Chapter 19

• As I was walking to my class, somebody pushed me slightly from behind, not hard enough that I fall, but enough that I stumbled. I jerked forward and somebody pulled my pouch from my hand. I turned, ready to strike the person, but paused when I saw who it was.
• Pete didn't look at me. He just fumbled with my pouch.
• "Give it back to me." I gritted my teeth.
• He didn't say anything. Didn't smile, didn't get angry, just opened my pouch.
• "Hey!" I lunged at him, trying to take my pouch from him. But he budged. I punched him hard on his shoulder, and he dropped the pouch, scattering my stuff, clutching his shoulder.
• I bent down, angrily gathering my supplies, only to see him gone when I looked up again.
• I hurried to my class, knowing that something was not right.
• PETE
• The bell rang, and I stood up, clutching Leah's car keys in my hand. I knew what I had to, but I didn't want to do it. And, I didn't understand that- why would I not want to do this?
• It was a kiss, just one kiss. One kiss doesn't change what I have been feeling for years.
• Gary grabbed my shoulder, and I winced. That girl punched hard- I was sure it was going to hurt the rest of the day.
• "Let's go." I looked at him, and then looked at Fiona looking at me.
• "You go on."
• He looked at me in confusion but saw me staring at Fiona. He smiled half- heartedly.
• "Yeah, sure."
• Fiona left her wishers behind and grabbed my arm. "I hope you are ready to give me my gift."
• I smiled at her, hoping I didn't look like Pennywise, and nodded.
• Leah was coming out of her Math class, searching her bag. Then she patted her pockets, and finally she emptied her pouch on a nearby bench.
• "Looking for something?" I asked, looming over her.
• She didn't miss a beat. "Give it to me, Pete, I have no interest in anything about you. Just leave me alone."
• I ignored her last part, even though it left me feeling empty. "Maybe this?"
• I held out her car keys a safe distance away from her, knowing how fast she was. She stared at it. She didn't lunge at me, knowing full well she couldn't take it away right now.
• "Just give it to me Pete." She stared into my eyes with a kind of hatred I had never seen before. She hated me always, I knew that. But this felt different, like this meant nothing. Like I meant nothing.
• I wasn't about to let this happen. I will get a reaction out of her. Even if it broke us both.
• "I will give it to you- if you do something for me."
• She just stared at me, disinterested. I tried to picture her snarling at me. Hating me.
• I sat opposite to her, comfortable and trying to look like I owned the place. Looking around, I saw that quite a crowd had started to gather. I smirked at her, but she still gave me nothing. Empty, stone cold.
• "Strip and dance, baby. I am sitting right here."
• For a minute, I thought she actually thought of doing it. She looked around at the fifty or so people that had gathered around us. Whispering, talking, smiling, but quiet. Fiona stood there, and waved her hands.
• She looked back at me, still empty. I was frustrated now. What the hell happened to her?
• "You want me to strip for you?"
• "And dance."
• "And dance for you." She looked at me, tilted her head, and smiled. But it meant nothing. It held nothing. Her cold demeanour was seeping into my bones, and I knew at that moment that she will forget me one day. I wasn't even worth her hatred. I knew before she spoke that I had pushed her too far away.
• "Before this, I could at least hate you. But now? You are no one to me, Pete. Get that in your head." And then she turned and walked away.
• I sat still, trying to shape her words to mean something more, anything, when another guy shouted. "And how are you going to go home, princess?"
• I kept myself calm.
• She gave him the middle finger, but she gave me nothing.
• Fiona came to me and sat on my lap. "Oh well, you tried." The crowd started to dissipate.
• I looked at her, and she kissed me, but I pulled away. "Why would you ask something like that out of me?"
• She sat back, studying my face. "It isn't different than anything else you have done."
• I didn't say anything, just stared at Leah walking away from school.
• "You had to let her go, Pete. She is your mate after all. Chase her enough and you will fall in love with her."