“I want to try the chicken.”

            “Huh?”

            Chris ignored my confusion, jabbing his fork into my salad, and retrieving a piece of my chicken. He studied it for a moment before placing it cautiously into his mouth. After a second he made a face. “Undercooked.”

            I stared at him, trying to make sense of what was happening. Why wasn’t he angry? I’d just told him Aaron knew Shawn! There should have been some type of reaction from him. “Chris, I—”

            “Want another piece of steak?”

            “No, I—”

            “More for me.”

            My eyes widened in disbelief. Why was he avoiding the subject? Maybe he didn’t hear me right. “Chris, Aaron knows—”

            He interrupted me by yawning loudly. “I wonder what kind of deserts they have here…”

            “Mr. Heywood!” I burst angrily, setting my fist down on the table. “I’m trying to tell you something! Stop interrupting me!”

            A flicker of amusement appeared in his eyes. “Mr. Heywood?”

            I flushed, not releasing my angry gaze. “Chris, whatever.”

            “Why would you ruin a nice dinner by saying that?”

            “Huh?”

            His stern eyes bore into my own. “You know, Holly.”

            “I-I just thought you’d want to know,” I responded, my voice faltering under his gaze.

            A light sigh left his lips and he shook his head. “You really know how to ruin the mood.”

            “Sorry,” I snapped.

            He chuckled, reaching across the table to put his hand over mine. “It’s fine, Holly. Really. But since you brought it up we’re going to talk about it, and you’re going to tell me everything, got it?”

            “Well the thing is…”

            “Holly.”

            “He didn’t really tell me anything else,” I confessed, lowering my gaze to my salad plate, zeroing in on a round cherry tomato. I hadn’t really thought about what would happen after I told him. Didn’t Aaron warn me not to tell him?

            Chris squeezed my hand roughly. “Look up, Holly.”

            Begrudgingly, I did. “Aaron also warned me not to tell you he told me, so make so he doesn’t find out I told you.”

            “He threatened you?”

            “No, warned.”

            The change in Chris’s demeanor was drastic. He no longer looked lighthearted and happy. He looked angry. “It’s the same thing.”

            “No it’s not,” I protested quietly.

            “What are you talking about? Yes it is. I’m going to force that boy to tell me everything he knows.”

            I shook my head vigorously. “No!”

            “Why not?” he demanded.

            “You can’t!” I told him, looking sternly into his eyes. “He told me not to tell you!”

“So?”

“That means I wasn’t supposed to tell you, but I did because we promised, so you need to keep it a secret.”

He sighed lightly. “I can’t do that, Holly.”

My heart pounded in my chest. What was he not getting about my words? I didn’t know how I could make it any more obvious! We didn’t know what Aaron would do if he found out! “This is why I didn’t tell you Chris!” I finally said, yanking my hand away from him.

            His eyes hardened. “What is why?”

            “This!” I exclaimed, gesturing toward him with my hand. “You shove your nose into other people’s business—”

            “This is my business.”

            “No! It’s mine! I can take care of it myself!”

            “If it’s connected to Shawn, then it’s mine,” Chris stated simply, narrowing his eyes. “If Aaron knows Shawn, then he needs to be taken care of. I don’t want even the presence of Shawn near you, Holly.”

            I glowered at him. “Taken care…” I repeated in disbelief. “Shawn can’t do anything to me. He’s in jail now.”

            Chris didn’t look convinced. “I still need to talk to Aaron, Holly.”

“What about the consequences? Are you even giving those a thought?” I demanded.

            Off the top of my brain I could think of twenty different ones— the main one being that somehow Aaron could find out about Chris and myself and tattletale on us. I didn’t know for sure why Aaron thought Jeremy and I were dating, but now that I knew Aaron knew Shawn I didn’t have a doubt in my mind that it was Shawn who had implanted the idea into his head.

            “You’re over thinking it,” Chris informed me, breaking my train of thought. “You worry too much.”

            “You worry too little!” I retorted loudly.

            He gave me a warning look, telepathically telling me to quiet down. With a little bit of struggle I managed to calm myself down enough so that I wasn’t shaking in anger. A few moments of silence passed by us. I glared angrily at my food. Wasn’t he at least a little bit worried? What if he went up to Aaron, and Aaron decided to retaliate because I told Chris? What if Aaron attacked Chris for knowing? How come Chris didn’t understand that could happen? He knew what kind of person Aaron was! He knew what Aaron tried before! We didn’t know what Aaron would do to him!

            “Even in jail, Shawn is still dangerous,” Chris started slowly, pinching the bridge of his nose. “You’re a trouble magnet, Holly.”

            “You could be in trouble too!”

“But I’m not the magnet.”

I scowled at him. “As long as you don’t say anything to Aaron, we’re fine.”

            A muscle in his jaw jumped as he brought his hand back down to the table. “Holly, drop it. I’m talking with Aaron.”

            I let out a frustrated groan. “No, Chris! If you say something to him he might do something to one of us! Think about it!”

            “He won’t do anything to you,” he assured me.

            “It’s not just about me Chris! It’s you too. After last year…”

Chris’s gaze softened for a minute. “Holly, nothing like that will ever happen again. I promise.”

“You don’t know that!”

“You don’t have to be paranoid,” he insisted.

I shook my head. “I’m not!”

            “I won’t let him do anything to you,” he promised, his eyes hard. “Or me,” he added quickly when he saw my mouth open in response.

            My eyes pierced directly into his. I tried to look as serious as I could. “You can’t Chris.”

He offered me a small smile. “Calm down, Holly. It will be fine.”

            I clenched my fists. He didn’t get it. “I shouldn’t have told you,” I muttered. “I should have known you would react this way.”

            “What way?” he responded, sounding just as exasperated as I felt.

            “You’re not in a gang anymore, Chris. This isn’t how normal people settle things,” I told him snippily.

A taken aback look took over his face for a split-moment before it turned into a scowl— the kind of scowl he’d only give Shawn and Aaron. “I know I’m not in a gang anymore.”

“Well you’re acting like it!”

He shook his head. “I don’t think you understand—”

“No you don’t understand!” I cried, becoming aware of the moisture that was growing in my eyes. “You don’t get it! If something doesn’t happen to me, he might try something on you!”

“I can take care of myself, Holly. You should know that.”

“That doesn’t matter!” I protested. “Just don’t say anything, please!”

He crossed his arms. “I want to help you.”

I faltered a little bit. I already knew he just wanted to help me. But I didn’t want to put his job on the line, our relationship on the line, just because Aaron knew Shawn! “I know, Chris. But please. If anything else happens I’ll let you know, and then you can do something— I’ll help you do something!”

“I don’t want anything else to happen though,” he pointed out in an aggravated voice.

“Chris! Please!”

He gave me a wary look. “I’m doing what I want to do.”

My chest constricted at his words. Why wasn’t he listening to me? I listened to him all the time! The least he could do was respect my wishes at least once! I shouldn’t have mentioned it to him. I should have talked to Jeremy— that way it would have relieved my guilt and kept everyone safe. “I shouldn’t have told you,” I said quietly.

“You promised to tell me.”

“Yeah, I did, and I kept that promise! The least you could do is keep it a secret like it’s supposed to be!”

Now it was his turn to groan in frustration. “Please, Holly. We’re dropping this. Just eat.”

“I should have just mentioned it to Jeremy,” I muttered just loud enough for him to hear me. “He would’ve been more rational about it.”

            He snorted. “Jeremy?”

            “Yes, Jeremy.”

            “The one who punched Aaron the other night?”

            I narrowed my eyes. “You punched him too.”

            Chris set down his fork with a loud clatter. “Jeremy, huh? You go to Jeremy for your problems now?”

            “I—”

            “Fine. You have Jeremy take care of this,” he said nonchalantly.

            I blinked at him. He was okay with Jeremy doing it? It felt like a megaton weight was lifted off my chest. Jeremy would definitely keep it a secret for me. This way neither Chris nor I would be in trouble. Jeremy could handle it. “Thank—”

            “And while he’s at it, you can have Jeremy take care of you.”

            The weight returned to my chest, nearly crushing me. I inhaled sharply, my eyes becoming as round as saucers. “H-huh?”

            With his jaw clenched, Chris pushed away from the table. “You seem to like him more than me nowadays, anyway. Neither of you two would mind since you’re already dating.”

            I couldn’t move. I couldn’t tear my gaze away from his angry face. I couldn’t deny what he was saying. Panic bubbled up in me. Why couldn’t I speak? Why couldn’t I correct him?

            “Here’s money for dinner and a cab,” he said, tossing a few twenties onto the table. “I’m sure you know Jeremy’s home address.”

            My mouth opened, but no words came out. Tears sprung to my eyes again as he pushed the chair back in, keeping his eyes off of me. After a few minutes of mentally screaming at myself, I finally found my voice. “Wait, Chris—”

            “It’s cold, so keep my jacket.” With that, he turned his back on me, heading toward the front of the restaurant.

            “Chris!” I called after him, attempting to push myself away from the table as well. My legs felt like Jell-O as soon as I put my weight on them and I collapsed back into my seat. My mind was racing. I couldn’t think of a coherent thought. One question kept repeating in my head: What the hell just happened?

            When the answer hit me, it brought new tears to my eyes. We had a fight. Our first major fight as a couple. Over something completely ridiculous! I whipped my head back to the front of the restaurant, scanning for Chris. He wasn’t there anymore. I turned my attention to the pile of twenties and half-eaten plate of food across from me. He wasn’t really just going to leave me here… was he? I already knew the answer.

            He was.

            He was mad at me too.

            Doing my best to withhold my tears, I stuck a shaky hand into Chris’s jacket pocket, pulling out my cell phone. Contrary to his words, I had no idea where Jeremy actually lived— I only knew where his parent’s house was. I could go home, but my mom wasn’t expecting me and if I did show up she’d interrogate me, which I didn’t want. So I dialed Jeremy’s number, having to do it three times to get the correct one because of the quivering of my fingers. After five rings, the phone went to voicemail. I tried again, only to receive the voicemail message again. New tears sprung to my eyes and I rubbed at them furiously when I noticed a buster coming toward my table.

            “Are you all set with this?” he inquired, nodding toward my plate.

            I nodded my head in response.

            “And your date’s?”

            “Yeah,” I mumbled, my eyes dropping to Chris’s abandoned plate… Would he want me to bring it back for him? That is if he wanted to see me. No, he was the one to leave. He can waste his money. “Take it away.”

            The waiter nodded, flashing me a handsome smile. “Right away, m’am.”

            I forced a smile back before pushing myself up from the table. Half of me was tempted just to leave Chris’s coat on the chair, but I grabbed it at the last second, throwing it over my shoulder. I didn’t bother counting the money on the table— it was definitely enough for the meal and tip. Our waitress was going to be very happy.

            When I emerged outside, the first thing I looked for was Chris’s car. My eyes landed on the empty parking spot immediately. He really did leave. I bit my lip to stop myself from crying. He had every right to leave. I was the one who brought this upon us. I should have just kept my mouth shut!

            Fighting back tears again I tried one last desperate attempt to call Jeremy. Relief flooded me when he actually answered this time. “Jolly Jeremy here! How may I help you, humble Holly?” In the background I could hear people talking loudly and laughing merrily.

            “Where are you?” I questioned, trying to keep my voice as calm and level as possible. It sounded like he was out with friends.

“I’m at the pub with some friends, why? Need something I might have on me?” he hinted suggestively.

I didn’t even think to respond to his innuendo. “Oh, never mind. Bye—”

“Wait a second, Holly. Something’s wrong.”

“No it’s not, bye Jeremy.”

“Wait!” he demanded loudly. “I know that tone of voice and you don’t ignore my jibes like that! Tell me where you are right now.”

I stayed silent for a moment. “Uno’s,” I finally whispered, feeling my throat constricting again.

            “Where’s Chris?”

            “He left.”

            Jeremy was silent for a moment. “He what?”

“Can you come pick me up?” I asked, my voice breaking. “I want leave,” I continued, tears now running freely down my cheeks.

“I’m coming right now.”

“I’m sorry.”

He snorted. “Don’t be. I won’t leave you alone at this time of night. I’ll be there in about ten minutes. Are you okay for the moment? Do you want to wait inside?”

“I’ll be on the sidewalk in front,” I said miserably. “See you soon.”

“Stay safe, Holly.”

We both hung up and I slowly lowered myself to the ground, pulling my knees up to my chest, and putting my face in them. For a few minutes I breathed deeply, trying to get my emotions out of control. It was just a fight. I didn’t need to cry so much. Even if Chris was angry with me… Even though he never got angry. I bit my lip once more, this time more roughly, as my eyes watered again. I knew Jeremy was going to make me explain everything that happened and I knew I was going to cry then. There was no point in wasting my tears.

As punctual as usual, Jeremy showed up exactly ten minutes later, slamming the breaks to his car as he came across me. I stood up, opening the passenger side, and sliding in. He checked me out quickly— probably making sure I was physically okay. Uncomfortable under his gaze, I pursed my lips at him. He gave me a sheepish grin. “Just making sure no one tried to mug you during the time it took for me to get here.”

“No one did. I don’t have any money on me anyway.”

He nodded, shifting the car into drive. “Okay, where are we going?”

“Your place.”

“Your— Wait, what? My place?” he repeated, his eyes widening. “Why?”

I lowered my gaze to the dashboard. “I don’t want to go home…”

“What happened?”

An almost inaudible sigh left my lips. There was no escaping from Jeremy. So I explained what happened to him, putting in every bit of detail I could so he could help me make sense of things. Surprisingly reciting it to Jeremy made me feel a lot better— I didn’t even tear up. When I finished, a smirk was lingering on his face. I stared at him blankly. Nothing seemed amusing to me.

“What’s so funny?” I finally snapped.

He shook his head, grinning still. “It’s not your fault Chris is mad.”

“Yes it is. I insulted him,” I responded solemnly. “I probably offended him with that gang comment…”

Once again Jeremy shook his head. “No, Chris is definitely just jealous.”

“No he’s not.”

“Yes he is. He’s still angry about me kissing you today. I bet the whole thing about Aaron thinking you and I are dating was gnawing at him too. You shouldn’t have mentioned me.”

            “B-but he wanted to tell Aaron I knew! It’s completely stupid!”

            Jeremy frowned. “That’s true… I’ll talk him out of that. Unlike you, I can use violence against him.”

            My eyes widened. “No! Don’t hit him!”

            “I’m kidding,” he responded with a chuckle. “Don’t worry, I’ll talk to him about it. It’d be really stupid if he did mention it.”

“Finally someone who understands! I knew you would!” Take that Chris!

Jeremy smiled. “Although I bet right now Chris is pulling out his hair in frustration. That or he’s driving back to the restaurant to pick you up.”

            I glanced out the window. Would Chris really go back? He seemed really angry—unjustly angry. And he was the one to leave me in the first place. “Well, it’s too late now.”

            “If he calls should I tell him you’re not with me? To worry him?”

            For a minute I debated about it. It wouldn’t be very nice to do that to him, but he kind of deserved it… I shook my head. No, he didn’t deserve that. I couldn’t imagine what it would feel like if he went suddenly missing after our argument. “Let him know I’m with you.”

            “Are you sure? I can tell him you went to your mom’s…”

            “No, we’re being honest with each other,” I muttered. “Even though it’s a really crappy idea.”

            Jeremy laughed again. “Only in some situations. This is my house.”

            My gaze went out the window, where it fell on a quaint, one-story home. By the light that was lit by the front door I could tell the siding was brown and the trimming was white. The yard looked pretty well kept as well— I couldn’t see a single weed or over grown grass blade. I looked at Jeremy, impressed. “You keep your yard pretty tidy.”

            “Well if it were light out you would see my neighbors lawns and you’d understand. I think I’d be murdered if I didn’t keep my clean.”

            “It looks like an old person lives here, not a twenty year old.”

            Jeremy laughed awkwardly. “Yeah…”

            As it turns out, I spoke too soon. Jeremy’s house was a pigsty. The first room we entered was the kitchen, which wasn’t too bad. The sink was getting pretty full of dishes, but other than that it was okay. The living room floor was littered with magazines, newspapers, and jackets. The couch was covered with pillows, and about a dozen abandoned cans of Coke were on the island table. Jeremy scratched the back of his head when I cocked an eyebrow.

            “Chris’s apartment is ten times better than this.”

            “Chris is older.”

            “By like, two years.”

            Jeremy jutted out his chin. “Two years and three months.”

            I rolled my eyes. “Whatever. Tomorrow we’re cleaning this place a little bit before I leave.”

            “Okay, Mom,” he responded sarcastically. “Do you want some pajamas?”

            “I want Chris’s,” I mumbled, following Jeremy down a hallway that I assumed led to his bedroom. “Yours are probably dirty.”

            Jeremy scowled at me over his shoulder. “I’ll have you know my room is perfectly clean!”

            I gave him a skeptical look. He paused in front of a door, pushing it open proudly. Warily I moved forward, peeking into the room. It was pretty clean— aside from the few pairs of pants and socks that were scattered around the room. There was a dresser in the far right corner with at least ten different types of cologne and deodorant on it. Jeremy’s king-sized bed was settled right smack in the middle of the room, brown and white comforters and pillows on it. “Nice room.”

            “Thanks.” He went over to his dressed and rifled around in it for a few minutes, tossing me a pair of pajama pants and a shirt. “Put those on.”

            I stared at the shirt in my hand, furrowing my eyebrows. It was really familiar, but it wasn’t mine… With a gasp, I realized it was Casey’s. “Why do you have Casey’s shirt, Jeremy?”

            He smirked at me.

            I looked at him in horror. “You guys… You didn’t…?”

            “We didn’t,” he assured me with a hearty laugh. “When we went out to eat after the dance I spilled soda on her shirt so I just gave her one of mine to wear while I washed hers. I haven’t given it back yet.”

            “Oh.”

            He wagged his eyebrows. “What did you think we did?”

            I blushed, turning my back to him. “Nothing. Close your eyes. I’m changing.”

            “There’s a bathroom you know.”

            “Where?”

            “Right down the hall,” he told me, nodding his head toward the door. “First door on the left.”

            I followed his directions, finding the bathroom easily. After shutting and locking the door, I began to strip. My phone was on the sink. It began to buzz when I was halfway through putting Casey’s shirt on. I yanked it the rest of the way before snatching up my phone. The Caller I.D showed it was Chris. For a minute, I hesitated about answering it. Finally, I decided not to. I wasn’t quiet ready to talk to him yet. Five seconds later I heard Jeremy’s phone ringing. After pulling on my pants, I left the bathroom, heading back for his room.

            “Yes, Holly is with me,” I heard Jeremy saying. I paused before the door, holding my breath to listen. “No, you’re not allowed to talk to her. What do you mean why? You know why Chris. You can’t do shit like that to her. I don’t want to hear your excuses. You know she loves you, not me. It hurts her when you accuse her of something like that— yes, Chris. I was the one who kissed her. Not the other way around!”

            They were arguing about me? My heart went out to Jeremy. He was too nice.

            “And why do you think that is? No. I’m not letting you talk to her. I already took away her phone too, so don’t bother calling. Yeah, I get that. But you literally left her alone at a restaurant. That’s the worst. She’s staying with me tonight, and I’m bringing her home tomorrow so don’t worry about it. Yeah. No. No. She’s busy. Oh, I don’t know, crying her heart out because of the words you said to her. No, I’m not lying!”

            An uncomfortable feeling spread in my stomach. Chris should feel guilty about what happened, but I felt guilty for allowing Jeremy to do that to him. I knew I should cut in, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it.

            “You better not say one word to Aaron,” Jeremy threatened. “We’ll talk about this tomorrow. I’m going to check on Holly. Don’t bother coming over here. I won’t let you in.”

            Jeremy suddenly looked up, catching my eyes. We both shared embarrassed grins. I slowly slipped into the room as Jeremy abruptly said goodbye to Chris, snapping his phone shut. I cupped my elbow with my left hand. “So, um… interesting conversation.”

            “Sorry,” he apologized. “I just wanted him to think about your argument. He’ll realize what you said was more rational. He just needs some time. And he’s so jealous of me.”

            “Are you sure you should say that stuff to him though? Aren’t you his best friend?”

            Jeremy nodded. “But a best friend should let the other know when they’re wrong. Besides, I’ve never had the chance to bitch him out before. It was fun,” he ended with a wide grin.

            “I think you just made him mad at both of us…”

            “He’ll get over it, I promise,” Jeremy said, pushing himself off the bed. “I don’t know about you, but I need to take a shower because I didn’t this morning.”

            “I took one this morning.”

            He walked over to this dresser, pulling out another pair of pajamas. “Okay. You can watch T.V or something while I shower if you want.”

            I glanced at his bed. “Actually, I kind of just want to sleep.”

            “You can use my bed,” he said, noticing my stare. “I’ll sleep on the couch.”

            “Are you sure?”

            “Positive.”

            I chewed the inside of my lip. “Thanks Jeremy…”

            A few minutes later I felt a pair of arms around me. “Don’t thank me, Holly. This is what friends are for. Especially when the friend in need had a fight with her significant other.”

            “I know,” I mumbled, my voice cracking again as a new wave of sorrow washed over me. I turned around so I could hug him back. “I’m sorry, Jeremy. I’m being unusually emotional.”

            “I would be too if I was in a fight with the person I love,” he responded, rubbing my back soothingly. “Go get some sleep.”

             Nodding my head, I let go of him, and trudged over to his bed. It was surprisingly comfortable as I sunk onto it, climbing under the covers. I stared at my phone for a few seconds, debating whether to send a text to Chris or not. It would be impossible to fall asleep knowing he was still angry with me. Finally I decided to send him one. Not apologizing, not saying anything but one word: Night.

            It was a horrible minute of torture with the thoughts he wouldn’t text me back before he finally did. A huge sigh or relief left my lips as I clicked open the text.

            Night, Holly.

            A small smile spread across my lips. It was enough for me.

____________________________________________

Note: I'm not changing Holly's character... She can't become BA all of a sudden... that's like making Hermione fail a test and having her become stupid. It's not happening. Seriously, if you don't like it, don't read it. I'm sorry if you don't like it, but I like the way I have Holly's character.

A vote for their fight? :3 I know a lot of you have been wanting one and I really wanted to write one... but it's harder than I thought it'd be. My fingers were like NOOOO DON'T MAKE THEM FIGHT! and my mind was like >:D YES! But I always imagined Chris as the not cute when jealous type. I mean, he saw Holly kissing his best friend. BUT YEAH. Don't hate him too much.

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Today's song is Hero by Skillet. Skillet is an amazing band.