MUSIC: Missing Pieces by Flawed Mangoes

Evan

"What's wrong with you?" Celia leaned against the locker next to mine, brushing away a strand of her golden hair away from her face. "Care to share what's on your mind?" She had her blue eyes examining my every move ever since this morning. I shrugged and kept silent while I deposited my text books inside my locker. Celia still doesn't have a single clue that the girl I was in love with was definitely CJ.
That kiss we shared at the banner assembly yesterday still lingered in my mind. I couldn't stop thinking about her after that. Especially with what she just told me.

Trevor McAllister.

My blood boiled at the sound of his name. It was like a jab in the heart. No, scratch that, I felt like my insides were gutted with a knife. It wasn't clear enough, because why would she let me kiss her in the first place? That only meant one thing.

She had feelings for me, too.

"Evan, I just asked you what's wrong?" Celia asked, snapping me out of my thoughts. She moved a little closer to me.

"Uh," I said, thrown off by her proximity. Then, seeing her wry expression, I pulled myself together. "I'm just tired, that's all."

She scooted over to me to give me a hug, pressing her head to my chest. Her soft, petite frame warmed me, although it wasn't the same warmth whenever I had CJ around me.

"Look, you can come over to my house tonight so we can talk," she offered, looking up at me, slightly biting her lip. I pushed her away gently, her face shifted into a frown. "Damn it, Evan," she muttered. "I'm just trying to help here. I know you're going through something right now."

I turned to her and sighed. She looked up at me with her sad blue puppy dog eyes. There she goes again. I honestly felt really bad for Celia. She was one of the sweetest girls at Bonita Verde. She wasn't the usual rich, blonde, bitchy character you knew in every story. Celia was different. But I couldn't help it if I don't feel anything for her at all.

"I'm sorry, Celia," I whispered. "I really am. Don't worry about me. I'll be fine. Thank you for your concern."

Celia wispily smiled and happily linked her arm with mine, giving me a quick peck on the cheek. As I was about to say goodbye to Celia, I saw CJ standing just a few feet from us, with wide eyes, and as soon as our eyes met, she slipped away as fast as she could. When I saw CJ's hurtful look, I knew something was up. I really needed to talk to her before it was too late.

"Hey, Celia, I'll catch you later, okay?"

"But, Evan—" Celia grabbed my arm.

I quickly untangled myself from her and squeezed through the crowd trying to catch up with CJ. I saw her walking towards the school library.

"CJ! Wait up!" I ran up next to her.

She was wearing dark gray skinny jeans, white tank top, her usual dark gray converse shoes and as well as her ball cap in reverse. She glanced over at me, shaking her head in disbelief. She stopped dead in her tracks and whirled around, anger clouding her face.

"Evan, why are you following me?" She brushed the hair away from her eyes. "Are you really that desperate to get into my pants?"

"No, because I simply want to know the truth." I said, planting both my hands on her shoulders.

"You already know the truth," she rolled her eyes. "Just leave me alone, von Detten."

"Here, let me carry those." I quickly took all the books from her arms.

"Evan," she groaned. "Give them back!"

CJ and I started running around in circles in front of the library, hoping she could get a hold of her books. But I wasn't letting her. Not a chance.

"Evan, it's getting late," she slowly came to a stop, placing her hands on her knees to catch her breath. "Come on, I need my books back. Now."

"Nope, not until you say the magic word." I gave her a playful wink.

"Oh, shut up," she rolled her eyes at me and began trudging towards the library. "You know what? Whatever. You can follow me if you want."

Yes. This was definitely a sign from the gods. This was perfect. We both stepped inside the library. Luckily there weren't a lot of students inside at that hour. CJ remained quiet as she looked for books that she needed.

"Stop looking like a little lost puppy," she hissed over her shoulder. "Stop following me."

The librarian sent us a fleeting glance from the counter where she was sitting at. We ended up walking at the very back of the library where it was a little dim due to one of the lights being busted. The place kind of set the mood for us. Now this is what I'm talking about. Perfect timing. Definitely a sign from the gods.

"I'm not going to stop, you know that, right?" I whispered. "You mentioned earlier that I could follow you if I wanted to."

She looked at me with a defensive expression registered on her face, but she remained silent. She continued to scan the whole shelf, tapping each book with her index finger. While I trailed along, I couldn't help but play with her straight dark brown hair. It was soft and smooth, and the faint scent of her shampoo relaxed me a bit.

She whirled around, swatting my hand away. "Can you stop doing that? It's annoying. I don't like people playing with my hair. Kindly keep your hands to yourself, that would be great."

"I'm sorry," I offered her a cocky grin. "You're just too freakin' serious. You gotta lighten up."

She shook her head resolutely. I heard her mutter the word asshole.

Yeah, that would be me.

"Why do you hate me so much anyway?" I said quietly. I was standing really close to her. She turned to look at me with a smirk on her face.

"I don't know," she shrugged, narrowing her eyes at me. "Maybe you can answer your own question."

"Look, I'm dead serious, CJ," I whispered, moving my body closer to her. I let her smart-mouthed comment slide. She looked up at me but shifted her gaze right away to the side, avoiding further eye contact with me. I felt so hot by the minute. The tension pulled taut between us. Being so close to her was making my body all tingly and warm. It was sure damn hard to fight the urge to kiss her.

Oh, fuck this.

I moved closer, seizing her by the hips. She gently placed a hand on my chest to stop me from what I was about to do. She knew what was coming.

"Wait, what do you think you're doing?" Her voice was still low.

My mouth glided over to her ear. "Ever since that day you kissed me," I whispered, my hand moving slowly up her back. "I couldn't stop thinking about you."

I wanted to see her reaction. Her face softened up as she looked up at me. She closed her eyes as I moved my mouth over to her neck, giving her a kiss just down below her collarbone. She slowly wrapped her arms around my waist. I could feel her heart drumming against mine. Taking in her sweet scent of strawberries, and the softness of her hair beneath my fingers were enough for me to stay in that position forever.

She let a groan escape her throat. "Evan, please... You know I have a boyfriend."

"I don't believe that." I brushed my mouth over to her chin, blocking out the rest of her words. My lips slid down to her throat, kissing her until I made my way down to her chest.

"Evan, stop." she said in protest, her voice was a bit raspy.

I pulled away after she told me to stop. I slowly backed up to give her some space. She quickly fixed her top, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. She couldn't look at me at all.

Her face was red.

I laid a hand on the back of my neck. "CJ, I understand why you picked Trevor over me," I finally conceded. "I'm sorry I was such a jerk to you after all these years."

"So, you just realized that right now?" Her eyes turned into slits. "If you weren't such a jerk to me..." she trailed off, pressing her lips together in a tight line.

"If I weren't such a jerk to you, I'd have a chance?" I asked. My voice was a little hopeful.

She shook her head and wiped the spots below her eyes with her fingers. I leaned my back against the bookshelf. "Evan, I already told you that I have a boyfriend. Now please stop with—"

"My irresistible kisses?" I finished for her, hoping it was the same reason as hers.

She blushed. Her eyes flickered with embarrassment. I finally caught her. She rolled her eyes. "Yes, your irresistible kisses."

"I knew it," I snickered. "You could never resist my charm, CJ."

I moved closer to her, resting my hands on her hips once again. I gazed down into her dark brown eyes then shifted to her luscious lips.

"Evan," she swallowed nervously. "Please, I have a boyfriend. I don't think Trevor will appreciate the news if he ever found out that his girlfriend was playing tongue hockey with another guy in the back of the library."

I grinned, lacing our fingers together. "If you have a boyfriend, then how come you're still here with me? You should've left when you had a chance."

She blinked. "Now how the hell am I gonna get away from you when you're blocking my every move?"

"Just admit it, CJ," I said, my right thumb brushing her left cheek. "I already know that Trevor is not your boyfriend."

"He is my boyfriend." She retorted. I honestly don't understand how many times she needed to tell me that? After she kissed me at the assembly, I've already known the whole truth. I'm not buying any of this Trevor is my boyfriend act.

"Okay, if you do have a boyfriend," I pulled her by the waist closer to me so our faces were inches away, our lips hovering over each other. "You wouldn't be here doing this." The rush of my breath caressed her lips as I spoke right against her mouth.

My lips came crushing down on her and this time she wasn't able to resist. She brushed her fingers through my hair and smoothed her hand over my shoulders, pressing her body against mine. I've never felt like this for a long time. CJ was different. How could I not see what was in front of me after all those years? All the girlfriends I've had in the past were nothing compared to her. It was pure luck that I was sent back here in the states after eight years of living in London.

Who knew I would ever fall for her?

"CJ, just let me in your heart, please. I know deep down, you love me, too." I whispered in between kisses. One hand was propped in the small of her back while my other hand cupped her cheek.

She kissed me back forcefully, our tongues intertwining and I knew right away her feelings for me was mutual. My body ached for her, so there wasn't a damn good reason to stop. Suddenly, as if on cue, we heard voices coming from the other side of the bookshelf. We immediately disengaged from each other, breathing heavily. Without saying anything, CJ immediately reached for her bag and left me at my spot.

Closing my eyes, I leaned my head back at the bookshelf. I couldn't stop a facetious smile from spreading across my lips.

I didn't bother chasing after her.

Why?

Because I clearly got my answer.

*

"Pay up, bro!"

Lance's head shot up from our game of foosball, his eyebrows furrowed as soon as he heard me say the words. "Woah, why should I pay up?"

I stopped, raising my eyes to the ceiling. "She's in love with me."

He raised an eyebrow. The sucker probably didn't see that one coming. "And how the fuck do you know that?"

I shrugged. As he glared at me, he took out his wallet and handed over a hundred-dollar bill. He looked awfully pissed. "That's all for now. I'll pay the rest later."

"What? You don't believe me?" I grinned. Lance threw me a quizzical look. "Come on, bro. It's none of your damn business how I found out."

He gaped at me in astonishment. "So, did you fool around with her? You know, got her into bed?" Taking my silence as hesitation, he added quickly, "You're my best friend, Evan. You can tell me anything."

I flipped him the bird, refusing to answer his question. "Fuck you, loser. I ain't telling you shit."

I would do anything to avoid answering Lance's questions. Pretty soon he'll get to the bottom of this and I know he'll probably jeopardize my chances with CJ. Everything will be burnt toast before I know it. I couldn't let that happen.

Lance's face turned dark. "Remember, Evan. The bet's not over. You know that, right?"

I glared at him. Of course. The bet's not over. He still wanted me to break CJ's heart at the end of Senior year.

*

My aunt called that night. I was already in bed at eight in the evening. I know, it's a bit early and guys like me were usually still up until the wee hours of the morning. Lately, I didn't really feel like partying.

"Uh, hey, Aunt Audrey," I said over the phone. I glanced over at CJ's bedroom window. She still had her lights on and I could see her shadow moving around inside. "What's up?"

"I'm asking you, what's up?" She tossed the question right back and laughed.

"I'm doing great, thank you," I smiled. My eyes were still glued to the window. "Hey, Aunt Audrey?"

"Yes?"

I swallowed the lump lodged in my throat. Should I tell her? Probably not. Aunt Audrey usually talked to my grandmother a lot, and knowing her, she was quite the talkative aunt.

"Uh, I really like this one girl from my school and I was wondering..." I paused, momentarily losing my courage. "What would be the perfect gift I could give her?"

My aunt giggled from the other line. This was the first time I've opened up about my love life. "Evan, are you finally in love?"

I felt my face warm up. Of course she had to ask. All the girlfriends I had in London lasted for a few months, and the shortest was a week. Nothing serious, really. You could say I had commitment issues. But this time, I was positive that CJ was the one.

"Oh, just perfect," my aunt cooed. "Celia would love what you're about to give her."

I rolled my eyes. "No, it's not Celia, Auntie. It's someone else."

"Oh," she cleared her throat. "I'm sorry. So, who's this girl we're talking about? Is she from your school?"

"She's a childhood... friend," I lied, looking up at the ceiling. More like childhood enemy. "And yes, she goes to my school."

"Well," aunt Audrey started. "I met this pretty young lady at a friend's party last week and she showed me pictures of the customized jewelries from her mother's business. They're absolutely gorgeous!"

"Uh, jewelry?" I scratched my chin. I seriously have no idea what to get a girl since I clearly sucked at the gift giving department. "I guess, that'll work."

She gave me the phone number right away. After hanging up, I stared into the numbers scribbled on to the piece of paper. It was still early, so I picked up my cell phone and started dialing the number. After a few rings, a sweet girl's voice answered.

"Hi," I swallowed nervously. "Is this Ms. Beverly Stanton?"

"Yes, this is she. How may I help you?"

A/N:

Special thanks to my buddy Noelle @hepburnettes for letting her baby Beverly (NO SPARKS REQUIRED - 2011) appear as a special guest here. <3

XOXO Katie