The unspoken Rule (6 page)

Jake was sitting on the edge of his bed, his back to me. He seemed to be looking out the window. I padded my way inside, not wanting to disturb the peace. I sat beside him on the bed. He didn't even glance at me.

"Jake."

"If you're here to tell me off, then I'm ready for it." I was shocked by his harsh words.

"Actually no." I began. "I'm here to ask you something." I told him softly.

He looked at me then, his blue ones locking with my brown ones.

I took a deep breath, afraid of his answer. "Do you… do you like me?"

Jake's POV

I had been sitting on my bed, staring out the window when she came into my room. I was shocked she willingly wanted to see me.

She sat beside me, and gave me a serious look, while saying my name.

"If you're hear to tell me off, then I'm ready for it." I told her rudely.

"Actually, I'm here to ask you a question." She replied without missing a beat.

She took a deep breath. "Do you… do you like me?"

And then I found it hard to breathe. I drew in a big gulp of air, feeling the need for oxygen.

What made her think that I did like her? Was I that obvious?

Or was she just guessing?

Do I tell her the truth? Or do I lie, to make sure things aren't awkward between us?

What the heck. Things would always be awkward around us.

My heart wanted me to tell her. But my brain thought of that as illogical. Stupid. Ill thought out.

What if I did tell her I liked her, and she didn't like me back? I wasn't used to girls not having the same feelings as I did.

I decided I'd tell her the truth. The truth will set me free, right? I was already on bad terms with her now, I didn't want to make it worse.

"Yes." I whispered, meeting her chocolate orbs.

And making me feel relieved, she smiled. The biggest, toothiest, most gorgeous smile in the whole wide world. Her flash of white would've made angels cry, it was so beautiful.

She grabbed my hand and squeezed it, never breaking our gaze. "I like you too."

And then I couldn't help myself. I grabbed her around the shoulders and embraced her, as if I wasn't going to see her ever again. She laughed, the sound of it music to my ears. I liked making her giggle, it was my goal in life to make her grin and chuckle.

"Air." She gasped, and I pulled away. I studied her face, wanting to memorize it. I tucked a piece of her soft hair behind her ear.

"Jake," She breathed, bringing reality back into the picture. "What about Laura?"

Laura. I had forgotten about my little sister. Maria's best friend.

Maria was talking about how we both knew that Laura would definitely disapprove if we went out. It was a tacit law.

"We must keep it a secret. Otherwise, she'd have our heads. She'd hate us too, if she found out we were keeping something from her." I told her.

She nodded solemnly. "This must be strictly underground. Even at school."

I agreed. If news spread we were dating at school, it would surely reach Laura's ears.

But I didn't care. I was now dating the most perfect girl in school. She had an amazing personality, and was beautiful inside and out. I loved her for who she was.

Maria's POV

Was that love I saw in his eyes? If it was, then I wanted to see that emotion more often from him. The blue waters of his eyes were glittering, clear, and deeper than ever.

He gently pushed me back on his bed, him hovering above me.

"I'm gonna getcha!" He cried. His fingers tickled my sides, sending tears into my eyes. I was extremely sensitive around my middle.

I giggled uncontrollably. "Please stop!" I gasped through my laughs. This only made him tickle me more. I felt like a Tickle-me-Elmo.

He was grinning crazily, seeming to be fueled by my laughter. He finally stopped, and I breathed in fresh air. He plopped down beside me, his arm wrapping around my waist. He pulled me close to him, his cologne overriding my senses.

"You smell good, Maria." He mused.

"You do too." He smiled in my hair.

I quickly jumped off his bed, like a ninja.

"Maria," He started. "What are you-"

"Laura!" I hissed. Horror crossed his features. How long had I been in his room? I glanced at myself in his mirror. My hair was an absolute mess. How would I explain that to her?

"Brush?" I asked him. He quickly crossed his room to grab a comb from one of his drawers. I quickly ran it through my locks, satisfied I looked alright.

"Sorry, gotta go." He gave me a small hug and kissed my cheek.

I quietly opened his door and shut it behind me. I walked to Laura's room down the hall, knocking on her door.

"Come in." She answered. I pushed open her door, seeing Laura sprawled on her bed reading magazines.

"Hey." I told her.

"You make him feel better?"

I chose my words gingerly. "Yeah, I think so."

She smiled slightly. "Sweet, now I won't have Mr. Grouchy as a brother anymore."

"Yep."

"Any reason why he was so moody?"

Uh..."He said he was depressed Cynthia broke up with him." Thank you, brilliant mind.

"I see, typical Jake."

"Yeah." I voiced. I think I had a new respect for Jake Miller, my best friend's brother.

Maria's POV

The next day at school I was insanely happy. Almost slap happy. There was nothing wrong with the world. I had a boyfriend now,
unofficially
because of its secrecy, but still. I felt like skipping through a field of flowers.

I skipped up to my locker, humming while I grabbed my textbooks.

La la la la...

"Hey you."

I ignored the voice disturbing my moment.

"You with the hideous face." The voice insisted.

I stopped humming altogether, and whirled around, my eyes slits.

Cynthia stood before me, her arms crossed over her chest. She was tapping her foot and snapping her gum impatiently.

"I got a problem with you." She continued.

I cocked my head to the side, wondering what she was going on about. Her over-glossed lips upturned into a smirk.

"Oh do you now?"

"Yeah," She told me, coming intimidatingly close to me. "I know Jake's taking a liking for you. No matter how gross that is, he's confused. He really likes
me.
"

And now I could see why Cynthia was wanted by every man in our school.
Not.
Sure she may seem like she has looks, considering you could see too much of her skin in her revealing clothing, but she was a fake, I decided. She narrowed her blue eyes at me with distaste.

"Oh?" I inquired, feigning concern.

"Yes, he's just confused. He'll be crawling back to me later today, I guarantee you."

"Alright."

Shock flashed across Cynthia's face. She must've been surprised that I didn't really care what she was saying.

She huffed, flipping her golden hair over her shoulder for good measure and stalked away. I shook my head to myself at the scene I had just taken part of. Cynthia was something, that was for sure.

I went through the rest of my day like normal. I wasn't giddy like I was earlier, but still in a pretty good mood. At least, I was until lunch time.

I went through the lunch line, grabbing a sandwich and a cookie. I scanned the room for my usual table buddies. I spotted them a few feet away. I grabbed an empty seat, greeting my friends.

Kate nodded her head towards a scene a few tables away. "Look at that." She said with disgust. I swiveled my head towards the indicated direction, my sandwich halfway up to my mouth.

Jake was seated at a table, with someone in his lap. Oh wait, that's not some
one,
it's a some
thing.
Cynthia.

She had her arms wrapped around her shoulders, a huge smile on her face. Jake was gazing up at her with what I could only assume was awe. My turkey sandwich fell from my hands, landing with what to me sounded like a loud thud. I clenched my jaw, wishing I had trusted my intuition. Jake had played me, which is what I was afraid would happen.

He had his arm around her middle, smiling. She leaned into him, giving him a playful peck on the lips. She then turned her head towards me, picking me out of the swarm of students. She smirked at me, mouthing,
See?

I couldn't take this anymore. Not this drama. I couldn't take the secrecy, (it had only been 1 day, for crying out loud!) Cynthia, or Jake and his reputation for girls.

I stood up, my sudden movement sending my chair dragging across the tiled floor. The people at my table looked at me confused. I stared at the now couple a moment longer, and then exited the cafeteria.

I had safely made it inside my bathroom stall when the beginning of my tears fell. I leaned against the door, crying as I slid down it until I was sitting.

Why me?

I did absolutely
nothing
to deserve this.

Didn't they say karma was horrible? Well, I had to agree with them. Karma was at its worst when it bit you without reason.

I should have trusted my instincts! Then none of this would've happened. Not the confrontation from Cynthia, or the humiliating scene with Jake and
her.

How could I have been so foolish as to believe Jake? Like he would honestly fall in love with a geek like me.

He was a play boy. Honest and true. He dumped girls like they were yesterday's trash. No sorry's, no nothing. Just a 'see you never!' and that's it. I think he did it for competition. To see how many girls he could ruin before high school ended.

Now my heart had been torn out numerous times, and I couldn't stand it anymore. My heart wasn't a play thing.

This was it. Jake was no more.

I didn't want to talk to him anymore.

I didn't want to talk
about
him anymore.