Title:
Miss Me?
Author: DaxisSteele
Rating: PG
Summary: Senior year, One bus, two enemies, 14 hours together.
Disclaimer: No copyright infringement intended. Characters do
not belong to the author.
Chapter One: Late
"Will you slow down?"
"We’re gonna miss it."
"No we aren’t we have plenty of time." She was dragging him along by his coat sleeve.
"We can’t miss the bus. They will leave us here."
"They aren’t going to leave us here. Well not me anyway. They might leave you." He smirked.
"Shut up and move your feet. If you make me miss it I will personally see to it you get run over by a steamroller. Preferably a very big one driven by a fat guy named Gary that way you will be sufficiently squished."
"Ouch."
"Exactly now move." She was weaving through the bodies in the museum. "I hate this city. People are always in your way."
"If you weren’t late it wouldn’t matter now would it?"
"Can it Tristan, you know you made me late with that stupid little stunt."
"What stunt?"
"I know you are the one who told the security guard I was trying to steal stuff from the gift shop. I would never do that." Her mind shot back to the incident with the cornstarch when she kissed Dean.
"I would never..." she just glared at him until he started to laugh. Dropping his arm she started to sprint out into the street without him in obvious irritation. "Rory wait up," he dashed after her. For someone who hated sports Rory was quick. He figured he would catch up with her in a few strides but her legs just kept carrying her down the three blocks to the bus stop where they were supposed to meet the rest of the class. She came bounding to a stop just short of colliding with Paris who was scowling at her for arriving late with Tristan in toe.
Tristan wasn’t so lucky as he crashed into Rory’s back trying to stop his long legs. Rory bounced forward off him sending Paris to the ground. "Uh, God Rory, get in the way much?" Paris chirped.
"What are you yelling at me for? He’s the one who ran into me." She pointed over her shoulder at Tristan.
"Making friends again, Mary?"
"Shut up Tristan." She scowled and jumped on the bus disappearing to the back in the hopes of hiding from everyone behind her book. Why she thought that would ever happen was beyond her. She felt a large body crash down in the seat next to her. She looked over and rolled her eyes when she met Tristan’s arrogant gaze. "Someone up there must really have it in for me."
"Aww, Mary, come on just admit you love me and I will leave you alone."
"That sounds more like the Tristan I know and despise." She sneered. "Get them to admit they love you and leave ‘em twistin’ in the wind. You should write a book. I bet it would be a best seller with Neanderthals."
"And what about you? Are you going to write the next Good Catholic Girl’s Guide to Chaste Behavior? I can see it now Chapter One: How to Ward Off Evil Men Trying to Steal a Kiss."
"Well you know we can’t all be the icon of a brainless generation. Do your groupies know you only have one brain cell?" She looked thoughtful. "Not that it matters, they probably all share half a brain cell between them. You must seem like Einstein to them. What a sad commentary on our time." She raised her book in front of her face so she didn’t have to see him.
"Really Rory are you going to sit with your face glued to that book for the entire trip back?" He pushed the book down and covered the pages with a large hand.
"I had thought about it. Definitely beats talking to the amoeba sitting next to me. Do you even know what that word means or should I get you a dictionary?" She snatched the book away from his hand and resumed her reading.
"Ouch, that hurts. I’ll have you know that I have many layers in this mind of mine."
"They’re called Menengi, everyone has them. Even guys with oversized reptilian brains like you."
"Aren’t you curious about all the colorful parts of my life you are missing out on?"
"Yeah right. You are more colorful than a box of crayons. You know that little four-pack they used to give out at Chucky Cheese? Let’s see, that gives us red, hmm, temper. Green, easy, jealous. Blue, egotistical and yellow, obnoxious. Yep I think that pretty much covers it."
"Such harsh words from my secret admirer. What’s the matter afraid I won’t ask you to the Prom? Afraid to tell me how you really feel?"
"No. I will tell you how I really feel. I wouldn’t go to the Prom with you if you were the last man breathing. I would rather go with a chimp, more intelligent conversation that way." She turned slightly away from him to end the conversation. It was going to be a very long ride home.
"Ahh, poor Mary, you know denial isn’t good for you." He laughed when he heard her growl, she looked sexy when she was angry. Her cheeks flushed with fury and her brow was furrowed together. She turned her back completely to him and drew her feet up under her as if to make her body as small as possible. "You know Rory if you wanted a massage all you had to do was ask." She tried not to groan as she felt his hands gently rubbing her tense shoulders. She tried to pull away from him but he held her steady. "I find aggressive girls so much sexier the subtle coy ones."
"Tristan, please take your hands off me." She sighed heavily with frustration. Why was her body responding to the touch? This was Tristan, his touch was supposed to make her lurch not sway gently with the movements of his hands. She hated him. ‘Maybe hate is too strong of a word.’ She had to admit he gave unbelievable massages.
Tristan smirked when he felt her body reluctantly begin to relax. He leaned forward to whisper in her ear, "now admit it. You are sitting there fantasizing what it would feel like to have my hands touching you everywhere."
"Ugh." She turned and shoved him away from her. She couldn’t help the laughter as he fell out of his seat into the isle.
"Mr. DuGrey, please remain in your seat while the bus is moving."
"Yes Mrs. Arnold." He mumbled as he climbed back up into the seat ignoring the laughter around him. Rory had resumed her scrunched posture this time huddling against the wall attempting to create as much space between them as possible. Her back was securely against the seat giving him no openings to touch her. "Somebody woke up on the wrong side of my bed this morning." The arrogant smirk returned to his face knowing that she was cringing without even having to look.
"Multiple personalities now DuGrey? You really shouldn’t be admitting that in public. What would your fan club do if they found out you were insane?"
He smiled, loving the fact she was so quick with a come back. It had been like this for two years now. He would irritate her and she would spit it right back in his face. It was nice having someone who could play this game as well as he could, it kept him on his toes.
"It would probably be a good thing for most of them. More of me to go around."
"You’re disturbed."
"Only by you."
"How long till we get home?"
"Fourteen hours."
"Ugh. I’m in Hell."
"Consider me your grace then, I’ll take you to heaven." Rory just rolled her eyes and began to ignore him amazed she ever considered him a friend. It was a difficult task for the first two hours of pestering but eventually he gave up and started to shoot the breeze with his friends. She let out a sigh of relief at the sudden peace. Digging around in her bag she found her CD player and began to tune the rest of the world completely.