Chapter Seven

Shouts of arguable disagreement filled the school parking lot. Three o'clock in the afternoon and my belly was rumbling with hunger. Fifteen minutes had passed since school officially let out, and the lot had dwindled down to at least eight cars, including our four; Gage's, Ryder's, Jenn's, and my own. As we all struggled to find the proper riding arrangements that would benefit everyone and save gas, the atmosphere grew seven levels beyond stressful.

Hunter didn't have his car because he came to school with Jenn. Gage had his car, but didn't want to leave it behind. Shannon wanted to ride with Gage, which everyone already knew from the couple's current status. Ryder offered to ride with anyone and didn't have to take his car. I really just wanted to go home and watch Netflix.

In the end, we decided on three cars total; Jenn's, Gage's and my own. Each 'couple' drove together so everything worked out exceptionally well. The only fault in that situation was Ryder's return trip to the school. By leaving his car behind he would need a ride back to pick it up later. Shannon volunteered me right away but I didn't object the nomination because it was on the way home.

Shannon and Jenn met for the first time. I swear sparks flew at the sudden click of friendship between both girls. That surprised me some. Shannon rarely found things in common with another girl. Usually it was just Shannon and I, clinging to each other and causing destruction wherever we went, two peas in a pod. Not that it was bothersome but she spent way too much time with boys besides me.

That was also my first time meeting Jenn. She was absolutely gorgeous. Jenn had fiery red hair that swept down to her small waist. Freckles were speckled across her face but were hardly recognizable unless someone stood face-to-face with the beauty. Jenn had blue eyes the color of Caribbean water, so bright they were almost electrifying.

Ryder held her on his arm with pride, and the couple looked that of something out of a GQ magazine. The handsome CEO and stunning actress of Paramount High.

I turned away from the two, dropping down into my Mini. The sight brought a familiar feeling swishing around inside me, bubbling upward. Depression? Jealousy? It must have been the latter because I jammed the keys into the ignition roughly, guilt immediately pooling into my conscious in a sharp reprimand.

Don't be upset by them; be happy for them.

Easier said than done, conscious.

The feeling subsided as they split apart. The stunning creatures strolled to Jenn's vehicle. Hunter dropped in the passenger seat beside me. Gage revved his engine and took off peeling out of the parking lot, no doubt to impress Shannon. Jenn gracefully weaved out of her parking spot. Soon enough, our entourage left the grounds of Paramount High.

As our small convoy started its journey towards the restaurant, Hunter seemed to grow awfully bored in the passenger seat. Fidgeting around for a few minutes, his movement and added silence caused me to glance over at him. Hunter caught the look with his green eyes and returned a dazzling smile my direction.

"Let's see what she listens to." Hunter suddenly picked up my phone and scrolled through the music with a smirk.

"Hey, put that back! No distracting the driver." I reached for the electronic device but he pulled it closer to himself and out of reach.

"Easy there, grabby!" Hunter chuckled and continued snooping. "The only thing distracting you is my good looks, which I'm sorry to say, I can't get rid of."

My eyes involuntarily rolled until refocusing on the back of Gage's black mustang. The sleek color was glinting in the sunlight as if a camera flashed for a photo.

"Jeez, you listen to country?" he muttered lowly.

"It was a low point."

"I'll say - Luke Bryan? You like crying or what? ."

I snorted and decided to tease him. "No wonder you were about to ask me out. No other girl can stand your personality."

"Sheesh, easy, White. No guy can stand that ridiculous laugh of yours if we're on the 'flaws' topic. Besides, you were going to ask me anyway."

I side-eyed him, seeing a mocking sparkle in the green depths of his gaze.

"I guess I did."

The mustang in front of us had veered into a somewhat empty parking lot. Just beyond the black car, Jenn's white jeep wrangler pulled in a parking space.

I found the first empty spot. Somehow, I knew Hunter would complain it was a little walk away from the restaurant. Nagging seemed to be his thing. Hunter and I wandered over to the front door of the restaurant. Boverman's Bar-be-cue. My family and I hadn't went to that place in years. Shannon began bouncing as we drew closer. It seemed like she was about to explode when we finally caught up to the group. She did as much as soon as we were close enough.

"I want to sit on the patio!" Shannon cried with excitement.

"Isn't it supposed to rain?" Ryder said, more of a dull statement to disprove of her wishes.

Jenn supported Shannon's idea as if purposefully contradicting her date.

"Not until later. Come on, we should."

"It's hot though." Gage said. That was the first time I had ever heard him speak. Even during the car catastrophe earlier, he only answered with a nod or shrug.

Shannon swatted his arm playfully. He didn't even flinch, as most other guys would have in his situation. Shannon packed a mean slap, that was for sure.

"The theater will be cool. Let's just do this now."

The boys sighed, and I couldn't help but grin at them. It seemed women did exert a certain control over the opposite sex.

Once the hostess seated us outside on the patio, everyone ordered a drink. The patio held a green theme, with dark green umbrellas and matching chairs. The table had a green metal frame, with a type of strong plastic, circular in shape, inside the frame.

Even though it was fall, the sun still shone down as if it was summertime. Gage had been right; it was indeed hot.

"I gotta go to the bathroom," Jenn broke the common chatter and stood up while Shannon followed suit with an added agreement.

The girls disappeared inside the eatery and soon Hunter stood up. "Shoot, I forgot my phone in your car. Is it unlocked, Angel?"

I smirked and crossed both of my arms. "Too busy playing with mine?"

"That's what she said," Gage said sardonically, earning laughs from Ryder and Hunter. "Literally."

With a grimace, I nodded at Hunter and he went inside to go out the front door. Ryder rose from his chair as well, walking over to a music machine by the door to the restaurant.

I turned to look at Gage. His gray eyes met mine a second later, a strange, almost palpable feeling settling into the atmosphere, and my conscious as well. It prickled the hairs on my neck to stand completely on end. The feeling was hard to ignore but I eventually pushed it aside.

"Why don't you ever talk?" I asked quietly.

He shrugged both of his broad shoulders. For a second didn't say anything. When he did, the reply somewhat startled me.

"No reason to."

My brow furrowed into a scowl at the measly answer.

"I enjoy the silence," he elaborated with a small smile.

It was difficult not to grin at his ironic situation. "But silence and Shannon don't go together. I'm sure you know that by now."

Gage chuckled and scratched his jaw as that familiar sensation settled over me again.

"You'd be surprised how quiet she is around me."

He added a wink at the end, and the implication almost made me gag. It surprised me that Gage would act like a normal guy. The usual silent, foreboding demeanor almost had me think better of him. Almost.

Shannon and Jenn appeared a moment later and walked outside on the patio. They both stopped for a second to share a word with Ryder, and Gage followed my gaze.

"You don't seem very fun today Angel. Do we have to drag it out of you?" My eyes snapped back to Gage, who then held a blank look.

The disastrous rogue crept into my thoughts at Gage's words, the memory of when Ghost snuck into my bedroom.

Ghost and Gage? Were they. . .the same?

Oh, no.

Hell no.

That wasn't possible. In fact, that was impossible. No, there was no way he was Ghost.

Right?

Wrong.

My thoughts sang the word repeatedly as joyous as someone would sing a Christmas carol. Shannon and Jenn sat down at the table a second later and Ryder came back as well with Hunter just on his heels. I continued staring at Gage. He made no move to break the contact. Each second that ticked by came with the same words over and over.

My villain is my best friend's boyfriend.

My?

"Angel and Gage are in a staring contest! Look how concentrated they are!" Shannon squeaked aloud, making me blink several times.

"Guess Gage won," Ryder said.

Shannon threw her arms around Gage's shoulders and planted a small kiss on his cheek.

A sudden squeamish feeling flared in my gut at the sight. If they were the same person. . .

I'm gonna hurl!

"I'll be right back." I shot from the plastic patio chair and briskly walked into the restaurant. Thousands of tables and chairs seemed to appear out of thin air, blocking the path to the bathroom. While shuffling around them, a sudden spike of frustration made me kick a chair over roughly. The act received a few disgruntled glances from other customers.

After giving a sheepish look of apology, I righted the chair and continued onward. The nauseous feeling didn't seem to fade at all, but grew with each step. My stomach swirled until I imagined it was like churning a milkshake in a mixer.

The entire thought was so surreal, so jaw-dropping. I only found that out after reaching a hand up to cover my mouth, only to realize that it nearly touched the floor. All this time it was him, and it made everything feel. . .weird.

The door swung open with more force than I initially intended. A loud bang resounded. I jumped in surprise.

With a deep breath I stood tall, looking into the mirror. Even though a wired feeling took over my body making my fingers jump about wildly at my sides and my eye to twitch, I looked presentable. My plaid button up was slightly crooked but besides that everything else looked okay. I just needed a breath away from them. That was all. Some clean air that hadn't been infected by Gage.

I strode out of the bathroom and immediately bumped into something solid. Taking a step back, a pair of mysterious gray eyes locked with my own in the dim lighting. So much for clean air.

Those gray eyes swirled like a tornado, asking without actually saying, What the hell was that?

"What the hell was that back there?" Gage hissed, mirroring my thoughts.

"I know you're him," I replied haughtily, and pinched my face up for effect.

Gage's confusion turned to a scowl, eyes clouding over like it was about to rain in their deep depths.

"Him who? What are you talking about?"

"Don't play dumb, Gage. I know you know that I know."

I crossed both my arms authoritatively. His blank look penetrated my brick wall of sureness, making the top crumble just a little. I was right, wasn't I?

An incredulous look formed on his features at the accusation. "Know what? All I know is you were staring at me back there like you saw a ghost."

I laughed bitterly and poked his chest. Oh, I had definitely nailed it that time. Gage couldn't fool me any longer; he sealed the deal with the last comment.

"Nice choice of words, tough guy. I know who you are now and I could turn you in."

Gage's jaw dropped, and a second letter he scrubbed a hand down his face.

Got you now, bitch. That's what you get for thinking you could just up and leave me, I thought.

My wall fell a bit more with my sudden vulnerability popping up inside me. Where had that come from?

Gage pressed his fingertips of both hands together, shaking both of his hands with each word slowly, giving proper enunciation.

"What. The. Fūck. Are. You. Smoking?" His hands suddenly flew into the air and I jumped back. "You're the craziest bitch I ever met!"

The foothold was lost after that. My bricks crumbled even more, failing from the weak foundation that had been plastered on them to hold everything together. What if I had made a mistake? Oh God, it was like the day I thought Hunter was Ghost. My fingers pressed against my mouth to keep it from dropping.

How humiliating.

Gage was definitely not Ghost. How could I not tell by the voice? It had been a while since seeing him but even I should remember his voice.

How aggravating, trying figure out if the two voices matched. What if he was disguising his voice? It would be a question to ask if ever seeing the guy again.

Next time Ghost dropped by we were going to have a long chat.

If he ever came back.

The thought brought an unexpected heavy feeling. As if a rock slowly pressed down on my lungs forcefully. That vulnerable feeling came back, making me panic with uncertainty. What would Shannon think when Gage told her that I accused her boyfriend of being a Superhuman criminal? She would be elated with the Superhuman part, for sure. The criminal part? She would never forgive me for such a deranged idea.

Gage continued staring down at me with a terrifying scowl. I gulped under his gaze, feet shuffling. Would apologizing make the situation less antagonizing?

"Sorry?" I tried, tucking a wisp of hair behind my ear.

The movement redirected his gaze, something flashing through his stone-colored eyes. The flash was too brief for any real decoding of the emotion.

"Whatever. I'm starving." Gage turned without a second glance, and left on that note.

My fingers scraped through my hair, as if trying to pull out these crazy ideas from the roots on my scalp.

Madness.

That was all that night had brought so far.

_________________________________________________________________________________

After eating dinner, we all walked over to the theater. Gage was sure to remain a good fifteen foot distance between anything Angel-related. I didn't blame him. It sounded like I had a mental breakdown back there. Accusing someone of something that they had no idea about? If I didn't get a hold on my mouth, I was bound to be thrown in an insane asylum.

Once inside the theater, we sat in a line that consisted of Gage, Shannon, Jenn, Ryder, Hunter, and then me. Gage had purposefully chosen the farthest seat away, bribing Shannon to not sit by me with a large bag full of buttery popcorn. No surprise there. The farthest seat, I meant, not the popcorn.

The movie was about halfway through when it grew awfully tiresome. It was similar to the one Shannon and I had watched the other night, not living up to its four-star rating either. Superhumans were the basis of too many films.

Skillfully, I pretended to have an itch on my ankle to look down our row. Shannon had herself leaning against a bored-looking Gage. Her hand slid down his chest, and that was signal enough for me to look away from those two.

Jenn had her hand over Ryder's side of the armrest, basically in his lap. I turned away from them as well, already regretting the 'fake itch idea' with the stomach-rolling sights.

Leaning back in the chair and forcing my eyes to stay open was difficult. A small chuckle came from the right, and I glanced over at Hunter.

He leaned over so his lips were right by my ear. My heartbeat kicked up a few notches at the close proximity. His normal-ness affected me so much more than I thought. Maybe it was because he was an unpredictable boy and I was unpredictable to him, so we evened each other out. Now Ghost, well, he was altogether unpredictable. The reading-my-thoughts bit left no room for me to be spontaneous.

Warm breath tickled my lobe as Hunter whispered in my ear: "You just made about ten faces in five seconds. Want to get out of here?"

I bit my lip to keep from laughing and nodded. We stood up together and walked down the elongated steps to the exit. I couldn't shake the feeling of a pair of eyes on my back the entire way down, a pair of eyes that wasn't Hunter's.

As soon as the door closed behind me, a gust of wind kicked up my flyaway hair. It was already more fun out there than being trapped in the theater. Cold, but less nauseating.

Outside it was dark and quiet, only a few people about because it was the middle of many showings at that point. A few vehicles littered the parking lot of the movie theatre. Moonlight shimmered prettily on my little Mini Cooper, reminding me why I had invested in the beautiful car. I sighed in content. What a beautiful night. Hunter stepped out of the door behind me, an easy grin forming on his mouth. He had been trailing me by a couple steps as I had basically ran out of the theater.

"Sorry. That movie was pretty boring," I said sheepishly.

Hunter shook his head.

"Nah, it sucked."

We both laughed with delight. How refreshing to not be the only one who thought as much.

The wind picked up again, sending chills racing everywhere along my skin.

"Want to go sit in my car?" I asked, already pulling out the keys.

"Sure. Nice lanyard," Hunter snickered and gestured to my Batman lanyard. "At least you have a good taste in Superhero's if not music."

I smiled, remembering the night Vigilante drove me home.

No.

No, no, no.

No more Super humans. One mix up was a mistake not to ever happen again.

I shook the thoughts away and strolled over to the car with Hunter in tow. The doors unlocked with a small click and we both dropped in our seats.

Hunter peeked out the windshield, looking up to the sky. "Look at that star."

Searching the dark abyss, I couldn't find a single light. I was tempted to just agree with him, but if he asked me something more about it, I wouldn't know what to say.

"Hunter, I don't see any stars."

"I do," He whispered, drawing my attention to his face. "And she's beautiful."

The words brought a sweet smile to my face. Cheesy made me weak. That line was equivalent to Kraft Mac. My heart began to beat faster. Hunter's eyes held a certain twinkle that didn't allow room for me to think twice about what was happening. What girl would want to think twice about a boy who called her beautiful?

In a split second I leaned toward him, Hunter angling over as well. Just before his lips were about to come crashing against my own, a phone screamed out a series of beeps in between the two of us.

We both jumped backwards. Hunter banged his head against the roof and my elbow jerked into the horn on the steering wheel.

Hunter groaned and rubbed the top of his head while I fumbled for the wailing device.

"Hello?" I said frustratingly into the speaker, digging five fingers through my hair.

"Hey, it's me, Shannon. Where did you guys go? The movie just ended and we can't find you."

Her voice crackled through the speaker once, and a soft giggle came from the background. I rolled my eyes at her, knowing full well she couldn't see.

"We're out in the car, Shannon." I gritted it through clenched teeth but it didn't seem that she had caught on. Hunter chuckled from the opposite seat.

"Okay we'll be there soon. Jenn said she can give Hunter a ride since it's on her way, and you only have to take Ryder then."

"Got it."

I sighed, and hung up the phone. With a growing amount of frustration, I dropped the device in between the two seats in the cup holder.

The car grew silent again. That time it was out of sexual frustration. It was possible to feel it in the air. I propped an elbow on the door to keep from punching out at the window or slapping the steering wheel like a crazy woman. The normal moment I had been hoping for all night had been tossed in the garbage carelessly by Shannon.

"Well, Shannon is definitely a murderer." Hunter said casually.

"What?"

"She killed the moment." He grinned, making me chuckle.

"She didn't mean it. You know how she is."

"Yeah I know," he breathed, looking out the window. "I guess I just wish it could happen again."

I stared at Hunter the longest time before he turned back. "I thought we were just doing this as friends?"

He smirked, and I raised a brow in return.

"Friends can kiss."

The underlying meaning was dangling over our heads like a mistletoe. Hunter seemed to be waiting for a reaction or perhaps waiting until I just jumped into his lap right there.

A tap on the glass brought us back to reality. Ryder was on the other side of the passenger door, sending a small wave through the window.

"That's my cue. See you later?" Hunter had his hand on the door handle but he really seemed to be holding on to my choice of words.

"Yeah, I'll see you on Monday," I said with a smile.

Satisfied with the answer, he opened the door and got out of the car. I watched him walk in front of the car and over to Jenn's white jeep.

Such a shame to see such a handsome boy walk away.

Ryder slid in the passenger seat and shut the door. The smell of Axe body spray replaced Hunter's heady musk. Depression tickled its way into my senses.

"Thanks for taking me back to the school," Ryder said right away.

"It's no problem. On my way and all."

"I know."

With a twist of my wrist I started the ignition and pulled out of the parking lot.

"Wait, how do you know that?"

"Shannon told me." He replied swiftly and turned to look out the window. I side-eyed him before shrugging it off.

"So what do you think of Hunter?" Ryder tried to start a conversation. The ground he was walking on wasn't where I wanted to be.

"He's a good friend. How did you two meet? Isn't he new?" I changed the topic as if I was the most suave girl in the city.

"Gym class. You know how 'us guys' are so competitive." Ryder used air quotations, earning a snort from me from the gesture. "Yep he's a good guy. Pretty secretive sometimes but he's cool."

"What do you mean, secretive?"

Ryder shrugged, searching for words. "Doesn't. . .tell much about himself."

"Maybe he's just shy," I volunteered, finding it my duty to defend Hunter.

"Maybe," Ryder murmured, and the car grew silent again.

By the time we pulled into the school parking lot it was 9:30 p.m. Ryder's deep blue Corvette sat alone in the lot. Clearly, his parents had money. Just the same as Jenn and Gage, it seemed.

"Nice car," I offered up as Ryder looked at it out the window.

"Thanks," he drawled out, reaching to open the door.

He froze in his position, shoulders somewhat tensed.

"Ryder?

"Don't go out and do anything stupid, Angel. Hunter is lucky to have met you."

The words held a slight tone to them, enough to make me cock my head to the side. "Uh, alright, I won't. We're just friends, though."

Ryder muttered something between his breath low enough I could not hear. He turned back to face me, forest green eyes blazing in the dark. "Good night, Angel."

A closed-mouth smile pulled on his lips. Ryder opened the passenger door to step outside.

I stayed in the parking lot long after Ryder had driven away, pondering the meaning of his words. The expectations I had for that night did not align at all with what had really happened. Sure, there wasn't a single shoulder glance to look for creepy clowns, but it may have been the fact three grown men were always at least five feet away and would probably attack on command like a dog.

That night didn't make Hunter and I a couple, did it? Ryder must have seen something to give him the impression I was just as interested in Hunter as he was in me. Was Hunter interested in me? Or vagina? Maybe I was giving him less credit than he deserved but I had never had much faith in the male species. Perhaps Hunter was a good man. Did I want that?

As sweet as a guy like him was, the commitment seemed similar to that of a ball-and-chain. Especially after Dean's malicious stunt for self gain, I didn't think I could find it in me to hand out my fragile, newly-fixed heart.

So I pushed the thought away, instead replaying the night's events over and over in my head like a slideshow on repeat.

I was left utterly confused, dumbfound, even startled by three high school boys in one night. All in the span of six hours.