ChApTeR tWo: WhAt ArE yOu DoInG sAtUrDaY nIgHt?

"Dani-"

"No. You know what, I can't talk to you right now. I can't look at you, I can't be in the same room as you! You make me sick! Just leave me alone!"

"What the-"

Brittny was cut off by Danielle slamming her bedroom door shut.

"Britt," Ryan started.

Brittny thew him an icy glance, grabbed her keys, and stormed out of the apartment.

"Oh, God!" Ryan groaned, flopping down on the couch. Marian shook her head, and walked toward her bedroom. The door was locked and she knew now was not the time to ask Danielle to open it.

She walked back into the livingroom, and sat down on one of the oversized chairs.

"It's good to know someone isn't mad at me." Ryan said.

"Oh, i'm mad at you. I'm just locked out of my room."

"Hello!" Brittny cried, walking through the apartment later that night. 'Hello?"

She opened her bedroom dorr and Ryan came out. "Hi." he leaned to kiss her, but she turned away and walked towards the kitchen.

"Where is everybody?"

"Danielle is at work, and Marian is at some art class she signed up for."

"Oh." Brittny grabbed a soda out of the refrigorater and sat down at he table, staring out the window.

Ryan stoof in the doorframe of the kitchen. "What happened earlier?"

Brittny didn't look up. "I don't know."

"You don't know why she exploded like that?"

"No. It's kind of shocking to see two of your best friends together like that."

"I guess so. But that's no reason for her to flip out like that."

"Don't you get it? She likes you?"

"What?!"

"I didn't find out until after we started this. I shoudl have stopped it then."

"You don't have to stop anything. It's just Danielle. She'll get over it."

"No. That's not the only reason we have to stop."

"What else is there?" "You what?"

"I met this guy at a club, and found out hes in one of my classes. We started hanging out. Alot."

"So, you've been sleeping with this guy the whole time you've been with m e?"

"No. No, it's not like that. We haven't done anything yet."

"Then you must not like him that much."

"That's the problem."

Ryan shifted uncomfortably.

"I like him more." she whispered.

Ryan stood completly still for a moment. There was an eerie questness in the room as Brittny ionhaled, hoping her wouldn't be hurt by the news.

"God DAMNIT!" he screamed, raming his fist into the wall. "How could you do this?!"

"I'm sorry, I'm-"

'I LOVED you!"

"I'm-"

Ryan turned toward her, his face red with anger. "You slut!"

"Slut?!" she yeled back. "Look whose talking! You used to bring a new girl home every other night, and I'm a slut? That is so steryotypical!"

"Fuck you!" Ryan stalked to their room.

"No thanks!"

Brittny jumped when the door Ryan slammed shut shook the whole house.

She groaned, grabbed her keys, and ran out the front door.

Danielle leaned on the counter, and watched an old lady stir her latte. Slowly. Slowly. Around. Around. Around. GOD! It was driving her mad. But anything to keep her mind off of. . . Danielle shook her head, trying to shake away the image of Ryan and Brittny.

The bell on the large glass door chimed and two tall dark and handsom men walked in.

She put on a sheerful smile. 'Hi. How can I help you?"

One of the men smiled back. "Hello. Can eI please have-"

The bell above the door chimed.

"Two-"

"Danielle!" Brittny cried from teh door.

"Double esspressos?"

"Two double esspressos-"

"We need to talk."

"Comeing right up." ignoring Brittny, she turned to the machine.

Brittny sighed and walked to the counter. "Danielle-"

She set two paper cups on the counter. "Excuse me for one moment please." she turned to Brittny. "I have nothing to say to you." She punched something into the cash register. "Ten dollars and twenty-three cents."

"One man gave her some money. She made change and they sat down.

"Danielle."

Danielle turned away and began to wipe down the machine.

"Danielle."

Nothing.

"Dan-"

"WHAT?!"

The old woman and the two men looked up startled.

"We need to talk about this."

"About what?"

"Don't act like you don't know."

"Okay. You want to talk. Talk!"

Now the ond woman and the two men were starring as Danielle glarred angrily at Brittny.

Brittnyw alked behind the counter, grabbed Danielle's arm and pulled her aside. "Look, I just. . . I can't. . . I'm sorry."

Danielle laughed bitterly. "Your sorry? Your sorry?! You had SEX with him. I can't BELIEVE you had SEX with him!"

The old woman made an odd noixe that sounded like a mixture between the word "Oh!" and a grunt, grabbed her Latte and hurried out the door.

Brittny's face grew red with embarassment. "COuld you have said that any louder?" she hissed.

"Yes. Would you like me to?"

"No!" Brittny sighed. "I cannot begin to tell you how sorry I am. Everything happened before I found out you had. . . how you felt about him. I didn't have the guts to stop it. But I stopped it today."

Danielle stood silently. "Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why did you stop it?"

"Because I can't stand you being mad at me. We fight like mad crazy and no one ever wins. We've just gotten to good at fighting with eachother. I can't stand feeling so gulty. I feel like I am using him. And, well. . . I got together with someone else." Brittny nodded reluctantly.

"You go girl!"

They both laughed, and did the handshake they made up in 6th grade and hadn;t done since.

"Are we cool now?" Brittny asked.

"Of course." Danielle looked at the clock. "Ten minutes."

"Want a ride home?"

"Sure. Beats taking the bus with all those freaks."

Brittny walked back around the counter.

The man that had smiled at Danielle earlier walked back over to teh counter. "Exuse me-" he looked at her name tag. "Danielle. Would you happen to have a couple of napkins?" "No. Do you have a pen?"

She pulled a pen out of her shirt pocket and handed it to him. "Anything else?"

"Yes, one more thing." he smiled.

"What would that be?"

"Your phone number."

Danielle smiled back. 'I'm not sure we have that in stock."

"Well, why don't I give you my number and you can call me when it is in stock."

The man scribbled his name and phone number on the napkin, pushed it across teh glass counter, and motioned for his friend to leave.

The bell chimed as they left and Danielle and Brittny burst into giggles.

Marian met them at the door about 45 minutes later. "You migh tnow want to go in there."

"Why not?" Brittny asked.

"It could be upsetting."

"Nothing could be upsetting after today." Danielle laughed.

Marian looked confused. "Are you two-"

CRASH!

"still fighting?"

The both ignored her question and pushed their way into the door.

Into the foyer. Through the kitchen. Down the hall. There was a pile of Brittny's belongings outside her door.

"Ryan!" Brittny yelled. A shirt side-swiped her head. "What the fuck are you doing?"

Ryan came out of the room and dumped a pile of junk on te floor. "Your moving out."

"What?" Brittny began gathering her things. "No, I'm not."

"Well, 'm not sharing a room with you anymore. You might find someone to replace me."

"Where am I supposed to go?"

"Don't know, don't care."

Brittny picked up a pillow, and threw it at his head as he walked back into the room.

He ignored her and continued walked.

"Brittny," Danielle said.

"What?!" she kelt down and began gathering up some stuff.

"Maybe. . . maybe it would be better if you moved out."

Brittny looked hurt. "Your kicking me out of the house?"

"No!" she cried. "I'm saying, maybe it's not such a good idea for you and Ryan to share a room anymore."

Brittny sighed and sat down amidst the mess on the floor. "Where am I supposed to sleep? On the couch?"

"No. You and Marian can switch." Daniele volunteered.

"Hold up." Marian jumped into the conversation. "I am not sharing a room with him."

"Why not?"

You know why. Why don't you two switch?"

It was Danielle's turn to sigh. "Do I have to?"

Brittny looked at her hopefully. Marian nodded.

"Oh, alright. If it'll keep you from moving out. You can sleep in my bed tonight. We'll switch stuff in the morning."

"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" Brittny jumped up. "What do we do with all my stuff?"

Marian shrugged. "Just leave it here. We'll deal in the morning."

"Okay."

"Hey roomie." Danielle said about 15 minutes later in a faux cheerful voice.

"What are you doing here?" Ryan grumbled.

"You got your wish."

I never wished for your perky ass to barge into my room."

"Correction. Our room. Brittny and I are switching."

Ryan flinched at Brittny's name. He sat up in his bed and Danielle could see pain in his eyes. "This whole thing is really hurting you isn't it?"

"No." he lied, as Danielle layed down in Brittny's bed.

"Okay. But sometimes talking helps." She switched the lamp by the bed off. "I won't hurt you if you ever come and talk to me."

Silence filled the room.

The next day while Brittny and Danielle switched rooms, Ryan stayed away from the house. Marian said she wanted to help but she had a class, then work, then an art class, so she wouldn't be home until late.

After everything was switched around, Brittny left for work, and Daniele went to her theater arts class.

Danielle was the first one to get home. She walked into her new bedroom to fins Ryan sitting in the middle of the floor, twirling a basketball in his hands.

"Hey," she said, dropping her notebook on the desk, and throwing her jacket on her bed. "Like how everything looks?"

Ryan shrugged. 'The curtain is gone."

"Is that a good thing or a bad thing?" Danielle sat down on the bed. "Spill."

"Huh?"

You know you want to tell someone what your thinging, and I'm a good a person as any. Who else in this house have you known since practically forver."

"Marian and Brittny."

Danielle laughed. "Oh yeah. Well, who else happens to be sitting right here, willing to listen?"

Ryan stood up and grabbed his keys off the desk.

"Where are you going?"

"I have a class."

Danielle sighed as Ryan left the room.

Brittny stood outside a large brick building. Evolution Hall. Brian's dorn room was in this bulding. Ever since that night at the club, they had been 'secretly' meeting here. Brian knew all about Ryan, so they were both extremly attracted to eachother, they had only been friends-until now.

Brittny took a deep breath as she ran her fingers through her hair and started up Evolutions Halls exterior staircase.

She nervously waiting in the elevator until the doors opened on the third floor.

Brittny hurried down the hall and knocked on Brian's door. The door opened and she walked into the room.

"I broke up with him." she blurted out.

Brian shut the door. "Hello. It's nice to see you, too."

Brittny glarred at him. "I just had to get that out of the way, so you know why I want to do this."

Brian's soft eyes looked up at her confused. "Do what?"

Brittnytook another deep breath, walked slowly to where Brian stood, rested one hand on his cheek, and kissed him softly.

They pulled apart. "That." she whispered her eyes till closed. Before she had a chance to open them, she felt the warmth of Brian's lips against hers once more.

They finally broke apart. Brittny giggle nervously.

Brian smiled. "So. . . what are you doing Saturday night. . . ?"

Marian pulled the strap of her bag over her shoulder and stood up as class ended.

She joined the mob of students rushing out the doors, and pushed her way into the parking lot.

"Marian!" someone called from behind her.

She turned around. "Alex, hi."

Alex smiled, amazed she knew his name. "Hi."

Marian looked at him expectantly. "Um. . . did you want something?"

Alex cleared his throat. "Well, I, um. . I was wondering. . . well, actually. . . What are you doing Saturday night?"

Ryan sat in a lawn chair down by the pool, staring at the water miserably.

All that was on his mid this past week was Brittny. He had thought he loved her, but she had gone behind his back.

Why did things like this insist on happening to him? And why wouldn't Danielle stop trying to get him to tell her how he was feeling? Why did they have to go the the club that night? Why did they have to keep their 'love' a secret? Why did Danielle have to brage in on them? Why-

"Excuse me?"

Ryan looked up. A tall, tanned brunette in a skimpy silver bikini stood before him.

"I'm sorry to bother you, but, could ou rub some lotion on me?"

Good lord have nercy. He was actually given the chance to touch this woman's heaven;y body? "Yes!" he chocked out.

The woman sat down on the edge of the cahir, handing him her lotion.

"My name is Skye. Skye Martinez. And you are. . ?" She asked. she asked, as Ryan began massaging lotion into her back.

"Ryan. Hall. Ryan Hall."

Skye's shoulders relaxed. "You have soft hands." she murmered.

A million thoughts ran through his mind at the moment, nine hundred thousand, nintey-nine of them sexual. 'You have smoothe skin."

"Thank you."

Did he have a chance with her? What about Brittny? This would be the perfect distraction.

"So, Skye. What are you doign Saturday night?"

Danielle sighed and flopped down in a chair. There was virtually no one in the Coffee Shoppe. Unusual, but a relief.

She took a sip of her Dr. Pepper and sighed as the bell above the door chimed.

The man who had given her his number several days before stood before her. "Luke!" she cried, jumping up.

"Hello Danielle."

"I'm sorry about not calling. I've been really bu-"

Don't apologize. Just tell me one thing."

"What's that?"

"What are you doing Saturday night?"

**Okay everybody, that's the end of Chapter Two. What are they doing Saturday night? This is your chance to decide. Send your detailed ideas on what you think should happen on Saturday night with Brittny, Brian, Marian, Alex, Ryan, Skye, Danielle, and Luke to us. BUT, here's the catch. You MUST be a member of our mailing list for your entries to be accepted. If your not already a member Click here . The winner will recieve a guest appearence in a future issue of ApT. 637!! Make sure you enter, cuz we want to hear your idea. All entires must be recieved by Saturday March 6, 1999. Thanx for reading!