The Rebel's Apprentice

Ethan and I sat on his bed. We'd ran away from school that afternoon. We didn't want to face anyone. We couldn't deal with the world's judgement right now. We both just wanted it to be us.

"Still think I should go back and bust his ass," Ethan mumbled. Really, leaving school was my idea. I wanted to get Ethan as far away from Jordy as possible.

"Don't you dare," I frowned.

"Why?" Ethan asked indignantly. "The guy tried to blackmailed you into sleeping with him."

"But I didn't."

"Why wont you just let me beat someone up, shortcake?"

"Okay, than," I tested. "So you'd be okay with me running off every other day to get into a fight and then coming back covered in bruises?"

Ethan glared into his lap. "I'd kill anyone who bruised you."
I sighed and averted my eyes. They landed on his guitar. I smiled back at him.

"Play me a song then," I encouraged. Ethan frowned up at me and then glanced nervously at the acoustic.

"It's needs work-" he began to protest.

I scoffed. "Since when are you a perfectionist? I don't care what you play. I just want to hear you." Ethan licked his lips, looking a little unsure. "C'mon, Ethan," I said gently. "It's me." He knew what I meant. He knew that with me he didn't have to be the boy everyone saw him as. He didn't have to be the best because in my eyes he already was. Ethan swallowed and walked to the guitar. He picked it up and sat back on the bed with it resting on his lap. He had one leg folded beneath him, facing me, sat against the his headboard. He checked the tuning and brushed the hair from his face. A chill tiptoed down my spine as I acknowledged how good a guitar looked on him. This was a whole new level of sexy I was unaware he had.

Ethan slid a guitar pick, that was entwined in the top strings, out and strummed some random chords to make sure they sounded right.
He looked up at me. 'I've been practising this one for you.'
I frowned. 'for me?' he nodded and strummed out three opening chords that sent goosebumps across my skin.

"You said 'I love you boy.'" Three more chord changes. "I know you liiiiiiie. I trust you all the same. I don't know whyyyyy." How did he know I loved this one? "Cause when my back is turned. My bruises shiiiiiine. Our broken fairytale, so hard to hiiiiiiide." I marvelled at how well he played the guitar. He made the chord changes fluently and hardly even needed to look at his fingers. He was a pretty good singer too. Smooth yet husky. "I still beliiiiiieve, it's you and me till the end of tiiiiime."

He built the guitar up for the chorus. "When we collide we come to togetheeer. If we don't we'll always be apaaart. I'll take a bruise, I know you're worth it. When you hit me, hit me hard." He finished, going back to the three chord changes. As I listened to him, I felt my heart melt. I knew why he chose this song. It wasn't because I liked it. It was because it was the story of our friendship. Ethan had taken many bruises for me. Was this his way of saying he didn't mind?'

Ethan would look at me as he sang and smirk at my expression.
I could feel the emotion in his voice as he closed off with the last chorus.

"When we collide we come to togetheeer. If we don't we'll always be apaaart. I'll take a bruise, I know you're worth it. When you hit me, hit me haaaaaaaard!" He let the last chord ring out until it totally faded. Ethan looked frustrated as he watched a patch on the wall.

"It's true, y'know?" he said after the silence got too much. "You are worth it." He glanced up at me and shrugged. "I'd take all the bruises in the world for you." I stared into his eyes, trying to translate that. This was getting heavy. How could he say this stuff to me? It wasn't fair. All it did was tear me up inside. Reminded me of what I couldn't have.
Then Ethan said something I'd never expected to hear from his lips.

"Be my girlfriend, shortcake." I wasn't sure whether it was an order or not, but did it really matter?

"What?" I uttered in shock after a moment of unbelieving silence.

"Be my girlfriend," he repeated. "For real." My mouth hung open like an idiot and I was stunned into silence. Was this really happening or was it a cruel dream I would wake up from before the best bit? Ethan put his guitar to one side and scooted closer to me. 'Alice?' he asked. My mouth snapped shut. It felt dry.
I nodded weakly and without further ado, Ethan took my face in his hands and kissed me. Me, his girlfriend. Real life girlfriend. And my first real boyfriend.
Ethan wanted me as much as I wanted him. It was the happiest day of my life.



I loaded books into my locker with a smile on my face. I ignored all the the stares and whispers. Didn't even notice them. My life had launched off into the clouds and I didn't want to ever come off this high I was on.
Arms wrapped around my waist. I looked down at them to check whose they were. Leather sleeves, silver thumb ring. They were Ethan's. I relaxed back against him and felt a kiss in my hair. I could actually hear the whispers now. I could feel the intense stares. It didn't matter. They could hurt us. We were untouchable. I knew I was safe. Forever safe in my boyfriends arms.
Ethan span me around and looked down into my eyes.

"This isn't weird right?" he asked me. I giggled and shook my head.

"Only to them," I said, silently indicating to all those around us.

"Yeah, I guess it was inevitable right? I mean, we were kissing a hell of a lot."

"That was you actually. Using your kisses against me," I protested.

"Oh, like you never did the same to me," Ethan teased.

I shrugged. "Maybe I did, maybe I didn't." He watched me a moment.

"Fuck you're cute," he whispered with a smirk. I gave him a light shove.

"Shut up," I smiled. Ethan brushed back the hair from my face, I needed to get my fringe cut back in.

"I'm going to keep my new year resolution forever," he promised. I shook my head sadly.

"Forever's a long time in the future, Ethan. Let's just concentrate on now." It's not that I expected him to hurt me, but I simply suspected he didn't know how much I truly felt for him, so a little heartbreak was never really out of the question.

"Hey!" accused a voice to our right. Ethan's jaw clenched and his eyes rolled up to the ceiling. He span and faced Jordy Dawson. "Get your dirty junkie hands off my girlfriend!"

"Your girlfriend?" Ethan smiled, clearly not bothered by the junkie comment. Everyone suspected Ethan took drugs, and he did, so why deny it?

"Yes. My girlfriend." Ethan, stood in front of me, folded his arms as Jordy squared up to him. Ethan was tall, but not Jordy tall.

Ethan sighed with mock sympathy. "Now how do I break this to ya?" He pouted lightly as he pretended to think about it. "You're fake relationship with Alice is over. She told me everything, you cock-sucking, blackmailing, motherfucker. Now if you ever come near my girlfriend again, I'll cut off your face and wear it Texas Chainsaw style. Got it?" Ethan smiled cheerily at Jordy who looked a little taken aback. Ethan slipped an arm around my waist and led me away. Everyone who had been watching now looked at a slightly flushed looking Jordy Dawson.



It didn't take long for the others to figure out what was going on. Ethan had always been very hands on with me, but now his PDA was more regular and his smiles, when directed at me, were genuine.
We were hanging out under the bleachers like normal at lunch when Scott's narrowed eyes darted between Ethan and I.

"Okay. What's going on with you two?" he asked. Ethan looked up at him an shrugged. My eyes lowered instinctively. "No way!" Scott gasped.

"You're together?" Zach asked. Again Ethan shrugged but smirked with it.

"Wow. Way to go dude. Alice is hot," Scott winked. My head snapped up in shock. Ethan glared at Scott.

"Shut up, man. That's my girlfriend you're talking 'bout." My mouth was hanging ever so slightly open. My eyes drifted to Zach who smiled and gave me a small nod before looking back across the field where Pam was practising with the other cheerleaders. My eyes then found their way to Cookie. She was looking anywhere then at me and Ethan. She looked almost sad, defeated. I almost felt sorry for her, until I made myself remember all the terrible things she'd said and done to me.
Well now it was my turn to sneer and act victorious.
Looking at Cookie's face however, I didn't want to. That wasn't me. I was compassionate, even to those I didn't like.

I wondered if we could ever be friends. If we could get over our battle for Ethan. Maybe that was easier for me to say because I'd won, but I sure didn't want to be fighting for him from now on. It was hard enough to get him, let alone keep him.



As lunch ended and we all parted ways, I noticed Cookie hadn't budged. She looked about awkwardly before addressing me personally, something I don't think she's ever done before.
"Can we skip Alice? We need to talk." I hesitated and glanced over my shoulder, searching for Ethan who was already gone. "It's just a girlie chat," Cookie sighed irritably. "I'm not going to rip your eyes out."
Cause that's totally reassuring.
I nodded reluctantly and followed Cookie to the back of the school, where Zach and I normal hung out.
Cookie leant against the wall and lit up a cigarette and exhaled smoke from it before she looked at me.

"I used to date Ethan, y'know?" she began, getting straight to the point. I sighed and held up my hands.

"Cookie, I really don't want to get into a conflict with you over-"

Cookie groaned. "Let me finish yeah?" she snapped. I shut my mouth. "Jesus," she glared, "I'm not trying to break you up."

"You're not?" I frowned.

Cookie shrugged, staring at her cigarette. "I thought about it," she admitted. "But you make him happy. I like it when he's happy." She looked up at me, not a trace of malice in her eyes. "You're good for him. Better for him than I was." he shook her head. "I fucked everything up for him."

"How?" I asked tentatively.

"Well, where you used to be his apprentice, I kinda used to be Hardcore's." my eyes widened.

"Erin? You used to be like her?" Cookie nodded, breathing from her cigarette.

"Probably why I'm so messed up now. Things got too heavy for me though. Erin started to get involved with drugs and I didn't want that. Ethan was my boyfriend at the time. He was just trying to protect me, I guess." Cookie scratched her bright red head. "He kinda traded himself for me. He's still her apprentice now. It's why he wont leave her. He'd never tell her to fuck off cause he knows she'd just come back to me . . . and no doubt drag Scott into it too. I think Zach's too determined to not get dragged into such things." I watched her closely as she spoke. This was the stuff Zach wouldn't even tell me. The stuff he warned me not to pry in.

"I'm grateful to him. Don't ever think I'm not," she glared up at me. "He doesn't have to still do this for me, but I'm grateful he does." Her glared smoothed out. "He's strong, y'know. He can take it. Whatever she does to him, he takes it, cause he can."

"Erin's crazy," I said softly.

"Understatement of the century," Cookie laughed bitterly. "She'd a fucking psycho. I hate it when he goes with her. And it's worse cause it's all because of me." Cookie's voice shook.

I was confused. "But- but that last time she came, you acted as if you knew nothing about her."

"It's easier that way. You really think those guys wouldn't totally blame me for dropping this on Ethan. We all hate what she does to him. But only I live with the guilt of it. We never told the others about it. They think she's just some crazy chick Ethan knows. They can't know the truth." I nodded, promising to keep the secret.

"Is that why you broke up?" I asked quietly, almost hoping she wouldn't hear. Cookie looked up at me, ready to give me hell for prying in her business. Then she saw the innocence on my face. I wasn't trying to be hurtful. I was just interested in my friends lives.

Cookie sighed and shook her head. "I always loved Ethan and I always will, don't get me wrong." She shrugged, fighting for her next words. "But . . . I realised he wasn't the one . . . Scott was." My eyes widened to the size of plates.

"Scott?" I repeated, astonished. So her flirting with Scott wasn't just her trying to make Ethan jealous? Cookie nodded.

"I had to tell Ethan, obviously. I wasn't going to live a lie with him." Cookie looked sadly to the floor. "He was devastated. I guess he liked me more than I thought."

"And he stayed friends with you both?"

"Ethan's a good guy. He's loyal. He would never let a girl get in the way of his friends. Bros before hoes and all that. Was surprised when he stayed friends with me though. Things eventually got easier and less awkward. Though I still haven't told Scott how I feel. And then you came along and distracted him from everything. You are good for him, y'know?"

"Thanks," I mumbled.

"Just don't hurt him, okay?" she warned. I shook my head and Cookie threw her cigarette on to the floor and stepped on it.

"Cookie, can I asked you something?" she eyed me warily but nodded all the same. "Where did you get your nickname?" she smiled lightly.

"Ethan," she said simply. "What does he call you?"

I shrugged. "He calls me lots of things."

"What does he call you the most?"

"Maybe shortcake?" It wasn't really something I thought about. He had so many nicknames for me that I never considered one of them sticking.

"Cute," said Cookie drily.

"Can I ask what your real name is, Cookie?" I asked then.

"No," Cookie smiled. We were getting along now. We may have even been friends. I wasn't sure. But I didn't take the rejected question to heart. I didn't want to push the boundaries of our friendship so soon.