Chapter Seven: Did I Just Give Her A Lecture?

I recall that I was driving back to my luxurious apartment.

I'm pretty sure everyone thinks it's messy, while its not that bad. The living room has a wall that's all window with a small white carpet sitting area, a black soft three person couch, and birch coffee tables.

The kitchen is basically just a normal kitchen. A marble island to eat on, fridge, stove and oven, microwave, cabinets.

I wanted to call Mary Ann Beth, apologize and make up. I, somehow, miss her. But she's in school, and this stupid bet is going on. I can't believe I shook on that.

I wanted to prove something to her because I wanted her to know I'm not a player, because I wanted to see if I could do it. But mostly, because I love her.

I pull up in the parking lot of Giant, the grocery and drugstore. I need to pick up a few things that we may need in our home. I go into the dairy section, and grab a carton of Lactaid milk, Bass is lactose intolerant but it's pretty good.

Other things I grab are a carton of eggs, strawberries, a watermelon, a box of pancake mix, Tylenol, and a 12 pack of water bottles. I'm ready to go.

I head to checkout 7, and the girl there, let me tell you, is hot. The blonde hair, brown eyes, tanned skinned girl with a name tag saying, "Lia."

"Hi, how're you?" She says, scanning my items.

"Good, how are you, beautiful?" I can't help myself, I have an urge to flirt.

"I'm good.." She pauses, and looks at me. Deciding that I'm good looking, she starts to talk again. "What are you doing, flirting with a girl like me?"

"A girl like you? You mean a girl that's hot as hell?"

She blushes slightly. "T-that'll be $36.53." She stammers a little.

I hand her two twenties. She clicks it into the cash register, then hands me my $3.47 change. "Thank you, and call me." I hand her a piece of paper with my number, and name on it.

I always carry those things around.

"H-have a nice day." She cheers out.

I say the same, and head back to my car. I don't even bother checking the time but I know for a fact that Bass is at work until nine-thirty p.m. While Sepine is at school until 4:30 because of field hockey practice.

I unlock the door, and carry my grocery bags inside. And I see Sepine on the small white carpet by the wall sized window. This time she's not wearing all black.

She's wearing a lilac hoodie, black tights with white dots, UGGS, her hair in a messy bun. She's holding a mug of coffee or tea or something, staring at the plant in front of her.

Practice must've finished early. I put the groceries down on the kitchen floor, and turn to look at her. "Why did you get in that fight? Do you ever think about your actions? Your dad is the principal, and you decide to get in trouble? Are you crazy? Can you just, just once, think about things? You can't keep doing this, they're going to be on your permanent record, ruin your chance with college. Sepine, can you just think about everything?!" I yell out.

Wait.. Did I just give her a lecture?

She doesn't look at me. All she says is, "You don't understand anything, do you, Nick?"

And that was all she said for the rest of the night, in the same position.

The morning I wake up, it's six thirty. I wake up, and look inside Bass's room, and she's gone.

Not even in the place she was last night.