All Started With A Dare

Chapter Three

three

I didn't want to wake up on Monday morning, but sadly I did. I had hoped for an excuse to miss school, such as sleeping through the whole day. To try and make this come true, is forced myself to stay awake till three in the morning watching movies.

I did feel exhausted, but I knew if any of my family walked in here and saw me awake they would force me to go to school. I close my eyes, thinking about pretending to be ill.

There was a reason I didn't want to go to school on this particular day. Other then the fact it was Monday, but I wanted to avoid anyone at school after the underwear incident. If rumours got around about me being a stalker, I don't think I could survive year 12.

My plan was to stay at home 'ill' for at least a week, and then come back hoping Trystan and Finn would have forgotten all about it. To complete this plan, I needed a temperature.

I didn't do anything stupid like sit on the roof until I caught a cold. No, I just grabbed lots of blankets from my cupboard and piled them on top of me, hoping it would increase my temperature.

I felt like a stuffed mushroom sitting curled up in a bundle of blankets, but I was sure it was working. When my door creaks open, I quickly shut my eyes and pretend to sleep.

"Jade! You aren't even up yet, you're going to be late!" I hear my mums voice scold me, and I pull my blankets tighter around me.

"Mum I feel sick," I try to sound sick, and thankfully my voice was muffled so she couldn't tell the difference. "I don't think I can go to school today."

Suddenly the blankets are ripped off my body, and I curl up into tighter ball to protect myself from the cold air. My temperature! It will go down, my mind points out.

"Oh really? You look fine to me," she raises an eyebrow, and I look up at her through half closed eyes. Uh oh. "Don't think you can steal tricks off your brother to get out of school."

"Mum," I whine. "I think I'm going to be sick."

That was a lie. I felt fine, but what could I do? I was not going as far as making myself throw up. "Oh wait I feel better," I say, smiling up at her to try and soften her.

"Up," she orders, marching out of my room with my blankets in her arms. "And don't think about skiving or I'll have your head on a stick."

"Lovely," I mutter dejectedly, trudging into my bathroom. I still felt sleepy, because if only gotten about four hours of sleep. Maybe a shower would wake me.

But after ten minutes if standing in the hot water, I still felt tired. Today was not my day, I could tell. I wash my hair quickly and get out, before I fall asleep right there.

I was still panicking about what I was going to do today, but it was a subdued panic now. If I got through the day without falling asleep, that would be an accomplishment. I dress up in black jeans and a dark blue hoodie, pulling the hood up to cover my brown hair. Maybe I could hide my face so no one would recognise me.

Callum has for once, gotten to the kitchen before me. He's eating cereal, and smiles cockily at me. "Looking forward to school today?" He asks innocently.

"Shut up," is my clever comeback. I ignore him as I make myself some coffee with plenty of sugar, but he doesn't make it easy with snide comments on how I'm going to be a social reject.

But Callum wasn't completely useless. I guess as my sibling, he had to say something comforting. After telling me Alec would publicly mock me, he takes pity on me. "In the end though, I doubt any of the populars would waste their time searching for the underwear stealer," he says, which is nice from him.

"So I'm officially the underwear stealer?" I raise an eyebrow, finishing off my coffee. It helps, because I feel more awake and ready to face a horrible day at school. Caffeine is amazing like that.

"Yeah," he sums up, just as there's a knock on the door. "Oh that must be Casey!"

Right, some other girl for him to use and ditch. To be fair, they all knew what they were in for but it was still annoying having random girls coming in and out.

I follow him to the door, wondering if Callum would even bother introducing me this time. But when Callum opens the door, he doesn't get a hot girl but Cameron instead. "Oh it's just you," he grumbles, trudging back into the kitchen.

"Hey my presence always brightens a room!" Cameron calls after him, and gets the response of a slamming door. "Well isn't he a ray of sunshine. So looking forward to school?"

I glower up at Cameron. "What are you doing here?" I ask, not in the mood for his mockery. Then again, I never was. "I need to mope about school and you're getting in the way."

"The Brooke household isn't very happy today is it?" Cameron muses, grinning. "I'm giving you a ride because Keeley said something about following her love."

I roll my eyes, knowing very well how dramatic she could be over her so called love life. I mean, she practically fell in love with every guy she sees and insists he's 'the one'. Then the next week, there's a cute brunette who is perfect.

"Ok, I'll bite. Who is it this time?"

"Finn Walters," he replies. "The very guy you want to be avoiding right now."

"My best friend has turned traitor," I sigh, grabbing my school bag. "Let's go, and hopefully survive the school day."

"Well I'm sure I'll survive it fine, not so sure about you," Cameron voices his thoughts, which doesn't exactly help me.

*

"Jade, come on," Keeley whines, leaning against the blue locker on my other side. I ignore her, ducking my head down as I slowly put my books away.

"I have to keep a low profile," I insist, tugging my hood down and shielding my face with my locker door as a group of boys walk past. "Was that the populars?"

"No it was some normal boys who now think I'm socialising with a gang member," Keeley sighs, pulling me out of my locker. "We're going to be late for first period."

"Fine," I huff, shutting my locker and shifting my bag over my shoulder. "Don't you understand I have to hide from the school population for the rest of my high school life?"

"You are so dramatic," Keeley laughs, pulling me along to Maths. Maths was bad enough on a normal day, but today I had to avoid Trystan and Finn. Scrap that; I had to avoid them for for the rest of my life. "They've probably forgotten what's happened by now, so there's no need to sneak around school."

"They still have my phone though," I point out, clutching my heart at the memory of losing my precious baby. "God forbid they watch the video..."

"I can't wait to see it!" Keeley grins, linking arms with me and tugging me down the corridors. People were giving me off glances, but I had a feeling that was from my odd attire and not because they thought I had a underwear obsession.

"You just want to see the underwear don't you?"

"No," Keeley lies, her cheeks going red. "I just think it will be funny. No other reason."

"Sure," I roll my eyes, seeing through Keeley's failed attempt of lying. I stop in front of the room we had for Maths, tugging on my hood. "Ok let's do this."

Keeley opens the door for me, giving me a pointed look and walking in. I follow her meekly, keeping my head down. The seats are mostly taken up, but the lesson hasn't started yet.

I cringe when I see Trystan sitting in the far corner of the room, chatting to some of his football buddies. He doesn't notice me but I'm not taking any chances.

Keeley moves to sit in her usual seat at the front, but I yank her arm back. "No, we can't sit there," I hiss under my breath, subtly indicating with my head towards Trystan. "Stay far away from him."

"But Jade," Keeley whines, staring wistfully over at the dark haired boy. "He might notice me if I sit in front of him. I can't give this opportunity up."

"Yeah you can," I argue, pulling towards the back of the room. "One, that's Trystan Woods and I hate to break it you but he doesn't date. And two, he's the very guy I'm avoiding right now so be a good best friend and sit with me."

She flops down on the seat, pouting sullenly. "Fine," she mutters.

I sit down, still keeping my hood covering my hair and most of my face. Everyone chatters among themselves until the teachers comes in, ignoring me and Keeley.

"Ok settle down everyone," Mr Murray talks loudly over the chatter, slamming his folder down on the desk. The class falls silent and for good reasons as well; Mr Murray was not a teacher you wanted to anger. His temper is almost as scary as his face.

"Today we'll be revising equations with- Ms Brooke what on earth are you wearing over your face?"

My eyes widen as everyone turns to look at me, and my cheeks burn with embarrassment though no one could see that. "Me sir?" I ask weakly, pointing at myself.

I see from the corner of my eyes Trystan is looking over at me as well, and I start to panic. What if he recognises me? "Do you see another Ms Brooke in this room?" Mr Murray asks coldly, tapping his fingers impatiently on his desk.

"Um no?"

"Take that ridiculous hood off your head, it's not permitted during class hours," he snaps, glaring at me. I knew he hated me since I got a C on one paper, because I was positive there was no rule saying that you couldn't wear hoods.

But Mr Murray's hawk like eyes stopped me from pointing that out. "I can't," I blurt out, biting my lip. "Over the weekend I got a condition where I burn easily... Even class lights can burn my skin."

Keeley makes a choking sound from beside me, and I realise it's her trying not to laugh. The rest of the class break into snickers, obviously not falling for my lie. "That is the most absurd and stupid thing I've heard in my life," Mr Murray seethes, and his nostrils flare unattractively. "Remove the hood now."

"But-"

"Or you get a detention."

I sigh, bringing my hands up to my hood. Detentions are so mind numbingly boring, I'd rather be labelled the 'underwear stealer'. "Fine I'll-"

"Detention!" He announces, slamming his folder down on the desk again and causing me to jump on surprise.

"But I was going to take it off!"

"Want to make that two?" Mr Murray says in a deadly quiet voice, his eyes flashing dangerously. Uh oh.

"No sir," I mutter, reluctantly yanking down my hood and patting down my hair. Everyone turns to face the front again, and I duck my head down so my hair falls around my face like a curtain.

I try to keep quiet through out the rest of the lesson, but apparently a detention isn't enough for Mr Murray. He calls one countless times to answer the hardest questions, which because I'm rubbish at maths I can't answer.

Finally, after what seems like years of torture, the bell rings signifying the end of my first period. I jump out of my seat, the first one to the door with Keeley in tow. It wasn't that I was eager for Biology; no, I just wanted to get the hell out of there before Trystan or Mr Murray could stop me.

"Woah slow down Jade," Keeley complains, planting her feet into the ground and grabbing my wrist. "Where are you in a rush to go to?"

"I just can't wait for my Biology lesson," I reply, sarcasm dripping off my words. "I want to leave before Trystan realised who I am."

"Um I think it's a bit too late for that." Keeley points towards the back of the classroom, where Trystan was walking towards us. Correction: walking towards me.

"Oh hell," I curse loudly, scrambling backwards. The classroom was pretty much empty now, except for me, Keeley and Trystan so I had no where to hide. "See you at lunch!" I whisper frantically to Keeley, and bolt out of the classroom.

"Hey! Hey wait!" Sorry dude, I ain't sticking around. I would have managed to get away, if I hadn't stumbled into someone outside the classroom.

"Slow down there," the person chuckles, and I look up to see the face of Jason Turner. On the football team, one of the populars, never talked to before in my life. I wasn't planning on talking to him either.

"Oh um sorry," I say quickly, ready to start running to Biology but it was too late. A hand wraps around my wrist, stopping me from moving.

"Why are you running from me?" I turn around slowly to face Trystan, who's raised his eyebrow at me and regarding me quizzically. I gulp, but luckily Jason saves me from answering.

"You know this girl?" He asks Trystan.

"Well I wouldn't exactly say I know her," Trystan smirks, and regards me. "But I have a feeling she wants to know me."

"No!" I squeak out, feeling really small next to tall football players. "Um I don't know what you're talking about."

Of course I did, but maybe if I played it dumb he'd think that it was someone else who had tried to steal his underwear. Fat chance, my mind sneers.

Pessimist much?

"Yeah, you do," Trystan says, looking at me as if I'm mad. "Please don't tell me you've already forgotten. I doubt any normal person would forget."

He just called me abnormal. I'm not sure what to say, and Jason decides then to leave us alone. "Anyway I have to get to class... See you late man, and whoever you are," he nods to Trystan and eyes me curiously before walking down the halls, reminding me that we are both late for our classes.

"I think you've mistaken me for someone else," I laugh nervously, my hands instinctively going up to play with my hair. A habit I had when I was nervous or uncomfortable. "I should go to class."

"No, I'm positive it was you who broke into my house on Friday," Trystan counters, his oddly bright green eyes narrowing. That must be something girls found so attractive about him. His eyes were such a nice colour, like emeralds... Focus. Jesus, I've obviously been spending too much the with Keeley. "Not many people have weird curly hair like that."

"My hair is perfectly fine," I snap, and then my eyes widen. "Er what I meant to say is, I have no idea what you're on about and obviously you're deluded. Bye."

I spin around at those words, and pretty much jog to my Biology class without a backwards glance. I pause to catch my breathe once I'm sure I'm out of sight, knowing it wouldn't make any difference considering I was already late enough. A few minutes wouldn't hurt anyone.

Well, so much for my plan of hiding for the rest of high school. After I get my phone, I was avoiding the populars. Period.

*

"What, so he gave you a detention for wearing a hoodie in his lesson?" Jordan asks in disbelief.

"Yeah, the stupid i***t always had a grudge on me because I can't do maths," I grumble, eagerly stuffing fries into my mouth to make me feel better. Food was the answer to all of life problems. "So now I have an after school detention."

"How are you going to get home?" Cameron inquires, digging into his own burger.

"Well, I was thinking you? You drove me here."

"Hell no," he scoffs. "I am not hanging around for an hour because you got yourself stuck in detention."

"Screw you Cameron," I flick a chip at him, which he should consider an honour because I don't waste my food usually. "Technically, you got me stuck in detention."

"It's not my fault you wore a hoodie today!" Cameron exclaims, obviously not impressed by the chip I threw at him. He flicks it back, where it lands in my hair.

"Yeah, because you made me do the dare, which resulted in me hiding my face with the hoodie so Trystan wouldn't notice me, and because of wearing a hoodie I got a detention," I reply smugly, picking the chip out of hair. I grab some of Keeley's salad - which she protests to as she was actually eating the stuff - and throw it at Cameron's face. No need to waste my food on him.

"That's the biggest pile of bullshit I've ever heard," he retorts, shaking his hair to get lettuce out of it. "And quit throwing food at me! It's meant to be eaten, not thrown!"

"Ok children let's calm down," Jordan says, spreading his arms out like some sort of wise guru. "Eat your food like good people."

"Shut up Jordan I'm older then you," Keeley says, flicking her blonde hair behind her shoulders pridefully. "In fact, I'm older then all of you."

"And we're all older then Jade," Cameron adds, grinning at me. I don't throw food at him again; I simply flip him the finger. "Now be a good girl," he tuts, shaking his head.

"Shut up buttface, I have more to tell you about my eventful morning," I say, glaring at Cameron when he opens his mouth to reply.

"Buttface, what a mature insult Jade," Jordan snickers, stealing one of my chips. When I shoot him the death glare, he simply shrugs. "You owe me food, remember?"

"Ok carry on Jade, what else happened?" Keeley asks, a smile playing on her lips. "It's to do with Trystan isn't it?"

"He cornered me, and pretty much said he knew I was the girl who climbed through his window to steal underwear," I sigh, and add, "For a dare. I pretended I didn't know what he was talking about, and he said it had to be me because apparently not many people have, and I quote, 'weird curly hair like that."

Jordan picks up a piece of my hair, observing it thoughtfully. "Well it is an interesting colour," he admits. I frown at my hair, not understanding how it was interesting. It was a light brown colour, but towards the ends it went a more golden blonde colour Callum and I bother inherited from our mother. It's like my hair couldn't decide what colour to be.

"Do you dimwits not see what this means?!" Keeley says dramatically, waving her plastic fork in the air so madly Cameron has to dodge it to keep his eyeballs in his head instead of speared through Keeley's fork. "He was obviously complimenting her!"

We all stare at her with flat looks, obviously not seeing what Keeley was on about this time. "Are you drunk?" Jordan asks, amusement tinging his words.

"No I'm not you i***t," Keeley sighs, face palming. "Obviously I'm the only person who understands anything remotely to do with relationships."

No one denies this, so she continues. "He was complimenting her subtly, commenting on her hair and how it's one of a kind," Keeley explains impatiently.

"One of a kind?" I snort into my fries, and burst out laughing. "Have you lost your mind? He called my hair weird, not one of a kind."

"But there's an underlying meaning to his words!"

"You over analyse things way too much Keels," Cameron complains, as if this fact was affecting him some how. "He said she has weird hair, which I can relate with, and why would he compliment her when she tried to steal his underwear?"

"Wow thanks for the ego boost," I say sarcastically, glancing over at the popular table. It was situated in the best place in the cafeteria, away from the noisy kitchens and also the smelly bins. Obviously it was littered with athletic good looking people, mainly cheerleaders and people who played sports.

Trystan was in the middle of it all, talking to Charity Beechwood. She is easily the prettiest girl in the school, not to mention she's a cheerleader and on the track team. She definitely didn't have weird hair; it fell in silky brown waves down her back, sleek and perfect.

"Yeah I don't think we have to worry about Trystan complimenting me," I say. The others gaze follow mine, and they realise what I'm talking about.

"Yeah Charity's hot," Cameron agrees, swiping my last chip and eating it quickly. I glare at him, and kick him seeing as I have no food left to throw at him. "Ow! What was that for?"

"Stealing my food and being stupid in general," I shrug, just as the bell goes off signifying the end of the lunch period.

"But Jordan stole one of your chips and you didn't kick him," Cameron whines, sounding like a five year old who didn't get what he wanted.

"Because I'm awesome dude," Jordan says completely serious, at the same as I say, "Because you're an idiot."

"You're all bullies," he mutters, and I feel his foot kick mine. "Just so we're even."

I roll my eyes and stand up, grabbing my now empty plate. "I have to get to Chemistry now, I don't want to get another detention for being late. See you guys later."

They all bid me goodbye, except Cameron who just complains about being kicked. I pause at the exit, and get that odd tingling in my neck as if someone's watching me. I look around, and my eyes catch into Trystan's.

He was still sitting at his table, but this time he was staring straight at me. When he sees me watching him, he raises and eyebrow and smirks. I flush, and quickly leave the cafeteria.