I Spun the Bottle

I Spun the Bottle: Chapter Thirteen- Part Two

Song for this chapter: “Chasing Cars” by Snow Patrol

“Hold this, this, this, this, and this.” Taylor ordered, throwing all different types of clothing attire at me.

I barely managed to catch each one as they began pummeling me. On an optimistic note, it was at least better than something hard—like shoes. I glanced at Jace who was two aisles down from us with Stacy, noticing that he was in a similar predicament.

Jace caught me staring at him, and wrinkled his nose. I silently laughed, it must be worse for him than me. Guys didn’t like shopping, or at least from the way Landon acts when he goes to the mall, they don’t. Jace’s attention snapped back to the unnaturally skinny, teen girl in front of him when Stacy scolded him for dropping one of her dresses.

I laughed sympathetically at him, and continued following Taylor down the aisle. She scanned the rack, picking out which ones she liked and which ones she didn’t. I began noticing a trend in her outfit choices. They either had to be really short, or showing some type of skin.

“Take this one too.” Taylor tossed another one at me.

As I caught it, I noticed that that black blouse she threw at me had a gaping hole about three inches in radius where the belly button should have been.

“Er, Taylor. I think there’s a hole in this one.” I pointed out, speaking my mind.

She lowered her icy blue eyes down to the clothing she previously threw at me, and laughed in her irritating high-pitched voice. “There’s supposed to be one there. It’s the latest trend right now…” She looked my outfit up and down, which was a thick, grey sweatshirt and a pair of faded jeans, “not like you know what a fashion trend is.”

I guess I should have been offended by her insult, but I shrugged indifferently. It was better being nice and comfortable in my own clothes then wearing something that had a huge hole in it. I grabbed the price tag between my fingers, my eyes nearly bulging out as I confirmed the price of the provocative blouse. I could definitely buy three sweatshirts with the price of this thing!

The clothes suddenly felt heavier in my hands. I could be holding thousands of dollars in my hands.

“Yuck, what kind of color is this?” Taylor frowned, pushing the hanger to the side and continuing to next rack.

We had been shopping for about twenty some minutes now, but it felt as if I’ve been here for over three hours. I prayed that they’d finish soon.

As Taylor finished up the last rack, she moved down the next row of clothes. I began following her, but as I took three steps, I felt my braced foot catch in one of the dresses Taylor threw at me. I tried pulling my foot out of the mess. As I pulled, I lost my balance just as I got it out.

“Ooph!” I groaned as my butt met the hard, carpeted floor. My body was now bombarded with the clothes I had been carrying. Brushing off all the clothing off of me, I noticed the damage I’d done.

There was a pile of brand new, very expensive clothes surrounding me within a two feet radius. Shooting up from the floor, I began hastily picking up all the clothes. Once I had all of them in my hands, I looked around to see if anyone caught me being such a klutz.

Thankfully, it didn’t seem like anyone did.

“Nerd, hurry up. You’re making me carry this all by myself.” Taylor complained loudly.

I rolled my eyes, and trudged towards her. Another handful of clothes landed in my arms just as I caught up to her. “Taylor, don’t you think you should try this stuff on before looking for more? There’s already a ton here.”

“Don’t tell me what to do.” She suddenly snapped, her eyes darting to my face. “I’ll try them on whenever I want to. I didn’t bring you here to order me around. I brought you to carry my things. Now, shut the hell up and be a good little clothes rack. Okay?”

For a moment, I stared at Taylor, surprised that she had blown a fuse just by me suggesting she should go to the fitting room. Then I shrugged. It was Taylor; she’s the most unpredictable girl in the entire world.

“Well?” Taylor inquired, raising a brow at me.

“Well what?” I repeated, blinking out of my internal conversation.

She sighed, irritated. “Do you just ignore everything I say?”

I was about to nod, but figured that wasn’t very smart. “Nope.”

“Good, now come on, I need to find Stacy. We’re going to try our outfits.” She began walking the opposite direction from me.

I gaped at her. Wasn’t that what I just suggested! I bit my lip, biting back another remark and followed after the evil queen bee. By the time I caught up to Taylor she and Stacy had already been making their way to the changing room at the back of the store. I stalked glumly after the duo, hating every step I took towards them.

“Give me my clothes.” Taylor ordered, sticking out her two long arms to me.

I happily obliged, dumping my heavy load on her, thankful that I wouldn’t have to carry it any longer. She turned away from me, and entered the fitting room, shutting the door behind her without a second glance at me.

When I couldn’t see her anymore, I could feel a weight being lifted off of me. I was more relaxed, calmer. Noticing a comfortable looking red chair in the corner of my eye, I padded over to it. Sitting down, I let out a breath of air.

Closing my eyes, I leaned my head back against the plush cushion and sat there peacefully. As I breathed in and out quietly, a hand muffled my mouth. Taken by surprise, I blinked my eyes open, instinctively trying to scream, but the hand quieted my outcry.

My brown eyes landed on a mop of brown hair. Jace. He put a single finger in front of his two full lips, signaling me to be quiet. He held his hand in front of my mouth for a few seconds until I nodded. Slowly taking his hand away from my mouth, he gestured me to follow him.

I opened my mouth to protest, but shut it when he put his finger back in front of his face. Jace leaned towards me, his lips only a couple of inches from my ear. Feeling how close we were, my cheeks burned a rosy red color. His cool breath tickled the back of my neck, making me shiver. I hoped he didn’t notice the effect he was having on me.

“Let’s get out of here.” He murmured softly into my ear, so quiet that I could barely make out the words that were directed solely to me.

Feeling that my throat had closed, I simply nodded. Jace held out his hand to me, so I could take it and I did. His warm hand enveloped mine, and he grinned before tugging me out of the store. I gave one last look at the fitting room Taylor was in before it was out of sight.

As Jace pulled us in the direction he wanted to go in, I watched where our hands were linked, another blush blossoming on my cheeks. Abruptly, Jace stopped moving, causing me to crash into his back.

“Ouch,” I brought my free hand up to my nose. “S-sorry, I didn’t mean to run into you…I wasn’t paying attention.” I quickly apologized.

“It’s fine Lyn, you don’t have to say sorry.” Jace chuckled, amused with my flustered expression. “So, where do you want to go? I say we have about forty minutes before they realize we’re gone.”

“Forty minutes? Are you sure?” I asked, incredulously.

“Yeah, did you see the huge bulk of clothes they towed in there? It’ll take them awhile.” He assured me, gazing around the mall.

Brea Mall was a pretty decent size. There were two stories filled with different kinds of stores, from the average clothing stores to game shops. Even for a weekday, the mall was loitered with hundreds, possibly thousands of people.

“How about something to eat?” I suggested, feeling a little hungry.

“Sounds good to me. I think it’s this way.”

I walked a couple of feet behind Jace, watching him from behind. I tried to keep my eyes elsewhere, but somehow they always found him. I was also still very aware that our hands were still intertwined with each other. The area where his skin touched mine burned with a strange prickly feeling. It was like my hand had fallen asleep, except I liked this particular feeling. A lot.

Did we look like a couple?

Realizing that we probably did I immeadiately pulled my hand out of his, but regretted it when Jace turned to inspect my sudden change in behavior.

“I—uh…er…sorry.” I apologized again, except I didn’t know why I did. It wasn’t like we were going out or anything.

“Don’t apologize.” He said sheepishly, scratching the back of his head with his now empty hand. “I didn’t realize you didn’t like it.”

At his words, my breath hitched. So he knew that he was holding my hand? I stared at Jace, unsure of what to say next.

“I…didn’t mind.” I finally mumbled, quietly under my breath.

“Oh, there it is.” Jace pointed out, gesturing to the food court.

Seeing that he didn’t hear me, I just nodded. “Then let’s go.”

We entered the food court at the same time, looking at the various foods. Almost instantly, I decided what I wanted.

“Chinese food,” we announced simultaneously.

Jace and I shared puzzled looks, before we both laughed.

“You read my mind.” Jace winked.

“I could say the same.”

“Why don’t you find us a table, and I’ll get the food.”

“Uh, sure,” I nodded. I dug my fingers into my front pocket, looking for the money I usually brought every time I went out somewhere, and then my face fell, feeling that the pocket was empty. “Oh, no.”

“What is it?” Jace inquired, worry starting to etch across his face.

“…I forgot to bring money.” I admitted, ashamed of being such an idiot.

“Oh, that’s no big deal. I was already going to pay for you.”

“Really?” I asked, my eyes lighting up from his kind words. “I’ll pay you back, I promise.”

“You don’t have to pay me back, Lyn. Just think of it as a mini date.”

“D-date?” I repeated hesitantly.

“Yup, but I’ll be expecting a kiss for a reward.” Jace joked, but when he noticed my expression he quickly added. “I was just kidding, Lyn.”

“Oh, haha,” I averted my eyes to the floor, tracing the patterns on the carpet with my braced foot. “Sorry, I’m not used to this kind of stuff.” I admitted, biting the bottom of my lip.

“Going out on a date, or hanging out?”

“Both,” I smiled wryly.

Jace placed his hand on my right shoulder, causing me to look up at him. “Hey, no worries. Okay? Once you get used to it, it’ll get better.”

“Which one?”

“Both,” he winked.

My cheeks heated up, and I nodded. “Okay.”

“So what do you want from Panda Express?”

“Since you’re buying, you can order for me. I like anything from there.” I told him, scanning the tables to see if there were any open tables.

“You sure?”

“Yeah,” I nodded a single time.

“Okay, I’ll be back in a second.” He grinned at me before heading to Panda Express.

Judging by the line, Jace would be there for at least five minutes. This would give me enough time to find a good spot. I began searching for an empty table in the food court. In the far right corner of the court, a couple had just left their table.

I sighed, relieved that I wouldn’t have to look like a lost puppy wander around looking for its owner. The table had four chairs, but I was sure he wouldn’t mind if there were two empty ones. As I waited for Jace patiently, I noticed two familiar looking faces off in the distance, heading for the food court.

The first one was Cam, while the other was David. My heart thumped in my chest from the sight of David. He scanned the food court, probably looking for an empty seat too. I adjusted my position so that they couldn’t see my face. I silently prayed that they couldn’t see me.

I was supposed to be avoiding David. What the heck was he doing here? If he was going to the mall, why didn’t he invite Taylor? Or vice versa? Wouldn’t they know where the other one was?

“What are you doing?” Jace inquired, making me jump in my seat.

“I—uh.” I blinked, unsure of what to say. “David and Cam’s here.”

“They are? Where? I’ll invite them ove—“

“No!” I interjected a little too quickly. Jace cocked his head to the side, confused. “I… can’t talk to David.”

“What? Why can’t you?” He inquired his confused look still on his face.

I mentally debated with myself. Should I tell Jace? Why shouldn’t I? It’s not like it’ll hurt me. I decided that I would tell him.

“Well, you can’t tell anyone this, but…” I grimaced, trying to find an easy way of explaining this. “Taylor sort of threatened me to stay away from David.” I waited for Jace to respond, but when he didn’t I continued. “She sort of thinks David and I like each other. It’s crazy huh?”

“Well,” he began, biting his lower lip. “She might be right.”

“What?” That was not the answer I expected to hear from him. I wanted him to confirm the words I voiced. I didn’t want him to disagree!

“Er..nothing. Here’s your food.” Jace placed a red tray in front of us with two Styrofoam containers and two soft drinks.

“Thanks,” I mumbled, noting that he changed the subject.

“I knew it! David look, it’s Jace and Lyn.”

I didn’t have to bother to turn and see who it was.

“Well, it seems like you guys have gotten pretty close.” David teased.

David took a seat in the chair next to me, while Cam took the only other unoccupied chair. I moved to the opposite side of the chair, leaning away from him as much as possible.

“Hey, I didn’t know you guys were here.” Jace lied smoothly, shooting me a meaningful look.

I shrugged, telling him that there was no way we’re getting out now.

“I’m trying to get a present for Penny, and David’s helping me. But he isn’t doing a very good job.” Cam explained, nudging David with his elbow.

“How am I supposed to know what a girl wants?” David countered, rolling his eyes as he did so.

“You’re the only guy here that has a girlfriend, stupid.”

David cocked an eyebrow up at Cam. “And that means I know what girls want?”

“Pretty much.”

“Whatever. Anyway, what’re you two doing here? On a date?” David inquired, glancing at both Jace and I.

“No,” I said at the same time Jace said. “Yes,”

I felt my cheeks heat up a little from what Jace said, but shook my head, reassuring the two boys (and myself). “We aren’t on a date. Taylor and Stacy’s making us be their pack mules.”

“Fun,” Cam replied in a sarcastic voice.

“Yeah…not really. Stacy’s trying to get back with me. And she just won’t take no for an answer.” Jace sighed, opening up his Chinese food, popping an orange chicken into his mouth.

“Stacy’s not that bad.” Cam answered Jace, shrugging his shoulders.

“Yeah that’s cause you weren’t dating her. Remember that time when she got drunk last year?”

“Which time?” Cam chuckled.

“The time she decided to pee in my car because she thought it was a bathroom.” Jace scowled looking off into the distance.

David and Cam burst out laughing. They definitely remembered. I wrinkled my nose, picturing Stacy peeing her pants. I shivered. Gross.

“Dude, that was hilarious!” David said between laughs. “And then she puked on your shoes when you tried taking her home.”

“Don’t remind me.” Jace gagged, pushing his food away from him. “I think I just lost my appetite.”

I took one more bite of my broccoli beef before pushing my food away too. Note to self, don’t talk about drunken people when eating.

Jace and Cam reminisced about the days when Jace and Stacy went out. By the sounds of it, she had to be the worst girlfriend in the history of girlfriends, and I couldn’t believe he stuck with her for two years! I could hardly stand being in the car with for more than thirty minutes.

“I’m going to throw my trash away. Be right back.” I told the boys standing up from my seat.

“Hurry back.” Cam said before turning back to Jace.

I nodded at him.

The nearest trash can was on the other side of the food court, and I frowned. Why did they put it all the way over there? Making my way over there, I suddenly felt a hand on my shoulder.

“What are you doing?” I snapped, turning my attention to David, shrugging off his hand from my shoulder.

“Throwing away Jace’s trash.” He shrugged.

I sighed, if he was then I couldn’t tell him to go away. Glancing down at his hands, I found his words to be true. Darn. Then an idea popped into my head.

“Since you’re throwing away Jace’s trash, you can throw mine away too.” I smiled once, plopping my box onto the red tray. “Thanks!”

I didn’t wait for a reply; instead I bounded back to our table. I felt a little bad for dumping my stuff on him, but better than seeing a picture of me half-nude around school.

As soon as I reached the table, I said. “Jace do you think we should go now?”

Jace took his phone out of his pocket and nearly jumped out of his seat. “Yeah, we better go now.”

Before I could say bye to Cam, Jace grabbed my hand and dragged me out of the food court. I turned as I was being towed out of the food court. David had returned back from throwing away the trash, and I couldn’t help but noticed the way he stared at mine and Jace’s intertwined hands.

Was he jealous?

I shook my head side to side. He couldn’t be. I must’ve been imagining things.