Love on the Brain

Jade listened to the eager sound of the pan, as her father flipped the bacon, the delicious sound drifting off towards the brunette’s nostrils.

“Ah! It smells delicious, honey,” her mother emerged inside the kitchen, pecking her father’s cheek, meanwhile she left her Chanel bag on top of the marvel kitchen counter.

“Breakfast is in fact the most important meal,” her father mentioned, a smile decorating his lips, before he turned to look at his daughter, who was busy scrolling through the newspaper with her dark eyes.

“Good morning, sweetie,” her mother said, as she started decorating the table with plates and glasses.

“Morning, mom,” Jade responded, twirling a lock of hair around her finger.

“I feel like I haven’t seen you much lately,” her mother admitted, placing her hand on top of her daughter's and earning her attention.

“I’m sorry. I’ve been really busy with school and stuff,” the brunette responded, her fingers cradling her cup of black coffee, meanwhile her father dumped a fried egg on her plate.

“You should really spend more time with us, Jade,” her mother insisted, while cutting her bacon with her knife.

“And invite your friends here more often! Michelle is such a lovely girl,” her father joined the conversation as he too settled down around the table.

“Oh yes! And Olivia! How’s she?” her parents had always adored her cousin, and every time her name was mentioned, Jade would have to fill them in on everything that had happened in Olivia’s life since last time they saw her.

“She’s doing great,” Jade answered, taking a sip from her coffee and then starting on her breakfast.

“She’s not going for chemistry herself, is she?” her father asked, lifting his tea.

“No. I think she’s going for biology actually,” the brunette muffled.

“Doesn’t surprise me at all! My brother’s never been a chemist, to be honest,” her father chuckled.

“Uncle Fernando is so not a chemist,” her mother joined, giggling as well.

Jade filled her mouth with scrambled egg, chewing on it slowly, before her eyes darted towards the watch on her wrist.

“I gotta go,” the brunette muffled, as she snatched her bag from the floor and threw it over her shoulder. Jade picked up her cup and took her last swig from the strong coffee, before grabbing her lunch that had been waiting for her at the end of the table.

“Have a good day, sweetheart!” her mother called after her, earning herself a waving hand from Jade on her way out.

The early breeze rolled over her bare arms, meanwhile Jade pulled on her sunglasses. The sound of her shoes drummed against the pavement, as the brunette wrapped her fingers around the strap of her bag and pushed her earplugs inside her ears, enjoying the sound of Destiny’s Child in the early morning.

Jade had just finished the first when the sound of a horn caught her attention, causing the girl to jump as the brunette looked over her shoulder.

“Good morning,” Brian sniggered, his elbow resting at the edge of his car-door, meanwhile he looked at Jade, who was busy dragging her earplugs out.

“Are you stalking me or something?” she asked teasingly.

“Busted,” he made a grimace, once again making her laugh. “And now you actually have to get in,” he continued.

“Oh, do I?” Jade cocked her eyebrows at the guy. “And if I don’t? Are you gonna call me a bitch then?”

Brian sniggered at her. His dark orbs soon looked at the white cropped hemline she was wearing, along with the dark blue skirt that reached the upper parts of her thighs. Her hair had been tied into its signature ponytail and her entire face was glowing the early morning.

“I do already call you that though,” Brian admitted, dodging the nasty glare she sent him.

“Very original,” she dropped dryly.

“Thank you very much,” he smirked. “Now, get in,” Brian leaned unbuckled his seatbelt and leaned over in order to unlock the door for her.

“Wow, how gentleman of you!” Jade expressed, as she stepped closer to his car.

“I know! Now you really don’t have any other choice!” Brian said, sending her the signature smirk that melted hearts all over Huntington Beach.

Jade shook her head, feeling the butterflies that flattered in the very pit of her stomach, as she paddled towards him and brought the door along with her.

“Fine,” she said, giving into his request, before she went to buckle her belt. “Now you better spare me that crappy music of yours,” she warned him, as Brian chuckled in response.

“As you wish,” he muffled back. “How did the test go?” he asked, referring to the biology test she had had a couple of weeks ago.

“It went well! Usually Olivia helps me when it comes to biology, but this time I managed to do it all by myself,” she said, sounding proudly of her effort.

“Wow, that must be a real achievement for someone like you,” he mocked, as he already knew that she was the best in her class.

“If you continue down that road, you’ll never get to pick me up again,” Jade warned him.

“And what makes you believe I wanna pick you up?” Brian asked, tearing his gaze off the road for a brief second.

“Why did you pick me up today?” Jade asked, narrowing her eyes at him.

“I was in the neighborhood,” he admitted, her gaze still resting on his face, as she picked up the sight of his strong and firm jaw-line and his aristocratic nose.

“Sure,” she responded, not really convinced.

“I can let you walk from here, you know,” Brian said, his hands resting on the leather wheel.

Jade shook her head, watching how the landscape got dragged away from her eyes.

“Here we are,” Brian said after about five minutes where they had been settled in utter silence.

The brunette watched as he entered the parking lot, his eyes searching for somewhere to park his car, meanwhile Jade grabbed her messenger bag.

“I wanted to ask you something,” Brian started, slowly earning her attention as she rested her bag in her lap.

“Should I be scared?” Jade asked, once again narrowing her eyes.

“Fuck off,” Brian chuckled.

“Go ahead, Haner. You don’t have all day,” she said while unbuckling her seatbelt.

“Do you wanna hang out after school?” the words all but rushed out of his lips.

The request took her by surprise, as Jade could feel her heart pound hard against her chest. Jade could feel how her palms suddenly felt sweaty, while she glanced over at him, realizing that she had to respond to his request somehow.

“Uhm, sure,” she muffled under her breath. “What do you have in mind?”

“I’d like to keep that as a secret,” Brian responded, making her eyes widen in horror. “No worries! I’m not gonna kidnap you,” he promised.

“Thank God! That’s exactly what I thought you’d do!” Jade mused back, as the two of them got out of his car.

“What can I say? You’re an open book,” Brian shrugged.

“What time?” the brunette asked, the two of them reaching the stairs.

“Six? I’ll pick you up,” he told her.

“Great, I’ll see you then,” Jade told him, as the two of them separated before heading into the school.