Now It's My Time to Strike Back

The car came to a complete halt before I heard his door close before mine was open. He led me out of the car making me extremely nervous.

“Don’t think I’m lame after I take the blindfold off, OK?” he asked. I nodded in response before he took it off, my eyes adjusting to the bright light.

We arrived to a local movie theater which I found interesting. I hadn’t ever been there before, but I knew Vic did at one point or another.

“Do you like it?” he asked, a smile on his lips as he stared from me to the theater and back.

“Definitely! What movie are we going to see?” I asked.

“Transformers 3,” he answered with a proud smile.

“Alright, let’s go!” I exclaimed excitedly.

He surprisingly laced hands with me, catching me off guard. My hand was so small in his.

“I-is this OK?” he stammered.

“Mhm,” I said, blushing lightly before we entered the theater.

…

“Oh my gosh! That was awesome! The ending battle was SO epic!” I rambled, completely blown away by the movie as we exited the theater.

Jake’s laughter filled the air causing me to blush.

“It’s been a long time since we’ve been to a movie theater together, but it’s good to do it again,” he said in a kind tone.

“Yeah, it is. This was definitely needed,” I agreed.

We were no longer holding hands, but it was a good thing; or at least, it was to me.

“Yeah,” Jake said, opening the car door for me.

I thanked him quietly before he closed it behind me before climbing in himself. He started the engine again and we were off back to the school.

…

I don’t know how long we’d been driving, but we arrived back to the campus safe and sound. Jake helped me once again as we made our walk across the silent campus, the sounds of crickets chirping filling the night air.

My heels click-clacked on the cement walkway as we passed the cafeteria before Jake decided to speak.

“I never thought you’d give me a chance,” he said in a low tone.

“Why do you say that?” I asked, caught off guard at his statement.

“Well, I treated you like crap for a year, then I tried touching you inappropriately, and THEN I spilled the beans about Nick and I being roommates knowing you didn’t know, and-,” he rambled, but I cut across him.

“First of all, that was a long time ago,” I joked, “second of all, you got what you deserved with the second one. As for the third, it wasn’t your fault. Nick should have just told me,” I blurted, regretting the last statement.

But Jake didn’t think of my blurting as an accident, laughing lightly.

“I guess you’re right,” he agreed, reminiscing the times we mentioned.

“Yeah,” I said, trailing off, my mind somehow on Nick for the first time that night since the date.

I began to feel guilty. I’d forgotten about Nick or what he had to be thinking right now.

“You alright, Rose?” Jake asked, interrupting my thoughts.

My eyes met his and I instantly knew what I had to do.

“I-I had a great time tonight, Jake, but-,” I began, but he cut across me.

“I had a great time, too. We should do this again sometime,” he agreed taking a step closer to me so that our bodies were touching.

He took a hand, placing it on my left cheek before he slowly began leaning in. I, however, began freaking out mentally.

He’s trying to kiss me?! It’s our first date for crying out loud!

But Mel’s words filled my mind.

Just relax and have fun.

At the last moment, I turned my face so Jake’s lips came into contact with my cheek instead of my lips. He pulled away, looking slightly disappointed.

He began to speak, but I leaned in, placing a soft kiss on his cheek.

“Yeah, we should do this again sometime,” I said with a smile before walking up the stairs to my dorm.

My mind was racing with each step. How could I just kiss Jake like that on the cheek? What about Nick?

I fumbled with my keys once I reached my dorm before finally unlocking it to be startled by Nick whom was lying on his bed while Mel lay on her stomach on my bed stuffing her face with chips. Both of their faces whipped in my direction before either of them moved to me in seconds, but only Mel bombarded me with questions.

“How was your date? What happened? Where did you go? Why are you late? It’s after 11,” she ranted before I got irritated.

“Mel, shush!” I exclaimed, shaking my head afterwards at her before I laughed, glancing at Nick.

His eyes were full of concern and humor as he waited patiently for me to speak again.

“My date was fine. We went to the movies to see Transformers 3. I’m sorry we’re late. The car ride was long. Anymore questions?” I asked.

“Uh, yeah, but Nick might not like it,” Mel answered, glancing at Nick before putting her attention back on me.

“Please, I can handle any question you ask her,” he said with a scoff, folding his arms across his chest.

“Oook. Did you guys kiss?” she asked without hesitation.

Silence fell between us all as I felt my breath get caught in my throat.

“On the cheek, but that’s all,” I answered honestly. Nick walked back to his bed more than likely from shock.

“Aww, that kind of sucks,” Mel said with a sympathetic smile.

I knew she was saying it because she didn’t want to take sides in what I was going through, but even I thought that was partially harsh. I shot Mel a look but smiled back at her a little before she spoke.

“Alright, well, just tell me about it in detail later,” she said, grabbing her dorm key before exiting the room.

I nodded to her in return just as she passed me, waiting for the door to close before my attention went back to Nick. Silence enveloped us once more before either of us spoke.

“Nick, it’s just a kiss on the-,” I began, but he cut across me not wanting to hear it.

“Look, maybe you’re right about us being just friends,” he said in a serious tone, running a hand through his curls.

I frowned in confusion and distraught.

“W-what does that mean? The kiss meant nothing so overreacting won’t do any-,” I began, but he cut across me again, deciding to stand and make eye contact with me.

“It doesn’t matter if it was a peck on the lips, cheek, or forehead, Rose! What matters is the fact that you kissed him at all! I thought I could handle this confusion thing, but I was wrong. You obviously like him so you should get to know him better,” he rambled.

“Wait, wait, wait! I never said that! What’s your problem? And I can’t help it if I’m second-guessing myself! You’re the one who broke up with me, remember?!” I said heatedly, blurting the last two statements unintentionally.

Silence fell between us for a third time before he spoke as his eyes grew cold in a second.

“Really, Rose? You want to bring that up after everything-everything that’s happened between us?” he asked incredulously.

I turned my face away from him, my mind racing as my heartbeat increased dramatically for a moment before I locked eyes with him. His eyes were full of emotion, but I couldn’t constantly worry about him.

He was the one who messed up. He broke up with me to be with Vic and I’m the one who’s suffering because of it.

Only one thing crossed my mind: be selfish for once.

“Yes, I do and if you don’t want to wait, then don’t,” I said coldly.

“Fine,” he said in the same tone before walking to the door when my mind thought otherwise.

“Where are you going?” I asked with an attitude.

He didn’t bother to turn to face me before responding.

“None of your business,” he said, colder than I ever heard him say as long as I’ve known him.

He exited our dorm without a backwards glance, slamming the door shut behind him. I flinched at the sound, a sigh escaping my lips as I walked to my closet to change.

Once that was done, I sat on the floor in front of my bed deciding to watch TV to get my mind off of the argument, but even after I passed out on the floor about an hour later, I still dreamed about Nick as well as my date with Jake.

This confusion had to stop somehow, but the question was when.