Chapter Twenty Four Treat Me Like A Game

My phone buzzed for the fourth time since I woke up thirty minutes ago. I knew who it was but I didn't want to reply back. I know I told him to give until the break was over but I was still mad at him for not telling me what he knew.

Jayce said he was using me but I still didn't know why. I never would unless I decide to talk to him and hope he would tell me what he was hiding.

Sighing, I picked my phone up from my bed and opened his messages.

Hey.

Are you busy?

You're ignoring me aren't you?

Cole, text me back.

I was busy but not in the way he thought I would be busy. I was consumed in my thoughts, thinking about what I should do. So technically I wasn't ignoring him.

Come to my room and we can talk.

I hit send and not even a full minute went by before his response came. He informed me he would be here in five minutes. I glanced at the time.

8:30 a.m.

I had thirty minutes to spare before I had to go to class. Luckily for me I already got ready beforehand. Cassidy went to Nolan's room to help him with some assignments. Cassidy wasn't very smart but she wasn't dumb either. She could quite useful when she wanted to be.

There was a knock on door and I waited a few seconds before I stood up and answered it. I moved to the side and he stepped inside before I shut the door. We sat on my bed and I waited for him to speak.

"Look, I'm not gonna tell you my secret but I'll tell you Jayce's."

I looked at him. "Why don't you tell me yours?"

"Because....it's not as bad as his."

I should've knew right then and there he was lying to me but I chose to ignore it. I let him lie to me but at the same time it wasn't lie.

"He's using you." He told me.

I heard that before.

I frowned. "Do you think this is funny?" I asked. "I'm being serious. What are you hiding?"

His eyebrows furrowed together in confusion. "Of course it's not funny. I'm being serious too."

I rolled my eyes. "Oh really? Because Jayce said the same thing at the Christmas party."

"He said what?"

"That you're using me as well."

He glanced away from me and then back at me. "Jayce is a lair. You shouldn't listen to him. He just doesn't want us together."

At one point of my life, I could trust him. He's never lied to me. Maybe bend the truth so he wouldn't hurt me. But flat out lie to me? No. He wouldn't. Jayce and I used to be best friend. The inseparable friends. After all we've been through, I still trust him.

"I agree with you." I said. "Jayce doesn't want us together."

"See-"

"But." I cut him off. "that's only because of your secret. So it must been one hell of a secret."

"Cole. I promise you. I'm not using you." He looked into my eyes as he spoke.

I searched his green eyes. I didn't know him very well to know whether he was lying or not. I didn't know him like I knew Jayce. Yet I chose to believe him.

I nodded my head. "Okay."

"Okay?"

"Yeah. Okay. I believe you."

He smiled. "Good because I've been waiting forever to kiss you."

I laughed a little. "Two weeks isn't that long."

"To me it was."

He leaned in and covered my lips with his. I felt a little spark but it was nothing like the brief kiss Jayce gave me and that scared me. I shouldn't feel anything for Jayce. Did I even have feelings for Jayce? Or was it just a thrill? I didn't know and I didn't want to think about it.

I concentrated on Chance's lips and willed for that little spark to explode to ease my mind. I waited...and waited....but nothing happened.

I pulled away and he frowned.

"Why'd you stop."

"I have class." I said, quickly.

He smiled. "Well after your class, let me take you somewhere."

I stood up. "Okay that'll be great."

I grabbed my stuff and we both walked out the room. I locked it and carried on. Instead of walking, Chance gave me ride. He gave me a quick kiss before I got out the car.

Cassidy was waiting by the classroom door.

"Did you forgive him that quickly?" She asked.

"He told me what I needed to know."

"And what would that be?"

I couldn't tell Cassidy what Chance said because Cassidy didn't like him. She tolerance him but she would find any reason for me to kick him to the curb.

I shook my head. "Nothing. Don't worry about. Just know, we fixed it."

She looked at me. "I bet he whispered sweet nothings to you and you believed it." She told me. "You probably fell for his green evil eyes."

"Cass.." I said, warnily.

"Okay, okay. I'll stop but if he does something let me know."

"Noted."

Mr. Chandler began class. He spoke about Pride and Prejudice and Weathering Heights.
We took notes. Well I took notes. Cassidy would ask me if she could borrow them sooner or later.

An hour later, I was gathering my things together.

"I'm heading to work." Cassidy informed me. "I should be back before ten but if I'm not Wes is making me close."

I nodded. "Alright." She was about to walk away but I stopped her. "Cass, try not to argue with anyone this time."

"She was asking for it." She said. "But I'll try to pull the claws in."

"That's all I can ask for."

She grinned. "I'll behave. I mean I have to. Wes gave me a warning. He should've been on my side. Forget costumer friendly...he should know by now there are some costumer you can't be friendly with."

She had a point.

"Try to anyway."

"Easy for you, goody-goody." She said as she walked away.

***

"So where are we going?" I asked, hopping into Chance's car.

"Well I did have something in plan for us but my mom wanted to see you."

Rhesa.

"I haven't seen her in awhile."

"That's why she wanted us to stop by." He said. "We don't have to go. I can tell her something came up and you had to be somewhere."

I shook my head. "No. I want to go." I smiled. "You don't want to go because Rhesa will tell me more cute, embarrassing stories about you."

He grinned. "Yeah. That's the reason."

We made to his house and Rhesa was at the door, waiting for us. Chance gave her hug and so did I.

"Cole. I haven't seen you in so long. How are you?"

"I'm great. How are you?"

"Much better now that I don't have to go to chemo anymore."

I smiled. "That's amazing."

We walked into the house and Chance left me with his mother to talk to his father, Leo, but not before telling Rhesa not to share anymore stories.

Did she listen to her son? Absolutely not.

We sat in the living room and talked about Chance. I laughed as I picture a little Chance in his mother's make up.

"He thought, he would gave him superpowers." She said, smiling back at that day. "He asked me why I put it on and I told him it gave me energy to get through the day."

I laughed. "That's adorable."

"Yeah, yeah." Chance said, joining us. "Laugh all you want."

As I looked at Chance, my heart sank. He had feelings for me and I couldn't tell if I did or not. If I didn't, I didn't want to keep stringing him along. I hoped I did. People made him out to be a horrible guy but he wasn't. Yeah he made mistakes, I didn't like, but he was human too.

I really needed to know what I doing. Should I end before I truly gave us a chance? Or should I keep going and hope that I fall for him?

But there was one thing I needed to ask him. When I first met him, he was rude and didn't want to let me go. He was trying to tell me about being on some list. I wanted to know what he was talking about. It's been some months now and I've been putting it off but now that I was thinking about it, I should've ask there and then. Yet I crumbled under his charms every time I spoke to him. I couldn't this time.

So when we left his house, I asked him.

"What?"

"Is there some list I'm on?" I repeated.

He shook his head. "No. Why?"

"Because you mentioned it when we first met back in August."

"No that's not what I meant." He told me. "I was trying to tell you that you were on every guy's mind. You were drunk and I didn't want some asshole to take advantage of you." He shrugged. "I guess you didn't really need my help because Levi was there."

Before I moved into the dorms, Levi made it his job to warn every guy to stop away from me. I was his little sister so of course he felt the need to protect me but that only made it more of a challenge for them. The boys. They seek the thrill of it.

"You were rude to me." I said, grinning.

"Was I?"

I nodded my head. "Very. You grabbed me."

"Well let me apologize for me stupid action and I promise it will never happen again."

There's that word again. Promise. What did Jayce say about it.

Promises were meant to be broken.

Chance stopped by the gas station to fill up and while he went inside, I opened his glovebox. All that was inside were papers and I searched through them, one caught my eye.

I looked into the rearview mirror and Chance was at the counter. I glanced down, quickly and read over the paper. I looked at the date that was on the right side of the paper.

A week before I met him at the party.

I shoved the papers back inside the glovebox and shut it as Chance was on his way back. He pumped the gas and we drove back to the campus.

Instead of going to my room, I went to his. It sounded stupid but he was hiding something. Why would he have a list of all the new coming freshman girls? It didn't make any sense.

While he talked to his roomates, I went to his room and searched for something out the ordinary. I've been in his room before but I didn't look for anything. He seemed like every other guy. Their room wasn't spotless.

I looked underneath his bed and nothing was there. I opened his drawers. Like every guy he kept condoms in there but his kept something too. I opened the black box and quickly closed it when I heard Chance coming.

I was glad I decided to take my bag with me. I shoved the box inside my bag and picked up my phone and placed on my ear.

"Are you serious?" I said to no one. I glanced up when I saw Chance by the door. "Yeah, yeah. I'm coming."

"Who was that?" He asked.

"Cassidy." I lied. "She needs me. I'm sorry I have to go."

"That's fine. Mark wanted to me to hang with him. He said I was spending too much time with you."

After saying bye to Mark, we were back into Chance's car. He drove to my dorm building and I muttered bye and hurriedly got out the car.

I went to my room and sat on my bed. Cassidy wouldn't be back until another two or so.

I pulled the box out my bag and sat it in front of me. I lift the lid off and reached inside. I picked up a paper. The same paper from the car but instead of a clean sheet it was marked. Each girl either had a green or yellow slashed through it. But my name was circled in blue.

I didn't know what that meant but I did know, he lied to me.

I reached back into the box and there was a CD. I didn't own a laptop but Cassidy did. I stood up and walked over to her side. I grabbed her laptop and sat on my bed. I turned the device on and typed in the password.

I placed the CD in and opened it. I didn't know what I was expecting but it wasn't this.

They wanted to keep it hidden and now I knew why. They lied to me.

But more importantly they treated me like a game.