I Spun the Bottle

I Spun the Bottle: Chapter Eighteen

Song for this chapter: “Somebody that I used to know” by Gotye

“Okay, there's two options,” Penny held up two fingers, and I stared at her dubiously. I didn’t know where she was going with this. “You can either go to Jace’s house willingly, or, I can ‘kidnap’ you and take you there myself,” she said, doing invisible quotes around the word “kidnap”.

I raised a brow at her, when I realized we were talking about Jace. Honestly, I was going to tell her that I didn’t have a crush on him (well at least I don’t think I do) but I just couldn’t stop her blabbering long enough to get it out. Now, it was Monday, lunchtime in particular, and I still haven’t told her. Why couldn’t I just tell her that I have a small, teensy, weensy, tiny, little feeling for David, aside from friendship? Why did I always have to make things a hundred times harder for me? I know why. It’s because I’m dumb.

“I don’t want to go, there,” I muttered, glancing down at my mashed potatoes. I pushed my spork into the pile of white mush. “What would I even say? It’d be too weird. And what would my excuse be for even going?”

She responded with an overdramatic sigh, “Why are you so difficult!”

“Why are you so persistent?” I shot back, giving her a look.

“Because Lyn, you deserve a boyfriend. I bet you’ve never had one before,” she guessed, scooting to the side, when she noticed Cam coming up from behind her.

My cheeks suddenly got a little hotter, and I tried to push my embarrassment away. “No,” I managed to say. “I’ve had one before.” When I was in Kindergarten.

“Really?” she eyed me suspiciously, and I kept my eyes away from hers.

“What’s going on here?” Cam inquired, looking back and forth between Penny and me.

“Lyn won’t go over to Jace’s house, she’s too shy,” Penny explained, blowing out a breath of frustrated air.

Cam took the empty spot next to Penny, and pecked her on the cheek. Penny in return grinned as if she had just won the Nobel Prize.

“I am not,” I replied, stuffing my mouth with a spoonful of mashed taters.

Cam opened his plastic utensil package, and fished out for his spork. “Why does she have to go over to Jace’s place anyway?”

“I don’t hav—“ I started, but was quickly interrupted by Penny.

“Because she has a crush on him, and I’m trying to play Miss Love Doctor, but she’s a terrible patient,” she explained once again, and I lowered my head keeping my gaze steady on my blue tray.

I wanted to open my mouth and say that I didn’t have a crush on Jace, but nothing came out. I didn’t have a good excuse for why I lied to her, and the longer I thought about that, the more I didn’t want to tell them.

“Well, why don’t you want to see him Lyn?” Cam inquired, interrupting my rather negative thoughts.

Biting my lower lip, I tried to think of a quick excuse. “Because…I don’t want to get sick?” I tried, and for a moment, felt proud of my answer. It was a rather smart excuse.

Eyeing me suspiciously, Cam said. “It’s not like you’re going to kiss him or something, you know. You’ll be fine.”

“B-but what would I say if Jace asked why I’m there?” I panicked, saying the first thing in mind.

“Hmm,” Cam paused, thinking for a moment. And then all of a sudden, his light green eyes lit up. “I’ve got it! Why don’t you give him his make-up homework from today?”

For a moment, I let Cam’s words sink into my mind. That would be a great reason for me to come over, and I had nothing else to argue with. Sighing, I nodded, in defeat.

“I guess,” I mumbled, hiding the nervous feeling I was suddenly getting.

Cam smiled. “Great! I’ll give you his stuff after school.”

I nodded, only after a second of hesistation.

“Be right back,” Penny announced suddenly. When she noticed the questioning looks from Cam and I, she said, “I gotta go pee.” With that, she picked up her blue tray and placed it in the rack as she exited the cafeteria.

Tapping my foot slowly against the worn, tiled floor, I finished the rest of my lunch. I thought about Jace, and how I’d try to start a conversation with him without it becoming awkward. I figured it wouldn’t be too hard. All I had to do was act as if I didn’t have a crush on him… Wait, I don’t have a crush on him. So I’ll just have to act as me. Simple enough…hopefully.

“Hey, guess who’s coming over,” Cam whispered, catching my attention.

Looking up at Cam, I followed where his eyes were directing me. Almost instantly, I could feel my body freeze in place, when my eyes landed on David. He was about fifteen to twenty feet away, striding towards us. Maybe he’s just going to get a snack from the al la carte. Turning back to Cam, I asked, “How do you know he’s coming here?”

He responded with a nonchalant shrug. “I dunno, maybe cause he’s right behind you?”

Rotating back around, I realized he was right. David now stood about two feet away from me, and his charming hazel eyes were looking down at me. Did I just think his eyes were charming? Shaking off that last thought, I gave David a small, slight smile.

“Umm…hi,” I greeted, waving my right hand at him, tentatively. In the corner of my eye, something…or rather someone caught my attention. In the far right corner of the cafeteria, a familiar scrutinizing pair of blue eyes caught mine. Taylor. She stared at me, and even from this distance, I knew it wasn’t a tender one. It sent shivers to my bone.

A look like that should be considered illegal.

Immediately, my thoughts drifted back to Saturday night. Images filled with David and I talking darted through my mind. I could only imagine how Taylor would have reacted if she saw us together. For the first time in my life, I silently thanked the person who created alcohol.

Taking my eyes off of Taylor, I cleared my throat awkwardly. I then looked back up at David. He watched me suspiciously, never taking his eyes off mine.

“Hey,” he finally said, a hint of a smile playing on his lips. “Can I talk to you?”

“Err…I guess,” I tried to shrug my shoulders like it was no big deal, but I felt jumpy, afraid that Taylor was going to send the picture any second.

“Alone.”

“Why?” I asked, sending Cam a look, and he returned it with a shrug.

“Because…I need to ask you something,” he answered vaguely.

“Can’t you ask me right here?”

“No." His answer was curt, and to the point.

“…Why not?”

“Because,” he simply replied, as if that answered anything.

My eyes darted back over to Taylor, who was still watching me. I knew I should have told him no, but something in his tone made me curious.”Fine, but it better be quick.” Super quick.

Without another word, David turned on the heel of his right foot, and headed for the exit of the crowded cafeteria. As I stood up, I sent a meaningful look at Penny, who had just returned from the girl's room. She probably had no idea what was going on, since the look on her face was somewhere between puzzled and conpletely confused.

“If I’m not back in five minutes, that means he kidnapped me,” I told them.

"You'll be fine," Cam assured me, but I highly doubted it.

Grumbling a few incoherent words under my breath, I followed behind David. I tried to stay behind him by at least fifty feet, but I knew Taylor wasn’t that dumb. She was sharp when it came to her boyfriend. Another sharp, unpleasant feeling pressed into my gut as I thought about David and Taylor.

For a moment, I wished David and Taylor weren’t going out. For a moment, I wished I was the one with him. Quickly catching my thoughts before they began to get out of hand, I pushed them aside. I was being delirious. Why would I ever think about something like that?

As I passed through the exit doors of I cafeteria, I looked around for David. I was so wrapped up in reprimanding myself, I didn’t know if he went left or right. Making a quick decision, I turned right. Maybe he didn’t want to talk after all.

“David,” I called out, as I walked around the corner. “Where ar—oof!” I ran face first into someone. My nerves sparked for a second. I hoped it wasn’t a teacher thinking I was ditching school.

“Have I told you you’re really klutzy?” David asked, as I looked up to find him watching me.

“Maybe once or twice,” I muttered, taking a step back from him. A relieved sigh managed its way from my lips as I realized I ran into him. “So, what did you wanna ask me?”

“Wow, straight to the point.”

“Yes, I don’t have much time, David,” I told him seriously, crossing my arms under my chest. I was really starting to get nervous about Taylor.

“Why’re you so cold to me now? We were fine two nights ago.” He raised a brow at me.

“No reason,” I told him, feeling slightly sorry for seeming bipolar to him. “Now, can you please tell me why you wanted to talk to me alone?”

“Alright,” he took something out of his back pocket, while I watched him with questioning eyes. “This is what she has against you, right?”

Before I could say anything, David rummaged through his phone, and then held it up to me. I suddenly felt like I was having déjà vu.

David showed me the picture that Taylor had against me. Just like last time, I quickly lunged for the phone, my cheeks burning a bright red color. Before my hands could touch his phone, he jerked it back.

I tried several times trying to get the phone back from him, but with the height difference, I knew I was nowhere getting close to the phone. It was easy to tell David was clearly enjoying watching me jump like a lunatic for his phone. He finally placed his phone back into his back pocket, and I felt my stomach drop to the floor.

“W-where did you get that!?” I demanded. I was so embarrassed! I couldn’t believe he had the picture too. And he saw it. He saw me half naked.

“Calm down,” he grinned. (I really hated that annoyingly handsome grin right now.) “You don’t want to make a scene. It’ll attract the teachers.”

I clenched my teeth together. “Where did you get that picture?” I repeated, my voice was lower, but still noticeably desperate.

“Taylor showed it to me last night, on our way home. I doubt she remembers though. Seriously though, is that what she has against you? Gigi’s was worse. Way worse,” he explained. His grin never left his lips.

“This isn’t funny David. Erase the picture, please,” I practically begged. I could hear my heart pumping furiously in my ears. My hands were sweating profusely, and I tried to rub them on my jeans.

“I will,” he told me, and for a second, I felt my eyes light up. “Under one condition,” he added after seeing the small glimmer of hope in my eyes.

My eyes and hopes fell with those three words. I couldn’t believe he was doing this to me too.