"Smart ass," Hayden grumbled. I started to walk first and Hayden trailed silently behind me. "You're not going to start climbing the walls or anything right? I'm just waiting for this to turn into a nightmare..." Hayden grumbled. "If your head starts spinning, I'm out of here," he warned me.

I looked skeptically at him over my shoulder. "You watch too many movies," I told him with a quiet laugh.

"Maybe you don't watch enough movies. When a zombie epidemic tears through Shadowstep, who's gonna be the one gunning down mindless cannibals like a pro?" He walked next to me now, leering at me superiorly. "Definitely not the skinny little girl screaming and running in circles saying 'oh my God Hayden was right! I should have watched more movies!' Next thing you know, you get bit and then you're a zombie and I have to shoot you in the head just 'cause I'm such a good friend and I don't want you to suffer. Plus, you'd probably be trying to take a bite out of me."

I stared at him. "I'm seeing you in a whole new light. Here I thought I was the weird one." I clucked my tongue at him, shaking my head dramatically.

"Yeah. I always get like this when I wake up. Where the hell are we going again?" Hayden changed the topic while he inattentively tried to smooth out his ruffled hair.

Without me noticing, Hayden had led me to the ground floor. We were standing directly in front of the school entrance. "You distracted me," I accused as I stared at the doors.

"You caught me," Hayden admitted not sounding the least bit remorseful.

"Whatever." As long as I got to walk somewhere, it really didn't matter whether or not I made it onto the roof. I moved first, leading Hayden outside. The cold air hit me the instant I stepped out into the night. A wave of inexplicable excitement rolled over me when I breathed in the night air.

"I'm probably going to regret this...but..." I turned toward Hayden curiously. "Why couldn't you sleep?" he asked as he began to walk around the side of the school, heading toward the cafe.

I walked beside him as we made our way around the outskirts of the cafe. "Oh. No reason. Like I said, I'm just not tired. I've been laying awake since, like, ten-thirty." He was right to be suspicious. Since, more often than not, the reason people can't sleep is because something's bothering them. On the other hand, sometimes, I was just restless beyond reasoning. It was just unfortunate on Hayden's part that I had dragged him into my antics. Not that I was sorry about it in the least. What was the point of being on an energy hype if I didn't have anyone to drag along with me?

"Huh," was Hayden's only reply to that.

"We should run," I stated calmly even though I felt like I was pumped with energy. Running was exactly what I needed to do. Even if it was just a thirty second sprint. "Let's race," I exclaimed, turning to grin at Hayden.

"What the hell has gotten into you?" Hayden asked suspiciously.

"From here, to..." I scanned the landscape and pointed to a signpost across a stretch of grass, "there. We'll race to that signpost." I looked at Hayden to gauge his reaction and my smile widened. He looked completely unwilling to go on a random run in the middle of the night. "What's with that look?" I asked with a laugh.

Somehow, the incredulity in his expression seemed to grow. "You really don't see anything weird about this, do you?" Hayden laughed briefly and rubbed the back of his neck absently.

"Weirdness is totally subjective," I said. After a pause I sighed, realizing that Hayden really wasn't going to race me. "Fine. We won't race," I grumbled.

"Don't pout. It makes you look constipated," Hayden informed me, already leaping back the moment I turned to smack him for his insult. He laughed. "You're getting predictable," he said to me next, keeping his distance.

"Whatever," I said at the exact same time as Hayden. He grinned at me in triumph.

"You feeling tired yet?" he asked as I glared at him for his insolence.

"Not even slightly. I was feeling rambunctious before; but now I'm just irritated. I hope you're proud of yourself," I huffed as I started walking again. My sights were set on a grassy hill several yards away.

"I am, actually."

I plopped down on the side of the hill and laid back, letting the incline of the hill direct my gaze toward the sky. Grey clouds rolled across the sky, completely blotting out the stars, but just barely leaving the moon visible. A minute or so passed before Hayden sat down next to me, though he didn't lay back.

"The grass is wet," he complained half-heartedly.

"Nah. It's just cold," I argued.

Hayden grunted in disbelief. "So you're out of energy now?" he asked instead.

I tilted my head sideways to look at him. "Not really. But I know you're not going to do anything with me. So I may as well relax." I let a brief silence pass between us before I asked, "So. Any interesting dreams before I woke you up?"

Hayden started to stand up. "I'm going back to sleep," he announced.

"Aww, come on!" I whined, jolting into a seated position. "I was just kidding. Sit," I insisted, patting the ground beside me emphatically. Cautiously, Hayden sat next to me again. He looked horribly uncomfortable. "I won't bite, I swear," I told him wryly.

Hayden scoffed. "I'm not talking about dreams or feelings or anything like that. So, keep that in mind," he told me defiantly.

"Fine." I sniffed indignantly. My mind wandered to a completely separate topic altogether. "Hey. Are you still pining for Laura?" I asked passively while I tore pieces of grass into tiny shreds in my lap.

Hayden hesitated. "Uh. Sort of, but not really," he replied uncertainly. "And for the record I was never 'pining' for her."

"Why not? I've seen her around school and she hasn't gotten fat or anything," I said with a laugh.

"I don't know," Hayden snapped, laying back against the hillside. "She's nice. But...I don't know," he repeated, his frustration rising to the surface.

"Alright, alright. Touchy topic, sorry," I amended and put my hands up in a surrendering motion.

"What about you?" he asked suddenly.

"Huh?" I stared at the side of his face, but he kept his gaze skyward.

"Anyone you're interested in?" he elaborated. His lips barely moved. I made a mental note that it already looked like he regretted the question.

"What?" I laughed like he had asked the weirdest question that could have possibly come up. "No way. Between Derek and Irwin there's not really a good in between area when it comes to guys around Shadowstep," I informed him knowledgably. My heart thudded loudly in my chest when Hayden finally turned his head to look at me. His eyes met mine and I yanked my gaze elsewhere, suddenly flustered. I wondered distantly what he must have thought of me. Acting all interested in his love life and then not even wanting to meet his gaze. He probably thought I was a nutcase.

"I guess you've got a point," he said in a rush of air, sitting up again. "Can we go back inside now?" Hayden asked, sounding absolutely exhausted.

"Yeah, yeah. Sure." I sighed and hopped to my feet, brushing the torn grass pieces from my lap. If the conversation hadn't turned totally and completely awkward, and Hayden hadn't looked so worn out, I might have argued. At that point though, sleep didn't sound like the worst idea. "Go ahead without me," I said when Hayden turned back toward the school.

Hayden hesitated, his back still to me. I almost didn't want him to turn around. Even without him turning I could imagine why he hesitated. At the very back of his mind he didn't want to leave me alone. No matter what the circumstances, he didn't trust me not to run away the second I got a moment to myself. "Don't worry. I'll come back," I assured him quickly. "I can't miss the epic weekend with everyone," I stated with an uneasy laugh.

"Yeah. See you tomorrow, Raven," Hayden replied without looking back at me. I stared up at the sky, rather than watching his retreating silhouette. Not a moment later, I jolted upward when something dropped onto my face. Though I tried to hold it back, a startled noise leapt out of me as I sat up and whipped my head around. My eyes locked onto Hayden, who was already starting to back away in the direction of the school. "It's cold," he said by way of explanation, and made a gesture toward my lap, where a dark lump sat motionlessly. I peered down at whatever he had dropped randomly on my face and realized that it was his jacket. "Don't get it dirty," Hayden added as he turned and started to walk away, stuffing his hands into his pockets.

"You know when you say that it just makes me want to roll it through the mud, right?" I retorted with a sneer.

"You'd better not," Hayden called over his shoulder without looking back at me. He didn't sound the least bit worried. I watched him leave this time, just to make sure he wouldn't decide to scare the hell out of me a second time. Only after he had rounded the corner of the cafe did I sit up enough to stuff my arms into Hayden's jacket. It smelled like Hayden's deodorant and was way warmer than I had expected it to be. I hadn't even noticed the cool air until I put on the jacket.

I heaved a sigh of relief. The air seemed so much clearer once Hayden had gone. What the hell had I been thinking? Talking about liking people with Hayden? The topic shouldn't have even come up. I shouldn't have even brought Laura up. I mean, if he was really still interested in her, wouldn't I have noticed him drooling over her? And what was with his follow up question? There was absolutely no point in time when I showed any interest in dating whatsoever. I could be a lesbian for all he knew.

Regardless of any mind babblings that had made it to the surface of my conscious, I made a mental note to filter my thoughts a bit more around Hayden. Maybe then I wouldn't ask stupid questions that I didn't really want to know the answers to. On a separate note, I had to hope that the weekend would be filled to the brim with entertainment. With no help from me, the boys would have to come up with something interesting to do. Hopefully, they were more creative than I gave them credit for.