Chapter 37: Julian Something Aylmer, let go off me...

》》》Julian's POV《《《

"I need your help."

"Oh god." I heard her groan and curse. "You had to call me in the middle of a nice dream?"

"Laura, wake up," I told her. It was three a.m. so I wasn't too concerned with anyone looking for me. Everyone was sound asleep, peaceful, lost in their worlds, while I was wide awake all night. "By the way, isn't it almost afternoon for you?"

"Yeah, I was trying to sleep in," she mumbled.

"Well, wake up, sister. Your assistance is much needed," I told her.

"What is it, now? Did you find a new food or new phrase or something?"

"If only," I said, shaking my head. "It's a girl."

"What?" She was definitely awake, now. "Who? Details!"

I looked around taking my time answering. "Her name is Cassandra Evans." I wasn't too sure of what she wanted in the details.

"Yes, I definitely know everything by a name," she replied. I heard the clear sarcasm in her tone even on the mobile. "What does she look like? What's the problem? And it's been a while since I heard you mention someone."

"I know I know. Well, my Cassie has dark hair, much like yours, actually. Beautiful--absolutely beautiful brown eyes. Lightest shade you can find," I smiled and saw a mental image of Cassie. "And her smile. Laura, her smile--when she actually smiles--is...inexplicable--"

"Okay, give me a sec!" she said cutting me off. "Mum! Mum, come here!"

"Laura, don't you dare get Mum involved!" I said, mostly horrified that she was calling Mum over.

"Shut up. I am putting it on speaker, so Mum can give her advice, too," Laura said. I sighed and tried not to yell at her. Was this really necessary?

"Julian?" I heard Mum's excited voice.

"Mum. How is everything?"

"Good, but better now that I hear you got yourself a crush." There was a burst of giggles.

"Ha ha, so funny," I mocked. "Glad you find my problems amusing."

The giggling died down and now, I heard concerned tones. "Julian, what's wrong? How is it going with that girl?" Mum asked.

"She fancies someone else," I sighed and looked at the vast lake. The water seemed so calm and serene...opposite of what my life was.

"Qué pobrecito! My poor baby..." Mum sympathized.

"Make her like you," said Laura as if the answer was that simple.

"How? I have already told you she has feelings for someone else."

"Wait, first tell me your status, then I'll tell you how," she replied.

"Friends. We're friends--in her eyes, that is."

"Ouch. Friend zone," I heard her say in a sad tone. "You still have hope of having her, nonetheless."

"Definitely, after a million years," I said sarcastically.

"Hey, aren't you the optimistic one?" I didn't say anything which gave her a go. "You simply have to get yourself out of that friend zone. Show her you want something more than friendship."

"Cassie isn't like other girls, Laura," I said quietly. A small pebble was a couple of feet away. I moved and kicked it into the lake.

"I have heard that one so many times." I almost saw the eye roll. My sister just had that tendency to undervalue things.

"No, Laura, she really is different. Her personality is...well, different, but in a way, strange." It was difficult to explain something that was better off being seen. "She keeps to herself, usually but still manages to have her moments. I have seen her at her worst. Things displease her easily. She is only content by small gestures of kindness. Cassie is to hard-core and strong on the outside. On the inside, she is simply lonely--something I cannot stand.This guy--the one she has feelings for--doesn't really know much about her. I mean sure they have known each other since primary school, however, he never really made an effort to know her." This talk was slightly frustrating. Being helpless was something I avoided the most.

"Opposites do attract, eh?"

"Are you going to be helpful or not?" I said frustrated.

"Julian, dear, you should try hinting to her that you want something more than friendship, like flirting, complimenting, etc.," Mum offered. At least, someone was trying. I should have called Mum in the first place not my sixteen year old sister.

"But Mum, how? I can't simply begin flirting or something of the sort," I said as I ran a hand through my hair. "It may make things awkward. I don't want to lose a friend in this."

"You'll be staying in the friend zone with those thoughts," said Laura. She was really being useless. "Be subtle. Don't throw yourself at the girl, but show her that you are a possible option for her." Okay, maybe not that useless.

"Option? More of an incentive," I said bitterly.

"Julian, I have never heard you so down before. It's only a girl," Mum said. "And you are not an incentive for someone. If she doesn't pick you, then it's a great loss for her."

"Loss for me, too, Mum," I said quietly.

"Gosh, Julian, you really do like her," Laura said sounding surprised.

"Can you contribute something more helpful than stating the obvious?"

"No need to be rude," my sister retorted. "For now, just drop subtle hints. Don't spend too much time with her. What I mean is that show her enough that you care but don't stick around with the girl too much. You don't want to look desperate."

"I see," I grinned. "What if it doesn't work?"

"Find another one," Laura replied immediately.

"Yes, ma'am," I chuckled.

"Oh, something's smells, Mum! The snickerdoodles! No!" Muffled voices filled the phone. Mum was known for her lack of attention to the food she was cooking. I wouldn't be surprised if she burned another dish and caused a fire. Memories. "Julian, we'll talk later. Love you!" Laura said and hung up before hearing my reply.

"Thank you, Laura. Let's get this plan on the go," I said to no one in particular.

Let's hope this plan worked, too.

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》》》Cassie's POV《《《

"So, I have the questions and your answers to them. My intelligent side says you still have feelings for Lucas," Piper said as we sat up on a tree.

"Intelligent side needs to be renamed."

Piper gave me a look and started saying other things about her reports. I zoned out of her lecture.

The teachers' were busy planning something for we had till noon to hang out around the forest. Many students were going over to the lake to relax. Piper and I hung back, perched on a tree with not so big leaves. I tried to figure out the species of the tree as Piper droned on.

"And Sandy, you really need to hide those mosquito bites," Piper said pointing at my neck. "They give wrong ideas, especially after yesterday night."

I pursed my lips and said, "People need to grow up, then, if they can't differentiate between mosquito bites and...other bites."

Piper laughed. I was about to ask her how she didn't have any mosquito bites when we were joined by...him. Last night's kiss flashed before my eyes. I ignored Lucas's presence below us on the ground. He expectantly waited for us to acknowledge him.

"Lucas?" Piper said before I could hint her not to say anything to him. Some friend.

"Hi, guys," I heard him say. I didn't dare look down at the idiot.

"Can we help you?" Piper asked on both of our behalves. Good thing was that she wasn't being too warm to him. Now I was sure she was on my team.

"Could I talk to Sandy for a minute? I promise it will be quick," he said fast.

Piper looked at me. I shook my head, refusing to be in Lucas's presence. Who knows, he might kiss me again!

"Lucas, you got your answer," Piper told him.

"Sandy, all I ask is five minutes. Maybe ten. But I just came here to apologize!" Lucas was talking straight to me.

"Give him a chance, Sandy," Piper told me.

I looked at her. "Whose side are you on?"

"True love's," she said dramatically, and then started giggling. I rolled my eyes. "But seriously, you two need to talk things out."

She hopped off the branch and landed on her feet on the ground. I looked down at her with an irritated look. She waved me goodbye and skipped away. Literally skipped away.

Below me, I saw Lucas made a motion to climb up. "Don't you dare come up here, Crowell," I warned. "Say whatever you have to say down there."

"What? Afraid I might kiss you again?" When I didn't say anything, he proceeded, "I guess your concern is fair. But I am not planning on kissing you like that again, ever. Sorry. I was just way too pissed off at the punch."

"You know I might have felt bad about the punch but you didn't give me a chance," I told him.

He sighed. "I really didn't--Sandy, I am sorry. I don't care if it is a selfish word. All I know right now is that I made a huge mistake last night when I kissed you. I mean it's not like I wouldn't kiss you or anything, just that I wouldn't do it for the sake of revenge."

So, he was saying that he would kiss me? I looked at him not really sure of what to say. "Just stay at least two feet away from me."

"Am I forgiven?"

"If you promise to stay two feet away from me."

He was quiet for a couple of seconds. "I can't promise that." I raised an eyebrow at him. "Sandy, I know you hate me. Why? That I cannot tell. But I do know that I like you. You don't have to like me. It makes life easier if we are all clear on things."

All clear? More like all confused.

"Like me? Feelings developed overnight?"

"No, realization dawned overnight," he corrected. I looked away from him. "Feelings were just there. The kiss confirmed them. Whether it meant anything to you or not, I don't know. For me, it helped realize that I--I really do like you."

I looked at him with a blank look. There was something that was weird. I couldn't pinpoint what, but something definitely told me I should wait.

"Lucas, please leave," I told him calmly. Maybe I needed to talk this through with Piper...or possibly Julian if he was done ditching me.

Lucas looked up at me with a disappointed expression. "As always, you're going to shrug everything off. Give me a chance, Evans. I know I messed up many times, but people make mistakes!"

"That's the problem, Lucas: People make mistakes. I don't want to make a mistake by giving you a chance," I told him truthfully. Might as well cleared this all up.

He didn't say anything for a long time. Lucas Crowell seemed to be internally thinking about who knows what. I didn't know why he was saying all these things. He wasn't the one to easily go out with anyone.

"I would like a chance," he finally said, "to make it up to you."

I looked at him debating. "Give me some time," I said.

He nodded, but I could tell he wanted to argue. "Sure."

He turned to leave when I hastily said, "Don't think this gives you any right to invade to my personal space ever again. Two feet."

"No more kissing?" he smiled. His playful attitude returning.

I rolled my eyes. "Definitely not."

"Correction: Not more...yet." He gave me a wink and ran off.

I just shook my head at his disappearing back. Here I thought things would clear up.

They just got messier.

I needed more advice, not just from my friend with the "intelligent side."

¤》¤《¤

It couldn't be possible?

Could it?

Gosh, was it?

I quickly hurried over the guys' tent. I had asked around some students about Julian's whereabouts. They said that he was still asleep in bed at twelve ten p.m. Normally, he was up with the rest of the male population in our group. This was absolutely ridiculous. Someone was slacking. Sleeping past noon was...well, was it possible? For Julian, that is.

As I walked inside the tent, I found the foreigner sprawled over his sleeping bag. He laid on his stomach, fast asleep, with his head buried in a pillow. I walked over to wake him up. It wasn't like there was anyone else in here to do it for me.

"Julian, wake up," I said giving him a quick poke on the shoulder. He wore pajamas but not a shirt which made it harder for me to push him awake. I kept my eyes away from his naked back. "Julian Aylmer, wake up!" I said loudly next to his ear. He groaned and tugged at the blanket that was barely even on him. I tried to poke him again so he would wake up. Instead he grabbed my hand midway through the action.

"Let me sleep," he said clutching my hand. He pulled it to his chest. I felt his steady heartbeat underneath and tried to pull away. His grip--even though he was half asleep--was really tight and strong. I was becoming more and more uncomfortable.

"Julian Something Aylmer, let go off me this instant or I won't hesitate kicking you!"

I got the response I wanted, immediately. Julian sat up straight, wide awake, my hand still in his. When I turned my gaze on our hands, he let go. "Cassie, for god's sake! You nearly gave me a heart attack!"

"Good. Now, if you hadn't tried to rip my arm off, you wouldn't be in that dilemma."

"Sorry," he said running a hand through his hair. "And why did you wake me up? I believe I told others to not let anyone bother me."

"Bother you?" I stood up. That's when I realized how wrong it was of me to come and wake him up. I hated it when people disturbed my sleep, and now, I was disturbing someone else. Great. "Gosh, yeah, I didn't realize. I didn't have any right." I looked away, too, since he wasn't wearing a shirt. Men. How hard was it to sleep with a shirt on?

Though he looked sleepy, he made no effort to go back to bed. "No, no, it's- I fell asleep really late last night," he said clutching his head. "And darling, you did have a right to wake me up. I have bothered you so many times, it's only fair," he grinned.

"Good. Now, get up. It's going to be twelve thirty soon," I said quickly.

"Already? Fantastic," he mumbled and rubbed his eyes.

I noticed something weird about him. "Wait, how come you don't have a single mosquito bite on yourself and I have so many?!" I asked as I tried to find any red marks on his body. He gave me a strange look.

"Is that some excuse to look at me without seeming obvious?" he asked, the corners of his mouth twitching.

I immediately shifted my eyes from his chest to his face. It would have been embarrassing if I was actually trying to check him out, but I wasn't. "Really, Julian?"

"What? I shouldn't trust girls too much." He gave me a sleepy, dimpled smile.

"Thanks for the lack of trust in me," I said flatly. "I actually was curious but forget it. It's time for you to get up, lazy."

"Why? Anything particular going on?"

"No. But you're missing out on your last day of the trip."

He sighed and crashed his head back on his pillow. "Go on. I'll be out soon."

"Julian, you are making no effort to move."

"Cassie, I'm waiting for your departure, so I can change." Then, he popped his head up to meet my eyes. "Unless, of course, you want to stay and check for any bites--"

"Goodness. No, thanks. I'm out," I said cutting him off and backing away. "Men," I muttered under my breath. Him changing was definitely not something I wanted to see. I turned and hurried out of the tent leaving Julian's laughter behind.

That went well. Was that how he was so early in the morning?

So much for asking for advice. I was never waking up a guy again.

Ever.

¤》¤《¤

"So, what's the plan for today?" Julian asked as joined Piper and I. We were sitting by the lake with our cell phones and bags of chips. Piper was doing research on how the male thinking worked. I focused on why men liked to make life complicated.

Some serious reasearch was being done.

"Free day, today, basically," I replied as I put him phone down. Then, I grabbed a bag of blue Doritos and met Julian's own blue eyes. "The teachers messed up their schedule. We were supposed to go visit some place, but they lost the tickets. What a waste of money." I crushed the chips that were inside the bag before opening it and eating the broken down food. I just liked eating in smaller pieces. Big pieces of chips were annoying...they finished faster, in my opinion.

"So, now, everyone is doing whatever they want?" he asked for clarification.

"Exactly" contributed Piper without looking up from her phone. I rolled my eyes at her. After she found out about my conversation with Lucas, she was keen on finding more information about men.

"I could have been sleeping," Julian said giving me a look.

"True, but we wanted your help," I said quickly before he decided to go back and sleep again.

"Help? With what?" he asked looking between Piper and I. Piper put away her cell phone.

"So, Lucas Crowell is a popular issue in Sandy's life," said my friend. "He seems to have told her that he likes her, but she doesn't know how she feels about that."

"How can I help?" Julian asked confused. "If she can't figure out her own feelings then how could I?"

"I'm still here," I said flatly. "I wanted your help in telling me what guys want?"

"Excuse me?"

"Julian, I mean like Lucas claims to like me but is there an ulterior motive or something? He is just really messing my brain!"

Julian was quiet for a minute or two. "Cassie, when you liked Lucas, was there an ulterior motive?" he slowly asked. Piper opened her mouth to say something but he held up a hand to shush her. "The question is for Cassie not you, Piper." With an irritated look, Piper picked up her phone and continued the research. I looked at Julian and shook my head. "Exactly. When you like a person...you just like them. Ulterior motive? What can Lucas possibly get out of having a simple crush on you? Even if it wasn't Lucas who liked you but someone else."

"I don't know! Satisfaction? Maybe he wants to just get my hopes up. Maybe he doesn't want me to move on and find someone else--"

"Excuses, darling. He doesn't even know where your heart is. Actually, no one, including yourself, knows where your heart lies."

"Well, just like everyone else's heart, mine is in the middle of the chest, a little to the left," I told him. He held my gaze and gave me a small smile.

"Let's try that figuratively," he said. I nodded.

"Hey, look, this article is perfect!" Piper broke in. "It says that men can't settle with just one girl." Piper was pointing to her phone screen. Julian seemed a little surprised by Piper's outburst. I was used to it. "They are 'adventurous' and have a lot of 'sperm to donate.' They also are territorial and possessive of their women." Piper and I kept glancing at Julian. "Sharing isn't something they enjoy. They also like sex, but that's so obvious--it goes for all guys, by the way." We exchanged a look and sneaked a glance at Julian. He didn't look too thrilled hearing this. Piper continued, "Also, guys like healthy girls. Good body, ya know."

"So, being smart or stupid doesn't matter? All about being physically healthy?" I asked Piper. What could be Lucas's motive? I knew I have never been a healthy child who could control my weight: I was either more on the skinny side or on the fat side. This section was ruled out. "Keep going."

"Okay, so if you want Lucas or any guy to be attracted to you, then wear red," she said. I looked down at my shirt and frowned. Julian grinned at that one.

"I am never wearing this shirt again," I said tugging at the hem of my dark red shirt. But this was absurd.

"I like it," Julian said with a shrug. I didn't know how to take that.

Piper exchanged a glance with me and smirked at Julian. "I bet you do, huh. Wearing red shows 'passion, love, and sex.'" Julian just had to add in his stupid comment. He was always being nice but this one was absolutely unnecessary. I had never felt so uncomfortable wearing clothes.

"Piper, just move on to the next one," I said quickly. This was just all stupid. Men were stupid if they liked someone for wearing red.

"Fine. Fine. Basically, it says guys also look for an 'agreeable' person. One who can be sympathizing and stuff. Oh and the first thing they look for in a girl is an attractive face," she said. Well, I wasn't a very "agreeable" person so that ruled out that motive for Lucas. Julian looked uncomfortable by this talk. I couldn't help but grin at his uneasiness.

"I feel the need to leave this to you two," he said standing up.

"What? Why? You don't find our faces attractive enough?" Piper asked and burst out laughing. I slightly laughed but tried to see what Julian had to say to that.

"They are beyond attractive, but I don't find this mini-research fit for me," he said uneasily.

"You want us to research girls for you?" I asked. Piper giggled. "Actually, first, you will have to find someone and then we can help you out." Piper nodded her head in agreement.

"No thank you, Cassie, Piper. All that research will go to waste. Not everyone is the same," he said not meeting either of our gazes.

Piper and I looked at each other and then at Julian. He had actually taken it seriously. "You got a crush or something?" I asked raising an eyebrow. Now, this was news.

"It's really nothing," he said and took a step backward. "I have something to get done. Will see you two later."

"Wait, who is it?" Piper asked curiously. I waited for his answer, too.

Julian grinned and shook his head. Without saying anything, he walked away, running a hand through his hair.

Well, something was up.

Two things were cleared by Piper's research:

1. Lucas had some strange motive for asking for a chance (because even the internet couldn't provide one).

2. Julian liked someone.

Why the hell was I even bothered by those two things?

¤》¤《¤

Author's Note

Anywho, whatya think of Julian's plan?
What was your fav scene with Julian so far in the book?

Lucas, happy by his apology? Does he deserve another chance? The scene I loved with him the most was the Romeo Juliet play. He was so cute. What was your fav scene so far with Lucas?

Did ya peeps like male mating perferences hahaha? (Got the info from one of the articles I included in my research paper for English--ya know since I am doing why people should marry for genetics not love. And that research paper was just...I can't even talk about this).

Anywho...THANKS SO MUCH FOR ALL YOUR LOVELY SUPPORT!!!!!!!!! It means so much! Lovely comments, PMs, and message boards messages make my day!

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