Chapter Eight:
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At six, my phone pings the familiar iPhone ping. I reach my arm across the table to grab it, I've basically done nothing since getting back from school. I came home, stayed in the clothes I wore to school, flung my bag across the room, and slipped my shoes off as elegantly as an elephant doing swan lake and threw myself onto the living room couch. Been flicking through channels on the TV and scrolling through Instagram on my phone and trying to make conversation and play with Jazz. It's Austin.

Austin: Hey, practice is over. I'm going home to shower. Where do you want to go?

I stare at my phone with a stupid grin on my face as I type back a simple: Anywhere.

Austin: I'll surprise you. Pick you up at seven. :-)

I jump to my feet, instantly rushing upstairs and start rummaging through my closet for something to wear. My heart is fluttering wildly in my chest. I take a long, deep breath to calm myself.

Remember why you're doing this, I tell myself. I shake my head, grabbing an arm full of outfits and rushing to lock my bedroom door. I throw them on the bed, asking myself which outfit he would like the most. I usually dress casually. He's never really seen me in anything other than my typical jeans and tee with sneakers. I don't have time for this. I grab a random outfit: a flowy pink top and dark jeans, and I strip out of my school clothes. I get dressed in a rush and move on to step two: makeup. I keep it simple. A little bit of powder, some eyeshadow, and nude lip gloss.

I look over on my dresser for something a little bit extra and finally conclude what that extra was--two simple silver bracelets. I slip them both onto one of my wrists. I ruffle my hair a bit to give it some volume. I also grab from the dresser a bottle of my favourite perfume and spritz it twice on my neck and once on wrist. As I'm rubbing my wrists together, I search for something to put on my feet. I end up settling for some black ankle boots, and I trip over my own two feet in the process.

When seven'o'clock rolls around, I can hear an engine zipping up my street. As it nears my house, I can hear it begin to slow down. Oh, my god. He's here. My heartbeat has somehow worked its way up into my throat. I take a few seconds to breathe and regain my composure.

Should I invite him inside, introduce him to everyone, or should I run outside, hop in his car, and not care about the consequences?

I settle on the latter. I step outside, softly closing the door behind me. The air is crisp and refreshing against my warm skin. The wind is soft and comforting. I can see him from where I'm standing. He's only a few yards away. He's leaning against his truck, arms folded, watching me with a content grin.

"Hey," he says, eyes traveling to my shirt that is softly blowing against the wind.

My face twitches, but I hold back a smile. "Hey," I say. I push my hair behind my ears and stare ahead.

"You look good." His smile extends. "How do you feel about scary movies?"

I shrug, "love them."

"Good because that will fit perfectly with what I have planned." He winks, flashing his beautiful blue eyes at me opening the passenger side door. He motions for me to get in, and my legs feel like Jell-O as I leave the comfort of my front yard to approach his truck. I lumber myself inside even though his truck is sitting on a lift-kit, and I feared I would be too short.

He locks eyes with me once more before shutting the door behind me and rounding the vehicle to the drivers side. His truck is clean, and smells like cologne. His radio is turned almost all the way down, but I can faintly hear alternative rock music playing. I nod to myself. He has great taste. But remember why you're doing this, I tell myself once again.

He climbs in next to me, turns the music up only slightly, and throws the vehicle in drive. He rests his arm on the middle console, only inches away from mine, and I suck in a deep breath. This may be harder than I expected.

He drives for a bit, and we are both silent. Suddenly, he flips on his turn signal, and veers right. He drives up the dirt-covered path to Dyke's Drive In, a cozy little drive-in movie theater that my town has had for decades. I smile to myself, remembering all the times I've come here with Brittany, Rebekah, and my family in the past. The good days. Before Brittany turned into a total Bitchany [lololol you pick a word] Medusa? Satan? Lolo

I turn myself to Austin "You know I've not been here in years," I say, with a sorrowful sigh.

"Well, how does it feel to be back?" He smiles softly. "Would you prefer somewhere else?"

I shake my head, "no, no, this is fine. It's great, actually. I've missed this place."

We pull up next to the ticket desk where the owner, Richard Dyke, is giving out the tickets. Austin pays for two while I awkwardly glance away. Richard has been a friend of my dad's for years. I don't want him to see me.

Thankfully, he didn't. Austin finds a partially secluded parking spot and stops. I'm not even sure what movie he's brought me to see. All I know is that I am nervous, and I don't know why. This isn't like me and I do not like feeling this way. I stare ahead at the giant screen, and even though it's dark in the vehicle, I can feel a set of eyes staring over at me.

"You okay?" Austin inquires.

"I'm fine," I lie, keeping my eyes on the opening credits of the movie. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"Hmm, I have an idea of why you wouldn't be," he admits, shifting in his seat.

"And why's that?" I glare at his silhouette.

"You don't like scary movies, do you?" He chuckles.

My serious gaze breaks, and I finally smile back at him, "I'm not scared. Maybe you're the scared one. You're looking for a way out, and using me as an excuse."

He laughs again, and his arm brushes against mine. I don't move it, though it feels like I should. I have this sort of warm sensation.

"Just let me know, ya know, if you get too scared," I tell him with a giggle.

"I will," he gave in, shaking his head.

The first scene of the movie plays out on the screen, but I can't seem to focus on the movie at all. Austin is intently staring ahead, absorbed in the movie. His face is calm, his eyes are engaged, and his lips are ever-so-slightly upturned. I glance down at my feet. I shouldn't be doing this to him. He seems like such a nice guy. I bite my tongue.

"Hey, Roxanne, want some popcorn?" He suddenly asks, making me jump slightly.

"Um, yeah, sure," I agree, watching him sort through his wallet.

"Alright. I'll be right back," he grins, "let me know if I miss anything interesting."

I nod. I wouldn't know. I can't focus on this movie. All I can focus on is how terrible I am. He exits the vehicle and walks over to the snack stand at the back of the field. I watch him through the rear-view mirror as he pulls out his cash and tells them what he wants. Then, something catches my eye.

The girl working the counter, she has familiar black hair. She's very familiar. I hold back every urge I have to jump out of the truck and punch her in the face when I realize who it is. It's Brittany. Must she be everywhere I go? Why can't I catch a break?

Austin grabs our popcorn and starts back to the truck. He looks visibly annoyed from all the flirting she must have done, and I'm sure I do, too. I don't mean to be. I shouldn't be. It's all for the pact, after all. I don't have any right to feel that way.

Brittany watches his every move until he gets back inside the truck with me. I'm sure she's wondering who the second bag of popcorn is for, and I am so thrilled for that. Now, I remember why I have to do this. I have to make her pay for all she's done to me-- to everyone.

Austin hands me my popcorn and chuckles. I'm confused, and I stare over at him.

"What?" I ask.

"Brittany Johnson," he shakes his head. "She's very dedicated."

"Dedicated? To what?" I act dumb, but in my head I'm laughing so, so loudly that if I laughed out loud, one would think that I am totally insane. A mental patient.

"She just..." he trails off, "you know what, it doesn't matter." He shakes his head with a smile. "She's not — it's not mportant."

I totally agree. I chuck a piece of popcorn in my mouth and relax against his headrest. I'm tempted to get out of the truck. Fix my shoe, smooth out my shirt, anything. I want her to see me with him. I want to see that face. That priceless, humorous, laugh-provoking face, seeing it gives me lots of satisfaction.

"Hey, I'm actually sort of thirsty. I'll be right back." I open the door.

"Wait," Austin says, stopping me in my tracks.

"Yeah?" I glance over my shoulder at him.

"Here," he says, handing me some cash. "I'm taking you out. I'm buying."

I smile, my face burning, "Okay. Thank you."

I hop out of the truck, averting my attention to her. She's already staring at me. I walk in her direction, Austin's money in my hand, and smile devilishly.

"Hey, Brittany. How's it going?" I slap the money on the counter. "I want a large Sprite. Actually, you know what, make that two. Austin may be thirsty."

She glares at the money on the counter, then at me. "The only thirsty person here is you." She turns up her nose, walking over to the fountain drink machine.

"That's why you're making me a drink," I laugh, acting like I didn't know what she meant. "You're very, in the wise-words of Austin, dedicated, aren't you? To your job, to being a cheerleader, and to LOTS of other things, people, etcetera."

She glares over her shoulder at me. "What the hell are you insinuating, Roxanne?"

"Just giving you a confidence boost, ya know, for all of your hard work and dedication." I lean against the counter. "It's really getting you somewhere." I drum my fingers on the counter, waiting for her to hurry the heck up.

She brings two styrofoam cups full of Sprite to me, and slams them on the counter. "I already know it is, but thanks for the confidence boost." She winks. "Why don't you ask Austin about the night he brought me here?"

Oh, no. I stare at her, dumbfounded. Every time I've ever seen them together, Austin looked like he was in physical pain because she's just that annoying. Had I been blind the whole time?

"Have a great night," she sarcastically mutters, turning away from me and speaking to the next in line.

I feel like I am on fire as I walk back to Austin's truck. He reaches over and pops the door open for me since my hands are full, and I hand him his drink.

"Oh, thanks," he takes a sip, "Sprite. My favorite."

I raise my eyebrows at him and climb in, "cool." My tone is sharp, very unlike Roxanne Collins.

He squints at me, "everything okay?"

"Yup," I slam the door. I pop the lid off my drink and start pouring it down my throat. I'm freakin' hot. I'm unsure if it's because of jealousy, embarrassment, boiling anger, or a mixture of the three.

He glances in the rear view mirror, presumably at her, and has a look of concern in his eyes. Does he know she told on him? Probably. Do I care? More than I should.

I say nothing else until the movie ends. All I could do was think, think, and think some more. Nothing makes any sense. Does he like her, or not? Does he like me, or not? Am I wasting my time with this stupid pact?

"Roxanne," Austin says, pulling me out of my own head.

"Yes?" I clear my throat.

"I had one more plan for the night, but if you're ready to go home... which I think you are... I'll take you there instead," he didn't look away from the ending credits of the movie.

"I'm down," I shrug. "I'm fine, really."

"Okay," a soft smile picked at his lips. He switches on the ignition, and starts backing out of the drive-in.

I sigh softly. I know I'm in over my head, but it's too late to stop now. As we exit the field, I stare at Brittany through my window, and she stares back. She looks smug, and I hate it. I wish I could stamp my way to her and slap her hard.

Austin gets on the busy highway and accelerates. My fingers are still shaking. They have been since I talked to Bitchany.

"Looks like it's going to rain," Austin comments, staring up at the dark sky.

I nod in agreement. There are dark clouds shadowing the moon. "Yeah, it does."

"I love the rain," he adds. "When I was a kid, my brothers and me always made paper boats. We'd race them in the gutter next to our house." He chuckles. "Have you ever done that?"

I can't help but smile. "Um, I think so. Maybe a few times. My parents never let me play outside when it was raining. Strict."

He glances over at me, "really?"

His turning signal came on once again, and he pulled off the busy highway onto a quiet road. There were tiny pellets of rain starting to ping off the roof of his truck.

"Come on," he smiles. He switches the ignition off and climbs out. I look around, confused. There's nothing near us.

I open my door, "what are we doing here? This was your second idea? A dark, creepy road?" I jump out of the truck, landing on my feet.

"No. My second idea was to get some ice cream. You gave me a new idea." He stares up at the sky, rain hitting him in the face. "We're gonna play in the rain."

"What?" I chuckle. "The rain is picking up. Are you crazy?"

"Maybe a little," he smiles at me. "It doesn't seem like much, but you've been missing out." He walks over to me. "You'll regret it Roxanne, if you don't."

I stare at him, confused, "what do we do?"

He tilts his head back, opening his mouth. The rain hits his tongue and bounces off. He looks ridiculous.

"Austin. What... What are you doing?" I cough out before laughing hard.

"Catching the rain," he side-eyes me, keeping his tongue out.

"Seems unsanitary," I shake my head side-to-side.

"Don't tell me you're one of those germ freaks now," he rolls his eyes. He stuffs his hands in his pockets rocking back and forth on his feet.

I raise my eyebrows at him. Is he testing me? "Okay. Fine." I tilt my head back and open my mouth. I look just as ridiculous as he does. "Okay. I'm doing it. What's so fun about it?"

He drops his head, looking down at me and laughs. "You look funny."

I choke on some rain as I start laughing, too.

"Look," he points ahead.

I follow his finger and see a small body of water that is slowly filling up with rain. "What about it?"

"I bet you can't jump over that," he teases.

I scan it with my eyes. It doesn't look very deep, and it's only about five feet wide. I could jump over it, no problem. "Bet I can," I cockily snarl. I rush toward it, ready to jump, but chicken out at the last second and nearly fall into it, but catch myself.

Austin is basically cackling behind me. "What was that?!" He shouts.

"I don't know," I laugh, face-palming. "You do it first."

He looks all smug and proud now, "alright, step back, and let the master show you."

"The master?" I scoff. "I hope you fall in just for saying that." I laugh once again.

"Don't say that. I might chicken out at the last second," he smiles cockily.

I glare at him, moving out of his way. He raises his brows before taking off in a sprint. His feet leave the ground just before the body of water begins, and they land a few feet passed it. Effortlessly. You suck, I wanted to say.

"And the master has shown you. Cue the applause for Austin Spencer," he raises his arms over his head. "Your turn, Roxanne."

I sucked in a deep breath. I once won an award in elementary school for the high-jump we had during Field Day. Third place. But I didn't do so good at the long-jump. This was going to be a literal leap of faith.

I walk over to the truck so that I'll have a good running distance. I take off as fast as I can, pushing my legs as hard as I can. When the water is just ahead of my feet, I panic again. I slide on my feet, trying to come to a complete stop, but still topple into the water. The water is cool against my skin. My cute clothes are probably ruined, but I don't care.

"Roxanne, you good?" Austin asks, rushing over to me. He offers me his hand to pull me out, and I take it. He isn't expecting what comes next.

With all my strength, I pull his arm, and he falls into the water with me.

"What the hell?" He bursts out laughing, "that was uncalled for."

I shrug, smiling at him innocently, and he splashes me in the face. I splash back, and he grabs my arms, stopping me. He pulls me closer, rain pouring down both of our faces, and stares into my eyes. It's weird, because for just a moment, it feels like time is frozen. The rain pauses in the sky, the water around us calms, and it was just him and I.

Then, I see Brittany's face in my mind, and the rain starts crashing down again.

Austin breaks his gaze from mine, glancing down at the bracelets on my wrist. "What is bothering you?"

"What do you mean?" I play dumb.

"What just stopped you from kissing me? I know you thought about it," he smirks, tilting his head to the side.

I swallow hard, shifting away a bit. I can't tell him the truth. "What makes you think I was going to kiss you?" I playfully retort.
He bites his bottom lip, staring curiously into my eyes again. "Maybe I was just hoping you would."

My lips tremble, and my heartbeat accelerates. What about Brittany?

Austin lets go of me and backs away. Did I do something wrong? I probably did. I don't exactly have that much experience in the guy or dating categories. Austin probably had plenty of girl and dating experience up his sleeve.

"Are- are you mad at me?" I blurt out stupidly.

Austin smiles unexpectedly, shaking his head side-to-side. "Not at all, Roxanne. I'm just not sure if you're really feeling anything toward me. I don't want to overstep any boundaries. You're very hard to read."

I nibble on my lip, unsure of how to respond. Whether I want to admit it or not, there are feelings inside me that were never supposed to appear. They were not planned in the pact book. They just happened, seemingly out of nowhere.

I shake my head, stepping closer to him once more. He has his eyes on me, his smile is gone, and I don't know what I am doing, but I am doing something. I reach my fingers out, pressing them against his cheek.

"Hey," he grabs my wrist in his strong grasp, "you don't have to do anything you don't want to do."

"Okay," I stare into his blue eyes, "I won't." I lean closer to him until I can feel his breath on my lips. Then, before I know it, our lips are pressed together and his grip on my wrist loosens.

Nearby, I can hear a car approaching. Austin hears it, too, and we awkwardly separate as it passes by. I laugh, pushing my damp hair back, and climbing out of the water.

"Good thing you've got leather seats," I grin over at him, staring down at the muddy water dripping from my clothes. How will I explain this to my family?

He climbs out of the water, shaking off. "You got that right. I have some warm clothes you can change into."

My cheeks start burning again. "Oh, uh, that's okay." If I came home wearing some guy's clothing, I would be grounded for life.

We climb in his truck, and we leave the creepy little road that we now share a few good memories on.

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Heyyy long time no update? Yeah I'm very very sorry about that. There probably won't be another update for a while I have some stuff going on outside of Wattpad that needs taking care of.  Soooooo how was that?! Hope you all liked it. Thought I'd treat you guys to an extra long chapter!! Hope you liked it! I will go back again soon to edit.