The New Girl

"How much longer do I have to keep this shit on my hair?!" I shouted to Jess as I sat in the bathroom with the fumes of hair dye seeping into my brain.

"The box said about twenty minutes" She shouted back to me.

"Why did I let you do this again?" I asked loudly.

"Because you love me" Jess said as she popped her head around the door frame.

"Hmmm." I said with a smile. Jess laughed and came and sat with me on the bathroom floor.

"So how are things with your lover?" She asked with a smirk. I grinned.

"I was only at his house for an hour Jess. Chill" I said trying to keep my cool. I was just as excited at she was, even more so. John hadn't officially asked me out, or confirmed me as his girlfriend... or taken me out of his house. It was a little strange.

"Sorry!" She said holding her hands up in defense with a grin.

"So how's things going with Pat?" I asked wiggling my eyebrows. Jess started to blush as she looked down at her hands. I laughed lightly at her embarrassment. She glared up at me before erupting in a fit of laughter. I stared at her strangely.

"You look so funny with all that dye on your head." She stated, still laughing. I sighed. The door bell rang but Jess was to busy laughing, spread out across the floor to even think of getting the door.

I stepped over her before rushing down to the door. The dye was so gooey it allowed me to wrap it up in a bun, like on the adverts. As soon as I opened the door slightly the person on the other side pushed it open and I was unwillingly flung in the same direction of the door.

"What the hell is on your head?" Garrett asked with a grin, biting back his laugh. I shrugged.

"Jess is dying my hair." I informed him along with Pat, Jared, Kennedy, Halvo, Nick and John who had invited themselves into my house. "Just come in why don't you?" I said sarcastically to the group of boys.

"We're already in." Pat said clueless to my sarcasm. I laughed as Jess came down the stairs.

"Uh Katie" She said quietly to me. "It's time to wash the dye out." I nodded and began walking up the stairs with Jess.

"Make yourself comfortable guys" I shouted down the stairs. "But take your shoes off first!" I added before walking into the bathroom with Jess.

She didn't let me see the new colour of my hair when she was washing the dye out and when she was blow drying it for me. I wasn't aloud to see it at all. I walked downstairs concerned about how my hair looked.

Jess was right behind me so I couldn't rush back to the bathroom to take a look. I walked into the living room where all the boys were, sucking in a deep breath before doing so. All eyes turned to Jess and me. Probably just me.

"Katie... Your hair..." Kenny trailed off, his stunned expression matching everyone else's. I blushed with embarrassment.

"Is it that bad?" I asked wincing at the idea of what my hair could look like.

"You look..." Pat trailed off trying to find the right way to describe my new hair colour.

"Hot." Nick piped up from the couch with a grin spread across his face. I sighed.

"He's right" Jess whispered in my ear, hearing her smile pissed me off.

"Don't stand there and tell me he's right." I said bluntly turning to face her. "I probably look like a fucking whore. Why won't you let me see it?!" I asked almost begging to see it. Jess sighed and grabbed my hand before dragging me out of the living room and up the stairs.

"It was meant to be a surprise for as long as possible, but I guess you can't wait." She said with a smile as we reached the bathroom. She span me around upon entering the bathroom so that I could look in the mirror.

"Blonde?!" I said loudly in disbelief as a stared at my hair in the mirror. "YOU MADE ME BLONDE?!" I shouted at Jess. She laughed with a nod. "ARE YOU INSANE. MY DAD'S GOING TO KILL ME!"

"He's not going to kill you Katie, I asked him in advance if it was okay" She said with a smug grin. I took a deep breath before looking in the mirror once again, taking in my new hair. A small smile started to play on my lips.

"Does it suit me?" I asked quietly. Jess nodded vigorously with a huge smile. I sighed. "I guess it'll do." I joked smiling. Jess laughed before we went back downstairs. We sat down on the floor quietly, the silence soon became awkward. "Okay guys, the silence is too awkward to bare. What do you think?" I asked eventually.

Each boy shared glances around the room, as if they could hear what each one of them was thinking, like they were discussing what to say to me. It was kind of strange how they all gave each other nod's of approval. Like they really could hear each other's thoughts.

"It's definatley different!" Garrett said, finally breaking the awkward glances.

"I didn't ask what it was Nickelsen. I asked what you think" I said with a laugh.

"Well, I like it" Nick piped up again, with a grin.

"Uh... Thanks" I said giving him a false smile.

"Yeah! Me too!" Pat said loudly with his child like smile plastered across his face.

"Thank you Pat" I said with a genuine smile.

"I like blondes" Halvo said wiggling his eyebrows flirtatiously. I laughed and blushed before glancing over at John. He sat with his legs crossed as he leant back on his hands. His face showed no emotion, nor interest into our conversation. His mind was else where.

"The more I look at it the more it suits you" Kenny said staring at me with a pleasant smile. Both Garrett and Jared nodded in agreement to Kenny's observation.

The only person who hadn't commented on my 'new look' was John. It didn't really bother me. I understand he has a lot of things on his plate, he doesn't need to start worrying about my hair colour, nor should he.

****

"Nice glasses" Garrett whispered to me as we watched some film Jess and Pat chose. I laughed.

"Thanks" I whispered back with a laugh. I looked over at John who wasn't paying any attention to the movie. "Hey, is John okay?" I asked Garrett quietly. He glanced over at John momentarily before turning back to face me.

"He's thinking." Garrett informed me whilst furrowing his brow.

"Is that a good thing or a bad thing?" I asked looking over at John again with concern.

"The way he's acting..." Garrett trailed off whilst looking at John. "It's safe to say it's bad." I frowned as a million questions flew through my head.

What's wrong with John? Is it me? Is it us? Is it too much too soon? I am pressuring him? Is it my hair? Does he not like change? Is it something at home? Is it someone here? Is it Nick? Is he jealous? Is he going to change his mind about me?

The questions in my head started to scare me. I was worrying myself over something that could be so minuscule that it will never effect me. But then, it could also be something so dramatically life changing that I might never be the same again. Maybe staying in the bathroom with the dye for too long was effecting my thinking.

"Who want's a drink?" I asked suddenly as I stood up. I had to get out of the room, leaving the room meant leaving the questions there. I'd hoped. I memorized what everyone wanted except for John. He didn't want anything.

I left the room, my thoughts colliding into one another. It was so difficult being in my own mind. Sometimes I wish I could just escape. As I placed all the drinks on the counter I heard footsteps behind me. I turned around expecting to see Jess but it was John. "We have to stop meeting like this" I joked, referring to last weekend. John's face was serious.

"Katie." He said quietly. I nodded concerned. He didn't say anything more. Instead he rushed over to me and grabbed my face before crashing his lips to mine. I pushed him away from me.

"What is wrong with you today?" I asked with an agitated tone. He shook his head as he let go of my face.

"Why didn't you tell me?" He asked as his fists clenched. He was starting to worry me.

"T-tell you what?" I stuttered, scared by his action.

"You know what." He said bluntly as he held onto the counter. I shook my head.

"Stop playing games and tell me what I've done wrong now." I said aggressively.

"You didn't tell me about your mom." He said, his hands uncurling from the counter and his face softening.

"Who told you?" I asked quietly.

"That doesn't matter." He said in a flat tone.

"Who told you?" I repeated a little louder.

"It doesn't matter who told me Katie, why didn't you?!" He said loudly as he threw his arms up in the air with aggression.

"Because it's none of your business." I spat. He sighed.

"You came round my house last night. Declaring how much you like me, but you won't even let me in." He said shaking his head. "What kind of relationship would we have?"

"One where you don't go snooping around about me." I stated bluntly. He scoffed as he shook his head.

"If you won't tell me the truth then I've got to snoop haven't I?" He asked rhetorically.

"No." I stated bluntly. "You have to trust me," I began, my voice growing quieter. "you have to trust me to tell you in my own time. Not to hear it from someone else." I said as tears began to sting the corners of my eyes. John shook his head with a sigh.

"I just... don't understand why you wouldn't tell me" He said quietly. The anger began to boil up inside of me.

"Maybe I don't want to talk about it. Did you ever think of that?" I asked aggressively.

"Oh, please. You told Kenny about it easily enough." John spat. Kenny was gonna get an earful from me afterwards.

"I didn't tell Kenny, it slipped out. I don't talk to anyone about my mum because I don't want those awful feelings to come back. I hate talking about her with my dad because I know it upsets him more than he already is. I can't talk to anyone else about it because they're all in Britain. No body here understand's what we went through. What my mum went through." I said, rushed through tears. "So I'm sorry John, if I hurt your ego so much because I didn't tell you about my mum dying." I said brutally as a tear rolled down my face. He sighed.

"Katie I'm sorry" He said as he walked towards me, trying to engulf me in a hug. I pushed him away, disgusted with his behavior.

"Don't even try." I said bluntly before storming out of the kitchen, through the hall way and up to my room. I collapsed onto my bed as the tears began to stream down my face. I sobbed into my pillows until there was a knock at the door. "Go away!" I shouted into the pillow. The person didn't listen and entered my room. "Are you deaf?!" I spat as I sat up looking at them.

"No, but I'm sorry." He said with a sympathetic smile.