“Hey Marky,” I greeted, jumping next to him.

                “Hi Shaw. What happened yesterday? Did you and Chandler leave school together?” he asked with a frown.

                “Yea! We left school, went to my house, Chandler told me a sob story, we made out on my bed, Chandler freaked out and left. The usual,” I said with a shrug.

                Mark’s eyes widened. “You made out with Chandler Martin?!” he asked, trying to keep his voice low.

                I nodded. “Yes. And apparently, I was bad at it. Like I said, he freaked out and left,” I said with a sigh. Why had I made out with Chandler? Gah. Way to go Shaw. You idiot.

                Maxx came over and, to my surprise, pretty much ignored Mark. His eyes locked on mine and he frowned deeply.

                “What happened with you and Chandler yesterday? His mom called me all freaked out. She called me and said he was limping, his cheek was bruised, he had skipped school, and he was really upset. He wouldn’t talk to her or his dad. That’s not like Chandler. He never lets his parents see him injured. He always finds a way to cover it up or a lie. What happened?” he demanded.

                I glanced at Mark and shrugged. “Nothing happened,” I lied casually. If Chandler wanted Maxx to know, than Chandler could tell Maxx.

                Maxx glared at me. “Shaw, what if something was wrong with Mark, and I knew but wouldn’t tell you. How pissed would you be?”

                I frowned deeply. “Dammit Mark,” I whined, pouting at him.

                “I didn’t do anything!” he whined right back.

                Maxx glared at me harder. “Shaw, something is wrong with my best friend. I know how protective you are of Mark, and I need you to understand that I’m the same way about Chandler. I need to know what’s wrong with him,” he said, trying to keep his patience with me.

                I sighed deeply. “Maxx, it’s not my business. It’s Chandler’s business. If he wants you to know, you’ll know,” I said quietly.

                Maxx opened his mouth but snapped it shut again. Frustration exploded on his face, but he gave me a look that said he knew I was right.

                He took Mark’s hand in his and squeezed it. “Fine. But if he won’t tell me, you will. Chandler does stupid shit when he gets like this,” he said before turning and pulling Mark away.

                I stared after them and sighed again. I would drop by Chandler’s house afterschool and see what was wrong with him.

                The end of the day came, and I walked my way to Chandler’s house. I rang the doorbell and waited until his mom answered.

                “Oh! Shaw. Hello,” she greeted with a polite smile. She stepped aside and let me into the house.

                She chewed on her lip nervously as I slipped my shoes off. “Shaw, do you know why Chandler is upset? Did someone at school hurt him?” she asked in concern.

                I shook my head. “No, I don’t,” I said with a deep frown. I hated lying to Mrs. Martin like this. She was just a concerned mother. But it wasn’t my business to tell. Chandler obviously didn’t want his parents to know.

                I made my way to his bedroom and knocked on his door. I waited a minute and listened as Chandler unlocked it.

                “I said I was fi-” He paused and glanced at me.

                “Shaw,” he said in shock. “What are you doing here?”

                “I came to fuck your mother.”

                “Her rooms down there, to the left.”

                “Oh, I knew that. I’ve fucked her before. I just forgot a condom, and came to borrow one.”

                “This conversation is getting too weird for me. Just come in,” he said, stepping aside and letting me in.

                I sat down on his bed as he shut the door. He limped over and sat next to me. “What did you really need?” he asked.

                “To make sure you were okay. You mom’s worried about you, and Maxx is really worried about you,” I said, glancing at his knee. It was covered by his jeans, but I noticed his jeans were baggy today. He usually wore nice fitting jeans.

                Chandler rolled his eyes. “Ever since I broke my arm, my parents freak out if I have any slight injury. That’s normal. And Maxx is the same way. I’m fine.”

                “Why weren’t you in school?” I asked, slightly suspicious.

                “Didn’t feel like going,” he said with a shrug.

                His bedroom door opened and his little sister, Ariel, appeared. She bounded over to him and hugged him tightly.

                “Chandler, can you move yet?” she asked curiously. I raised my eyebrow at Chandler as he blushed slightly.

                “Yes Ariel. I can move,” he growled in annoyance.

                She pouted at him. “You are so mean sometimes.” Her eyes slid over to me and she grinned and winked. “Hey cutie,” she said seductively. Jeez, the kid was 9.

                “Hi Ariel,” I said, feeling like a pedophile. Remember Shaw: If her age is on the clock, she’s too young for the cock.

                She jumped into my lap and wrapped her arms around my neck, smirking. “You’re not as cute as Maxx or his boyfriend, but you’re okay,” she said with a shrug.

                “Gee thanks,” I grumbled. Great! I couldn’t even turn on a slutty 9 year old!

                “That’s because he’s not cute, Ariel. He’s sexy. You wouldn’t understand. Now run along and go play with dad or something,” Chandler said, pulling Ariel off of me and giving her a slight shove towards his bedroom door.

                Ariel huffed and crossed her arms stubbornly. “I’m going to tell dad to let me play with you guys,” she said angrily and stormed out of his room.

                “In the words of my friend Nick: Oh my lanta,” I said, shaking my head. That kid…

                “Sorry about her,” he said with a shrug.

                “So, I’m sexy?” I asked, waggling my eyebrows.

                Chandler nervously shrugged. “Whatever. You are,” he said honestly. “But, I don’t want a relationship with you Shaw.”

                My face fell. Well, hey there. Way to slap me in the face with your words, you sexy thing you. I definitely hadn’t been expecting that.

                “Not saying dating you would be a walk in the park for me Chandler, but why the hell not?” I asked, truly curious. He had freaked out yesterday, and I wanted to know why. Did my breath smell? Was my face ugly? Was my right foot bigger than my left?

                “Because I promised myself I’d stop whoring around. No more sex, no more relationships. Just done with it all,” he said quietly.

                “Chandler, I don’t think dating someone makes you a whore,” I pointed out.

                Chandler laughed bitterly. “Please, Shaw. You wouldn’t date me even if I asked you out. You know how I am. You know I’m a cheater,” he growled.

                “I know people change. I know Maxx changed. I know you could too,” I said honestly. Maybe the fact that I was crushing hardcore on Chandler was dangerous, but maybe it would be okay. Maybe he was over his days of cheating and whoring around.

                The fact was, I liked him. A lot. A lot more than I should, really. But that was up to my heart, not me. I couldn’t be afraid to take a chance, even with a boy like Chandler.

                Chandler opened his mouth to say something, but his bedroom door opened and his dad stepped in holding Ariel. He moved forward and handed a bag to Chandler.

                “I bought you some pills for the pain, Chand. Now what happened to your knee? And your face?” Mr. Martin demanded.

                “I fell down the stairs,” Chandler lied smoothly.

                “Yea, and I was born yesterday. We’re going to find out what really happened Chandler,” Mr. Martin threatened. Threatened? Promised? Eh, I couldn’t tell which one it was.

                “Daddy, can I stay with Chandler and Shaw?” Ariel asked with puppy dog eyes.

                “No. They’re playing together honey. Tell me if you need anything Chandler. And take it easy on your knee,” Mr. Martin said with a sigh before leaving the bedroom.

                I turned to Chandler. “You were going to say something?” I asked eagerly.

                “I was going to say that we’d never work,” he said flatly.

                I raised an eyebrow. “You, sir, are full of bullshit,” I said matter-of-factly. I leaned forward and kissed him deeply.

                Chandler kissed me back and pushed me back on his bed. He crawled on top of me and I tangled my hands in his hair, pulling him closer to me. He ran his hands under my shirt, making me shiver slightly.

                Chandler suddenly rolled off of me. He had that panicked look on his face again. “No. I’m not doing this,” he said, sounding slightly desperate. “I’m not doing it!”

                I frowned deeply. “Chandler, calm down,” I said gently.

                “Leave. Now,” he snapped, pointing at his bedroom door. “There will never be anything between us Shaw. So just get the hell out!”

                I sighed and jumped off his bed. “I’ll see you later Chandler. I hope your knee is better,” I said and waved to him before leaving. Oh Chandler. There already was something between us.