Dylan was left alone staring at the direction she headed. "What did I just do?" he whispered remorsefully to himself.
"Exactly. What the hell did you just do?"
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Dylan froze at the intrusion, clutching at his chest from the aftershock. His eyes scanned the darkness to see a mass of curly hair leaning against the side of the garage. Dylan instantly felt his face grew hotter under the scrutiny stare of Hunter. Bowing his head, Dylan quickly brushed by Hunter to escape any questions but Hunter was quicker. He latched on the other boy's arm and forcefully turned him around.
"I asked you a question, Dylan," he sneered. In return, Dylan shook his arm around but Hunter's gripe was vice, almost enough to cut off his blood circulation.
"Let me go, dude!"
"Not until you explain to me what you did!" Hunter persisted. Since he was tallest in the band, Hunter peered down on Dylan, his brown eyes boring holes.
"Nothing of your business, Kinsley!" he hissed back, ripping Hunter's death grip away from his bicep. He stalked past the brunette and back into the garage but Hunter was adamant.
"I saw you kissing Sophia," he shouted. Dylan halted in his steps. His hands clenched into tight fists, turning his knuckles white.
"That was a mistake," he whispered fiercely. Hunter rounded Dylan to grab him by his collar, slamming his back onto a wall. All occupants of the garage were now wide awake and trying to detach Hunter from Dylan.
"You listen to me, Meyer," Hunter spat, "Sophia is more than just a summer fling. I, for once, knew how sweet and beautiful she is but at the end of the day, she only has her eyes for you."
"And your point?" Dylan choked out.
"You screw her up and I'll make sure your life is a living hell," he warned venomously before finally releasing Dylan. With one last glare, Hunter stormed out of the garage, leaving Zach and Luke befuddled over the situation.
"Bro, what the heck?" Zach voiced, "You two went from band mates to mortal enemies in a matter of seconds. Is there something you need to tell us?"
Dylan, who was still glowering at the empty spot once occupied by Hunter, wiped his mouth with the back of his hand before pushing himself up from the floor.
"He's just being a jealous brat," he answered.
"Jealous? Over what?" Luke and Zach spluttered. Dylan redirected his glare towards the two of them, making them cower beneath his stare.
"Go back to sleep! We have a concert tomorrow!" he ordered before climbing out of the garage himself and headed for his bedroom. He wasn't in the mood to sleep beside those two questioning boys.
Once he was safely inside the safety confinement in his room, Dylan let out a choked roar and proceeded to trash his room. The computer, the dustbin and the books became victims of his wrath. Once the adrenaline died down, Dylan slid on the floor with his back against the wooden door. His palms scrubbed his face in frustration, groaning ever so often into his hands.
How could I be so stupid?
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The Avenue's concert in Concord the next day couldn't get more awkward. Sophia refuses to even glance in Dylan's direction and Hunter kept glaring at the back of Dylan's head. Luke and Zach were suspiciously aware that something had happened between the three of them but decided not to drag themselves into their mess.
Luckily, none of the crowd nor Kevin noticed the thick tension between the three band mates. They continued on their show like professionals, performing for an hour and a half before calling a curtain call. Once safely backstage, Sophia quickly retreated into her dressing room without a word spoken. The same action was mimicked by Hunter and Dylan; the boys ushered themselves into their own rooms and slammed the doors shut.
Zach and Luke stood awkwardly next to each other, staring at the empty space before them.
"Are you mad with jealousy and/or stuck in the middle of a weird love triangle?" Zach asked Luke nonchalantly.
"Nope. You?"
"Not in a million years. Let's head home, old buddy, old pal."
And so, the two band members drove home, leaving the other three estranged inside their own rooms. None of them spoke a word to each other, not even when Sophia bumped into Dylan while walking to her car, and not even when Hunter exchanged glares with Dylan.
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Sophia collapsed on her bed roughly, groaning softly into her pillow. Never had she thought she would encounter a situation where Dylan refuses to glance in her direction. Though it tore her apart, Sophia understood his refusal to look at her since he was the first to initiate that kiss.
Oh god, the kiss. Sophia rolled onto her back and stared at the movement of her ceiling fan. She had always dreamed that her first kiss with Dylan would be romantic and sweet. They would both sit on the beach, gazing at the setting sun while Dylan gently kisses her lips. But instead, their first kiss was at his backyard while they were lying on the icy grass. It was still sweet though, Sophia thought. That is, if you considered awkward positioning of limbs and immobile lips as sweet.
Sophia flopped onto her belly once more, burying her face into the fabric of her pillow. And Hunter, she had seen him leaning on the wall of the garage as she was fleeing the house. She couldn't begin to fathom what he must be feeling at that moment. His actions tonight quickly made her realize the answer to his emotion; revulsion. The way his brown eyes stared sharply at hers during the briefest moments they met was enough to send shivers down her spine. They were no longer warm and caring but now hard with the tiniest sliver of hurt.
Holy fish fry, I am such a slu--
Before Sophia could finish her thoughts, the sharp ringing of her cell phone brought her back to reality. She hastily reached for the silver metal on her night stand and pressed the green button.
"Hello?"
"Sophie?"
Sophia immediately sat up straight on her bed at the sound of the familiar voice. "Dylan? What's wrong?"
"I--err, I wanted to talk. About--you know what."
She can practically hear his blush. "Um, right now?" she frowned, "It's nearly two o'clock in the morning."
"Well, I can't sleep properly knowing what I've done," he whispered glumly.
Sophia bit her lips anxiously, searching her brain for a suitable reply. "Well, it's not that big of a deal. It was just a mistake," she lied. It was that big of a deal.
"No, it's not, Sophie. I--things were complicated with me, with us."
The both of them paused, lost in their thoughts for a moment.
"So," Sophia broke the silence, "what are we now? Do you want to go back or--"
"I--I have been having these very strange feelings about you, Sophie and I'm pretty sure it's not heartburn, I've checked, 'cause they only bubble up whenever I see you. And heartburns or acid reflux, whatever that is, happened after you eat something," he mumbled nonsense. A smile tugged on Sophia's lips despite the rapid beating of her heart.
"Anyways, Hunter keeps pestering me about you and threatened to be my worst nightmare if I screw you up. So basically, Hunter wants to be The Witch from Left 4 Dead since she's my worst nightmare if I hurt your feelings somehow."
"Dylan, where is this going?" Sophia questioned to end Dylan's babbling.
"Um, I don't know myself. Okay, what if, we d-dated, would that change things between us? I mean, obviously our relationship would change from best friends to boyfriend-girlfriend but you know, I don't want to lose you. You're too nice and pretty and--"
"Dylan!" Sophia called out a little louder, effectively shutting his mouth. "Is this some kind of your weird, Dylan Meyer way of asking me out?"
"Yes?" he squeaked out.
A huge grin erupted on Sophia's face as she felt her heart jumped in joy. "I'm free this weekend. Movies at eight?"
"Okay sure. I'll pick you up at seven."
After setting her phone down on her night stand, Sophia fell down on her bed with a grin still plastered on her face. But it abruptly fell off when her mind wandered back to Hunter. Now that she had set things straight with Dylan, it was time to do the same with Hunter. In any way possible.
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Sophia confronted Hunter at the school's cafeteria the next day. He was busy choosing his lunch, he wasn't aware of Sophia's presence right until she was just a few inches away.
"Yeah, Red?" he inquired with raised eyebrows. Sophia nervously fidgeted with her fingers while trying to sum up the correct words.
"Hunter, about the other day, I'm--really sorry you had to see that," she explained. Hunter disguised his discomfort by pretending to pick an apple from beneath the salad bar.
"What are you apologizing for? It's nothing to me," he answered almost monotoned. Sophia's frown deepened as she tried her hardest to catch Hunter's eye. He must've noticed this since he stopped his ministrations to straighten up and gaze at her.
Hunter threw her a little smile. "So you're dating Dylan now?"
Sophia cringed visibly at his question. "Where--where did you hear that?"
He shoved his hands into the pocket of his trousers before shrugging smoothly. "Zach told me. Dude can't keep his mouth shut."
"Hunter--" Sophia started but he interrupted holding up a hand. "It's all cool, Red," he spoke impassively, "I mean, just because we went to prom together doesn't mean we're dating now, is it?"
Tears started to emerge from Sophia's eyes. In an instant, she had her arms wrapped around Hunter tightly. Hunter automatically slithered his arms around her back as he buried his face in Sophia's shoulder one last time. He felt his composure crumbling so he untangled Sophia from him.
"Go and have your little lunch date with that guitar freak," Hunter teased, ruffling Sophia's red hair. She laughed before walking towards the table where Dylan awaited her.
Hunter glanced at the lunch tray beside his hands on the salad bar. He dumped them into the trash bin and walked away from the crowd, finally letting his emotions pour out.
Labels: It's Just You and Me Honey