JACK AND ROSE PRESENT TIME 2: JUNIOR YEAR
Chapter Ten
"I can't believe we have school
tomorrow," Tommy said, throwing a rock at Fabrizio. "The weekend went
by way too fast."
And it did. It had been two weeks since Jack
and Rose's big fight. Things pretty much went back to normal. The five friends
were all sitting in Fabrizio's backyard, just talking, like they always did. It
was a Sunday, just a couple days before Halloween.
"Oh, well," Rose said, not wanting
to think about school. "At least we'll all have a blast on Tuesday
night." On Halloween night, Dominique was throwing a Halloween Costume
Party at her house. They invited almost everyone they knew.
"Yeah," Tommy replied, glad someone
looked at the bright side of things.
"Oh, shit," Jack said suddenly.
"Did any of you finish the history assignment?"
"I did," Rose and Dominique said in
unison.
"Can we see yours?" Tommy asked
with pleading eyes.
"You guys didn't do your homework
again?" Dominique asked in disbelief.
"Hey," Jack said. "We have way
more important things to think about..."
"Then you shouldn't need to copy off of
us," Rose said with a smile as she slapped Jack on his butt.
"If I fail this paper," Tommy
started, "I will fail this class. His homework is impossible! Come on, you
don't want me to flunk, do you?" Dominique and Rose pretended to think.
"Who do you guys have for history?"
Fabrizio asked.
"Ismay," Jack replied.
Fabrizio smiled. "Hey, I have him in the
afternoon. I finished that paper. You can see mine."
"Yeah, Fabri!" Jack said as he gave
him a high five.
"You guys are such pigs," Dominique
said in disgust, even though she was mostly only kidding.
Rose didn't mind when Jack copied off of her,
but it was beginning to worry her. What was he going to do for tests? He'd
flunk them if he never did his own homework. She always wanted to make Jack
happy, but maybe this would make him more happy in the long run. She really didn't
want to see him get hurt.
"I heard the juiciest piece of gossip
today," Dominique said as her eyes lit up. "You guys will not believe
it!" Dominique took a breath, wanting everyone to pay attention and
realize what she was about to say was important. "Alexia is going out with
Cal."
"No way!" Tommy said.
Dominique nodded her head. "I don't know
if they're boyfriend and girlfriend, but I heard that they went to the movies
together on Friday." Tommy shrugged, pretending not to care, even though
deep down he did.
"Well, you guys," Fabrizio said,
getting up with a yawn. "You all better get going home because I have to
take a shower."
"You need to take a shower," Tommy
said with a laugh as he patted Fabrizio on the back.
*****
"Let's just go up and ask her,"
Dominique said as she and Rose stood about twenty feet away from Alexia, who
was at her locker.
"Ah, come on, Dom! We haven't been
friends with her for weeks..."
Dominique cut in. "Come on."
Dominique pulled Rose's arm, and they walked
over to Alexia's locker. "Hey, Alex," Dominique said, sounding as if
they had still been friends over all of this time. Alexia smiled, which looked
a little fake.
"What's up?" Rose asked.
Alexia smiled again. "Not much."
"Can we ask you something?"
Dominique said, looking down at her books she was holding. "Are you going
out with Cal?"
Alexia's smiled faded, and she looked totally
ashamed. She thought for a moment, perhaps deciding whether or not to lie to
her old friends. "Yes...I am going out with him."
Dominique's eyes bulged out, and she looked
like she could have punched Alexia. Rose looked just as shocked, but she was
also a little hurt. Alexia used to be one of her best friends, and now she was
going out with someone who had helped kidnap her? Now, that was being a real
friend...
"How could you do that?" Dominique
asked. "Did you just forget all of the awful things he has done to
everyone..."
"Listen," Alexia said, staring both
of them in the eyes. "I'm not that little sweetheart you guys remember. I
have gotten myself in a bad crowd, and I can admit that," she paused.
"I'm just begging you...please don't give me a hard time. I'm sorry for
what I'm doing, but it's too late to do anything about it now."
Dominique rolled her eyes, not buying the
crap that was coming out of Alexia's mouth. Rose stared at Alexia, not knowing
what to tell her. "How's Tommy?" Alexia asked, showing a little bit
of concern.
"Why do you care?" Dominique asked,
before Rose had a chance to answer. "You left him heartbroken...and for what?
Cal Hockley! Girl, you have hit the bottom of the guy chain."
Despite what Alexia was doing, Rose answered,
"He's doing good."
Dominique looked at Rose like she was nuts
for being nice to her, and Alexia nodded with a small sigh. She did miss him,
but she knew there was nothing she could do. She had already lost him and her
old friends.
"Well, we gotta go to class," Rose
said, now being the one pulling Dominique away. "We'll talk to you later,
Alexia."
"Right..." Alexia muttered as she
slammed her locker door shut.