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 Five: Lines in the Sand
"Luke! Caffeine!!!!" Rory yelped as they walked into the diner. "Please I am begging you. It's been nineteen hours and I'm dying here!"
"Hi sweetie." Lorelei turned and laughed at her daughter. "You really are turning into me." Luke handed her a mug and she studied it before she began gulping the liquid down. "Although I am a little irked that Luke never gives you a hard time." She turned and faced Luke holding up an empty cup. "What is she special or something? I have to beg for an hour every morning and you just hand it over to the munchkin! You are evil."
"Back up slowly and no one gets hurt." Rory whispered to Tristan.
"Werewolf stage."
"You ain't seen the half of it. Very little can stop her tirade now."
"I sit in here every morning an listen to your `it will kill you one day' speech. Did I miss you getting elected Surgeon General by the way, cause I don't remember you being named advocate of the caffeine addiction cause? Finally after an hour of groveling you give me one measly little cup, one, before the whole process begins again. It would be so much easier on you to just fork over the pot and chalk it up to your sanity and mine but no you have to go all terminator and be all grumpy and guard the coffee. What you going to get a big gun and bad shades now and start telling people `I'll be right back' in really bad English?" Tristan was fighting to stand he was laughing so hard as Lorelei's hands were thrown frantically around to illustrate her point. "I'm going to call the Columbians, the coffee cartel will take care of you. Refusing to sell their product, what are you thinking? They'll come in here with Uzi's and usurp your power and let me have all the slow roast I want, you coffee Nazi! That will show you! How are you going to make money when they tell you that you can't serve coffee anymore? Half your income comes from my addiction you hypocrite. I will just find some nice coffee man to serve me my coffee every morning and then where will you be? Maybe he'll even hook me straight up to an IV and then I won't have to ask. I can just hit that little button like they do with morphine in the hospital and I will get a fix. Ha, what are you going to do then?" She stood up defiantly crossing her arms and facing him.
"Marry me." Luke shot out over the counter.
"W-what?"
"Finally she shuts up." He said to Rory pointing at her mother.
"She'll keep quiet if you fill her mug." Rory smiled. "For a little while anyway."
"Here." He grumbled as he filled her cup.
"Please sir may I have another?" Rory batted her eyelashes at Luke.
He groaned and refilled hers as well.
"You're right he can't say no." Tristan chuckled as they walked over to a table. "But then again I can't say no to you either."
"Really?" Rory broke a devilish grin.
"I really should think before I speak." He mumbled.
"You should probably hit the road. We've got to be back there in a few hours."
"Alright. See you in a little while Mary." He smirked as he leaned over to kiss her. "Don't drink to much wouldn't want you bouncing off the walls." He said as he wandered toward the door.
"But it's fun driving you nuts Bible Boy." She smiled at his groan.
Lorelei came prancing across the room itching for an explanation. "Spill." She giggled as she sat down. Rory broke into the story of the end of their trip and their ride back.
"Shoplifting?"
"Yep. Told them I was trying to steal a statue bigger then me, and the idiots believed him. We almost missed the bus."
"And we like him because?"
"He's sweet when he thinks no one is looking."
"Ah, can't tarnish his rep as a spoiled rich kid." Lorelei smiled.
"Exactly." She sighed. "This is going to make the entire year suck. I just made enemies out of half of the population of Chilton."
"Snobs R Us?"
"Yep."
"You'll survive sweetie, you made it this far. At least it isn't Tristan making you life hell."
"No, just Paris and the Jihad!" She dropped her head on the table.
"You better get moving. You need to get ready for school."
"I don't want to go to school today."
"Move." Lorelei pointed to the door.
"Fine. Meanie."
Rory stuck her tongue out and began her walk home to change.
Rory jumped as two arms suddenly wrapped around her stomach and pulled her back
against the owner's chest. "Morning Beautiful." Tristan cooed into
her ear.
Rory smiled and leaned back into him. "Morning."
"How are you feeling?"
"Like I lived through Chinese water torture."
"That good huh?"
"Only Chilton would expect us to come back here four hours after we got home from a required field trip." She grumbled as she closed her locker.
"Could be worse."
"How?"
"That could be decaf." He pointed to the coffee cup in her hand.
"Don't even joke. That's not funny." She stuck her lip out and pouted.
"Got Luke to give you another refill before you caught the bus huh?"
She zipped up her bag and turned to face him. "Well it seems men can't say no to me." She smirked.
He could see from the look in her eyes that she didn't really believe him nor did she understand why he had said it. She was too modest and it was one of the things he loved most about her. God help them all if she ever realized her power over men. She would be unstoppable. He kissed her lightly on the forehead. "Whatever you say Mary."
She giggled and pulled him toward their first class. "Can I get a ride home this afternoon?"
"Yeah, no problem."
"See." She smiled.
"Oh God help me." He rolled his eyes knowing the battle had begun. Tristan wasn't used to beginning out of control of anything and neither was Rory. They would be lucky if they didn't kill each other. He knew somehow deep down that he would most likely lose every battle to get his way, not that she would take advantage of him, but he would do anything to make her happy.
As they walked into the classroom all conversation stopped. Everyone just sat quietly, a few whispers here and there. Tristan noticed Rory tense at the nasty glares she was getting from Paris and her posse. He knew it wouldn't take much for to crumble. Rory took a deep breath and straightened her back. She had survived two years in this hell without breaking, and she wasn't going to let them win now. With new determination firmly planted on her face that she really didn't feel, she turned to Tristan grabbed his hand and led him to a pair of open seats behind Paris. At least this way she could keep an eye on her.
Tristan smiled, amazed at her strength. She had made a rule when she first transferred to Chilton not to let people like him get to her and she would continue to pull it off. In the end he was the one that cracked not Rory. She would always win against people like Paris because she wasn't fake.